I Buried Paul: A Novel, by Bruce Ferber

 

It's been a long time since I've hung out with my musician buddies, so this sparked a wave of nostalgia. It also didn't hurt that Paul was my first celebrity crush, so the title sucked me right in. As it turns out, I'm glad it did. I liked the character of Jimmy Kozlowski and, yes, even Gene Klein. Author Bruce Ferber does an excellent job capturing the hopes, dreams, crashes, clashes, and determination of musicians everywhere who'd rather play their music than eat.

The key word is "their", however. Jimmy never quite had the drive to be famous, or at least well know, that Gene "John Lennon" Klein provides in their tribute band to the Beatles. As much as he loves the Beatles' music, his dream has always been to record even just one record of his own music, music that doesn't sound like anyone else's music and speaks to the heart. He admits that this is difficult in this day and age with the advent of a virtual studio being available in a laptop but that hasn't dulled his dream. He also hopes to connect with the daughter he's never known, showcasing a song he wrote to her during a gig at, no lie, a nursing home where his father now lives. Having had a parent with dementia myself, I wanted to find this fictional character, or at least the author, and give them a hug for this nod to not just the gift of music but Jimmy's determination to treat the nursing home residents with humanity. It's touches of Jimmy's good guy heart that made "I Buried Paul" a winner.

I won't detail the plot. It's easily found elsewhere. I found the stories of Jimmy's present and past connection to the driven, always dreaming, always hopeful Gene, intriguing. They captured the intensity of the love of music and where it can take you with the human side. We meet family and friends. We see the characters meet family expectations and fail to meet expectations. We see the frustration of playing someone else's music, no matter how wonderful, gig after gig, while your own remains unheard. We wonder if Jimmy will ever record that album? We root for him to do so. More importantly, we root for him to find closure with the daughter he's never known. Music and humanity. This is a winning combination, told from the vantage point of a character with heart. I thoroughly enjoyed "I Buried Paul".

Thank you #NetGalley and #TheStoryPlant for taking me back to my own days of embracing friends' musical dreams, whether attending gigs or hanging out at the studio. They're still making music, by the way. Rock on!