One Train Later: A Memoir

"A disarming, surprising literary memoir by the ex-Police guitarist . . . A rollicking you-are-there history of the 60s-80s rock era."—-Entertainment Weekly

In this extraordinary memoir, world-renowned guitarist Andy Summers provides the revealing and passionate account of a life dedicated to music. From his first guitar at age thirteen and his early days on the English music scene to the ascendancy of his band, the Police, Summers recounts his relationships and encounters with the Big Roll Band, Jimi Hendrix, Eric Clapton, the Animals, John Belushi, and others, all the while proving himself a master of telling detail and dramatic anecdote.

Andy's account of his role as guitarist for the Police—-a gig that was only confirmed by a chance encounter with drummer Stewart Copeland on a London train—-has been long-awaited by music fans worldwide. The heights of fame that the Police achieved have rarely been duplicated, and the band's triumphs were rivaled only by the personal chaos that such success brought about, an insight never lost on Summers in the telling. Complete with never-before-published photos from Summers's personal collection, One Train Later is a constantly surprising and poignant memoir, and the work of a world-class musician and a first-class writer.

“A disarming, surprising literary memoir by the ex-Police guitarist . . . A rollicking you-are-there history of the 60s–80s rock era.”---Entertainment Weekly
 
In this extraordinary memoir, world-renowned guitarist Andy Summers provides the revealing and passionate account of a life dedicated to music. From his first guitar at age thirteen and his early days on the English music scene to the ascendancy of his band, the Police, Summers recounts his relationships and encounters with the Big Roll Band, Jimi Hendrix, Eric Clapton, the Animals, John Belushi, and others, all the while proving himself a master of telling detail and dramatic anecdote.
 Andy’s account of his role as guitarist for the Police---a gig that was only confirmed by a chance encounter with drummer Stewart Copeland on a London train---has been long-awaited by music fans worldwide. The heights of fame that the Police achieved have rarely been duplicated, and the band’s triumphs were rivaled only by the personal chaos that such success brought about, an insight never lost on Summers in the telling. Complete with never-before-published photos from Summers’s personal collection, One Train Later is a constantly surprising and poignant memoir, and the work of a world-class musician and a first-class writer.

“A lucid account. Tells the dreamlike story of the Police’s rise and fall, which Summers recounts with wit and sharp detail.”--Rolling Stone 

“Witty and impressionistic . . . Police guitarist Andy Summers writes engagingly.”--The New York Post
 
“There are many great rock moments that dazzle. This is a stage-side account of the birth, rise, and dissipation of the Police.”--Publishers Weekly

Andy Summers is a Grammy Award winner and an inductee in both the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and the Guitar Player Hall of Fame. He has followed his work with the Police with a career that encompasses more than twelve solo albums, soundtracks, and collaborations in addition to concerts and exhibitions of his photography around the world. He lives in California, and his Web site is www.andysummers.com.

Publishers Weekly

Summers a musician best known for playing guitar in the seminal 1980s band the Police recounts the details of his time in the spotlight and his circuitous and fantastic journey toward fame in a memoir that is just as generous (and sometimes meticulous) in providing details as it is in exploring the human toll of living out the "collective fantasy" of being a "rock god." There are many great rock moments that dazzle hanging with Clapton, jamming with Hendrix, hallucinating with John Belushi but the less extraordinary memories make for a more compelling narrative: he recalls his childhood in England, where, after an "immediate bond" with the guitar, "the spiritual side of life slowly fills with music." Narrated in the present tense and with occasionally vivid language (Summers recounts "the familiar backstage" as "the taste of Jack stuck on a Wheat Thin"), every rock clich is described (drugs, sex, ego), but, refreshingly, little is romanticized. This is a stage-side account of the birth, rise and dissipation of the Police and fans of the band will not be disappointed but it is also an honest travelogue of a British kid who, subsisting "on a diet of music and hope," traversed the most coveted landscapes of pop culture and lived to write about it. (Oct.) Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.

Andy Summers is a Grammy Award winner and an inductee in both the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and the Guitar Player Hall of Fame. He has followed his work with the Police with a career that encompasses more than twelve solo albums, soundtracks, and collaborations in addition to concerts and exhibitions of his photography around the world. He lives in California, and his Web site is www.andysummers.com.