𝘌𝘮𝘰𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘭, 𝘩𝘰𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘪𝘮𝘱𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘧𝘶𝘭!

I saw this tittle and I knew I had to read it, I grew up with their songs and listening to this story was a great experience. An emotional and inspiring story about fame, love, addiction, healing and music.

Thank you NetGalley and Recorded Books for this gifted copy.

𝗦𝘄𝗶𝗺𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗕𝗹𝗼𝘄𝗳𝗶𝘀𝗵 by Jim Sonefeld released June 28, 2022.

https://www.instagram.com/booksandcoffeemx/

Over the last year, I have found myself reading memoirs in a niche genre I have come to call “Drummers in Recovery.” This is one of the best. It belongs alongside Travis Barker’s Can I Say, Patty Schemel’s Hit So Hard, and Joey Kramer’s Hit Hard.

I was a casual fan, at best, of Hootie and the Blowfish. My knowledge began and ended with the radio hits from the first album. I peripherally knew of Darius Rucker’s successful country career in recent years. But that was it.

What I found was a surprisingly engaging read with a strong, clear voice (both in writing style and narration). It was funny, sincere, open, and honest.

The book, in the best way, follows the classic Behind The Music structure: Rise, fall, and rise again.

Sonefeld follows his drinking from fun to excessive to life destroying. He doesn’t change easily. He resists mightily. But, by the conclusion, he has a full decade of sobriety under his belt. So it’s a really story of hope and triumph.

I was glad I gave this book a chance.

An interesting story to listen to that shows the authentic struggles and perseverance needed to survive. The highs and lows were all the more experienced because the reader knows it’s real life.

You might really like this book if you are into Hootie and the Blowfish. Jim Sonefeld gives a behind the scenes look into the band. I found the book to be an interesting inside look into the music process and Jim's own personal highs and lows.

In 1995, Hootie obsessed me asked my mom to drive me to the mall. Once there I bought Cracked Rear View on cassette at Sam Goody. I listened to is over and over and over. Fast forward to 2021 I have a daughter and I name her Hannah Jane. If nothing else I love that this book reminded me of the song with that title. I now have a cassette heirloom to pass down. I hope she can find something to play a tape on!

I loved Hooties music, but I didn’t know anything about the band. I loved this raw, deep, insightful look into Jim’s version. The audiobook was read by the author which also really adds to the overall experience for me. His story is complicated and interesting. I would recommend this to fans of the band.

I have also been listing to Cracked Rear View on repeat and reliving my mid 90’s best life.

I had the biggest crush on Soni when I was in high school, so I was thrilled to get the title to review - read by the author no less! It was a fascinating listen about the band, but also vicariously experiencing Soni's demons. We hardly ever get a glimpse behind the scenes and the way Soni writes flows beautifully. This book has made the band more relatable. I hope he continues to do well.

As a fan of the rock memoir genre, I'll rarely pass up an opportunity to read/listen to a new offering. I enjoyed learning about the origins of a band that was absolutely huge around the time I graduated from college. I didn't love all the religious stuff, but otherwise I would recommend this book to others.

This book was interesting. I definitely learned things that I didn’t know yet about this group and about the life behind the scenes. Worth a read.

A raw, emotional glimpse into the life of Jim Sonefeld, drummer for Hootie and the Blowfish and musician in his own right. I didn't know much about the band despite having listened to their music and was surprised by the whole partying atmosphere that surrounded them (although I probably shouldn't have been). I found Sonefeld's story very honest and inspiring and loved how he was able to find a new normal.

If you're sitting down with Jim Sonefeld's "Swimming with the Blowfish: Hootie, Healing, and One Hell of a Ride," you're likely expecting the founding member of Hootie and the Blowfish to immerse us in the popular band's rise to fame and for "Swimming with the Blowfish" to be a pop culture page turner.

You would be partially right.

"Swimming with the Blowfish" is, indeed, a journey through Sonefeld's career as the drummer for the band. It's a book, or in my case audiobook, that will likely reveal a wealth of inside information new to even the most diehard Hootie fan. We quickly learn that Sonefeld is a fairly matter-of-fact dude, a guy who's willing to name names and tell stories not so much in a way that feels like gossip but in a way that simply explains, with remarkable detail, the peaks and valleys of Sonefeld's life inside and outside the band.

What may surprise you, however, is that just past the halfway point, "Swimming with the Blowfish" becomes an entirely different book. It's not that Hootie suddenly disappears. However, it's fairly well documented that "Hootie and the Blowfish" enjoyed a meteoric rise with their first release "Cracked Rearview" selling 10 million copies. It's also fairly well documented that they would never come close to rising to that level again. While they are far from one-hit wonders, "Hootie and the Blowfish" went from overnight sensations to a rock and roll nostalgia band fairly quickly. By the halfway point of "Swimming with the Blowfish," Hootie and the Blowfish are on the downward side of the mountain and starting to deal, personally and professionally, with the repercussions of that abrupt rise to fame for seemingly ordinary guys from South Carolina.

Sonefeld himself provides the narration for his audiobook, a fact that provides the book some low-key normalcy but also, at times, hinders the book's emotional impact. While Sonefeld has become somewhat known as a public speaker these days, the truth is his ability to bring "Swimming the Blowfish" to life is at least somewhat muted by Sonefeld's largely monotone narration that lacks, at least for the most part, any tonal shifts or emotional variation. Quite simply, I wanted to more strongly feel Sonefeld's presence within these stories.

"Swimming with the Blowfish" is a fairly chronological journey through Sonefeld's life from his childhood in Naperville, Illinois to his college soccer days in South Carolina to his initial introduction to Hootie and the Blowfish that began, interestingly enough, when an early version of the band passed the hat at a concert after Sonefeld's campus apartment caught fire and he lost everything.

Sonefeld openly shares a wealth of stories from throughout his life with a degree of precision and detail that's honestly impressive since I can barely remember what I had for lunch yesterday. It's readily apparent early in "Swimming with the Blowfish" that Sonefeld is tiptoeing toward issues with substance abuse and that his personal life is severely impacted by his abrupt rise to fame. While he's far from alone in enjoying the spoils of sudden rock and roll stardom, it becomes obvious that Sonefeld's naturally relentless and addictive personality is getting the best of him.

Refreshingly, Sonefeld shares honestly about the journey toward recovery on which he would eventually embark and the even more surprising journey toward faith for a man who had long held resentments against the Catholic church (and still does to a degree) but who found a different way to live into faith and has since become known for his solo recordings in Christian music.

"Swimming with the Blowfish" spends a good amount of its time living into Sonefeld's redemption story as he committed to recovery and has become an adherent of the faith-based Celebrate Recovery program. While his first marriage ended in divorce, Sonefeld remarried (which had its own controversies) and leaned into becoming the man, husband, and father he'd always wanted to be.

In "Swimming with the Blowfish," Sonefeld often writes with the poetic rhythms evident in his songwriting. This makes the book more emotionally resonant, however, there are also times it prolongs stories that could be a little more tightly edited and leaves gaps in information that would more fully add substance to the redemption story of Sonefeld's life.

As a wee bit of a disclaimer, while "Swimming with the Blowfish" will resonate as an honest testimony of faith and redemption it does contain a fair bit of graphic language, including F-bombs, and Sonefeld refuses to compromise the sometimes graphic truths contained in his life including multiple stories about his drug and alcohol use. I personally found the honesty and rawness refreshing and needed, however, those more sensitive to graphic language should be cautioned.

Despite minor concerns about "Swimming with the Blowfish," I found the book to be an engaging and inspiring story of hope, healing, and redemption and would consider it a must-read for Hootie fans and those who can deeply appreciate meaningful redemption stories.

Who doesn’t love Hottie and the Blowfish. Love the group and this book gives you unknown insight into the group. This is another raw, authentic memoir to the drummer’s high and lows. This is one of my favorite groups and I learned a lot of insights into the dynamics of the group. Great book and thanks for sharing your story.

Jim Sonefeld pours out his heart and soul detailing the highs, lows, and in-between times as a part of the band Hootie and the Blowfish. He describes the inside story of the band’s beginnings, rise to fame, and ultimate rebirth. His detailed story of overcoming self doubt, fame, addiction, and recovery leads to a remarkably comforting story of faith, love and redemption.

I was a college student during the Hootie era at The University of South Carolina at the height of their rising fame. As an adult many years later, listening to Jim’s narrative about his struggles privately and professionally makes me appreciate the music they made even more. I now listen with the knowledge of what it took to inspire, write and perform songs. I now know to consider every verse because they all have deep meaning. I now know to continue to enjoy their music on a much deeper level. A level that puts a smile on the face of many because these guys rocked their heart and souls out for us, their faithful listeners.

If you love Hootie and the Blowfish you will be encapsulated by this moving memoir. Music lovers enjoy!