New England Music Scrapbook News
Alan Lewis, Editor

Our Corner of the Rock 'n' Roll Life

July 21, 2007
Issue 2007:232

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We've got Thrills, chills, Dirty Water
What more do you need?
When the big beat hits ya
Comin' from your transistor
Like the T at full speed
When the big beat hits ya...

-- "Boston Lullaby," Dudick/Naihersey.
Copyright c. 1980 by Camaraderie Music, BMI.
All rights reserved. Used with permission.


. . . . .


BRATTLEBORO, VT, July 21 - This is tentative still, but it is
entirely possible that we are springing back from our typical early
summer slow period, as far as the volume of news being e-mailed to us
goes.

I had no more than written this overly optimistic nonsense when the
news mailings we received for the week dried up. Exactly one news
e-mail came in afterwards: the Ellis Paul message, which produced an
excerpt we are including in Brief Items.

So, maybe it is too early to tell whether the slowdown is over. But
here's hoping...

THE GOOD NEWS IS THAT I am running way ahead of schedule today. I
woke up in that time zone which is simply too early to get up but also
too close to my alarm time to go back to sleep. So I got up. The bad
news is that the rest of the world didn't have the same experience,
and the online resources I need for today are not yet posted.

Since I have much I need to deal with today, I'm going to run with
what I've got and get this issue mailed. If more news comes out a
little later, but it would still be timely next issue, I'll save it
and run it then. Otherwise, I don't yet know what I'll do.

ARE THERE ACTS you would like to read about in this newsletter who we
seldom if ever cover? Can you suggest a mailing list we ought to be
on that it appears we may not be on? If you can, please send us your
suggestion or suggestions by way of the following Web page:

http://www.geocities.com/nemsbook/fred.htm

We are on a lot of mailing lists, but no doubt we are not on all the
right ones. Also, it can be a struggle to post news items about a
wide variety of acts, even though this has always been our aim. We
hear from a few artists really often and others not at all. Reader
suggestions about what we are missing could be a big help.

I AM WORKING ON ARRANGING interviews with these artists for feature
articles:

Becky Chace
Eilen Jewell
Jennifer Tefft
Noam Weinstein

I have actually never heard any of the music of Becky Chace or Eilen
Jewell, so this ought to be really neat. The latest album by Noam
Weinstein and the last one from Jennifer Tefft, from several years
back, are true gems, so this ought to be really neat, too. The brand
new Jennifer Tefft CD just arrived; but it being 4 a.m., I think I may
not get to play that disc before mailing this newsletter issue. With
luck, I'll comment on the latest Jennifer Tefft release sooner rather
than later.


VERMONT FALL SEASON MUSIC PREVIEW

If you have big doings in Vermont this fall or if you are a Vermonter
with big doings anywhere this fall, I would like to hear details for
possible use in a Vermont fall season music preview. The best way is
to e-mail me via the following Web page:

http://www.geocities.com/nemsbook/fred.htm

When I was querying our readers for a summer preview, I didn't yet
know where that piece would be posted. The Vermont Guardian agreed in
principal to run it but then did not. I imagine time was a major
issue for the publisher/editor, who had recently started an editing
job elsewhere.

This time, I checked with Seven Days, the Burlington, Vermont
alternative weekly. While the response I received was quite nice,
clearly my season preview does not fit in with that paper's current
scheme of things.

At least I know in advance now that I will be publishing my Vermont
fall season music preview here in the New England Music Scrapbook
nameless newsletter. Thus, I also know in advance that it will be
okay to blur the statelines somewhat. Last time, for instance, you
may have noticed that my summer season preview included the Green
River Festival, a great annual event in Greenfield, Massachusetts. I
will be open to including out-of-state but still nearby events this time.


DROPKICK MURPHYS
New Album in September
"The Meanest of Times"

"You may have heard the rumor by now and yes, it's true. We have
finished recording our new album and will be mastering it, when we
return from Europe early next week, ready to get it out to all of you.
We will keep you updated with any news, promotions and special offers
around the album release over the coming weeks.

"'The Meanest of Times' will be available from September 18th on DKM's
own record label, Born & Bred Records, which will be distributed by
Warner Music's Independent Label Group.

"'The Meanest of Times' is a collection of tales about family, loyalty
and remembering where you came from. It contains what we hope are all
the best elements of the DKM sound: classic punk rock, Celtic folk,
and American rock 'n' roll. The album also features guest appearances
by Spider Stacy of The Pogues and Ronnie Drew of The Dubliners as a
special treat."

-- "Dropkick Murphys New Album," July 14, 2007


ROBIN LANE AND JOHNNY ANGEL
At the Abbey Lounge

"[T]his Saturday, July 21, Robin Lane and Johnny Angel will be playing
together at the Abbey Lounge in Somerville, Massachusetts. It's an
early show - 7pm - on the pub stage. No cover charge."

-- Robin Lane Mailing, July 15, 2007

AS ON-STAGE PAIRINGS GO, this one is pretty amazing.


= = = = =


BRIEF ITEMS :


JADA

New major label deals are not at all common, so the person who
described the signing of

JADA

to Universal/Motown as "impressive" got it right. In fact if
anything, it is an understatement.

I reported on this item from memory last issue. Here is the real thing:

"The long nights, constant rehearsal schedule, and frequent
performances have finally paid off for Bristol Entertainment's JADA.
The group signed an impressive record deal with Universal/Motown
Records, a subsidiary of the Universal Music Group and is well on
their way [toward] recording their debut album. JADA [consists] of
four 'young divas' - Jacyn, Lauren, Elle, and April...."

-- Bristol Recording and Voice Studios,
"Summer 2007 Newsletter," n.d.

I DON'T PERSONALLY KNOW which of these women is which, but I can say
from hearing an early demo that at least one of these gals has some
serious singing talent. It will be interesting to see where this act
goes.


SARA COX
Granite State Songwriting Competition Winner

"From Coming Grass member Sara Cox:

"The Granite State Songwriting Competition's finalist showcase was
this past Wednesday at the Stone Church in Newmarket, New Hampshire.
There were a bunch of talented folks there playing songs, and it turns
out I won. I got some nice loot and now have the title (at least
until next year) of the the GSSC winner."

-- The Coming Grass, "Granite State Songwriting
Competition," July 16, 2007

WE ACTUALLY HAVE RECEIVED very little news about The Coming Grass in
the past year or two, which is a pity. That band's latest album,
"Beauty of a Heart," is its best yet. Band member Sara Cox is a real
talent, and this recent honor is well earned.


LAURA SIERSEMA
"Talon of the Blackwater" CD

Ex-Bostonian and current Pioneer Valley type Laura Siersema has a new
singer-songwriter album in the works called "Talon of the Blackwater."

-- Laura Siersema, "Old Deerfield THIS ONE!"
July 19, 2007


TWINEMEN

We received a reader inquiry about a particular live recording by the

TWINEMEN.

I had a dim memory that the band had put out several concert
recordings as limited-quantity releases. CD-Rs would be my guess,
though I don't know for sure. So, on behalf of our reader, I searched
the Gemm.com online catalog and was quite amazed at what I found,
including the recording our reader asked about and lots more. If you
are interested in live recordings of the Twinemen, you may want to go to

http://www.gemm.com/

change the switch at the upper left from "Artist or Title" to just
"Artist," and then do a search on

twinemen

You may be as surprised as I was at the number of hits.


BECKY CHACE
New Retrospective CD

"'The Best of Me' Released

"New from the BC camp, a twenty song collection of favorites from the
last 10 years of releases including five songs not previously
released. Available at all shows and coming soon to CDbaby.com."

-- Becky Chace, "New CD Released,"
July 16, 2007

THIS COLLECTION HAS NOT ARRIVED, but I understand it is on its way.
I'll tell you about it after it gets here. Becky Chace comes highly
recommended; but living a sheltered life, I have not yet heard any of
her music.


ELLIS PAUL
Children's Album for (With Luck) September Release
Upcoming XM Radio In-Concert Performance

"Flynn, the producer, is putting his magic to my new children's album
as we speak, and we are hoping to have that done by September, keep
your eyes and ears out for that one, we'll be taking orders on the
website sometime in August. Also keep your ears out for a live from
XM studio session I recently recorded before a wonderful audience in
Washington DC. That should be aired in the next few months."

-- Ellis Paul Mailing, July 20, 2007


AMY FAIRCHILD
New Record Coming

"My record is half in the bag, working towards finishing it this
summer/early fall. Stand by!!"

-- Amy Fairchild Mailing, July 16, 2007


THE CHARMS
"Easy Trouble" DVD

"The Charms are on tour supporting the release of the DVD, 'Easy
Trouble,' a film by Boston filmmaker Ben Oliver, based on their
struggles and triumphs in an ever-changing climate for mid level bands."

-- Twisted Rico Management, "The Charms Announce
August Tour Dates," July 16, 2007


ROCK NOTES

I checked the Boston Globe's Living/Arts table of contents for the
"Rock Notes" column mid-afternoon Friday but did not find an entry for
it. At 3:30 a.m., the Globe tables of contents for Living/Arts and
Obituaries were unchanged from yesterday. The ever-dependable Boston
Herald, not surprisingly, had already finished publishing today's
issue a good deal earlier.

Slowness and lack of dependability on the part of the Boston Globe is
going to kill that newspaper. The publishers don't seem to feel even
the slightest urgency about putting out the news.


end BRIEF ITEMS


= = = = =


TREY ANASTASIO
"The Horseshoe Curve"
Record Review in Reuters/Billboard

ARTIST: TREY ANASTASIO
ALBUM: THE HORSESHOE CURVE (Rubber Jungle)

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070720/music_nm/review_music_albums_dc;_ylt=Ajvg5sn\
zYRwrpNQHAYsK0W6VEhkF


SESSION AMERICANA
At the Brattle Theater
October 4, 2007

"[L]et's talk about [the SESSION AMERICANA concert at] THE BRATTLE
THEATER ON OCT 4. It's important for you to understand why we picked
this spot.

"The Brattle is a very cool little theater with 200 seats in the heart
of Harvard Sq. [in Cambridge, Massachusetts]. The Brattle is an
institution under siege like all the remaining independent movie houses.

"This is a real old fashioned art house. I have personally had some
great cinema experiences in this room including three and a half hours
of 'Seven Samurai,' reprinted 'Touch of Evil,' and a very stoned
viewing of 'Blade Runner.'

"They are splitting the $20 ticket with us from dollar one, which
means you support us and them. The economics of putting on shows is
bizarre, expensive, and hard to describe, but suffice to say this one
feels good out of the gate.

"They are putting a bar in the Theater for our show. Its pretty
likely that we'll get to integrate some film into the show. The
Everyday Visuals are on the bill.

"We've been wanting to see what we can do in a theatrical setting for
a while and we're going to try like hell to make this a special show."

-- Session Americana Mailing, July 13, 2007


STAR TREK
The Animated Series

Back in the 1980s I think (it could have been the 70s), STAR TREK had
an animated series on broadcast television. I don't remember it
particularly well. But at one point, when I wanted some light
reading, I bought a book of Star Trek short stories without giving
that volume much inspection. After reading a few and discovering that
those stories were really quite good, I checked the cover and found
that they were the animated series equivalent of a novelization of a
movie. That's right, someone went to the trouble of writing up Star
Trek animated series episodes for fans to read with or without seeing
the actual shows. And the people involved - writers and editors - did
a really good job.

Perhaps this should come as no surprise. Star Trek has taken care
with its print versions. The very best novelization I ever read is
"Star Trek: The Motion Picture." It was written by series creator
Gene Roddenbury, and it was a great deal better than the film. In
fact, it filled in enough holes in the early parts of the story such
that reading Roddenbury's novelization makes the film better to watch.

The reason I am bringing this up is that we got an old-news e-mail
saying that the Star Trek animated series episodes were being cleaned
up, 8-9 months ago, for release on DVD. If the short stories are any
indication of the writing that went into the animated series, this DVD
release may be a thing to look forward to.


New England Music Scrapbook
Brattleboro, Vermont

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. . . . .


If you have friends who would be interested in any of the items in
this issue, please forward this newsletter to them. Thanks!


As a rule, we do not post SHOW LISTINGS. The reason is quite
simple. Our readers are spread out all over the map. Though our name
is the NEW ENGLAND Music Scrapbook, we have readers all across the
southern tier of states - with large numbers in Florida generally, the
Atlanta area, and Greater Los Angeles. Even within the Northeast, we
have readers in each of the six New England states and many in New
York and New Jersey. The great majority of show listings would be of
no interest at all to most of our readers.

We make exceptions when show listings are part of an item of more
general interest. CD-release events are great examples. For us, the
main point of an item of this sort is that an act has a new record.
The show being announced is of secondary interest to us - if that - as
far as the contents of our newsletter goes.

We also make a few exceptions for shows in the immediate Boston
area. Our single biggest concentration of readers, as far as we know,
is in and around Boston. We understand from e-mails we receive that
we are able to help turn out an audience to many entertainments in the
Boston area. But even in the case of Boston shows, we make few
exceptions.

So, the general rule of thumb is that we don't post show
listings. In the very few, truly exceptional instances where we do...


... Shows can be canceled, sold out, or even moved to another
date or location. We recommend checking the Web, calling ahead or
otherwise confirming details.


Exceptionally long addresses may need to be pasted into the
address field, which is probably toward the top of your browser
screen. Some addresses are so extremely long that they may have to be
pasted in two or more pieces.


To SUBSCRIBE to this newsletter:
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E-MAIL via:
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NEWSLETTER's Yahoo Groups Home Page:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/uridfm/

General CONTACT Information:
http://www.geocities.com/uridfm/contact.htm


Issue 2007:232

Published no less often than monthly.
We're guessing eventually we'll settle
into an every-other-week schedule.

Copyright © 2007 by the New England Music Scrapbook. All rights reserved.

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