I was extremely hesitant about the unauthorized biography about Keith Urban.  Fortunate Son: The Unlikely Rise of Keith Urban was written by Australian author Jeff Apter, and includes two sections of some very dated pictures of Keith…

I enjoyed reading most of the book.  There are lots of details, especially career-related, that many Keith Urban fans may not know.  Jeff dips very deeply into Keith’s career in Australia, and does a great job illustrating his status there.  Obviously, Keith tapped that market early on and had a thirst for more; and only Nashville could quench it. 

I also enjoyed some of the early personal stories of Keith growing-up in Australia and learning to play guitar.  It’s endearing to see that Keith was fused to his guitar so early in his life.  It’s a good lesson for any child who feels an artistic talent is his/her destiny; and that with persistence and perseverance the non-scholarly can be successful. 

Released last year to Australia; Fortunate Son was just released in the US last month, making it available to the country music masses.  Even though I found the book informative and the writers language very entertaining (he throws in the occasional slang along with some good ole fashioned curse words), I also found the language to be sorta crass….Almost like one giant backhanded compliment. 

From early on in the book, it became obvious to me this wasn’t written for the American audience.  I think the book would read much easier if a few things were changed for it’s US release.  Throughout the book, Apter compares Keith’s career to another Australian country artist who attempted to break through the Nashville barriers, James Blundell.  This was probably a very effective comparison for those familiar with the Australian star, who was apparently very big down under.  However, since I’m unaware of the current status of James, it’s hard to understand the significance. 

Since this is an unauthorized biography, I was expecting some questionable content.  Throughout much of the book, Apter gives Keith props for his persistence and raw talent while pursuing to fulfill his destiny.  However, Apter also speaks of a feud fueled by this destiny between Keith and former Australian manager Greg Shaw.  The book does a great job of illustrating the dedication between Keith and Shaw; however, it also plays-up the dissolution of the partnership; creating a tabloid-esque feud fueled over money.  The reader can’t help but question the truth since the only comments are from outsiders looking in as opposed to from someone actually involved in the incident.

I also felt like this book was obviously written from a Nashville outsider.  It’s true that Nashville is a rough-and-tumble place fueld by backstage politics, but I had an underlying feeling that the author didn’t really believe any true talent came from Nashville since everyone had to ‘settle’ in order to make it.  It became obvious to me when Apter refers to Reba McEntire and Alabama as ‘bloodless crossover acts.’  OUCH!!! Really?  Crossover?!  It seems to me that only an ‘outsider’ would call Alabama crossover…An educated insider would see that there are far more to choose from. 

Apter also consistently refers to Keith’s notion to ‘sell-out’ and ‘play the game.’  Anyone who’s followed Keith’s career can see that his music has changed some since The Ranch days, but I wouldn’t go as far as Apter does to say that he conformed to the Nashville way.  On the contrary, I think Keith Urban sticks-out amongst the hundreds of other country artist with a style all of his own. 

Jeff  Apter does a fantastic job of cataloguing Keith’s musical success in his early Tamworth days and his early days in Nashville.  However, once the book reaches Love, Pain, and the Whole Crazy Thing; Apter suddenly spends less time on Keith’s  musical achievements and more time on the ‘Kurban’ phenomenon once he married Nicole Kidman.  It’s sad that this album wasn’t given as much attention as the others, when in my opinion, Love, Pain, and the Whole Crazy Thing is Keith Urban’s best album.

Over all, I liked the book.  It was informative and the language was fairly easy to read.  However, it screams ‘unauthorized biography’ since no one truly on the inside gave comment.  I learned a few new things, but I think it would be more of a success in the US with some minor changes.

 You can purchase your copy of Jeff Apter’s Fortunate Son: The Unlikely Rise of Keith Urban here.

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