pulse book review
By Annette Cinelli

In the mid ‘90’s, Jen Trynin got sick of the “Sunday-through-Wednesday-night-folk/acoustic-chick-band wasteland” she had fallen into and decided to give making it in the music world one last shot. She created a label, Squint records, made a CD, and played everywhere she could, including gigs in New York where she wouldn’t even get on stage ‘til 2 a.m.

Then things miraculously began to fall into place; the right people got ahold of her self-released single and, before she knew it, all of the major record labels ~ Warner Brothers, Sony, Atlantic and more ~ were after her. She was in the center of a bidding war frenzy and for Jen it felt like a dream come true. But like most fairy tale lives, it was not all it was cracked up to be.

Just as quick as her rise to stardom was her fall from the limelight. And a decade later, Jen shares with us this tale of her stint in the music industry.

Jen Trynin’s newly released autobiography Jen Trynin’s Everything I’m Cracked Up To Be: A Rock & Roll Fairy Tale is a unique story that takes us through the “dog and pony show” record labels put on while trying to woo The Next Big Thing. It then shows us the often-unseen side of what “being a rock star” truly entails. The details about how a record deal works are fascinating and when Jen explains why an $80,000 deal isn’t in fact a good offer you begin to finally understand why CDs cost so much and how little the artist actually makes from their sales.

We travel along with Jen, a character who is real and likable. As she starts becoming somewhat famous, she begins to wonder if this kind of life is really is what she wants. Borderline rock star or not, Jen presents a theme to which almost anyone can relate ~ At one point or another in our lives we have all questioned our career, relationships, and overall life choices. Jen poignantly describes this new life and how she begins to lose sense of who she is and what she wants to do. As she struggles to find herself, you can’t help but root for Jen to succeed ~ and if not in the music industry, certainly in her life, whatever she chooses it to be.

The book begins with Jen and her band on their way to perform at Brownie’s, which Jen describes as “the kind of skanky rock dive I’ve been dying to play.” As lawyers and managers begin approaching her, gushing about her record, Jen knows that this is the start of something big.

As record company after record company begins to woo her into signing with them, Jen creates a rock persona, getting a new look, having an affair with a band member and drinking beer more often then she eats. The bidding fury continues with trips to L.A., V.I.P. seats at a Hole concert, hanging out at the Viper Room, and playing sold out shows.

Eventually she signs with Warner Brothers and her journey to being that “next big thing” begins. She meets with the representatives from Warner Bros. at Pete’s, a club in Worcester, to talk about the hiring a manager, finding a booking agent, and picking the first single.

From that point on, things aren’t exactly what Jen expected. As she begins her career with Warner Bros., gone are the four-star hotels and five-star treatment; instead it’s Motel 6 and unwanted criticism. There is controversy over the first single and criticism about the way she plays guitar. “I get a call from Head Honcho, who says he heard from Lola who heard from Howdy Doody that Einstein thinks I should stop making so many faces when I play guitar. I tell Head Honcho to tell Lola to tell Howdy Doody to tell Einstein that I think he should stop being so fat.” Her sense of humor helps keep what could be a completely heartbreaking story of falling short of your dreams amusing and entertaining. Sometimes wry and self-deprecating, sometimes silly, her wit runs strong throughout the book.

From there, Jen performs on MTV, interviews herself on a radio show when the coked-up DJ is nowhere to be found, appears on Conan O’Brien’s talk show, makes several music videos, and heads out on her first tour. Her hit song, Better Than Nothing, is climbing the charts and Rolling Stone chooses her CD Cockamamie as their summer Hot Issue’s “Hot Debut Album.”

She doesn’t stay hot for long though, so pick up a copy of Jen Trynin’s Everything I’m Cracked Up To Be: A Rock & Roll Fairy Tale to find out what female alt-rocker’s success helped end Jen’s 15 minutes of fame. You’ll laugh aloud as you read about the characters Jen meets, wince at some of the bad decision she makes, and be moved by her determination to succeed.

This is a great book for anyone interested in the music ~ and because Jen played shows in Worcester, it’ll leave your interest piqued as to whether any of the characters she discusses are from right in our own backyard! Also, anyone who has ever looked in the mirror and wondered, “Who am I? Where am I and how did I get here? Is this where I want to be?” will love this book and reading about how Jen answers these very questions. This book has it all ~ rock & roll, sex, failure, laughter, drugs, crying, drinking, family, friends, and, ultimately, a happy ending.