“Despite the vast nature of his subject matter, Scanlan manages a concise, well-structured and presented picture of the music’s evolution, placing it within a social and cultural context that owes as much to history as those with a reverence for the past and its preservation. Touching on the heavy hitters and lesser known performers in equal measure, Scanlan paints a holistic picture that serves as a sampler platter of sorts for a variety of artists, offering an inroad to those who may seem somewhat inaccessible.With his clear, sharp prose and decidedly British and openly reverential take on his subject matter, he presents a well-argued thesis and exploration of some seventy-five years of popular music rooted in the American South and eventually filtered through a British lens and back into a relevant form years after its initial appearance. No easy task, but one Scanlan manages with aplomb. Unlike the thematically similar On Highway 61 by Dennis McNally, Scanlan retains a sharp focus that never strays from the work’s expressed thesis. In this, he succeeds in creating a compelling trip across the country and through time, all the while adhering to the well-defined thematic through line of travel and the freedom afforded by a life on the open road. In this, Easy Riders, Rolling Stones proves a fascinating look at a bygone era from an outside perspective.”

John Paul | PopMatters

“Scanlan delivers a beautifully rich and finely researched account of how America’s endless highway has influenced and manifested itself in key artists’ work. . . . Scanlan draws from known documentation but displays an innate feel for his subject as he throws up insightful theories about the more direct times before social media, when artists could be covered at close range by chroniclers of the time. . . . It’s rare to find a tome which makes you ponder then punch the air in agreement, but this highly recommended work is as much an endangered species as its subjects.”

Record Collector