
Are We Still Rolling?
Studios, Drugs and Rock 'N' Roll - One Man's Journey Recording Classic Albums
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
$0.99/mo for the first 3 months

Buy for $24.95
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
-
Narrated by:
-
Terry Brown
-
By:
-
Phill Brown
About this listen
From the author's first glimpse of a magical recording studio in the mid-1960s up through a busy career that continues to the present day, this rollicking story can only be told by those that were there. As the young tape operator on sessions for the Rolling Stones, Jimi Hendrix, and Joe Cocker at the famed Olympic Sound Studios in London, Phill learned the ropes from experienced engineers and producers such as Glyn Johns and Eddie Kramer. Phill soon worked his way up engineering sessions for Mott the Hoople, David Bowie, Led Zeppelin, Bob Marley and many other legendary rockers.
He eventually became a freelance engineer/producer and worked with Roxy Music, Go West, Talk Talk, and Robert Plant. But more than a recollection of participating in some of the most treasured music of the past 40 years, this is a man's journey through life as Phill struggles to balance his home and family with a job where drug abuse, chaos, rampant egos, greed, lies and the increasingly invasive record business take their toll. It's also a cautionary tale, where long workdays and what once seemed like harmless indulgences become health risks, yet eventually offer a time to reflect back on.
©2010 Phill Brown (P)2014 VisTunesListeners also enjoyed...
-
Sound Man
- A Life Recording Hits With the Rolling Stones, the Who, Led Zeppelin, the Eagles, Eric Clapton, the Faces…
- By: Glyn Johns
- Narrated by: Simon Vance
- Length: 6 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Born just outside London in 1942, Glyn Johns was 16 years old at the dawn of rock and roll. His big break as a producer came on the Steve Miller Band's debut album, Children of the Future. He went on to engineer or produce iconic albums for the best in the business, including Abbey Road with the Beatles. Even more impressive, Johns was perhaps the only person on a given day in the studio who was entirely sober, and so he is one of the most reliable and clear-eyed insiders to tell these stories today.
-
-
No tell all ... not at all
- By MeDC on 07-04-15
By: Glyn Johns
-
Chairman at the Board
- Recording the Soundtrack of a Generation
- By: Bill Schnee
- Narrated by: Bill Schnee
- Length: 8 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
With over 125 gold and platinum records, and two Grammys for Steely Dan's Aja and Gaucho, Schnee has been called a living legend - recognized and respected in the industry as the consummate music man with an incomparable career that he lovingly shares with listeners in humorous detail.
-
-
Worst narration ever!
- By Anonymous User on 01-26-23
By: Bill Schnee
-
Making Rumours
- The Inside Story of the Classic Fleetwood Mac Album
- By: Ken Caillat, Steve Stiefel
- Narrated by: Ken Caillat, Fred Berman
- Length: 10 hrs and 24 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Fleetwood Mac's classic 1977 Rumours album topped the Billboard 200 for 31 weeks and won the Album of the Year Grammy. More recently, Rolling Stone named it the 25th greatest album of all time and the hit TV series Glee devoted an entire episode to songs from Rumours, introducing it to a new generation. Now, for the first time, Ken Caillat, the album's co-producer, tells the full story of what really went into making Rumours.
-
-
Caillat Cursed With Perfect Memory
- By Private. on 02-05-13
By: Ken Caillat, and others
-
My Effin' Life
- By: Geddy Lee
- Narrated by: Geddy Lee, Alex Lifeson, Cliff Burnstein
- Length: 16 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Geddy Lee is one of rock and roll's most respected bassists. For nearly five decades, his playing and work as co-writer, vocalist and keyboardist has been an essential part of the success story of Canadian progressive rock trio Rush. Here for the first time is his account of life inside and outside the band.
-
-
Lee's Narration Will Captivate You.
- By Ms. R on 11-14-23
By: Geddy Lee
-
The Creative Act
- A Way of Being
- By: Rick Rubin
- Narrated by: Rick Rubin
- Length: 5 hrs and 45 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Many famed music producers are known for a particular sound that has its day. Rick Rubin is known for something else: creating a space where artists of all different genres and traditions can home in on who they really are and what they really offer. He has made a practice of helping people transcend their self-imposed expectations in order to reconnect with a state of innocence from which the surprising becomes inevitable. Over the years, he has learned that being an artist isn’t about your specific output, it’s about your relationship to the world.
-
-
Rick is Art
- By Ira Henke on 01-17-23
By: Rick Rubin
-
Al Schmitt on the Record
- The Magic Behind the Music
- By: Al Schmitt, Maureen Droney
- Narrated by: B.J. Harrison
- Length: 7 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Ever wonder what goes into the creation of some of the best music ever recorded? Ever wonder how someone becomes an iconic professional who is universally admired and respected? Al Schmitt on the Record: The Magic Behind the Music reveals answers to those questions and more. In this memoir of one of the most respected engineers of all time, you'll see how a very young boy - mentored by his uncle Harry in New York - progressed through the recording world in its infancy, under the mentorship of Tom Dowd, in its heyday, becoming one of the all-time great recording engineers.
-
-
The best ever story about Recording Engineering
- By John Sands on 02-19-20
By: Al Schmitt, and others
-
Sound Man
- A Life Recording Hits With the Rolling Stones, the Who, Led Zeppelin, the Eagles, Eric Clapton, the Faces…
- By: Glyn Johns
- Narrated by: Simon Vance
- Length: 6 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Born just outside London in 1942, Glyn Johns was 16 years old at the dawn of rock and roll. His big break as a producer came on the Steve Miller Band's debut album, Children of the Future. He went on to engineer or produce iconic albums for the best in the business, including Abbey Road with the Beatles. Even more impressive, Johns was perhaps the only person on a given day in the studio who was entirely sober, and so he is one of the most reliable and clear-eyed insiders to tell these stories today.
-
-
No tell all ... not at all
- By MeDC on 07-04-15
By: Glyn Johns
-
Chairman at the Board
- Recording the Soundtrack of a Generation
- By: Bill Schnee
- Narrated by: Bill Schnee
- Length: 8 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
With over 125 gold and platinum records, and two Grammys for Steely Dan's Aja and Gaucho, Schnee has been called a living legend - recognized and respected in the industry as the consummate music man with an incomparable career that he lovingly shares with listeners in humorous detail.
-
-
Worst narration ever!
- By Anonymous User on 01-26-23
By: Bill Schnee
-
Making Rumours
- The Inside Story of the Classic Fleetwood Mac Album
- By: Ken Caillat, Steve Stiefel
- Narrated by: Ken Caillat, Fred Berman
- Length: 10 hrs and 24 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Fleetwood Mac's classic 1977 Rumours album topped the Billboard 200 for 31 weeks and won the Album of the Year Grammy. More recently, Rolling Stone named it the 25th greatest album of all time and the hit TV series Glee devoted an entire episode to songs from Rumours, introducing it to a new generation. Now, for the first time, Ken Caillat, the album's co-producer, tells the full story of what really went into making Rumours.
-
-
Caillat Cursed With Perfect Memory
- By Private. on 02-05-13
By: Ken Caillat, and others
-
My Effin' Life
- By: Geddy Lee
- Narrated by: Geddy Lee, Alex Lifeson, Cliff Burnstein
- Length: 16 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Geddy Lee is one of rock and roll's most respected bassists. For nearly five decades, his playing and work as co-writer, vocalist and keyboardist has been an essential part of the success story of Canadian progressive rock trio Rush. Here for the first time is his account of life inside and outside the band.
-
-
Lee's Narration Will Captivate You.
- By Ms. R on 11-14-23
By: Geddy Lee
-
The Creative Act
- A Way of Being
- By: Rick Rubin
- Narrated by: Rick Rubin
- Length: 5 hrs and 45 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Many famed music producers are known for a particular sound that has its day. Rick Rubin is known for something else: creating a space where artists of all different genres and traditions can home in on who they really are and what they really offer. He has made a practice of helping people transcend their self-imposed expectations in order to reconnect with a state of innocence from which the surprising becomes inevitable. Over the years, he has learned that being an artist isn’t about your specific output, it’s about your relationship to the world.
-
-
Rick is Art
- By Ira Henke on 01-17-23
By: Rick Rubin
-
Al Schmitt on the Record
- The Magic Behind the Music
- By: Al Schmitt, Maureen Droney
- Narrated by: B.J. Harrison
- Length: 7 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Ever wonder what goes into the creation of some of the best music ever recorded? Ever wonder how someone becomes an iconic professional who is universally admired and respected? Al Schmitt on the Record: The Magic Behind the Music reveals answers to those questions and more. In this memoir of one of the most respected engineers of all time, you'll see how a very young boy - mentored by his uncle Harry in New York - progressed through the recording world in its infancy, under the mentorship of Tom Dowd, in its heyday, becoming one of the all-time great recording engineers.
-
-
The best ever story about Recording Engineering
- By John Sands on 02-19-20
By: Al Schmitt, and others
-
Comfortably Numb
- The Inside Story of Pink Floyd
- By: Mark Blake
- Narrated by: Graeme Malcolm
- Length: 17 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Mark Blake draws on his own interviews with band members as well as the group's friends, road crew, musical contemporaries, former housemates, and university colleagues to produce a riveting history of one of the biggest rock bands of all time. We follow Pink Floyd from the early psychedelic nights at UFO, to the stadium-rock and concept-album zenith of the '70s, to the acrimonious schisms of the late '80s and '90s.
-
-
This book is Everything!
- By Dana on 11-22-18
By: Mark Blake
-
Leon Russell
- The Master of Space and Time's Journey Through Rock & Roll History
- By: Bill Janovitz
- Narrated by: Bill Janovitz, Jason Culp
- Length: 24 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Leon Russell is an icon, but somehow is still an underappreciated artist. He is spoken of in tones reserved not just for the most talented musicians, but also for the most complex and fascinating. His career is like a roadmap of music history, often intersecting with rock royalty like Bob Dylan, the Stones, and the Beatles.
-
-
A dream come true for Leon Russell fans!!
- By William Straten on 03-15-23
By: Bill Janovitz
-
How to Write One Song
- Loving the Things We Create and How They Love Us Back
- By: Jeff Tweedy
- Narrated by: Jeff Tweedy
- Length: 3 hrs and 8 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
There are few creative acts more mysterious and magical than writing a song. But what if the goal wasn't so mysterious and was actually achievable for anyone who wants to experience more magic and creativity in their life? That's something that anyone will be inspired to do after listening to Jeff Tweedy's How to Write One Song. Why one song? The idea of becoming a capital-S songwriter can seem daunting, but approached as a focused, self-contained event, the mystery and fear subsides, and songwriting becomes an exciting pursuit.
-
-
Practical and actionable recipes for songwriting
- By Dry Toast Fan on 11-20-20
By: Jeff Tweedy
-
This Is What It Sounds Like
- What the Music You Love Says About You
- By: Ogi Ogas, Susan Rogers
- Narrated by: Susan Rogers
- Length: 8 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When you listen to music, do you prefer lyrics or melody? Intricate harmonies or driving rhythm? The “real” sounds of acoustic instruments or those of computerized synthesizers? Drawing from her successful career as a music producer (engineering hits like Prince’s “Purple Rain”), professor of cognitive neuroscience Susan Rogers reveals why your favorite songs move you. She explains that we each possess a unique “listener profile” based on our brain’s reaction to seven key dimensions of any record: authenticity, realism, novelty, melody, lyrics, rhythm, and timbre.
-
-
Needed to include the music
- By Sarah on 01-18-23
By: Ogi Ogas, and others
-
When Giants Walked the Earth
- A Biography of Led Zeppelin
- By: Mick Wall
- Narrated by: Simon Vance
- Length: 18 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
They were the last great band of the '60s and the first great band of the '70s. They rose, somewhat unpromisingly, from the ashes of the Yardbirds to become one of the biggest-selling rock bands of all time - and eventually paid the price for it, with disaster, drug addiction, and death.
-
-
Very annoying but tolerable for serious fans.
- By M. Allen on 08-14-19
By: Mick Wall
-
12 Notes
- On Life and Creativity
- By: Quincy Jones
- Narrated by: JD Jackson, Quincy Jones
- Length: 5 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Wisdom and musings on creativity and life from one of the world’s most beloved musicians, producers, and mentors, Quincy Jones. 12 Notes is a self-development guide that will affirm that creativity is a calling that can and should be answered, no matter your age or experience.
-
-
I lived these notes with Quincy
- By Thomas Bähler on 04-29-22
By: Quincy Jones
-
Listen Up!
- Recording Music with Bob Dylan, Neil Young, U2, R.E.M., The Tragically Hip, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Tom Waits
- By: Mark Howard, Chris Howard
- Narrated by: Peter Berkrot
- Length: 7 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Mark Howard, a record producer/engineer/mixer and a trailblazer in the industry, will take you through the star-studded world of recording and producing Grammy Award-winning artists. Listen Up! is an essential book for anyone interested in music and its making. Along with the inside stories, each chapter gives recording and producing information and tips with expert understanding of the equipment used in making the world's most unforgettable records and explanations of the methods used to get the very best sound.
-
-
Stop doing impressions...
- By SLL on 09-08-19
By: Mark Howard, and others
-
Cinema Speculation
- By: Quentin Tarantino
- Narrated by: Edoardo Ballerini, Quentin Tarantino
- Length: 10 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In addition to being among the most celebrated of contemporary filmmakers, Quentin Tarantino is possibly the most joyously infectious movie lover alive. For years he has touted in interviews his eventual turn to writing books about films. Now, with Cinema Speculation, the time has come, and the results are everything his passionate fans—and all movie lovers—could have hoped for. Organized around key American films from the 1970s, all of which he first saw as a young moviegoer at the time, this book is as intellectually rigorous and insightful as it is rollicking and entertaining.
-
-
A letdown I didn't see coming.
- By polycow on 11-03-22
-
Let's Go (So We Can Get Back)
- A Memoir of Recording and Discording with Wilco, Etc.
- By: Jeff Tweedy
- Narrated by: Jeff Tweedy
- Length: 8 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Few bands have inspired as much devotion as the Chicago rock band Wilco, and it's thanks, in large part, to the band's singer, songwriter, and guiding light: Jeff Tweedy. But while his songs and music have been endlessly discussed and analyzed, Jeff has rarely talked so directly about himself, his life, and his artistic process.
-
-
A best book of the year
- By jdukuray on 11-30-18
By: Jeff Tweedy
-
The Islander
- My Life in Music and Beyond
- By: Chris Blackwell
- Narrated by: Bill Nighy
- Length: 11 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Since its founding in 1959, Island Records has been home to legendary artists representing wildly divergent musical styles, yet who share the same maverick, outsider spirit of its founder, Chris Blackwell. Time and again, Blackwell and his Island cohorts identified and nurtured musicians overlooked by other labels, including Bob Marley, U2, Cat Stevens, Grace Jones, Roxy Music, Traffic, Nick Drake, Tom Waits, Robert Palmer, Free, the B-52’s, John Martyn, and Jimmy Cliff.
-
-
A Record Label Boss in Flip Flops Tells His Story
- By Ann Arbor on 12-15-22
By: Chris Blackwell
-
Goodnight, L.A.
- Untold Tales from Inside Classic Rock’s Legendary Recording Studios
- By: Kent Hartman
- Narrated by: Dan John Miller
- Length: 7 hrs and 16 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
From behind the walls of a handful of well-hidden, unlikely recording studios in the Los Angeles area, legends-in-waiting created masterpiece albums. It was a time of astonishing creativity and unprecedented fame and fortune. It was also a time of unfettered excess that threatened to unravel everything along the way. With access that only a longtime music business insider can provide, Kent Hartman packs Goodnight, L.A. with never-before-told stories about the most prolific time and iconic place in rock 'n' roll history.
-
-
great stories and insight into a miraculous time
- By RWM on 05-27-22
By: Kent Hartman
-
The Kid Stays in the Picture
- By: Robert Evans
- Narrated by: Robert Evans
- Length: 6 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Robert Evans' The Kid Stays in the Picture is universally recognized as the greatest, most outrageous, and most unforgettable show business memoir ever written. The basis of an award-winning documentary film, it remains the gold standard of Hollywood storytelling. An extraordinary raconteur, Evans spares no one, least of all himself. The Kid Stays in the Picture is sharp, witty, self-aggrandizing, and self-lacerating in equal measure.
-
-
Not even close to unabridged
- By Shaun Bossio on 09-08-16
By: Robert Evans
What listeners say about Are We Still Rolling?
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Greg Hayes
- 12-13-24
Cool story
Lots of good music and info in book. Turned me on to some new stuff and ideas on recording
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Barry
- 04-02-15
Love Music?
This is a great book for music buffs and recording engineers. Grab it and get an insight behind the scenes.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Ian E. Webster
- 08-03-15
Awesome
Very good glimpse into the crazy world of recording and Rock & Roll!! It's a shame that today's music biz has degenerated so much
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- M_D_Roberts
- 07-25-15
It's ok but...
I read all of these 60's 70's and 80's era biographies of the band members and sound engineers. This one about Phil Brown is ok. Not the best. A good listen if you are interested in that era.
I found myself lost at times of who he was speaking about. There were some good bits but again nothing all that exciting.
His brother does the narration which is good as he reacts to what he's reading. So makes it fun to listen to.
I would recommend this, some people may like it but I'm comparing it to all the many others I have read and it's simply average.
He seems like a great guy but nothing too exciting to read about.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Steve Aguilar
- 07-08-15
Loved it!
Great book! Filled with amazing stories of the music industry and historical moments! I didn't want it to end..
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- TIMOTHY
- 03-24-15
"Tech specs "
Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?
It depends, if they want to know how many wheels the 4 track had that the Beatles used to record on in 66' this is the book for you.
Did Terry Brown do a good job differentiating all the characters? How?
Not really. Other than knowing what brand mics where used during the recording of Sgt Pepper there is really no news here.
Could you see Are We Still Rolling? being made into a movie or a TV series? Who should the stars be?
LOL. maybe an instruction manual, but "story"? No news here.
Any additional comments?
Why yes, thank you for asking. Any time there are more than 25 "shout outs or name checks in one book, you can bet somebody is at least getting taken out to lunch..... or a new car.....mayhaps.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Nick Light
- 09-11-19
Mouth Breather
This book is about a sound engineer. You would think someone would have listened to how the narrator read this book.
He is a mouth breather and you can hear every breath this guy takes. It is brutally distracting.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Cohen
- 03-06-15
Disappointing.
Any additional comments?
Phill Brown is an exceptional audio engineer having worked with many of the great musicians of our time. I read this book primarily hoping for some information on his recording techniques and secondarily for some insight into the artists themselves. Unfortunately the information is scant on both fronts and the prose is very dry, often quoting extensive lists of names, times and places which mean very little to the narrative. The narration is also unfortunately lacking in shape and color.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
6 people found this helpful