I Me Mine remains the only true Beatle autobiography, in which George Harrison relates his life story to Derek Taylor, and which at the time caused some comment both for its high price (the original was a very limited, very expensive edition) and for the fact that John Lennon was hardly mentioned (Harrison was, at the time, miffed with Lennon). In the Extended Edition Lennon gets more mentions, and the book costs about forty quid.
It’s still gorgeous – photos, illustrations and scanned original lyrics – and it has been updated to include more photographs and Harrison’s work up to his last album, Brainwashed. But the real value of this book is in Harrison’s first-hand recounting of his life story, from his loathing of school and his horror of becoming an electrician, through the insanity of Beatlemania and the healing power of religion and love. The content, which Taylor captured brilliantly, is sardonic, dry and often funny – just like Harrison himself – and the reader can only wish there had been time for more.
