Review by Leah Kelly
Daisy Jones And The Six ,(Scott Neustadter & Michael H. Weber, 2023) adapted from the wildly successful novel by Taylor Jenkins Reid is one of the best book to screen adaptations I’ve ever seen in many ways though it is not especially faithful. Very clearly inspired by Fleetwood Mac, the book follows a fictional band’s rise to fame and the process of making one brilliant album before breaking up due to lots of interpersonal drama. The show takes on an interview format. We mostly see the past play out but will occasionally hear comments from the band members in the present timeline. The book is completely in the format of a transcript of interviews. The show improves on one of the aspects I personally didn’t like about the book which was that it was all shown and not told by nature because it was an interview transcript.
We follow Billy Dunne (Sam Claflin) and Daisy Jones (Riley Keough) as they build their own music careers. Billy forms a band called The Six and gets married to Camila(Camila Morrone). Daisy is a songwriter who builds a name for herself in LA. They are pushed by their label to join forces and become Daisy Jones And The Six. The creative chemistry between Daisy and Billy is undeniable and they both channel their feelings into their art. It is all about the drama. You could think of it as a Gossip Girl type of show with the backdrop of the 70’s LA music scene.
Fans of the book will notice many many changes. Billy, Eddie (Josh Whitehouse) and to some extent Karen (Suki Waterhouse) are extremely different from their book counterparts. The character of Pete is cut completely. Eddie has a whole new storyline so we get to see his character get fleshed out a bit more. Billy’s characterisation is one of the biggest gripes I had with the show. Where basically every redeemable quality he had in the book is taken away and his relationship with Camila is played down majorly.
However, taken on its own value, Daisy Jones And The Six is a wonderful show. The cast is perfect. Sam Claflin, who is practically the king of book to film adaptations, plays the male lead Billy Dunne and Riley Keogh is wonderful as Daisy. Their chemistry is absolutely magnetic. The rest of the cast is perfect too with Camilla Morrone as Camila and Josh Whitehouse as Eddie standing out in particular. All the main cast (with the exception of Camilla Morrone) had to learn how to play instruments or sing for the role.
Daisy Jones And The Six’s album Aurora was released on the same day the show premiered. It’s genuinely really good. I actually fear that Daisy Jones And The Six will be in my next Spotify Wrapped. It has influences of rock, pop and some country. Riley Keough’s vocals are incredible on it and it is well worth a listen even if you don’t watch the show. If you do watch the show you’ll find it especially fun to listen to as you analyse the lyrics and wonder what the characters meant when they wrote them. The main driver of conflict in Daisy Jones And The Six is the creative energy between Daisy and Billy and so getting to actually listen to the songs they wrote together really adds to the experience of watching.
It’s dramatic and fun most of the time though when it does get serious it packs a serious punch. The 70’s aesthetic and amazing music are part of what makes it so different from other similar shows. If you liked the book you’ll probably like the show and even if you’ve never read the book it is definitely worth a watch. It’s basically like getting to see that performance of Silver Springs where Stevie Nicks screams at Lindsey Buckingham for 10 hours. It’s a must watch for anyone interested in band drama, the 70s or getting to see messy people make awful decisions and great music.
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