Steve Goodman

by Clay Eals

Intimate and touching, this biography captures the warmth and wit of Steve Goodman, one of the most respected songwriters of the 1970s and early 1980s. Diagnosed with leukemia at the age of 20, this portrait tells how Goodman strove to be a model husband and father while juggling experimental medical treatments with a career he found irresistible. Often strained for commercial success, Goodman found solace in performances for audiences from the tens to the tens of thousands. Drawing from more than 850 interviews—including those with family members, Jimmy Buffett, Steve Martin, Willie Nelson, Studs Terkel, Roger Ebert, and Carl Reiner—this book verifies the universality of his work, replete with Goodman’s themes on the fleeting nature of human existence. A 17-song tribute CD is included.