Rowman & Littlefield has announced the May 15 release of Jason Molina: Riding with the Ghost. The book is the first critical examination of the life and work of the man behind Songs: Ohia and Magnolia Electric Co., who died in March 2013. With the blessing and participation of Molina’s family, friends, bandmates and record label, author Erin Osmon meticulously traces Molina’s earliest experiences growing up in a trailer park in Lorain, OH, to his last days as an artist addicted to alcohol.
Jason Molina: Riding with the Ghost is available for pre-order now through Rowman & Littlefield publishers, as well as Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Target and Hive (in the UK).
Secretly Canadian is offering a limited-edition bundle that includes an LP pressing of Molina’s first radio session at Oberlin College in 1994, during which he performed early versions of Songs: Ohia material as well as songs that cannot be heard anywhere else.
Jason Molina: Riding with the Ghost delves into each period of the artist’s life: from his first high school punk band Chronic Insanity, to his last days with heralded alt-country act Magnolia Electric Co., and the numerous iterations of his beloved folk-leaning band Songs: Ohia, as well as solo material and unreleased demos unkown to fans. It’s a fascinating look at one of the last pre-internet indie successes and the underground music scene that supported his meteoric rise.
The book also examines the origin story of Bloomington, IN-based Secretly Canadian, and how the record label and Molina became inexorably linked in a nearly 17-year run as label and artist, despite major ideological and technological shifts in the landscape of independent music. It’s a book not just for Molina fans, but for music fans — a story for the ages that explores the triumphs and pitfalls of a very pure artistic spirit.
Members of Songs: Ohia and Magnolia Electric Co. with special guests are slated to play select Molina tribute shows to celebrate the book’s release. The dates are below:
June 21 – Durham, NC – venue tbd
June 22 – Philadelphia, PA – venue tbd
June 23 – New York, NY – venue tbd
June 25 – Washington, DC – venue tbd
July 22 – Chicago, IL – The Hideout
