So You Wanna Be a Rock & Roll Star
Jacob Slichter

review by: Chelan David
Date: 3/15/05

The Trip Shakespeare concerts I witnessed during my college years in the early nineties stood out from all of the other shows I attended. Hailing from Minneapolis, the band put on amazing performances accentuated by extended jams, group powwows on the drums and playful audience interaction.

Two things stand out most vividly for me from these shows: the charismatic front man, Dan Wilson, and a stunning brunette drummer, strikingly similar in appearance to the White Stripe’s Meg White.

Years later, Trip Shakespeare morphed into Semisonic and enjoyed commercial success with the hit single “Closing Time.” Wilson and John Munson, the bass player, remained from the original lineup, but the hot drummer was replaced by Jacob Slichter.

So You Wanna Be a Rock & Roll Star is Slichter’s unique perspective of the music industry shaped from his experience of rising from an office temp, to joining a band in his thirties, to achieving international recognition.

Rather than follow the formula of many rock and roll memoirs which rely on provocative tales of hedonistic adventures, willing groupies, and dysfunctional relationships between band members, this book provides an unfiltered behind the scenes look at the music industry.

After reading Slichter’s description of a typical record deal I can understand why MC Hammer went bankrupt and Prince declared himself a slave to Warner Brothers. For each CD sold at fifteen dollars, the band’s share of the revenue is approximately fifty cents to a dollar. The band, however, doesn’t get to keep this amount until their recoupable debt is paid off which includes radio promotion, videos, touring costs and other expenses.

In one telling moment, Slichter is under the pretense of being treated to lunch by a label rep. Suddenly he notices that Semisonic is written on the credit card slip which means the tab will be billed to the group’s recoupable account. “So really, shouldn’t you be thanking us for lunch?” Slichter questions. Without hesitation, the promotional liaison replies, “Yes, Jake. Thanks for lunch.”

In addition to the daunting business side of the industry, Slichter also delves into the politics and back room negotiations involved in trying to break a single on the radio, MTV’s insipid response to the majority of their videos, the challenge of playing live shows with ineffectual technicians and the anxieties he faces prior to promotional events. In one instance, his description of the band preparing for a Late Night With Conan O’Brien is so nerve-racking I even started to sweat and was ready to ingest some Rolaids.

Chronicling the dizzying highs and the dreadful lows that musicians face, this book succeeds as Slichter focuses on the inner workings of a band and takes the reader through the record making process from start to finish.