LISTEN HERE Season 2 Episode 02 | Interview with Michael Patrick Flanagan Smith

Recorded days before of the debut of his first book— THE GOOD HAND— this is a great conversation with my friend, Mike, about his page turner of a memoir about a year he spent working on an oil field in North Dakota. A thankless, dangerous job that introduced him to a whole cast of flawed and lovable characters, all breaking their bodies and spirits for 14-16 hours a day in punishing weather. Co-worker deaths were common, either from the dangers of the job itself, or from the drugs/booze/violence that were abused as a result. All of this madness was justified in the pursuit of oil, which, we learn, has way more of a choke hold on us than we realize. He gives us a macro and micro look at the true price of oil— you will be kept awake counting all the things you own that are made with petroleum! Writing and living his hero’s journey at the same time, while channeling his heroes, anchored in the wisdom of folk music, and really doing what artists do best— hurling themselves into life like the ocean hurls itself at the shore! This book is a posctcard sent from a gritty and real mytho-poetic life, written about with some cut-to-the-bone honesty. Sit close to the speakers so you don’t miss a single breath of it! A juicy conversation with a fellow capital ‘A’ Artist on the path— the author of the brand new, Great American book titled, THE GOOD HAND— Michael Patrick Flanagan Smith.

Mike’s website + book info HERE | Download ‘The Great Away Album’ for free HERE