Americana on Audio: Three books that you don’t need an Audible subscription for

Audiobooks are one of the big growth areas in listening. They now amount to 10% of the UK publishing market. That market is still dominated by the convenience of Amazon’s Audible platform, and there are plenty of brilliant books there. But not everyone wants a subscription, or if they do, they don’t necessarily want to fund Mr Bezos’ next exploding spaceship. So where do you go and what should you consider for your next listen?

Libro.fm is an alternative to Audible in that it has a subscription model, but you can also buy books one at a time. Bought individually, Audiobooks can be quite expensive, but Libro does regular sales which often pull up some bargains. At the time of writing, one of these is:

Crystal Zevon: I’ll Sleep When I’m Dead The Life and Times of Warren Zevon

You can only call this a searingly honest oral history. Published following Zevon’s deathbed request for an unvarnished account of his life. Drawn from his personal journals and interviews with friends, family, and collaborators like Jackson Browne and Linda Ronstadt, the book, rather than mythologising his career as so many rock bios do, balances his sardonic genius and sharp songwriting against his destructive battles with addiction, erratic behaviour, and turbulent relationships. The result is an all-too-human portrait of a brilliant but troubled figure in American rock music who insisted that his story be told without revisionism. Narration is often what makes or breaks an Audiobook, and with 4 of them on board here, there is a risk of it feeling disjointed. Fortunately, it doesn’t, and the different voices enhance rather than disrupt the story. Highly recommended.

xigxag books have a pay-as-you-go model starting at £7.99 with price breaks if you order 6 or more books at a time. The limitation is that books can only be listened to through their own iOS, Android or Desktop apps. You can download them to your device to listen while away from an internet connection, but as an Audible competitor it works well for UK readers. My pick from their catalogue is:

Joe Boyd: And the Roots of Rhythm Remain

Reviewed by Andy Short on its 2024 release, Boyd’s narration adds a new dominion to the book. His voice may have aged since he narrated his previous book White Bicycles, but a book that didn’t engage me in print had me hooked in audio form. This is also available in xixag’s Xbook format, which includes text and images, which is a big step on from Audible’s additional PDF of information, which is often hard to access while listening. If you want the UK-based ethical alternative to Audible, xigxag is it. Its only drawback is the rather clunky search.

eBook provider Kobo is a subscription-based platform which also offers Audiobooks in downloadable form as well as via their app. Prices for one-off purchases are comparable to elsewhere.

Ian S Port: The Birth of Loud: Leo Fender, Les Paul, and the Guitar-Pioneering Rivalry That Shaped Rock ‘n’ Roll.

While not about americana music, the two most famous names in guitar building do make up a fascinating story. Leo Fender was a radio repairman with a flair for problem-solving, and Les Paul a performer whose technical input to Gibson’s designs has been questioned; this clears up a lot of questions. It’s also a great business story of one-upmanship. Why does a Stratocaster have 3 pickups? One more than the Gibson. Pete Simonelli’s narration is generally very good,

Inevitably, Audible, with the muscle of Amazon behind it, will remain the dominant force in Audiobooks, but some authors are taking matters into their own hands and using Bandcamp as a publishing point for audiobooks. Willy Valutin’s earlier works are available there, read by the author. Here’s a chapter from his lauded debut novel The Motel Life.