Maestro: Greenspan's Fed and the American Boom

by Bob Woodward

Perhaps the last Washington secret is how the Federal Reserve and its enigmatic chairman, Alan Greenspan, operate. In Maestro, Bob Woodward uses his proven interviewing and research techniques to take you inside the Fed and Greenspan's thinking. Woodward presents the Greenspan years as a gripping narrative, a remarkable portrait of a man who has become the symbol of American economic preeminence.

Genres: Economics, Biography, Politics, Nonfiction, History, Business, Finance

288 pages, Paperback

First published November 4, 2000

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author by this name in the Goodreads database.

Robert "Bob" Upshur Woodward is an assistant managing editor of The Washington Post. While an investigative reporter for that newspaper, Woodward, working with fellow reporter Carl Bernstein, helped uncover the Watergate scandal that led to U.S. President Richard Nixon's resignation. Woodward has written 12 best-selling non-fiction books and has twice contributed reporting to efforts that collectively earned the Post and its National Reporting staff a Pulitzer Prize.

Reviews

[Davy Bennett · Rating 4 out of 5]

Just finished. I liked the book, short and sweet.

The Afterward sets you up for the GW Bush years. Tax cuts right off the bat. Greenspan was for tax cuts, but tried not to side with either of the two versions, Bush and the bigger cuts, or those smaller cuts of the Democrats. Greenspan especially didn’t want the large budget surpluses to be used by the government to enter the stock market. Woodward was also critical of the Reagan deficits, though that is just mentioned in passing, this book is about a later era. I think most wanted the deficits paid off, but 9/11 and the subsequent Bush Wars did not allow for that. What a shame.

As I look back, I loved Reagan then, and still think highly of him (great actor, Cub fan). However, I didn’t like the excessive military spending of those days, and don't agree totally with the narrative that this brought down the USSR. It was mainly their terrible economy that did it. The military spending kept the Republicans in power, was more political payback than an attack on the Bolsheviks.

I couldn't believe Clinton got elected because everybody knew he was a blatant liar, but he did well on the economy.

The older I get, the more cynical I get. The dream world that is created in the public schools and beyond is wearing off.

Pg. 148 update.
I like the short chapters, you can feel your progress. Reading dry subjects like this can get overwhelming (boring). Woodward does a pretty good job of tamping down the dryness.

I went apolitical when Clinton was elected, and prior to that, even though I am an Economics major, I followed politics more than economics.

It is interesting for me to go back and pick up on things that I didn’t really know, or knew little about. My jobs in Houston didn’t really touch much on macro economics, they were more customer service for refineries and chemical plants.
I did live well during the Clinton years. His deficit reduction plan was tremendous.


Pg 64.
I am not a big fan of Bob Woodward.
I just don't go much for the big establishment guys.
This book is pretty good though.

I read a different bio of Greenspan several years ago, but this effort supplements that pretty well.
Maestro, My Ass cracks me up, but I may never read that? I do still own it.

My Dad retired at age 57 in 1987 and had just put virtually all of his retirement savings into the stock market. This was just before the huge and unprecedented stock market drop in Fall 1987.
That shook him up pretty good, but it recovered quickly and he had fabulous returns up until he died in 2018 (RIP, Dad).
I guess I have the steady hand of Alan Greenspan to thank for that.
The guy was an inner circle member of peak Ayn Rand. Very impressive stuff. I liked his overall slant, though as the book says he was a political animal and a pragmatic fellow. I am sure we could have done worse. I find it interesting that Greenspan was once a gold standard guy, and felt the US did well without a central bank (prior to the Fed saddling of 1913). My son worked for a few years at the Wall Street Fed, and I remember him being open to the Ron Paul book, End the Fed.
Greenspan was an excellent jazz clarinet player, but with little in the way of innate on-the-spot innovations. He played with Stan Getz and others, very impressive to me.
AG is 99 and still living, as I write in July 2025.
More power to him.

[Frank Stein · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's possible to call this book outdated, since it was published in 2000 at the height of Greenspan's popularity and with another six years to run in his chairmanship, but no other book about Greenpspan could possibly feature Woodward's astounding access to all the major players. In this work Woodward gives the reader an insightful and readable look at the inner workings of the federal reserve at what could be called its moment of peak influence (who remembers now the countdown clocks to the next federal reserve meeting featured on some of the then ubiquitous financial shows?).

The early years of his chairmanship (1987-1992) are interesting because Woodward shows the extent of political influence on Federal Reserve decisions. Federal Governors are called to personal dinners by cabinet members to be berated about interest rate hikes, the President and his top advisors regularly dun Greenspan about the negative effects of monetary tightening during election campaigns, and at one point Greenspan almost explicitly ties a rate cut to a promise for a balanced budget. The later years show less political skulduggery, but perhaps an even tighter relationship between the Fed and the White House, mainly because Greenspan finds himself so personally close to Clinton Treasury Secretary Robert Rubin. Their agreement on most Fed actions leaves little room, or necessity, for political influence (though Clinton does get angry at rate hikes in 1994 and 1999). The best part of the book is probably the discussion about Greenspan's dawning intellectual realization new "productivity revolution" from computers and the internet. While the more academic economists at the Fed almost roll their eyes at Greenspan's odd mutterings about a "New Economy," he uses staff researchers to dig deep into the productivity and data show why reams of academic economists at the time were dead wrong. His belief, no more than a gut reaction at first (Greenspan talks regularly in this book about a "pain in his stomach" which tells him when something indescribable is wrong), later becomes the accepted wisdom.

This book gives a better and more balanced look at the Fed than William Greider's "Secrets of the Temple," about the Volcker years, and perhaps also gives a more nuanced view of Clinton economic policy than Robert Rubin's autobiography "In an Uncertain World." It's great reading for those who care about financial policy and the federal government.

[Sara · Rating 3 out of 5]

Kind of dry *ya think!?!* but fascinating to read after having read Bob Rubin's lengthier account as Treasury Secretary. This read like an Asimov Foundation series, where Greenspan is looking into the future, trying to predict the economy and keep it stable during Bush Sr and Clinton years. I learned more about the FOMC (which I kept reading as FOMO). The main question that I never got an answer to was the Productivity index. It was always wrong. Something wasn't right. That could be the science fiction behind it all. I don't know if this was due to the subprime mess that started around this time? Did they ever make sense of it? I will write Woodward and ask! Oh well. Onward!!

[Chris · Rating 2 out of 5]

While certainly revealing, Woodward offers little more than a groveling dictation of his interview notes.

[Cash McClanahan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Taught me a lot about the American economy and its reliance on the federal government. A little dull at times but otherwise fairly illuminating

[Sangam Agarwal · Rating 3 out of 5]

good book on fed monetary policy history when volcker leave and allen greenspan join fed.
all the challenge greespan faced when inflation was defeated but inflation expectation very high.
trump second term has so much similarity with last days of paul volcker when president pressure fed to lower rate and appoint his trusted fed

[yoli · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was originally read as extra credit for my Intro to Macroeconomics class, but the question list was far too long and I got an A regardless. ;) All modestly, all the time, I know. But Maestro : Greenspan’s Fed and the American Boom was actually really good, and it generated within me a giant crush on former Fed Chairman Greenspan, so much so that for the rest of this I’m going to refer to him as “Ali G,” like Da Sacha Baron Cohen series. Kidding, Mr. Greenspan is far too dour-faced for that to fly.

The timespan covered by Woodward’s book stops around 2000, which is before Greenspan stops being Chairman, so there is some uncovered time. But, after reading the book you have a fair idea what happens: Greenspan gets a LOT of data; he sifts through it in the office, at home, everywhere; things seem to be getting better/worse/not changing but he’s not sure; everyone else is and talks to Greenspan; he gives “opaque” commentary that everyone interprets according to his/her specifications; there’s a meeting of the FOMC and he asks for an asymmetric directive (meaning one where he can change the rates between meetings); there’s hemming and hawing and a few token Liberals/Conservatives don’t think it’s a good idea BUT in the end the vote is ratified; and REPEAT.

Occasionally there are economic catastrophes, or almost catastrophes, where everyone is tense and you, as the reader, actually feel your heart palpitating a little. Woodward does a pretty good job of making the economics jargon accessible, although taking a macroeconomics class (or having a dictionary/glossary nearby) is not a bad idea. It’s applied economics! And that’s always rather exciting—significantly more so than shifting aggregated supply and demand curves.

It was interesting to see the “behind the scenes” events that occurred, without my knowledge, during my youth. The stock market almost collapsed? Why didn’t I know?! And then there was a near global economic collapse too, and the true size of some banks is exposed. The fact that that global collapse was averted by a handful of banks agreeing to extend loans illustrates it much more clearly than anything else could.

This book is a good introduction to what the Federal Reserve does, especially it’s most famous Chairman, as well as the impact of economics on America as well as the global community. It was also infinitely more interesting to read than Stigler’s.

[Alan · Rating 2 out of 5]

The book was assigned in 2016 for an economics class.

I found it to be outdated by then since the period covered by the book ended before Greenspan's infamous admission to Henry Waxman's Congressional committee that he had found to his dismay that his basic philosophical assumptions about human nature had been wrong.

I also found myself becoming annoyed at Woodward's style, his lining-up of tidbits into a sort-of story. The reader can just about picture Woodward's sequence of phone calls and luncheons and carefully placing the gathered information onto index cards, then later merely weaving them together in a not very insightful way.

Woodward isn't quite the obsequious worshiper of his financial subject as Andrew Ross Sorkin, but there is a case for comparison.

One useful gleaning: Greenspan appears to have been a consummate political beast, one constantly tinkering with the interest rate largely (says me, after absorbing the book) to suggest to the financial and political worlds that he was attuned to the tiniest nuances of finance, that he was, indeed, the maestro of money.

[Alexander · Rating 2 out of 5]

The biggest disappointment is this book stops at 1999, and thereby misses two major events of Greenspan’s tenure, the tech bubble bursting and the lead up to the 2008 financial crisis. I'm certain this book would have a different title if Greenspan's full record was considered.

Bob Woodward's narrative style is straight forward, which is refreshing in this highly editorialized age, but it does leave the personalities looking flat. It is in many ways a blow by blow accounting of interest rate decisions. This book lacks an understanding of economic theory, but makes up for its political insights.

[J. J. Arias · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the first Bob Woodward book I've read, and I'm not crazy about his writing. It seems very simple, but not Hemingway-simple. I try to take the recreations of conversations with a grain of salt since he wasn't there when they took place. I already know a lot about the Fed but it was interesting to see how Greenspan began to suspect a productivity speedup which probably helped him avoid raising interest rates too much in the mid-90s. It was also interesting to see how firmly entrenched the static Phillips curve model is in the minds of monetary policy-makers.

[Dewey Norton · Rating 1 out of 5]

Needs to be rewritten now that there is a general understanding of collosal mismanagement of the Fed by Greenspan, how this was the primary cause of our current recession and how we almost had a depression. Woodward was so wrong about Greenspan, I have lost all interest in anything he writes, although his two books on Nixon were great then and still are great accounts, perhaps due to the contribution his collaborator Bernstein.

[Monzenn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Low five stars. Contrary to most opinions, I kind of liked the focus on the FOMC discussions. Partly because I was primed by Greenspan's autobiography that those discussions tended to be revealing, and partly because the myth of the tie color (supposedly the color of Greenspan's tie on FOMC day indicated whether he was raising or lowering rates) was so fascinating to me that the discussions themselves centered on Greenspan's influence were interesting on their own. (Too bad the tie color myth was not addressed.) In addition, the focus on economics, the neat bow tieing of the Clinton section, and the portrayal of "intellectual agony" among the members was amusing.

[Mike S · Rating 4 out of 5]

As someone not well-versed in economics nor the structure of our Federal Reserve, this book was very informative. Definitely hagiographic, but I really appreciated having a single focal point to talk through an entire period of our country. Other reviewers complain about the fact that this was basically a series of interview notes. That’s true, but I’m giving the benefit of the doubt that Woodward chose that style to veer closer to the truth and away from his own fabrications. To him this is more a piece of freedom journalism than serious academic endeavor.

[James Edwards · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was surprisingly good! You wouldn’t think a book about the complexities of world economics & the people who try to manage them would be that interesting to the lay person, but Bob Woodward does another excellent job of making the information understandable & fascinating.

I really enjoyed the behind the scenes intimate views of some of the biggest political, governmental & private industry leaders of our time. It’s both scary & exciting how close disaster & exuberance run together along our march of time.

[Zainul Arifin · Rating 3 out of 5]

sedikit susah apabila bukan dari bacground ekonomi seperti saya. tetapi seru juga mengamati dan mengikuti Alan greenspan sebagai gubernur the fed yang sangat independent dalam menentukan kebijakan moneter bagi amerika. Meskipun di tekan oleh banyak pihak dan situasi setelah perang yang terancam inflansi yang tinggi kemudian kampanye - kampanye presiden mulai dari Ronald Reagan, George Bush, Bill Clinton. Ia tetap bisa menjaga tugasnya dengan baik dan menyeimbangkan suku bunga, dan juga menstabilkan pasar modal dan obligasi. sehingga ekonomi amerika tetap terhindar oleh inflansi.

[John · Rating 2 out of 5]

If you want a point-by-point history of the Fed Funds rate from 1987 to 2000 (or if you're lucky enough to have the paperback edition, 2001), this is the book for you. There is little else beyond that and the machinations within the Federal Reserve System that arrived at those changes.

Alan Greenspan was born in 1926. It takes a scant five pages to get him to 1952, where he meets Ayn Rand, and another page to propel him to late 1987. Then 238 pages of rate changes. Plus a glossary, notes, and index.

Enjoy.

[Michael Beeli · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great plunge into the politics and business/economic outlook of the late 20th-century and makes a compelling argument for why that period cemented American economic dominance for the foreseeable future. Great insight into the history and inner workings of the Fed too.

[Matthew Burger · Rating 5 out of 5]

Interesting look at a few presidents through the eyes of the fed. It was also cool to hear about the increase knowledge of media on markets and how it caused the fed to announce rate movements publicly because of it.

[Linda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting study of the power of one person and how that person played the political game. Lots of economics lessons.

[John · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pretty good review of Chairman Greenspan. Woodward is a pretty good writer, obviously.

[Nate · Rating 5 out of 5]

Maestro? Absolutely.

Overall good read. Book ends before housing crisis (2008) so its a little blind but overall very informative of Chairman Greenspan’s tenure.

[Todd McQueen · Rating 3 out of 5]

About Greenspan, the Fed, and the economic boom. A little dry but some interesting lessons. C

[Van · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book gave insight into how the Fed works behind the scene. I had some basic economic training at the time, but this book offered insight no text book can match.

[Jackie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Was really interesting at points but lacked context for helping readers understand the economics at points in this book.

[Shawn McCormick · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.0 Good in depth look at Greenspan’s career and approach to monetary policy. He was definitely influential in shaping policy and the relationship between the people and the Fed.

[Mary-Ellen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I didn't just read Maestro, I studied it; I took notes. I felt I was back in school. I checked it out of the library about 10 times and am still wondering why I didn't just buy the book.
For years I have wanted to "know" more about what really went on in the huge NY Federal Reserve Board Room. I met several of the characters in Maestro and this book illumined my opinion of them. It also helped me to get a much better grasp on the concepts of inflation, wage and price increases, productivity, NAIRU, economic sustainability, the impact of fear on the markets, global interconnectivity, old style libertarianism, and much more. The political landscape recorded in Maestro (from Nixon to Clinton) was insightful and downright opinionated. Woodward seemed to enjoy expressing these encounters as if he were a fly on the wall.

Indeed, Woodward's portrait of how Greenspan balanced intellect with social savvy was a great read. However, what was more enlightening was the mechanics of the FOMC and how incremental rate changes decided there continue to affect the world.

[Ralph · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Whoever controls the volume of money in any country is absolute master of all industry and commerce." ~James Garfield

I remember one day in the late 1990's, my professor in a macro-economics class said that Alan Greenspan was the most powerful person in the world. This intrigued me. At the time I knew very little about the Federal Reserve and nothing about Alan Greenspan. This particular book was published in 2000, which happened to be when I created my original to-read list. I decided I needed to know more about the man. Since that time, I have read nearly every book on that list with a few exceptions. This book was one of those exceptions. Books on economics aren't exactly page turners and frankly I dreaded it. It is now 2008 and unfortunately we are currently in the midst of one of the biggest economic crisises in our nation's history. Greenspan is no longer the Fed Chair; however, I felt like it was a perfect time to finally bite the bullet and read the book.

I have a fairly limited understanding of economics; however, I found this book very easy to read and understand. It was a really good economics refresher. The book explained the following concepts/subjects in more detail:

- How the Fed Chairman is appointed
- The role of the Fed Chairman
- Low interest rates vs. inflation
- Treasury bonds
- The FOMC
- The Fed fund rate vs. the discount rate
- The stock market
- Law of supply and demand
- Disfiguration of capitalism by government
- Black Tuesday of 1929 that led to the Great Depression
- Stock market crash of 1987 and Greenspan's role in overcoming it
- The Russian and Mexican financial turmoils
- LTCM (Long Term Capital Managment)

I did enjoy the detailed insight into why the Fed cuts or raises interest rates; however, the book was tedious at times discussing what seemed to be every interest rate move that occured between 1987 and 2000.

The parts I enjoyed the most were the anecdotes regarding the powerful and influential people he worked with such as Reagan, Bush Sr., Clinton, Bush Jr., McCain, Cheney, and even Ayn Rand. Greenspan, a Republican, was originally appointed by Reagan; however, he seemed to have the most influence on Bill Clinton who reappointed him twice. He was able to convince Clinton before he became president of the importance of keeping the long-term rates down and keeping them down with a strong deficit reduction program that could sustain and increase economic growth. Near the end of Clinton's administration there was steady economic growth, low inflation, unemployment at an unheard of 4% and the Dow was above 11,000. The US was truly in an "economic boom". Greenspan had direct and indirect influence on this.

The reason I give the book three stars (I wish I could give it 3 and a half) was primarily due to undue repetion throughout the book and because I wanted it to be more of a biography. It goes into his life a little but not enough to satisfy. I realize that's not what the premise of the book was but I wanted to know more about him as a person.

The author Bob Woodward, yes that Bob Woodward (the reporter who helped uncover the Watergate scandal), praises Greenspan throughout the book and deservedly so. He was considered the authority on American monetary and economic policy. The market would ebb and flow on his every word. At the end of the nineties, Greenspan was all over in the press and nearly always shown in a positive light. He seemed to always have his finger on the pulse of what was going on.

There is an ominous paragraph on the last page of the book. It says the following:

"When would the boom end? When would he goof? What was the hidden factor or brewing crisis that no one was anticipating? Stock market, banks, oil prices, Asia, Russia, hedge funds, an environmental crisis, a health catastrophe, drought, famine, scandal, war?"

Unfortunately, we know what happens next. Bob Woodward proved to be prophetic. Coincidentally, while I was reading this book, I saw Greenspan on the news in front of Congress explaining that he was partially at fault for the economic woes we now see. He admitted he was at fault for opposing regulation of financial institutions.

It will be sad if this current crisis tarnishes his legacy and years of service. Rep. John Yarmuth of Kentucky compared Greenspan to Bill Buckner whose fielding error caused Boston to lose the 1986 World Series. As a sports fan, I know just how harsh this comparison is, but we will eventually pull out of this crisis and all will be forgiven. The Red Sox fans have forgiven Buckner, after finally winning the Series. If this is possible than anything is possible.

[Ian Mewhinney · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5/5: This is a very good book. Great narration from James Naughton on the audiobook. It is a bit dry, but gives you an overview of his career in the Federal reserve ranging from the stock market crash up until the year 2000 when there was a surplus of money in the Federal Reserve. The Great recession came in the late 2000s.

Summary:

In eight Tuesdays each year, Federal Reserve chairman Alan Greenspan convenes a small committee to set the short-term interest rate that can move through the American and world economies like an electric jolt. As much as any, the committee's actions determine the economic well-being of every American. The availability of money for business or consumer loans, mortgages, job creation, and overall national economic growth flows from those decisions. Perhaps the last Washington secret is how the Federal Reserve and its enigmatic chairman, Alan Greenspan, operate. In Maestro, Bob Woodward takes you inside the Fed and Greenspan's thinking. We listen to the Fed's internal debates as the American economy is pushed into a historic 10-year expansion while the world economy lurches from financial crisis to financial crisis. Greenspan plays a sometimes subtle, sometimes blunt behind-the-scenes role. He appears in Maestro up close as never before -- alternately nervous and calm, plunging into mathematics one moment and politics the next, skeptical, dispassionate, always struggling -- often alone.

Maestro traces a fascinating intellectual journey as Greenspan, an old-school anti-inflation hawk of the traditional economy, is among the first to realize the potential in the modern, high-productivity new economy -- the foundation of the current American boom. Woodward's account of the Greenspan years is a remarkable portrait of a man who has become the symbol of American economic preeminence.

[Ryan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Fed Chairman Alan Greenspan was instrumental in the shaping of the late-century American economy boom. The book details his reign at the Fed, his working policy, intraoffice dealings with Fed governors and other economic advisors, and his advisory relationship to President Bill Clinton.

This book is primarily about Greenspan, whom I find to be fascinating, though it is also more than 10 years old and in some respects outdated: It is less a book specifically about Greenspan, and is more on the operations of the Fed, with Greenspan at its helm and his dealings with Fed governors and Presidents Reagan, Bush 41 and Clinton, from the mid-1980s to 2000.

The book is a balance of strategy behind setting fed funds and discount rates, which have an effect on the credit and money circulation in America, and the power and personality struggles at the Fed.

The book adds to an ongoing understanding of both the shape of the late 20th-century economy as well as the policies of presidents whom I have already read much about. At best it gives readers a better understanding of the inner operations at the Fed.

This is a book only for Woodward fans and students of recent political history. It is neither an introductory-level book or an exhaustive account of economic policy. In the afterword, Woodward talks about how he originally planned to write a much bigger book about the American economy, but found Greenspan at the center and thus focused the effort on him. The original idea would've been a better book.

[Johnsergeant · Rating 3 out of 5]

Downloaded from Audible.com

Narrator: James Naughton
Length: 4 hours 30 min. (abridged)

Publisher's Summary
Perhaps the last Washington secret is how the Federal Reserve and its enigmatic chairman, Alan Greenspan, operate. What do they do? Why precisely do they do it? Who is Greenspan? How does he think? What is the basis for his decisions? Why is he so powerful? What kind of relationships has he had with Reagan, Bush, and Clinton - presidents during the 13 years he has been Fed chairman? The Greenspan years, 1987 to 2000, are presented here as a gripping, intimate narrative, a remarkable portrait of how one man has become the symbol of American economic preeminence. Maestro reveals a fascinating intellectual journey. Greenspan, an old-school anti-inflation hawk of the traditional economy, was among the first to realize the potential in the modern, high-productivity new economy - the foundation of the current American boom. Reappointed by Clinton in 2000 for another four-year term, Greenspan is slated to serve as Fed chairman until 2004. He is not only a major figure in the world's economic past, but is central to its future.