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I Play the Drums in a Band Called Okay
A witty, revealing and moving novel following the fortunes of a Canadian rock band and their adventures on tour as they struggle to grow up, both helped and hindered by their rock n' roll lifestyles.
271 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2008
7 people are currently reading
140 people want to read
About the author
Toby Litt
89 books210 followersToby Litt was born in Bedfordshire, England. He studied Creative Writing at the University of East Anglia where he was taught by Malcolm Bradbury, winning the 1995 Curtis Brown Fellowship.
He lived in Prague from 1990 to 1993 and published his first book, a collection of short stories entitled Adventures in Capitalism, in 1996.
In 2003 Toby Litt was nominated by Granta magazine as one of the 20 'Best of Young British Novelists'.
In 2018, he published Wrestliana, his memoir about wrestling, writing, losing and being a man.
His novel, A Writer's Diary, was published by Galley Beggar Press on January 1st 2022.
A Writer's Diary continues daily on Substack.
He lives in London and is the Head of Creative Writing at the University of Southampton.
He lived in Prague from 1990 to 1993 and published his first book, a collection of short stories entitled Adventures in Capitalism, in 1996.
In 2003 Toby Litt was nominated by Granta magazine as one of the 20 'Best of Young British Novelists'.
In 2018, he published Wrestliana, his memoir about wrestling, writing, losing and being a man.
His novel, A Writer's Diary, was published by Galley Beggar Press on January 1st 2022.
A Writer's Diary continues daily on Substack.
He lives in London and is the Head of Creative Writing at the University of Southampton.
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Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews
April 16, 2021
Ooh, I feel conflicted about this one. I'll start by saying that I picked this up in college and LOVED it -- I worked in our undergraduate library and the unusual title jumped out at me from the shelf. And I was absolutely gobsmacked. So it was in a spirit of great love that I returned to it 14 years later and... hoo boy, this just did not age well.
So, "I Play the Drums in a Band Called Okay" is a collection of linked short stories about the rise and fall of a Canadian rock band, focusing particularly on the rise and fall of the band's lead singer, Syph, through the point of view of the band's drummer. Like most rock & roll stories, it's a story of sex & drugs -- to the point of excess, to the point of physical and spiritual damage.
What turned me off irrevocably in 2021 (that I found literary and romantic in 2007) is the book's treatment of women. Not Syph's treatment of women (which is *definitely* positioned as problematic), but the narrator's and also the book's. Women aren't people in the world of this book -- in a way that women frequently weren't people in the 1980's and 1990's literary fiction I was reading and idolizing as a young creative writing student in 2007. But as an adult woman in 2021, I feel such a distaste for the internalized misogyny that, despite the voicey writing and heady rock&roll world, I found myself disliking the book in a way I couldn't overcome.
The tl;dr: Don't revisit the art you loved as a 19-year-old in a pre-#MeToo world. The gums recede, and all you see is teeth. Alas -- shelving this & turning to Daisy Jones & The Six for my rock & roll fiction fix.
So, "I Play the Drums in a Band Called Okay" is a collection of linked short stories about the rise and fall of a Canadian rock band, focusing particularly on the rise and fall of the band's lead singer, Syph, through the point of view of the band's drummer. Like most rock & roll stories, it's a story of sex & drugs -- to the point of excess, to the point of physical and spiritual damage.
What turned me off irrevocably in 2021 (that I found literary and romantic in 2007) is the book's treatment of women. Not Syph's treatment of women (which is *definitely* positioned as problematic), but the narrator's and also the book's. Women aren't people in the world of this book -- in a way that women frequently weren't people in the 1980's and 1990's literary fiction I was reading and idolizing as a young creative writing student in 2007. But as an adult woman in 2021, I feel such a distaste for the internalized misogyny that, despite the voicey writing and heady rock&roll world, I found myself disliking the book in a way I couldn't overcome.
The tl;dr: Don't revisit the art you loved as a 19-year-old in a pre-#MeToo world. The gums recede, and all you see is teeth. Alas -- shelving this & turning to Daisy Jones & The Six for my rock & roll fiction fix.
September 23, 2020
I guess books like this make you appreciate good writing a little more. Forget the Bechdel test, if only the author didn’t spoil every allusion by immediately explaining them I would’ve given this book 2 stars 😆
November 3, 2014
This is the first of Toby Litt's books that I've read. It's pretty much ensured that it won't be the last.
The novel charts the course of a [fictitious] Canadian indie band called Okay (though it's lowercase italics, thanks) through the recollections of its drummer. (He's named after a sexually transmitted disease, as are all of the quartet.)
It's structured as a series of short stories, and they cover the gamut of band experiences: shitty venues, groupie-shagging, drugs, death, religion, booze, marriage, music and friendship.
While it's deceptively easy to read, and features a lot of namedropping (from Bono to Leonard Cohen, via Dylan and Anal Cunt), Litt's writing ensures that you never question the authorial voice. He's so tuned in (!) to what happens between bands, their fans and their families that I still have to remind myself that the narrator is a creation.
Litt's taken a tale about music and made it the vehicle for a story that's really about maturity - or coming to terms with the struggles that face one on the path to it. There's deep meaning - or the search for same - inside these tales of excess and 4/4 beats.
If you're a music nerd of any sort, then you MUST read this book. Must. Particularly if you're an Indie music nerd. Or Canadian.
The novel charts the course of a [fictitious] Canadian indie band called Okay (though it's lowercase italics, thanks) through the recollections of its drummer. (He's named after a sexually transmitted disease, as are all of the quartet.)
It's structured as a series of short stories, and they cover the gamut of band experiences: shitty venues, groupie-shagging, drugs, death, religion, booze, marriage, music and friendship.
While it's deceptively easy to read, and features a lot of namedropping (from Bono to Leonard Cohen, via Dylan and Anal Cunt), Litt's writing ensures that you never question the authorial voice. He's so tuned in (!) to what happens between bands, their fans and their families that I still have to remind myself that the narrator is a creation.
Litt's taken a tale about music and made it the vehicle for a story that's really about maturity - or coming to terms with the struggles that face one on the path to it. There's deep meaning - or the search for same - inside these tales of excess and 4/4 beats.
If you're a music nerd of any sort, then you MUST read this book. Must. Particularly if you're an Indie music nerd. Or Canadian.
July 16, 2021
A fun and very-meta book. Clap plays for fictional Canadian Indie rock band , okay. Not really sure what their band is like but I pictured Ride mixed with Sigur Ros for some reason. Also for a Canadian band they use a lot of British slang, which breaks the illusion a bit.
Toby Litt is no doubt a skilled writer, but like Will Self and Martin Amis he get mired in his own cleverness and wordplay. I think its a fine line between clever and groan worthy. That said the humour is in the right place. I don't know if four pages of fictional discographies is taking it too far and it includes an MTV Unplugged album and a B-Sides. All is forgiven as one track is called "Groteskimo & His Penguin Gimp" which is so fucking silly that it made me smile.
Toby Litt is no doubt a skilled writer, but like Will Self and Martin Amis he get mired in his own cleverness and wordplay. I think its a fine line between clever and groan worthy. That said the humour is in the right place. I don't know if four pages of fictional discographies is taking it too far and it includes an MTV Unplugged album and a B-Sides. All is forgiven as one track is called "Groteskimo & His Penguin Gimp" which is so fucking silly that it made me smile.
March 18, 2018
Really enjoyed it. As someone who used to play drums in bands that never made it, it actually made me quite glad none ever made it! Litt captures the narcissism and fractured relationships at the heart of most bands superbly. It's a very convincing world he's created here even if the STD-based nicknames are a bit annoying. Lovely ending too.
March 3, 2016
“Sex, drugs & rock’n roll”, une expression qui colle bien à ce titre de Toby Litt. Reçu dans le cadre de l’opération Babélio/Masse-critique, c’est le thème centré sur l’histoire d’un groupe de rock qui m’avait tenté. Complètement embarquée dans le “Owen Noone & Marauder” de Douglas Cowie il y a 5 ans, je n’ai pas retrouvé le même engouement pour cette pseudo-biographie.
Le texte prend la forme d’un interview. Le narrateur- qui s’adresse à un journaliste qu’on n’entend jamais- raconte l’histoire d’un groupe canadien, “Okay”, dont il est le batteur. A 42 ans, il revient sur l’aventures musicales qui l’a conduit au sommet du succès en passant par des épisodes peu glorieux et peu reluisant. Un regard sur le passé, à l’aube d’un avenir incertain.
Au démarrage du roman, on tombe pieds joints dans une scène “vécue”, ce n’est qu’après que l’on comprend que le narrateur raconte son histoire.
Je me suis assez vite familiarisée avec le style d’écriture, qui se lit assez agréablement. L’auteur enchaîne une succession de chapitres d’une dizaine de pages. L’ensemble du texte est assez décousu, mais nous permet quand même de découvrir le parcours des membres du groupe. Par contre, après avoir dépassé la moitié du roman, je me suis un peu perdue dans les mots du narrateur. Après sa énième connerie, Clap décide de se “ranger” et de fonder une famille, s’ensuit alors des longues pages de réflexions... ça donne un peu l’impression que le narrateur s’écoute parler lui-même.
De plus, je suis restée perplexe par rapport à certains faits qui m’ont échappés. Bon d’abord, il y a la maladie. On sait par le quatrième de couverture que Clap est atteint d’un cancer, mais je n’ai pas souvenir que cela ait été évoqué dans le livre (dans la première partie, car à la fin oui). Ce n’est pas bien grave, mais bon...
Sans spoiler le livre, c’est difficile... mais dans par exemple une succession d’évènements, on se dit “j’ai loupé une page ou alors je dois le deviner?!!”
En bref, ce n’était pas un mauvais roman, loin de là, mais il a tendance à tirer parfois en longueur. Donc hier soir, j’ai été largement tentée de sauter quelques passages pour en voir la fin. Je l’ai donc terminé en le feuilletant, glanant quelques bribes de chaque chapitre...
Par contre, j’étais assez agréablement surprise de tomber sur une fin comme je les aime... (enfin surtout dans les films)... le truc de “que sont-ils devenus”...
Je trouve ça plutôt sympa (puis ça coupe l’envie de faire une suite, dans le cas où le film ou le livre se suffit à lui même).
Même si ce n’est pas franchement un coup de coeur, ce livre reste une bonne découverte.
Ma note : 3 étoiles
Le texte prend la forme d’un interview. Le narrateur- qui s’adresse à un journaliste qu’on n’entend jamais- raconte l’histoire d’un groupe canadien, “Okay”, dont il est le batteur. A 42 ans, il revient sur l’aventures musicales qui l’a conduit au sommet du succès en passant par des épisodes peu glorieux et peu reluisant. Un regard sur le passé, à l’aube d’un avenir incertain.
Au démarrage du roman, on tombe pieds joints dans une scène “vécue”, ce n’est qu’après que l’on comprend que le narrateur raconte son histoire.
Je me suis assez vite familiarisée avec le style d’écriture, qui se lit assez agréablement. L’auteur enchaîne une succession de chapitres d’une dizaine de pages. L’ensemble du texte est assez décousu, mais nous permet quand même de découvrir le parcours des membres du groupe. Par contre, après avoir dépassé la moitié du roman, je me suis un peu perdue dans les mots du narrateur. Après sa énième connerie, Clap décide de se “ranger” et de fonder une famille, s’ensuit alors des longues pages de réflexions... ça donne un peu l’impression que le narrateur s’écoute parler lui-même.
De plus, je suis restée perplexe par rapport à certains faits qui m’ont échappés. Bon d’abord, il y a la maladie. On sait par le quatrième de couverture que Clap est atteint d’un cancer, mais je n’ai pas souvenir que cela ait été évoqué dans le livre (dans la première partie, car à la fin oui). Ce n’est pas bien grave, mais bon...
Sans spoiler le livre, c’est difficile... mais dans par exemple une succession d’évènements, on se dit “j’ai loupé une page ou alors je dois le deviner?!!”
En bref, ce n’était pas un mauvais roman, loin de là, mais il a tendance à tirer parfois en longueur. Donc hier soir, j’ai été largement tentée de sauter quelques passages pour en voir la fin. Je l’ai donc terminé en le feuilletant, glanant quelques bribes de chaque chapitre...
Par contre, j’étais assez agréablement surprise de tomber sur une fin comme je les aime... (enfin surtout dans les films)... le truc de “que sont-ils devenus”...
Je trouve ça plutôt sympa (puis ça coupe l’envie de faire une suite, dans le cas où le film ou le livre se suffit à lui même).
Même si ce n’est pas franchement un coup de coeur, ce livre reste une bonne découverte.
Ma note : 3 étoiles
March 19, 2023
I'm torn. It loses a star, maybe two stars I guess for the chapter called Cohen. It made me realise how two dimensional the writer/narrator sees women. This chapter tries so hard to prove the opposite, but it fails miserably. Maybe it was intentional, I don't know, but when I then looked around at the rest of the book and began to notice two dimensions everywhere ...
However, I wanted to read a book about a fictional band and I have to admit this does exactly what it says on the tin - you can judge this book by its cover, and it's a cool cover.
I enjoyed reading I Play the Drums ..., it was structured very well and not just a collection of short stories, it's much more than that. For me this was a proper novel about a subject I could get excited about. But I'd probably only recommend it to a fellow indie music nerd-boy.
However, I wanted to read a book about a fictional band and I have to admit this does exactly what it says on the tin - you can judge this book by its cover, and it's a cool cover.
I enjoyed reading I Play the Drums ..., it was structured very well and not just a collection of short stories, it's much more than that. For me this was a proper novel about a subject I could get excited about. But I'd probably only recommend it to a fellow indie music nerd-boy.
December 28, 2008
Clap is the drummer in a band called okay. This book is full of short stories of the band while on tour, with family, relationships, births and deaths. I found it a bit slow at first and couldn't really see the point of the stories as I didn't know where they were going. But after a few more chapters I began to warm to the characters. The band are great. They're a proper rock band, each with a problem whether it be drugs or alcohol or both. I did find it hard to follow at times with it being short stories and it not seeming to be in a proper order and I found myself confused as to what was happening at times. Maybe that was the late night reading though!
I'd read another of Toby's books as I did enjoy this one. It wasn't a favourite but I'd probably pick it up again as a quick read.
I'd read another of Toby's books as I did enjoy this one. It wasn't a favourite but I'd probably pick it up again as a quick read.
June 2, 2014
I should lay my cards on the table first of all: I think Toby Litt is one of our finest living British writers. That said, I find some of his books too visceral or uncomfortable, and sometimes wish he would just write something nice, like Beatniks. My wish was granted in I Play The Drums In A Band Called okay. As a fictional (and utterly convincing) band memoir, it naturally contains plenty of overdoses, infidelity and vomit, but above all it is a book about love and family, growing up and growing old.
March 12, 2025
Eerder al twee boeken van Litt gelezen. Waar deze twee boeken een behoorlijk sci-fi/fantasy gehalte hebben en er binnen het narratief gebruik wordt gemaakt van geweld, extreme omstandigheden en hersen krakende concepten (die de beide boeken voor mij ook aantrekkelijk maakten) is dit werk van Litt gebaseerd in de echte wereld. Leuk om te zien dat Litt zich beweegt binnen verschillende surrealistische en realistische werelden in zijn boeken.
Dit boek is een mooi relaas over een drummer in een redelijk succesvolle indie-band. Prachtige personages, absurde beschrijvingen van het leven als een tourende band. Echt een aanrader en een geheel nieuwe kennismaking met het realistische werk van Litt.
Dit boek is een mooi relaas over een drummer in een redelijk succesvolle indie-band. Prachtige personages, absurde beschrijvingen van het leven als een tourende band. Echt een aanrader en een geheel nieuwe kennismaking met het realistische werk van Litt.
May 24, 2010
Novel about the drummer in a rock band from Canada called Okay and the book is okay. Sorry. Not a lot of depth to it and it meanders all over the place thanks to its lack of arc set-up but it is a fun read for music fans. I wish Litt wouldn't have given all the characters these absurd nicknames--Crab, Mono, Syph, Clap--as that was pretty annoying. Just use people's names rather than that silliness. Not sure why that bugged me so much. I also wish there would have been more scenes about making music--lots of girl talk and how rock musicians get a lot of female companionship. Really? Never heard that one before.
February 23, 2013
Only two stars for this "novel". Once in a while I like to read a bundle of short stories but I thought this was pretty bad. It might've been a more enjoyable book if the drummer of okay (lower italics, thanks.) was a drummer of a real band. Now it was just a collection of stereotypes spread over different people. There's a cocky lead singer, an alcoholic guitarist, I don't even know which instrument Mono played and an irrelevant drummer. Some stories I did enjoy, such as Roots, Lydia, Her and ??? but they didn't make up for the indifference I had during the rest of the book. Wouldn't really recommend this to anyone.
March 20, 2013
I liked that it wasn't your typical 'rock n roll memoir', there's the drugs, the women, the trips to rehab, the bad ideas, but mostly these were told by the narrator as they happened to the people around him, and I like that. I like that it was written from the perspective of the drummer, not the frontman, the star. There's bits that make you laugh, bits that make you want to cry a bit, but mostly it's relatively believable. A few of the stories were not so much in keeping with the other, and I'm not sure I was fond of these surreal snippets, but I really liked this, on the whole. It was nice, and I know nice isn't an adjective people like to use, but that's how I feel about it.
July 27, 2012
From my review in the Guardian:
"Life goes on ... and on, and on. There is plenty of story here, but little plot, and no tension. Some scenes are touching, especially when a young fan kills himself, but too many are plodding, overlong, and full of platitudes. Of course, rock bios are often disappointing lists of minutiae about musicians you love. I Play the Drums in a Band Called okay is sometimes just such a list (including six pages of discography), but about people who don't actually exist."
Read the rest at http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2009/...
"Life goes on ... and on, and on. There is plenty of story here, but little plot, and no tension. Some scenes are touching, especially when a young fan kills himself, but too many are plodding, overlong, and full of platitudes. Of course, rock bios are often disappointing lists of minutiae about musicians you love. I Play the Drums in a Band Called okay is sometimes just such a list (including six pages of discography), but about people who don't actually exist."
Read the rest at http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2009/...
February 11, 2010
This is not just about being in a band, but more about the life journey of a musician. The character is instantly likeable and by the end of the book, you feel as if you know the guy. You rejoice in his successes and sympathise with his failures. It's sold as a short story book, but everything is interrelated and the chapters follow on from one another, so I read it like the good novel it was. Recommended!
July 6, 2010
I grabbed this off the shelves on a hunch and it turned out much better than I thought it would. Not quite as cohesive as I might prefer, it's written as a series of short, 5-10 page episodes that are strung together chronologically, but not necessarily written to have anything to do with each other. Litt has a great voice and I'd love to hear from a reader with more first-hand knowledge how close he comes to the experience of being in a large-ish, mostly famous band.
November 8, 2010
I liked it but I wasn't blown away. There was something I both liked and disliked about the almost unconnected chapters in the book (which weren't unconnected, of course, but each one of them could have almost stood on its own without the help of the previous ones). I wanted a bit more of a narrative sequence. More of a history to follow.
But I really liked the last 4 or 5 chapters. Very emotive ones. Made me realise that perhaps I had connected more than I thought with the character.
But I really liked the last 4 or 5 chapters. Very emotive ones. Made me realise that perhaps I had connected more than I thought with the character.
July 25, 2010
Twenty years in the life of a fictional rock and roll band told via a series of anecdotes. An entertaining look at the highs and lows with some self discovery along the way, but doesn't quite live up to the promise of its cover blurb in the comedy stakes.
July 28, 2014
Perin hauska ja nokkela kirja muusikkona - tai no rumpalina - olemisesta bändissä. Ei ihan fiktiivinen The Hammer od Gods, vaan enemmän seuraavaa sukupolvea ja vähemmän munahikeä.
Ihan loppuun asti ei jaksa kantaa, mutta yllättävän pitkälle.
Ihan loppuun asti ei jaksa kantaa, mutta yllättävän pitkälle.
September 15, 2009
Quite a funny book but as it was pretty much lots of separate short stories about the same characters, I found it quite hard to get into so gave up about half way through.
December 21, 2010
Maybe not quite 4, but close enough. A series of short stories related to a fictional band from youth to middle age as told by the band's drummer. Decent writing.
May 5, 2014
I've never been in a band, so I can't really know, but to me this book seems like a really spot on depiction on what being in a succesful band does to you. Loved it.
May 6, 2014
Not even that funny
June 15, 2015
'Okay' is still my favourite non-existing band. ever.
January 29, 2016
Even though this is more a collection of short stories than a novel, it is a good read. Nice coming-of-age novel, though it helps to be interested in music.
March 2, 2015
loved it
Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews