Great Falls, MT

Fast Times, Post-Punk Weirdos, and a Tale of Coming Home Again

By: Reggie Watts

Narrated by: Reggie Watts

Comedian and musician Reggie Watts shares his story of growing up in Montana as a biracial oddball struggling to navigate life, girls, drugs, and his own identity in America’s heartland—and having a blast doing it.

Reggie Watts is weird. But you knew that. Anyone who’s seen his multifaceted, entirely improvised comedy and music shows knows that. Reggie Watts is also from the town of Great Falls, MT.

These two facts are not unrelated.

Watts grew up in Montana in the ‘80s, half French, half American, half white, half Black, speaking a bunch of different languages and slipping between the orchestra geeks and the football jocks until he finally found a squad of fellow misfits with an affinity for trouble. It was a wide-open time and place that invited freedom and exploration—as well as car theft and the not infrequent use of recreational cough syrup. And it helped him become the uniquely strange creative voice he is today.

In Great Falls, MT, Watts takes us through his story, hitting on the culture shock he experienced after moving from Europe to the heart of America, where he was called racial slurs by neighbors but wasn’t Black enough for his father’s extended family. Where he fought with his authoritarian dad, built a new family of antiestablishment, post-punk oddballs—and ultimately knew he had to leave. But after Watts’s career exploded in Seattle and New York, ultimately scoring him a nightly place next to James Corden on The Late Late Show, he found himself drawn back to his hometown after the deaths of his parents. This is his love letter to the town that made him. But like love itself, it’s messy and complicated and dirty and beautiful—and as weird and wonderful as Watts himself.

©2023 Reggie Watts (P)2023 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

"*A Vulture Best Comedy Book of 2023*

"Reminiscent of experimental meta-memoirs like A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius, Great Falls, MT is earnest, optimistic, and future-forward but also nostalgic for (and critical of) times gone by, particularly the ’90s grunge boom and that greater Pacific Northwest–based cultural moment." –Vulture

“This gripping memoir is equal parts relatable small-town upbringing and unfathomable noise-wizard jazz-clown origin story. Eleventy stars!” –Nick Offerman

“Great Falls, MT deepens my understanding of Reggie Watts while keeping the mysteriousness around his incredible art intact. How did this brilliant, wonderful person get here? This book makes his path seem like something more logical than improbable. Of course he became this person! It’s the same way I feel about Liverpool and The Beatles, or Minneapolis and Prince." –Fred Armisen

Beyond Delicious

Excellent book read by the man himself. Sounds wonderful in your ear holes and will make you feel all of the feels.

From another Great Falls Transplant!

Wow! Great book! Touching stories, relatable, mentally visualizing! Thanks Reggie from another Great Falls Transplant! My dad retired from the navy and my mom is from Montana, they chose Great Falls to retire. I went to CMR but I know GFH and could see it in my mind. Listened to your book when driving back and fourth from Missoula to Great Falls for work. I work at the hospitals in both cities. You made me cry, yell in excitement, and relate to robotussin. Thanks man wish I had met missed you at the NewBerry. awsome book, Awesome stories, amazing time listening!!

Heartwarming and Inspiring

Much more heartwarming and touching than I expected. Reggie found a way to make me laugh and cry.

Reggie is just a good human.

Liked it all. Sounds like he had a great upbringing. Looking forward to the next one.

Ideal combo of heartfelt, adventurous and stupid

What a story. Reggie is probably the best narrator ever. Definitely listen rather than read as then you receive all the music, sounds, accents and voices.

Throved

Apparently you need a recommendation. Well. Good luck. Enjoy the rest. Prepare to thrive. Throve in a retro throwback sense.

Of course a Reggie Watts audiobook includes music! a beautifully written & produced audio book

Even if you aren't already a fan of Reggie, this is an enjoyable and relatable memoir for anyone who grew up feeling out of place. Watts, the son of an American MP & a French woman, literally was born a citizen of no country and had to be naturalized later. He decided to run with his perpetual outsider status to make weirdness his superpower. Aside from the story itself, Reggie's writing is so evocative- you feel that buzz of excitement in that Spanish bar & the cold of Montana winters. His performance adds much (it is wondrous to hear him replicate all the languages he heard on the streets of Madrid), and the particularly at the end of the book, his beautiful musical compositions give the book a sweeping, cinematic feel.

Thank you, Reggie

I’ve been a fan of his since I caught some of his weird little videos back in 2009, when I was about to drop out of college. I had no idea the depth of this man!…Just kidding! It’s apparent how thoughtful he is from every action he takes! At least, I’d think so, but I never did get around to catching the James Cordon show! But, I’ve been a huge fan of Reg from about 2009 until about 2015, when I dropped off of the face of the earth to pursue solitude among the trees! I trust, fingers crossed, that he hasn’t totally fallen from grace since then, and then manufactured a facsimile voice of what once was, to construct a book of lies! No, he really does seem like a great guy. And he’s written a great book. I recommend it. Thanks, Reggie. Thanks, everyone.

Entertaining

The audiobook is probably better than paper version. If you’re unaware of some of the musical references, you really miss out on Reggie Watts talent as an artist.

Enjoyable and relatable as a minority growing up during the same time period in a mostly white community. A must read/listen if you’re a fan of Reggie Watts!

loved it!

nice storytelling by the intriguing Atypical author. learned more about his music and am a bigger fan. your a cool interesting, talanted and good man Reggie Watts. nice to get to know you😊