Only Wanna Be with You

"Only Wanna Be with You details ... the ultimate comeback story."—The State

"Tim Sommer's writing style is breezy and enjoyable. . . . Only Wanna Be with You reads like you're sitting at a really nice Oyster bar somewhere in Virginia, listening to a well-traveled and enthusiastic journeyman tell the story of one of the best-selling bands of all time."—Rock and Roll Globe

"This book not only lovingly details the story of one of the most remarkable bands in American music, but also provides a refreshingly candid insider's look at the music industry of the nineties."—Jersey Beat

"This book isn't just the best thing ever written about Hootie & the Blowfish, although it is. It may well be the best thing ever written about an American rock band, period. Tim Sommer writes beautifully, and knowingly, about music, friendship, money, stardom, the whole rock enterprise; in these pages, almost miraculously, he captures a dream."—Matthew Goodman, best-selling author of Eighty Days and The City Game

"Tim Sommer's Only Wanna Be with You tells the story of Hootie & the Blowfish's rise in amazing, hilarious detail while also serving as requiem for an era when the record business had more money than sense. Whether you're a fan or not, you'll root for him and them. Essential."—David Menconi, author of Ryan Adams: Losering, A Story of Whiskeytown

"Set against the emerging alt-rock scene on the mid Atlantic coast, Only Wanna Be with You is the engaging story of musicians who only wanted to play together. Tim Sommer is the perfect storyteller to chronicle Hootie & the Blowfish's rise—and the bond that exists between them to this day."—Mark Goodman, original MTV VJ, co-host of SiriusXM Debatable and co-host of the I Want My 80s podcast

"As the A&R rep who signed Hootie & the Blowfish to their Atlantic deal and then fought behind the scenes to ensure the release of cracked rear view, Tim Sommer offers a unique perspective on the band's narrative. Sommer's lively account demonstrates how Hootie's nine-years-in-the-making "overnight success" was equally unlikely and inevitable."—Dean Budnick, co-author of Suck and Blow with Blues Traveler's John Popper