Country music superstar Brad Paisley will publish his first major book, titled The Diary of a Player, with Howard Books, an imprint of Simon and Schuster. The new book, set to release in May 2011, is a salute to the guitar gods of country, blues, and rock & roll who have shaped his life. The book will be co-written with David Wild, a contributing editor to Rolling Stone and an Emmy nominated television writer and producer.
The Diary of a Player is the very personal story of how Paisley became who he is today. The essence of the book is captured in the liner notes he wrote for his instrumental album Play.
“When I was eight I got a gift from my grandpa. No coincidence that around that time I also got an identity. See, no matter how I have changed, learned and evolved as a person, the guitar has been a major part of it, and really the only constant. A crutch, a shrink, a friend, love interest, parachute, flying machine, soapbox, canvas, liability, investment, jackpot, tease, a sage, a gateway, an addiction, a recovery, backstage pass, pickup line, weapon of revenge, a makeover, compass, target, icebreaker, a temptress, a church, a voice, veil, armor, and lifeline. My grandpa knew it could be many of these things for me, but mostly he just wanted me to never be alone. He said if I learned to play, anything would be manageable, and life would be richer. You can get through some real tough moments with that guitar on your knee. When life gets intense, there are people who drink, who seek counseling, eat, watch TV, pray, cry, sleep, and so on. I play.”
As a multiple Grammy, Country Music Association, and Academy of Country Music award winner, Paisley has an unprecedented seventeen #1’s —the last 13 being consecutive. His latest album, American Saturday Night, was proclaimed by Time Magazine as “The Top Album of 2009”—not just in country, but across all music formats. Paisley’s innovative tours consistently place in the Top 5 tours as ranked by Pollstar for attendance. His current H2O World Tour has played to over 750,000 fans this year and is currently nominated for Billboard’s Touring Awards – Top Package. His next album, Hits Alive, will include original studio tracks as well as live performances from his H2O Tour, and will be released Nov. 2. On November 10 Paisley will co-host the CMA awards—the third consecutive year he has held hosting honors and is also nominated for Entertainer of the Year, Male Vocalist and Video (“Water”).