John Williams

Tim Greiving takes us on a fascinating and insightful journey into the brilliant mind of composer John Williams. Fantastic! I could not put it down. * Howard Shore, Composer *John Williams defines the word inspiration. Almost every young composer I meet says that John was their inspiration for wanting to compose (including my own son!). I am personally inspired by how incredibly generous, supportive, and kind he is as a human being. It’s rare to know someone so successful with such genuine humility and compassion. I think the world of John. * Marin Alsop, Internationally renowned conductor *Readers be aware, the deep love for music on the following pages is highly contagious! * Hildur Gudnadóttir, Composer and musician *John Williams’ music was essentially the soundtrack for my entire childhood, and I’ll never forget meeting him for the first time at President Obama’s inauguration in 2009. To record and perform his piece, Air and Simple Gifts, with Yo-Yo Ma, Gabriela Montero, and Itzhak Perlman was one of the greatest moments of my life. He has given all of us the gift of perfect storytelling through music. It is fantastic to see his amazing story told to the world. * Anthony McGill, Principal Clarinet, New York Philharmonic and internationally acclaimed Clarinet Soloist *Captivatingly written, Greiving’s book understands deeply the power, the art and the humanity of John Williams’s music. From his beginnings and musical heritage, this is a fascinating walk-through of Williams’s life and his musical influences. Steeped in interesting detail of the musical era and the beginnings of film music right through to current times, the book is especially luminous when Greiving pauses, steps back and comments on Williams’s music and his person. Greiving knows his subject well and has painstakingly immersed himself in understanding Williams’s work, writing engagingly, while enlightening the reader with deep insights into the man himself. * Rachel Portman, Film composer *Fans of John Williams’ music will devour this all-encompassing work. [Tim Greiving] provides reams of fascinating inside information about several spectacular scores, including for the classics Jaws, Star Wars, Raiders of the Lost Ark, and Schindler’s List. * Kirkus Reviews *[Greiving] is a sharp writer with a vivid turn of phrase and the only time I put the book down was to seek out online whatever music he was describing. … If you want Williams trivia, this is the place. * Neil Armstrong, Mail on Sunday *John Williams: A Composer’s Life gives the master the kind of biography he deserves, in this richly narrative and deeply researched book by journalist Tim Greiving. Like its subject, the book wears its expertise lightly, inviting all to sit down and relax with a beautiful story. * The Boston Globe *[John Williams] is widely acknowledged as possibly the greatest film score composer of all time, and Tim Greiving’s meticulous… biography will tell you everything you will ever need to know about him. * Paul Whitington, Irish Independent *Tim Greiving’s exhaustive study of the world’s most popular composer is a masterwork. Allying extensive, exclusive access to Williams with great storytelling, intelligent analysis and a deep love for its subject, it’s as gripping and essential as Williams’ best themes are catchy. … Frankly, it’s the book Williams’ monumental talent deserves. * Ian Freer, Empire Magazine *[A] stunning achievement that digs deep into the composer’s work and life in a way that’s fascinating and unforgettable. * January Magazine *A Composer’s Life, it’s called, but even the briefest glance at John Williams’s resume reminds you that his music is all our lives. … It’s a dense, literate read which illuminates his work with brilliant insight. * Nick Setchfield, SFX *A beautifully written, revelatory tribute. * Michael Beek, BBC Music Magazine *[A] hugely engrossing new biography of Hollywood’s premier composer. * Norman Lebrecht, The Critic *Fans of Mr. Williams’s music will find Mr. Greiving’s book completely absorbing. * Holiday Gift Guide 2025, Wall Street Journal *Greiving’s excellent musical analysis of individual Williams works is formulated so passionately and knowledgeably that individual film moments appear in the mind’s eye. * Sassan Niasseri, Rolling Stone (Germany) *This is a tacitly authorised biography… and one so exhaustive that it is hard to see there ever being a need for another… a serious book about a serious musician. * Alexandra Wilson, The Critic *A Composer’s Life has the elements of a starry biography, as well as a discography of quintets, sextets, and tracks. It also offers a vista of modern America as sweeping and compelling as Williams’s music. * Susan Gray, The Church Times *Greiving’s magisterial biography of our greatest living film composer - somehow the first ever published - offers exceptional insights into the man and his methods, spinning more than 20 hours of interviews with Williams into a narrative of cinematic sweep, clarity, and color. * Nate Chinen, 2025 Gift Guide, WRTI-FM (Philadelphia, PA) *Thorough, intimate and deeply appreciative, John Williams: A Composer’s Life stands as an essential account of a composer whose work has quietly become part of how we remember the movies and ourselves. * Kaitlin Jeffries, Voice Magazine *Greiving’s expansive biography documents the composer’s life, revealing the secrets behind some of the most-listened to music of the past 50 years. * Mark Mason, Best Music Books of 2025, Daily Mail *This imposing new biography of Williams will no doubt be the definitive study of his body of work for the foreseeable future… a record of astonishing musical accomplishment. * Aaron James, Lamp Magazine *Greiving [is] one of film music’s top chroniclers… as feel-good as any book about a composer ever could be, because when you think about someone who is arguably the very best at his craft as anyone who ever lived, and is popular recognized as such through a majority of his lifetime… what could feel better? * Chris Willman, Variety, Best Music Books of 2025 *A delightful and definitive new biography… Williams thoroughly deserves this epic treatment. * Bruce Bawer, Commentary Magazine *

Tim Greiving is an arts journalist in Los Angeles who specializes in film music. He has contributed stories to NPR, the Los Angeles Times, the Washington Post, and the New York Times. He has written program notes for the Los Angeles Philharmonic and the Royal Albert Hall, and liner notes for more than one hundred soundtrack albums. He contributes to the Visual History Program for the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and teaches film music history at the University of Southern California.