In Memories Come Alive: An Autobiography, Manna Dey takes a nostalgic trip down memory lane—his early passion for wrestling and football; adolescent pranks which involved shoplifting sweets from a confectionery and pole-vaulting into the neighbour’s terrace to swipe pickle jars; and the influence of his uncle and guru K.C. Dey (the celebrated singer and composer of the 1930s). He recounts his early days in Mumbai as an assistant music director to his uncle and to composers like S.D. Burman and vividly recalls the struggle to carve a niche as a playback singer in Hindi films, competing with stalwarts like Rafi, Mukesh and Kishore Kumar. He also discusses at length his foray into the world of Bengali film and non-film music where he came to be regarded as the undisputed king of melody.