The Soul Truth

The blues are all right...especially when they're storming so passionately...so sensually...so powerfully...from the body and soul of Ms. Shemekia Copeland.

The daughter of legendary bluesman Johnny Copeland is the real deal. Her new album kicks off with a take-no-prisoners trifecta powerhouse bluesy soul singing at its finest: the aptly-titled leadoff track "Breakin' Out", the unflinching ballad "Poor, Poor Excuse", and the wonderfully rocking and utterly scathing statement on the sorry state of radio, "Who Stole My Radio?" (which, in a better world, would be booming out of radios all over this summer.)

When she follows those gems with "All About You", a pointed and funky kiss-off to an egocentric lover, you're just hooked.

From the sassy self-affirmations of "Uptown Train" and "Givin' Up You" to the swampy black magic of "Honey, Do That Voodoo" to the wistful "Used"(a bittersweet duet with Dobie Gray) Copeland's supple, full-bodied voice is used to dazzling effect (she's a blues shouter who knows when bring it down as well as when to let it rip.) This woman is the real deal.

There are a couple of awkward lyrical patches here and there but those are easily forgiven and quickly forgotten when you're being totally engaged by real heartfelt blues...by real honest-to-Aretha soul music.

Battle of the Network Reality Stars

Somebody please make them stop.

Will somebody sit these reality TV "stars" down and tell them that for the VAST majority of them their showbiz "careers" began and ended with whichever reality TV show they were on?

It was kind of cute at first to watch these folks try to parlay a stint on Survivor, Big Brother, The Real World, Temptation Island, etc., etc. into a real Hollywood career but as their number continues to grow it's not so cute anymore and the straws they're grasping at...like this retread of the Battle of the Network Stars series of specials from the 70's (featuring TV stars...real honest-to-goodness actors!... of the time) which had a certain cheeseball charm to them (watching Welcome Back, Kotter's Gabe Kaplan needle The Wild, Wild West's ever-petulant Robert Conrad into sputtering fits of rage was worth the time spent watching in and of itself)...are increasingly flimsy.

Look, I really like some of "reality" TV...but only for what it is (that being wholly contrived exercises full of what David Letterman would call "stupid human tricks".)

And I even have a certain amount of fondness for some of the people participating in Bravo's Battle of the Network Reality Stars (Charla, Chip, and Kim from Amazing Race, Ryan from American Idol, and the charmingly gonzo "Dr. Will" from Big Brother, for example)...but, that said, I really had no need to see any of them participating in faux athletic events.

(And to be sure I never needed to see most of these desperate would-be celebrities in ANY context ever again...and yes I'm looking at you Richard Hatch, Omarosa, "Bachelor Bob", Amazing Race blowhard Jonathan and his spousal-abuse-victim-to-be Victoria, the ever-charming Sue Hawk, the conniving Project Runway designer Wendy Pepper, and "Joe Millionaire".)

Of course it could be worse I suppose. The folks over on E!'s Kill Reality are making a real "we're-gonna-put-it-in-the-multiplexes-(or-failing-that-on-DVD)" movie...a horror movie (insert your own joke here)...with another group of reality TV "stars" (including "Johnny Fairplay", Ethan, and one of the many Jennas from Survivor as well as, again, "Bachelor Bob" Guiney as a crazed slasher.)

*Sigh* I guess it's too late to make them stop...the celebrity bug has bit them and they're not going to stop until they make it to the top! Or at least to the bottom of the middle...

twentythree

Tristan Prettyman's debut CD is like a cool breeze on a lazy summer's day. Her voice doesn't have great range but it has remarkable expressiveness; if pressed, I would say that her music something like a sprightly, very appealing, blending of Norah Jones, Jack Johnson, and Edie Brickell. But, that said, her voice is her own and wonderful enough at that.

Her tunes...love songs for hopeful romantics still free from cynicism about affairs of the heart... lope along pleasingly, anchored by shimmering acoustic guitars and her heartfelt vocals. She is equally at home on the midtempo songs that dominate the disc and on the ballads interspersed along the way.

From the summer pop swing of the opening "Love Love Love" to the beguiling lilt of "Shy That Way" (a duet with Jason Mraz)...from the subtly humid longing of "Electric" to the soft sway of the closing "Simple as it Should Be" (with some tasty harmonica work by G. Love)...Prettyman offers a solid collection of pretty and pure pop songs (and what more could you ask than that? :-)

The Rolling Stones

Anyone who is now...or has ever been...a fan of the Rolling Stones can point to an album when they decided that the band had "jumped the shark". Where they say, with both sadness and resignation, that every Stones album since (fill in the blank) has been...oh let's be charitable and say "uneven". For me that album was Some Girls way back in '78. Since then, their albums have been mixed bags...flashes of brilliance surrounded by lots of lazy dross. They turned from a great album band to a good singles band. And so when the Stones decide it's time to churn out a new record and hit the road to fatten up their coffers, it's not something that brings the anticipation it once might have.

The announcement of their upcoming disc...A Bigger Bang...barely registered with me so when three "singles" were released online (Real.com, iTunes.com) I listened to them not expecting that much. I was pleasantly surprised...though, that said, I remain cautious (they've suckered me in before :-)

The three songs are all different styles but they all show the old dogs in fine form...playing like the music really matters. "Rough Justice" is a balls-to-the-walls rocker that harkens back to the Sticky Fingers/Exile on Main Street era. "Streets of Love", an earnest power ballad, has a great vocal by Mick Jagger and a nimble solo by Keith Richards. "Back of my Hand" is a swampy blues number that works despite some awkward lyrical passages.

Three songs do not a great album make...one presumes they're putting their best foot forward with the release of these tunes...but it makes me more interested in hearing A Bigger Bang than I would have been otherwise. We shall see.

Chavez Ravine

In the 1950's, Chavez Ravine, a relatively poor but vibrant Mexican-American enclave in the heart of Los Angeles, was co-opted by municipal authorities through the use of eminent domain. The thriving community was torn asunder by forces that wanted to redevelop the area. Eventually, Chavez Ravine became home of Los Angeles Dodgers (lured from Brooklyn in part because of the choice land upon which they could build their stadium.) Along with people being forced from their homes and their neighborhoods in the name of progress, things like the Red Scare of the 50's ("Don't Call Me Red", a song told from the point of view of Frank Wilkinson, an assistant director of the LA Housing Authority who got called before the infamous House Un-American Activities Committee) and even UFO sightings over the neighborhood ("El UFO Cayo") came into play.

On his dazzling, bittersweet, compelling new CD, Ry Cooder chronicles this tale with the help of an enormously talented assemblage of like-minded friends and comrades. Cooder has always followed his muse wherever it took him...pop music, soul music, "world" music, movie music, whatever appealed to him he immersed himself in it with exuberance and reverence.

On the triumphant Buena Vista Social Club collection, Cooder helped bring long overdue attention and acclaim to a host of Cuban singers and musicians; on Chavez Ravine, returns to Los Angeles community he knows so well with beguiling results.

Cooder is fine voice (several of them as a matter of fact, adjusting his vocals to suit the needs of the different songs that he sings) and, as always, his guitar picking is sterling as the song cycle plays out from the joyful "Poor Man's Shangri-La" (that being an affectionate nickname for the neighborhoods that made up the Chavez Ravine area) to the rueful "3rd Base Dodger Stadium" (about someone talking the place where he was born, his home having been where third base is now) and the bittersweet but hopeful coda, "Soy Luz Y Sombra".

The overall feel is distinctly Mexican inspired and flavored, of course, with some of the songs in English and others in Spanish. Among those joining Cooder on the vocals along the way are veteran singers Lalo Guerrero and Little Willie G. (among many others.) Instrumental contributions come from guitarist David Hildalgo (of Los Lobos), ace accordion player Flaco Jimenez, and accomplished session drummer Jim Keltner.

Despite the story, Chavez Ravine is full of joyful, triumphant, thought-provoking, utterly-engaging music. It's a wonder from beginning to end.

Being Bobby Brown

When I first heard that Bravo was going to presenting the "reality" show Being Bobby Brown, my first question was "why?" Now that I have sat through some of the sometimes-compelling, sometimes-ghastly bits and pieces of the show, I kinda understand. Brown (above with his wife Whitney Houston and their daughter Bobbi Christina) is an interesting TV character...he and his family at times shamelessly mug for the camera and other times seem to forget that somebody is documenting the minutiae of their lives (which, if this series is to be believed, is an endless, often loud, often crass, self-indulgent party.)

At times it's like watching the results of a particularly gruesome car wreck, you know you shouldn't look at it because it really creeps you out but, for some awful reason, you can't look anyway. I'm not sure what the Browns expected this show to do...Bobby is an affable enough fellow but he seems to spend an inordinate amount of his time drinking and smoking and acting like an overgrown child; Ms. Houston comes off as a shrill, spoiled, glassy-eyed diva (she reportedly went into rehab right after filming this series) with no patience for any fans who cross her haughty path...but I can only guess they're living under the adage that "any publicity is good publicity".

One thing that I have had answered is the reason why Brown and Houston got together...and have stayed together for so long. In spite of everything else, they seem genuinely smitten with each other...two like-minded soulmates who found each other and have persevered despite all of those who predicted that they would not. They indeed have something in common.

A little bit of Being Bobby Brown goes a long way for me...but, that said, more power to them (and to Bravo for giving them another outlet to act out in public.)

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

I've never had much patience for book series. Don't know why but even the best series...Isaac Asimov's Foundation, for example...loses it appeal for me after 3 books at most. But I...hardly alone, of course...have happily gone along for 6 volumes of the Harry Potter series and will, in however many months or years it takes J.K. Rowling to finish it, be patiently waiting for the 7th and final book in this charming series.

Perhaps that's part of the reason I haven't lost my enthusiasm for the fantasy series, Rowling has sworn that there will be an ending...a tale told in 7 engaging volumes...and I am more than interested to find out how the expansive, touching, comic, darkly adventurous story turns out.

While I quite liked it, on some levels I had found the 5th book...Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix...to be my least favorite of the series (it was oppressively gloomy, it also felt padded [perhaps too long by 100 pages], and the titular hero was, teenage angst will do that to a boy sometimes, ill-tempered throughout most of it) so I approached this one with wary, lowered expectations.

I needn't have worried. The Half-Blood Prince is as dark and foreboding as Phoenix but the story fairly crackles off the page through the portents, betrayals, revelations (some of which will probably turn out to mean something other than seem to at first blush), and death. It's a grand yarn.

Rowling downplayed some of the bits that, after 5 books, had started to get a bit rote: the Quidditch games were a minor part of the story and, just as importantly, the increasingly tiresome "Cinderella"-like relationship between Harry and his cartoonish...and apparently irredeemable...aunt, uncle, and cousin was given short shrift. Instead she steamed ahead telling a compelling story here while, at the same time, deftly setting up the climatic final conflict between Harry and his arch-nemesis in the concluding book of the series.

They say that these books are getting kids to read and I hope that that's true (we certainly need as many avid readers as we can cultivate.) If I were a child when they first came out, I would have thoroughly enjoyed them too (just like the child in me...safely and happily ensconced in this cynical old adult body...does here and now.)

Rock Star: INXS

American Idol meets Survivor with a rock'n'roll edge? (Maybe AI's much touted rockers Bo and Constantine should have waited for this competition :-) Is this anyway to pick a new lead singer for an established hit rock band?

Well nowadays, I guess so. (Survivor honcho Mark Burnett and CBS certainly hope that we agree...at least enough of us to keep the ratings up.)

Fifteen aspiring young rock stars sing their young hearts for a chance to step in the frontperson role in INXS vacated by Michael Hutchence's death back in 1997 in a competition being hosted by Brooke Burke and judged by the band and Dave Navarro, erstwhile member of Jane's Addiction and the Red Hot Chili Peppers. Judging by the first show some of the candidates are interesting in a good way and others are interesting in a "what the hell are you doing?" kind of way (the kids should probably steer clear of the Nirvana songs in future episodes.)

Hey, it gives the singers a shot they wouldn't have otherwise had and if it works for INXS, it's all good too. We'll see how it all sorts out in coming weeks.

Live 8

MTV and VH1 are taking a do-over on Live 8. After getting taken to school by, of all things, AOL last week, the "music" networks are trying to make amends this week.

I don't have that many good things to say about AOL (I'm still praising my cable TV company for getting high speed internet service so I could kiss the big A goodbye years ago) but their coverage of Live 8...with simultaneous feeds and, as far as I could tell, no service problems...made MTV look like a dinosaur (the same way MTV made radio seem hidebound and old-fashioned in the early 80's.)

On the other hand MTV's "coverage" (simulcast on VH1)...with its incessant commercials, the neverending blather from their insipid talking heads, and, worst of all, the truncated performances...was all but un-watchable.

Having been slammed all week (as well they should have been) by critics and viewers, today (Saturday) MTV and VH1 are presenting 10 hours of Live 8 highlights...10 hours of commercial-free, VJ-free music with complete, uninterrupted sets by various singers and bands that performed.

Better late than never, folks.

On a related note, I'm glad that Bob Geldolf and Bono were pleased with...and kind of taking credit for*... the 50-billion dollar aid pledge that the "G-8" nations promised for Africa over the next 5 years (double previous pledges) but I reserve the right to remain skeptical until those pledges are turned into actual aid on the ground. We shall see.


*Personally I'm dubious that President Bush, Prime Minister Blair, and the rest of the leaders really took Live 8 all that seriously though if they did pay some attention it's all good.

Trapped in the Closet

Having now seen all 5 parts of R. Kelly's "urban opera" (R-rated...no pun intended...soap opera is more like it) series of videos, I have to say that it begs the question of whether our man R is a certified genius...or just certifiable :-)

Personally I think it's a real hoot...but your mileage may vary. The acting is suitably overwrought, the cliffhangers and "surprise" twists are perfectly silly, and, your better judgment notwithstanding, the climax (you'll pardon the expression) leaves you wanting more of this gloriously insane story (there be plot points dangling over all the place.)

"Trapped in the Closet (Parts 1-5)"...genius or madness? You be the judge...

For my part: hey R, bring on parts 6-10! :-)

Out-of-State Plates

When most of us clean out our closets we mostly find junk...odds and ends, stuff that should have thrown away and forgotten years ago...but when some bands clean out their closets they find cool music that slipped through the cracks (or didn't get the exposure it should have.)

Fountains of Wayne...one of the best "power pop" bands going...has cleaned out their closet (yeah, we're done with that metaphor now :-) and put together a remarkably tight, enormously entertaining 2-disc collection of b-sides (mostly from internationally released singles), live tracks, covers, demos, and other previously released tunes.

Fountains of Wayne are probably best known for "Stacy's Mom", that irresistible ode to boyhood infatuation, but they are not a one-hit wonder. They make the kind of delightful music...melodic guitar-powered rockin' pop with sometimes quirky, sometimes-sweet and heartfelt, always well crafted songs...that (almost) makes up for a whole lot of the crap that comes out under the umbrella of pop.

Out-of-State Plates manages to deftly sidestep two pitfalls of collections like this: a lot of bands' unreleased material deserved to be left unreleased and most artists can't sustain creative momentum over two CDs. A lot of the original tunes here...written by Chris Collingwood and Adam Schlesinger...are of such quality that it is remarkable they didn't make the cut on other Fountains discs...and the overall quality of the 28 selections (some are inevitably better than others but there's not a real clunker in the bunch) makes the discs breeze by.

The covers here are up to the task of standing by the original songs. From a crunchy live version of ELO's "Can't Get it Out of My Head" to a rockabilly-tinged "Today's Teardrops" (a Gene Pitney song made famous by Rick Nelson) to lovely readings of Jackson Browne's "These Days" and Burt Bacharach & Hal David's "Trains and Boats and Planes" (immortalized by their muse, Dionne Warwick.)

There's also a subdued version of "...Baby One More Time", the Britney Spears hit that others have covered (with varying degrees of irony) of late. It works fine.

It's a wonderful collection if you're a diehard fan or even if all you know about Fountains of Wayne is the cheeky chorus of "Stacy's Mom".

Be

As I've said before, I am not a hardcore hip hop fan...I like some and can do without a lot of it. Common is one hip hop artist who does command my attention and appreciation. Common's last disc, Electric Circus, was a wildly eclectic affair audacious in its genre-hopping ambition. Not all of it worked but you had to admire the sheer creative breadth of it (well, I did anyway.)

Be, mostly produced by Kanye West, brings the focus back on tight mid-tempo beats and funky hooks (along with judiciously chosen samples) that keeps the attention on Common's smooth flow and his vibrant raps about love, faith, respect, and empowerment.

There are the seemingly mandatory guest spots (no hip hop album seems complete without them for whatever reason)...West on a couple of tracks (including a live track recorded on "Chappelle's Show" with an intro by Dave himself), John Legend, John Mayer (singing backgrounds on the feisty "Go!"), Bilal, and the legendary Last Poets (on the gritty "The Corner")...but Common never surrenders his rightful place in the spotlight (except for when he gives over the second part of the inspirational closer, "It's Your World", to a chorus of children telling dreams of what they want to be when they grow up and to his father reciting a poem about being all you possibly can be over a subdued beat and lovely piano accompaniment.)

Be is taut (clocking in at a shade over 42 minutes), soulful, uplifting, clear-eyed, and engaging...an intoxicating slice of hip hop wonderfulness.

A Serious Way of Wondering

I heard about this fascinating little book from an interview on NPR and, though I am not a churchgoer, the idea of it intrigued me enough to obtain a copy. Of course, then it languished on my ever burgeoning pile of books to be read until I finally plucked it out last week and read it through.

Reynolds Price, a devout Christian (though not a regular churchgoer either), presents his take on the ethics of Jesus in relations to some modern social issues (abortion, homosexuality, etc.) extrapolating from the Gospels and other books of the Bible that deal directly with the words and deeds of Jesus...kind of a philosophical examination of the popular "What Would Jesus Do?" question...in a way that is reverent (Price is, as I said, a believer), challenging, and thought-provoking.

Agree or disagree with his thoughts and conclusions...and regardless of whether or not one is a devout Christian...this well-written essay will make one stop and think (and anything that does that is aces in my book.)

Greatest American Top 10

The people...or at least the people who cared enough about this popularity poll to call, text message, or log onto AOL's voting site...have spoken and these are the people chosen to be on their list of the top 10 all-time "Greatest Americans" (as presented on tonight's Discovery Channel special, which I watched out of idle curiosity having skipped all but the very first hour of this mini-series):

1 ) Ronald Reagan
2 ) Abraham Lincoln
3 ) Martin Luther King, Jr.
4 ) George Washington
5 ) Benjamin Franklin
6 ) George W. Bush
7 ) Bill Clinton
8 ) Elvis Presley
9 ) Oprah Winfrey
10)Franklin Roosevelt

It's an...eclectic...list of personalities to be sure. It doesn't really bother me...it's not serious enough to get worked up about...but I think that their use of the word "greatest" was purposefully loaded. With about of a third of the overall top 100 list filled with athletes and celebrities (including Michael Jackson, Brett Favre, Tom Cruise, Michael Jordan, Madonna, and "Dr. Phil") it probably would have been more accurate to call this whimsical little enterprise "Most Popular Americans" (popularity and greatness do not necessarily go hand in hand.)

(In case you're interested, the rest of the top 25 were (in order): Billy Graham, Thomas Jefferson, Walt Disney, Albert Einstein, Thomas Edison, John F. Kennedy, Bob Hope, Bill Gates, Eleanor Roosevelt, Lance Armstrong, Muhammad Ali, Rosa Parks, The Wright Brothers (who are counted together as 1 "Greatest American"), Henry Ford, and Neil Armstrong.)

Dreaming Wide Awake

Lizz Wright is a sweet and soulful marvel. Her solo debut, Salt, was tasty as all get out and this new disc is even more delightful.

Wright's honey-smooth, rich, delicately-husky alto is an amazing instrument which she utilizes to fine, fine effect. There are no wasted notes...no pointless embellishments...no false passions anywhere in this lovely song cycle. The music, anchored by soft guitars, is equally tasteful and without pretension; it never tries to draw attention away from the caressing majesty of Wright's voice.

Wright fits in that expansive wonderland between pop and jazz that is also inhabited by the likes of Cassandra Wilson, Norah Jones, Diana Krall, and Billy Miles making timeless music that both expands and defies boundaries in the same instant.

The songs here range from beautiful (mostly) midtempo tunes written or co-written by Wright (the wistful title song and the passionate "Hit the Ground" being highlights) to a handful of fascinating covers (including Neil Young's "Old Man", the old Jesse Colin Young brotherhood plea "Get Together", and a sublimely subdued version of "I'm Confessin'", a song Van Morrison takes in another, equally vital, direction on his new record.)

Soothing as a summer breeze on a soft blue day, Dreaming Wide Awake is destined to linger in my CD player for a long time.

Magic Time

…you can call it nostalgia, I don’t mind
standing on that windswept hillside
listenin’ to the church bells chime
listen to the church bells chime
in that magic time…

Being a longtime fan of the man, I can say with genuine affection that Van Morrison is something of a crank; a curmudgeon who suffers fools not at all and who thinks his music tells you all that you need to know about him. And, of course, he’s right.

Van may be prickly but he’s paid his dues and his public persona can be whatever he decides he wants it to be. Because in the end…and most importantly…he already shares with us more than we, as music fans, could ever possibly repay: the songs, the music, and, the voice; the soulful, passionate, compassionate, wondrously grand voice that both retains youthful power and adds burnished nuance with age. I’m cool with that.

Magic Time touches on most of Morrison’s favorite latter day touchstones: the majesty of the blues, love (the beautiful “Celtic New Year”, the rocking “Evening Train”), odes to self-reliance and solitude (the earnest “Keep Mediocrity at Bay”, the wistful “Gypsy in my Soul”, the delightfully tongue-in-cheek “Just Like Greta”, the title song’s enchanting “stop and smell the roses” plea), and acerbic jibes against the invasiveness of fame (the world-weary “The Lion This Time”, the rueful “They Sold Me Out”.)

But these familiar themes are no less engaging since the disc finds Van in fine, feisty voice backed by an ace band that knows how to swing, how to soothe, how to work contours of the music as each song needs (Morrison contributes wailing harmonica and subtle guitar playing to several cuts as well as some lovely alto sax work on the opening “Stranded”.)

Morrison bolsters his originals with a handful of fascinating covers. He and the band inhabit the swinging spirit of “This Love of Mine” (co-written by Frank Sinatra) and he gives his blues heart a solid workout with “I’m Confessin’” (first made famous by Louis Armstrong.) Perhaps most poignant is “Lonely and Blue”, a cheeky (but not irreverent) rewrite of Fats Waller’s plaintive “Black and Blue”.

It’s a lovely record…yeah, ”magic time” indeed.

“Magic Time”
words and music by Van Morrison
©2005 Exile Publishing, Ltd./Universal Music Publishing, Ltd.

Batman Begins

Batman Begins is, as its title so straightforwardly promises, a beginning. But my goodness, what a grand beginning it is! Christopher Nolan's film is stylish and atmospheric and intense...showing us young Bruce Wayne's childhood ended so abruptly by fear and by devastating tragedy to his journey to find a way to reimagine himself for a life of vengeance and justice to his first steps (and missteps) as Batman with well thought out detail and nuance. By the end of the movie, the status quo is set and a rather blatant foreshadowing of the villain for the next film is revealed.

Christian Bale is the first screen Batman who is able to fully inhabit both sides of Batman's persona (both Val Kilmer and George Clooney found Bruce Wayne's character in their own ways but didn't quite fully come to grips with Batman; Michael Keaton nailed Batman but played Wayne as a kind of bumbling dolt...kind of the way Christopher Reeve played Clark Kent in the Superman movies.)

The rest of the cast...Liam Neeson, Michael Caine (as the gently-acerbic butler, Alfred), Morgan Freeman, Katie Holmes, Gary Oldman (as Sgt..."someday I'll be Commissioner"...Gordon), Cillian Murphy (as the truly creepy Dr. Jonathan Crane)...is top-notch and each takes a plot-serving turn in the spotlight without detracting from the main players: Bale's Batman and the shadowy expanse of Gotham City (not as gothic as in Tim Burton's version but still daunting, foreboding, and a wonder to behold.)

I make no bones about being a fanboy when it comes to these things...but that enthusiasm isn't always well-met (*cough* Daredevil *cough*) when it comes to comic book heroes making the leap onto the big screen. Batman Begins joins the pantheon of cool comic book movies...along with Superman I & II, Spider-Man, Tim Burton's Batman, and X2...that appeals to both the fickle adult and the wide-eyed child co-existing in my cynical optimist's heart :-)

Dancing with the Stars

Yet another "reality" show imported from overseas and reincarnated as an American show (and something of a hit as well with more-than-respectable summertime ratings.)

The premise is simple enough...take some lower-rung celebrities (in this case, actor John O'Hurley [above with Charlotte Jorgensen], model Rachel Hunter, actress Kelly Monaco, former New Kid on the Block Joey McIntyre, former heavyweight champ Evander Holyfield [below with Edyta Sliwinska], and former Bachelorette Trista Sutter), pair them with professional dancers and then give them a week to learn a ballroom dance with the votes of a panel of judges and the viewers eliminating one couple a week.

It's (mildly) interesting when all is said and done. The celebrities seem to throw themselves into the proceedings earnestly (Holyfield...bless his heart...was study in intense concentration when he was dancing...but earnestness didn't translate into lightstepping in his case) and I give them props for that (the judges, on the other hand, seem to take things more seriously than necessary savaging non-dancers who've had a week to learn a completely new routine as if they should be seasoned professional hoofers.)

I'm not going to miss Dancing with the Stars when it's gone but, that said, it's a harmless way to kill an hour on Wednesday nights in the meantime.

Rock Swings

Paul Anka singing swing versions of songs by the likes of Nirvana, Bon Jovi, Soundgarden, Oasis, and REM? I was so ready to rip on this when I heard about it. But then I cued it up on Real Rhapsody and started to listen and...who'da'thunk it?...I couldn't. Damn, if it doesn't work.

The old pro didn't goof on the songs (as I imagined he might) but he treated them with respect and the new swing charts are tastefully arranged and played. It might not be everybody's cup of tea but, for my part, it's fun, entertaining, and even illuminating (as an old school pop singer, Anka takes special care of the lyrics of a song.)

Anka's seasoned croon is well matched with ballads like REM's "Everybody Hurts", Eric Clapton's "Tears in Heaven", Lionel Richie's "Hello", and Spandau Ballet's "True", of course, but the revelation is how well rockers like Nirvana's "Smells Like Teen Spirit", Soundgarden's "Black Hole Sun", and Van Halen's "Jump" adapt to the sweetly swinging arrangements and Anka's nuanced vocals.

Wow. What a delightful surprise.

Hit Me Baby One More Time

Okay let me start by being completely honest here: as much as I really liked "Tennessee", "Only the Lonely", and "My Sharona" when they hit the charts (and later classic rock radio), I really hadn't been spending a lot of time wondering what Arrested Development, The Motels, or The Knack were doing these days.

And I certainly didn't give much thought to the whereabouts of Loverboy, Tiffany, A Flock of Seagulls, Haddaway, or Vanilla Ice either.

But that said, this NBC show...recycling 80's and 90's pop stars (and/or one-hit wonders) into pop nostalgia (and possible comeback "kids") for the 21st Century...is curiously appealing and actually pretty entertaining (the smarmy host...whose name escapes me here...and unfortunate series name notwithstanding.)

The perfomers perform their greatest hit during the first half of the show and then cover a recent hit by other performers in the second half; the studio audience then decides who wins the prize of a $20,000 donation to their favorite charity. With CSI in reruns, it's a fun way to kill an hour on Thursday nights.

And with Sophie B. Hawkins and Cameo scheduled to perform next week, I'll certainly be watching. Word up! :-)