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  • Just Another Country Tuesday…New Releases 10/23/07

    Her debut album is the biggest seller to come out of the American Idol camp. She won last year’s Grammy for Best New Artist. Hopefully, she gave Tony Romo some kicking lessons. She’s Carrie Underwood, and she has a new album in stores today called Carnival Ride. Considering the success of Carrie’s debut CD (over 6 million sold, yada yada yada), I would assume this is something of a slam dunk, no?

    Check out her website: http://www.carrieunderwoodofficial.com/

    You can also catch the video for her new single “So Small” here…http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kUtFEKhtB30

    In other ex-idol news, remember Bo Bice? His new album, See The Light also comes out today. But there’s a catch, folks!! Bice’s new album is (somewhat fittingly) available in Wal-Mart stores. That’s the same gambit that The Eagles will be running with their upcoming release. Weird. Sorry for you Northeast folks (especially those of us in NY and NJ) who don’t have Wal-Marts in the area.

    No other superstar acts have records in stores today-although there are a few mid-level names making waves (Coheed and Cambria, System of a Down’s Serj Tankian, a very interesting sounding duet album from Robert Plant and Alison Krauss). Me? I’m just holding out for another seven days, when the trainwreck we all know as Britney Spears descends on us. Can you feel the anticipation?

  • Friday Throwback – Part Time Lover

    My Stevie Wonder fanaticism started as a very young child. I can remember my dad playing songs off Hotter Than July and Original Musiquarium Vol. 1 on his record player. I remember that when it was my birthday, he played Happy Birthday. Years later I would learn that the song was created for Martin Luther King Jr. and it was Stevie’s way of saying that his birthday needed to be a National holiday. But it wasn’t until Part Time Lover did I start to seek out and find Stevie. I would listen on the radio and wait for this song to play and record it on my baby boom box. LL would’ve been so proud. I didn’t even know what the song was about. All I knew was that Stevie was cool, with the beads hanging from strands of his hair.

    • We are undercover passion on the run.
    • Chasing love, up against the sun.
    • Why would dude check out that skinny girl’s butt?
    • Is that Grace Jones with a wig?
    • Look at Steve in that hat.
    • I guess two can play the game.
    • I think Luther Vandross helps Stevie by singing back up here.
    • This version of the music video cuts off the beginning where the couple is watching an old movie and the phone rings, but neither answers. Foreshadowing~!
    • But the best part of the beginning is that dude is wearing moccasins with no socks.
    • This video was directed by Bill Parker. I bet he wrapped it up by saying, “Wham!”

    I think that song is something like 22 years old. And Stevie’s still making music today. If you asked me which album I would take on an island with me, it’d probably be one of Stevie’s (Songs In The Key Of Life?), and alongside MJ, he’s one of my two favorite artists of all time.

  • Friday Throwback – I Wanna Sex You Up

    After being on Mission: Man Band, former Color Me Badd lead singer Bryan Abrams was shown as a drunk and as my buddy Speeddeezy put it, someone who ate the rest of Color Me Badd. But he still had that voice. As the lead singer of CMB, he was one of the voices of the early 90s. Though I Wanna Sex You Up wasn’t a US number 1 hit, if not for this song, I Adore Mi Amor and All For Love would’ve never hit number 1. Maybe the apex of their career was when they were the focus of an episode of Beverly Hills, 90210 where they were horded by fans all over, and then invited a non-fan in Kelly Taylor into their room to chat. Yes, to chat. You mean they didn’t wanna sex her up? Well, I don’t think Kelly was into the 4 on 1 action.

    This song sampled not only Slick Rick, but also Betty Wright.

    • You had one guy who was a George Michael look alike and one guy who was a Kenny G look alike. Both in the same group!
    • Did you know that this song was originally on the New Jack City soundtrack?
    • Can you really make love until you drown? What are they, on a boat?
    • Does a song like this really need the running man choreography in the background?
    • And then the New Kids/New Edition choreography in the dirt?
    • Kenny G kind of got lucky there didn’t he? No game!

    I do hope that Abrams finds some success with Sureshot, the group created out of the Mission: Man Band show. The music business is rough. How Abrams, who had star written all over him, could miss for all these years is a mystery.