Audio Beaverhausen: the Pet Shop Boys Are Super

They're back and, indeed, they are still super!

The PSBs return with an impressive new album. And they are, in fact, supermen in this pop world. Look at their longevity! Who knew when they did "West End Girls"?

Super is exactly what the title claims! An exciting new reinvention from the electro-pop-disco duo, bound to be a chart hit.

Pet Shop boys are the godfathers of electronica, and here they are, back to prove to you how enduring they are. From the first track to the last ("Into Thin Air"), this is a continuous pleasure to my ears.

Optimistic, upbeat and fantastic, and frankly, the PSBs still have an edge. From club kids to club hits, the Boys are back in fine fettle!

Audio Beaverhausen: Kylie at Christmas

Kylie Minogue's new Christmas album is a most pleasant piece of pop for the holidays. Ms M is certainly doing everything to promote it across The Pond, including get an enthusiastic kiss and a hug from Prince Harry at the Royal Variety performance, catching his eye while wearing a snow-white, feathery headdress that any drag queen would envy.

With sweeping orchestration, the album is as tastefully delectable as a candy cane. Although I'm no fan of the trend toward duets with dead celebrities, Kylie's "Santa Clause Is Coming to Town" goes down easily enough.

I much prefer her cover of The Waitresses' "Christmas Wrapping" with Iggy Pop or her duet with Sister Danii. "Only You" with James Corden is pleasant all right though seems a bit off-topic.

Kylie's interpretation of Chrissie Hynde's "2,000 Miles" is just plain wonderful as is her covering holiday classics like "Winter Wonderland" and Irving Berlin's "White Christmas." There are numerous beautiful ballads sprinkled throughout. "Santa Baby," a single released previously only on holiday compilations, is a bit of a pop classic by now.

Kylie at Christmas is recommended by Buddy B, who's giving it two hands in the air. Available at Amazon.com and at Barnes & Noble. The deluxe edition, which I bought, contains a bonus video.

Audio Beaverhausen: Marcus Simeone's Haunted

Haunted is a haunting album, from November 2011, by Marcus Simeone. Marcus will be returning to the Metropolitan Room in NYC with Tracey Stark in "On Sacred Ground: the Songs of Janis Ian" on November 21st and December 5th, which I will review.

On Haunted, Marcus shows off his versatility and range, kicking off with the award-winning titular song.

Marcus' voice is often compared with Johnny Mathis' with its velvet smoothness. (He's even covered "Misty.") The selection of songs on Haunted is impeccable.

Mr Simeone has performed at many of Manhattan's best cabaret rooms. This particular adult-contemporary album is from the CD Baby label. Whether singing Rogers and Hart or Motown, he puts his individual stamp on each song he sings. The six-time MAC Award winner has released a total of five albums and each one will impress you.

Give Haunted a listen this November, and let it haunt you with its mood, perfect for the fall season. Available at CD Baby, Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble.

Audio Beaverhausen: Judy Collins' Strangers Again

Judy Collins' latest album, Strangers Again, begins with its title track, a duet with Ari Herst. In fact, the album is all duets. Judy's voice has perhaps never been as strong as it is here, and typically as clear as crystal.

Ms Collins has some great male vocalists aboard to sing with: Jackson Browne, Jeff Bridges, Don McLean and Willie Nelson to name a few. I think a duet or two with women would have made Strangers Again even more striking but alas.

I have to admit that I prefer to hear Judy solo. Nonetheless, any new release by the singer is an event. The songs are all gorgeously composed. Fabulous rendition of Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah" with Bih Bihman.

Judy reprises "Someday Soon," an old folkie song of hers, and Stephen Sondheim's "Send in the Clowns," a number Ms Collins famously covered that was a radio hit. This version is sung with Don McClean.

"Races" is a strong closer.

 Recommended to all of Ms. Collins' fans for the holiday season.

Audio Beaverhausen: Everything Is Beautiful with Marcella Puppini

Marcella Puppini's new solo album is every bit as upbeat as its title insists. Everything Is Beautiful is now available through Amazon.com as a UK import though, at the time of this posting, it has temporarily sold out. An American label is expected to release a domestic edition soon.

The new album is from the "queen of electro-swing" But heavy is not the head that wears that crown, as Marcella's wonderful sense of optimism and good cheer is as distinct as it is disarming, something the world ~ and pop music ~ are in need of these days.

Pop culture is very much on Ms Puppini's mind, evident in titles like "Stop Googling Me" and in odes to media icons Betty Boop and Doris Day.

In "Let's Stay in Bed" and "In the Mood for Trouble," Marcella's mischievous side toys with listeners. Everything Is Beautiful's title track is a fabulous modern honky-tonk number that will have you qvelling with delight. [Link below.] Throughout, the singer's sense of tongue-in-cheek, campy humor is very much on display. I'm in her camp!

You can't stay in a foul mood if you listen to this album, I guarantee. Sleekly produced throughout, it makes for a great holiday present and ~ while you're at it ~ snap up one for yourself!

https://vimeo.com/129702371

Audio Beaverhausen: Janet Jackson Is Unbreakable

Janet Jackson gets her groove back with her new release, Unbreakable. Buddy Beaverhausen gave this a listen and was not disappointed in the pop singer's new effort.

Janet is now a survivor and she's out to prove it to us. This album has a new gritty/ funky quality replacing the sweetness of her younger years. ("Too much sugar is bad for your smile" are lyrics from the single "No Sleep.) Songs of experience.

I bought my copy of Unbreakable on cd at Rebel Rebel on Bleecker off Christopher Streets. The cd has liner notes, lyrics and photos.

Janet no longer has the whispy, girly sound of her early days. Her voice has strengthened and toughened with time. Lots of brass on this album, including trombones and trumpets. It's a new but becoming sound for her. She and her band also conjure up memories of Sly & the Family Stone in "Gon' Be Alright." Her first single from the album is "No Sleep," a rather sexy little tune. I expect to see it climb the singles charts soon.

Overall, despite a couple of misfires out of 17 tracks, this album is recommended to Janet fans, produced by Jam & Lewis, her old collaborators. R&B, dance music, adult/contemporary, rock, soul, it has it all going on!

Audio Beaverhausen: Introducing Darlene Love

Darlene Love is smokin' hot at 74. We should all look this good at her age. Her powerful alto puts today's divas who require auto-tuning to shame.

The irony of Introducing Darlene Love's very title is that she should require no introduction at this stage of her career. Working for Phil Spector in the '60s, she was anonymously presented as The Crystals, Bob B Sox & the Bluejeans, etc.

But, after her large focus in the Oscar-winning documentary, 20 Feet from Stardom, she achieved the public attention she deserves.

I grew up listening to Darlene's voice. I learned who she was when I was a teen. She's been one of my top idols ever since.

With songs written by Bruce Springsteen, Steve van Zandt, Elvis Costello and more, Love is in great company. The album launches with the gospel rouser "Among the Believers" before the album's first proposed single, the Spector-influenced "Forbidden Nights." "Night Closing In" by Bruce Springsteen is another strong contender as a single,

But Love doesn't stay within that comfort zone as she successfully tackles hard rock, sings a duet, power ballads, blues, spirituals. songs of world peace, all with much drama and full-throttle orchestra and back-up vocals.throughout.

Darlene's one cover is of "River Deep, Mountain High" and she makes it her own, knocking it out of the park. Spector originally wrote the song with Darlene in mind but replaced her vocals with Tina Turner's at the last minute.

Beautifully produced, executed, sung. Kudos all around. Very highly recommended. The cd version has a great pamphlet of liner notes, credits and pictures. Available on Amazon.com on both MP3 and cd formats.

By the way, Rolling Stone did a piss-poor job reviewing this album. Most responders to that review felt its author had dismissed this without even listening to it and I have to agree.

Audio Beaverhausen: Lesley Gore, Someplace Else Now

Hard to believe but by 1972, at the young age of 31, Lesley Gore -- one of the great pop music hitmakers of the 1960s -- was considered a has-been by the recording industry. She returned that year with this blue-eyed soul/folk album but, at the time, Someplace Else Now was not a hit by any means. It was released by Motown on vinyl.

The rare existing records now sell for hundreds of dollars on-line. In mid-August of this year, Real Gone Music released Someplace Else Now for the first time on cd and MP3.

Ms Gore wrote or co-wrote all the tracks on this album. Her co-writers were her brother Michael (with whom she'd later write an Oscar-nominated song for the movie Fame, "Out Here on My Own") and, mostly,  Ellen Weston).

When Ms Gore left us this past February, a great talent was lost. She was a trailblazer. "You Don't Own Me" was a revolutionary proto-feminist anthem that is still covered to this day. She was a major influence on the '60s girl-group sound and a major recording, radio and stage star. She later became an "out" icon, supporting LGBT rights.

In the wonderful Allison Anders film, Grace of My Heart (1996), Bridget Fonda plays a closeted '60s pop star based on Lesley who actually co-wrote this song:



I saw her twice, the last time at the Girl Power concert at Lincoln Center's Damrosch Park. I met her once, almost ten years earlier after a show at Joe's Pub in NYC. She was extremely gracious and charming, and we chatted briefly about her career.

Someplace Else Now is a very good album and I recommend this to fans of the singer. It showcases a very different side to Ms Gore, as the title might suggest. This was the single that was released in '72:



After the brief introductory song "For Me," Lesley launches into the power ballad "The Road I Walk" and follows that with the Shirley Bassey-like "Out of Love."

"Don't Want to Be One" is a gentle throwback to her '60s work with a slight samba beat added. "What Did I Do Wrong?" is another great ballad but it might have benefitted by a more uptempo arrangement in her '60s style.

The title track, with an opening, simple guitar accompaniment that grows with orchestra and chorus is a beauty and perhaps my favorite. "Mine" is another gorgeous number with a burgeoning orchestral and choral development.

Overall. a compositional beauty and a good album. But, listening to this, I miss the Lesley from her more pop Sixties days. A little more pizzazz would have been the icing on the cake.

Audio Beaverhausen: Frank Sinatra Remembered by Julie Budd

Hot off the success of her album, They Wrote the Songs, comes Julie Budd's Remembering... Mr. Sinatra. She covers 11 songs in all therein (two being part of a three-song medley) that are associated with the legendary crooner.

Ms Budd shares a personal connection to Sinatra, actually. At age 16, she was invited by him to appear in his act at Caesar's Palace in Vegas. Perhaps that's why her interpretations of these standards sound so warm and embracing.

Her perfectly modulated voice can be restrained or strong depending upon the dramatic requirements of the material. The production is by long-time associate Herb Bernstein with Ms Budd.

The cd launches with "I've Got the World on a String" followed by "All the Way." Julie covers both beautifully with her usual flare.

With a voice as clear as crystal, Julie Budd again proves herself to be one of the best vocal interpreters of the Great American Songbook. On this latest effort, I especially enjoyed "In the Wee Small Hours" and Duke Ellington's classic "Don't Get Around Much Anymore." "How About You?" makes for a wonderful finish to an essentially flawless album.

Sinatra, born in Hoboken (where I lived for a year in the '80s), is a fellow Jersey boy. This year is his centennial celebration globally.

Remembering... Frank Sinatra is available for pre-order at Amazon.com as the official release date is September 1st. Cabaret Scenes magazine has a cover article coming out this week, Julie will be promoting the album September 28th in NYC at Barnes & Noble on 86th and Lex., and appearing at NYC's Metropolitan Room on Sept. 10th at 7 pm. The show will sell out, so call for reservations now at 212-206-0440.

Again, a special thanks to Richard Skipper, Julie's press manager. http://www.richardskipper.com

Audio Beaverhausen: Florence + the Machine's Big, Blue, Beautiful

How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful is Florence + the Machine's new album. It is a beauty, displaying a new maturity in style, composition and production. A stunning, soulful 11-track compilation, Florence and the band are squarely in the territory of British divas like Adele and the late Amy Winehouse. Blissful.

Big, Blue, Beautiful is anthemic for me right now, as I'm vacationing at my cousins' home in Cape Coral, Florida, where sky meets ocean over and along a sprawling landscape. Big, blue and beautiful indeed. I'm sure I'll forever associate this music with my fun- and love-filled week. Also, there's a '60s prog-rock feel to the new album that's brilliantly tres retro/progresso that all generations here are interested in. Love it.

Mid-tempo, Motownish with occasional Spectoresque flourishes, How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful, produced by Markus Dravs, is a gem of a pop album. LGBT fans, in particular, will adore Florence Welch in full classy-diva/rock-star mode. It also makes a very dramatic breaking-up album if you need to gift someone with a hint.

"Ship to Wreck" is a heartbreaking opening track. The title song is wonderful and catchy as all get-out. Love "Queen of Peace." Personally ironic, the penultimate track is "St. Jude," my mother's patron saint. She lived not far from here in southern Florida, on the Gulf. Even more ironic, it is followed by the gospel-tinged song "Mother" that closes the album.

The cd version of How Big contains copious production credits, liner notes and pictures.

Marcus Simeone's Alone with Tracy Stark

I received a promo cd through a friend this week. The first things I noticed were that the artist, Marcus Simeone, has movie-star good looks and that Tracy Stark is on his album. Not necessarily in that order but... all right, yeah, maybe! I just completed a Q&A with Ms Stark, and have met her at the cabarets, most notably at the Lesley Gore salute at 54 Below.

http://djbuddybeaverhausen.blogspot.com/2015/05/exclusive-q-with-usical-director-tracey.html

Mr Simeone's tenor voice is refreshingly appealing, starting with Ms Stark's lovely arrangement of Rogers and Hart's "Where or When" that introduces the album, Alone. (It is later briefly reprised.) Other classics like Rogers & Hammerstein's "I Have Dreamed" are also covered outstandingly, the latter a lovely duet with Ms Stark.

More contemporary material is scattered throughout, lending a beautiful balance to this effort. "If You're Right" is an instant classic. Janis Ian's lighthearted and pithy "Married in London" has a very "out" message about equality, preceding Ms Ian's touching "When Angels Cry."

Billie Hoiday's "Strange Fruit" is covered in an unfortunately still-relevant political flourish. Melissa Manchester's "Better Days" shines.

"The Twelfth of Never" and "Misty" wrap up this fine album. The Johnny Mathis influence on Simeone's style is unmistakeable.

New Yorkers: Simeone will appear at the Metropolitan Room with Ms Stark for four dates starting in September.

Audio Beaverhausen: The Return of Melissa Manchester

Melissa Manchester's new album, You Gotta Love the Life, kicks off with the catchy title tune co-written by the singer. It is, indeed, a splendid pop album released independently, which is where the musical action seems to be these day, outside the mainstream drivel. Herein, I think she proves there is life artistically -- big and bright -- after and beyond Clive Davis.

Manchester's collaborative efforts are rich, especially on "Other Side of the Phone." She wrote the music for that track with lyrics supplied by the legendary Hal David. Duets with Stevie Wonder (on harmonica), Dionne Warwick and Al Jarreau (vocals) among others are all delights.

The album's styles span pop to jazz to soul, all rendered resplendently. MM's ballad rendition of Ellie Greenwich/ Jeff Barry's "Be My Baby" is a pop gem. Her jazz-cum-conga arrangement of the medley "Let's Face the Music and Dance/ From This Moment On" is bliss, as is her bonus track, an accapella rendition of Rogers and Hammerstein's "Something Wonderful." The original "Open My Heart to Your Love" is another stand-out. She even ventures into Country successfully with the number "Feelin' for You."

Ms Manchester has a right to wear the tiara on her album's artwork. Not only is she one of America's pop princesses, but this is certainly a crowning achievement to her long career. Flawless and very highly recommended. You're gonna love this album!

You Gotta Love the Life is beautifully nuanced from start to finish. The cd version is handsomely designed and is loaded with informative liner notes and credits. Available on Amazon.com. Melissa Manchester will be at 54 Below in NYC March 26 through 28.

Audio Beaverhausen: Kate Pierson, Guitars and Microphones

Kate Pierson of the B-52s lets down her beehive on her first solo album, Guitars and Microphones though, at the outset, she's already singing about hairspray. Songs are collaboratively written by Ms Pearson, Sia and others.

After the first track, "Throw Down the Roses," with its catchy chorus, we're further assured that this album won't disappoint with its poppy numbers in the punk-rock/dance, '60s-influenced, but '80s style of the B-52s, with the album's first single, "Mister Sister," an anthem for her trans fans. Kate's distinctive voice is assured, strong and a comfort to listen to throughout.

Ballads like "Crush Me with Your Love" are fresh and uplifting, with a psychedelic folky touch you might choose to cut a rug to with a mean, spontaneous frug. Think Kate au-go-go! And the effervescent "Bottoms Up" is very Bye, Bye Byrdie, by the by.

Animal rights themes are explored in songs "Bring Your Arms" (sea turtles) and "Wolves" (wolves). Fear not. Neither tune gets overly preachy and the pop, retro punk music lifts us up on a giddy wave while delivering a serious message..

The ten tracks on this cd are consistently strong and almost magical in their individual appeal, right down to the mournful final ballad, "Pulls You Under."

Available at Amazon.com. Kate Pierson will perform solo, promoting Guitars and Microphones, at City Winery in NYC on February 25 and will be touring with the B-52s (Irving Plaza in New York on May 25). Thanks to her promotional people at Lazy Meadow Music, Kate's indy label, for sending me the album to review. New Yorkers can also purchase the cd at Rebel Rebel on Bleecker St. between Grove and Christopher in the West Village. Very highly recommended.

David Corley's Available Light

God, I love indy music! David Corley's debut album at age 53, Available Light, reminds me why. Late bloomers are the best. Take it from Buddy Beaverhausen.

Corley's baritone voice is on the corner of Tom Rush Street and Tom Waits Avenue, right off Bluegrass Boulevard and Lou Reed Road. The songs (all written by Mr Corley) bring me back to my early-'70s folkie/college days with their mellow melodies and vocals.

There's not a badly written or blandly conveyed track on this cd. Everything comes across with a savory, experienced and confident vocal style from this Indiana native. Back-up girls Kate Fenner and Sarah McDermott provide a delightful support and counterpoint to Corley's voice.

The album is immediately engaging with its first track, the title tune. "The Joke" is a nice, upbeat number that stands out on this collection. Corley can distinctly provide a clever turn of phrase or two, as in "The End of the Run," when he sings "I can justify the ends but I don't know what that means." The artist says his songs were inspired by his dreams and by the written words of James Joyce, Walt Whitman, William Blake and others. The lyrics, certainly, have a very literate and dignified quality, not frequently found in today's pop music. A little more variety in the music would have enhanced the listening experience.

Produced by Hugh Christopher Brown, Light is available on iTunes, Amazon and Cd Baby. I expect to see Colby's show at the new Living Room, in Brooklyn (January 13). (If Beaverhausen can't go to the Lower Eastside, the Lower Eastside comes to Beaverhausen.) Special thanks to Bernadette Quigley.

Audio Beaverhausen: The Salvatones' Wonderful World

What a wonderful cd to listen to Christmas night!

On my last post, I discussed seeing and hearing The Salvatones live at St. Peter's Cathedral NYC. I left with this much more secular cd, nonetheless filled with beautiful accapella renditions that soothe the soul.

Wonderful World is is a winter's marsh-mellow, New Age-styled recording. of heavenly voices covering songs that range from "Sidewalks of New York" (who the hell was Mamie O'Roarke?) to the titular song made famous by Louis Armstrong.

There are a few non-English numbers, two Kurt Weill numbers from his New York era ("Lost in the Stars" and "My Ship"), the uplifting "Fields of Gold" and even "Lullaby of Broadway."

There's not a misfire on this disc. Somewhere between Enya and Manhattan Transfer, The Salvatones have their own distinct style. Highly recommended to lovers of choral voices and inspirational singing for the winter 2014-15.

Audio Beaverhausen: Idina Menzel's Holiday Wishes

Idina Menzel's Holiday Wishes (Warner Brothers) is a Christmas album of unadulterated and unabashed Yuletide hooey. Here we have an assortment of the standard Christmas numbers ("White Christmas," "The Christmas Song"), for the most part, with some newer, but nonetheless already well-canvased, ones like covers of Mariah Carey's "All I Want for Christmas Is You" and Joni Mitchell's "River."

The first song on the album is the carol "Do You Hear What I Hear?" and Ms Menzel attacks it, as she does every other track on Holiday Wishes, with overly eager intensity. How can we help but hear! Her style, while perfectly suited for Broadway pop musicals, is an awkward fit for a holiday recording. Brought to bear on "Have a Holly Jolly Christmas," it's positively unnerving. Idina Menzel's voice is that of a Broadway belter combined with the pop melismatic, tremulous stylings a'la Whitney or Beyonce. Should that be suited to your musical sensibilities, the album will be a smorgasbord for your ears, but others may have reason to beware.

Menzel's duet with Michael Buble on (you guessed it) "Baby, It's Cold Outside" is the lamest version of this venerable tune I've yet to hear. Bereft of any sense of sincerity or, even more simply, playfulness, it's as chilly as the weather described in Frank Loesser's lyrics. "What Are You Doing New Year's Eve?" contains some awkward phrasing and little else to distinguish itself. (What I'll be doing New Year's Eve will be avoiding hearing this particular cover of the pop classic.) "When You Wish Upon a Star" (from Disney's "Pinocchio") is a nice inclusion for a holiday album but suffers from a horrible arrangement and overly dramatic, hyperbolic production and vocal.

While "December Prayer" is something fresh and not altogether hard on the ears, Ms Menzel's version of "All I Want for Christmas Is You" is both badly arranged and delivered. It brought me all the Yuletide joy of discovering a lump of coal in my Christmas stocking. Oppressive rather than peaceful, the album's rendition of "Silent Night" hurt my ears. At that point, I began to long for a silent night myself but managed to make it through the final three tracks.

Listen, Idina, even Carole King came a cropper when she came a-caroling. http://djbuddybeaverhausen.blogspot.com/2011/11/king-of-holidays.html Girl, we loved you in Wicked and in Rent, we loved hearing your voice in Frozen and your version of "Let It Go" that took us to the dancefloors last winter. Maybe not so much love for you in If/Then http://djbuddybeaverhausen.blogspot.com/2014/03/broadway-beaverhausen-ifthen-notgood.html, but, be that as it may, we sincerely wish you'll cease and desist recording any future holiday anthems. Let it go indeed.

Audio Beaverhausen: Susan Boyle Carries On with Hope

It seems like Susan Boyle has been around for eons though her debut album, I Dreamed a Dream, was released in 2009, a mere five years ago. Since then, she has released six albums, the  latest, Hope, released just last week. Each of these recordings has charted on US Billboard's top 20.

Though not a Christmas release (Boyle has already done two of those), it is appropriately marketed for the season. Inspirational though largely secular in tone with the exception of a back-up choir that could be nothing but Christian in its resounding style, and the occasional church/gospel number like "Oh, Happy Day," Hope has five different producers and is Boyle's best work since her debut on I Dreamed a Dream.

With the most practically perfect enunciation in song since Julie Andrews, Susan Boyle tackles pop standards with her dreamy mezzo-soprano. Her choices are, in large part, exquisitely suited to both her talent and image. Gratefully, there is more upbeat production on Hope than we have come to expect from Ms Boyle in the past. Sarah McLachlan's "Angel" soars with S.B.'s interpretation. "The Impossible Dream" is covered impressively, so much so that I admit I got a tad teary-eyed on first listen. And the contemporary pop number, "You Raise Me Up," originally performed by Josh Groban, is a sonic stunner done diva-style with her own church choir.

John Lennon's "Imagine" is disappointingly anemic compared to most of the tracks on Hope, though the gospel-belting rendition of Paul Simon's "Bridge Over Troubled Water" (though oft covered by others before) is here in all its glory. This Boyled "Water" confirms the 53-year-old white diva from Blackburn, Scotland is no slouch as a gospel singer while the opening track, "Wish You Were Here," is a dazzling version of the Pink Floyd song that engaged me from the get-go.

Classics like "Will the Circle Be Unbroken?" and "Abide with Me," as well as "Oh Happy Day" bring new life to these numbers due to the obviously ardent passion with which they are performed.

As for Ms Boyle's physical make-over (cd pamphlet has several publicity photos), it becomes her gorgeous voice. And, frankly, nobody wants to see a dumpy diva. So make-up, hair-do, fabulous frocks! And, of course, the voice that took her from telly's Britain's Got Talent to an incredible recording career. Carry on, Susan Boyle!

Audio Beaverhausen: Bette Gives Us a Great Big Kiss

Bette Midler's already done For the Boys, now it's time for the girls. It's the Girls gets released (on cd and available for download) today in the U.S.

Covering the girl-group oeuvre is nothing new for the Divine Miss M who, on her new concept album, returns to her roots. Why, she was singing these songs before they were back in fashion, ever since her performances at the Continental Baths in the early 1970s. She created the girl-group revival for crying out loud! Her debut album included covers of The Dixie Cups' "Chapel of Love," The Shangri-Las' "Leader of the Pack" and, quite famously, The Andrew Sisters' "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy of Company B."

At the time, this was all done with a high camp flare. And it started a trend toward embracing vintage songs and the styles of pop music from previous decades, often with a sly wink. Forty years later, the public has come to love and to respect the girl-group sound. Time and tide has replaced the camp value of these songs with a new sense of esteem. The style of female harmonies in popular music has survived changing tastes throughout the many years. And so, it is no surprise that Miss Midler approaches the songs on It's the Girls quite differently than in her bathhouse days for the most part.

The album is Bette's first in eight years. It is produced by Marc Shaiman, who composed the songs for the Broadway musical version of Hairspray, and who obviously has studied the '60s girl-group sound scrupulously. Shaiman has produced tracks for Ms Midler in the past. No surprise, then, that this labor of love is such an effervescent concoction. In fact, it's the feel-good album of the season.

The Ronettes' "Be My Baby"  is respectfully covered by Bette and kicks off It's the Girls with a pleasant but rather middle-of-the-road arrangement (though given a Phil Spector-lite treatment with heavy percussion, Bette's harmonies on back-up vocals (as The Support Ho's) and castanets). The follow-up track, "One Fine Day," is done with similar obeisance.

It's a joy to hear Bette impersonate The Andrew Sisters once more ("Bei Mir Bist du Schoen") and rock out with "Baby, It's You," "Tell Him," "Too Many Fish in the Sea" and "You Can't Hurry Love." (Take that, Diana Ross!) I especially delighted in hearing Bette duet with her friend, legendary girl-group icon, Darlene Love, on "He's Sure the Boy I Love."

Bette makes "Mr Sandman" her own with a Hawaiian feel, "Come and Get These Memories" gets delivered herein as an achy-breaky ballad and 90's girl group TLC's "Waterfalls" is particularly heartbreaking as covered by our Miss M. Carol King's "Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow" is, likewise, poignantly interpreted.

Bette's virtually back at the Baths with her campy rendition of The Shangri-Las' "Give Him a Great Big Kiss." (Bette famously referred to them as "the toughest girls in show biz.") Her spoken end to this song is not to be missed!

Bette swings out, sisters, on the closing track, The Boswell Sisters' "It's the Girl." An upbeat end to a great 15 tracks.

Run, don't walk to snatch up It's the Girls. The cd has lots of nice photos of its star and liner credits. And tell them Buddy Beaverhausen sent you to their record stores. Not that it'll get you anywhere but you can spread my name around indiscriminately. I rather like the idea.

Bette will be touring in the summer, promoting her new cd. I plan to be there.