Shambhala Publications has released Walls of Time, a new memoir by bluegrass luminary Peter Rowan, taken from diaries he kept during the 1960s and ’70s.
Students of bluegrass history recognize those dates as corresponding with the time that Rowan played guitar as a member of Bill Monroe’s Blue Grass Boys, and the enduring music he created with Old & in the Way, alongside Jerry Garcia, David Grisman, and Vassar Clements.
It also captures his time as a member of genre-bending outfits like Seatrain and Earth Opera, as well as another all-star bluegrass project with Muleskinner, which also featured Clarence White, Bill Keith, Richard Greene, David Grisman, and John Kahn.
The book also delves into Peter’s deep dives into mysticism and eastern spirituality, discussing his study of Native American and Buddhist philosophy. Not to mention his ongoing search to understand the Ancient Tones, and how they inform both the past and the present.
Walls of Time is also the name of a song Rowan wrote with Monroe while he was touring in the band, a uniquely introspective number that has become a bluegrass standard. It seems perfectly fitting that it should also be the title of his memoirs.
The book is blurbed by Bill Strings, who says…
“A wonderful glimpse inside the fascinating mind of the great American bluegrass guru… A kaleidoscope of music, mystery, meditation, mastery, muse, milestones, adventure, and hillbilly history.”
Who would expect anything else?
You can find Walls of Time now from the popular online book resellers, or directly from the publisher.
