Is This Live?

Praise

“The [music video] medium was still young [in 1987] and its impact somewhat unnerving for artists who might go from anonymous to mob-worthy overnight, just because of a silly, viral music video. Ward captures this somewhat weird and definitely prescient media moment in time in his open oral history of Much. . . . Ward celebrates all of this raw, forward-thinking, multicultural, multigender-produced content by finally freezing it in a compelling book where, occasionally he himself wonders, ‘How the hell did we do that?’” —Vish Khanna, The Globe and Mail

“Christopher Ward was MuchMusic’s first VJ. He would unknowingly write the rules of what was expected and what the new channel should be. . . . Thank you, Christopher, for bringing back some Much memories.” —Bill Welychka, The Kingston Whig-Standard

“An oral history . . . featuring insights from all of the early creative players . . . who acknowledge MuchMusic’s crucial role in their careers. . . . Chock full of glossy photos guaranteed to get the synapses of any enthusiasts from back in the day fired up, and it includes a mixture of fairly serious revelations and comedic stories. . . . Is This Live? is an essential chronicle of not only ’80s and ’90s Toronto, but the scenes that bumped into it and helped mold it into the dynamic music destination it is now. . . . [G]ood times await fans of the early, wild days of our local national music station.” —BlogTO

“Former VJ Christopher Ward dishes up plenty of dirt on the heyday of MuchMusic in this comprehensive and personal history of the channel’s first decade, a period that defined a generation of Canadian music. It’s weird, and yes, it’ll make you want to cue up some Glass Tiger on Spotify.” —Toronto Life

“For so many of us, working at MuchMusic was a time of beautiful chaos. Christopher’s vivid storytelling transported me back to those crazy days making groundbreaking TV on a shoestring budget. He’s done a remarkable job recapturing life behind the scenes at Much with interviews and anecdotes from everyone who made The Nation’s Music Station the defining voice for Canadian pop culture in the ’80s and ’90s. What we did at 299 Queen West will never be replicated. This book explains why.” —Erica Ehm
 
“What a blast! With a raucous mix of music and personalities, Christopher Ward has compiled the ultimate treasure trove of Canada’s 1980s rock scene. Everybody you remember is here. Revealing, entertaining, enlightening and, most all, fun.” —Will Ferguson, author of Road Trip Rwanda
                      
“MuchMusic was my pop-culture parent. Reading Christopher Ward’s history of Much’s early days is like going back to your home and watching how it was built from the inside. I could almost smell the hairspray coming off the pages. A fascinating, moving recollection that celebrates one of the great achievements in Canadian television. Now I want to go into that tape library and live it all over again.” —Elaine Lui, author of Listen to the Squawking Chicken