In a tale of sand, songs, survival and untimely erections, it takes a trek along the Australian coastline for Benjamin Allmon to find himself, and the true key to happiness.

It is 2006. After more than a decade trying to make it in the music industry, singer-songwriter Ben is getting desperate. As his former bandmates settle into sensible careers he gives it one last shot and records his debut album. The only problem — how to promote it?

In homage to the Deep South bluesmen who walked and played their way to Chicago, he decides to trek 1000 kilometres of Australian coastline. Kissing his girlfriend goodbye, he sets off with a guitar, a sleeping bag and a heroic miscalculation of what he’s getting into.

Beset by bushfires, dingoes, and septuagenarian nudists, fame seems to forever be over the horizon. Penniless and lost, the tour soon becomes a matter of survival instead of climbing the charts. Through his encounters with the people you only meet when walking slow and sleeping rough, Ben realises that what he wanted at the outset has changed enormously.

Benjamin Allmon

Books