Everything I'm Cracked Up to Be

by Trynin, Jen

• ISBN13: 9780156032964
• ISBN10: 0156032961
• Edition: Reprint
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2007-02-05
• Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

Summary

It was 1994: postLiz Phair, midCourtney Love, just shy of Alanis Morissette. After seven years of slogging it out in the Boston music scene, Jen Trynin took a hard look at herself and gave "making it" one last shot. It worked. Suddenly Trynin became the spark that set off one of the most heated bidding wars of the year. Major labels vied for her, to the tune of millions of dollars in deals. Lawyers, managers, and booking agents clamored for her attention.Billboardput her on the cover. Everyone knew she was the Next Big Thing. But then she wasn't. In a series of dizzying, hilarious, heartbreaking snapshy;shots, Trynin captures what it's like to be catapulted to the edge of rock stardom, only to plummet back down to earth.Everything I'm Cracked Up to Beis the story of a girl who got what she wished forand lived happily ever after anyway.

Author Biography

JEN TRYNIN lives in Boston. This is her first book. She still rocks, when she feels like it.
 
An Entertainment Weekly Editor’s Choice
A Boston Globe Bestseller
A People Great Read

Excerpts

1994. November 1. 4 p.m. 91 South! There! On the left! Buck is turned around in the front passenger seat. Youre clear! Go! Robby swerves left, to much horn-honking and raising of fists from other drivers. Yikes, he says. Touchy. Oh yeah? says Buck, rolling his window down, sticking his hand out and giving someone the finger. How about this? he says, sticking out his other hand, giving the double finger. The sun is low in the sky and flashing across the highway. Were on our first band trip to New York and Im feeling slightly delirious and very pinch-me. Were playing at Brownies, the kind of skanky rock dive Ive been dying to play. In my previous life, the mere mention of Brownies caused me deep pangs of inferiority and what-about-me. You know that guy, someone might say. Freddy? From Brownies? Sure, Id say, the booking guy, hoping I wouldnt have to admit that Id been calling Freddy from Brownies for over two years to exactly zero avail. Until a few weeks ago, when hed finally called me back. Yeah, this is Freddy from Brownies, he said when I answered. Im looking for Jennifer Trynin? This is Jen, I said, my heart pounding up a storm. Oh, hey. Well, like, I got your 45 with the big boots on it andthats yours, right? This is you, right? style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 150%; TEXT-ALIGN: left" align=left Yeah, I said. How in the world did Freddy from Brownies get ahold of my 45? Well, I think its really good. Where you from? Boston, I said. Whatre they puttin in the water up there anyway? A lot of great bands comin outta Boston. How come I never heard of you? Shit shit shit. I didnt want to admit that until very recently, few people cared about my music one way or the other. So I began coughing, fake choking-coughingwhich unfortunately dislodged something in my lungs that really did catch in my throat, causing a real coughing fit. Hey, you okay? asked Freddy. Want me to hang on? Maybe get yourself some water? No, no, Im okay, I wheezed, pounding myself on the chest. Just getting over a cold.Sounds like a bitch, he said. Anyway, you want a gig?You alive back there? asks Buck. What? I said do you like the Clash? I guess, I say. You guess? says Buck, turning around, leaning over the back of his seat and hitting me on the head with a magazine. He smiles. Go back to sleep, rock star. I smile, closing my eyes, the sunlight catching in my lashes, and for once Im not dreaming. This is the way Id always imagined it would be. Me and my bandmates goofing around in the van, roaming the highways. I have the feeling I used to get driving down to the Jersey shore with my family when I was maybe six. Id pile blankets into the back-back of the station wagon and make a fort where I could be alone, but not really alone. I remember wanting never to get there, wanting always to stay just like we were in that car, together and forgiving, because there was nowhere else to go. Im walking toward Brownies big blac

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Excerpted from Everything I'm Cracked up to Be: A Rock and Roll Fairy Tale by Jen Trynin
All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.