The Greatest Band That Ever Wasn't

The Story of the Roughest, Toughest, Most Hell-Raising Band to Ever Come Out of the Pacific Northwest, the Screaming Trees

By: Barrett Martin

Narrated by: Barrett Martin

In 1992, the Screaming Trees were expected to become the next big band to come out of the Seattle music scene during the heyday of grunge. Except it never happened. It wasn't because the band didn't have great songs—indeed, the Trees were revered for their ability to write a great song that was both artistically original and commercially viable, which is no easy task. Other Seattle bands like Nirvana, Pearl Jam, and Soundgarden were fans of the Screaming Trees, playing shows with them and collaborating on albums, long before their own bands broke through into the mainstream. That kind of success eluded the Screaming Trees, and it seemed as if there were more demons than angels in the band's corner when it came time for the Trees to make their mark. Their songwriting skills, however, remain as their greatest legacy.

Written by Screaming Trees' long-serving drummer, Barrett Martin, The Greatest Band That Ever Wasn't flows like a Greek comedy or tragedy, depending on your viewpoint. Each of the three acts contained in this book features 11 short stories, for a combined total of 33 stories. These tales will make you laugh and perhaps even cry, which is why the saga of the Screaming Trees flows more like a great myth—one that is incredible, at times unbelievable, yet still contains volumes of humor and wisdom.

©2023 Barrett Martin (P)2023 Barrett Martin

Great complement to Lanegan’s memoir

This book is great! For me, it brought a lot of insight to many of Mark Lanegan’s accounts in his memoir, and a different perspective. I love to hear details about a band’s inner circle, and the dynamics of song writing, influeces, etc., and this book offered a lot of that. I love how Barrett tells the stories, and I loved each one. I definitely recommend it if you are a fan of this band!

Misleading Title

The book was very ok. I feel that the title was very misleading. I understood it to be a history of a band I was not very familiar with. Instead, it was a bunch of random stories. I almost stopped listening at the beginning, but it endes up getting better and gave a somewhat historical telling of the band. The author is the narrator. I gave it three stars because it was average. he probably shouldn't be reading his own books, but it wasn't terrible either

The Lighter Side of the Trees

Barrett Martin's telling of the history of the Screaming Trees in The Greatest Band That Ever Wasn't is like the light as opposed to the darkness that was Mark Lanegan's memoir Sing Backwards & Weep - now, that "light" may be lightning amongst all the thunder, but it's still illuminating & beautiful to see. Barrett fully believes in the soul of the band & that comes through in every word - as a huge fan of the band that is heartening. His narration is as of he was just talking to you, normal & connecting. If you're also a fan of Barrett Martin, The Screaming Trees, and/or Mark Lanegan I'm sure there'll be plenty for you to learn & enjoy in this book.

Not Quite the Whole Story

Calling this the "Story of the Screaming Trees" is a bit of a stretch since the author, Barrett Martin, didn't join the band until their second major label (and sixth overall) record. Which isn't to say Martin's part of the story isn't relevant or useful... it's more that there's six years of records that predate his arrival so this misses all of that, which is not really his fault (other than picking a title that's slightly misleading).

Martin tells the story of his time in the Trees from his personal experience. Knowing that up front is useful because this isn't like the Michael Azerrad books ("Come as You Are" or "Our Band Could Be Your Life") or other books you might know ("Come My Fanatics", "Sellout", etc). This wasn't written by a journalist or a professional author, though Martin has written seven books to date as I type this.

The Trees are an interesting band. As a caveat to the reader, I was not really a fan and still wouldn't call myself that. I am in that "elder millenial/oregon trail" generation born in the early 80s who was only aware of "grunge" when Nirvana exploded onto MTV and then only partially, being a pre-teen and still mostly interested in Yo! MTV Raps.

I didn't even hear of the Trees until I rented a copy of the movie Hype! wherein Van makes that joke about "The Trees Being a Ton of Band". I didn't even listen to them until well into college in the aughts and even then, they didn't grab me. No, I was a kid who got into rock music via skateboard videos which led to punk, hardcore, indie rock, etc. Hell, I didn't even listen to Nevermind all the way through until I was in my thirties. When I was a teenager anything major label was anathema with the exception of Burton era Metallica or, oddly enough, indie bands that still somehow had cred (Built to Spill, Dinosaur Jr, Husker Du, Modest Mouse, The Mats, etc). The politics of musical gatekeeping are nuanced and, frankly, stupid.

I listened to the Trees and really only gave the SST material the time of day for obvious reasons. But that was heavily built on garage rock and psych. The first records have a Stooges vibe which I dug.

In fact, I didn't listen to their major label records until I read this book.

Now I know what you're thinking, "why would a non-fan of the band read this book?"

For one, I don't think you have to love a band to find their story interesting. Hell sometimes it works in reverse. Reading a Van Halen book made me despise the people in the band more than I already did. But secondly, I love music history and have been on a kick of reading music books in the last few years.

The Trees failed to really connect with me and my peers, despite having appropriate touchstones: they put out records on Greg Ginn (before he lost his shit)'s label like Black Flag, Hukser Du, The Minutemen, Sacchrine Trust, The Descendents, Sonic Youth, etc. They came from the underground. Mark Lanegan had a great voice. Hell Josh Homme played in the band.

But somewhere as they matured in sound, they got further away from any sort of punk fingerprints. That's all I can think of, honestly. Even though Dinosaur Jr put out major label records (and J kicked out Lou and fired Murph), they still had undercurrents of the punk energy they started with which appealed to kids like me. The Trees grew more mature and sounded closer to Pearl Jam than Nirvana to me, even in 2003.

Not that you should feel bad for liking them, not at all. I say this because it's a shame they didn't get the same accolades as other bands. Listening to them now, I appreciate them a lot more.

Now Martin's writing isn't bad, but it's not as engaging or engrossing as Henry Rollins' seminal "Get in the Van" which is both dark and hilarious at various turns. Obviously Rollins is an unfair comparison as he wrote quite a few popular books (hell I have seen him do his standup/talking act a few times). But this isn't that and sometimes Martin draws some conclusions that are wishful (like wondering if Kurt thought they should headline Rockskilde and that's why he swapped spots with them). I mean I don't blame him, who knows the answer to some of those questions?

The vocal performance is good, but there's a bit of dead air and sometimes the cadence/mastering seems off. Maybe another edit is a worthwhile go. But I still liked it. I would say reading it is a bit more enjoyable than listening to it, which is why I gave the story another star.

What really makes me a bit sad about the book has nothing to do with Martin's writing or delivery... it's more that with two of the original members now passed, there's fewer folks left to tell the story of the Trees and I fear that because they were basically overlooked by Millenials, no one is going to try and write something more akin to Azerrad's works (and I'm aware that Kurt lied a bit to Azerrad... I think everyone knows that now).

I'd love to know more about the formations of the band, life in the 80s underground, etc. Those things fascinate me (I re-read "Our Band Could Be Your Life" every few years). Where is the larger story of the Conner brothers?

If this sounds like I didn't like the book, far from it. I think it's great. It's not the best book on the history of pop music, but it's better than some others... (I read the Motley Crue one out of morbid curiosity, bleh).

It makes me wish the Trees had a better fate and it makes me wonder about more of the story. I'll read Lanegan's book next.

Thanks Mr Martin, sorry if I sound like a downer.

Positivity and Candidness

Martin provides interesting insight into his experiences. This work provides a positive perspective on The Screaming Trees, and like most, I wish the book was even longer.

Excellent

An excellent telling of the history of Screaming Trees and Mad Season from Barrett’s time with the groups. Loved getting to know these bands better and then diving back into the music for a fresh perspective after hearing the stories. Thank you for this, Barrett!

The Light Side of The Screaming Trees Story

If "Sing Backwards and Weep" was Lanegans dark retelling of his time with The Trees and his life, then Martin's story was the light side, the perfect balance.

Barrett told his stories with great emotive passion, even hearing his giddy, happy, verge of laughing sense of telling that made me crack smiles and laugh, too.

Martin had a sense of self reflection of not only his experiences, but his feelings during that time period. You could hear joy in his voice in many parts, also sadness upon speaking of the dark times, the downside of their career together, and of course, the passing of Lanegan and Van Conner.

The part that still has me laughing was, the fact I was walking in Walmart with my earbuds in and listening, when he said "let me repeat this for you. Mark Lanegan said that "I" had a drinking problem " I laughed ao loud and hard that other people just have thought I was crazy.

I have been waiting for this to pop up on Audible for awhile now, as I'm a major fan of The Trees, and I'm glad it is finally here. It makes me sad to know that two members are gone, but we still have Martin to tell the stories, and ti continue to make great music.

Thank you for this wonderful book, and for the great way it was written and told, for yourself, snd for us, the fans. If you're a fan of thr Trees, Martin, 90s Alt music, this is definitely for you.

Great storytelling. Great band. Great guys.

Barrett did a wonderful job giving homage to his friends and bands. The Screaming Trees had Great songs and his explanation of how and why they weren't bigger was very clear and interesting. I love his view on all things in life and this book gives a plethora of reasons for why things happen for a reason or how one moment can shape your life. Best of all, at the end, he describes what a good song is and I believe in this fully. Listen to the lyrics. Feel the story and emotion behind them. That's a great song. I may include...add some amazing musicians and it's beauty. Thank you Barrett for reading me your story. I loved it.