The monthly Epiphanies column - which has been running in The Wire magazine since January 1998 - celebrates music's transformative power in a series of personal testimonials from some of the most original critics, authors, artists and musicians of our time. This book anthologises 55 of the best Epiphanies essays, each one describing an encounter with music that changed a life. The collection also boasts contributions from a host of influential music critics, including Ian Penman on Jimi Hendrix, Dave Tompkins on 2 Live Crew and Owen Hatherley on Pulp.