Customer Reviews

Dave Matthews Band (Fan.Fare)

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I actually wanted to give it 3 1/2 stars, but that wasn't possible. ... I received this book for Christmas, being the DMB fan that I am. What I encountered left me mildly intrigued at times, frightened by the unmitigated idolatry at others, grinning at certain moments of inspired sarcasm, but mostly not terribly impressed with the diversity (or lack of) in the stories. I have never encountered uber-fananaticism such as the examples in this book, such that I started to seriously question the line between passionate interest in a musical experience and tragic obsession, but that's another review.... Although I can not relate to the level of dedication and sheer time expenditure many of the contributors displayed in their efforts to connect with the band in person, I can appreciate the adventures many of them had and the exuberance with which they want to share their experiences. The stories were just very similar and saccharin in many ways and that is mostly why I'm reserving a higher ranking (For e.g. - There was a ton of this sort of stuff. "I was high as a kite (naturally or chemically) at the performance. I waited outside the venue for the tour bus. I followed the tour bus to the hotel. I waited outside the hotel. I flirted with a roadie and got into the hotel/backstage/on the bus. I cried and shook, or was overcome with effusive emoting in some form, when I saw Dave in person. I got a picture as proof.") In general, I think with the number of submissions they claimed to receive in the assembling of this book, the editing job was quite flawed and likely not representative of the submissions because 1) I'd make a rough guess that 80% of the stories were just about Dave Matthews. They were interesting, but it would have been nice to read more about the other band members as well. There was almost nothing about LeRoi for example. 2) Pretty much all of the stories painted the band as a gaggle of saints with endless reserves of patience- incapable of anything but the most gracious, diplomatic expressions of appreciation for one's fanship no matter how invasive, persistent, or flat out inconsiderate the fan(s) in the story happened to be. Then again, maybe the ECW Press deemed that fans who would want this book would only want to hear those types of stories, as opposed to something more real (and more human...) I find that last part ironic because I believe one of the draws of DMBs music is its raw humaness. Anyhow, maybe the next installment of FanFare will be different.

Well, first of all let me say that I had heard about this book for a long time and thought it would never happen, cause I didn't think Ariel Chernin would be able to collect enough stories about the boys. But in this book she says they got 600 stories and chose the best 100! This is truly an amazing collection, and it is a must for any fan that takes DMB seriously. While most books about groups and bands are written by one critic, this one is written by all the people who are closest to DMB--the fans themselves. And when you get the fans' perspective, you also find out about all kinds of stuff you never would have found out any other way. I mean, I loved Morgan Delancey's book on the band, but she just can't match the fan stories that are collected here for their sense of humor and quirkiness. And the photos of different fans with the guys are just incredible. Yes, yes, yes!

Are these stories for real? They're AMAZING! My respect for Dave Matthews and the band has been renewed and strengthened by reading about other fans' encounters with him. Not only do DMB make incredible music, they're great guys too! The pictures are awesome! These stories are definitely worth checking out.

This is an exciting book filled with revealing and exciting stories about the Dave Matthews Band and its fans. This book is a must for all true DMB fanatics such as myself. Not only did I enjoy seeing my own story featured on page 53, I have absolutely loved reading about the experiences of other fans. This book is fun to read because it not only features exciting and entertaining stories, but it also reveals the off camera characters of Dave Matthews and the band. An great book to own!

How comforting it is to realize you're not alone. This book exposes
me to the world of DMB super fans--a world in which I live and thrive.
The stories are great. You get to see into to the lives of Dave,
Leroi et al...and how they interact with their fans. They're all so
nice! It was rad reading about the tour bus and Dave's hotel room.
I'm just so excited about this book! It's great!

As a big Dave fan, I enjoyed this book. Very weird to think of all the trials and tribulations some people went through to get to meet Dave, but hey gotta do what you gotta do...
It was nice to hear from fans who were around before the more recent albums, which the fan community doesn't like as much- just classic Dave when they could do no wrong.

I was actually one of the people that was chosen to have their story published in Fanfare. It was a highlight for me to be recognized in this way for being a fan of one of my most favorite bands.In this book you read about others experiences and have it verified that DMB are truly the people that we envision them to be.

This is an exciting book filled with revealing and exciting stories about the Dave Matthews Band and its fans. This book is a must for all true DMB fanatics such as myself. Not only did I enjoy seeing my own story featured on page 53, I have absolutely loved reading about the experiences of other fans. This book is fun to read because it not only features exciting and entertaining stories, but it also reveals the off camera characters of Dave Matthews and the band. An great book to own!