Three Pianos: A Memoir

by Andrew McMahon

Overview

From beloved indie musician Andrew McMahon comes a searingly honest and beautifully written memoir about the challenges and triumphs of his life and career, as seen through the lens of his personal connection to three pianos.

Andrew McMahon grew up in sunny Southern California as a child prodigy, learning to play piano and write songs at a very early age, stunning schoolmates and teachers alike with his gift for performing and his unique ability to emotionally connect with audiences. McMahon would go on to become the lead singer and songwriter for Something Corporate and Jack's Mannequin, and to release his debut solo album, Andrew McMahon in the Wilderness, in 2014.

But behind this seemingly optimistic and quintessentially American story of big dreams come true lies a backdrop of overwhelming challenges that McMahon has faced—from a childhood defined by his father's struggle with addiction to his very public battle with leukemia in 2005 at the age of twenty-three, as chronicled in the intensely personal documentary Dear Jack.

Overcoming those odds, McMahon has found solace and hope in the things that matter most, including family, the healing power of music and the one instrument he's always turned to: his piano. Three Pianos takes readers on a beautifully rendered and bitter-sweet American journey, one filled with inspiration, heartbreak, and an unwavering commitment to shedding our past in order to create a better future.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781648960208
Publisher:	Princeton Architectural Press
Publication date:	10/26/2021
Pages:	240
Sales rank:	330,683
Product dimensions:	5.90(w) x 9.20(h) x 1.10(d)

About the Author

Andrew McMahon is an American singer-songwriter. He was the vocalist, pianist, and primary lyricist for the bands Something Corporate and main songwriter for Jack's Mannequin and performs solo both under his own name as well as his moniker, Andrew McMahon in the Wilderness. He is also the founder of the Dear Jack Foundation. McMahon lives in Southern California with his wife and daughter.

Table of Contents

Piano 1

1 Half-Formed Bell 13

2 Lake Effect 15

3 Losing Days in the Ravine 23

4 Fire and the Miracle of Flight 27

5 Don't Bother Unpacking 30

6 The Ghost of South Ardmore 32

7 Saltwater, Birthday, and Two Useful Sets of Wheels 44

8 Some Flowers Grow from Bone 55

9 The Prodigal Father 64

10 Japanese Screens 71

11 Drive-thru Saturday Night 79

12 Young Love, Let's Get Stoned 84

13 The Architect and the Arsonist 91

Piano 2

14 Slingshots at Dawn 103

15 Teenage Rock Star 107

16 Teeth Cutters in the Parking Lot 109

17 Tin Cans, Tires, and Wings 114

18 Glittering Exits 121

19 From the Platform, Launch the Submarine 126

20 Everything in Transit 129

21 Grief for the Living, No Really, I'm Fine 132

22 Walls of Rain 136

23 Dark Blue 141

24 So Long Mr. Invincible 147

25 Women 152

26 Crewcuts and Pneumonia 156

27 The Junk of Blood and Healing 161

28 The Jungle 165

29 Our House in the Trees 172

Piano 3

30 Bulletproof Frankenstein 181

31 The Family You Choose 183

32 The Glass Passenger 188

33 Floating with the Dead 202

34 Tarantula Mating Season 206

35 I Was the Diver, It Was Our World 212

36 People and Things 217

37 The Vampire on Melrose 220

38 New Friends and a Night in Las Vegas 223

39 Wrecking Ball, Rest in Peace 228

40 The Wilderness Years 231

41 Peace in the Desert 235

Acknowledgments 240