NEWSLETTER '07 #17!

SAL GOES TO NEW ORLEANS TO SEE JAZZFEST AND SINGLEHANDEDLY FINISH REBUILDING CITY: "WITH ALL DUE RESPECT, THE BUSH ADMINISTRATION DIDN'T KNOW WHAT THE HELL THEY WERE DOING"

TONY LEFT IN NYC TO EAT DUMPLINGS, WRITE NEWSLETTER

R.I.P. DAVID HALBERSTAM, BOBBY "BORIS" PICKETT, BORIS "BOBBY" YELTSIN

NEXT WEEK'S NEW RELEASES!

AND OH SO MUCH MORE, IF WE CAN THINK OF ANYTHING!

and now... NEXT WEEK'S NEW RELEASES!

DAVE ALVIN - LIVE FROM AUSTIN, TX (CD & DVD). The red-hot rockabilly cat as featured on Austin City Limits. Dunno when this one was recorded, but you can bet it's going to be a damn good show, because he's probably never done a bad one. Available on CD or DVD.

TORI AMOS - AMERICAN DOLL POSSE. I'm gonna take a wild guess and surmise that her ninth studio album sounds more or less like the other eight. Available as a plain old CD or as a special edition with a DVD including unseen footage plus a 36 page booklet and -- are you ready? -- FIVE POSTCARDS! "Dear Zelda, listening to Tori's latest album. Wish you were here. Fondly, Millard."

JOAN ARMATRADING - INTO THE BLUES. Her first album in five years finds her getting into blues grooves and riffs on original material. Good singer, good songwriter and a good guitarist, too.

BLACK REBEL MOTORCYCLE CLUB - BABY 81. Sal has liked these British rockers who sound vaguely like the Jesus & Mary Chain, but less mopey, since the beginning. Tony always says to Sal "This is good -- who is it again?" when he plays them. So you know they're pretty good.

CORBIN BLEU - ANOTHER SIDE (CD/DVD). If you're 14 or under, you probablty know Corbin Bleu from High School Musical, which was, we think, the biggest selling album of all time that we never heard a note of. If you're over 14, you may not care so much. But anyway, here's his album, with a bonus DVD including four music videos.

MICHAEL BUBLE - CALL ME IRRESPONSIBLE. What's the difference between Michael Buble and Frank Sinatra? Well, there's the obvious: Buble is young and good looking, and Frank is, to put it charitably, no longer living. But that doesn't mean you need to listen to this guy attempt to tackle standards whose definitive versions have already been waxed by Sinatra, Bobby Darin, Mel Torme, etc. You've got a nice voice, so find something new and run with it, kid. This soil has already been tilled, you dig? Also available as a limited edition with a bigger booklet and a bonus track, if you feel you must.

ELVIS COSTELLO - REISSUES. For only the fourth time in 20 years, you can once again buy all the Elvis Costello albums from My Aim Is True through 1986's Blood & Chocolate in the newfangled "compact disc" format. What's the catch, you might ask? Well, this time they're in cool Japanese-style mini-LP sleeves, and they don't have all those pesky bonus tracks that we Costello fans and collectors hated so much. That's right, no more B-sides, outtakes and alternates! Phew! There are also two new compilations. The First Ten Years is a 22 track comp spanning 1977-86, and since he's only had three (or is it four?) other comps with these tracks on them, it's good to have. There's also Rock And Roll Music, featuring 22 of his best rockers, including some obscurities and two previously unreleased alternates. If you don't own any Costello, it's a pretty good place to start. But if you don't own any Costello, why are you reading this newsletter?

DINOSAUR JR - BEYOND. J Mascis and Lou Barlow (a founding member of the band who's better known for his stint leading Sebadoh) reunite for the first time since 1989 on a damn good record that sounds like vintage Dinosaur, but with better production. If you ever liked this band, it's absolutely worthwhile.

FEIST - REMINDER. You've read about her in the New York Times Arts & Leisure section, now get the record! Mellowish singer-songwriter stuff with an indie edge. I've heard her previous records, but I can't remember a thing about them. For all I know, however, they may have been great.

ROBBIE FULKS - REVENGE. Two CD, 23 track live record which is half rockin' with a full band and half solo acoustic. This guy is a great songwriter, so it should be a pleasure to hear him either way.

GOV'T MULE - LIVE AT ROSELAND BALLROOM. Out of print for a decade, this legendary 1995 show was recorded at the Beacon Theater, so you know it's good. A very fine venue, that Beacon Theater. And the CD is once again available. Can you tell that I have nothing to say about this band? I mean, you probably knew long before this newsletter whether you liked them or not. I hope so, anyway.

CHANTAL KREVIAZUK - GHOST STORIES. Nothing to say about this one, either. I just like typing "Chantal Kreviazuk." It's even more fun to say aloud.

RUSH - SNAKES & ARROWS. Rush is one of those bands where you say "Damn, I hate Rush -- except for 'Tom Sawyer' and 'Limelight' and 'New World Man' and 'Subdivisions' and... OK, I guess I don't hate Rush." Which doesn't mean you're necessarily going to care about what they have to say in 2007, but they deserve a little respect nonetheless.

HOLLY COLE - HOLLY COLE. We raved about this one a couple of weeks ago when it was supposed to be released, and now you can actually order it! Available only as an import right now, so it'll cost a little more, but it's worth it.

GET YOUR JAZZ REMASTERS RIGHT HERE!

Classic albums from the vaults of Prestige Records, newly remastered by the great Rudy Van Gelder, include TADD DAMERON's MATING CALL (featuring John Coltrane), BOOKER ERVIN's FREEDOM BOOK, ROLAND KIRK's KIRK'S WORK, and THELONIOUS MONK's THELONIOUS MONK TRIO. All include new liner notes, too!

And if you're looking for some new jazz, the FRED HERSCH TRIO's first studio album in over a decade, NIGHT AND THE MUSIC, is available, too.

THE "WOW, RECORD COMPANIES STILL DO THAT KIND OF THING?" PICK OF THE WEEK!

SOUNDTRACK - SPIDER-MAN 3. Remember back in the '90s, when every summer there would be a ton of soundtracks from big-budget action films featuring new songs by a bunch of high-profile bands, sporting a ridiculously high list price? Well, go back to the future with this $18.98 turkey featuring new songs from the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Flaming Lips, the Killers, Jet, Snow Patrol and more! Apparently nobody told the good folks at Reprise Records that people stopped spending $19 for CDs around 2001. And that they download the two songs they want from soundtracks like this, rather than buying the whole thing. But God bless 'em for trying, even if this is the kind of thing that made us close our brick-and-mortar store (I think we still have a few copies of the Mystery Men soundtrack, if anyone wants them). Pre-order it and we'll be able to hook you up with it for even less than $18.98!

ORDER THEM ALL! GET INTO THE CD BUYING SPIRIT! EMAIL OR CALL (212) 244-3460!

and don't forget... WE WANT TO BUY YOUR CDs AND DVDs! REALLY, WE DO! CALL OR EMAIL!

IN CLOSING, WE LEAVE YOU WITH THIS:

Yes, the Yankees suck, but at least you can't blame A-Rod.

Your friend,
Al "The Mad Hungarian" Hrabosky