Overview
"Eileen Joyce: A Portrait is a frank and revealing biography of one of Australia's most dazzling musical talents. During the 1940s and 50s, concert pianist, recording artist, radio performer, fashion leader and film star Eileen Joyce enjoyed enormous critical acclaim and a popularity, bordering on adulation. In this carefully researched and written biography, Richard Davis reveals for the first time Eileen's true origins and her struggle to make a career against formidable odds. New evidence about the highs and lows of her private life is presented frankly using information never before released by her family. Her personality is put under the microscope, her talent analysed and her place in Australian and international musical history evaluated."--BOOK JACKET.Synopsis
"Eileen Joyce: A Portrait is a frank and revealing biography of one of Australia's most dazzling musical talents. During the 1940s and 50s, concert pianist, recording artist, radio performer, fashion leader and film star Eileen Joyce enjoyed enormous critical acclaim and a popularity, bordering on adulation. In this carefully researched and written biography, Richard Davis reveals for the first time Eileen's true origins and her struggle to make a career against formidable odds. New evidence about the highs and lows of her private life is presented frankly using information never before released by her family. Her personality is put under the microscope, her talent analysed and her place in Australian and international musical history evaluated."--BOOK JACKET.
Booknews
In this biography, historian Davis reveals the historical, musical, and complex personal aspects of the life of Australian pianist Eileen Joyce. In his attempt to sort out fact from fiction, he discovered how she became the victim of her own publicity, leaving behind "a minefield of lies, half truths and uncorrected assumptions" which his association with those still living who were close to the pianist helped him to sift through. The book contains several b&w photographs. Distributed by ISBS. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)