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Book Cover for: Sharing in the Groove: The Untold Story of the '90s Jam Band Explosion and the Scene That Followed, Mike Ayers

Sharing in the Groove: The Untold Story of the '90s Jam Band Explosion and the Scene That Followed

Mike Ayers

The wild, untold oral history of the unlikely rise of Phish, Dave Matthews Band, Widespread Panic, Blues Traveler, and numerous other bands that helped define the 1990s jamband scene

Sharing in the Groove is the untold oral history behind the unlikely rise of Phish, Dave Matthews Band, Widespread Panic, Blues Traveler, and numerous other bands that helped define the 1990s jamband scene -- a scene that paved the way for modern-day cultural institutions such as the Bonnaroo Music Festival, as well as kept the Grateful Dead ethos alive. It was also a scene with its own values and its own unique interactions with fame, record labels, MTV, drugs, and success.

As a veteran music journalist, Mike Ayers has been to more than 120 Phish shows, 20 Grateful Dead shows, and countless other shows by the bands profiled in this book. In the mid-90s, he stumbled upon a freelance job working backstage for Phish as a prep cook in exchange for all-access passes for the night's show, and ended up doing this for years. Later in the decade, he dabbled in the taping scene and recorded numerous shows that are still circulated online today.

Filled with anecdotes and stories directly from the musicians, promoters, managers and groupies that lived this scene, Sharing in the Groove is a fun, fast-paced oral history that will appeal to music lovers everywhere.

Book Details

  • Publisher: St. Martin's Press
  • Publish Date: Jul 22nd, 2025
  • Pages: 352
  • Language: English
  • Edition: undefined - undefined
  • Dimensions: 9.25in - 6.12in - 1.00in - 1.00lb
  • EAN: 9781250287458
  • Categories: MusicGenres & Styles - Rock

About the Author

Ayers, Mike: - MIKE AYERS is a seasoned music and culture journalist, with work published in Billboard, The Wall Street Journal, Rolling Stone, TIME Magazine, Reuters, Uproxx, and Relix. His first book, One Last Song: Conversations on Life, Death and Music, was published in 2020 and picked as one of Variety's Best Music Books of the year.