Author Event: Carli Muñoz - "A Fool's Journey" Book Launch and Mini Concert

Carli Muñoz—rock and jazz sensation and former pianist of the legendary Beach Boys—joins us to discuss his tell-all memoir, A Fool's Journey, and perform a mini concert!

This is a ticketed event. Your $5 ticket can be put towards a purchase of the book at the event. Alternatively, you can receive a free ticket by pre-ordering a copy of the book when buying your ticket. Either way, buy tickets through the link below (fees apply) or by calling us at 781-431-1160 during store hours (no fees). Please note that we cannot accept refunds within 48 hours of the event. Please also note that you must purchase your copy of the book from Wellesley Books in order to have the author sign it at the event.

If you are unable to attend the event but would still like to buy the book, you can do so by scrolling down. Just remember that buying the book alone is not the same as buying a ticket. 

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ABOUT THE BOOK

Cutting his musical teeth in a Puerto Rican jazz club in the 1960s, Carli Muñoz came of age during the countercultural flowering of that era; he lived for music, knowledge, and the mind-expanding magic of LSD. Wanting to expand creative horizons for his successful psychedelic rock band, Muñoz flew to New York on a whim with $11 in his pocket and embarked on a deep dive into the gritty scene of gigs, girls, and trips, struggling to fill his pockets with dollars and his belly with food. Free-falling into the dark underbelly of the city, Muñoz ended up homeless and penniless until an epiphany on the subway brought him back to the surface.

On the cusp of a new decade, Muñoz moved to LA to fight for a new life and a second chance. Hanging out in Houdini’s old mansion in Laurel Canyon, he watched the free-loving idealism of the ’60s melt into the disco- and cocaine-saturated hedonism of the ’70s, until one day he found himself on tour with the Beach Boys. He became close friends with Dennis Wilson—a friendship that ranged from pranking each other to working on an album together to watching him spiral irretrievably into self-destruction. He witnessed the feud between Mike Love and the Wilsons firsthand, as well as the unchecked instability of Brian Wilson. Despite the chaos and power struggles within the band, Muñoz was able to create enthralling music with them, as well as with some of the other popular musicians of the ’70s, including Wilson Pickett, the Association, George Benson, and Peter Cetera.

Populated with an eclectic cast of artists, musicians, clairvoyants, record producers, hippies, hobos, and superstars, A Fool’s Journey is a vivid snapshot of an era-defining moment that will never be repeated.

Although Muñoz toured with the Beach Boys for ten years and partied with rock stars, he was also just an island kid from Puerto Rico, forever in exile, forever “the other.” The story of his journey is as compelling as it is timely.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Carli Muñoz is a pianist, composer, writer and visual artist who had the rare distinction of excelling in the mainstream of pop music and jazz. In 1971 he joined the Beach Boys, and left them in 1981 to pursue a career in cinema and jazz performing. Recordings and performances followed with top jazz artists such as George Benson, Les McCann, and others. Muñoz’s own works followed, culminating in his 2018 release Follow Me to wide acclaim. Since 1998, Carli has performed live nightly at his venue, Carli’s Fine Bistro & Piano, in Old San Juan, Puerto Rico.