Milton Brown is a world-class name-dropper, and they come thick and fast in his new memoir: Jimmy Buffett, Clint Eastwood, Glen Campbell, Kenny Rogers, Anne Murray, Merv Griffin, Tanya Tucker and many more.

The soundtrack isn’t half-bad either. That’s because Brown, a lifelong Mobilian, quietly pulled off an unusual feat over the last few decades: He managed an impressive career as a professional songwriter without ever relocating to one of the industry’s American Meccas, Nashville or Los Angeles.