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The Hours Are Long, but the Pay Is Low

The Hours Are Long, but the Pay Is Low A Curious Life in Independent Music

Paperback (25 Nov 2025)

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Publisher's Synopsis

The hard-won pleasures of putting heart over brains, conviction over caution, and madness over market share"The music business is not a meritocracy: it is a crapshoot taking place in a septic tank balanced on the prow of the Titanic, a venal snake pit where innovation, creativity, and honest business practices are actively discouraged." Rob Miller arrived in Chicago wanting to escape the music industry. In short order, he co-founded a trailblazing record label revered for its artist-first approach and punk take on country, roots, and so much else. Miller's gonzo memoir follows a music fan's odyssey through a singular account of Bloodshot Records, the Chicago scene, and thirty years as part of a community sustaining independent artists and businesses. Hilarious and hundred-proof, The Hours Are Long, But the Pay Is Low delivers a warm-hearted yet clear-eyed account of loving and living music on the edge, in the trenches, and without apologies.

Book information

ISBN: 9780252088964
Publisher: University of Illinois Press
Imprint: 3 Fields Books
Pub date:
DEWEY: 781.640973
DEWEY edition: 23/eng/20250617
Language: English
Number of pages: 304
Weight: 454g
Height: 235mm
Width: 156mm