Diary of a Player How My Musical Heroes Made a Guitar Man Out of Me

Country music star Brad Paisley salutes others in the music world in this funny, personal, and fascinating portrait of what it's like to be country's leading guitar hero. This book is the very personal story of how Brad Paisley came of age as a musician and a man. Focusing on what it means to play the guitar and how he found his voice through a series of guitars, Diary of a Player also shares what Brad has learned about life along the way. Beginning with his own very personal love letter to the guitar and what the instrument has meant in his life as a way to find his voice in the world, Brad shares memorable tales about all the great players in country, blues, and rock 'n' roll who have inspired him over the years. As he wrote in the liner notes of his instrumental guitar album, Play, his first guitar was a gift from his grandpa when Brad was only eight. Brad quickly learned that no matter how he changed and evolved, the guitar was his only real constant. When life gets intense, he says, "there are some people who drink, who seek counseling, eat, or watch TV, cry, sleep, and so on. I play."

At age twelve, Brad Paisley wrote his first song, “Born on Christmas Day,” and today he boasts sixteen #1 hits. Brad’s latest album, American Saturday Night, was proclaimed by Newsweek as The Album of the Year. He has multiple Grammys, CMA, and ACM awards. Brad is married to actress Kimberly Williams Paisley and is the father of Huck and Jasper. He lives in Nashville, Tennessee.
As a graduate of Cornell University, David Wild is a contributing editor for Rolling Stone. He was nominated for an Emmy Award for his work on America: A Tribute to Heroes, a televised telethon held in the wake of 9/11.