I was sitting at my desk in the newsroom one afternoon in 1997 when a phone call from a book publisher presented an interesting opportunity. Robin Asbury had started a local imprint called Summerhouse Press, and she wondered if I’d like to write a book about Hootie & the Blowfish. I’d been writing about various aspects of pop culture for more than a decade, and one of the most intriguing stories I’d covered was Hootie’s miraculous transformation from local cover band to international pop stars. I’d never written a book, but I had interviewed the band numerous times so I accepted the assignment. The book was released later that year, and one reviewer described it best, saying, “The book is more than a biography of the band. Written like a page-turning novel, it is a historical record of many aspects of the rock industry.” In 2019, I added a 10,000-word addendum to bring Hootie’s story up to date. The book is currently available as an ebook only.
Hootie! How the Blowfish put pop back into Pop Rock
