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Review

0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Pretty damn goodBy Kristin TomsonPretty damn good. As long as you dont hold the book up to the standard of its title.Almond is a graphic and direct writer; enjoyable and true; but somewhere in the agent/editor process; I fear they came up with a name for the collection that was catchy - it just didnt catch the essence of the book. The essays in a book entitled "Rock and Roll Will Save Your Life" should convince me of that premise. But this collection possesses enough despair and angst (alongside its hope) to hold a much less certain name. Rock and Roll *Could* Save Your Life would have been more accurate; putting the authors/readers quest onto the book spine.Maybe the life-saving guarantee in the chosen title ultimately sold more; a la losing 20 pounds in a week; but I would have enjoyed the book much more had the narrator been described accurately from the get-go - in need of saving; but frantic; distraught; and uneasy by turns; possibly not even salvageable - like me. Alas; the publishing industry made promises in the title that the music industry just couldnt back up in this one slim volume. Ignore the name. Live the essays.An even more accurate title (though I understand that its entirely too cumbersome) might have been; "If Anything Can Save Your Life; Rock and Roll May Perhaps Be It. But Be Cool; Man; Be Cool. Shut Up and Listen to Me; and Maybe Youll Get Lucky."3 of 3 people found the following review helpful. TestifyBy Voice of ChunkOK; Ill state the obvious and say that ROCK AND ROLL WILL SAVE YOUR LIFE is a must-read for serious music fans (aka Drooling Fanatics) everywhere. With his trademark blend of self-deprecating humor and razor-sharp intelligence; Almond celebrates the famous (Springsteen; The Police); the; um; infamous (Styx); and the criminal-that-theyre-not-more-famous (Ike Reilly; Chuck Prophet; Dan Bern; Bruce McCutcheon; Nil Lara; Dayna Kurtz; Bob Schneider; Gil Scott-Heron; etc. etc.).But just as a good movie is more than its soundtrack; this book is more than the musicians it praises. In the end; Almonds a passionate; honest storyteller who uses music to explore deeper truths about love; family; friendship; loneliness; disappointment; joy; ambition; and human connection. The sections about courting his now-wife Erin; trying in vain to influence his childrens musical tastes; and roadtripping with friend The Close are particularly moving. In short; this book is for anyone who turns to the written word to feel more alive.Some reviewers are calling ROCK AND ROLL WILL SAVE YOUR LIFE a nonfiction version of Nick Hornbys HIGH FIDELITY; and I guess the comparison sort of works on a few surface levels: Its true that HFs fictional Rob and RRWSYLs nonfictional Steve both have massive music collections. Both Rob Steve use music to help define pivotal life experiences. And both compulsively compile mix tapes/CDs to express their feelings to and make connections with others. After that; the connections pretty thin. A more apt comparison is Hornbys lesser-known essay collection SONGBOOK; which explores his obsessions and life experiences more directly than anything else hes published. As a result; its Hornbys most soulful; personal book.Likewise; ROCK AND ROLL WILL SAVE YOUR LIFE is as soulful and personal as anything Almonds published before; and thats saying a lot. (For a sampling of Almonds Hey-Soul Classics; check out his tributes to Kurt Vonnegut and Barry Hannah as well as essays on fatherhood in 2007s essay collection (NOT THAT YOU ASKED).)Almonds biggest complaint about music is "you cant eat it." The same could be said of ROCK AND ROLL WILL SAVE YOUR LIFE. We all find salvation wherever we can. For some its rock and roll. For others its great books...like this one. Testify.2 of 2 people found the following review helpful. Oh; the perils of Music GeekdomBy Tim BroughI picked up "Rock and Roll Will Save Your Life" after hearing author Steve Almond on some NPR show giving a hilarious interview about the lifespan of; in his words; a rock and rolling "drooling fanatic;" and how one becomes one; lives as one; and eventually writes about being one. The salient points of the interview readily established him as a man roughly my age (likely younger) and his on-air self profile rang eerily close to my own musical maniac ism. Indeed; he was a fellow traveller! I had to have this book.Which makes it hard to recommend it to anyone but a middle aged fellow traveller. On a personal scale; I give it 5 stars; but for those for whom musical hero worship is utterly alien; "Rock and Roll Will Save Your Life" is more a 3 star book; so I rate it 4 to split the difference. Almonds musical journey is intensely personal and oft-times extremely snarky (and even for a lefty like me; the constant Bush-slaps got in the way when they should have been edited away).His snark occasionally turns back on himself; and that gives the book a few of its best moments. His exegesis on why Totos "Africa" is genius is a riot; and the secret confession of being a Styx addict and loving "Paradise Theater" in spite of his older brother is almost worth the price of the book. On the other hand; Almond falls into the trap most rock writers fall into; and that is believing your favorite obscurity is Godhead.In this case; the object of his desires is one Bob Schneider; a Texas singer songwriter. Almond takes this to an extreme; tracking the man down at his home and engaging him in a sadly painful dialogue; revealing another pitfall of artist worship; when your idols break your heart. Sadder still; they break your heart because youve jammed them into a corner that they can never work out of. I actually felt sorry for both Schneider and Almond by the end of the chapter. (And just as geekifically; I promptly went out and bought Schneiders "Lonely Creatures" after. Very Sneaky; Mr Almond.)Which underlies the attraction and distraction of "Rock and Roll Will Save Your Life." Unless youre the kind of "DF" who would be naturally stoked to find out what Bob Schneider (or Joe Henry; Aimee Mann; Nil Lara and a series of other artists Almond is hot for) does to merit such magnificent praise in this book; you might wonder what the commotion is all about. Not me. Because as Almond himself accurately predicted; as soon as I saw the words "free CD" in the introduction; I put the book down and hit his website as fast as I could. Because I am that kind of person.