ROAD STORIES AND RECIPES

Nix, a music industry veteran who has crossed paths with many of the greatest rock and blues musicians, offers a down-to-earth look at life on the road and in the studio—with recipes of the famous thrown in for good measure. Nix got his start as a sax player with the Mar-Keys, the house band of the seminal Stax record label. Stax recorded legends such as Rufus Thomas, Sam and Dave, and Wilson Pickett. The Mar-Keys were a rock band in their own right, with one bona fide hit, ``Last Night.'' They toured, mostly in the South, to support their recordings. The outrageous road stories Nix tells transcend the usual boasts of sexual conquest and catalogs of senseless property damage common to the genre. Nix is often amused by, and always modest about, his ups and downs among the rich and famous. He tells of being humiliated by Bob Dylan when trying to take his picture, nearly losing some blood to the folk singer's sharp umbrella. Elvis Presley invited Nix and friends to his house and greeted them with a barrage of illegal fireworks. This self-deprecating sensibility, coupled with the great respect the author conveys for certain music icons—Leon Russell, Furry Lewis, John Mayall, Muscle Shoals recording studio—imparts an insider's view without the insider's arrogance or cynicism. Over the years, Nix has worked as a musician, producer, and songwriter. He recruited a choir and sang for George Harrison and his Concert for Bangladesh, showed a drunken Eric Clapton how to shoot a gun, and collected recipes from many he's met. The 60 recipes included here are more than a gimmick—they fit the book's tone and subject. John Mayall's ``Shepard's Pie'' recipe expresses a rock-'n'-roll sensibility when it instructs to add the ground beef ``when you sense the right moment.'' A captivating story told by a gracious host, and something delicious to eat at the end. (44 photos)