From Publishers Weekly
Few authors are as qualified as British singer-songwriter Parker (formerly the front man for the Rumour) to explore the fate of a one-hit wonder after the glow of fame fades away, but Parker's second novel (after The Great Trouser Mystery) is an erratic, overwritten account of a has-been rock star's tours to such unlikely locales as Sweden, Greenland and Tasmania. Brian Porker is Parker's musical alter ego-a cynical, middle-aged former front man for the Soulbilly Shakers, who lives in Vermont in idyllic semiretirement with his wife. When the royalties from Porker's cheeky '70s hit single about having sex while standing up begin to fizzle out, Porker's scurrilous agent, Tarquin Steed, convinces him to tour some backwater locations to boost his cash flow. The tour gets off to a bizarre start: Porker is approached by a Baha'i religious leader, and her followers track him throughout the novel after they notice his physical resemblance to their founder. Meanwhile, the Swedish leg of the tour is a qualified success, and Porker finds himself signed on for follow-up ventures to Tasmania and Greenland. The strained musical scenes are desultory, and Parker adds a silly subplot (Porker and his quirky soundman, Carruthers, acquire a rare marsupial dog coveted by a wealthy English nobleman). Parker pens a few funny chapters, but his florid, overblown writing requires the underpinning of a more compelling plot, and while Porker is a solid character, he's not up to carrying the novel.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Book Description
Some might call Brian Parker's musical career washed up. As the acid-tongued front man for the Soulbilly Shakers, a 1970s one-hit-wonder, he penned the hit single "Knee Trembler," a sweet little ditty about having sex while standing up. But sales for his newest record are miniscule and his concert crowds have been steadily dwindling. This being said, it's not hard to figure out why Brian is angry with just about every person who has the misfortune of drawing his attention. The brunt of most of his vitriol is his manager, Tarquin Steed, who in an attempt to broaden his client's fan base, has just signed Brian up for consecutive tours of the nether regions of Scandinavia, Tasmania, and the Arctic Circle. Just when Brian thinks things can't get any worse, he has separate encounters with a group of cultists who believe him to be their prophet reincarnate, a rare marsupial dog, and a group of Nordic cryptozoologists who will do anything to get their hands on the beast! But then again, who said the life of a rock star would be uneventful?
