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Nov 11, 2024 By Frank Valish

Whether you realize it or not, you’ve probably heard “Something In The Air.” Released in 1969 under the band name Thunderclap Newman, a project helmed by The Who’s Pete Townshend, the song was featured in films, used in commercials, and was covered by Tom Petty. It was also the centerpiece of Thunderclap Newman’s only album, Hollywood Dream, which propelled the band to the top of the British charts only to fall just as quickly, dissolving much too soon after its inception.

Mark Ian Wilkerson’s Hollywood Dream: The Thunderclap Newman Story is a deep dive into the band, and the book both entices and keeps you riveted throughout its comprehensive 421 pages. Wilkerson begins his meticulously-researched story with chapters that detail the early lives of the main players, John “Speedy” Keen, Jimmy McCulloch, and Andy Newman, concluding with how each became acquainted with Townshend. Townshend of course put the band together, benefiting from the almost-bizarre diversity of its members—Keen, the friend who wrote The Who’s “Armenia City In the Sky,” McCulloch, the guitarist who was a wunderkind at only 15, and Newman, the Bix Beiderbecke-inspired jazz aficionado who played all host of instruments including kazoo.

Thunderclap Newman would last only one spectacular album before fizzling out, due in large part to the band’s difficulty replicating its sound to any successful degree live, despite many different musicians coming and going behind the three core members, and Townshend’s being so busy with touring The Who in the midst of that band’s magnum opus Tommy that he was unable to continue shepherding the band as he had in the beginning.

Wilkerson details the post-Thunderclap careers of each of its members. Keen released a couple solo albums. McCulloch played in a few other bands, most famously Paul McCartney’s Wings. And Newman released one jazzy, bizarre instrumental solo album, the unceremonious culmination of what Townsend always believed was his genius. Hollywood Dream follows each of them to the ends of their lives.

A few things are particularly striking about Wilkerson’s book. Its detail is astonishing; the research that must have gone into such a tome, albeit one about such a little known band, boggles the mind. And what ultimately makes Hollywood Dream so successful is the fact that it pulls you in like the best novel. You almost forget you’re reading about real life characters, until you once again listen to all the wonderful music and realize that the Thunderclap Newman story, despite being largely unknown, is an essential one. As such, Wilkerson’s book is the best of both worlds: the best biography on the best under-appreciated band. (www.thirdmanbooks.com)

Author rating: 9/10