The Tastemaker

The Tastemaker charts the singular life of a man who has been at the beating heart of music's most iconic moments for over sixty years and features stories of his time working with everyone from the Beatles to the Ronettes and Elton John to the Rolling Stones. 'This is a brilliant book by a brilliant man. A magician with perfect taste. Thank God I met him. He is gold dust!' ELTON JOHN Leaving school at the age of sixteen to start his career in the music industry at Decca Records, Tony King would soon find himself becoming a close friend and confidante to some of the world's biggest artists - a far cry from his childhood days in Eastbourne. Living in an era of seismic social, technological and cultural transformation, King experienced these defining moments as an influential figure in London and New York's gay scenes. Despite his heady life in showbusiness, however, he would soon learn that a glittering career couldn't shield him from heartbreak - witness to the AIDS crisis and the devastating consequences, his personal life was intermittently marked by tumult and turmoil. This included spending time with with his friend Freddie Mercury in the Queen frontman's final days. Suffused with Tony King's disarming warmth and unparalleled charisma - and at times profoundly moving - The Tastemaker paints an intimate portrait of a music legend and captures the unpredictable world he stamped his indelible mark upon.

Tony King started his career in the music industry at Decca Records in 1958 before going on to become the youngest promotion man of the time. After setting up Immediate Records with Andrew Loog Oldham, he was approached by Sir George Martin's independent production company to promote his artists and others in the company, including the Beatles and Cilla Black. In 1970, King joined Apple Records as general manager, continuing to work with John Lennon before becoming executive vice-president of Elton John's label, Rocket. He later headed up disco promotion at RCA, going on to act as the label's creative director. He left RCA in 1984 to tour with Mick Jagger and the Rolling Stones for over twenty years, and eventually became Elton John's creative director for nine years.