"Circumstantial Evidence"

BOOK REVIEW: "Circumstantial Evidence" by Frank Secich
I feel I should preface this review by saying that I do not ordinarily review books. It just happened that I was given the opportunity and, hey, I'm all about local music, and that's what this book is about, so here you go. "Circumstantial Evidence" is an autobiography written by Frank Secich, of many great bands from Ohio or with Ohio connections (Blue Ash, Dead Boys, Club Wow, Deadbeat Poets, etc.). There's plenty of great tales from his time with these bands and others, such as Blue Ash's time opening for the infamous final Stooges show, captured on side two of the live album "Metallic K.O.," as well as great stories about touring around the world and living in Sharon, PA and Youngstown, OH. There were funny stories, interesting anecdotes, lots of info, and cool/rare photos, such as outtakes from photo shoots that produced picture sleeves and shots from recording sessions. In terms of the category "autobiographies of esteemed Ohio musicians," it was a different side of the music scene, refreshing in its way, as it didn't have the sordid tales of alcohol and drug abuse like, say, Cheetah Chrome's or Mike Hudson's, though like these, it was a from the heart, honest take on the life of a musician. I learned many things I didn't know before about the Ohio music scene. I also really appreciated the inclusion of a full discography, with a lot more info that I didn't know about. The book also includes full sets of lyrics for songs written about events described within the book, telling the story from a different angle, which was great. If you like learning about Ohio music, power pop, or just enjoy funny stories about Stiv Bators, I'd recommend this book to you. I know I certainly enjoyed it.

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