E-MAIL CONTACT:
Rick@RARWRITER.com       

RAR TUNE OF THE WEEK:

The shot above is of Penelope Cruz in the 2006 Pedro Almodóvar film Volver, nicked from the satirical Spanish literature website trazegnies.arrakis.es. Penelope, in this shot, make's a perfect model for the femme fatale depicted in RAR's satirical sexcapade "Para Conquistarle"; another bit of sound clip silliness courtesy of "Sexy Spanish" and a site I have lost (still looking) where a guy says things like "I like the meat raw," which strikes me as funny in this goofy context. Click on the photo above to hear another RAR original, "Para Conquistarle."

Click on the MySpace Music graphic to go to RAR on MySpace or click the photo below to go to the RARWriter Music Page

ARTIST INDEX:

Click here to go to the Index page to find the artists profiled on the Links at RARWRITER.

FEATUREDARTISTS:

Click here to go to the Featured Artist page: 

DENNIS WANEBO / MARTIAN ACRES

JOHN PIEPLOW    

ANGIE MATTSON    

TAMRA SPIVEY

LIBBY WINTERS

and more!

Photos, streaming MP3s and more!!!

ESSAYS: 

"Has the New York Times Profiled the Devil?" - Something about this guy gives me the creeps

"President of the Subconscious World" - Why stop with the White House?

"John McCain's Wild Ride" - Pilot, Prisoner, Playboy, President?

"Death of Turtle Boy" - What will the Washington press corps do now?

POLITICAL LINKS IN THIS ELECTION SEASON - points of view not necessarily endorsed by RARWRITER.com

DAILY KOS: STATE OF THE NATION

ATLAS SHRUGS

RARADIO: Click here to go to the new RARadio page to hear innovative acts from across the spectrum of musical genres.

ARCHIVES: Features from past editions.

REVIEWS: Books, albums, films and bad baseball trades.

Recently Added:

FEATURED LINKS:

The Gibson guitar folks have a Lifestyle zine section on their website that is well worth checking. Click here.

RARWRITER
CONTRIBUTOR PROSPECTUS

RARWRITER.com is exploding with new readers, new artist profiles, and new business opportunities. Would you like to become involved as an editorial contributor? If you are a great writer or photographer with particular knowledge of your creative community, and you are looking for publishing credits, download the RARWRITER Prospectus to learn what involvement can mean for you.-RAR

John Pieplow

CHERISH ALEXANDER

www.cherishalexander.com

CHERISH ALEXANDER has been making music since she was seven years old, and making it at a high-end professional level for more than a decade now. It has been paying off in all kinds of ways, most recently with a 2006 Rock City News award for Outstanding Female Solo Artist.

Cherish landed a deal back in the ‘90s with Warner-Chappell publishing, which gave her multiple opportunities to do something she thought was needed in modern songwriting – realism. From her website – “I am about trying to bring the realism of life back into music. Recently, the musical cliche has been to fabricate yourself into whatever is hip, and you can feel a sense of loss for real music. Finally, I think there’s a slow resurgence of singer/songwriters and a place for me.”

It seems like finding a place for herself in the music business hasn’t been a big problem. Cherish landed a track on a benefit LP, Harmony with the Homeless, in 1995. Former pop star Tiffany sang Cherish’s tune "You Don't Belong Down Here." Then later that same year, Cherish and drummer Billy Baker founded the rock band Painkillers, adding guitarist Curtis Hooker and bassist Matt Boyd. The band released a 16-track LP titled Medicine for the Soul and landed a track (“In Between”) in the soundtrack of the Burt Reynolds movie The Last Producer, another (“Good Enough”) in 2000 Sundance feature Alligator Alley, and three other tunes in the television series “The Crow: Stairway to Heaven.”

Cherish showed up in two Cyndi Lauper music videos, playing lead guitar for two tracks off Lauper’s 1998 LP Sisters of Avalon. The opportunities just kept coming. Cherish created the theme song for the pilot of “Wheeler's World” for the Comedy Central Network. She landed her tune “State of Mind” on the MTV pilot of “The Party Machine,” and her tune “Caffeine” was highlighted in “Aftermath,” a made for TV/CBS movie of the week starring Meredyth Baxter, Robert Urich and Diane Ladd.

Cherish created a remake of the 1970's Thelma Houston song “Don't Leave Me This Way” featured in two episodes of “Fashion Television” on E! Entertainment Networks. She contributed “What About Me,” co-written with Billy Baker, and did a remake of the Young Bloods song ”Get Together” for the PBS documentary “The Teachings of Jon.” Cherish created two songs for Chicks of Rock and West Coast Rock as part of a four-game Moshpit Software computer set.

In 2003, Cherish’s song “Goodbye” was on the playlists of over 50 radio stations nationally. In 2004, Cherish was asked by Producer/Writer/Director Bryce Zabel to write songs for his TV mini-series remake of the 1972 classic The Poseidon Adventure.

Cherish has worked with independent artist Jessica Hallett, contributing her tunes “Say Goodbye” and “More Than You Know” to Hallett’s LP, which was co-written and produced by Billy Baker. She also contributed her tunes “Hello to June” and “Goodbye” to the soundtrack of Dante’s View, another feature film project.

The Winning of Hearts & Minds

Cherish has multiple roles regarding the independent film The Winning of Hearts & Minds. She is in charge of music supervision including writing, performing, producing and recording the score and soundtrack of the Steve Becker-directed film. Cherish also plays the role of Lipstick, the lead bass player in the Maxitit band, the centerpiece of the film. Maxitit performed a 2004 showcase (with special performance by Brittina Spearguilara) at Swinghouse studios in Hollywood prior to the start of production of the film.

Cherish will be releasing a solo LP, Fallen Awake, in early 2007. The song is all hers and she will support the LP with a tour.

CHERISH ALEXANDER MP3s:

Blue Skies

Heaven's Here

Bulletproof

Buy Me Love

Copyright © 2006-2007 Cherish Alexander, all rights reserved 

Cherish's MySpace site also features her MP3s: Go to http://www.myspace.com/cherishalexander  

*

MOBY CHICK

If Cherish isn’t quite busy enough with all of her writing projects, she is also playing bass, portraying John Paul Jones, in the all-girl Led Zeppelin tribute band Moby Chick. You can find out more about the band at their MySpace site at www.myspace.com/mobychickband.

www.myspace.com/nikkiferrari  

Welcome to NIKKI FERRARI's rock life: licks, chops and babes, sort of an MTV video come to life...

I don't know if its really that way for Nikki, but the ease with which he demonstrates his immense talent makes it hard to imagine otherwise. His is a bigger than life character, Photo by Carol Oliveto                      the kind rock loves. Music from him feels like it has to be governed like horsepower; you can feel that however powerful the thing he is doing, it is made richer by a sense that there's still more under the hood, which creates awe. Listening to the old Bill Withers chestnut "Ain't No (Sunshine When She's Gone)," below, you get the feeling that Nikki has done the definitive version. It opens with an urge to shred the acoustic guitar, so every well- phrased chord progression that follows feels on the edge of lift off, and then there is the voice. Nikki has a deep vein of soul peculiar to rock singers who came on the L.A. scene in the "modern era"; sound wise think Steven Tyler, David Lee Roth. He has that intimate gravel that butters out into sweetness. Then there are the guitar exercises, which are virtuoso in their precision speed dynamics; pretty extraordinary for anybody, and especially a guy who has made his mark as a bassist.

Nikki threw together his demos for the 2006 Rock City News Awards - he was nominated in the Outstanding Solo Artist category - in three days, against the advice of his handlers. He wasn't after all, able to give them the "real stuff."

Says Nikki - "The real material I'm working on for the new album I could not put out there yet as it will not be released for months and with the incredible vocal work and musical ideas we did not want anyone to jump on the band wagon and wipe me out before I get started on the marketing and PR campaigns." 

Incredible vocal work and musical ideas? It ain't braggin' to state fact. Again, listen to the MP3s below, which may not be the real thing but leave no doubt about the truth to come. And by the way, Nikki won the Rocky for Outstanding Solo Artist. "The competition was huge man, didn't even get the votes, no album out and yeah still in shock!" Nikki said after the awards show. He didn't top the on line vote in his category, but vote totals in the Rockies only factor into the judges' decisions. Quality of musicianship and artistic expression are listed as other qualifiers, and Nikki clearly made up the difference with the acknowledgement conferred upon him by the panelists. Nikki is sort of undeniable.

He is under the watchful eye of an industry veteran. "I am working with John Valenti as a collaborator and consultant vocal coach, trend coach, etc." (A trend coach?) "He had four albums out in the late 70's-early 80's as well as a #1 R&B hit and Overall Billboard's #37 top 40 in 1976. Valenti is just a great guy and so freekin' talented! Johns album's are on back order all the time and he is huge in Japan. I am also working with several famous producers on this one. Some other really exciting things have happened...just so much right now its quite overwhelming."

Photo by Carol Oliveto

From his website - "Nikki Ferrari's talent, recording, and performance skills have landed him in world class recording studios and facilities from Boston to Tampa to New York and Los Angeles. Working in state-of-the-art recording facilities with the music industry's most successful, knowledgeable, proven producers and recording engineers Nikki has gained invaluable knowledge and experience from the industry's most sought after and respected masters. As a multi-talented musician, instrumentalist and vocalist, Nikki is also well known for his bass playing and has recorded with world renown drummers and many famous record producers. Winner of several awards, including the BMA Boston Music Awards as Bass Player of the Year his latest achievement landed him a nomination at the Los Angeles Rock City Music Awards where his previous band was awarded 2005 Outstanding Hard Rock Band of the Year."

NIKKI FERRARI MP3s:  

She's A Wizard

Please Me

No Looking Back

Ain't No

Copyright © 2006-2007 Nikki Ferrari, All Rights Reserved 

*

Photo by Carol Oliveto

Photo by Neslihan Ayakta

www.danielatorchia.com

DANIELA TORCHIA has a richly layered and diverse sound that draws on her European heritage - Austrian and Italian parents, born in Spain - and incorporates Latin concepts to produce surprisingly muscled pop-rock that sounds right for television theme music. She veers toward the romantic, but the calibrated power-rock guitar sound underlines a strong defiant streak that plays in interesting juxtaposition to her sweet, confiding vocal style. This is pretty powerful pop rock stuff, a big sound that always seems to find room for a Segovia-style guitar section. Again the dynamics work to emphasize the emotional range of the songs.

Daniela has an odd pedigree that includes teenage years spent as a circus performer - seriously, swinging from the Big Top to be rescued from gorillas - followed by a successful stint as a modern dancer. Says Daniela - "Yes I danced for many years and have done many musicals and Bob Fosse style dance shows. That was my first passion but music took first place. I did Grease, Pippin, West Side Story and Fosse Reviews on a local level in Los Angeles. It was great fun."

After that show business apprenticeship, she started translating into pop songs the stream of consciousness thoughts and poetry that, as a young girl, she had poured into journals, and she started playing out at open mic nights and showcases. Eventually she got the help she needed to realize her power folk-rock vision from Tony Kaye, renowned keyboardist for Yes, Bad Finger and David Bowie. Kaye, Daniela and Producer/Studio Owner Brian Yaskulka teamed to produce Daniela's 13-track debut release Have No Fear.

The initial reactions have been impressive. Daniela received several nominations for the 2006 Rock City News Awards, including Outstanding Solo Artist and Outstanding Folk Artist.

Daniela can be seen at local venues, including the Lava Lounge and the Cat Club, in Hollywood, the MuddHouse in Northridge, the Taverna Club in Encino, and elsewhere.

Daniela Torchia in concert

DANIELA TORCHIA MP3s:

First Time

Don't You Worry

So Little Faith

Take Me As I Am 

Copyright © 2006-2007 Daniela Torchia, all rights reserved 

Daniela's MySpace site also features her MP3s: Go to http://www.myspace.com/danielatorchia

*

IT STARTED AT AN OPEN-MIC SHOWCASE...

Daniela's site has the following piece on her Music page. It may be of interest to a lot of people, and may even other songwriters wanting to get their starts as performers.

"Kulak’s Woodshed in North Hollywood, California is the place to be on Monday night for an open-mic: A place where everyone sings and goes back for more. When the sun sets, and the night life begins, gutsy singer songwriters enter Kulak’s Woodshed to walls packed with music memorabilia, theatre seats and a four poster bed to bravely perform their latest compositions to a discerning audience and live action web-cast cameras. This is exactly where Daniela Torchia landed one infamous December night. It was a place to have fun and sing, but it turned out to be much more. From that first night, an invaluable network developed into what came to be the production team for Have No Fear. From the lead guitarist to the producers, the drummer to the photographers, the make-up artist to the graphic artist, Kulak’s Woodshed on Laurel Canyon was the start of it all."

RARWRITER REVIEW:  Have No Fear - Daniela Torchia CD (click here)

www.alestardigby.com

Alestar Digby flat out rocks in that old school way, with power chords, accessible hooks, clear song structure, and rock attitude. This is Bad Company and a hundred other bands that have sounded that way, but it remains refreshing when done well and Alestar does it great. He sometimes sounds like Jim Morrison and The Doors, which is not a comparison you find associated with a lot of acts. Alestar has got that certain sexuality thing happening, a sort of full-throated animal appeal. He pushes the boundaries with his lyrics, and his music has a ring of familiarity that supports his rebel purr.

Alestar polled the most votes in Outstanding Songwriting and competed strongly in the Outstanding Solo Artist category in the 2006 Rock City News Awards. This guy is a hit songwriter all the way, really apparent and impressive.

The Austin transplant was big in Texas with his band Gentleman Jake and the Beat Elite. In L.A. he is performing in a power trio, holding down lead guitar/lead vocal duties and blending with Austin Nicholsen (bass, backup vocals) and David Jordan (drums).

There is an interesting All Access Magazine interview with Alestar at http://allaccessmagazine.com/vol4/issue09/alestar_digby.html. A New Jersey native, Alestar was a child prodigy on the piano and then proceeded to the drums. He attended the Manhattan School of Music where he studied classical composition. Since moving to Hollywood, Alestar has played such top venues as The Roxy, the Key Club, the House of Blues, Troubadour, and at The Gig.

ALESTAR DIGBY MP3s:

Jackie

Looked Around the World

The Best

Copyright © 2006-2007 Alestar Digby, All rights reserved

*

THE FADED

www.myspace.com/thefaded  

THE FADED repeated their 2005 success by once again capturing the Rock City News award for Outstanding Alternative Band in 2006. Fronted by the moody and childlike singer Gene Blalock, who also adds guitar and synth programming, The Faded is a guitar band platform for Steven Damien, who is rock solid with pop motiffs and technique. Serge on drums and percussion, and Michael on bass give a dynamic center to this sophisticated pop-rock sound.

The Faded has been dubbed “the new darlings of the Sunset Strip," which seems odd because theirs is not a street appeal. They seem more about teen listening on headphones in a bedroom surrounded by Panic In the Disco posters. Their catchy melodies and yearning lyrics may skew younger yet, like a soundtrack for a Scooby Doo movie. This is not to deter anyone from listening to The Faded, who are great, just locked in to a certain persona, which is the trade off for having the benefit of a high definition lead singer.

The Faded at the Metro in Chicago

THE FADED: These guys are great at posing for pictures, though the shot below reveals that some of them are just tiny little people, while others are unusually large.

THE FADED MP3s:  

Beautiful

Make Me Stronger

I Want More

Copyright © 2006-2007 The Faded, All Rights Reserved 

*

www.bangtango.com

Bang Tango, in the form of last-original-member-left-standing Joe Leste plus guitarist Mark Simpson, bassist Lance Eric, and drummer Timmy Russell, has found new life with the mid-2006 release of From the Hip. From the hip indeed, this is some pretty mature, deep-groove rock from a band that began life as a follower during the  "hair band" revolution of the 1980s.  Joe and his San Diego mates - originally guitarists Kyle Stevens and Mark Knight, bassist Kyle Kyle, and drummer Tigg Ketler - garnered attention in 1987 with the release of Live Injection, a live-in-concert LP. That got them signed to Mechanic/MCA. They landed "I'm A Stranger" on the movie soundtrack of Black Roses and placed "Love Injection" on a compilation LP titled Street Survivors (Metal Blade). Psycho Cafe was Bang Tango's debut release with Mechanic Records. That was in 1989 and a video for "Someone Like You" from the LP got rotation on MTV, particularly during the "Headbanger's Ball" program. Bang Tango worked in the "glam/sleeze" genre. The LP didn't take off though. Bang Tango released Dancin' On Coals in 1991, Ain't No Jive in 1992, and Love After Death in 1994, but  the band wasn't destined to survive the Seattle grunge period. They dropped from sight and the members went their separate ways, though Bang Tango remained dear in the hearts of metal enthusiasts of the period.

Bang Tango founders Joe Leste and Kyle Kyle "reunited" in 1998 when another live concert LP, Live, was released, then in 1999 a compilation called Greatest Tricks was released as was a new LP United. That was the last that was heard of Bang Tango until 2006, when Joe Leste brought back this new unit.

True metal heads have not warmly embraced From the Hip, songs for which were written by Joe Leste and various collaborators and not the original writing team. It is odd, in a way, that Bang Tango is dogged by their own early innovations, which, somewhat predating the Red Hot Chili Peppers, blended funk with their metal. The funk is gone from the new Bang Tango and all that is left is a straight ahead sleazy street rock, which the new unit does really well. On the strength of the 2006 release, I would say Bang Tango is re-visioned and sounding better than ever, but I'm not tied to their original sound. The new stuff sounds like Guns n'Roses to me, really strong if in a really familiar vein.

Joe Leste 

Photo by diana gualda www.colordrock.com

FROM THE HIP CREDITS

The lineup of players for the From the Hip studio work included: Joe Leste – lead vocals, Alex Grossi – lead guitar, Anthony Focx – guitar, b-vox, Chris “Curtis” Roach – bass, and Matt Starr - drums

BANG TANGO MP3s:

It's All Okay

Mother Mary

I'm The One

Copyright © 2006-2007 Bang Tango, All rights reserved

*

www.sinsofadivinemother.com

SINS OF A DIVINE MOTHER is the band in which you will find former Bang Tango bassist Kyle Kyle. Sins does an ultra hip techno rock, and for my money if you want to hear current grooves from old members of Bang Tango, listen to the MP3s of Sins Of A Divine Mother on their MySpace site: http://MySpace.com/sins.

WILES

JOHN

KYLE

ODYSSEY

www.cindyalexander.com

CINDY ALEXANDER won NBC's 2006 "Star of Tomorrow" talent competition. (You can go to her website to see a video of her rehearsal for the show, which is great.) It is a continuation of a string of successes that include L.A. Music Award nominations in the Songwriter of the Year and Female Vocalist of the Year categories, and included Album of the Year for See Red, her debut effort. She has gone on to land tracks on compilation LPs, on movie soundtracks (Here on Earth, Smokers, Sugar and Spice, among others) and television soundtracks (Party of Five). Cindy’s the real deal as a performer, a heavyweight talent with a great voice and outstanding musical chops. She’s a real pro whose touring partners include America, Suzanne Vega, The Bacon Brothers, Joan Osborne, The Bangles, Gin Blossoms and other established acts. Her second LP, Smash (2003), was again nominated the L.A. Music Awards Album of the Year. She is on a roll, going from one success to the next, all of which is nicely detailed on her site.

“Pnut,” as she is known to her fans – an allusion to her low birth weight – has become a darling of critics and a proven crowd pleaser. In 2005 she released her third LP, Angels and Demons, which has been called “a masterpiece” in some critical corners. Cindy connects. Not long ago she did a live radio performance on KLOS 95.5 FM that sold out her entire available inventory of the CD.  All she needs for continued career expansion is more exposure, and she's working on that.

Cindy did the USO Pacific Rim tour in January of this year, performing at U.S. military installations in Japan. Since then she has stepped away from her regular performing schedule to work on a new album. 

HOUSE CONCERTS - RARWRITER recently did a profile on San Francisco House Concert Producer Drew Pearson, and it is interesting to learn that Cindy Alexander is available for such intimate events. A gifted performer, she would be extraordinary to see and hear in this type of setting. - RAR

CINDY ALEXANDER MP3s:

Cindy Alexander has four clips of tunes from Angels and Demons posted on her MySpace site at http://www.myspace.com/cindyalexander 

www.coreylandis.com

I wouldn’t be the first to speculate on the potential of COREY LANDIS, the Ohio-born transplant to L.A. whose acerbic, witty piano-based music has rightly been compared to that of Warren Zevon, Billy Joel and Tom Waits. He has qualities that may elevate him to the upper echelons of "Cole Porter-dom." You’ve probably seen him, if not playing around town at The Derby and The Mint then on the FOX sitcom “That 70s Show,” where he had a recurring role as the young Red Forman.

Corey seems first and foremost, however, to be a writer who is comfortably associated with song. His website bookends him with iconic L.A. writer Charles Bukowski and, curiously, non-writer Elvis Presley – Corey was born on the day Elvis died, which also happened to have been the birthday of Bukowski. He hardly needs the coincidental connections, because his music nicely establishes an identity all his own. He is a soloist, a guy best taken with minimal accompaniment because, as good as the music is, you want to hear the words.

Corey released Feast of Scraps, his first LP, in 2003. From his website - "Feast was written, arranged, performed, and produced by Landis in his home studio over the course of about six months. It's a lo-fi, acoustic chronicle of frustration, failure, and the trying to hold on to something when everything around appears to be crumbling.” His song "New Year" from Feast of Scraps was voted a finalist in the 2005 International Songwriting Competition, placing in the top .5 percent of around 15,000 entries.

In 2005 he released 14 Old Messages, his second LP, another home studio production that featured his playing every note on the recording, including guitar, piano and trumpet.

Corey is currently working on mixing his third LP, which is a studio recording with string and woodwind arrangements by Joey Newman, (That would be Randy's nephew. You see symmetry here?) "...as well as the fantastic ear of mixer Greg Hayes, recalling records such as Elton John's self-titled release, Randy Newman's Sail Away, REM's Automatic For The People and the works of Biff Rose and David Ackles.” - from his website.

Corey Landis was nominated in the Outstanding Solo Artist category for the 2006 Rock City News Awards.  

COREY LANDIS MP3s:  

At Christmas

Be Nice to Me

Copyright © 2006-2007 Corey Landis, All Rights Reserved

*

Click here to download a .pdf of the RARWRITER review of Corey Landis (Urban Myth Records).

JOEY NEWMAN

www.joeynewman.com

Joey Newman is a third generation film composer of the famed Hollywood musical Newman dynasty. A drummer and pianist, he began serious composition studies at the Berklee College of Music in Boston, earning his Bacheloer of Music Degree in 1998. He returned to Los Angeles where he began working in television with Emmy-winning composer W.G. "Snuffy" Walden, having co-composed the final seasons of ABC's Once and Again and NBC's Providence while providing orchestrations for NBC's The West Wing and a number of other prime-time dramas and sitcoms.

Joey's feature credits include Pursued starring Christian Slater, Michael Clarke Duncan and Gil Bellows and Stealing Time starring Peter Facinelli, Ethan Embry, and Scott Foley. Recent TV credits include the CBS drama "Clubhouse" starring Dean Cain and Christopher Lloyd and the docu-reality hit "Little People, Big World" for TLC. Joey has also composed the music to many short films, including the award-winning festival favorite The Vest starring Sky McCole Bartusiak, Enrico Colantoni and Kellie Waymire. Joey continues to compose the music to "Lineage," the world's largest online game, from NCsoft. In addition to composing, Joey has orchestrated, arranged and/or conducted the scores to a number of features including Disney/Pixar's Cars, Universal's Seabiscuit, MGM's Sleepover, and Miramax's An Unfinished Life. - from his website (©2006 Infusion Studios Inc.)

Joey Newman contacted RARWRITER after the review of the Corey Landis album was published and had this to say - "I think that Corey is a talent that's truly undiscovered. He has this "rough-around-the-edges" way about his performance and music, but as I listen to his material I feel the longevity in it. I can put this record on 10 years from now and still love it the same way I do now. It's all because the guy knows how to write a good song - bottom line. Corey can write the quirky tune to the beautiful ballad and it feels seamless. I knew that if Corey could get a hand to help him polish his sound up enough (from arrangements to mixing) to compete with the rest, he would wind up with something unique and amazing - and that's what I feel we've put out."

RAR has been messing up the Newman family tree, not through incursion but through misreporting (a specialty here at RARWRITER.com). Here is how Joe Newman explains his branch of the famous family's "tree."

"There's one thing about your review I just wanted to point out and that would be my family connection. I am related as a 'cousin' and not a 'son' or 'nephew'. Here's how it works: 

"My grandfather is Lionel Newman¹ - Alfred's² youngest brother.

"Thomas Newman³ and David Newman⁴ are brothers and Alfred's sons.

"Randy Newman⁵ is Irving Newman's⁶ (Alfred's other brother - he had 6 brothers!) son.

"So, as you can see Randy is 1st cousin to Thomas and David and I am 1st cousin once-removed to all of them (as I am 3rd generation composer and 2nd cousin to all of their children). I only mention this because you were so specific about my relation. I must say, that is the first time anyone has thought that I was Thomas' son! If anything, I mostly get Randy's nephew...."

So, did you get that? No, I didn't either...but the notes below will help.-RAR

¹Lionel Newman - Joey Newman's grandfather was piano accompanist for Mae West before scoring three dozen films and several TV series, adapting and conducting scores for hundreds of other films. His classic TV themes include "The Many Lives of Dobie Gillis," "Adventures in Paradise," and "Daniel Boone." He was Music Director for all of Marilyn Monroe's films at Fox (Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, There's No Business Like Show Business, River of No Return, and Let's Make Love). He received eleven Academy Award nominations, and won an Oscar for Hello Dolly! in 1969.

²Alfred Newman (1900-1970) - Major American composer of music for films. A musical prodigy, Alfred was conducting the Broadway musicals of George Gershwin, Richard Rogers, and Jerome Kern by the time he was 20 years old. He accompanied Irving Berlin to Hollywood, becoming the conductor for Samuel Goldwyn's United Artists films, then did a 21-year stint as Music Director for 20th Century-Fox Studios, composing the studio's familiar fanfare. Developed the means of synchronizing the performance and recording of a musical score to film. Dubbed "the Newman System," it remains in use to this day. He received 45 Academy Award nominations (a record in the music categories, now shared with John Williams), winning 9 times; in 1940 he was nominated for 4 different films.

³Thomas Newman - Yale educated film-scorer broke through in 1984 with the film Reckless. Earned two Academy Award nominations for his scores to Little Women and The Shawshank Redemption; the only double-nominee of 1994. Subsequent successes have included his scores for American Beauty (winner of the Grammy Award for Best Score Soundtrack Album for a Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media), Road to Perdition, Finding Nemo, Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events and The Good German. He composed the music for the television version of Angels in America, as well as for HBO's series "Six Feet Under," which won Grammy Awards in 2003 for Best Instrumental Composition and Best Instrumental Arrangement. At the 79th Academy Awards, Thomas Newman appeared in the opening segment by Errol Morris correcting a claim that he had been nominated for and not won an Academy Award eight times: "I've lost seven times; tonight it will be eight."

⁴David Newman - Son of  Alfred Newman, brother of Thomas Newman, and a cousin of composer Randy Newman. The USC product found film score success working with  actor/director Danny Devito, beginning with Throw Momma from the Train (1987) through The War of the Roses (1989), Hoffa (1992) and Matilda (1996). He received an Academy Award nomination for the score to the animated film Anastasia. In 1997, David Newman began a four year stint as the music director for the Sundance Institute.

⁵Randy - Nephew of Alfred Newman, son of Irving Newman, Randy became well-known to the general public as a pop commentary songwriter, penning such humorously acidic classics as "Sail Away," "Political Science," and "You Can Leave Your Hat On" and many others. L.A.-born and UCLA educated, Randy grew up in New Orleans and benefited from the musical culture of the place. He has been writing film scores since 1971 (Cold Turkey), has been nominated for Academy Awards 16 times, and won in 2001 for "If I Didn't Have You," written for Monsters Inc.

⁶Irving Newman - Father of Randy, brother of the family's grand patriarch Alfred Newman.

Joey Newman (born September 9, 1976) is a Los Angeles-based film composer, orchestrator, arranger and conductor.  He is the son of bassist/vocalist Joe Frank Carollo of the 1970's soft-rock group Hamilton, Joe Frank & Reynolds. He is also the grandson of Lionel Newman, the grandnephew of Alfred Newman and Emil Newman and the cousin of Randy Newman, Thomas Newman, and David Newman.  Joey was educated at the Berklee College of Music in Boston, MA. - from Wikipedia

Elke Robitaille

www.elkemusic.com

Elke Robitaille is another young Canadian born singer/songwriter who has come south to establish a major following built on regular appearances on the L.A. folk club scene. She produces a rhythmic acoustic sound that features strong pop hooks and matches the quality of plaintive honesty one hears in her voice. She is tough, challenging, profane and confident.

Elke released her first LP, Doors, in 2002 and then followed up with last year’s Naïve. A graduate of the Musicians Institute of Hollywood, California, Elke is trained in recording engineering and music business management and runs her own Indie-Folk label, Rag Veda records.

She was did well in the 2006 Rock City News Awards, with nominations in the Outstanding Solo Artist category.

BOTTOM RIGHT: I love this photograph of Elke from her MySpace site, with the caption - "This was my faithful Tour Van. We spent a lot of great miles together!" Elke has been something of an itinerant musician in her young career, fitting for a folkie. 

Pictures Courtesy of www.rickweller.com

Elke Robitaille MP3:

Together Alone

Please Stay

I'd Rather Fly

So Lost

Copyright © 2006-2007 Elke Robitaille. All rights reserved 

* Elke also has MP3s on her website, as well as on her MySpace site at www.myspace<