As a longtime fan of the Cars' earlier music (the first 4 albums) I have always wanted to gain some insight into their creative process, to find out how they came up with the unique sound that captured critics and discerning fans in the beginning, before they became MTV darlings and the embodiment of 80s American culture. I was especially interested in the dynamics between the five members, their different tastes and experiences and how they combined into the sound we know as the Cars. Unfortunately I got none of that. This book spends a few short paragraphs on the individual member's pre-Cars activities but doesn't really go into a lot of detail during the club years, their first studio experimentations, or the year between their first live show and their signing to Elektra. There is a brief but extremely interesting excerpt from an interview with the radio DJ who was influential in getting them signed and also (according to the book) in the final line-up of the band. Fascinating detail, but not enough of them.

I also wanted to find out more about the personalities of the band members. Aside from Ric Ocasek who achieved major celebrity status, the others always seemed very private and even in the internet era there is very little known about them, especially Ben Orr, whose personality recedes even as his stage persona commands attention. Unfortunately after reading this book I know more about each one of the Cars EXCEPT for Ben. I can only guess that this was due to his famous reticence around journalists - he gave very few interviews and was extremely humble about his role in the band. Ric was definitely the band's mouthpiece and makes it very clear in the quotes attributed to him. The reader has to assume that often when he uses the word 'we' he means it in the royal sense. However, I did enjoy learning more about the other band members' interests - Japanese sci-fi films, art deco furniture - but it would have been nice to learn more about Ben.

I enjoyed reading the contemporary reviews of their first four albums, like time capsules of their respective eras. It was really interesting to read about the tours, the venues, set decor and the bands they opened for (Styx? Now that's a double bill.) Some double-spread photos I had never seen before were nice to include but sadly spoiled by the placement of the crease right over the face of Ben, easily the most photogenic musician ever. And Ric's ramblings are interesting in what they reveal about his ego and the band as a reflection of said ego. But this band was much more and I wish this book had been more as well. At times I wished the writer had been more of the breathless fan - I would have loved to learn what Dave's favorite movie or Ben's favorite food was - or conversely, had been able to provide more informed critical insight into her subject. As it is the book treads between outright fandom and critique in a way that's not quite satisfying.

Four members of the Cars -- Elliot Easton, Greg Hawkes, Benjamin Orr, and David Robinson -- never displayed any ambivalence of the purpose and power structure of The Cars. Simply put, the Cars were a band that applied its immense talents to play Ric Ocasek songs, and no others. They all knew, understood, and accepted this. NO one complained to interviewers, "I'm a songwriter, too", or "Ric should share his songwriter royalties with us out of sheer generosity", because that would be completely unprofessional and damn foolish. Ocasek wrote your favorite Cars songs and mine, plus everybody else's. On rare occasions, keyboardist Greg Hawkes contributed music, but the melodies, lyrics, and arrangements, were overwhelmingly Ocasek's. It's highly likely he was an uncredited co-producer as well. He sang lead on the majority of their hit singles by a ratio of 3 to 1. If you're a musician, you know the Cars songs come from a single soul, simply from looking at the chord changes: From "Good Times Roll", "Up and Down", "Maybe Baby", "Double Trouble" ... to "Crackpot" (from his latest solo disc, Nexterday), Ocasek is still finding ways to juxtapose those B and G power chords. Literally and figuratively, Ocasek is the voice of the Cars. When the results succeeded, he rightly received most of the credit, and when they didn't, he took most of the blame, and outright abuse in the press. This is not as unusual as you might think. Think of the Cars as a Beach Boys in which Brian Wilson never quit touring or went insane. There was never any shame in being a non-songwriting member of the Cars. Every member of the band was a fantastic, futuristic musician. I believe they were a major force, if not single-handed, in accelerating rock music past the punk stage. And each member gets equal credit for that.
Ocasek's musical history is clear: He did not join bands and then take them over. Instead, he formed bands from nothing, around his own material from the START, with himself as undisputed leader. *It is EVERY musician's RIGHT to attempt this* -- "Hey, I'm a songwriter, do you want to be in my band?" But not every songwriter who does this can pull off no less than FIVE (5) mulitplatinum albums!
Only a fool would complain that the majority of this book concerns itself with interviews and quotes from its bandleader, visionary, songwriter, primary lead singer, and guitarist.
Don't misunderstand -- I wouldn't mind if the book was twice as long, to feature more quotes and interviews with enigmatic bassist/secondary-lead singer Benjamin Orr, the incredibly-talented (and articulate) lead guitarist Elliot Easton, the synthesizer-wizard Greg Hawkes (whom Ocasek has used on more of his seven solo albums than not), and the very-clever drummer/stylist David Robinson. Yes, if all that could be added, this book would be twice as good. But to sacrifice the (already-minimalistic) comments of the band's visionary would be foolsish, amounting to a shallow "fan club" sheet:
What flavor of lollipop was Ben sucking on in the Candy-O photo shoot?
What's Greg Hawkes's favorite sci-fi film?
Elliot, can you give us a tour and lecture on your collection of exotic left-handed string instruments?
Who TRULY cares?
Such questions and answers belong in an appendix, not the main body of a band biography.
What's fascinating is how the Cars's climb to success was actually quite slow -- up to a point, and then it all suddenly exploded. From the start, the nucleus of the band was Ocasek and Orr: Singers, songwriters, partners, and friends.
DO NOT LET ANYBODY TELL YOU OTHERWISE.
There is no credible evidence -- none -- that suggests any bitter rivalry between Ric and Ben. They were the core of the band, always. With the addition of a third singer-songwriter, they recorded a rather impressive, if entirely un-Cars-like, album, called "How's The Weather", under the band name Milkwood. Seek these songs out, if harmony-drenched folk-rock is your thing (or maybe even if it isn't!) All three members wrote songs and sang leads. It's not a surprise that Ric's songs are the best. (One track, "Timetrain Wonderwheel", wouldn't have been *entirely* out of place on the first Cars platter). What IS a surprise is that Ric's singing is the most varied and flexible -- and downright pretty -- considering that Ben would later eclipse Ric as a traditional singer, as Ric became a "stylist". After Milkwood, they were a duo named Ocasek and Orr. Again: NUCLEUS. Strangely enough, however, their next full-blown band, Cap'n Swing, featured only Orr on lead vocals ... a scenario I'm sure some Cars fans have fantasized about ... but IT DIDN'T WORK.
After the breakup of Cap'n Swing, Ocasek was ready to go solo -- but Orr wasn't ready to let him! As Elliot Easton put it, Ben "demanded his way back in", but there were concessions he had to make. Ocasek had wisely realized, it was a waste of his time to work on other people's songs, and he no longer wished to do so. Again, *every songwriter has the right to make this choice!* It's merely a question of finding supportive musicians. Ben was the first. Clearly, he knew in his heart he was born not to WRITE but to SING, and stayed loyal to Ric for a long, lucrative career in a top-draw band.
With the addition of new drummer David Robinson (whose previous band, The Modern Lovers, made The Cars seem downright MAINSTREAM), the final line-up of The Cars was complete, and with the new selection of songs Ric wrote for the new band ("Bye Bye Love" being the only holdover), they had finally paid their dues, and became a genuine overnight sensation.
The rest is history . . . Unfortunately, this book ends in the middle of the Heartbeat City era. It would be wonderful to have a book twice as long that covers all the in-between, from Door To Door to The New Cars and finally the real reunion, one that goes into depth with the other members. Although, despite some selfish demands from certain obsessive fans, it appears Benjamin Orr was a very private man who did not want to share his PERSONAL life with interviewers. Such was his right, and if they "loved" him like they claim they do, they would respect that -- and simply cherish the beautiful mystery of this lovely man with the lovely voice.
FOR NOW, this is the best biography of The Cars we have available to us. But for God's sakes, don't pay a fat pile of money for it. Be patient and a copy will appear at a reasonable price for a used copy.

This is a great and well written book. Thank you very

The book tells a lot of The Cars. In fact, it tells of each member of The Cars.