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Dead Brilliant
Dying is the best way to revive your musical career … even if you’re not really dead.
It’s all slipping away from Roc Molotov – his band, his girlfriend, and worst of all, his ability to play the game demanded by the star-making machinery of the music business. When the best record he’s ever made is about to pass unnoticed, his oldest friend and manager, Uncle Strange, concocts the perfect scheme. Roc will fake his death, on MTV, in front of millions of viewers, assuring massive success on his latest project and the ability to create a body of "posthumous" songs to feed the grieving fans and satisfy his still-active artistic imagination. The plan works to perfection, but the ever-restless Roc finds that being dead has its limitations in this novel that’s sex, death, and rock n’ roll, played in a satirical key.
It’s all slipping away from Roc Molotov – his band, his girlfriend, and worst of all, his ability to play the game demanded by the star-making machinery of the music business. When the best record he’s ever made is about to pass unnoticed, his oldest friend and manager, Uncle Strange, concocts the perfect scheme. Roc will fake his death, on MTV, in front of millions of viewers, assuring massive success on his latest project and the ability to create a body of "posthumous" songs to feed the grieving fans and satisfy his still-active artistic imagination. The plan works to perfection, but the ever-restless Roc finds that being dead has its limitations in this novel that’s sex, death, and rock n’ roll, played in a satirical key.
- GenresFiction
288 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2013
5 people are currently reading
25 people want to read
About the author
Christopher Ward
4 books5 followersCHRISTOPHER WARD has written songs for Diana Ross, Hilary Duff, Wynonna Judd, The Backstreet Boys, Tina Arena, Amanda Marshall, Roch Voisine and many others. His best-known song is the worldwide #1 hit for Alannah Myles, "Black Velvet." He received the Juno award for Songwriter of the Year in 1990.
In 1984, after a stint in the Second City Touring Company, Ward helped launch MuchMusic as Canada's first VJ. As a songwriter, Ward contributed twenty songs over four seasons to the soundtrack of the hit CTV series Instant Star, as well as writing songs for both Degrassi feature films, the new Degrassi: The Next Class and Cirque du Soleil's show Banana Shpeel. His songs have been performed on Idol shows around the world. The author lives in Toronto, ON, and Los Angeles, CA.
In 1984, after a stint in the Second City Touring Company, Ward helped launch MuchMusic as Canada's first VJ. As a songwriter, Ward contributed twenty songs over four seasons to the soundtrack of the hit CTV series Instant Star, as well as writing songs for both Degrassi feature films, the new Degrassi: The Next Class and Cirque du Soleil's show Banana Shpeel. His songs have been performed on Idol shows around the world. The author lives in Toronto, ON, and Los Angeles, CA.
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
January 3, 2014
Kat's Review
I have to be honest: I grew up watching Christopher Ward interview musicians on Much Music, Canada's version of MTV. There are some figures from your childhood that stay with you no matter how old you get, and when I saw his name as the author of Dead Brilliant, I knew I was in for a great read. As a veteran of the music business, from interviewing musicians to writing hit songs, he's perfectly qualified to write a story about a washed out musician who fakes his own death to revive his career posthumously. Only Roc Molotov finds that he just might like the peace and quiet being dead affords him.
I thought this book was a whole lot of fun wrapped up in some scary truths about the music business. Roc Molotov tries to remain relevant in a changing music landscape, and puts his trust in his oldest friend, a man too concerned about the bottle line to really care about Roc. Add in a new love interest, a daughter he's never met, and a crazy scheme to fake his own death live on MTV, and I don't see what there's not to love about this book.
It was fun, campy at times, deep at others, and sometimes bitingly honest about how even the stars age and must fight against the incoming tide of new talent and changing trends. I thought there was just the right mix of seriousness and fun, and I read the whole thing in one sitting.
Kat's Rating: All-Consuming
If you're a music fan of a certain age who remembers the hair bands of the past with some nostalgia, you will probably appreciate the main character and the story line of this novel.
I received a complimentary copy of this title from NetGalley and the publisher in return for an honest review.
- See more at: http://www.katsbookbuzz.net/2014/01/r...
I have to be honest: I grew up watching Christopher Ward interview musicians on Much Music, Canada's version of MTV. There are some figures from your childhood that stay with you no matter how old you get, and when I saw his name as the author of Dead Brilliant, I knew I was in for a great read. As a veteran of the music business, from interviewing musicians to writing hit songs, he's perfectly qualified to write a story about a washed out musician who fakes his own death to revive his career posthumously. Only Roc Molotov finds that he just might like the peace and quiet being dead affords him.
I thought this book was a whole lot of fun wrapped up in some scary truths about the music business. Roc Molotov tries to remain relevant in a changing music landscape, and puts his trust in his oldest friend, a man too concerned about the bottle line to really care about Roc. Add in a new love interest, a daughter he's never met, and a crazy scheme to fake his own death live on MTV, and I don't see what there's not to love about this book.
It was fun, campy at times, deep at others, and sometimes bitingly honest about how even the stars age and must fight against the incoming tide of new talent and changing trends. I thought there was just the right mix of seriousness and fun, and I read the whole thing in one sitting.
Kat's Rating: All-Consuming
If you're a music fan of a certain age who remembers the hair bands of the past with some nostalgia, you will probably appreciate the main character and the story line of this novel.
I received a complimentary copy of this title from NetGalley and the publisher in return for an honest review.
- See more at: http://www.katsbookbuzz.net/2014/01/r...
April 2, 2014
http://ivereadthis.com/2014/04/02/boo...
Book Review: Dead Brilliant by Christopher Ward
bonjoviDo you recognize the two men above? The shaggy head with the over-sized sunglasses is none other than Jon Bon Jovi, but that’s not who I’m interested in here-the other man, Christopher Ward, was the original MuchMusic VJ, and the writer of the most recent book I just finished titled Dead Brilliant. Oh, and he also wrote the iconic song Black Velvet, as well as a bunch of other songs that pop stars such as Hilary Duff, The Backstreet Boys, and Diana Ross have sung. Although hard to believe that those sunglasses are somewhat in style these days, what’s even harder to believe is the fact that Christopher Ward was the original VJ. Everyone who grew up in Ontario wanted to be a Much VJ, in fact they still have contests each year to find the next VJ, although many of the people who win that competition end up falling into obscurity faster than your typical reality star. Christopher Ward is a successful musician and songwriter in his own right, without the VJ cred to bolster his resume, but he’s also added ‘author’ to his list of successes.
Is this a case of a famous person trying to extend his career even further by dabbling in the publishing industry? If anyone has a book in them, it’s this dude, right? Well, he’s written three books actually, all published by Dundurn Press, so he must be doing something right. This book was his first for adults, but I enjoyed it, mainly for the glimpse it gives the reader into the cutthroat world of showbiz.
The protagonist of the book, Roc Molotov is loosely based on Ward himself-Roc wrote the song “Black Velvet” as well, and both men are known for their talented songwriting. However, Roc feels his career is entering a dry spell, and looks for a way to revive it without selling out like all the other musicians around him. So, his slimy manager cooks up a scheme for Roc to fake his own death in order to boost record sales, and it ends up working really well, allowing Roc to continue recording songs privately that he plans on releasing as his ‘lost songs’ after his fake death.
The tone of the book is fairly light, although there are some dark sides to the storyline, mainly found in the cruel intentions of the surrounding characters and the sad state of the music industry. I won’t claim that this is brilliant writing, some of the sentences and descriptions seemed a bit forced, however Ward has a perspective that we need more of: informed, entertaining perspectives on a fascinating industry and topic that people just love to read about. He literally ‘wrote what he knew’ and it ended up being a successful venture for him. I was thoroughly entertained while reading the book, and it was the perfect length (not very long being the perfect length in my opinion). So if you’re old enough to remember Christopher Ward and want to revel in his musical talent once again, listen to Black Velvet (this video is SO 80′s you will love it) and pick up a copy of a Dead Brilliant.
Book Review: Dead Brilliant by Christopher Ward
bonjoviDo you recognize the two men above? The shaggy head with the over-sized sunglasses is none other than Jon Bon Jovi, but that’s not who I’m interested in here-the other man, Christopher Ward, was the original MuchMusic VJ, and the writer of the most recent book I just finished titled Dead Brilliant. Oh, and he also wrote the iconic song Black Velvet, as well as a bunch of other songs that pop stars such as Hilary Duff, The Backstreet Boys, and Diana Ross have sung. Although hard to believe that those sunglasses are somewhat in style these days, what’s even harder to believe is the fact that Christopher Ward was the original VJ. Everyone who grew up in Ontario wanted to be a Much VJ, in fact they still have contests each year to find the next VJ, although many of the people who win that competition end up falling into obscurity faster than your typical reality star. Christopher Ward is a successful musician and songwriter in his own right, without the VJ cred to bolster his resume, but he’s also added ‘author’ to his list of successes.
Is this a case of a famous person trying to extend his career even further by dabbling in the publishing industry? If anyone has a book in them, it’s this dude, right? Well, he’s written three books actually, all published by Dundurn Press, so he must be doing something right. This book was his first for adults, but I enjoyed it, mainly for the glimpse it gives the reader into the cutthroat world of showbiz.
The protagonist of the book, Roc Molotov is loosely based on Ward himself-Roc wrote the song “Black Velvet” as well, and both men are known for their talented songwriting. However, Roc feels his career is entering a dry spell, and looks for a way to revive it without selling out like all the other musicians around him. So, his slimy manager cooks up a scheme for Roc to fake his own death in order to boost record sales, and it ends up working really well, allowing Roc to continue recording songs privately that he plans on releasing as his ‘lost songs’ after his fake death.
The tone of the book is fairly light, although there are some dark sides to the storyline, mainly found in the cruel intentions of the surrounding characters and the sad state of the music industry. I won’t claim that this is brilliant writing, some of the sentences and descriptions seemed a bit forced, however Ward has a perspective that we need more of: informed, entertaining perspectives on a fascinating industry and topic that people just love to read about. He literally ‘wrote what he knew’ and it ended up being a successful venture for him. I was thoroughly entertained while reading the book, and it was the perfect length (not very long being the perfect length in my opinion). So if you’re old enough to remember Christopher Ward and want to revel in his musical talent once again, listen to Black Velvet (this video is SO 80′s you will love it) and pick up a copy of a Dead Brilliant.
February 26, 2014
I knew nothing about this book, or the author, going in to it. Perhaps it's a sign of the sort of books that I've been reading lately, but I suspected (feared?) that this was going to be another vampire story ... a vampire musician. But, dear blog readers, it's NOT! This is a novel of music, talent, greed, obsession, and the Hollywood music industry. It's a beautiful book.
Our hero is one Roc Molotov, a musician and lead singer and founder of the band, The Cocktails (yes, Molotov and the Cocktails -- that's a sign of the humor that will be found throughout the book). Roc quits the band to focus on his own music, but in the fleeting business that is the pop music industry, Roc will quickly become forgotten. Roc's long-time friend and manager, Uncle Strange, hatches a plan to have Molotov disappear and be presumed dead, on live television (MTV, back when they used to be focussed on music) and Uncle Strange could release new Molotov songs as if they were unfinished works found in his archive.
The plot is certainly not new. You only need to look back at the whole idea of The Beatles' "Paul is Dead" to see a classic example of this marketing ploy (though the Beatles likely didn't need to do this). But whereas the plot isn't new, the character's in Hollywood's music industry are often not particularly new or creative either. And Uncle Strange comes across as the classic, stereotyped example of a producer always looking out for his own interests over those of his client. And yet...it works.
This works because it preys on our own stereotyped impressions of the music industry and Hollywood. We buy into the idea of Roc faking his death because we have every expectation that this is the sort of thing a musician would do. And that Uncle Strange is perfectly devised as a slimy, lecherous, greedy manager helps us get there.
What also works, though, is that Roc breaks our impressions, our stereotypes, by being a humble, honest, decent guy who really likes to write music and does it well. he breaks out of the mold and we can only like him more for it.
Other characters are equally stereotyped along the way, adding to the humor and panache of the book. It serves no purpose that a southern rube becomes an overnight sensation, other than it gives us a laugh and allows us to shake our collective heads at the absurdity of the business.
Looking for a good book? Dead Brilliant doesn't take itself too seriously, but offers us a few laughs as it pokes fun at the music industry, and allows touching human nature to win out in the end.
This review originally published in the blog Looking For a Good Book.
Our hero is one Roc Molotov, a musician and lead singer and founder of the band, The Cocktails (yes, Molotov and the Cocktails -- that's a sign of the humor that will be found throughout the book). Roc quits the band to focus on his own music, but in the fleeting business that is the pop music industry, Roc will quickly become forgotten. Roc's long-time friend and manager, Uncle Strange, hatches a plan to have Molotov disappear and be presumed dead, on live television (MTV, back when they used to be focussed on music) and Uncle Strange could release new Molotov songs as if they were unfinished works found in his archive.
The plot is certainly not new. You only need to look back at the whole idea of The Beatles' "Paul is Dead" to see a classic example of this marketing ploy (though the Beatles likely didn't need to do this). But whereas the plot isn't new, the character's in Hollywood's music industry are often not particularly new or creative either. And Uncle Strange comes across as the classic, stereotyped example of a producer always looking out for his own interests over those of his client. And yet...it works.
This works because it preys on our own stereotyped impressions of the music industry and Hollywood. We buy into the idea of Roc faking his death because we have every expectation that this is the sort of thing a musician would do. And that Uncle Strange is perfectly devised as a slimy, lecherous, greedy manager helps us get there.
What also works, though, is that Roc breaks our impressions, our stereotypes, by being a humble, honest, decent guy who really likes to write music and does it well. he breaks out of the mold and we can only like him more for it.
Other characters are equally stereotyped along the way, adding to the humor and panache of the book. It serves no purpose that a southern rube becomes an overnight sensation, other than it gives us a laugh and allows us to shake our collective heads at the absurdity of the business.
Looking for a good book? Dead Brilliant doesn't take itself too seriously, but offers us a few laughs as it pokes fun at the music industry, and allows touching human nature to win out in the end.
This review originally published in the blog Looking For a Good Book.
October 29, 2014
For Full and Detailed review, rush to http://cynthology.blogspot.com/2014/1...
The premise for Dead Brilliant by Christopher Ward is in many ways dead brilliant, but it meanders on with too many characters and comes up with too many contrived coincidences, and ends up losing steam.
Christopher Ward is Canada’s original MuchMusic VJ, the man who wrote Black Velvet, among other hits which have been recorded by such music legends as Diana Ross, and hit machines as The Backstreet Boys and many others. Ward brings to his novel a sarcastic eye born of years in the business and of knowing the music industry and its types inside out.
Reading the novel gives us an idea of all that goes on in the business to which he has devoted many years. This is fiction built on a foundation of a heavy dose of reality.
The book deliberately critiques the sort of people that, in the author’s words, let their hype buttons do the speaking for them, or, because they are in the music business, believe that they must copulate till their member falls off out of sheer exhaustion. The satire is unmistakable as when the author’s voice describes Uncle Strange’s hotel room as a mixture of “incense and pretence,” and the occupant’s carefully crafted identity.
The characters are well etched, particularly the two male leads. Uncle Strange is the consummate manager, pulling strings, placating egos, thinking up ruses to get the band going. He has the uncanny ability to sound sincere on demand.
Unfortunately, the women in this story, Bobbie, the girlfriend; Tabatha, Roc’s ex-wife; Marie, the girlfriend of Uncle Strange; Julia, Marie’s best friend, all, except Emma, come across as flaky. Bobbie is better than the rest, but with her phone sex job, she doesn’t rise much higher than the others.
The cover is brilliant. It depicts both the outline of a coffin with the neck of the guitar that you notice when you stare hard, as also an icon of a face with the eyes closed and the tongue popping out.
The author succeeds in keeping the speech patterns true to the characters, and creates a world where friendships are fleeting but they could also last decades.
Ultimately, Dead Brilliant is a happy story, and tells you much about the nature of the music business. Not only is fame ephemeral but anyone can become famous and enjoy their 15 minutes, or less, of fame.
The premise for Dead Brilliant by Christopher Ward is in many ways dead brilliant, but it meanders on with too many characters and comes up with too many contrived coincidences, and ends up losing steam.
Christopher Ward is Canada’s original MuchMusic VJ, the man who wrote Black Velvet, among other hits which have been recorded by such music legends as Diana Ross, and hit machines as The Backstreet Boys and many others. Ward brings to his novel a sarcastic eye born of years in the business and of knowing the music industry and its types inside out.
Reading the novel gives us an idea of all that goes on in the business to which he has devoted many years. This is fiction built on a foundation of a heavy dose of reality.
The book deliberately critiques the sort of people that, in the author’s words, let their hype buttons do the speaking for them, or, because they are in the music business, believe that they must copulate till their member falls off out of sheer exhaustion. The satire is unmistakable as when the author’s voice describes Uncle Strange’s hotel room as a mixture of “incense and pretence,” and the occupant’s carefully crafted identity.
The characters are well etched, particularly the two male leads. Uncle Strange is the consummate manager, pulling strings, placating egos, thinking up ruses to get the band going. He has the uncanny ability to sound sincere on demand.
Unfortunately, the women in this story, Bobbie, the girlfriend; Tabatha, Roc’s ex-wife; Marie, the girlfriend of Uncle Strange; Julia, Marie’s best friend, all, except Emma, come across as flaky. Bobbie is better than the rest, but with her phone sex job, she doesn’t rise much higher than the others.
The cover is brilliant. It depicts both the outline of a coffin with the neck of the guitar that you notice when you stare hard, as also an icon of a face with the eyes closed and the tongue popping out.
The author succeeds in keeping the speech patterns true to the characters, and creates a world where friendships are fleeting but they could also last decades.
Ultimately, Dead Brilliant is a happy story, and tells you much about the nature of the music business. Not only is fame ephemeral but anyone can become famous and enjoy their 15 minutes, or less, of fame.
July 16, 2013
This book was very different from something I would normally read but I quite liked it! It's about the music industry in Hollywood and therefore there is more adult language and adult situations than I normally prefer but they didn't seem out of place in this context.
It's definitely a tongue-in-cheek look at the music industry with plenty of fun. It's based on the idea that a rock star's music often makes more money after he's dead than when he's alive so Roc Molotov kills himself off to make more money after his CD sales start to fall. An original plot line which is sometimes hard to find. The characters are quirky and many are caricatures but the main family of characters are well-drawn and I could relate to them. Besides the scenes showing the wild side of the music industry and the cut-throat side, there were sweet human moments that left me with a good feeling about the author and the book
I received this from Netgalley and I appreciated the chance to read it.
It's definitely a tongue-in-cheek look at the music industry with plenty of fun. It's based on the idea that a rock star's music often makes more money after he's dead than when he's alive so Roc Molotov kills himself off to make more money after his CD sales start to fall. An original plot line which is sometimes hard to find. The characters are quirky and many are caricatures but the main family of characters are well-drawn and I could relate to them. Besides the scenes showing the wild side of the music industry and the cut-throat side, there were sweet human moments that left me with a good feeling about the author and the book
I received this from Netgalley and I appreciated the chance to read it.
March 12, 2014
Ward has written a sweet novel here. The plot deals with Roc Molotov - an aging rock star. Not only is Roc's fame on the downslide but his band, his girlfriend and his ability to write music seem to be sliding out his grasp. So his best friend and manager Uncle Strange seems to come up with a perfect scheme to bring Roc's popularity back. Fake his death on MTV. But there seems to be a bit of a bitter truth to this novel about the music scene. Ward - Canada's original VJ and writer of the hit "Black Velvet" - has maybe documented a bitter truth to the popular music scene.
Link to my complete review
Link to my complete review
August 10, 2013
Dead Brilliant by Christopher Ward
2 Stars
First off let me say that Dead Brilliant’s cover was awesome. The guitar neck/coffin look fit the story well. I hate to say that this was the best thing about the book.
Set in Hollywood, Roc Molotov has just parted with his old band The Cocktails. They are doing well and he is not. His manager, Uncle Strange has convinced Roc that his music would be received better from fans if he was dead.
What to know what we think. Click here to see the rest of this review!
2 Stars
First off let me say that Dead Brilliant’s cover was awesome. The guitar neck/coffin look fit the story well. I hate to say that this was the best thing about the book.
Set in Hollywood, Roc Molotov has just parted with his old band The Cocktails. They are doing well and he is not. His manager, Uncle Strange has convinced Roc that his music would be received better from fans if he was dead.
What to know what we think. Click here to see the rest of this review!
March 20, 2014
Pretending to be dead to allow us to do something totally different might be appealing to many of us from time to time.
It was light and fun to read so I bumped it up from ok to 3 stars. I did skim some of the music details but overall it was a positive experience with, for the most part, likable characters in some bizarre cicumstances that you could not help but envision as scenes in a movie. My only beef was that personally I would have liked to see the wrong-doers dealt with more harshly.
It was light and fun to read so I bumped it up from ok to 3 stars. I did skim some of the music details but overall it was a positive experience with, for the most part, likable characters in some bizarre cicumstances that you could not help but envision as scenes in a movie. My only beef was that personally I would have liked to see the wrong-doers dealt with more harshly.
August 7, 2013
I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for a fair review.
A satirical look at the music industry, some of the characters were caricatures but this added to the off centre humour. It should have appealed to me but it seemed to miss the mark.
I liked this story but didn't love it in fact it took me ages to read which is very unusual!
A satirical look at the music industry, some of the characters were caricatures but this added to the off centre humour. It should have appealed to me but it seemed to miss the mark.
I liked this story but didn't love it in fact it took me ages to read which is very unusual!
March 5, 2013
A romp through the crazy professional musician scene. Quirky, yet believable characters. Funny and contemporary.
August 9, 2013
It was okay. Some references were pretty dated, for instance, who uses EarthLink anymore?
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews