In the book, Paul recounts an unanticipated life-changing experience that began when his wife accepted a three-year work assignment in Beijing. After resettling their three young children from suburban New Jersey to China, Paul, a music and basketball journalist who played guitar only as a hobby, embarked on an exploration of local culture and music. The search prompted his transition from writing about music to being a bona fide rock star in the band Woodie Alan, a cross-cultural blues group named after Alan and his Chinese band member, Woodie Wu, a guitarist with a Stevie Ray Vaughan tattoo.
Paul blogged about his Chinese experience and also wrote a column on it for the Wall Street Journal's Web site. His story, however, is much more than a musical and journalistic victory dance. It's equal parts family memoir, travelogue, personal analysis of globalization and expatriate communities, and a view of the world's most populous nation through American eyes.
Alan's band, Woodie Alan was voted Beijing Band Of The Year in the 2008 City Weekend Reader's Poll and has toured and performed throughout China. Their debut album 'Beijing Blues' (China Guitar Records) has been praised by such guitar luminaries ranging from The Allman Brothers Band's Derek Trucks and Warren Haynes to ZZ Top's Billy Gibbons. For more information on the band go to www.alanpaul.net.
To order the book go to this location.
Alan Paul is a senior writer for Slam and Guitar World magazines, and his writing has appeared in The New Yorker, Entertainment Weekly, People, Sports Illustrated, and many other media outlets. He has contributed to The Rolling Stone Jazz and Blues Guide, The Insider's Guide to Beijing, and several other books. He lives with his family in Maplewood, New Jersey.
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