Customer Reviews

Fool the World: The Oral History of a Band Called Pixies

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

While attempting to finish reading the abysmal Gigantic by John Mendelssohn I was overjoyed to find this book available - in Australia no less. It is all I hoped it would be.

Before starting the book I was worried that despite my love for the Pixies it might be a slightly boring read. Having read and loved Please Kill Me, my rock story scale had been set quite high for gapping pits of agony - but I needn't have worried. This is a great story. The most unlikely words to find in a rock biography were used - charming, high work ethic, normal and they just endeared the members of the Pixies to me all the more.

Interviewees Chas Banks, Joe Harvard, James Iha, Ivo Watts- Russell and Gary Smith, amongst many others, offer their insight to the band and help produce a vivid picture of their history.

I have listened to the Pixies on average at least once a week for the past 18 years - not that I don't listen to other things as well, its just that nothing else fills certain niches in my heart and soul like they do - and to discover that the people making the music are people that I would enjoy having in my living room is an absolute joy.

gabby_talmadge@yahoo.com

This book's strengths far outweight its weaknesses. True, the flow is somewhat disjointed, Throwing Muses and its members get too much coverage, and the copy editing is somewhat sloppy. Nonetheless, the depth of Pixies coverage is amazing. I've been listening to them since Surfer Rosa came out, but they've always been an inscrutable band lyrically, musically, and in interviews. Frank's collection opens the curtain, and gives us a peek into the life and history of a band.

I enjoyed this book immensely.

Fool the World is an excellent account of the birth, death and reincarnation of a band called The Pixies. A band that is one of the most important and influential yet underated bands in the history of rock n roll. Without the Pixies there would be no Nirvana, no White Stripes, no Screamo. For better or for worse they are a band that you need to know about and understand. The way that Fool the World is put together is brilliant. Interview segments from people like Courtney Love, J. Mascis, as well as band members themselves add the colour to the picture. There is also a directory of who's who for easy reference. Who else but someone who was there could remember a quote like "Fist I'm going to piss like a race horse and then dance like a black woman." The old magazine interviews with producer Steve Albini were wonderful to read. The fact that Kristin Hersh was dying to get the Pixies onto 4AD because she felt lonely being the only Yank on a Brit label is hilarious and finding out,in his own words, that Ivo Watts-Russell signed certain bands after being stuck in traffic with their tape is genius. Who would know those things except people that were there when it happend. Music fans, Pixies fans, and fans of pop culture check out this book.

This may not be the best written book about the Pixies, but it's superior to Ben Sisario's 33 1/3 on Doolittle, because of its depth (that's not to criticise Sisario - he didn't have the space). Sure, there may be some minor errors in dates etc, but the essence of the book is anecdotes and quotes from people who were involved with the band. In terms of explaining why the band was special, and why it has a unique place in rock music, Fool the World is completely successful. More than that, it's a fun read. Highly recommended.

Josh Frank and Caryn Ganz's illuminating Fool the World: The Oral Biography of a Band Called Pixies might be the definitive written document on the group, perhaps the most cryptic and under-documented major band in the history of rock music. The need for this kind of book was considerable. Certainly the spate of Pixies' reunion tour tie-in products has done some of the work in quenching the thirst of the die-hards. But what Fool the World offers us that the others don't is the whole deal, not just the story of the re-birth of this beloved band. The book recounts, in painstaking detail and with profound craftsmanship, the brief yet creatively explosive history of the Pixies - from the childhood beginnings (including some great history/insight into Kim and Kelley Deal), through to the present day (the band's seemingly unending reunion tour). Its certainly the most intimate recounting of the band's infamous break up that I've read. Along the way, nearly everyone who had a hand in the Pixies' meteoric rise and demise weighs in - the original staff of Fort Apache Studios, Ivo Watts-Russell, Steve Albini, Kristin Hirsch, Tanya Donelly, ex-wives, ex-husbands, and of course the band members themselves. The result is the closest approximation of the `truth' we're ever likely to get about this band. Thankfully, it's also a damn good read.

The thing I love about oral biographies, and this one in particular, is the Rashomon-like potential for differing subjective realities. If done well (this one is) about a worthy and sufficiently dramatic subject (check on that), a skilled author(s) can approach something more truthful than the truth - its not that the facts were recounted; its how they were recounted. The ways in which Charles (Black Francis) and Kim Deal differ in retelling the same event has more to say about the dynamic of their relationship than the actual validity of the event in question. Charles kicked a guitar at Kim during a show; that happened. But Charles' reasons why and Kim's recollection of Charles' reasons why provide the true insight. Even now, fifteen years on, the dynamic between these two still shines through. This is just one example; the book provides endless `truths', as any good oral biography will do. Fool the World just happens to do it better than most. This is required reading.

This is a very well-written account of the rise of a band that changed music history. In the tradition of Legs McNeil's "Oral History of Punk Rock," this book allows the band to tell its story in its own words. It is neither a hack job nor a fawning fan blog but a serious journalistic piece of art. Fans of this revolutionary band will appreciate the details of its origins and evolution. Even those who are not necessarily fans will find the account of life in the 1980s on the fringes both fascinating and accurate. Mr. Frank and Ms Ganz have added a significant work to the history of rock music which is sure to become a classic.

Well put together in the style of Please Kill Me which is basically a linear compilation of quotes from those involved describing anecdotes and the chain of events that was the story of this great band. Commentators include everyone from the Pixies themselves to their peers like J Mascis and Throwing Muses, to those they influenced like Billy Corgan and Courtney Love to their engineers/producers like Albini and Gil Norton. As well as those that discovered and signed the band. A fascinating read for anyone who appreciates the Pixies and the amazing music they created. Very candid and enjoyable read.

This book is an interesting read, a good depiction of the 80s and the Boston indie scene. One has to be a Pixies fan to really enjoy it; I don't think it would be interesting enough for just any other kind of reader. As stated by the authors, this book is not about sex, drugs and the usual self-destroying existence of rock and rollers. This book is about a band that has a very average life but happens to make the best music ever.

Being a big fan of a band that breaks up just after you discover them is gut wrenching! That's how I felt in the early 90's. Josh's book does what 1000 music magazine publications couldn't: it left me with more knowledge and respect for this band than I did before I picked it up. So much of the mystery behind this bands rise, fall and resurrection is revealed, and that's not a bad thing at all. An awesome read from start to finish! I'm a born again PIXIES fan. Neighbors beware!

There's a lot of good quotes in here from the Pixies and a lot of people associated with them (though much of this is cribbed from the Spin article of 2004 and from other writers). But the book suffers from two big weaknesses. First, the authors/editors did not research this properly and check facts; there are many glaring errors, such as the date of the founding of the band (it was 1986, not 1985, something that you'd think you would check if you were going to write a book about the Pixies) and many misspellings, contradictions, etc. The problem with unsourced oral histories is that people say whatver they want to say, lie, misremember, and if the editors do not check the facts and correct the record, then their work is little more than gossip. Second, there's an overly credulous, fannish tone to the whole thing. Too many worshipful, hyperbolic quotes about how terrible everything in the world was before the Pixies came along, and how the band was better than Beatles and Jesus put together. This is a fanzine job, not a professional book.