Songs Without Rhyme

Book excerpt: What happens when you ask today's top songwriters to apply their talents to prose You get a surprising and diverse collection of writing as penetrating and unforgettable as your most beloved album. Like writers and poets, the best songwriters are storytellers; their words and music inspire, move, and comfort us. This wholly original collection brings together the talents of today's most accomplished songwriters in a compelling and rewarding anthology -- not of songs, but of prose. Although most of the songwriters included here have never before published a work of this kind, their talent for it is undeniable. Between these covers are pieces by David Byrne, Marc Cohn, Paula Cole, Shawn Colvin, Rodney Crowell, Joe Henry, Lyle Lovett, Steven Page, Jane Siberry, John Stewart, Suzanne Vega, Loudon Wainwright III, Lucinda Williams, and Johnny Cash, whose daughter, Grammy winning musician and songwriter Rosanne Cash, serves as editor of this volume. Each piece is paired with the song lyric that inspired it, offering a rare glimpse into the artists creative process. Together, they comprise a fascinating collection of unique talent and creativity -- one that music fans and readers of all kinds will find hard to resist.