Raisin' Cain - The Wild and Raucous Story of Johnny Winter

 In December 2011, Raisin' Cain won the  
ARSC Award for Excellence
in Historical Recorded Sound Research.

The Awards Ceremony will be held at the Eastman School of Music in May 2012.


*********************

In November 2010, the Blues Foundation in Memphis selected Mary Lou Sullivan for the 2011 Keeping the Blues Alive (KBA) Award in Literature.




The awards ceremony was held at the International Blues Challenge in Memphis on February 5, 2011

Due to the incredible demand and great reviews, Raisin' Cain  went into a THIRD printing five months after it was released!

• "Blues Revue" ran an excerpt in its Sept/Oct 2010 issue dedicated to Jimi Hendrix.

• "Hittin' the Note" ran a review in October 2010 that read, "There's enough sex, drugs and tales of the rock 'n' roll lifestyle here to make most editions of VH1's "Behind the Music" seem like a visit to Sunday school."

• Raisin' Cain went into a second printing within seven weeks and is in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's Library and Archives, so both fans and scholars can learn about the Texas legend. 

• Check out this excerpt to find out why.

• Read what Johnny says about Raisin' Cain.

Bill Wax, program manager and host of B.B. King's Bluesville on Sirius/XM Radio, interviewed me on his show in late May 2010. 

-- TV Interview Archives --

Interview on Fox TV Morning News

--News and Signings Archives--

Had a fabulous time at my book signings at Black Eyed Sally's in Hartford, Connecticut, the North Atlantic Blues Festival in Rockland, Maine, and at Antone's, The Saxon Pub, B.D. Riley's, and Maggie Mae's in Austin, Texas.  Tommy Shannon loved the book and said he learned things about Johnny that he never knew by reading Raisin' Cain. Alan Haynes got his copy on a Thursday night, started reading it after his gig, and was so enthralled that he didn't get to bed till 7 a.m. on Friday morning.

After music writers had received advance copies of the book, Classic Rock editor-in-chief Scott Rowley wrote: "I read a lot of rock bios in my job and Raisin' Cain is one of the best I've read . . . a great story well-told. A properly old-school book where you can feel the leg-work the writer has put in. Well done."

Soul Bag writer Eric Doidy wrote: "I began reading your work and it is fascinating. When reading the book, we really feel, not only that you know 'the facts' about Johnny Winter, but also that you have a deep understanding of where the man comes from, what he's been through, and who he is (musically and personally). I believe the book will please fans of Johnny Winter, but also a lot of other readers. Congratulations."

For more feedback, interviews and reviews, check out Kudos and Media.