Genre: Non-Fiction
Description:
“From the Sawtooth Mountains of central Idaho, where phone service
still may not reach, to the bustle of Austin, centerpiece of the Texas Music
Scene, the influence of mountain roots music is real, lasting, and chronicled
by Josh Crutchmer. This highly-anticipated sequel to Red Dirt: Roots Music,
Born in Oklahoma, Raised in Texas, At Home Anywhere ties mountain originals
like Pinto Bennett to cowboy poets like Baxter Black and Chris LeDoux, and
follows their trail down every highway and back road they chose. The rise,
heyday and pending touring retirement of Reckless Kelly is covered extensively,
bouyed by the humor and introspection of Willy and Cody Braun, their musical
upbringing and the larger-than-life influence they forged wherever they made
music. The book also puts you in the seats at the venerable Red Rocks
Amphitheater for the 2022 comeback concerts by the Turnpike Troubadours,
supported by Reckless Kelly and Shovels & Rope. You'll also get the
complete story of the Braun Brothers Reunion and its lasting impact on the
community of Challis, and read about the determination of Micky and the
Motorcars to carve their own legacy. The Motel Cowboy Show will inform
as much as it entertains, and it will leave readers casting eyes toward the
stages and studios of the American West.”
Author:
Currently the print planning editor at the New York Times, Josh
Crutchmer has a long history in journalism having worked for several newspapers
around the country before landing at the Times. During that time his specialty
has often been music journalism which he
still does on the side, reporting at times for various newspapers as well as
Rolling Stone magazine. He has one prior book, Red Dirt, a book about
music with its roots in Oklahoma. For more, visit his website.
Appraisal:
As with Josh Crutchmer’s last book, Red Dirt, that covered the
history and various connections involved in the development of the Red Dirt
music scene that originated in Oklahoma and spread from there, this book does
the same for some of the music with roots in the mountains of the western US. As
with Red Dirt each chapter of the book stands alone. This can feel
disjointed if you expect one chapter to flow into the next and sometimes
results in something that was covered in one chapter getting repeated in
another one when the information is needed as background in both places, but for
the most part if you understand the goal was for each chapter to stand alone,
it is no big deal.
If you’re a fan of one or more of the musical acts mentioned in the
description and want to know more about their history and their influences,
reading this is a no-brainer. If you read and enjoyed Red Dirt, same
story.
Some chapters are question and answer chapters, what he calls “roundtables,”
with multiple musicians. Some are a run down of a festival with a brief summary
of those who played, impressions, and how they connect to each other and the overriding
theme, with some glimpses behind the scenes. Yet other chapters are what you
might expect, a summary of the history of one or more of the musical acts
significant in this subgenre and how they connect to others. As a fan of many
of the bands and the genre of music covered, I knew some of the history,
certainly more of it than I did when I read Red Dirt, but I learned a
lot more. One of the festivals that were discussed in a chapter was one I’d
attended, and it helped me appreciate the experience more while also reliving
it to some degree. Other festivals that I didn’t attend, I got to experience
vicariously through the author’s eyes. A fun read that has left me wondering
whether Crutchmer has another music scene he’s planning on documenting in his
next book.
Buy now
from: Amazon US Amazon UK
FYI:
A small amount of adult language.
Format/Typo
Issues:
No significant issues.
Rating: *****
Five Stars
Reviewed
by: BigAl
Approximate word count: 60-65,000 words
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