“Beijing Blues” with Andy Aledort and the Groove Kings

From my second Big in China book release party, at Highland Place in Maplewood. I really can barely begin to describe what a pleasure it was to play several gigs with these guys. Andy is a real master. And it meant a lot to roll out my songs…

Nice, thoughtful Big in China piece on the Global Asianista blog

I don't think I ever paid proper tribute to this nice, thoughtful feature on the Global Asianista blog, so I thought I'd so now. Thanks. "... I found Alan Paul’s tale of expatriate family life in Beijing so refreshingly defiant. Paul’s…

Dashboard Confessional’s Chris Carrabba loves Big in China

Dashboard Confessional's Chris Carrabba on Big In China: "This book is great. I recommend it to any guitarist, traveler, or basketball fan!" He sent this out as a tweet and also referred to me as "my friend..." That's all really nice. We…

You’re Gonna Make Me Lonesome When You Go – Woodie Alan cover Dylan

Thank you to everyone who has been writing me after reading the book. I really welcome and value the feedback. Many have told me that they've been enjoying poking around YouTube and watching Woodie Alan videos after reading the book. Since many…

Fishing with Capt. Dean Ween

Wrapping up my thread from last week about fishing with the great Dean Ween, aka my friend Mickey. Mickey keeps a running journal on www.mickeysfishing.com. Here's what he had to say about our day on the ocean: We caught some nice…

Sesame Street breaks it down – a rap classic

Sesame Street breaks it down from Wonderful Creative on Vimeo.

“Got Love If You Want It” – with Andy Aledort and the Groove Kings

One of the really fun things about the release of Big In China was the opportunity to play a bunch of times with Andy Aledort and the Groove Kings. Aside from being a good, longtime friend and Guitar World colleague, Andy is a master guitarist.…

From the archives: Ween

I spent yesterday deep sea fishing with Mickey Melchiondo, aka Dean Ween. As soon as I posted news, some people wrote me with great excitement. Many others yawned and no doubt wondered, "who is this Dean Ween of whom you speak?" So I thought…
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Jacob’s quest for a women’s jersey becomes a WSJ front-page story

Well, it can help to have a mother who is a Deputy Managing Editor at the Wall Street Journal. Remember Jacob's letter about the women's jerseys? . Well, it became this front-page WSJ story after Rebecca went in to work and started discussing…

I’m now an “Emotional Pro”

"Big in China is a wonderful heart-warming, uplifting book." - Ilene Dillon, Emotional Pro Radio. I did an hour-long interview with Ms. Dillon yesterday and thought it went really well. You can hear it here.