Looking To Get Lost: Adventures in Music and Writing

by Peter Guralnick

Overview

By the bestselling author of Sam Phillips: The Man Who Invented Rock ‘n’ Roll and Last Train the Memphis: The Rise of Elvis Presley, this dazzling new book of profiles is a culmination of Peter Guralnick’s remarkable work, which from the start has encompassed the full sweep of blues, gospel, country, and rock 'n' roll.

It covers old ground from new perspectives, offering deeply felt, masterful, and strikingly personal portraits of creative artists, both musicians and writers, at the height of their powers.

“You put the book down feeling that its sweep is vast, that you have read of giants who walked among us,” rock critic Lester Bangs wrote of Guralnick’s earlier work in words that could just as easily be applied to this new one. And yet, for all of the encomiums that Guralnick’s books have earned for their remarkable insights and depth of feeling, Looking to Get Lost is his most personal book yet. For readers who have grown up on Guralnick’s unique vision of the vast sweep of the American musical landscape, who have imbibed his loving and lively portraits and biographies of such titanic figures as Elvis Presley, Sam Cooke, and Sam Phillips, there are multiple surprises and delights here, carrying on and extending all the themes, fascinations, and passions of his groundbreaking earlier work.

One of NPR’s Best Books of 2020
One of Kirkus Review/Rolling Stone’s Top Music Books of 2020
One of No Depression’s Best Books of 2020

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780316412605
Publisher:	Little, Brown and Company
Publication date:	11/09/2021
Pages:	576
Sales rank:	1,074,537
Product dimensions:	5.90(w) x 8.90(h) x 1.60(d)

About the Author

Peter Guralnick’s books include the prize-winning two-volume biography of Elvis Presley, Last Train to Memphis and Careless Love; an acclaimed trilogy on American roots music, Feel Like Going Home, Lost Highway, and Sweet Soul Music; the biographical inquiry Searching for Robert Johnson; and Dream Boogie: The Triumph of Sam Cooke. 

Guralnick won a Grammy for his liner notes for Sam Cooke Live at the Harlem Square Club, wrote and co-produced the documentary Sam Phillips: The Man Who Invented Rock ‘n’ Roll, and wrote the scripts for the Grammy-winning documentary Sam Cooke/Legend and Martin Scorsese’s blues documentary Feel Like Going Home. His 2015 book Sam Phillips: The Man Who Invented Rock ’n’ Roll was a finalist for the Plutarch Award for Best Biography of the Year, awarded by the Biographers International Organization. His most recent book is Looking to Get Lost: Adventures in Music and Writing.

Editorial Reviews

Journalist and author Peter Guralnick offers a personal look at some of the last century’s most influential music artists and writers. Narrator Jim Meskimen’s steely timbre and vocal confidence are always a delight to hear, and he’s an intelligent performer of these captivating stories, insights, and reflections. He sounds like he loves American pop music in the same way the author does and is eager to share its rich history with listeners. Guralnick writes about familiar artists such as Chuck Berry, Merle Haggard, and others, as well as lesser-known performers, writers, and promoters who were just as critical to music’s ascendance in American culture. With Meskimen’s performance combining so well with the author’s virtuoso research and writing, this is an audio that musicians and music lovers of all stripes will savor. T.W. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2021, Portland, Maine

JANUARY 2021 - AudioFile

Journalist and author Peter Guralnick offers a personal look at some of the last century’s most influential music artists and writers. Narrator Jim Meskimen’s steely timbre and vocal confidence are always a delight to hear, and he’s an intelligent performer of these captivating stories, insights, and reflections. He sounds like he loves American pop music in the same way the author does and is eager to share its rich history with listeners. Guralnick writes about familiar artists such as Chuck Berry, Merle Haggard, and others, as well as lesser-known performers, writers, and promoters who were just as critical to music’s ascendance in American culture. With Meskimen’s performance combining so well with the author’s virtuoso research and writing, this is an audio that musicians and music lovers of all stripes will savor. T.W. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2021, Portland, Maine

JANUARY 2021 - AudioFile