I’ve been a Paul McCartney fan for years, and this book captures what it’s like to be Paul playing in a Beatles tribute band. Jimmy, the guy who plays bass and acts as Paul, really wants to perform his own music but playing The Beatles pays the bills. This book is really about how essential music can be. I liked reading about the concerts, 3.5 stars.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley, I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

I was expecting a humorous story but this one is poignant and emotional. I appreciated the style of writing and how the author developed the plot and the characters.
It's a good story and it kept me hooked.
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

Based on the blurbs stating how humorous this book was, I expected a light, funny exploration into the world of Beatles Tribute Bands. Instead I got a middle aged musician in a Beatles Tribute Band, pining for a married woman, trying to connect with a daughter he has never met, and working on songs to jumpstart a solo career as a singer/songwriter. It was well written with good character development but I found the whole thing more depressing than humorous or heartfelt. This book didn't really appeal to me.

Thanks to NetGalley and The Story Plant for an advanced reader copy.

Four Stars

I'm a huge lifelong Beatles fan so I wasn't sure how this piece of fiction would fly with my high standards- but this was a good one!

The story focuses on main character Jimmy Kozlowski who is just shy of 50 living in a basement apartment with his cat Jaco. Although he attended college many moons ago, he has lived the uncertain existence of a musician. He has stints in various bands, but his main bread and butter is playing Paul in a Beatles tribute band called "Help!" This band is spearheaded by Gene Klein who plays John, and is older than Jimmy. Jimmy's older brother Eddie (who Jimmy idolized) used to play alongside Gene in the band, before Jimmy took over the role. Jimmy also volunteers at a nursing home, playing songs to entertain and engage the residents.

The struggle of musicians trying to make a living in an age where people veer towards using DJs rather than paying for live music is covered, as well as trying to get recognized for writing quality original music. Gene is all in with full commitment on making "Help" as professional as possible with the best Cuban heeled boots, Sgt. Pepper uniforms, and even a nose prosthesis for Mikey who plays Ringo. They also found an Asian girl who looks very much like Yoko to sit on the edge of the stage and gaze adoringly at John when they performed Beatles songs from their later years.

I worried that this would be some sort of ridiculous pap, but it was in fact a story that had meat on the bone and rang true. My son is a burgeoning musician running a band, so I understand the journey. There was a story to unravel about what had happened to Eddie that precipitated Jimmy taking over his older brother's place in the band. There also was another dimension to explore with Jimmy regarding a one night stand over twenty years ago, and present day romantic interests...whether they be groupies, fellow musicians or a special lady at the nursing home. The book culminated with a Beatles Tribute Battle of the Bands in Liverpool, New York. Even if you're not a major Beatles fan, this book would still be relatable and enjoyable. But if you are a Beatles fan, it's even more fun to read about the song and style choices curated for each of their gigs. Well done!

Thank you to the publisher The Story Plant who provided an advance reader copy via NetGalley.

Jimmy Kozlowski always wanted to be a professional musician, just like the older brother he idolizes and the father who warns them how hard life as a musician really is. On the verge of turning 50, Jimmy is approaching a career dead end, playing the role of Paul in a local Beatles tribute band with a volatile leader, playing once a week at a local care center, filling in here and there, and never getting a chance to devote himself to his own music.

Right there, that's a Sliding Doors version of me and some of my friends. One of them, a great guitarist, ended up in therapy because he resented his wife and daughter for forcing him to choose a "normal" life instead of pursuing the rock and roll lifestyle. I always say, if I chose the bass instead of guitar, I'd have been in bands my whole life -- Jimmy plays bass, and yes, he's been in bands his whole life, but his family is gone, he never developed a long term relationship, and he never achieved more than the most modest version of success.

All of this comes to a head in I Buried Paul -- the band enters a Beatles tribute competition and is poised to do well, Jimmy's originals suddenly get noticed by a big time producer, he locates his long lost biological daughter, and he falls in love. Of course, all this get complicated -- the leader of the band is a grade A loony tune that has a hold over Jimmy's loyalty, scheduling conflicts threaten to sabotage his solo opportunity, his expectations of his daughter prove unrealistic, and his love interest is (naturally) married.

Perhaps the connections to my own experience make me predisposed to liking this, but that wouldn't be enough in and of itself. Bruce Ferber, a TV comedy veteran with a few prior novels under his belt, has written a very readable and enjoyable book -- great pacing, good banter, relatable characters and situations. He does a great job of being patient with his major plot threads, letting them unfold over the course of the book rather than letting them take over too early and cause too much melodrama.

Having known nothing about Ferber or about his book beyond its title and description promising Beatles-related material, I now want to read more by Ferber. He's a good candidate to join the well-known Nick Hornby, the sadly now-idle Jonathan Tropper, and the vastly underrated Matthew Norman as authors of this type of contemporary humorous male (mostly) character studies that often draw you in with musical or pop culture references. In my pantheon, that's high praise.

And of course he had me right when he mentioned the Fab Faux as the best (or one of the best) Beatles tribute bands (best in my book) -- although I agree with Gene that having fifteen musicians on stage helps their cause immensely.

Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and author for an advanced reading copy. Although I'm always happy to be approved by any of my favorite authors, the real treat of being on NetGalley is getting something completely out of the blue and ending up loving it -- as in this case.

It's been a long time since I've hung out with my musician buddies, so this sparked a wave of nostalgia. It also didn't hurt that Paul was my first celebrity crush, so the title sucked me right in. As it turns out, I'm glad it did. I liked the character of Jimmy Kozlowski and, yes, even Gene Klein. Author Bruce Ferber does an excellent job capturing the hopes, dreams, crashes, clashes, and determination of musicians everywhere who'd rather play their music than eat.

The key word is "their", however. Jimmy never quite had the drive to be famous, or at least well know, that Gene "John Lennon" Klein provides in their tribute band to the Beatles. As much as he loves the Beatles' music, his dream has always been to record even just one record of his own music, music that doesn't sound like anyone else's music and speaks to the heart. He admits that this is difficult in this day and age with the advent of a virtual studio being available in a laptop but that hasn't dulled his dream. He also hopes to connect with the daughter he's never known, showcasing a song he wrote to her during a gig at, no lie, a nursing home where his father now lives. Having had a parent with dementia myself, I wanted to find this fictional character, or at least the author, and give them a hug for this nod to not just the gift of music but Jimmy's determination to treat the nursing home residents with humanity. It's touches of Jimmy's good guy heart that made "I Buried Paul" a winner.

I won't detail the plot. It's easily found elsewhere. I found the stories of Jimmy's present and past connection to the driven, always dreaming, always hopeful Gene, intriguing. They captured the intensity of the love of music and where it can take you with the human side. We meet family and friends. We see the characters meet family expectations and fail to meet expectations. We see the frustration of playing someone else's music, no matter how wonderful, gig after gig, while your own remains unheard. We wonder if Jimmy will ever record that album? We root for him to do so. More importantly, we root for him to find closure with the daughter he's never known. Music and humanity. This is a winning combination, told from the vantage point of a character with heart. I thoroughly enjoyed "I Buried Paul".

Thank you #NetGalley and #TheStoryPlant for taking me back to my own days of embracing friends' musical dreams, whether attending gigs or hanging out at the studio. They're still making music, by the way. Rock on!

This Beatlemaniac is always looking for books related to the Beatles. This was a good read, a little slow on the start. It's very much a character study as well as a meditation on music, relationships and personal interactions. It was a pleasant weekend read and I enjoyed every song mentioned.

Having seen various Beatles tribute bands over the years this was an interesting sneak peek in to the world they inhabit and the dynamics within groups and between competing groups. I found that quite fascinating.

A wonderfully humorous romp of musical dreams, friends, family and life’s experiences.
Jimmy Kozlowski, is the bass playing Paul McCartney in Help!, a Beatles tribute band led by Gene ‘John Lennon’ Klein. Gene is devoted to caring for his elderly mother (and biggest fan) although he has stepped into his ‘over 60’ years himself. Music is Gene’s life and he still holds the aspirations of his Long Island band playing in Liverpool. Jimmy however, has different dreams. Although he holds a nine to five job, wants to establish a relationship with his daughter and entertains at a nursing facility, he wants to perform and record the songs he has been writing.
Told with heart, soul and the power of believing, Bruce Ferber introduces relatable, all too human characters that could easily remind the reader of someone they know or perhaps themselves. Filled with emotion and insight, ‘I Buried Paul’ is a highly recommended read.
Thanks to NetGalley, the author and the publisher (The Story Plant) for an ARC in exchange for an unbiased book review.

This is kind of a slow read for me as the book is written in such a way as to study the characters and quite emotionally heavy at times.

It's more of a character driven plot where you get to know several characters and how things get more complex in the lives of these relatable characters.

Pick up this book if you love reading about slice of life kind of general life stories, close knit family and friends stories or if you into making music.

A short novel perfect for the weekends and cozy evenings.

Thank you, Fiction Studio Books, for the advance reading copy.