When we started, a lot of bands sounded really different from one another.

The imminent demise of the large record companies as gatekeepers of the world's popular music is a good thing, for the most part.

I wanted to be a secret agent and an astronaut, preferably at the same time.

Yeah, anybody can go in with two turntables and a microphone or a home studio sampler and a little cassette deck or whatever and make records in their bedrooms.

Most of our lives aren't that exciting, but the drama is still going on in the small details.

I'm not suggesting people abandon musical instruments and start playing their cars and apartments, but I do think the reign of music as a commodity made only by professionals might be winding down.

A dissection of music perception and creation that starts slowly and inexorably builds to a grand finish. I loved reading that listening to music coordinates more disparate parts of the brain than almost anything else--and playing music uses even more! Despite illuminating a lot of what goes on this book doesn't "spoil" enjoyment- it only deepens the beautiful mystery that is music.