“I don't do anything else professionally," Ben once told the Boston Globe. "I'm a mountain person and I love being in the woods. I fish and I hunt and I dive and my band's a legend in my spare time."
Benjamin Orr was the co-founder, co-lead singer, and bassist for the platinum-selling rock band The Cars. Often considered the band’s heartthrob, Orr possessed an incredible voice, diverse musical talent and rare stage presence, all balanced by an enigmatic personality and a relentless determination to reach rock stardom. Selling over 30 million albums worldwide with fifteen Billboard Top 40 hits, The Cars certainly achieved success. Within a decade of the debut album, though, Orr found himself without a band and adrift. Veteran music journalist, Joe Milliken, draws together interviews with over 120 family members, friends, bandmates and music associates from Orr's life, as well as many unpublished and never-before-seen photos from private collections, to reveal an intimate portrait of one of classic rock’s greatest talents. From Orr’s first live performances as a house-band musician for the Cleveland TV show UpBeat, through his creation of The Cars with Ric Ocasek, to Orr’s eventual rebirth with the supergroup Big People, this definitive account of Orr’s life is a roller coaster ride that sheds new light on the history of The Cars. Orr is no longer able to rock with The Cars, but the music he made with them continues to attract new generations of fans. Coinciding with the band’s 2018 induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, this first-ever biography of Benjamin Orr immortalizes his legacy as a deeply kind-hearted and exceptionally well-rounded musician and vocalist who would stop at nothing to live his rock and roll dream. |
Released on November 11, 2018!Let’s Go! Benjamin Orr and The Cars is available right here! You can buy a personalized copy directly from Joe, by simply emailing him at [email protected]. With each book, the author also includes some fun "promotional goodies" that you won't get anywhere else! Let's Go! is also available through Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and other online book stores and retailers. You can also order directly from the publisher as well (below).
If you've read and liked Let's Go! please consider posting a review online at Amazon or Goodreads. Doing so will help other Ben, Cars' and music fans alike find the book. Thank you, as always, for your love and support! * IN THE WORKS: The Joe Perry Book Project. Please visit www.facebook.com/JoePerryBookProject.
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NOW AVAILABLE:
T-shirts, mugs, stickers, and notebooks with the book cover art! Click here: https://www.teepublic.com/user/benorrbook INCLUDING... limited edition 'book tour' products featuring two original designs by Kurt Gaber! |
About the Author
Joe Milliken has been a published writer, editor, music journalist, publicist, and website publisher for nearly three decades. He writes for various daily, weekly, monthly, and specialty publications, and has contributed to such music-related publications as Goldmine, Alternate Route, Limelight, Entertainment Times, Punk Globe, and Cider magazines. He has also contributed essays to the New England Music Hall of Fame website, as well as the National Recording Registry at the Library of Congress. Originally from Boston, Joe now resides in peaceful, Bellows Falls, Vermont with his wife, Kelly, his children, Nate and Erin, dog "Zowie Bowie" and cats Breeze, Rosalie, and Stormy. "This book is dedicated to my Dad... we miss you so much, Pop." Let’s Go! Benjamin Orr and The Cars was Joe's first book, and he is currently working on a second music biography for Rowman & Littlefield Publishing Group, a book about his favorite artist and biggest music influence growing up, Joe Perry, the iconic guitarist of Aerosmith and a solo artist. ^^^A^^^ For more, please visit The Joe Perry Book Project Facebook page at www.facebook.com/JoePerryBookProject or reach out by email at [email protected]. |