And the Roots of Rhythm Remains is out

Dear Mailing List,

First things first: a plug for my new Instagram (@joeboydofficial) and old Facebook accounts, with news about the book, my touring, radio and press as well as intros to characters, moments and pieces of music from And the Roots of Rhythm Remain.

Which is not to underplay the fact that And the Roots of Rhythm Remain is out now in the UK since 29 August, where it’s in the shops and available from the Faber website, and imminent in the US on September 24 and available for pre-order from Ze’s Website. Copies will be sold, though, in those bookshops and venues where I am doing events. I’ve been so fortunate with Faber and Ze as my publishers; great to work with, full of enthusiasm, patient, supportive and committed to making my costly behemoth of a book an essential purchase for bookshops and readers.

I am writing this newsletter from New York, slightly dazed after flying here from London yesterday for the first time in 5 years. I used to hop back and forth as if it were the 18 London bus… Andrea and I have come for a 5-week promotional jaunt across the US that will take me to places I haven’t visited in many years; I’m really excited about it. See below for full list of cities and events.

We start this afternoon in Brooklyn then head Monday morning to Boston and Porter Square Books in Cambridge, MA. That bookstore is just down the street from my Harvard alma mater and I’m really looking forward to sharing the stage with Yosvany Terry. Yosvany is a great Cuban musician who was a key part of ¡Cubanismo! 25 years ago and who now teaches at Harvard, as well as playing sax with Eddie Palmieri while touring the world with his own band. I will never forget the first day in Egrem Studios in Havana in 1996; when the rest of the musicians went out for a beer, I found a dreadlocked sax player seated in the control room on the only chair, leaning against the wall reading a book by Michel Foucault. We’ve been friends ever since.

Wednesday September 11th is the New York launch with David Byrne, which makes for a nice symmetry since the London launch last Wednesday was with Brian Eno, the other half of this pair of musical giants who have done as much as any to alter the course of Anglo-American popular music over the past half century and have always done so with their ears open to sounds from across the globe. The London event with Brian Eno was hugely enjoyable; Brian is one of the great original thinkers and an activist who doesn’t just talk but engages tirelessly with the world. He’s also an early enthusiast about And the Roots of Rhythm Remain (see quote below) and his support has been invaluable.

The meetings with remarkable men in resonant places continue as the tour progresses: Bob Boilen (who invented the Tiny Desk Concert) in Washington DC on Sept 14, Chicago’s Old Town School of Folk Music Sept 16, the great guitarist and raconteur Buddy Miller in Nashville at the Americana Fest on Sept 20, then the Bob Dylan Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma on Sept 22, before we head west to New Mexico, the Bay Area, LA, Houston and Austin.

Back in the UK I’ve had many great exchanges and interviews over the past few intense weeks – Cerys Matthews on her Sunday BBC Radio 6 show, Laura Barton at Green Man festival, Julian Mash at End of the Road festival, Gareth Evans at First Light festival, Max Reinhardt on Soho Radio, Gary O’Donoghue on the BBC World Service, Kathryn Tickell on BBC Radio 3’s Music Planet and Barney Hoskyns and his panel of experts at Rock’s Backpages. Some of the radio and podcasts available 4 weeks and some longer.

The response to the book has been very encouraging, including the highlights from critics and early readers listed below.

I hope many of you will come to one of these events. If you do, please make yourselves known. I really enjoy meeting with you all and spreading the word about the book.

All the best
Joe

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Critical acclaim for And the Roots of Rhythm Remain

“What an amazing book! Joe Boyd has distilled decades of experience and observation of how musical ideas interbreed, and how culture is formed, into a tumultuous, gripping and dramatic story. I doubt I’ll ever read a better account of the history and sociology of popular music than this one. It has me saying ‘Wow’ on every page.”
Brian Eno

“The producer’s epic account of global music’s cross-pollination is an inspiring tale of seduction, expression and freedom from oppression . . . every paragraph packed with information and inspiration – but written with a refreshingly light touch [. . .] Boyd’s book is, accordingly, the Proust of music history – à la recherche of much music lost, here regained and affirmed in our present.”
The Observer, Ed Vulliamy – link

“Masterly [. . .] deeply scholarly but grippingly readable – and with the best soundtrack in the world.”
Spectator, David Honigmann – link

“Sometimes it feels as if the whole world is squeezed into these 900-odd pages [. . .] Epic [. . .] His enthusiasm proves infectious; he is teacher, storyteller and, sometimes, provocateur.”
The Times, Clive Davis – link

“A dazzling and magesterial history [. . .] I rank it amongst the three best books about music I have ever read.”
Hi-Fi Choice, Nigel Williamson

“Profound . . . and beyond.”
Robert Plant

“[A] brilliant tapestry of sounds from outside the anglophone world.”
Mojo 5*****, David Hutcheon

“A formidably substantial, defiant, comprehensive and articulate stance against every modern, artificial encroachment on music-making that seeks to duplicate or replace the vital, unique human element that has always given music its magic, its integrity, and its power to connect and change lives around the world for the better.”
Caught By The River, Andy Childs – link

“One only hopes this can be taught in schools.”
Ry Cooder

“Joe Boyd has written an encyclopedic cornerstone for future writings. More than that though, he’s proved himself a master storyteller.”
Louder Than War, Trev Eales – link

“The War and Peace of world music.”
Mojo Magazine, Jim Irvin

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And the Roots of Rhythm Remain – US & UK Tour 2024

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