Mike Ayers’ a new book, just published on St Martin’s Press, is so on trend.
“It’s a huge oral history of the ’90s jam band world called Sharing in the Groove,” Ayers told Village Green, and it’s already getting rave reviews, named one of Esquire’s best books of summer 2025, one of Publishers Weekly best books of summer 2025, and “a notable book for summer” from the AV Club.
Locals can catch Ayers at Words in Maplewood with New York Times best-selling author Alan Paul (One Way Out, Brothers and Sisters) on July 24. “Should be a blast!” says Ayers.
Mike Ayers
Sharing in the Groove: The Untold Story of the ’90s Jam Band Explosion and the Scene that Followed is Ayers’ second book and first for St. Martin’s Press. In it, he constructs a narrative of the ’90s jam band world and tells a story of a DIY culture that found its footing in performing live, and captivating a new wave of fans that treasured performance over studio albums. He interviewed 150 people, including members of Phish, Widespread Panic, Medeski Martin & Wood, and more, and many managers, producers, record label executives, and road crew.
Ayer’s first book, One Last Song, asked musicians one question: If they could listen to one last song before they died, what would it be? Variety picked it as one of the best books of the year in 2020.
Pre-order Sharing in the Groove now and submit to win prizes here: https://read.
Find out more about the Words Maplewood July 24 event here: https://www.wordsbookstore.
