With the arrival of the English college holidays e book writers’ ideas flip to advising you what to learn whereas attempting to handle the actions and expectations of youngsters or grandchildren.
At AUK we aren’t any totally different, however expertise has taught us that choosing up and placing down an precise e book is hard in these circumstances, so we’re taking one other line and taking a look at Audiobooks that you would be able to press pause on whereas coping with the most recent home disaster.
The variety of UK audiobook downloads elevated by 17% between 2022 and 2023, in line with The Guardian, and the variety of locations you’ll find them has grown in proportion. Many of the music streaming websites now supply a spread of Audiobooks. Though the market is dominated by the Amazon-owned Audible there are sufficient locations the place you possibly can hearken to the audiobook of your alternative with out enhancing the unfeasible fortunes of the likes of Mr Bezos. So listed here are just a few suggestions for books that can hopefully enrich your summer time.
Bob Dylan: “The Philosophy of Fashionable Track”
This can be a set of 60 essays about songs from Hank Williams to Elvis Costello by the use of Stephen Foster and Nina Simone. Narrated by “an all-star forged” together with Steve Buscemi, John Goodman, Oscar Isaac, Helen Mirren, Sissy Spacek, and Renée Zellweger, with Dylan chiming in with some “quirky viewpoints relating to the songs and what they imply to him.” The format of pretty temporary commentaries (the e book is available in at not fairly 7 hours) means you don’t dive too deeply into the songs, however you do study loads about how Dylan views songwriting and the world.
It’s additionally effectively narrated, important for an excellent audiobook, Suze Rotolo’s memoir of Greenwich Village doesn’t characteristic right here due to her lifeless narration stuffed with irritating pauses that don’t have anything to do with the e book’s punctuation.
Jeff Tweedy: “World Inside a Track Music That Modified My Life and Life That Modified My Music”
In an identical vein Wilco’s Tweedy has taken the identical fundamental format as Dylan and achieved one thing very totally different with it. He asks the questions “What makes us fall in love with a tune? What makes us need to write our personal songs? Do songs assist? Do songs assist us dwell higher lives? And do the lives we dwell assist us write higher songs?” This was his third e book, and they’re all price studying. That is the one to do as an audiobook although. His narration type has improved dramatically and the private voice he brings to studying it’s compelling.
Steve Turner: “The Man Known as Money The Life, Love, and Religion of an American Legend”
Whereas I’m not the largest fan of Money’s music he was a captivating character, and this e book is the perfect of the various biographies on the market. Authorised biographies are inclined to sugar coat their topic, this doesn’t appear to. Narration from Rex Linn and particularly Kris Kristofferson whose remembers Money’s assist in giving him his begin in tune writing. At 9 hours it’s lengthy sufficient to fill out the story with out getting slowed down within the element, usually an issue with music bios the place the “we made an album, went on tour, made one other report” treadmill can grow to be repetitious.
Richard Morton Jack: “Nick Drake The Life”
The one biography of Drake to be written with the blessing and involvement of his sister and Property. Exhaustive at 19 hours on audio, however authoritative and educational. Having cherished Drake’s music for a very long time I’ve learn a lot of the books about him, however that is the one one which has despatched me again to the information. Gabrielle Drake reads the foreword and Morton Jack reads the remainder. When you have even the slightest curiosity within the people and associated music of the 70s then hearken to this.
Chris Hillman: “Time Between. My Life as a Byrd, Burrito Brother, and Past”
Some books transcend barely iffy narration, and Chris Hillman’s autobiography is a kind of. His barely husky supply provides an air of authenticity to his story. It does grow to be a little bit sporting after a few hours, so possibly an audiobook to soak up small slices. The subject material however places a brand new slant a well known story. In contrast with Johnny Rogan’s “Timeless Flight Revisited” or “Lengthy Time Gone: the autobiography of David Crosby,” neither out there on audio, you get a extra thought-about view of a number of the massive characters Hillman has labored with over the a long time.
Most of the books now we have reviewed at AUK are additionally out there as audiobooks. Re-read our opinions and provides them a attempt.
Brian Fairbanks “Willie, Waylon, And The Boys: How Nashville Outsiders Modified Nation Music Perpetually” with a suitably gravelly nation narration from Tyler Darby. Our Paul Kerr referred to as it a rollicking good learn.”
Woody Guthrie “Sure for Glory” Arlo Guthrie’s narration of what Gordon Sharpe described as “an essential and really readable basic that has handed into the people mythology of America” is superb. Reread Gordon’s insightful essay on the e book and you’ll actually need to learn or hearken to the e book.
Richard Thompson “Beeswing.” Thompson reads his personal e book, which Rick Bayles referred to as “a quietly reflective memoir from the Daybreak of Folks-Rock.”
Robin Hitchcock: “1967 How I Acquired There and Why I By no means Left” The person himself reads what, for me, is a sizzling favorite for greatest e book of the yr. Our reviewer, Paul Kerr, referred to as it a “pleasant learn,” and it’s nearly as good a hear.
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