MURDER CAN BE HAD!

A review of Murder Can Be Fun #19

I got a cheap mondo happy thrill last week when the long lost new issue of John Marr's 'Murder Can Be Fun' zine came in the mail. Yup, the first new MCBF issue in five years is out!!

The theme of this new issue is 'Musical Mayhem' with a lengthy cover story on one country swing singer Donell "Spade" Cooley. As any story with murder on it's foreshadowing mind, it all starts oh so innocent. Cooley comes to the heart of 40's country music, Hollywood, CA and ends up working with Roy Rodgers until he hits solo and hits big indeed; his own swing country orchestra, radio & TV shows, sold out gigs everywhere and earning enough doe for things like real estate and big-ass mansions.

Then, of course, the hits stop hitting, the personal shit hits the fan and Cooley looses his cool and ends up taking it out on his family, in particular his dead wife, and ends up with a life sentence. His story ends with a command performance after parole, only to die of a heart attack backstage.

Even if long time readers find this lead story slightly short on the 'mayhem', this still provides another fabulous trademark that MCBF is also known for, John excellent writing and amazing story telling. You may not be familiar with or could care less about "swing country", but you'll get a full yet compact education on this topic while Marr surgically places Cooley's name in its history. True craftsmanship.

The rest of this issue contain more shorter slices of 'mayhem'; heard of that famous 1979 The Who concert that ended in a stampede? Well, have you also heard about a similar incident at a 1974 David Cassidy concert? Leave it to Marr to dig out the details for your sick enjoyment.

The rest is rounded up with your typical reason why rock groups SHOULDN'T reunite way past their heyday (especially if it's from the 70's), more small bits of concentrated mayhem and, to top it all off, a nifty little guide to Christian anti-rock paperbacks!

Bottom line: One solid issue that came back from a five-year death sentence. Marr said that he can't promise that this "comeback" will last but had mentioned that #20 is on the horizon.

Be still my darkened heart!

Two bucks to John Marr POB 64011, San Francisco, CA, 94164