About the Author

Born and raised in New Orleans, Aaron Neville began his musical career in the incredibly creative 1950s Crescent City R&B scene. Working with Allen Toussaint, he recorded his first #1 hit, the stirring ballad "Tell It Like It Is," in 1966. In the mid-70s, he began performing with his brothers--Art, Charles and Cyril--as the Neville Brothers, with the release of their debut self-titled album in 1978. Known as the first family of New Orleans music, the Neville Brothers released over a dozen influential albums and regularly closed out the world-renowned New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival. The band's accolades include three Grammy nominations, as well as the 1990 Grammy for Best Pop Instrumental Performance for "Healing Chant," and in 2017, the group was inducted into the Austin City Limits Hall of Fame.

Alongside his work the Neville Brothers, Aaron sustained a successful solo career accumulating a number of awards and accolades including five Grammy awards from 14 nominations. Today, Neville has had three singles in the Billboard Top 10 on the Hot 100 chart, three #1 hits on the Adult Contemporary chart, and "Tell It Like It Is" made it to Rolling Stone's list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time and was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2014. A lifelong devout Catholic, Neville received the University of Notre Dame's Laetare Medal, the oldest and most prestigious honor given to American Catholics, in 2015.

After a lifetime in New Orleans, Aaron Neville now lives in Duchess County, NY.

Reviews

"... iconic New Orleanian, platinum-record singer and songwriter Aaron Neville, a Grammy Hall of Famer... candidly reveals his little-known personal and professional struggles."--Booklist

"[Neville] leaves readers sharing his conviction that his life has been something of a miracle and that 'my voice was my salvation.'...The author's life has been an inspiration....A worthwhile musical survivor's story."--Kirkus

"A gratifying, spiritual, and hopeful against-all-odds memoir. An essential read for both Neville fans and those who may be unfamiliar with his music."--Library Journal

"When Aaron Neville sings he is the mightiest of Archangels. The truth he's written in these pages is no less powerful. He tells his riveting story with all the triumphs and sorrows, joys and frustrations he has experienced in his eight decades of life."--Linda Ronstadt