First Shelly created a legend.
Then she brought it to life.
Careful what you wish for, Shelly.
2006, dawn of the internet era. Shelly Griffin is 43 and single, stuck dissolving businesses for her father’s small-town law firm in rural Rust Belt, Ohio. When she discovers on YouTube a song about a dying local beer, she inadvertently triggers the first-ever viral clip on the internet and finds herself directing the frenzied search for the mystery band.
Shelly chases down the middle-aged remnants of the hippie pickup band, 36 years after their acrimonious breakup, and sequesters them in a farmhouse to prepare for a single July 4 reunion show.
She quickly discovers that managing the Decamania outside is easier than mothering the multigenerational hodgepodge of band members and staff thrown together in front of prying TV cameras as their long-buried skeletons emerge and new relationships form.
At the center of this tapestry is the triangle of Justine, a morose 16-year old orphan turned overnight rock-star; Sam Miller, the explosive recluse genius on whom everything hinges; and Shelly, struggling to steer a runaway dream.
“’The Greatest Band That Never Was’ is a moving, often heartwarming story that brought me to tears a handful of times. The sense of community and goodwill and a group of people working together is very striking. The book is a rushing rollercoaster of compulsive energy that makes for one feel-good experience that I’m guessing would be VERY commercially viable. Addictive reading”.
–David Schloss, Professor of Creative Writing, Miami University (Ohio)
“An unassuming paralegal embarks on a quest to reunite past and present by locating the members of a band that broke up almost four decades before. In the process she rescues an ailing family business, reunites a community, and reignites the unique creative spark that turns a group of forgotten musicians into living legends. The Greatest Band That Never Was deftly weaves multiple narrative strands to tell a story of self-discovery, unconquerable resilience, and the power of music to bring people together and transform lives.
Meshel has written something magical — and epic. I’m immensely glad to have had the chance to read it and am definitely going to re-read it.”
–Ian Boyle, author of the novel “What the Dormouse Said”
“’The Greatest Band That Never Was’ is a warm and wise reflection on the sixties and how that era influenced and changed the American way of life. It is a humorous and thoughtful story of a small-town band who years after its demise is reincarnated to become the focus of another social movement, spreading pride, hope and American values.”
– Mike Berlin
“If you combined a seasoned playwright, a deep music expert, a meticulous culture archivist, a practical psychologist and a jazz improviser, you’d get the author of ’The Greatest Band That Never Was’. Meshel has composed a riveting tale, hilarious and heart-warming and wise.”
–Yuri Gittik
“’By page 50 I couldn’t put it down. I didn’t want it to end, and when it did I wanted to start reading it again.”
– Netta Druckman
“’Jeff Meshel’s love song of a novel has the big-hearted feel of “It’s a Wonderful Life” and the reality check of “Almost Famous.” This celebration of life is a fat book by contemporary standards, but you’ll wish the experience wasn’t over when you get to the last page—with a smile on your face.”
—Sally Schloss, author of the novel “Helping Howard”
Jeff Meshel, an Indiana technical writer sends a script to Jeff Meshel, a Hollywood producer, about an Indiana technical writer named Jeff Meshel sending a script to a Hollywood producer named Jeff Meshel about an Indiana technical writer named Jeff Meshel… Based on a true story.
“The best book I’ve read in years.”
– Adv. Hiram Amir
First Shelly created a legend.
Then she brought it to life.
Careful what you wish for, Shelly.
2006, dawn of the internet era. Shelly Griffin is 43 and single, stuck dissolving businesses for her father’s small-town law firm in rural Rust Belt, Ohio. When she discovers on YouTube a song about a dying local beer, she inadvertently triggers the first-ever viral clip on the internet and finds herself directing the frenzied search for the mystery band.
Shelly chases down the middle-aged remnants of the hippie pickup band, 36 years after their acrimonious breakup, and sequesters them in a farmhouse to prepare for a single July 4 reunion show.
She quickly discovers that managing the Decamania outside is easier than mothering the multigenerational hodgepodge of band members and staff thrown together in front of prying TV cameras as their long-buried skeletons emerge and new relationships form.
At the center of this tapestry is the triangle of Justine, a morose 16-year old orphan turned overnight rock-star; Sam Miller, the explosive recluse genius on whom everything hinges; and Shelly, struggling to steer a runaway dream.
“’The Greatest Band That Never Was’ is a moving, often heartwarming story that brought me to tears a handful of times. The sense of community and goodwill and a group of people working together is very striking. The book is a rushing rollercoaster of compulsive energy that makes for one feel-good experience that I’m guessing would be VERY commercially viable. Addictive reading”.
–David Schloss, Professor of Creative Writing, Miami University (Ohio)
An unassuming paralegal embarks on a quest to reunite past and present by locating the members of a band that broke up almost four decades before. In the process she rescues an ailing family business, reunites a community, and reignites the unique creative spark that turns a group of forgotten musicians into living legends. The Greatest Band That Never Was deftly weaves multiple narrative strands to tell a story of self-discovery, unconquerable resilience, and the power of music to bring people together and transform lives.
Meshel has written something magical — and epic. I’m immensely glad to have had the chance to read it and am definitely going to re-read it.
–Ian Boyle, author of the novel “What the Dormouse Said”
“’We Are Decapede’ is a warm and wise reflection on the sixties and how that era influenced and changed the American way of life. It is a humorous and thoughtful story of a small-town band who years after its demise is reincarnated to become the focus of another social movement, spreading pride, hope and American values.” – Mike Berlin
“If you combined a seasoned playwright, a deep music expert, a meticulous culture archivist, a practical psychologist and a jazz improviser, you’d get the author of ’The Greatest Band That Never Was’. Meshel has composed a riveting tale, hilarious and heart-warming and wise.”
–Yuri Gittik
“’By page 50 I couldn’t put it down. I didn’t want it to end, and when it did I wanted to start reading it again.” – Netta Druckman
“’Jeff Meshel’s love song of a novel has the big-hearted feel of “It’s a Wonderful Life” and the reality check of “Almost Famous.” This celebration of life is a fat book by contemporary standards, but you’ll wish the experience wasn’t over when you get to the last page—with a smile on your face.”
—Sally Schloss, author of the novel “Helping Howard”
Jeff Meshel, an Indiana technical writer sends a script to Jeff Meshel, a Hollywood producer, about an Indiana technical writer named Jeff Meshel sending a script to a Hollywood producer named Jeff Meshel about an Indiana technical writer named Jeff Meshel… Based on a true story.
“The best book I’ve read in years.” – Adv. Hiram Amir
