South of the Pumphouse [Paperback]

Les Claypool (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 1, 2006

A dark, clever tale of two brothers, a fishing trip, drugs, and murder, this novel skillfully combines classic motifs of epic struggle and intelligent layers of imagery, reminiscent of The Old Man and the Sea, and the raw, tweaked perspective of a Hunter S. Thompson novel.

Les Claypool established himself as the most original rock bassist in the 1990s, as front man for the hit band Primus. They toured the world with groups like Jane’s Addiction, Public Enemy, and U2. Claypool penned the theme song to TV's South Park, and has guested on albums by many other artists, including Jerry Cantrell and Tom Waits.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Brothers Ed and Earl Paxton are different mid-1990s products of the redneck California town El Sobrante: Earl, 36, is a meth-smoking greaser who stayed in town. Ed has tried to distance himself from his roots by going to state college, moving to Berkeley and marrying a black woman. His trip back to "ol' El Sob," prompted by nostalgic stirrings after his father dies, catapults him back to his past. The brothers leave on a fishing trip, and Ed is dismayed to discover that Earl's obnoxious friend, Donny Vowdy, a loquacious and flatulent man overflowing with stories of his sexual exploits, is along for the ride. While on the water, Earl is forced into the role of referee between Ed and Donny as the men, plied with beer, pot and psychedelic mushrooms, dredge up ancient arguments, but it is Earl's drug-fueled rampage that lands the brothers in trouble. Though Claypool, mostly known as the bass player in the band Primus, substitutes childhood flashbacks for character development and constructs a thin plot, his characters' escalating savagery culminates in a satisfyingly unsettling conclusion. (Sept.)
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About the Author

Les Claypool established himself as the most original rock bassist in the 1990s, as frontman for the hit band Primus. They toured the world with groups like Jane's Addiction, Public Enemy, and U2. Claypool penned the theme song to TV's "South Park," and has guested on albums by many other artists, including Jerry Cantrell and Tom Waits.

Product Details

• Paperback: 190 pages
• Publisher: Akashic Books (July 1, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1933354062
• ISBN-13: 978-1933354064
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 6 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (30 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #361,544 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars The Mind of Claypool is one Sick Place, July 18, 2006

By 

AngelTunes (Huntington Beach, CA) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: South of the Pumphouse (Paperback)

I see this book being made into a movie, directed by Quentin Tarantino. The part of Donny played by Steve Buscemi. Speaking as a gal, I have to qualify this book as a "guy book." Much toilet humor, female characters poorly drawn. But if you can get pass the incredible amounts of fecal matter, it's an enjoyable read. Now maybe I'm not too terribly objective. As a musician and an admirer of Claypool's going on nigh over a decade, I was too curious to see what he would come up with by way of a novel. But I was pleasantly surprised. I think with a little fine honing, he could be something notable in the world of literature. Not to get all "aeolian cadenza" on anyone, but this work was a good sociological study into that cross section of society, known as the "good ol boy" network. His style of writing struck me as something of a cross between Tom Robbins & Nick Hornby. A good first effort & I look forward to the next.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A curious little tale from the masterbasser himself, July 6, 2006

By 

Jake (USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: South of the Pumphouse (Paperback)

Claypool has always used psychedelic and mythical imagery in his twisted tales in Primus. He takes his storytelling lyrics to a new level with this short novel about two brothers going fishing. The advertisements notice twisted comparisons to Old Man and the Sea and while it may be true that they are somewhat alike--claypool modernizes and twists the entire tale. The novel is certainly not one of extreme literary quality but is an entertaining read (as it was for me) on a thurday afternoon. The novel does touch on certain "universal themes" as the reviews suggest, but does not elaborate on them much, choosing instead to rely on humor, beer, and psychedelic drugs. As for the "Hunter S. Thompson" part of the description--the main character does use psychedelic drugs and there are some trippy passages. Les effectively narrates a conversation between bait and man at one point that is highly entertaining. Though I would certainly recommend this book to anyone that enjoys witty little stories--if your looking for wacked out psychedelia or profound literature look to Thompson or Hemingway respectively. All in all, Claypool proves to his audiences that he can indeed expand on his songs based on an array of eccentric characters.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Surprisingly Good Fiction...for an amazing bass player, October 28, 2006

By 

David Rolon (Berkeley, CA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: South of the Pumphouse (Paperback)

One can't help getting a little nervous when we see our favorite musicians or athletes venture into the slippery slope that is fiction. However, Les Claypool really does seem to have a valid talent as a writer. He develops his characters remarkably well and although his voice is a little stiff, he sort of pulls it together 3/5's of the way into the story. It is very clear that he is drawing from his childhood growing up in the SF Bay Area for material, however, he does deliver a very clever, readable book. He shows more than a little promise as a writer of fiction, as long as he doesn't rely too heavily on autobiographical material. For example, he has chronicled the rather unique experience of Strurgeon fishing in San Pablo Bay in many of his lyrics of his songs, and as much as it's interesting, I can't imagine the readers of this book, who are undoubtedly Primus/Claypool fans not sensing a bit of repetition in his choice of subject matter. I too reside in the general area that this book is set in, and aside from the fact that El Sobrante is hardly a "redneck" community, Les Claypool depicts the East Bay rather precisely, which I'm not sure is a good thing. It causes me to question the depth of his gift.