Today, ZE Books and legendary producer, author, and raconteur Joe Boyd have announced the first paperback edition of Boyd’s acclaimed new book And The Roots Of Rhythm Remain: A Journey Through Global Music. Informed by decades of travel, research, interviews, listening, and many years spent producing groundbreaking music around the globe, And The Roots Of Rhythm Remain has been praised as a staggering literary achievement and a vivid celebration of the music that shaped how our world sounds. The paperback edition will be available April 1 following two sold-out hardcover printings since the book’s September release.
Today, Boyd has also announced the official release of the audiobook of And The Roots Of Rhythm Remain (narrated by Boyd himself), which is available on Audible and soon on other platforms.
A sweeping history celebrating the impact of the world’s musical traditions on Western popular culture, And The Roots Of Rhythm Remain has been internationally acclaimed by readers and critics alike and featured on numerous ‘Best of 2024’ lists. MOJO Magazine praised it as “The War and Peace of World Music” in a 5/5 star review, while The Guardian found Boyd’s “epic account of global music’s cross-pollination … an inspiring tale of seduction, expression and freedom from oppression.” and PBS NewsHour aired a primetime interview on the book and Boyd’s long career. Boyd also shared a special excerpt from the book with Vanity Fair in advance of publication and has recently discussed the book on WTF w/ Marc Maron, NPR’s Here & Now, and PRX’s The World, with additional interviews in the Washington Post, Aquarium Drunkard, the Record Store Day podcast, and many more.
Boyd is set to return to the US in March/April 2025, including a residency at the Big Ears Festival in Knoxville, TN. In addition to an on-stage Q&A with journalist and author Ann Powers, he will present a specially created audio-visual event celebrating the music and artists in his new book and will also introduce an exciting selection of films including his own productions (Aretha Franklin: Amazing Graceand Jimi Hendrix) and films linked to the book. Additional stops include Chicago’s Old Town School Of Folk Music on March 20th and The Local in Saugerties, NY on March 18th, with many more to be announced soon. This past fall, Boyd held book events across the U.S., including sold-out conversations with David Byrneand Joshua Jelly-Shapiro in NYC, Jerry Harrison (Talking Heads/Modern Lovers) in San Francisco, author Joe Nick Patoski in San Marcos, and Buddy Miller at Americanafest in Nashville. Boyd also celebrated the book’s UK release on stage with Brian Eno at Foyle’s in London.
Known to many as the legendary producer behind notable recordings from Nick Drake, Pink Floyd, R.E.M., Maria Muldaur, Toots and the Maytals, Fairport Convention, and many more, as well as the founder of London’s iconic UFO Club, Joe Boyd’s acclaimed memoir White Bicycles: Making Music In The 1960s was praised by the New York Times as “an irresistible tale” and chosen by Elton Johnas his favorite book about music.
Joe Boyd is a record producer and writer, known for his acclaimed memoir, White Bicycles. Artists he has produced include Nick Drake, R.E.M., Toots and the Maytals, Richard Thompson, Pink Floyd, Kate and Anna McGarrigle, and ¡Cubanismo! among many others over the course of a nearly sixty-year career.
After graduating from Harvard in 1964, he tour-managed Muddy Waters, Sister Rosetta Tharpe, Sonny Rollins, Stan Getz and Astrud Gilberto, and others before serving as production manager for the historic 1965 Newport Folk and Jazz Festivals. He then moved to London to open Elektra Records’ office and started the famous UFO club, which became the center of London’s psychedelic revolution. In 1979 he launched his own label, Hannibal Records, which was at the forefront of bringing global artists to western audiences. As a film producer, his credits include Amazing Grace, Scandal, and Jimi Hendrix. A gifted raconteur, he appears frequently on radio, podcasts and documentaries.
