Brown Sludge

Book Review - Radio Activity

December 29th, 2005

I came to be a hard-core Bill Fitzhugh fan in the late 90’s – when I stumbled upon his first novel “Pest Control” while shopping at my local independent bookseller.

Pest Control remains to this day as one of my “Top Five” favorite books I’ve ever read. It’s one of the most hilarious and entertaining reads I’ve ever had the pleasure to sit through. It was one of those books that you read and actually get a tiny bit depressed after you finish it because… it’s over.

Needless to say I’ve devoured every single book of Bill Fitzhugh’s since. I’ve got them all in my stack, and although Pest Control is still my favorite – they’ve all been good enough to keep me coming back for more and more. Nobody makes me laugh more deeply or forget the hard things in my life like he does. Christopher Moore maybe – but it’s a close call.

So… when his latest work hit the shelves in paperback – I didn’t waste a second snatching it up – and it is so incredibly dead-on where Brown Sludge is concerned – I can’t wait to post about it.

“Radio Activity” is a book that struck a chord in my heart that continues to resonate. If you’re over 40… I’m certain it will strike a chord in yours as well.

You see… it’s about what’s happened to radio in this country over the last few years – and at it’s heart – it’s about Brown Sludge.

In the interest of fair disclosure – I confess – I grew up in the 60’s – and went to high-school in the 70’s. It was an important time for Rock and Roll, and I can proudly attest to having been in or near the front row of virtually every seminal Rock Concert of the era. Seeger. Styx. Skynard. Queen. Boston. Zeppelin. Floyd. The Stones. The Eagles. Springsteen. ZZ Top. Rush. Hagar. ELP. ELO. Kansas.

I was there man. For ALL of them. Live dawg.

And like everyone else I went to school with I lived for the music on the radio. It was never off. We turned the stereo on when we woke up. We listened to a portable on the way to school – and on the way home. We listened to the radio in the car. Our goal was to make sure “The Tunes” never stopped playing.

The radio was an essential and elemental part of all of our young lives.

We couldn’t have made it through those times without the spiritual mana it fed to us.

But something has happened to the radio in the years between where we are now, and where we were then. Something dark, and sinister.

The Brown Sludge Monster ate the radio – and everything on it.

A single huge corporation has managed to get their hands on so many stations in so many markets – that – for all practical purposes – they now control everything you hear.

Unless you’ve been hiding under a rock for the past 10 years – you know exactly which corporation I’m talking about.

They ruined the radio – by watering down the playlists with populist crap – firing everyone in the industry that loved it so much and who carried the huge knowledgebase that was Rock And Roll. They replaced them with shock-jocks who didn’t love the music – or computerized DJ’s that didn’t care.

My mantra for the last 15 years has been “So Many Good Songs – So Few Of Them Played”

Rather than watch them beat the oldies to death anymore – I’ve had to turn away – as has everyone else in America who actually cares.

It’s been horrible. And it’s been very hurtful to lose my Dear Old Friend.

So… you can imagine how ecstatic I was when one of my favorite authors takes up the cause that is so close to my heart.

In “Radio Activity” Bill Fitzhugh’s brings his incredible talent to bear on “Clean Signal” (snork) Corporation, and on the entire industry in general, and his aim is absolutely deadly.

The book’s protagonist is Rick Shannon – a radio DJ that’s been axed by yet another “Clean Signal” station buy-out – and just as he’s becoming desperate enough to sell the incredible record collection that he’s been building over decades in the radio industry – he receives an offer to DJ for a small town in Mississippi.

What follows is a hilarious murder mystery (yes… I said those three words together).

Shannon finds an audiotape that leads him to suspect that his predecessor was murdered which in turn leads him to become an amateur Private Investigator.

In nod after nod to Rock and Roll and the radio industry as a whole – Shannon begins to track down clue after clue – all the while trying to stay ahead of the crooked station managers machinations – run a REAL rock and roll radio station – and managing a strange and unusual relationship with a the stations heavily eye-shadowed receptionist – fighting the unmitigated pasteurization of current radio content – and trying to steer clear of the “Dixie Mafia” as he solves the mystery.

In between Fitzhugh does his best Joe Pesci and takes an aluminum baseball bat to the current state of radio – and the Brown Sludge Monster that ate it.

He’s sharp, satirical, and very wicked.

His characters are loveable and alive.

He’s flawless.

And if you’re a “True Believer” like I am – you’ll come away with the realization that there is another human being that feels the same way about the current state of radio in America – and what it’s doing to “The Oldies”.

You will learn about Tater Wads.

Yes… TATER WADS.

That alone is worth the price of the book.

All joking aside, Fitzhugh has really done his homework on this subject. It’s an incredible ride through the music that was the soundtrack for my generation – and one that you owe it to yourself to read.

A word of warning here:

If you’re already a Bill Fitzhugh fan (and you should be dammit) you might be a bit surprised by the “pacing” of this novel in contrast to his others.

Typically – Fitzhugh writes at you fast and furious with over-the-top action and humor at 200 MPH. His characters get themselves into absurd and implausible jams that showcase Fitzhugh’s gift for outrageous dialog at speeds that keep most readers heads spinning and sides splitting.

“Radio Activity” is a little different.

He throttled back on this one because he cares about the subject matter. He’s a “True Believer” in the music and it’s power and he wants the reader to get that.

If you go into this one expecting the same high octane writing that you’re used to from Fitzhugh – you might be thrown off guard at first.

He takes his time with this one – because he’s got something to say – and because it matters.

No Brown Sludge Monster bookstores here. I only support independent booksellers.

Left Bank Books