It Still Moves: Lost Songs, Lost Highways, and the Search for the Next American Music [Paperback]

Amanda Petrusich (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 18, 2009

Part travelogue, part musical history, Amanda Petrusich’s It Still Moves outlines the sounds of the new, weird America—honoring the rich traditions of gospel, blues, country, folk, and rock that feed it while simultaneously exploring the American character as personified by its songs and landscapes. Through interviews, road stories, and rich music criticism, Petrusich traces the rise of Americana music from its early origins to its new and compelling incarnations—from Elvis to Iron and Wine, the Carter Family to Animal Collective, Charley Patton to Wilco. Ultimately, It Still Moves is a fervent attempt to reconcile the American past with the American present, using only dusty records and highway maps as guides.

Editorial Reviews

Review

“A contemplative journey through the history of folk, country, blues and rock ’n’ roll.” —JUDY BERMAN, Salon

“In this sharply observed, intensely felt audio-travelogue, Americana emerges less as a sound or musical genre than as an imaginary country, a dreamland superimposed over the real U.S.A., a salve for that feeling of hollowness that haunts modern urban existence.” —SIMON REYNOLDS, author of Rip It Up and Start Again: Postpunk 1978–1984

“Like a smart, genial Persephone, Amanda Petrusich wanders the underworld of American roots music and reports back her insights with an open mind and an open heart.” —ANTHONY DECURTIS, contributing editor, Rolling Stone

“A terrific piece of travel writing. Amanda Petrusich takes us on a tour through the roots of American rural music, stopping at eccentric motels, visiting mythic sites of recording sessions and reciting heroic tales of song-catching and villainous accounts of song-stealing.” —JOE BOYD, The Guardian

About the Author

Amanda Petrusich is a staff writer at Pitchforkmedia.com, a senior contributing editor at Paste, and the author of Pink Moon, a short book about Nick Drake’s 1972 album. She lives and works in Brooklyn.

Product Details

• Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: Faber & Faber; First Edition edition (August 18, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0865479046
• ISBN-13: 978-0865479043
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.1 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 2.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,438,790 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars It Didn't Move Me: Bad Writing about Country Music and Highway Travel, January 5, 2009

By 

Kevin Schlottmann (New York, NY) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: It Still Moves: Lost Songs, Lost Highways, and the Search for the Next American Music (Hardcover)

This is an unsuccessful combination of a travelogue, a history of country music, and an analysis of current trends in Americana. The historical portions are thinly researched, the analysis is at best trite and unoriginal and at worst confused, and the travel writing is a failed attempt to channel the mystique of the American road. Everything is in a blog style that is far too lightly edited. Despite Ms. Petrusich's clear affection for the music, she has nothing interesting or new to say about it. The only crumbs of insight come from artist interviews and quotes from other authors. There is plenty of great writing about country music and its history; off the top of my head, recent enjoyable reads include Havighurst's Air Castle of the Sky, about WSM; Colin Escott's Hank Williams bio; Gura's America's Instrument, about the banjo; and No Depression, in its magazine, anthology, and online forms. Check those out instead.

9 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Save your money, February 27, 2009

By 

J. Cox (Bowling Green, KY United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: It Still Moves: Lost Songs, Lost Highways, and the Search for the Next American Music (Hardcover)

Kevin, above, was right. I didn't believe him and bought this book for my wife. She would read large portions to me so that we could jointly mock this one. Petrusich writes like she wants to be Greil Marcus when she grows up. She has his flatulent verbosity, but unfortunately, she missed out on delivering actual content, which Greil does do occasionally.

Petrusich uses adjectives as if she gets paid per use. This would be great if it added anything, but unfortunately, this books reads more like a thesaurus than a creative work. She has little to say and says it badly. This is a good concept that gets more or less ruined. Don't buy it.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great read, June 10, 2009

By 

JimONeal (Decatur, GA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: It Still Moves: Lost Songs, Lost Highways, and the Search for the Next American Music (Hardcover)

Would have preferred more information on the newer music scenes but love the personal perspective on the more historical stuff. Great for someone looking for a crash course in American roots music with a younger voice.