Comin' Right at Ya: How a Jewish Yankee Hippie Went Country, or, the Often Outrageous History of Asleep at the Wheel (Brad and Michele Moore Roots Music Series) - Hardcover

Benson, Ray; Menconi, David

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0292756585 ISBN 13: 9780292756588

Publisher: University of Texas Press, 2015

Synopsis

A six-foot-seven-inch Jewish hippie from Philadelphia starts a Western swing band in 1970, when country fans hate hippies and Western swing. It sounds like a joke but—more than forty years, twenty-five albums, and nine Grammy Awards later—Asleep at the Wheel is still drawing crowds around the world. The roster of musicians who’ve shared a stage with the Wheel is a who’s who of American popular music—Van Morrison, Willie Nelson, Dolly Parton, Emmylou Harris, George Strait, Vince Gill, Lyle Lovett, and so many more. And the bandleader who’s brought them all together is the hippie that claimed Bob Wills’s boots: Ray Benson.

In this hugely entertaining memoir, Benson looks back over his life and wild ride with Asleep at the Wheel from the band’s beginning in Paw Paw, West Virginia, through its many years as a Texas institution. He vividly recalls spending decades in a touring band, with all the inevitable ups and downs and changes in personnel, and describes the making of classic albums such as Willie and the Wheel and Tribute to the Music of Bob Wills and the Texas Playboys. The ultimate music industry insider, Benson explains better than anyone else how the Wheel got rock hipsters and die-hard country fans to love groovy new-old Western swing. Decades later, they still do.

About this title

About the Author:

Ray Benson cofounded Asleep at the Wheel in 1970 and is the only remaining original band member. When he isn’t playing with the Wheel, he’s producing records, TV shows, and commercials; acting in movies; doing voice-over work; running a studio; and raising funds for numerous charities. He was named “Official Texas State Musician” in 2004 and “Texan of the Year” in 2011.

Review:

"Ray Benson is something—creative, fun, entertaining—you’ll love this book!"

(Dolly Parton)

"I’ve known Ray Benson for over forty years and never could figure out how he does all he does while asleep at the wheel! This book, however, tells how it all went down!" (Willie Nelson)

"It's hard to miss big Ray Benson in Austin, Texas. And there is no missing his love for the music of his adopted state of Texas. Enjoy his improbable story." (Richard Linklater)

About this edition

• Publisher: University of Texas Press
• Publication date: 2015
• ISBN 10: 0292756585
• ISBN 13: 9780292756588
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 200