BOOK REVIEW: Here Comes The Sun – by Jeremy Oxley & Mary Oxley Griffiths

Shane | 29 July 2015 | Reply

BOOK REVIEW: Here Comes The Sun – by Jeremy Oxley & Mary Oxley Griffiths
Allen & Unwin
24 June 2015 / $29.99 rrp
Reviewed by Shane Pinnegar
9/10

Here Comes The Sun is an engrossing read – a rock bio like no other.

As documented in the similarly riveting documentary film The Sunnyboy, Jeremy Oxley went from a happy kid to a shambles of a man, living in denial of his diagnosed schizophrenia, by way of a brief but brightly shining stint as songwriter/singer/guitarist of cult favourite band The Sunnyboys.

Reading Oxley’s story is gripping stuff: practically an alcoholic, denying his illness was a thing (by the end of the book he remains convinced that he is cured, when it is painfully obvious to any onlooker that he merely has the illness mostly under control), and in fear of the music business that he blames for sending him off the deep end, he lived a sad, solitary existence until Mary Griffiths entered his life.

This is where the book truly diverges from your normal rock bio: Mary’s led a normal life as a nurse, wife and mother, and her life’s story gets fair and equal coverage here. As testament to how well written Here Comes The Sun is, it’s in her story that some of the most extraordinary tales show themselves.

Widowed with twin boys with some learning disorders, and dedicated to her nursing career (possibly as a result of her mother’s cold and distance and nonchalant emotional unavailability), meeting Jeremy was a pivotal moment for both of them, and in one of those rare lightning strikes that make ordinary people’s lives fascinating, they slowly find that they are the missing piece of the puzzle for each other.

Jeremy gives Mary a cause worth dying for. Mary gives Jeremy companionship, trust, and a generous, nurturing guiding hand. It’s a bumpy road, but together they negotiate the sharp turns, get Jeremy out of the mental health system and onto controlled medication for his illness, rebuild the burnt bridges within his family and – pivotally – get the band back together.