Looking for some music books to read this winter? Here are some recommendations

If summer is the time of beach reads, thrillers, and escapist fun, the fall and winter is for serious reading. That includes books about music.

Fall is the best time of the year for book lovers. Publishers schedule the release of their most serious-minded fare for when we’re indoors and have time to read. So put away that phone and tablet. There will be plenty of time for doomscrolling in the New Year when get back to climate change emergencies, Elon Musk’s latest bits of insanity, and panic over the U.S. presidential election. Time to curl up with some good books on music.

Talking to My Angels by Melissa Etheridge (Out now)

Etheridge’s second memoir (the first was The Truth Is… from 2002) picks up where that one left off and adds 20 years of new experiences (a battle with breast cancer, some very public breakups, the death of her son as the result of opioid addiction, involvement in the LGBTQ2 community) and reflections on life. It’s very honest stuff. There will be tears.

Mud Ride: A Messy Trip Through the Grunge Explosion by Steve Turner (Out now)

Turner, a skater and hardcore kid, was there at the very beginning of grunge. In fact, it was Mark Arm, his later bandmate in OG groups like Green River and Mudhoney who first used the word to describe the heavier sounds coming out of the Pacific Northwest. Turner takes us through those early days, showing us just how few people were responsible for a scene that eventually blew up worldwide. Green River, for example, once included both future Pearl Jam members Jeff Ament and Stone Gossard but left when their ambitions outgrew the group. Although Mudhoney continues to record and tour, their experience shows that not everyone associated with the birth of grunge was on the same page.

Abbey Road: The Inside Story of the World’s Most Famous Recording Studio by David Hepworth (Out Now)

I’ve been lucky to both work at and tour through Abbey Road Studios several times over the years and I can attest that the place is like a shrine. Opened by Electric and Machine Industries (that’s what “EMI” stands for) in a nine-bedroom century-old Georgian townhouse, the studios have been the source of some of the most legendary recordings in the world: The Beatles, Pink Floyd, Oasis, Muse, Radiohead, Depeche Mode — the list goes on forever. The massive Studio One is also where orchestras performed and recorded the soundtracks for Raiders of the Lost Ark, Return of the Jedi, Aliens, and a bunch of Harry Potter films. While the studio is off-limits to most visitors, this book takes us inside and shows how things work behind the curtain.

Don’t Call It Hair Metal: Art in the Excess of ’80s Rock by Sean Kelly