In Heaven Everything Is Fine: The Unsolved Life of Peter Ivers and the Lost Hist

To clarify my rating: I'd give this book 5 stars for the subject & story per se. Ivers was a fascinating character; LA music/TV biz in the '70s and early '80s was a colorful milieu stocked with a cast of crazies; and on top of all that, there's an unsolved murder mystery. In the hands of a more talented writer, these elements could have become a memorable, perhaps even classic 5-star book occupying a place of honor on the crowded "LA" shelf. As it is, the book deserves only 3 stars, and deserves its rather obscure place on that aforementioned book shelf, behind many other much better books. Ivers is likely to remain the obscure cult figure he's always been...because this book sure ain't gonna catapult him to household-name status.Briefly: The author opts for a mish-mash of "oral history" tropes, traditional journalism & biography, and poorly-integrated ancillary chapters meant to flesh out Ivers' world. The end result never coheres into a satisfying read. The book's different fonts and chapter formats don't help either. I'd fault both the author and the book designer for bad choices at a conceptual level. Nevertheless, I'm grateful this book exists. Peter Ivers' music hasn't lost any of its subversive charm, and his story needed to be told. This book is likely to remain the definitive telling, for better or worse.

"In Heaven..." is a fascinating read as an in-depth biography of Peter Ivers, but it also makes for compelling murder mystery. Plus you get a unique look at those whose paths he crossed, including the National Lampoon founders, the early LA punk scene, David Lynch, Devo, and a seemingly endless and unrelated group of people from several different artistic communities and eras.The book alternates between the story of Peter's life and career and the murder investigation, until the two stories sadly become one. Throughout the book you really get a sense of Peter's unbridled enthusiasm for life and his inspiring passion for all things creative. By the end of the book you'll understand why Peter touched so many people's lives so deeply.Even if you only know him for his records, as the host of New Wave Theater, or as the guy that wrote the song from Eraserhead, the story is captivating enough for anyone with an interest in the arts to make this book reading.

I was/am obsessed with the mid-80s cable access show, New Wave Theater (based out of L.A.). I also love all things by David Lynch. This book on Peter Ivers, who was closely connected with the show and with the music behind "Eraserhead," is an amazing catalog of events and happenings that led up to the creative successes connected to those projects. Ivers was an interesting person, but more than that, he was part of many cultural collectives that spanned from New York to Canada to L.A. It's nice to have learned how all these worlds were connected.

item arrived fast and is exactly as described, a super interesting book that puts the Peter Ivers mystery in new light,must read for the New Wave theater fans!

yeah!