Gary Benchley, Rock Star

by Paul Ford

“Before I moved to New York from Albany, I wrote out a careful, step-by-step plan: 1) Rock out; 2) No more data entry.”

Gary Benchley, recent college grad and aspiring rock star, left his dead-end life in Albany to seek his fortune in that hotbed of hipsters—Williamsburg, Brooklyn.

Earnestly optimistic and completely confident in his fate, Gary writes of his trials and tribulations securing a roommate, a girlfriend, and even a band—the “world’s most inclusive band”—complete with a gay synth player, a hot chick drummer, and a cool black bassist. Calling their not- quite-musical sound “indie prog,” they combine the most pretentious music of the 1970s with the most pretentious music of today. But after a dozen shows and even an album, the band begins to fall apart, and Gary finds himself increasingly disillusioned with his rock star fantasies. In Gary’s world, though, the glass is always half full.

Gary Benchley, Rock Star is a hilarious, satirical debut that grew out of Ford’s popular column on TheMorningNews.org.

Genres: Fiction, Music

291 pages, Paperback

First published September 27, 2005

Reviews

[Paul · Rating 5 out of 5]

I LEARNED FROM THIS BOOK THAT WRITING NOVELS IS HARD.

[Chris · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very well written. I particularly enjoyed the side references & musical allusions, although they tailed off after the beginning. The book was originally a serial in http://www.themorningnews.org/, so it's not surprising that the writing changed over time.

I wondered a lot, early in the book, whether Gary was a moron or just naive and incredibly self-unaware. I have tentatively concluded that he's more of a simple soul than a simpleton (but still no genius).

I liked the very ending, but felt like I was watching an American movie, where we get a cookie at the end so we'll say good things about the movie. Wondering if I should have seen the English version, with the authentic (grim) conclusion. On the other hand, in the beginning Gary has far more than his fair share of idiot's luck, so why can't he again at the end?

http://www.garybenchleyrockstar.com/

[Charles · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hipsters, you have been skewered. This book is for those of you familiar with the Williamsburg scene circa 2004-05. There is a lot of "name dropping" of influential independent music throughout the book. So if you are well versed in that genre of music, big relatability bonus for you as you read through. Outside of that, there is a great story here. This endlessly optomistic kid is headed for greatness or bust. If you are a fan of indie music, read this and laugh out loud as I did.

[Maureen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Remember how to be a dumbass 22 year old all over again.

Personally, it helped me figure out what love is.

[Joel · Rating 4 out of 5]

While I was reading this, I kept thinking "I am just like Gary."

I am nothing like Gary.

[Nick Doty · Rating 4 out of 5]

Light, fun, and even poignant about a totally imperfect kind of annoying young straight white male privileged college-graduated Brooklyn-ite, who keeps trying, to his credit and to our enjoyment. I liked it and I don't even know all the musical references and I missed the whole phase where it was a developing hoax on a blog.

[Jennell McHugh]

Some really enjoyable references and funny ass anecdotes for an off-centered music / pop culture junky.

[Mo · Rating 5 out of 5]

None of it was real. Realistic, sure, but definitely not real.

Some figured it out, but thousands fell for it. Regular Jane’s and Joe’s around the world, possibly the only chick drummer from Namibia, bands, literary agents, newspaper editors and more all wanted a piece of Gary Benchley.

He wasn’t real though. Gary Benchley was simply a figment of blogger/essayist Paul Ford’s imagination. A personal challenge turned into life dream realization in the form of a faux rock star occasional blog-posting apparition.

Soon after, Gary’s life was collected and poured into Ford’s debut novel "Gary Benchley, Rock Star." Beginning with Albany, New York hipster Gary graduating from college, desperate to rock out. He loves his “moms” but hates his hometown, so he does the only logical thing left to do: he moves to New York City and vows to rock more and enter less data.

What he finds, though, is that the real world doesn’t facilitate much in terms of rocking and prefers more of the data entry option. Sure, he ends up moving to hipster-heaven — Williamsburg, Brooklyn — secures a decent job and relationship and even manages to put together possibly the most diverse band in the history of music with a record contract, but Gary’s life in NYC continues to slip deeper into the pits. Ever the optimist, Gary presses on, making all efforts to "accentuate the rock, and mitigate the suck."

I’m a sucker for books that relate to rocking, in any way, shape or form, so there was no way I would pass this one up. The cover sent off warning bells screaming "pretentious alert," which I have to say, did throw me off. His know-it-all ‘tude and allusions to indie pop culture which only “those in the know” could ever dream of understanding prompted me several times to consider giving up on the book.

The conversational first-person narration was big draw for me and really added to the illusion of realism that caught so many other people. Another benefit to the narration is the maturation you can sense in Gary’s speech and behaviour as the book progresses.

Additionally, the plethora of supporting characters coloured what would have been a bleak picture. Ford gives each character their own little quirks ranging from the pessimistic gay synth player, the ever-depressed girlfriend, the chick drummer who Gary lusts over, the black journalist from Blender who happens to play bass, the tantric first roommate and accompanying girlfriend too name a few.

You can follow Gary’s story online at [http://www.themorningnews.org/archive...] for free — but without its juicy ending.

[Meave · Rating 5 out of 5]

A satisfying read after Paul Ford tortured everyone pretending to be Gary Benchley a few years ago on The Morning News. I really wanted to believe that he was real, incidentally, so I didn't read the book when it was first published because I was mad. Then I met Paul, and he brought these amazing G-Unit Books, and it was impossible to hold anything against such an amazing and wonderful person.

Anyway, I read this book in something like two hours. It's mostly light, very clever, and I love the characters you're supposed to love and the ones who suck are pretty hateable. It's a fun book and you can relax with it, which is what I needed when reading it last night.

Further: Despite my automatic prejudice against young white dudes who think they know important things or have anything interesting to say, I loved Gary, and he tries to redeem himself from being one of those dudes pretty successfully, or at least as successfully as a white guy can in his early twenties. The story about him and his college girlfriend in sweatpants was excellent.

Five stars because it's a good book and I like Paul a lot.

[Steven Myers · Rating 4 out of 5]

Way back when this was being published as a blog on TheMorningNews.org (but was a hoax) I was gobbling it up. Living in NYC myself, reading about this guys day to day ambition to ROCK!!!! I was getting a vicarious jolt as he went through the grind. Then when he signed off, writing that he had to discontinue the blog because he was offered a contract to publish it as a book, I was happy for him but dissapointed that it would no longer be a regular feature on TMN. In fact I quit frequenting TMN and moved to Coudal and ACL which I still visit often. Just recently I recalled that "blog" and went to get the book at the library, finding out then, that the "blog" had been a hoax and that Gary Benchley did not exist. It rates as a good chronicle of post 9/11 hipsterdom in Billburg. I probably over rate by one star just because it touches on personal memories of the scene.

[Georgina · Rating 3 out of 5]

Giving star ratings seems slightly pointless, but I did enjoy this novel so much that several years after borrowing it from the library, and forgetting it's correct title, I went to great effort to track down and purchase a copy. It provides a very detailed diary view of NYC/Brooklyn circa 2004, through the eyes of Gary Benchley as he tries to achieve his early 20 something goals: live in hipsterville Williamsburg, get work, start a band. References to his older girlfriend, who nicknames him youth, and often prefers an early night blogging to nights in bars, are very amusing. Reading this novel, and also "Dear Diary" by Lesley Arfin, were primers for the style of Lena Dunham's tv series "Girls".

[Matt Evans · Rating 3 out of 5]

Paul Ford is Gary Benchley. (Google it to see what I mean.) This novel came about by way of one helluva hoax. I was totally sucked in (as were hundreds of others). Mr. Ford is an editor for Harpers, and he's a phenomenal writer. The novel: the life and hard times of a wannabe indie rocker named Gary. The best part is when Gary has groupie sex with a woman who, on morning light, turns out to have a wooden foot, and a massive collection of "Left Behind" novels. She witnesses to Gary, over their awkward one-night-stand-next-morning breakfast, and things get very funny from there.

Enjoy!

[Will · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's quite refreshing when a hipster decides to be transparent about his hip world, takes it all with a sense of humor. This is the story of a modern day 20-something in uber-cool Brooklynn set to be an Indie-rock super star. Though the initial success came a little faster than in reality, the author really got it right what it's like on the inside of being in a small-time band - band mates, managers, labels, tours, groupies. Cool, cool stuff.

[Joanne · Rating 3 out of 5]

This wasn't a bad book but for some reason I wasn't very gung-ho about picking it up and reading. Based on a fictional character that moves to NYC and wants to start a band. Originally was a newspaper column written by the author but everyone thought it was written by the title character and that he was a real person. Some bits are funny. I probably would rather give it 2 1/2 stars if I could.

[John Treanor · Rating 2 out of 5]

A fun read. Reminds you of how difficult it is to be in a band, while everyone is pulling in different directions, maintaining jobs, lives, relationships, etc. Also a good snapshot of the Williamsburg "indie" scene circa 2004-ish - boy how things have changed (or have they)? Reads as a bit dated in that way. As other reviewers have stated, it was not written as a novel, but serialized in a newspaper, but it holds together pretty well.

[Josh Friedlander · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun, whimsical tale of a dream pursued in the hipster Ground Zero of Williamsburg c. 2005. The main character's Polyanna-ish outlook, and his '70s style rock ethos (slightly at odds with the myriad indie rock references) make this a lodestar for the creative-and-hopeful, not world-weary-and-cooler-than-thou, school of 20-something scenester. At its heart: a tale of artistic development, a lesson in persistence, and a funny, ephemeral summer read.

[Pascale Pierre · Rating 3 out of 5]

this is a cute funny quick read about a young man who moves to new York with dreams of becoming and indie rock star. Easier said than done. Between his emotionally distant girlfriend, his willingness to do ANYTHING to make it, and cool indie song references, this book with make you laugh and keep you entertained.

[Shannon · Rating 3 out of 5]

Other people might not think it's fluff, but I thought it would go well with Peanut butter, thus the fluff. A cute book about rocking out. Also, I love his appropriation of band names as descriptors--i.e. "That's so Train" for when something is really terrible, because the band Train is definitely the opposite of rocking.

[Jeff Raymond · Rating 1 out of 5]

I now realize why name-dropping bands left and right in fictional novels is annoying. I also now realize that rock novels aren't all that exciting. I also realize that the amount of Pitchfork name dropping must have made their heads explode. I don't know why I soldiered through this novel, but I did, and I'm no better for it.

[Virginia · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fast read. Follows the life of a wannabee rocker in NYC: his youth, blind optimism, and ignorance seem to be his most distinguishing characteristics. The storyline is somewhat predictable, but his bizarre encounters with other characters keep the story moving.

[Avocados · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun look at current "indie" culture, with plenty of references to all my favorite things, like blogs, burning man and bands. Light, enjoyable read from a long-time favorite blogger. It was very Douglas Coupland, and that's a good thing.

[drew · Rating 1 out of 5]

this book is pretty jive.

[rob · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have to admit I love the torrent of indie culture references almost as much as when I read them in Nick Hornby books. I also love Gary's optimism.

[Peishan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hilarious! Makes fun of an indie hipster who will do anything to achieve his dream of being a rock star.

[jonathan berger · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tore through this one in about three days. I'd been reading the column in the Morning News and was pretty jazzed to find a remaindered paperback copy.

[Damion]

I got this book because I thought I wouldn't like it. Turns out liked it...a lot.

[Brandy Trottier · Rating 5 out of 5]

Stories I didn't know......

[Rachel · Rating 3 out of 5]

an important book for certain people who spend a certain amount of quality time on the internets.

[Patrick]

hilarious

[Becka · Rating 2 out of 5]

bored, bored, bored.