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Friday, April 28, 2006 WHENEVER I CALL YOU FRIENDwhen my friend from high school was here visiting, i had to work extra hard at not calling her the name she was given at birth, which is the same name i spent many years calling her in ATLANTA. you see, she renamed herself 20 years ago, but in my head i secretly still refer to her as her old name. she wouldn't have gotten mad if i had slipped and called her the old name, but i would have felt weird about it. the whole thing reminded me of the years i spent doing morning radio. i was super-conscious of not saying the word "fuck" on the air. i never said it, but it was always on my mind. . | Permalink Tuesday, April 25, 2006 LEARN IT AND LEARN IT WELLi've gone ga-ga for downloads ever since i recently got schooled on using the "option" key on my APPLE computer. to download a music file, just press & hold the "option" key (next to the key with the apple symbol on it) and then click onto the desired file link. the file will then be downloaded to your desktop. try it on the following site i just learned about via RAFAEL & SHIRLEY Q. it is a scream, honey! click here: CYBER LADY MINISTRIES . | Permalink BLUE DIANAlast week, i was made privy to some knock-out remixes commissioned for the newly rediscovered DIANA ROSS album entitled BLUE. this album of standards was recorded in 1972 and was subsequently shelved, never to see the light of day until next month when it finally hits retail 34 years later. the really genius thing about this whole project is that we get "new" ROSS material sung in her early 1970's voice, with all it's rich tonality and vulnerable intimacy. click here for a free download of the reggae remix of "What A Difference A Day Makes". . | Permalink Sunday, April 23, 2006 BY WAY OF LOVE'S EXPRESSwhen i saw the tv commercial announcing an upcoming ASHFORD & SIMPSON concert, i knew i had to do whatever i took to be there. luckily, i didn't have a gig out of town tonight, so the 'whatever it took' part of my decree wasn't too insurmountable. the challenge basically meant i had to travel out to QUEENS near SHEA STADIUM on the #7 train, then catch a bus for a couple of miles to QUEENS COMMUNITY COLLEGE where this rare event was being held. the all-day rainfall didn't once deter me from trekking to witness these two musical monoliths perform live, as i have never seen them in concert before. they did perform live on my talk show once, but that was just a taste compared to the feast i experienced tonight. NICK & VAL are real singers who really know how to sing. they sounded like heaven, and christmas, and ice cream. they look 20 years younger than their actual ages, and their catalog of timeless songs has even more credence today amidst a landscape of disposable pop tunes currently on the radio. sometime in the middle their MOTOWN MEDLEY i started to cry, and even as it was happening, i clearly understood why i felt so emotional. it was because these songs are the soundtrack to my life story. their songs remind me of a long ago innocence i locked away for safe keeping. it was AIN'T NOTHING LIKE THE REAL THING that got me welled up, but it was YOUR PRECIOUS LOVE that made my tears flow. backstage, at the post-concert reception, i had a lovely conversation with LIZ ROSENBERG, who i met years ago through CHER. LIZ is fantastic, very grounded and real. she told me that her first assignment at WARNER BROS. was ASHFORD & SIMPSON, and that they've remained friends ever since. NICK & VAL were genuinely surprised to see me out in QUEENS. i told them i wouldn't have missed it for the world. we hugged, took pictures and then i was off to catch my bus, which took me to the train bound for a rainy night in MANHATTAN. ME & BABY BROTHER my ipod has two NICK & VAL playlists in it. one consists of songs from their catalog as recording artists, and the second playlist consists of music they wrote and produced for other artists. the first playlist i named simply ASHFORD & SIMPSON. the second playlist has a very provocative name that most people will find offensive. it comes from the younger brother of a girl i once knew. her younger brother had a knack for defiling everything his older sister held dear, in this case, the name of ASHFORD & SIMPSON. i have a fondness for the irreverent, so i personally think her little brother's pet name for the legendary music giants is very funny. younger brother's pet name for them was "ASSFART & SYPHILIS". here are the top twenty from each playlist in my ipod: ASHFORD & SIMPSON: 1. Count Your Blessings 2. Nobody Knows 3. Love Don't Make It Right 4. I Ain't Asking For Your Love 5. By Way Of Love's Express 6. Don't Cost You Nothin' 7. Send It 8. So So Satisfied 9. Found A Cure 10. Stay Free 11. Dance Forever 12. Crazy 13. Finally Got To Me 14. Follow Your Heart 15. It Seems To Hang On 16. Street Corner 17. High-Rise 18. Solid 19. Let Love Use Me 20. Silly Wasn't I "ASSFART & SYPHILIS": 1. No One Gets The Prize/The Boss ...Diana Ross 2. Clouds...Chaka Khan 3. I Will Fight ...Gladys Knight & The Pips 4. Keep Away Girls...Stephanie Mills 5. I Ain't Been Licked...Diana Ross 6. Uh-Uh OOh-Ooh Look Out [Hurley's Mix]...Roberta Flack 7. I'm Every Woman...Chaka Khan 8. I Can't Give Back The Love ...Dusty Springfield 9. Remember Me...Diana Ross 10. Ain't Nothing Like The Real Thing...Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terrell 11. Reach Out, I'll Be There...The Four Tops 12. You're All I Need To Get By...Diana Ross 13. It's My House...Diana Ross 14. Ain't No Mountain High Enough...Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terrell 15. California Soul...The 5th Dimension 16. Taste Of Bitter Love ...Gladys Knight & The Pips 17. Some Things You Never Used to Do...Diana Ross & The Supremes 18. Your Precious Love...Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terrell 19. Destination Anywhere...The Marvelettes 20. Stuff Like That...Quincy Jones . | Permalink Monday, April 17, 2006 A PERFECT POINTtwo years ago this week, i remember walking the perimeter of LAKE HOLLYWOOD and feeling genuinely upset with THE POINTER SISTERS for not producing any new recordings for me to buy and devour. oh sure, i'd bought the DAVE ARMSTRONG track that samples their DARE ME, and i'd eagerly snatched up the BMG/platinum & gold greatest hits cd released around that same time, but i wanted more, more, more. i constantly fantasized about the writers and producers i would have paired the sisters with had i been the A&R guy for their last three lackluster albums, which were between 1988 and 1993. i would have put them with L.A. REID & BABYFACE, STOCK-AITKEN-WATERMAN, LUTHER VANDROSS and CLIVILLES & COLE. wow, that would have been dynamite! i saw them perform their hit catalog at a private party in 2000, and boy they were on point! JUNE had just gotten out of rehab, and the group seemed poised for a comeback. unfortunately, not long after that performance, JUNE fell back into darkness and never resurfaced. the other night at my PSEUDO SEDER, we all had a moment of silence in honor of JUNE'S life, followed by a listening of HE'S SO SHY played loudly. . | Permalink Friday, April 14, 2006 SLAVE TO THE RHYTHMthis is the third day that i've spent all day mastering my new album of remixes. today, i was at the mastering studio for 10 hours. yesterday and the day before, it was 8 hours each day. the album has 15 tracks and the single has 9 tracks. . | Permalink PASSINGno one invited me to a SEDER this PASSOVER so i decided to have one on my own. after dinner, me and the 6 people i had over read a page each from CONVERSATIONS WITH GOD. i even picked up a day old PASSOVER PLATE from BALDUCCI'S for $8. we finished the evening with a brief game of PASSWORD. . | Permalink Tuesday, April 11, 2006 'OL SCHOOLone of my dearest friends is visiting me here in NEW YORK this week and i couldn't be happier. we "attended" NORTHSIDE HIGH SCHOOL in ATLANTA, GEORGIA 30 years ago. can you imagine what it's like to know someone that long? sometime during the late 80's, she changed her name and moved to SAN FRANCISCO, and i moved to MANHATTAN and sold my name for fame. alot has changed in all these years, but at the heart of it all, we're still two bohemian kids who believe in the power of truth, beauty, freedom and love. . | Permalink Saturday, April 08, 2006 DARKSIDEDi saw a fantastic "film noir" tonight that really blew me away. i knew nothing about this movie until an hour before we saw it, and even then it was only what i read about it on IMDB.COM. i would normally not go out to see a movie on a friday night, but my friend suggested we do so we did, and boy am i glad we did! the film is called BRICK and it star's a bunch of really amazing young actors, one of which i've had the pleasure of working with on two occasions, the brilliant NOAH FLEISS. the film is true to form with shades of the movie CHINATOWN in it and a healthy helping of several RAYMOND CHANDLER novels. i hope i haven't given too much away about it, but if you get the chance, do see it. one last thing, JOSEPH GORDON-LEVITT will be remembered as one of the great actors of his generation. also, keep an eye on MEAGAN GOOD. she's the one who will take HALLE's place in a few years. . | Permalink Friday, April 07, 2006 GETTING IT TOGETHERi've been working all week on making sure we meet our deadline for the remix album, which has the street date of june 13th. the track sequencing, the personnel credits, the artwork, the "one-sheet" for retailers, ..etc. who knew it would take so long? i really thought i could get it out there by february. HA! fat chance. i still have mixes coming in! we go to press next week. GETTING STONED i saw BASIC INSTINCT 2 again tonight, and it's even better the second time around. SHARON STONE is sooo amazing! it really got me thinking about what it is that "puts off" most people (both men and women) about strong, smart, beautiful women starring in movies. there are so many societal factors involved that i don't even wanna get into it, except to say it's fucked up. i mean, TOM CRUISE can put out a piece of shit like WAR OF THE WORLDS and people will flock to the cineplex. most movies are bad, but that's not the point. i think it's important to recognize what it is that threatens BETTY & JOE BEERCAN about an intelligent woman starring in a feature film. GET THIS this site is so wrong, but i spent a long time here today. . | Permalink Thursday, April 06, 2006 EVERYDAY IS CHRISTMAS DAYi'm more than a little embarrassed to admit that i've finally gotten around to reading CONVERSATIONS WITH GOD. it was given to me 9 years ago by talk show host CHRISTINA with the promise "you're gonna love this"! one month after receiving my first copy of the book, JOELLE'S friend CHRISTIE gave me another. coincidence? i think not. good christ! i don't need a brick to fall on my head to get the message! well, on second thought, i guess i did need a little nudge because it took me 9 years to finally open it, and open it i did. I - LOVE - THIS - BOOK! i also really love the experience i'm having on this planet. it is a stone gas honey! . THE NAME GAME oh right, i told you i would finally divulge the actual name of "the untitled rupaul movie project". the title is... drumroll please... STARRBOOTY: RELOADED . | Permalink Wednesday, April 05, 2006 NOT TOO STINKYSHARON STONE is my new favorite actress. she was born to play the role of a murdering, manipulating, lying cunt! I fuckin' loved BASIC INSTINCT 2, in fact, i'm gonna see it a few more times this week before they yank it from theaters due to an underwhelming box office return. and speaking of "yanked", she has NOT had her face lifted. what she has had "done" is very evident to the trained eye (me) and very well executed. she's had a shitload of BOTOX (let he who hasn't raise the first eyebrow), some facial filler in a few creases (a rite of passage), hair extensions and a very conservative boob job. most people can't believe she looks that fabulous at that age with so little "work done", but it's true. what you see on that screen is a well kept thoroughbred who was built to be envied. fucking GORGEOUS! ok, maybe they did some subtle "masking" (like photoshop for film) in post production, but my expert eye sure didn't clock any. i wish the film was more campy, but it's not. i was also surprised at how sexy the lead guy is. he sure didn't read as sexy in the commercials. i don't understand why more people didn't go to see it. she's fucking hawt! people suck! . | Permalink Sunday, April 02, 2006 B FOR BOTOXwe're in PHOENIX for gay pride. my friend JACK came from L.A. to hang with us for the weekend. we went to see V FOR VENDETTA and i loved it. i really want to see SHARON STONE'S "botoxicating" performance in BASIC INSTINCT 2. most reviewers have said it's a basic stinker, but i'm praying for a camp classic. . | Permalink 2009 RuCo, Inc.—All Rights Reserved |
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