The Memphis of his youth was so fertile when it came to music. Jones grew up with Phineas Newborn on his paper route, hearing the Staple Singers at his local church and playing with Mahalia Jackson while only about twelve years old.

And he played several instruments, not just keyboards. He studied music at Indiana University, driving back to Memphis on the weekends to record with the MGs and other Stax artists.

Like so many musicians, Jones gets screwed out of money. And then, after Martin Luther King, Jr., is shot, Memphis is just over for him. He moves to Malibu and buys a ranch—even though it's against the law for an African American to buy property there!—smokes a lot of pot, listens to The Eagles and hangs out with his neighbor Willie Nelson, which leads to the recording of the famous Stardust album.

One feature of this book, which might be unique, is that Jones composed several musical accompaniments for the books itself. The music is printed at the back and footnotes alert the reader to play whatever piece is meant to go with particular passages.

This was a great read. The first line is "Acapulco Gold—like dinner at a fine restaurant some have described it".