Jobjumper is as rough, relentless and raw as you’d expect a memoir from the leader of the punk rock band Rancid Vat to be. Perhaps you wouldn’t expect The Whiskey Rebel (Phil Irwin) to be as precisely detailed in depicting his entire working life, with both excellent perspective and no bullshit or clichés. From picking strawberries and babysitting as a suburban adolescent, to retail sales in Sears and driving teenage boys around in a van, dropping them off to sell newspaper subscriptions, and drinking beers and blaring The Cramps on the ride home, it’s not pretty. But anyone who’s held a bullshit job (and isn’t that everyone?) knows it’s the ugly truth. Both smart and smart-assed, this linear narrative spells out hard-won life lessons about working for almost every kind of employer. Jobjumper can be disgusting at times, and while you may end up loathing the antihero Irwin makes himself out to be, he’s the first to admit he can be hard to take. Irwin’s prose can beat up Bukowski’s any day of the week. Once you accept Irwin for who he is, you still may not like him. But to fool yourself into thinking that you’re better than he is because you think you’re somehow better than an alcoholic tattooed roughneck, or that you’re proud of your unblemished work record is naïve. Irwin makes his choices and deals with the consequences, for better or worse, sober or blind drunk. He doesn’t let his work or job define him. If you do, keep it to yourself; he doesn’t really want to hear it.
—Alex Richmond, Philadelphia City Paper

Those familiar with the Whiskey Rebel (a.k.a. Phil Irwin) — who pens columns for fanzines like Hit List and Carbon 14 and his own Traitor Baiter and Drink Around The Clock and plays in the obscure punk rock bands Rancid Vat and Alcoholics Unanimous (among others) — will notice that this book strays from his usual favorite topic of rock and roll. Here the Whiskey Rebel carries us through his mostly torturous endless string of nine-to-fives and night shifts, from his teenage years to his most recent job at Tower Records (where he was helping to support a wife and kid no less), before abandoning it all to become his own boss (cyberselling LPs). Even though it’s mostly work stories, his favorite pastime of alcohol indulgence is mentioned a hell of a lot (what else can you expect from a guy who has written songs like “Shittin’ and Pukin’ at the Same Time Blues”)? While fans of the Whiskey Rebel will no doubt be interested in Jobjumper, even if you don’t know his work, don’t let that deter you from indulging in this hilarious and wildly entertaining perspective on scraping by in the American workplace. Door-to-door encyclopedia peddling, inventory taking, selling electronic crap at Radio Shack, dishwashing at a Pancake House, selling toilets at Sears, checking in customers at a tattoo shop and much, much more—the Whiskey Rebel is an undeniable expert in jumping from paycheck to paycheck. From top to bottom - from having his own office with secretaries to being the only over-30 male doing data entry in an office full of high school girls—he’s been there, done that, and back again. For every lousy clock-in he gives a comical look at the underbelly of shitty minimum wage jobs: humiliating interviews, condescending temp agencies, psycho bosses, bizarre, unbearable workmates, and mad scrambling to find a way to take a comfortable, decent shit during work hours. Work, sex, drugs, lots of drinking on the job, and a teensy bit of rock and roll—the Whiskey Rebel’s offbeat humor makes for one hell of a good read.
—B. R. Allen, SF Bay Guardian

Wanna hear the Whiskey Rebel spin some yarns live & in person?

Well, now you've got the chance - he's goin' on tour and is probably coming to a tavern or bookstore near you. Check the Brilliancy Prize webpage for tour dates & venues; plus information on BP's own publications, tons of Rancid Vat & Alcoholics Unanimous CDs & vinyl and lots of Confederacy of Scum related ephemera. While you're there, take a peek into the daily life & times of our favorite author/columnist/musician/chess prodigy/living legend via the Reb's on-line journal - highly recommended by the Steel Cage "staff"!