If you've never read any of Roddy Doyle's witty and observant accounts of Dublin life, then his first novel The Commitments, published in 1988, is as good a place as any to start. Later adapted by Alan Parker to become an excellent film, this is a book written by a man who doesn't just tell stories, but who is not ashamed to tackle the trickier matters of the emotions and human feelings that continually bubble beneath them.
The Commitments is the fictional tale of a young, Dublin-based band whose mission is to spread the gospel of soul and Motown through suburbia. Led by the fanatically ambitious Jimmy Rabbitte, whose dreams of fame are such that he even practices being interviewed on TV in case the need should arise, The Comittments are a rag-tag bunch of Irish teenagers who are aiming to rise from the slums to the stars. Practise, practise, practise is Jimmy Rabitte's watchword and, with the aid of Joey "The Lips" Fagan, an older man and experienced musician, he gradually moulds his band of musical novices and wannabees into worthy contenders for success. However, the stresses of inner city living, fights between the members and the resultant denting of fragile egos threaten to destroy any hope the band have of achieving greatness. This is their one shot at escaping the mediocrity of unemployment, early parenthood, drugs and a lifetime of inner-city poverty and drudgery - can they grasp it with both hands, or do they blow it?
This is a realistic book and contains frequent expletives and four letter words. Yet, at the same time, it also displays the beginnings of author Doyle's trademark skills for observation, wry humour and attention to detail. It's description on it's cover as "An Irish version of the Blues Brothers" (Literary Review) is both accurate and yet, at the same time, does The Commitments an injustice in suggesting that it is not a truly authentic and original book. It is.
The story plunges erratically between high and low points in the groups' fortunes that require every ounce of cunning and ingenuity that Jimmy can summon to get things back on an even keel again. It is beautifully written by an author whose former career as a teacher has obviously enhanced the book by providing an insight into just what makes young people tick. The result is a gently humourous, fast paced, wholly Irish account of naked ambition, dreams and despair. It is raw, rambunctious and rollicking and it simply deserves to be read - a foretaste of the important figure in 21st century literature that Doyle was eventually to become.
Publisher: Vintage
ISBN:0749391685
Price: £6.99
Date Reviewed: July 2002
My Rating: 4/5
