Dust

Praise for Live of the Poets (with Guitars) “One part of Lives of the Poets (with Guitars) is a record guide revealing these undiscovered treasures, the other is Robertson’s gift of spewing out stories that simply shame most rock ‘n’ roll writers into the hacks they really are.” —Beat Route “There’s much to like about this book, but its real strength is in Robertson’s voice, which bobs and weaves throughout each essay. . . Robertson’s irreverent voice, his character-driven storytelling abilities, and his personal indebtedness to the lucky thirteen make the collection work. This isn’t a history lesson tethered to research--it’s a novelist’s exploration of pioneers and the high drama of their lives.” —The Alt “Although Robertson may not be as well-known to American music fans as most of the cult favorites he celebrates here, he brings a good ear and plenty of critical insight to essays aimed at helping readers discover new favorites or hear more familiar music from a fresh perspective.” —Kirkus Reviews Praise for All the Years Combine: The Grateful Dead in Fifty Shows “For all the talk about The Grateful Dead being primarily a band you need to hear live . . . the fact that there has not been a truly great book chronicling the band’s live shows is surprising. That is until now . . . Ray Robertson’s All the Years Combine tells the story of 50 of some of the best Grateful Dead concerts, chronicled in order from 1966 to 1995. But Robertson’s book is really more than just that . . . All the Years Combine, much like the music it heralds, transcends.” —Under the Radar “Robertson—writing at full, heart-exploding tilt—charts the course of the greatest American band (yes, I said it), from their humble start to their humbling end through capsule reviews of 50 shows. This is a glorious book, full of setlists and anecdotes and clear-eyed love.” —Toronto Star “All the Years Combine: The Grateful Dead in Fifty Shows is delightfully genre-fluid—part critique, part review, part biography, part journalism.” —Palo Alto Weekly