Award Winning Author
Music Book Production
Reissues Producer
Music Historian
3-Time GRAMMY nominee
ABOUT
Scott B. Bomar grew up in Nashville and relocated to Los Angeles. He worked for Universal Music Group before spending seven years as the Senior Director of the book publishing department at the global music company BMG. He has worked on projects for the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, the Country Music Hall of Fame, the Grammy Museum, the National Recording Archive of the Library of Congress, Sony Music, Gibson Guitars, Penguin Random House, Omnibus Press, Backbeat Books, Omnivore Recordings, Bear Family Records, Ken Burns' Florentine Films, Leiber & Stoller Music, SiriusXM, American Songwriter, and the Tina Turner estate. He was nominated for a Grammy award for his album notes for the compilation The Other Side of Bakersfield (which he also produced). Additionally, his 2019 box set The Bakersfield Sound was named one of the best of the year by the New York Times, Variety, and Rolling Stone, and earned Scott a second Grammy nod.
Scott has authored or co-authored more than a half dozen books, including The Byrds: 1964-1967 (with Roger McGuinn, Chris Hillman, and David Crosby), Johnny Cash at Folsom & San Quentin (with Marty Stuart), and memoirs with Rock & Roll Hall of Famers such as Motown songwriting legend Lamont Dozier, pioneering female rocker Wanda Jackson, and the surviving original members of The Zombies. His book Southbound earned the Association for Recorded Sound Collection's award for Best Historical Research in Recorded Rock and Popular Music. His current project as an author is the forthcoming Bakersfield Sounds: The Rise and Fall of Country Music's Nashville West, which will be published by the Country Music Foundation through their partnership with the University of Illinois Press. Recent articles and liner notes include "Howdy Glenn: West Coast Country's Forgotten Black Pioneer," which earned Scott a third Grammy nomination as well as the 2024 Chet Flippo Award for Excellence in Country Music Journalism. Additionaly, he wrote the essays for Willie Nelson and Peter Frampton's inductions into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2023 and 2024 respectively.
As an editor, Scott has worked with authors including Barney Hoskyns, Colin Escott, Andy Neill, Chris Morris, and Tony Fletcher, as well as artists such as Tom Petty, Elvis Costello, Chris Hillman, Dan Auerbach of The Black Keys, Lars Ulrich of Metallica, Chris Shiflett of Foo Fighters, William Bell, Dave Mason, Loretta Lynn, Eddie Floyd, Rodney Crowell, Janis Ian, Graham Nash, Patti LaBelle, Billy Bob Thornton, Dwight Yoakam, Susanna Hoffs, Matthew Sweet, Carlos Santana, and hip-hop legend Nas.
Scott has appeared as a moderator or presenter for music-themed presentations at the Grammy Museum, the Country Music Hall of Fame, Belmont University, UCLA, USC, Cal State Bakersfield, Pop Conference, the International Country Music Conference, Americanafest, Strand Books (New York), Book Soup (LA), and Parnassus Books (Nashville), among others. His interview appearances to discuss music history include NPR’s Here and Now, Studio 360, WSM, WPLN (Nashville), WNYC (New York), SiriusXM, and more. Along with Paul Duncan, Scott co-hosts the bi-weekly podcast Songcraft: Spotlight on Songwriters, featuring interviews with nearly 250 writers, including Smokey Robinson, Elvis Costello, Norah Jones, Lucinda Williams, Paul Stanley, and Bill Withers.
Scott splits his time between Idyllwild and Inglewood, California, where he lives with his wife Melanie and their two rescue German Shepherds, Jean and Ferlin.
"Scott B. Bomar is one of my favorite writers, historians and musical scholars, as well as one of the nicest guys in the world. His orbit is filled with the coolest people, books and music. I am truly one of his biggest fans."
MARTY STUART
recording artist, Country Music Hall of Fame
"Scott is a wonderful writer, and he really shines in my book. I think he's great....He's just fun to hang out with."
Wanda Jackson
recording artist, Rock & Roll Hall of Fame
"The most incredible collaborator and writer I could ever imagine. Scott has been such a blessing to me."
LAMONT DOZIER
Songwriters Hall of Fame, Motown legend
"I found working with Scott a pleasure. He is very diligent, and The Byrds: 1964-1967 came out so well that it takes the place of a documentary film."
ROGER McGUINN
The Byrds, Rock & Roll Hall of Famer
"I had such an amazing time working with Scott on my memoir, Time Between, and then with the wonderful book The Byrds: 1964-1967, along with Roger McGuinn and David Crosby. It was Scott's brilliant concept that motivated Roger, David, and me to create the visual and oral history of The Byrds. What a joy knowing and working with Scott over these many years."
CHRIS HILLMAN
The Byrds, Flying Burrito Brothers, Rock & Roll Hall of Fame
"I’m grateful for having Scott’s help getting my ideas for a book of lyrics and prose into publishable form. Without his creative support, Word for Word wouldn’t exist. I bow in earnest."
rodney crowell
recording artist, author, Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame
"My memoir possibly would never have made it to market without the help of Scott and, for sure, the journey wouldn't have been as satisfying. Scott is exceptionally talented and was instrumental in navigating the project with skill, integrity, and clarity so that it stayed authentic and true to my vision."
Dave Mason
co-founder of Traffic, Rock & Roll Hall of Fame
