NEWSLETTER #12!

NO, WE ARE NOT DEAD!

OPENING DAY IN THE BRONX -- SPRING IS HERE, LA LA LA LA LA...

SOME EXCITING NEW RELEASES AND SOME OTHER EXCITING UPCOMING RELEASES!

FOUR MONTHS AT OUR NEW OFFICE AND STILL NO SIGN OF SOME OF OUR FAVE FRIENDS WHO PROMISED TO STOP BY! YOU KNOW WHO YOU ARE! WE MISS YOU!

HEY, HOW 'BOUT THAT BUSH ADMINISTRATION? LA LA LA LA LA...

FOUR MONTHS AT OUR NEW OFFICE AND STILL NO SIGN OF SOME PEOPLE WHO MADE US MISERABLE AT THE STORE! THANKS FOR STAYING AWAY! YOU KNOW WHO YOU ARE!

First up... CHECK OUT OUR CDs AND DVDs FOR SALE ON AMAZON! Tons of old blues and R & B just listed! http://tinyurl.com/m2kzu

KEEP THOSE USED DISCS COMING! Thanks to all of you who sensed our desperation in the last newsletter and brought in your stuff. Our only request is, DON'T STOP! If you've got used CDs or DVDs to sell, let us know by email (HEYNYCD@aol.com) or phone (212-244-3460).

And now... it's NEW RELEASE TIME! OUT THIS WEEK AND READY FOR YOU TO ORDER!



WE LOVE THIS, YEAH YEAH YEAH!

What if we told you that the BEATLES' entire 1963-65 output -- the material that got the most complaints when it was initially issued on CD -- has been newly remastered for the first time in almost 20 years, in both stereo and mono? You'd jump at the chance to get it, right? So why were so many people so skeptical about "THE CAPITOL ALBUMS, VOL. 1" box set when it came out a year or so ago? Was it the stupid packaging? The gimmicky vibe that the set projected? Who cares? It was vintage Beatles, sounding better than ever. Just out is "THE CAPITOL ALBUMS, VOL. 2," featuring the American albums "BEATLES VI" and "THE EARLY BEATLES," and the American versions of "HELP!" (with the soundtrack music as well, just like the American LP!) and "RUBBER SOUL." The sound is great, the music is great, and if you grew up listening to the American LPs, the sequencing and track listing is "correct" at last. What's not to love?

Now, some of you may have read in the Times about the mastering mixup, in which the mono mixes on two of the albums are not the exact mixes that were used on the original 1965 LPs. To die-hard Beatles fans, that may mean something. But if you can't expain to your child what the false start on "I'm Looking Through You" is, then you're not going to care. Plus you can get your copy replaced by Capitol if you really do care!



WHILE WE'RE ON THE "B"s...

If anyone cares, BUCKCHERRY and BUILT TO SPILL both have new releases this week, which are just as orderable as the Beatles box. Plus, special mention goes to THE BUS BOYS, whose long-lost classic "AMERICAN WORKER" gets reissued on Wounded Bird.


EAGLES OF DEATH METAL - "DEATH BY SEXY." Josh Homme's side project is full of good ol' fashioned rock n' roll riffs. If you like Queens Of The Stone Age, this is better.


BRIAN ENO/DAVID BYRNE - "MY LIFE IN THE BUSH OF GHOSTS." Their 1981 collaboration, newly remastered, with over a half-dozen bonus tracks, was groundbreaking at the time, if a bit pretentious. Beautiful new packaging from Nonesuch makes this a must for fans of Eno, Byrne, and pretentious music.

GRATEFUL DEAD - FINAL REMASTERS. The last remaining catalog titles from the Dead's second box, "BUILT TO LAST," "GO TO HEAVEN," "IN THE DARK," and "DEAD SET," are now available individually. Also available is the absolutely exquisite (and we mean this) "RECKONING," 2 CDs of acoustic Dead culled from a record-breaking 23 shows in New York and San Francisco in 1980. Even Tony doesn't dislike "Reckoning."

IAN HUNTER - "ALL AMERICAN ALIEN BOY" (REMASTER). The followup to Hunter's 1975 solo debut was a departure from his Mott-era glam-rock sound. With a band that featured Jaco Pastorius and David Sanborn, this moody and at times intense record features some of Hunter's strongest material, including the classics "Irene Wilde" and "You Nearly Did Me In," with backing vocals by Queen. Now includes a half dozen unreleased bonus tracks!

NEW ORLEANS SOCIAL CLUB - "SING ME BACK HOME." We mentioned this a couple of weeks back as an upcoming release, and now that it's out, we need to mention it again. Produced by Leo Sacks, the recording sessions took place in Austin soon after Hurricane Katrina left all of these musicians homeless and displaced. The loss and emotion comes through on these performances, which feature a core band of such legends as George Porter Jr. and Leo Nocentelli, as well as New Orleans greats Henrry Butler, Raymond Weber, and Ivan Neville. Vocal performances by Irma Thomas, Cyril Neville, Big Chief Monk Boudreaux, Dr. John, and Marcia Ball round out this wonderful tribute to a great city. The closing number, a cover of Annie Lennox's "Why" by the great John Boutté, is enough to make even a member of FEMA choke up.

OUT FOR A WHILE ALREADY, BUT WE LOVE IT

THE ESSEX GREEN - "CANNIBAL SEA." Straight out of Brooklyn, this pop gem fuses the indie vibe of latter-day Belle & Sebastian (after they woke up from their twee-induced nap) with classic pop hooks reminiscent of the Mamas & The Papas and the Monkees. There's even a little bit of early Kinks in there. First heard on PETER BOCHAN's excellent program "ALL MIXED UP" on WBAI-FM, this record has quickly become a favorite of ours.


OUT NEXT WEEK!


ADRIAN BELEW - "SIDE 3." After a two month delay, the final chapter in the guitar god's trilogy finally sees the light of day. OK, then!

RICHARD BUTLER - "RICHARD BUTLER." Speaking of Love Spit Love... here's the solo debut from the longtime Psychedelic Furs frontman and East Village denizen. Actually not a bad record, with his Bowie-wannabe vocals and just a wee bit dated production, this could have easily been a followup to the Furs' last good record, "Midnight To Midnight."

DRIVE-BY TRUCKERS - "A BLESSING AND A CURSE." More white trash than a Rockaway dance club, this new release by everybody's favorite raunchy rockers is full of loud guitars, screeching vocals, driving beats, and even a possum or two. More fun than a jar of moonshine.

ERASURE - "UNION STREET." Stripped-down, acoustic versions of songs from their incredible twenty year career. One at a time, please. Line forms to the right.

LEVON HELM & THE RCO ALL-STARS - "LIVE AT THE PALLADIUM." Hot on the heels of Levon's spectacular two volume CD/DVD set "MIDNIGHT RAMBLE," comes this legendary New Year's Eve performance from New York City in 1977. Band members include Steve Cropper and Duck Dunn from the MGs, Dr. John, and Paul Butterfield.

MOTT THE HOOPLE - "THE HOOPLE" (REMASTER). The studio swan song from this legendary band gets proper remastering and completes the much-needed upgrade of their great catalog. The only studio record to feature Ariel Bender, once known as Luther Grosvenor, on guitar, "The Hoople" now includes seven bonus tracks, including two of Mott's best singles, "Foxy Foxy" and "Saturday Gigs."

STYLE COUNCIL - "GOLD." Another in the 2 CD "we put this out before, but we're putting it out again with a different title and cover, because we're Universal Music Group and we like to screw the consumer" series. The only difference is that we don't think this one was out before, which makes it a great 2 CD compilation from Paul Weller's post-Jam band.

MATTHEW SWEET & SUSANNA HOFFS - "UNDER THE COVERS, VOL. 1." Two of the finest pop practicioners of the '80s and '90s take on some of the finest pop songs of the '60s. On paper, this really works. And much to our surprise, the final product met our expectations. A fine record. We look forward to Vol. 2, where "Sid & Suzy" tackle their faves of the '70s.

YOU CAN ORDER ANY OF THESE TITLES BY EMAIL (HEYNYCD@aol.com) OR PHONE (212-244-3460). If there's anything we missed that you want to order, we can get it for you! Just let us know!

RACONTEURS UPDATE!

Last week on the NYCD blog, we said a lot of negative things about the new supergroup THE RACONTEURS, who, if you haven't heard, feature the White Stripes' JACK WHITE along with power-popper BRENDAN BENSON and two members of THE GREENHORNES. This was based on hearing a couple of lackluster live tracks performed for the BBC, but most importantly, our suspicion of anything so intensely overhyped, because as you know, most of the time, too much hype can kill just about anything. Well, we've heard the whole record, and it is damn good. Still, we're a bit concerned over any concert that sells out five minutes before tickets go on sale. But come May 7, when the Raconteurs' debut is released, you'll hear for yourself how good they are. Think '60s psychedelia with better melodies crossed with a little bit of early '70s hard rock.


UNTIL NEXT WEEK, WE LEAVE YOU WITH THIS:

How do you know when Meg White is at your front door?

She doesn't know when to come in.

Your friends,
Greg Lake, Billy Ocean, Roger Waters, Johnny Rivers, Dinah Shore, and Sid Tributary