I tremendously enjoyed the book’s interview format.

Messrs. Paul and Aledort stitched together dozens of recollections from the people who lived and played with SRV. Each major event was framed by their participation and emotions. We all know the chronology behind his music, but now we’re reliving it through their memories.

I liked Stevie Ray Vaughan but I'm no super fan so a lot of this information was new to me. There was a ton of insights and first-person accounts of his life from all the people that were there or even tangentially related to his rise. My gripe was the way it was organized. Paul would give a little intro paragraph and then use bits of interviews he had held over the years with assorted people about different times in SRV's life. So it winds up reading almost like a screenplay and you lose some cohesiveness of the narrative. I would have enjoyed it more if the attributed lines of dialogue were ditched in favor of a more traditional format.
Great for superfans, but not the best for me.

First off, I'm a HUGE Stevie Ray Vaughan fan. Loved his music and style (and, OH GOD...that tone) for as long as I can remember. Is, was and always will be my favorite guitarist.

With that being said, going into this book with a decent amount of knowledge on SRV through the years, I was happy to see several things. The closeness of friends and outsiders to Stevie and the people who really helped him turn his life around, and their stories, were very touching. Also, hearing first hand accounts from Shannon, Layton, and Bramhall(s) provided a new view of what life and the road felt like. Overall, the interviews and quotes were done rather nicely, however, in multiple areas of the book, you would have one quote from one person and go right into the same quote from another. Personally, I think that became a little redundant.

Major downside the book, and the reason I only gave it 3 stars...lack of the author's narrative. Other than a few spots in the book (usually at the beginning of a new chapter), the author fails to really provide any story line. Almost all of this is done through the quotes, leaving the book to feel like an extended Guitar Magazine tribute. As much as I enjoyed most of the interviews, more backstory with the author putting his own personal touch to the book would have been nice.

My favorite part of the book, however, does stem from one particular interview...that being with Jimmy Vaughan, Stevie's brother. The loss of his brother, at a pinnacle time in their careers where they were really wanting to do more together, it was beautiful to hear the words of pride and loving from Jimmy...you can truly feel the heartbreak and loss in his quotes.

Overall, the book was informative and decently put together, however, I would have still liked to see a more personal approach from the author. Long live SRV!!!

Sometimes it is tough to separate the subject from the story. Because I am such a SRV fan, I was captivated by the information and history. The book is not a typical biography, rather a complication of impressions, interviews and other articles.
It does give his life dimension that I was unaware of, and I am not sure that I wouldn't learned more from a more traditional type of book.
Interesting, sad since we know how it ends.

I was working as a part-time receptionist at the local heritage rock station in town the day the news broke about the helicopter crash. I had seen SRV with Jeff Beck in the fall on that Fire & Fury tour, friends got me a ticket for my 19th birthday. Stevie was the first rock star *I* loved that died. It was really hard reading this book and getting near the end, knowing what that end was. I had to put it down for awhile at times to compose myself before going on...

The authors did him right. Interviews with all the major players and loved ones in SRV's life. I knew Stevie was in recovery before the end, but I had NO idea how truly ugly his rock bottom was. I also did not know how many people he inspired to go into recovery after he got sober. Inspired not by preaching, but by just being himself: the loving genius that he always was underneath the pickling of his body.

Nearly 30 yrs later, its still a loss I'm not over. Like Layne Stayle, or Bowie, or Prince, or Carrie Fisher, or Freddie Mercury, or Michael Hutchence, or Teena Marie, or Koko Taylor, or Gerald Levert, or Heavy D, or Davy Jones, or Tupac, or...

This book was interesting to me because I was around to watch Stevie Ray's early career. I knew that he came from a hard place, and I watched him play in the Abraxas Club in Waco when we were both youngsters. I moved to Austin in 1975, and lived down the street from the Rome Inn so I could see him play with Double Trouble anytime. It's interesting that he has become such a folk hero. No doubt he was talented. The book is mainly interviews with musicians that played with him, and the portrait painted is of a sweet, kind-hearted and dedicated musician. Yeah, there was lots of drugs and alcohol at the clubs in those days.

Well where do I start. I had heard about these artists, but didn't know much. Enjoyed learning about there unique talents as guitarist. I liked how the book was written with comments from different people involved in their immediate lives and even their (Jimmie &. Steve) thoughts. I enjoy learning about other peoples lives and their god given talents. This book did not disappoint, in those areas.

I discovered the magic of Stevie Ray about the same time in 1983 as the rest of America when he rose to fame on the strength of his soloing on Bowie's Let's Dance and the release of Texas Flood with its raw excitement. He was the King of the Texas Blues, and he was a rocket 🚀 that fell out of the sky - literally- before reaching his full height. He joined Buddy Holly, Jimi Hendrix, Duane Allman and so many others whose immeasurable talent vanished in a moment.

Texas Flood is Stevie's story, told through the eyes of those who knew him best, narrative interspersed with interviews of friends, family, and bandmates. It captures his childhood when he focused on nothing but guitars. He was the young skinny kid who could play like nobody's business and nothing much else mattered to him. Surprisingly, it was his older brother, Jimmie, who became famous first and in whose shadow young Stevie dwelled. It also wasn't till, his late twenties that Stevie caught on big. Till then he trucked from gig to gig, living out of someone's van. His early music years included highlights in great blues clubs but getting booed as an opening act. He paid his dues for years.

Even becoming known didn't lead to success financially as the band was poorly managed, and the record companies weren't really into promoting a blues act. And, much of the cash went into drugs and alcohol that consumed everything. Eventually, he surprised the world by going cold stone sober for four years until his demise.

This book offers the positive and the negative, a well-rounded portrait that offers so much detail many of us fans weren't aware of. Many thanks to the publisher for providing a copy for review.

I was really looking forward to reading this book. I love Stevie Ray Vaughn's music and his CDs would still be in my car if my daughter hadn't scooped them up and stolen them away.
So I was quite disappointed with the read and surprised to find it boring. The author made the book up out of hundreds, maybe thousands of little quotes and one-liners made by Stevie's relatives, friends and business associates. The book is filled with "It was really great", "I couldn't believe it" and many other trite and meaningless common phrases. I wanted a biography of Stevie Ray Vaughn and I didn't get one. His personality isn't here. The author skims over the top of this wonderful artist's life and really, who needs that? I am sorry to have to say that I can't recommend this book.

Absolutely wonderful story of a guitar legend, told by the ones that knew him best. Being born and raised in Austin Texas, SRV was a household name - we loved him because he inspired the community through music and brought us all together. I was only 16 when he died and all of Austin (which was so small at the time) grieved their friend and neighbor. He was like NO other and we missed him. Thank you SO much for telling his final story and giving us joy into this passionate artist. ~Robin