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Dave O'Leary
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The Music Book Paperback – November 1, 2017

by Dave O'Leary (Author)
4.7 4.7 out of 5 stars 14 ratings
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What does music mean? Can it be more than the sum of its notes and melodies? Can it truly change you? Rob, a musician turned reluctant music critic, poses these questions as everything important in his life appears to be fading--memories of lost love, songs from his old bands, even his hearing. He delves into the music of others to find solace and purpose, and discovers that the chords and repeated phrases echo themes that have emerged in his own life. The music sustains him, but can it revive him?

The Music Book is a story of loss, of fear and loneliness, of a mutable past. But most of all it's about music as a force, as energy, as a creator of possibility. What might come from the sound of an A chord played just so? Rob listens. And among other things, he finds surprising companionship with a cat; another chance at love; and the courage to step on a stage again and finally, fully comprehend the power of sound.

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Previous page
  1. Print length
    270 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Infinitum
  4. Publication date
    November 1, 2017
  5. Dimensions
    5.5 x 0.57 x 8.5 inches
  6. ISBN-10
    1937634051
  7. ISBN-13
    978-1937634056
  8. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

Review

"On page after page, you hitch a ride as O'Leary asks an existential question: does 2 plus 2 in fact equal 4, or is there a missing element, a spiritual or cosmic element, that can bend reality at any given moment, that can transport you to a different time, a different place, or perhaps lead to orgasmic ecstasy in the moment itself? Where will this journey lead for the main protagonist: to a fulfilling relationship? to discover the twenty-first century heirs to the Seattle Sound? to overcome personal doubts to create his own timeless art? O'Leary offers up all these possibilities in this masterful tome."--Stephen Tow, author of The Strangest Tribe: How a Group of Seattle Rock Bands Invented Grunge

"The Music Book is all about Acting into Being; existing immersed in the ache of needing to be heard, begging to be read, things to make and do, saved by music beyond drink and despair and doubt. It stretches out patiently at the cusp of real life like a trembling, thought-obliterated fan in a scene-entry dive watching their favorite yet unknown band at the low angle of the stage on a torrid, parched Tuesday night. Will we all make it to a spiritual Friday or Saturday headlining slot? What happens if we do or we don't? Read The Music Book and deeply understand those stakes, either way." --Chris Estey, Big Freak Media, Light In The Attic Records, KEXP Blog

"The Music Book is very successful at transporting [the reader] to that world...captures the power of music...a really entertaining book." --Margaret Larson, New Day Northwest

"The Music Book is the most aptly titled novel since On the Road. [It has] passion and frustration. Lyricism and criticism. Beer and bass guitar and barstool banter. And love. Lots of love. The real music in The Music Book is the sound of O'Leary's heart--beating loud as a kick drum." -- Joe Oestreich, author of Hitless Wonder: A Life in Minor League Rock and Roll

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Infinitum (November 1, 2017)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 270 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1937634051
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1937634056
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 11.2 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.5 x 0.57 x 8.5 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.7 4.7 out of 5 stars 14 ratings

About the author

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Dave O'Leary

Dave O'Leary

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Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

Dave O'Leary is a writer and musician living in Seattle. He has had three books published as well as poems and short stories featured in numerous online literary journals.

Books

I. I Hear Your Music Playing Night and Day

(Poetry and short prose, Cajun Mutt Press, May 2021)

2. The Music Book

(Novel, Infinitum, November 2017, Booktrope 2015)

3. Horse Bite

(Novel, Infinitum, October 2011)

Photo by Stacy Albright. http://www.stacyalbrightimages.com

Customer reviews

4.7 out of 5 stars
4.7 out of 5
14 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

kpman
5.0 out of 5 stars Such an amazing book
Reviewed in the United States on May 7, 2015
Verified Purchase
I read this book as my extended text for my passion project. My passion project was on music, and this book was so helpful. Not only did it have some amazing insights on music, but it was also a great read. One of my favorite quotes from the book is " There is a heart inside the artist, inside the musician, buried in those E chords and noticeable to those who really listen, and the heart beats stronger, it soars, it makes us soar." I love this quote because it is a great example of what music means to main character, and what music means to those who are really passionate about it. "People can indeed live without music, but the life would be somewhat less fulfilling." This is so important because to me, without music, the world would be boring, it would be lifeless. I think that music is such an important creative outlet that without it, a lot of people would be negatively impacted.

The plot was great, it really incorporated in music. The main character really made it clear how music had an impact on him emotionally and mentally which is a really important key to my passion project. Rob would struggle day to day with heartbreak and the "what if..." thoughts. But with music he was able to pull through, he was able to find a greater meaning. He was able to find something new with music.
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Skycoog
4.0 out of 5 stars What does 2 + 2 really equal?
Reviewed in the United States on July 4, 2015
If you’re a solid proponent that 2 + 2 = 4 no matter what, then this book will certainly expand your horizons. At its most base level, this seems to be the goal of Dave O’Leary. His tale of the rough and winding road of a music reviewer in the Seattle rock scene makes you at times envious of the lifestyle and at other times thankful to the music gods that you are nowhere near Seattle. The characters run the spectrum from those rock musicians on top of the world, living for their craft, to those fans living lives of quiet desperation, grinding out the 9 to 5 and trying to find meaning to their lives. The crux of the issue is living life in the moment.

If you’re at all interested in music, this is a great read. It reminded me of being a teenager, how music was everything in my life. Remember when that all important song came on the radio and time stopped? If someone was talking you shushed them, you turned up the radio and lost yourself in the song. That’s what this book does, it makes you want to turn up the radio and tune out everything around you. Just like a song, the book can at times hypnotizes you with its descriptions of bands and songs in the Seattle music scene.

O’Leary does a wonderful job of transporting the reader to a place they’ve never been. It would have been easy for him to leave the reader behind, to go to a place that only a musician would understand, but he masterfully keeps the experience common enough that you are taken away to that rapturous state where you are one with the music. Quite an accomplishment for a reader who wouldn’t know a G chord from a monkey wearing a clown nose.

“And suddenly life seems easy. All it takes is the length of a song, a melody of only three words, two of them repeated before dropping on the “me” as the last chords fade into silence. And that’s the way of things. Pain and heartache can linger, but they can vanish in a second, in an A chord on the keyboard that fades as the applause kicks in. “Woo woo!” Maybe music is the constant. 2 + 2 + M = 4 until the likes of Julia and Geoff and Dominic step on stage. Then it’s 5. The M transforms. It’s like an element that takes up two spots on the periodic table. In one, it’s a stable thing, light, a component of life, always there but inert. It doesn’t affect things. It’s background. In the other, it’s heavy, unstable, radioactive. The slightest neutron passing through its core will spark a nuclear reaction, and from there, nothing is as it was, but only as it is played out by the jangly unclean chords of the blue guitar .”

At its core the book seeks a meaning for life through the transformative mantra of music. There’s a commonality to everyone in this concept. Who hasn’t been transformed by a work of music? Whether it be a child enthralled by a nursery rhyme, a teenager swooning in the throes of the latest pop hit, or an adult closing their eyes at the symphony to a rendition of Mozart, everyone at some time in their lives has let music enrapture them and gone to an existence where 2 + 2 no longer equals 4. Life takes on a greater quality, or rather, perhaps those notes that are so skillfully arranged give life quality.

If there is a shortcoming, it is in the narrow focus of music’s effect on the lead character and his search for meaning beyond his life. There is an atheistic tone that clips the quality of the story, at times making you want to slap the character on the back of the head. He is so close, yet so far away.

“The whole idea of religion has never made much sense to me with its whole afterlife thing of burning in hell or halos and wings. I’ve just never been able to shake the idea that there is nothing at the end, that death is death, infinite darkness. It’s why I turned to music early on and to writing these days. These things bring joy now. They bring consolation now. They bring meaning now, before the darkness. Sometimes, they even bring women. I think about the ending of Hard-Boiled Wonderland again and just can’t help thinking it spot-on.”

If he had ever sat in the pews during a masterful playing of Amazing Grace, or clapped his way through a service at a soul filled black church in the deep South, he might strum a different tune. It’s a minor thing, but it’s sort of like playing only one side of a .45 vinyl single. There’s the flip side that is a whole different story. Perhaps one day O’Leary will round it out.

All in all, it’s a fun read. Not too serious, though at time you might think that the life of the story is going south. I’d recommend also checking out the website. There is a CD for sale with songs from the bands in the book that really round out the experience. All proceeds go to charity for the CD, so in reading and listening you can actually do something good for someone.

Bottom line: Get some McDonald’s, kick back with a Blue Moon, and if you live in Colorado, finish it off with a bowl of weed. Along the way, read the book, it will take you to a different place!

Courtesy of: www.respectthebooks.com
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E MICHAEL KIPP
5.0 out of 5 stars Once I started reading this book, I had trouble ...
Reviewed in the United States on October 23, 2014
Verified Purchase
Once I started reading this book, I had trouble putting it down. The author has written a story on the Seattle music scene that holds your attention from beginning to end, as he draws you into the story. Visions of the various scenes described in the book leap into your head It is extremely well written.

The bands and music mentioned will bring memories to almost everyone. The bonus is how he brings in local venues and the new top bands in the Seattle area such as Sightseer, and Furniture Girls, among others. Upon finishing the book, I felt a need to play my Sightseer CD. I’m sure I will get a copy of the companion CD put together from the music mentioned in this book.
One person found this helpful
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