Thomas Dolby (1) (1958–)

Rating: 3.5* of five

The Publisher Says: On the eve of WW1, amidst the turbulence of the Ludlow Massacre and the Triangle Shirt Factory fire, the young Haskell brothers Davey (16) and Jacob (21) dream of escaping the poverty of their lobsterman life in Deer Isle, Maine. Their sailing talents catch the eye of the powerful New York Yacht Club, with a chance for glory in the prestigious America's Cup race series.

However, the brothers' bond is tested as they both fall for Edith, a captivating show more Irish maid. Family loyalty is at stake, and now the pursuit of sporting fame threatens to drive them apart. Complicating matters further, someone must stay behind to care for their ailing parents. When a near-fatal accident leaves one brother hospitalized and consumed by revenge, a compassionate Latina nurse helps him heal, showing him a path beyond bitterness. Meanwhile, the millionaire yachtsmen harbor dark secrets. A glamorous concubine is hidden away on a luxury yacht, leading to blackmail and scandal.

As the bachelor heir to the Vanderbilt railroad fortune grapples with his future, preferring the freedom of the sea over his family's wealth, the Haskell brothers must navigate their own choices between love, family, and ambition. Can they overcome the trials that threaten to tear them apart, or will the winds of change leave them stranded in the past?

I RECEIVED A DRC FROM THE PUBLISHER VIA NETGALLEY. THANK YOU.

My Review: Dolby, whose 1980s music I listened to frequently on and off the radio, decided to tell us a story that compels and entertains; what lies under that hood, like with his music, is clever and quiet social commentary.

When one wishes to comment unfavorably on the accumulation of wealth, one is well advised to create a story of talented underdogs succeeding. That's exactly what this story is. I'm not recapitulating the plot, go read the synopsis abpve, but I will say that every single beat is hit. The straight-people sex is there, though it was never so in-your-face as to cause me to put the book down.

The unsuccessful, in my opinion, facet of the tale is the brotherly rivalry. There's a solid motivation for it. The resolution of their feelings is handled in a way I myownself found facile and oddly dissonant, like a different story was going on that I had not noticed until it popped up at a weird time.

All that said, I'd've felt amply rewarded if I'd picked the book up solely based on the author's name recognition. He knows exactly what he's talking about. He has a clear vision for his plot. He created characters I never doubted were founded in the reality of human experience, not forged on the anvil of plot necessity. I do wish the key change in the brothers's rivalry at its resolution had not rung false in my own ear.

A read I'd recommend to anyone who likes historical novels about rich people and their milieu...from a different angle. show less

3 stars: Enjoyed parts of it

I went on a bit of a music bio kick this year. I didn't know much about Dolby, but he left the music industry early on after struggling with some ethical issues in it, moved on the Silicon Valley where he did reasonably well (though not jillionaire status) and ultimately left it for the same reason, now he is a professor. I enjoyed parts of his book, with a few memorable aspects below.

Some quotes I liked:

"Years earlier I'd seen Roxy Music perform on the BBC's show more late night stoner music show 'The Old Grey Whistle Test'. Their singer was a lithe and sexy crooner in a sharp suit, but their heavily made up synth player just stood at the back in his seven inch heeled, knee length lizard skin platform boots, arms folded, looking thoroughly bored. Every now and then he would lazily reach out a gloved hand to tweak a knob on his Moog, which was apparently playing itself. His name was Brian Eno. I thought to myself 'If all you have to do is pose around and twiddle a few knobs and meet girls and make bags of money, that's the career for me.'

I would look out over the railroad tracks and imagine how London might have turned out if one of the many threatened invasions of our island had been successful. I imagined living under a repressive regime, where free speech was prohibited and everything rationed. Would there be a resistance movement? A secret society of free thinking artists and writers, lurking in the ruins of abandoned factories? Of course there would, and I would be the one to write their anthems.

I ran into Dr. Pyke [from "Blinded by Science" video] many years later at a conference. I asked him how his recent lecture tour had gone. "Badly, Dolby. Every time I walked down the sidewalk someone would sneak behind me and yell SCIENCE! at the top of their lungs! It seems that bloody MTV video of yours is more widely recognized than my body of scientific work."

In conversation with his good friend Andy Partridge of XTC on why he explored virtual reality instead of continuing his music:
If I had answered sincerely, I would have said this: "Andy, I can't make music now because of the pain. The pain of Terry Jackson's death, the pain of commercial failure of the music I am most proud of, and my revulsion at the state of the record industry, which is rotten to its fucking core."

Description from amazon:

The remarkable story of rising to the top of the music charts, a second act as a tech pioneer, and the sustaining power of creativity and art.

Thomas Dolby’s hit songs “She Blinded Me with Science” and “Hyperactive!” catapulted him to international fame in the early 80’s. A pioneer of New Wave and Electronica, Thomas combined a love for invention with a passion for music, and the result was a new sound that defined an era of revolutionary music. But as record company politics overshadow the joy of performing, Thomas finds a surprising second act.

Starting out in a rat-infested London bedsit, a teenage Thomas Dolby stacks boxes by day at the grocery and tinkers with a homemade synthesizer at night while catching the Police at a local dive bar, swinging by the pub to see the unknown Elvis Costello and starting the weekend with a Clash show at a small night club. London on the eve of the 1980s is a hotbed for music and culture, and a new sound is beginning to take shape, merging technology with the musical energy of punk rock. Thomas plays keyboards in other bands’ shows, and with a bit of luck finds his own style, quickly establishing himself on the scene and recording break out hits that take radio, MTV and dance clubs by storm. The world is now his oyster, and sold out arenas, world tours, even a friendship with Michael Jackson become the fabric of his life.

But as the record industry flounders and disillusionment sets in, Thomas turns his attention to Hollywood. Scoring films and computer games eventually leads him to Silicon Valley and a software startup that turns up the volume on the digital music revolution. His company barely survives the dotcom bubble but finally even the mavericks at Apple, Microsoft, Netscape and Nokia see the light. By 2005, two-thirds of the world’s mobile phones embed his Beatnik software. Life at the zenith of a tech empire proves to be just as full of big personalities, battling egos and roller-coaster success as his days spent at the top of the charts.

THE SPEED OF SOUND is the story of an extraordinary man living an extraordinary life, a single-handed quest to make peace between art and the digital world. show less

I ended up liking Thomas Dolby a little bit less after reading it.

Never knew Thomas Dolby was a pop singer. One of the best autobiographies