NEWSLETTER #21!

ARIF MARDIN, R.I.P.

AARON SPELLING... 9-0-R.I.P.

NEW RELEASES!

Sorry we're a few days late with the newsletter, but if you've been reading this blog, you'll see that we've been keeping busy. Scroll down to read about Smokey Robinson's killer new CD and why Tony hates boogieing hippie scum!

HERE WE GO... FOR YOUR ORDERING PLEASURE!

CHUCK BERRY - HAIL HAIL ROCK N' ROLL (DVD) - The brilliant Taylor Hackford concert film from 1986 captures a once-in-a-lifetime event that featured Chuck along with Keith Richards, Eric Clapton, Linda Ronstadt, and tragically, Julian Lennon warbling a very nasal version of "Johnny B. Goode." Finally getting proper DVD release, it comes in both a 2 disc and 4 disc set. No matter how hard we try, however, we can't tell what the extra two DVDs include. Hopefully, not any more Julian Lennon.

PET SHOP BOYS - FUNDAMENTAL and FUNDAMENTALISM - The Boys' new CD gets stateside release, both as a single disc and a 2 CD deluxe version with features 8 additional tracks, 3 of which are unavailable on the standard album, and the other 5 being remixes of tracks from the single disc version.

RICHARD THOMPSON - 1000 YEARS OF POPULAR MUSIC (2 CDs/DVD) - We believe the story is as follows: Playboy magazine once asked Richard Thompson for a list of his favorite songs of all time. In typical snarky fashion, Thompson took them seriously and gave them songs dating as far back as 1260. Thompson took this one step further and decided to tour with this concept, playing versions of 16th century ballads about King Henry, traditional 17th century Victorian hymns, as well as hits by the Ink Spots, Nat King Cole, The Who and Britney Spears. You get both a DVD featuring the full performance as well as 2 CDs in this beautiful hardback package, with lots of annotation by Richard himself.

SAL'S PICK OF THE WEEK!

Two of my fave records from 1979 and 1982 get slapped together on one amazing collection from Raven Records in Australia. Tulsa pop idol DWIGHT TWILLEY sees arguably his two strongest releases, 1979's TWILLEY and 1982's SCUBA DIVERS, get remastered and released on CD for the very first time. Some of the best songs of Twilley's career appeared on both these records, including "I'm Back Again," "Alone In My Room," "Out Of My Hands," and "I Think It's That Girl." Also includes as a bonus the rare 1979 single version of "Somebody To Love," with its B-side, "Money (That's What I Want)." Twilley's unique vocals still stand out today.

THE HACIENDA BROTHERS - WHAT'S WRONG WITH RIGHT - This strong collection of Texas soul is produced by the legendary Dan Penn, and features some Penn-penned tunes.

BRAD MEHLDAU - HOUSE ON HILL and LOVE SUBLIME - "House On Hill" was recorded with his longtime trio partners, Larry Grenadier and Jorge Rossy, back in 2000. They went into the studio to record some originals and interpretations of the usual Mehldau selection of standards and rock tunes. The covers ended up on 2002's "Anything Goes," while the original material surfaces here for the first time. "Love Sublime" combines the work of both Mehldau and vocalist Renee Fleming for a seamless song cycle that could either be amazing or painful. We have not heard it yet.

Another fave of NYCDs, SKERIK, sax player extraordinaire from GARAGE A TROIS, releases his third solo LP and his second with his Syncopated Taint Septet. At times, Skerik can be a little too quirky for jazz purists, but on this new release, entitled HUSKY, he should keep the jazz snobs quiet with one of the strongest jazz releases of the year.

And now you know why we waited so long to write the newsletter! Not a whole lot of exciting new releases, although we stand by everything we've just mentioned. TO ORDER ANY OF THESE RELEASES, OR TO GET ANYTHING ELSE YOU MAY WANT, CALL (212) 244-3460 OR EMAIL HEYNYCD@AOL.COM!

DON'T FORGET, WE WANT YOUR CDs AND DVDs! We'll even give you money for them, if they're not crap! CALL OR EMAIL!

AND DON'T FORGET TO BUY STUFF FROM US ON AMAZON!

UNTIL NEXT WEEK, WE LEAVE YOU WITH THIS:

The New Cars/Blondie tour has officially been canceled. The official word is that it was nixed because Elliot Easton broke his clavicle. We think the $65-125 ticket price and the fact that Bea Arthur was fronting Blondie was the more likely culprit.

Your friends,
Jack, Meg and Betty White