Lips Unsealed is written as if Belinda Carlisle was destined for greatness from the start, because of her belief in herself, or because of an early magic spell.
But you don't have to read far into the narrative, to see that sooo much of her success, and even her survival, was luck. With all of the drugs, and the chaotic scenarios she was involved in, she could have croaked at any time.
We could easily have lost Belinda forever. We would never have had the beat. But we all lucked out.
Belinda herself wasn't so fortunate, not until middle age.
This is the story of Belinda's failures - though us fans didn't call it that, while we enjoyed her group and solo career - followed by a single triumph, which was triggered by a personal choice, in turn motivated by her love of her family.
The book is full of tension, of the constant anticipation of fatal tragedy; and the intrigue of seeing how it all compares to our memories & perceptions of her accomplishments.
The first part of the autobiography, about her childhood and early teenage years, is for masochists who like to bring back the terrifying memories in their own young lives. The second part, starting with chapter 5, is for fans who want to know how the Go-Gos started; AND for those who think that everything just falls into place, as soon as you achieve the fame and fortune you were born to wield.
After the second part, we get an assortment of tours & parties & self-doubts & celebrities, accompanied always by Belinda's addiction, and sometimes intense alerts about impending demise. This is where, after your Go-Gos curiosity is satiated, you will be drawn into the character, and desperately hope that it will work out, somehow.
If you ever wondered why she looked like a different person, from one performance to the next, this will clear it all up for ya.
And, as other reviewers have noted, you can finish this all in one or two days, if you're inclined. Two evenings, for me.
I loved escaping into this life of a pop icon, hoping for the hero to win out against her worst enemy - herself. Thanks, Belinda, for taking the time to soul-search, and share this with us.
Random reflections, about Lips Unsealed:
==========================================
How much of it is accurate? If she was as drugged-out as she says - and there's no doubt that she was - how did she remember all this stuff? Obviously, some of it came from research and collaboration with the people who were involved.
But some of it had to come from altered memories. Even if one is completely sober, unless a dedicated daily journal is in place, there's no way to accurately reproduce all of this detail.
It's surprising how brief a period it was, in which the Go Gos peaked. They seem so much a part of music history, but their biggest fame-and-fortune time was relatively short-lived.
Like her fans, she had her own brand of hero worship. She was affected by Rod Stewart's The First Cut is the Deepest, as many were, and couldn't wait to meet Stewart; and revered Elton John. She was ecstatic, when meeting her rock idols for the first time. Just like us.
Unlike the rest of us, though, she actually got to meet and talk to George Burns. That alone is worth going through a lot of heartache and pain.
Her story is another example of how silly and simplistic it is to conclude that someone is 'mean' or 'evil' or some other simplistic derogatory term. Although I was as enamored of Belinda in the 80s as the next fan, I always thought of her as rather mean and inconsiderate. That opinion was based primarily on one television performance, where she seem to be snickering at the host. As illustrated in her bio, there is so much more going on inside all of us, that single-word personal labels are obviously a poor heuristic tool for making judgments.
What? She was still doing coke, as recently as 2005?
Where's the darn index or table of contents? Some of us reviewers have poor short-term memories, and need all the help we can get.
Her period of triumph seemed too brief, in the book. It was like fright-disappointment-fright-tragedy-disappointment-etc, followed by Yes! I made it!, bye now. I mean, it gives us some nice closure and all, but seemed just a bit off tempo at the end, for a writer who had the beat. We all know that it never really works out, quite so simply and completely.
Amazing courage, Belinda has, and I guess robustness. Taking risks didn't seem to be an issue for her, perhaps because she was too wasted to care, most of the time. But as a result, she had the chance to deal with a variety of random circumstances, one of them thankfully being the meeting with her future husband Morgan. Providing you live to tell the tale, that can't help but make you stronger. Personally, in her shoes I would have voluntarily kicked the bucket, long before she considered offing herself.
As many who conquered adversities have concluded, Belinda came to believe that some force had been watching over her for her entire life, protecting her. However, this is another example of ignoring Taleb's silent evidence: If this infinite power of protection is always there, then how come so many of us don't make it?
To come to the conclusion that we are all blessed and protected, requires us to count only the few of us who survived, succeeded, and were able to proudly talk about it. But it also demands that we disregard or rationalize the fate of the poor schmoes, who might have been nicer or worthier than us, but were never in a position (like being alive, e.g.) to tell us their side of the story.
Surprisingly, Belinda is a decent writer, able to get her point across clearly with a normal lexicon and popular cultural references. Assuming that she wrote most of this herself, she really should be applauded for this.
Perhaps this is the flip side of not being bred with much culture and sophistication; that was one of her Belinda's perceived shortcomings, which she feared would become an embarrassment.
I can't speak for Royalty and movie producers and CEOs, but from the point of view of a fan who has been touched by her songs and her book: whether she possesses a graduate level vocabulary & awareness doesn't matter, not even a little.
Lips Unsealed: A Memoir
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Top reviews from the United States
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Reviewed in the United States on December 9, 2010
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Top reviews from other countries
Louis
Entertaining, heartbreaking, uplifting... everything !
Reviewed in Canada on October 4, 2010
Tony
If you love Belinda carlisle you must read this book, BUY IT NOW!!!
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on May 29, 2022Sascha Guenther
Great read between the 'lines'
Reviewed in Canada on August 12, 2019
