Wherever the Sound Takes You: Heroics and Heartbreak in Music Making

Washington Post Magazine deputy editor Rowell recounts nine music-related incidents in his life, beginning with his teenage garage band and concluding with an account of a multi-city roadhouse tour by a childhood friend who became a singer-songwriter against overwhelming odds. In between, the author describes his fascination with nontraditional instruments such as the wok-shaped, ethereal-sounding Scandinavian hung; the canjoe, a one-string stick with a can on the bottom that acts as a resonator; and the vocal-distorting talk box, which Peter Frampton immortalized on "Do You Feel Like We Do." He also writes about his encounters with Bill Allen, who plays one of the world's largest drum sets in a storage unit; the fanatical Massachusetts North Suburban Hammond Organ Society; the extreme-metal band Pig Destroyer; and the publicity team that worked to get the progressive rock band Yes into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Rowell's vignettes are captivating but unrelated; more serious music fans may be left questioning the material's importance, though his work will likely find an audience.