3 Stars - I listened to the audiobook of Toni Tennille's autobiography. I'm violating one of my rules about not listening to books narrated by the author. My experience has shown that authors usually make poor narrators, with a few exceptions. Unfortunately, this is not one of those exceptions. Toni Tenille's narration is overwrought and overly emotional. Add to that the very mediocre writing and it's an unenjoyable book to listen to. I enjoyed their happy positive music in the mid to late 70's so i decided to get the audible book. While there is some interesting information scatterred throughout the book, the poor writing and narration make it a chore to get through. If you have been thinking about listening to the audiobook or buying the physical book, i'd suggest borrowing the book from the library instead. ( )

Remember "hat jokes"?

For those who didn't live through the 1970s, the Captain and Tennille were a married pop music duo whose shtick was based on the contrast between their personalities: vocalist Toni Tennille was outgoing and vivacious, while her husband, keyboardist Daryl Dragon ("the Captain"), was silent and morose. They had a number of hit singles, most notably "Love Will Keep Us Together", and a variety show that featured "hat jokes" that played upon the premise that Daryl never took off his captain's hat; apparently this was true in real life as well. Eventually their music went out of style and they sank into relative obscurity until 2014, when Toni Tennille filed for divorce after almost forty years of marriage. Commentators couldn't resist quipping that "love didn't keep them together."

In her memoir Toni reveals that she and Daryl never had much of a relationship; they tied the knot primarily for image and marketing-related purposes. Music was the only thing they had in common. Outside of playing the keyboards, Daryl's interests were limited to weird diets, crackpot gurus and wild conspiracy theories. Despite his eccentricities, Toni writes that she loved her husband and longed for a real connection with him, but she couldn't make him love her back.

Toni Tennille sounds like an upbeat person, but this is a sad story of a long but ultimately failed marriage. I was concerned that the book might air dirty laundry that shouldn't be aired, but it is actually quite respectful of Daryl Dragon.

I recommend this book to all those who liked the Captain and Tennille back in the day. ( )