What Does This Button Do?: An Autobiography

Thoroughly enjoyed this. Disappointed by so many reviews saying there isn't enough 'dirt'. I would of been disillusioned if Bruce had written that kind of crap. He tells a great story of growing up in England during the 1960s and 70's. His adventures in music and flying are fantastic. I don't think you need to be a fan (though I am) to get something out of it. I went with Audible for the first time. Glad I did. I can listen on my commute and Bruce reading Bruce's words is just effin' awesome. Well done all the way around!

Been waiting for this one. Very well written. This is different from the other musician autobiographies in that you don’t get the all the people I slept with and all the drugs I’ve done and all the rehabs I went to. Bruce Dickinson is “the most interesting man alive”, not the Dos XX guy. I recommend this.

This was a fun memoir by Bruce Dickinson. Fans of Iron Maiden will not be disappointed. It's humorous and very enlightening. After reading this, I want to get the audiobook because I think he'd be a great narrator. Highly recommended!

Great read. I’m a longtime Maiden fan, and really enjoyed getting inside Bruce’s head. He’s a good writer (no ghostwriter here) and tells an entertaining story of his life, with lots nice insights.

Bruce's humor comes through loud and clear , making you laugh out loud when you least expect to. Their also numerous poignant moments where you're glad he was able to step out of his iron maiden cloak and live a life we all only dream of.

A very intellectual look at the journey of one of rock’s statesmen. If you are looking for the typical rock star self serving ego trip then this isn’t for you. But if you want to take a tour of an interesting man on a bizarre walkabout in life then this is a must read! Well done Mr. Dickinson!!! ??????

Bought as a Christmas present for my brother who is one of the biggest Maiden fans that ever lived. It arrived on time in perfect condition and he is very happy with the book itself. I can't speak to the content as I haven't read it, but my brother enjoyed it and it has a few pages of photos from Bruce's musical career and personal life.

The Bruce Dickinson legend only gets bigger every day. The guy does not stop, it seems a workalholic, an eternal enterpreneurial man. Also, he already had published books under his belt, so when he published his autobiography, I've thought: "This is a given, it must be fantastic." But, after reading it, I did not think so.

I don't care about gossip, dirt tales, whatever. But it serms Bruce was worried about the final lenght of the book, and he just left things out.

There are satisfying details about the trip to Sarajevo. As for music in general, very little.

And he does not only leave wives and girlfrienfs and children out. It seems he has no real close friends, no intimacy with anybody at all. The cancer chapter, for example, is one of the best and hardest and sad in the book. But, as Bruce writes, there was nobody at all supporting him. It seems it was just his doctor and himself. No family or hired assistantd to help him even to buy things at the supermarket. No emotional doubts. Nothing.

Anyeay, by choosing that approach, he wrote an unique book, with a signature style, and maybe that's its merit.

Just to reinforce what other people have said: expect close nothing at all about Iron Maiden. And, as he makes clear when he talks about the negative criticism he received about the Skunkworks project, he won't give a damn about negative criticism to this book.

I got this book from the library instead of buying it. I’m glad I did. While it’s on ok and somewhat interesting read, it’s not up to par with other musician autobiographies.

Bruce really should have had help with this. Many of the terms used are unique to the U.K., so many folks who don’t come from there won’t be familiar with the terms.

I really expected more details of his time with Maiden. Very little info about what happened with the band on tour or in the studio, or Bruce’s relationship with the other members. It sounds like he was a hired hand, just came in to sing, and then focus on his personal hobbies.

Dickinson has here written a very free flowing autobiography that is very easy to read. He starts off setting the scene by discussing his childhood, school life and finally boarding school. Given he hardly ever had anything approaching a 'proper' job it's pretty much right into the music side of things from there. There are the fairly clichéd stories about roughing it and living very much hand to mouth in early bands that ended up going nowhere until he found himself in Samson.

At this point things change as Samson were a band with a record deal. Bruce gives us some anecdotes about the band and his eventual moving across to Iron Maiden. Most people buying this will of course be Maiden fans and so it is understandable why he spends time talking about his feelings about certain albums and where they were recorded etc. What is a nice touch is that there are very few 'sex, drugs and rock 'n' roll' stories in the book. There are a few and he is honest about what he didn't and didn't partake of however he mostly eschews any sort of sensationalistic warts 'n' all vibe. Then again the enduring stature of Maiden means enough people will buy this anyway and so he didn't really have to I suppose...

The book talks about his many hobbies and the rich life he has led - flying planes, fencing and travelling about. He is full of praise for others and rarely has a bad word to say about anybody. In fact it is interesting to see how he enjoys working with other musicians. He is open and honest about his cancer issues and the process he went through in that regard as well.

As he says himself in the afterword he made a conscious decision to exclude 'no births, marriages or divorces, of me or anybody else'. Some might find that unusual and certainly the book could perhaps be said to lack a certain emotional quotient due to these areas not being discussed but if you accept that this is still a very entertaining book. Even if he does wax a little too lyrical about the later Maiden albums.....

Maiden fans really should buy this. You won't regret it in the least.

I read this for much the reason probably everyone reads this book - I really enjoy Iron Maiden. Admittedly, I was even really aware of Iron Maiden until my husband introduced me to the band. Since then, I've gone to concerts, watched Flight 666, and suddenly found myself a big Iron Maiden fan. Bruce Dickinson has been a mystery to me, what with his interesting collection of hobbies and interests on top of being an insane heavy metal lead singer. I was happy to share this audiobook with my husband and have yet even more Iron Maiden discussions.

So, full disclaimer - I listened to this rather than regular reading it and I think that really helped. It is read by the man himself, and he is a great storyteller. You get a lot of history on his time at school, how he learned and developed his fencing skills, and (of course) how he ended up a pilot in varying degrees of certification. I did notice the lack of mention of any relationships and kids along the way (I'll have to go check the wikipedia page), but he discusses that in the afterward.

The life he has had (and he's not done yet) is amazing. I loved the stories, the history, and the passion he tells it all with. As my typical type of book is paranormal romance, I have to say I was pleasantly surprised to have myself sucked into this autobiography. I'd even say that I would recommend it to non-Iron Maiden fans, if only for the interesting story that is included here.

I found the book to be disappointing, if only because Bruce chose not to talk about anything personal. It seems weird that you would put out an autobiography without discussing personal things, like family. I understand his desire to talk about his accomplishments in flying and fencing, but those chapters were honestly kind of boring. The first half of the book where he talks about growing up and where he's from are a little better, but he never really goes into a lot of detail. Overall it's interesting, but I didn't really learn a lot about him. We already know he likes to fly and fence, there wasn't really anything new or enlightening in this book.

If you are expecting an in-depth discography of music of Iron Maiden & Bruce’s solo outings, you are going to be a little disappointed. Bruce breezes through a lot of his musical accomplishments with almost token reference, plus keys events such as his break down after “The Somewhere in time” tour, or his departure from Maiden are either left out, or not really satisfactory discussed.
To be honest, apart from Adrian Smith, Bruce surprisingly doesn’t appear to be particularly close to the rest of Iron Maiden. Plus his don’t half harp on about fencing & flying airplanes which can be a effort to get through.
The chapter about his battle against cancer is really well written, leaving no detail out about the treatments, side effects & the mental & emotional trauma Bruce had to endure. We Brits do have a bit of a "stiff upper lip" attitude to such things, so it is quite refreshing that Bruce is so open & honest about his experience, well done sir.
I think the main problem with “Autobiography” is that its only 370 pages long, which for such a full life is way too short (Bruce does concede that he could have extended the book to 800 pages), it may have been a better idea to have released the book in a series of volumes (Bruce’s childhood & teens years could have easily filled the whole of the first one).
But saying all that, “An Autobiography” is an entertaining read, with Bruce having a talent for story telling, or be it overly-detailing the wrong parts.

This book goes through events on warp speed. For example, BD leaves bands like Speed, Shots, and Samson without much discussion on how the separation ended. It was almost like there wasn’t much thought or consideration in the loyalty to those bands. Essentially these were just stepping stones. Did he have any feelings for those band mates? How did he say goodbye if he did? He left Shots for Samson and Samson for Maiden. However, not much discussion on the separation.

The way he was discovered by Samson is actually described a bit different. He did an interview with journalist Chris Welsh on October 5, 1989 which is part of the Samson Head On and Shock Tactics Gem release which he describes grabbing Thunderstick as he was going to use the bathroom and doing a spiel on him. The book describes his verbal assault on patrons, however, no specific mention that he did it on Thunderstick. In addition, no mention that Samson were in the crowd and witnessed the incident. According to the old interview the offer of Samson came some time later via telephone and not on the spot as he states in the book. It may seem trivial but something is not accurate. Moreover, the offer from A&M records as a Solo Artist is detailed differently on the linear notes of the re-releases of the Samson albums. Per the notes, there was an offer of $500,000 for the entire band and not simply just Dickinson. I can’t say which account is accurate, but Bruce could’ve corrected the previous story. Obviously, both Paul Samson and Chris Alymer are no longer with us and can’t refute anything that is reported in the book. However, here is the account from Paul Samson on the linear notes of the 2001 Shock Tactics re-release: “And after the success at Reading (1981), within a week we’d been offered deals by A&M and RCA for over half a million pounds apiece.”

Yet when the guitarist returned from a break in Greece he was was worried to learn that Bruce had disappeared. Management were becoming frantic, as signatures for the new label arrangements were required. “Chris and I had gone into the office to take a look at the contracts, when Bruce suddenly walked in, spotting a brand new biker’s jacket-something he said he’d never wear,” relates Samson. “He wasn’t interested in what was on the table for the band and said he’d come to tell us he was leaving to join Iron Maiden.”

The departure of Maiden isn’t discussed much. In addition, no response on the allegation from Steve Harris that he didn’t give 100 percent during the Fear of the Dark tour on some gigs. Also bizarre that he takes a swipe on “past” Maiden members for
“Karaoke style nostalgia” as Maiden did do tours with only exclusive stuff from the early albums.

The entire issue with CMC International label isn’t mentioned. He didn’t feel they promoted his music well. Moreover, he fails to mention that he was dropped by his label almost immediately after “Balls to Picasso.” Skunkworks was a major sales flop with soundscan sales much lower than both Tattooed Millionaire and Balls to Picasso. When he rejoins Maiden he gives the false impression that he was doing great while his old band Maiden were a sinking ship. The reality is that both bands weren’t in a great situation. The Chemical Wedding did okay, but the label didn’t want to support a US tour. There was no TCW tour in America. In fact, when I saw Dickinson live in 1997 he was playing a club tour in front of a few hundred people in a major city. When he joined Maiden he sold MSG in two hours. Obviously, there was great incentive for him to join Maiden.

As other reviewers stated although Fencing is an important part of his life the attention given at the expense of both Musical and personal life is glaring. There is more insight given to his Fencing coaches than many of the musicians’ he worked with in the last 40 years.

The loquacious Dickinson swagger does come out with some distasteful generalizations about Americans as obese and substance abuse. Of course, he fully appreciates the enormous amount of money that Americans have contributed to the lifestyle of both him and his family.

There is no mention of any controversies as the infamous one regarding Niki Sixx, Metallica comments, Sharon Osbourne, or some incidents with fans. Although one can respect keeping family stuff private, the omission of innocuous details as how he met both wives or even stating that his son Austin was named after his grandmother is also omitted..

With any autobiography you expect to read the some of the mistakes or regrets on the life of the person. However, there is no discussion of any mistakes or talk about his dealings with business people, public, or other musicians.

The book does have a few funny tour stories and some quirky fun at the expense of others. Perhaps the biggest new tale learned was that Bruce once had a gun pointed at him in Amsterdam. Yes, he was correct the nerdy fans do know his first name is Paul.

Furthermore, the book should have an entire discography that includes, Samson, Solo, and Maiden.

This is essentially an evasive autobiography that reads more of a terse diary of events than a full autobiography. If you are a casual fan and just getting into Dickinson’s solo stuff or Maiden this might suffice for the moment. However, if you are a Dickinson nerd there isn’t much new here. In fact, approximately 75% of the stuff written I read in Mick Wall’s book Run to the Hills or on other interviews that Bruce has given over the years. If you want a more comprehensive story on Maiden than you should get Mick Wall's book or get this book when the price is discounted.

Here is another reader who very much enjoyed the first part of the book, in which Mr. Dickinson talks about his childhood, his experiences at boarding school, and how he came to be a singer.

Unfortunately, the witty writing that made the first half a page-turner for me is mostly lacking in the second half. His tales of fencing and flying are not uninteresting, I just found them less relatable and a bit too dry at times. And I became outright annoyed when he talked about his cancer treatment without even so much as a hint of an acknowledgement to family or friends.

Unlike other reviewers, I found it refreshing that he didn't talk about his life as a rock star or "dish out dirt" on Iron Maiden. I liked to read about his many different pursuits. I just wish he had included a few more personal highlights and how they affected him.

Like everyone else who bought this book or is thinking of buying this book we want to know about Bruce Dickinson the singer. But, this book is about Bruce Dickinson the fencer and then Bruce Dickinson the Pilot. He really gets into those subjects with passion.
But, as for Iron Maiden and his solo career he just glances them over with one or two sentences. “Then we recorded such and such album. And now back to flying!!”
It’s his book so whatever, but it was a real let down for me. I have every Maiden album and every Dickinson solo album and this book just didn’t go into anything I hoped it would.

As said in the title, Bruce's book briskly details all the major instances in his lifes journey. As a longtime Maiden fan since 1982 (coinciding when he joined the band-coincidental) I was familiar with the main plotlines in his life. Some very funny stories & informative things I didn't know. His detour into big aircraft piloting & his experience fighting cancer are actually substantial covrrage in the book. If I heard accurately, Bruce wrote it all himself without a ghostwriter & he proves to be very articulate & entertaining. A very enjoyable read, whether one is a Iron Maiden fan or not.

If you are looking for salacious details and dirt, you have the wrong book. This is a tale of an interesting life with humorous and poignant stories related within. This is a tale of hard work, grit and determination.

I have always wondered how Bruce does it all and now I know. One of the best rock star stories I have ever read.

I highly enjoyed ‘The Dirt’ by Motley Crue and ‘Life’ by Keefe, but Dickenson added much more depth by enlightening the listener to the influences that allowed him to evolve as a singer as well as propelling Iron Maiden to a forward thinking and recognizable global heavy metal band that is second to none. I enjoy the sex, drugs, burn out, and then rescurrection of a bands career, but Dickenson reflection on the past and future was quite refreshing and positive. Even if your not a Maiden fan I would recommend listening to this audio book. Rock ‘on!

This is not a biography about Iron Maiden, but rather a biography about poor, scrappy and smart kid who discovers a love for music, airplanes, theatre and fencing among other things, who also happens to sing for Iron Maiden. Less than half the book is about his interactions with the band, touring, recording etc. Its ok.

Wonderful story of an interesting life. I only knew about the Rock and Roll portion of the authors life. Reading about the rest of interests and exploits was great fun. I appreciated his not resorting to “making the rubble bounce “. A captivating story! Highly recommended.

Absolutely worth the read but if you’re looking to hear about Maiden or his personal life, including how he handles the travel, the illness with a family, look elsewhere.

I kid you not the only thing he said about Dave Murray was a comment on how he solos- and it was a pretty left handed comment.

Still worth the read. The description of his cancer journey was tough but worth it in the sense that you will REALLY not want to ignore your health after reading it. Which was likely his intent.

Cocky? Yeah. But it’s not bragging if you do it. This is a guy who is not afraid to try new things, and work hard at them. Going to fence? Be world ranked. Going to fly? Rate 747’s, 37’s, 57’s, and WW1 replica triplanes (I’d write the name of the plane but last time my review got booted. I assume the algorithms thought I was sneaking in a bad word). Going to front a band? Front Maiden. He didn’t mention the Cardiff Aviation thing. Maybe it would have been overkill.

I'd read autobiographies by Bruce Springsteen, Sammy Hagar, and a few others, and I was excited to read Bruce Dickinson's. This book was kind of a letdown. It started off really good when he wrote about his life before Maiden, but then it became a series of short stories that didn't flow very well and there wasn't enough information in them. He gives everything on stage, but this book was pretty vanilla.