Are We Still Rolling?

Studios, Drugs and Rock 'N' Roll - One Man's Journey Recording Classic Albums

By: Phill Brown

Narrated by: Terry Brown

From the author's first glimpse of a magical recording studio in the mid-1960s up through a busy career that continues to the present day, this rollicking story can only be told by those that were there. As the young tape operator on sessions for the Rolling Stones, Jimi Hendrix, and Joe Cocker at the famed Olympic Sound Studios in London, Phill learned the ropes from experienced engineers and producers such as Glyn Johns and Eddie Kramer. Phill soon worked his way up engineering sessions for Mott the Hoople, David Bowie, Led Zeppelin, Bob Marley and many other legendary rockers.

He eventually became a freelance engineer/producer and worked with Roxy Music, Go West, Talk Talk, and Robert Plant. But more than a recollection of participating in some of the most treasured music of the past 40 years, this is a man's journey through life as Phill struggles to balance his home and family with a job where drug abuse, chaos, rampant egos, greed, lies and the increasingly invasive record business take their toll. It's also a cautionary tale, where long workdays and what once seemed like harmless indulgences become health risks, yet eventually offer a time to reflect back on.

©2010 Phill Brown (P)2014 VisTunes

Love Music?

This is a great book for music buffs and recording engineers. Grab it and get an insight behind the scenes.

Awesome

Very good glimpse into the crazy world of recording and Rock & Roll!! It's a shame that today's music biz has degenerated so much

It's ok but...

I read all of these 60's 70's and 80's era biographies of the band members and sound engineers. This one about Phil Brown is ok. Not the best. A good listen if you are interested in that era.

I found myself lost at times of who he was speaking about. There were some good bits but again nothing all that exciting.

His brother does the narration which is good as he reacts to what he's reading. So makes it fun to listen to.

I would recommend this, some people may like it but I'm comparing it to all the many others I have read and it's simply average.

He seems like a great guy but nothing too exciting to read about.

Loved it!

Great book! Filled with amazing stories of the music industry and historical moments! I didn't want it to end..

"Tech specs "

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

It depends, if they want to know how many wheels the 4 track had that the Beatles used to record on in 66' this is the book for you.

Did Terry Brown do a good job differentiating all the characters? How?

Not really. Other than knowing what brand mics where used during the recording of Sgt Pepper there is really no news here.

Could you see Are We Still Rolling? being made into a movie or a TV series? Who should the stars be?

LOL. maybe an instruction manual, but "story"? No news here.

Any additional comments?

Why yes, thank you for asking. Any time there are more than 25 "shout outs or name checks in one book, you can bet somebody is at least getting taken out to lunch..... or a new car.....mayhaps.

Mouth Breather

This book is about a sound engineer. You would think someone would have listened to how the narrator read this book.
He is a mouth breather and you can hear every breath this guy takes. It is brutally distracting.

Disappointing.

Any additional comments?

Phill Brown is an exceptional audio engineer having worked with many of the great musicians of our time. I read this book primarily hoping for some information on his recording techniques and secondarily for some insight into the artists themselves. Unfortunately the information is scant on both fronts and the prose is very dry, often quoting extensive lists of names, times and places which mean very little to the narrative. The narration is also unfortunately lacking in shape and color.