There aren’t too many biographies of the first generation of
free improvising musicians. Keith Rowe
sets a high standard for future biographers of improvisers. Despite being
written by an author who previously has mainly composed record reviews, it engagingly
articulates in essential but not overwhelming detail the arc of one man’s
creative life. It manages to be close to the subject (who cooperated in the
decade-plus research and writing process but exercised limited influence over
its final outcome) without lapsing into hagiography, greatly enhancing this reader’s
understanding of Rowe’s life and the motivations and struggles that have shaped
his art.