Jim Allio New CD Rollout Begins!

Gettin' in my car and headin' towards ya, February 10, 2009, record #2, "Second Chance." Produced, arranged, written and sung by me, Jim Allio aka James Anthony.

Track list and more particulars to follow shortly.

Favorite Records 2008

So many excellent records came out in 2008 that it's hard to pick my very favorites, but I've narrowed it down to these, my personal Lucky 13 for 2008 (in no particular order, that would really be impossible!)"

MIA, Kala
Jazmine Sullivan, Fearless
Britney Spears, Circus
Lykke-Li, Youth Novels
Raphael Saadig, The Way I Feel
This Time Next Year, The Longest Way Home
Michelle Williams, Unexpected
Alanis Morrisette, Flavors of Entanglement
Solange Knowles, Sol-Angel and the Hadley Street Dreams
Coldplay, Viva La Vida
Madonna, Hard Candy
Q-Tip, The Renaissance
Beck, Modern Guilt

Also loved the 2008 releases by these artists: Jenny Lewis; Dwele; Mary J Blige; Lil Wayne; David Archuleta; N.E.R.D.; Ting Tings; Pussycat Dolls; Lady GaGa; Duffy; Kanye West.

Already can't stop listening to the new releases by Common; Keyshia Cole; Musiq Soulchild; Beyonce; Mya.

For Your Consideration: Viola Davis and Beyonce Knowles

I saw two movies yesterday dealing with moral ambiguity in different settings: "Doubt," set within the confines of a Catholic parish in the early 60s and "Cadillac Records," which takes place in the music business during roughly the same period. Both were excellent films, engrossing and challenging on several levels, and both caused me to examine my own beliefs about right and wrong and my reactions to what occurred in the stories presented. "Doubt" is of course a big Hollywood award contender, but "Cadillac" is equally as powerful and accomplished.

I have to single out one performance in each film out of uniformly superb casts. In "Doubt," Viola Davis, usually seen in grim television police procedurals, is astounding as the mother of a young boy who may or may not have been molested by his priest, riveting and commanding. The play of emotions that wash over her face and in her eyes is amazing, and that same ability to reveal the inside of a character on the outside is also Beyonce Knowles' feat in her recreation of blues/jazz/rock singer, Etta James, in her early recording career days. Any thoughts of Knowles as a cookie cutter r&b diva or smart stunt casting to draw in a young audience will be immediately dispelled watching her transformation into the messy, conflicted force of nature that was James, particularly back then. There are two scenes in particular which are done quietly in tight close up of her face responding to something Adrien Brody as her mentor/lover, Leonard Chess, is saying that are as brilliant moments of acting as I have seen all year.

And, oh yeah, she sings the hell out of those Etta James standards, too, so all the purists can breathe normally.

Do not miss either performance. I expect to see both nominated for Academy Awards.

SINGERS' SINGER ED REED: Yoshi's Late Show

Jazz vocaliste par excellence Ed Reed held court at Yoshi's Oakland Monday night - that's the where and the when - and I was fortunate to be off work and able to attend his late show. The show kicked off at 10 PM and there was a decent sized crowd in attendance, despite the hour and the fact that it was a Monday night. The occasion was a celebration of the release of Reed's sophomore effort, "The Song Is You" (I love that song, too bad he didn't sing it) and if anyone embodies song, it is Mr. Reed. He brought along a crack band composed of Brian Cooke (piano), Anton Schwartz (reeds), Robb Fisher (bass), Akira Tana (drums, and they had the audience sitting slack-jawed at their tremendous creativity and drive.

But it was Ed Reed who was the glue that held the show together, with amazing reimaginings of classic and obscure American standards like "Daydream," the incredible "This Shouldn't Happen to a Dream" and a powerful "Ask Me Now." He took the Broadway classic, "Where or When," and transformed it into a powerful meditation on memory, loss, age and time.

The power of love weaves its way in and out of Reed's repertoire, and his sometimes silky, sometimes booming voice handles the myriad chord changes and melody shifts with ease and aplomb. It was a pleasure to sit there wrapped up in the moody spell Reed cast with his superb vocal style and on point commitment to the lyric.

I haven't mentioned Ed Reed's age or his oft-related history. While both inform his song selections and his interpretations of them, they are just part of the whole artistry that makes up this world class singer.

Ed Reed - a name to remember. Don't miss him next time he comes around.

Oakland Chinatown Street Festival 2008

I love Oakland. I wake up on a warm Sunday morning, run down to Fruitvale Peets for my AM coffee, pick up my nephew at his sleepover and bring him home to my sister's home where they were recuperating from a slumber party bridal shower for my next sister-in-law. Breakfast was laid out and I had a chance to catch up with my sister, her husband and my nephew about their recent trip to Paris and Provence. Of course they want to go back immediately, or at least next year! Can't say I blame them. I've been three times in the past ten years.

Then I have a three-plus mile walk around Lake Merritt, a man-made, salt water jewel of a body of water in the middle of Oakland's downtown, replete with micro-climates around every corner, sailboats, gondolas, joggers, Children's Fairyland, bocce ball courts, fountains, flower gardens and more eye candy than the mind can retain without a camera at the ready.

From there I drive a few blocks away to Oakland's rapidly enlarging Chinatown district for their annual street fair, where vendors sell all kinds of plants, clothes, jewelry and snacks of every stripe including, of course, Chinese, although the neighborhood is rife with Chinese restaurants and bakeries. Even Safeway was handing out free snack and drink samples, and the live bands were kickin'. The crowd-pleasing dragon dancers had all of us, especially the youngest, captivated.

Yes, there is much more to Oakland than takeover robberies and some rough neighborhoods.

Loose Ends: "Transsiberian" Late Show

I'm at loose ends these days, especially on my weekends, particularly on Fridays. My partner of nearly seven years moved in six months ago and within two weeks our relationship basically dissolved. It was a shock to discover I no longer had my companion by my side. Yes, we still cohabitate, but weekends I'm on my own while he's out having a ball. I have friends, but I've been so wrapped up in this relationship for so long, all my time off work involved my erstwhile partner. I need to make some new friends to socialize with, and I find the prospect daunting. Fridays after I've run errands and taken care of business all day, I end up at home, listening to music, playing online, and feeling overwhelmed and a bit anxious about leaving the house.

Last night I decided that I'd had enough of staying in the house from Friday afternoon until Saturday morning stewing in my own juices. I drove into Berkeley for a late show of "Transsiberian," a train thriller with Woody Harrelson, Ben Kingsley, Emily Mortimer and Kate Mara, excellent and diverting. It got me thinking about how two people can be married for years and still be unknown to each other in many ways. I guess that can be a good thing sometimes.

It was showing at the Shattuck Theater, and I had time to notice the detail in the theater, which is fixed up like an Egyptian temple, similar to the Grand Lake in Oakland. I wonder if they are connected. In any case, it's beautiful.

On my way back to my car, I noticed the sculpture above near the Berkeley Public Library. Perhaps it is part of the library. I don't know. I thought it was beautiful, too.

I'm still at loose ends, but taking baby steps. Step one, if you will.

Lesley Gore at the Bleecker Street Theatre: It's My Party...Yeah, Right!

Lesley Gore has added another hyphenate to her resume: playwright. Yes, she had written plays or parts of plays before with Carol Hall or, on her own, about a baseball team (!), but for the past six weeks she has been workshopping the first act of a new autobiographical piece entitled "It's My Party...Yeah, Right" at the inaugural Pillowfight Festival at the Bleecker Street Theatre in Greenwich Village as part of the Hot Chicks of Substance series. I had the distinct pleasure of attending two of the workshop performances on July 25 and 26 and all I can say is that I was blown away. Although it has elements of nostalgia and a classic showbiz fairy tale arc (think Lana Turner sitting on a stool at Schwabs), her story is remarkable because it is true and, very possibly, close to unique in the record business of yesterday or, for that matter, today.

But "It's My Party...Yeah, Right" is more than a recap of a legendary early rock and roll survivor. It is truly revelatory and generous and, in the same way Gore has retained contemporary relevance while her girl group contemporaries have continued on the Yesterday Treadmill, her story is powerful and emotional and packed with surprises. One in particular which coincides with her genuinely meteoric rise to fame blew the enthusiastic audience's collective mind and, while she told it, it seemed a pin could drop and no one still would take a breath. This took enormous honesty and courage, hallmarks of Gore's career path and unceasing artistic growth. She closes this portion of the show with an incredible version of "Out Here On My Own" which took on a whole new signficance in this context.

And, no, I won't reveal it here. It's Lesley Gore's story to tell, and you can hear it when her one woman show is completed and begins making the rounds.

I will tell you that Lesley shares marvelous memories of being a little girl in Brooklyn and later in Jersey and tells terrifically engaging tales of the steps which led inexorably to her becoming a singer. These stories are delightful and she tells them with panache and verve. She does more than talk, of course. She sings songs by Charles Aznavour and Nat King Cole that were significant in her musical development and does snatches of early rock and pop by Rosemary Clooney, Teresa Brewer and others as well as snippets of others like Charlie Chaplin's"Smile."

There is a wonderful passage detailing how she found her voice coach, Myron "Pappy" Earnheart and recording demos with Pappy and his wife, Hilda. These demos are played and she joyfully sings along with them. Learning who wrote the amazing "Travel On" would have been worth the price of admission alone, and her recounting of her first "Ed Sullivan Show" is colorful and riveting like a passage from a particularly well written short story or novel.

Act One closed with "It's My Party" becoming a huge record and door after door opening for Lesley Gore. We will have to wait for Act Two or the finished play to be performed to hear and see the rest of the story. She does close the show with a couple of her classics and the audience is on its feet cheering for both.

Following the show, a few of us got a chance to chat with Lesley, always warm, friendly and forthcoming. She told us that she will be unveiling a new act at upcoming shows at the Mohegan Sun and the Metropolitan Museum of Modern Art later this year with a great deal of new material. I also overheard her telling a reporter that there has been significant interest by some producers in her show, and that's exciting news for sure.

Rahsaan Patterson at Yoshi's San Francisco: Spirited as Fine Wine

July 20, 2008. Friday night. Following an earthy lamb shanks and sweet corn ravioli supper at an excellent Italian trattoria in Potrero Hill, Tracy Barrantes-Allio and I made our way to the Fillmore district for our inaugural visit to the new San Francisco branch of the esteemed Yoshi's jazz nightclub, also famous for their sushi and other Japanese savories. We were immediately struck by the sophistication and glamour of the club, all recessed, ultra-flattering lighting, deep browns and reds, warm lemon glow and not a bad seat in the house.

R&B/jazz/neosoul genius Rahsaan Patterson was the headliner, and he owned the crowd from the moment he took the stage with his finely tuned crack band and superb male-female backing duo, despite ongoing sound problems. Patterson may not have been able to hear correctly through his monitors, but the audience didn't share his difficulty. We were amazed and astonished as he rocked the house with a tour-de-force vocal performance that took us on a sonic and emotional journey during his cruelly brief set. Tracy's only conscious exposure to the songwriter and vocalist extraordinaire had been the day after I invited her to attend by sampling some songs on iTunes, and she was as blown away as I was, grinning ear to ear. With his fluid and loose manner, it is very easy to picture Rahsaan Patterson as he must have been as a child singer. He maintains much of a child's freedom and unconscious grace.

I have all four of his CDs and love them all - they reveal more complexity and layers as time goes on, and "The Best," his collaboration with Van Hunt, suspended time in a jawdropping revelation of the song that night. The Sade cover was a genuine crowd pleaser, as was his youthful hit, "Wanna Be Where You Are," which closed the show with a dazzling splash of vocal pyrotechnics. Rahsaan Patterson definitely left us wanting more.

The Roots Ferocious Paramount Set

The Roots threw down with another dynamic show at The Paramount Theatre in Oakland tonight, June 8, 2008 opening for Erykah Badu. Their truncated set began right on time (7:30 PM) and was over 55 very fast minutes later. They ran through many of their signature tunes from "Things Fall Apart" and their seemingly endless roster of classic records, many of them combined into lengthy medleys. A virtuoso performance of "You Got Me" anchored the too brief set, and a medley of seminal hip hop jams was fun for an ecstatic audience. A few songs from their excellent new "Rising Down" CD were slipped seamlessly into the relentless hip hop band jam session. I missed the battle of the drummers that is a highlight of their shows, but Black Thought and ?uest Love led the band ferociously. I like that word. Ferocious. It perfectly describes The Roots live shows.

Wholehearted Endorsement for Tucker's Catering

I'm the lucky man who used Tucker's Catering For All Occasions to cater a recent surprise birthday party I had at my condo. I met with one of the two co-proprietors, effervescent no-nonsense Eunice Tucker, to go over the menu and make sure we were on the same page. I wanted a soul food buffet to be served and Tucker's Catering met and exceeded all expectations and then some. Not only did they prepare all the food from scratch, but they set up the dining room for a buffet, had a team help bring the food, dishes and everything else in, and stayed around to replenish the most popular items as needed. Co-owner, irrepressible and joy-filled Gwen Tucker, prepared much of the food, especially the incredible roast beef brisket in a nonpareil au jus. The fresh fruit and veggies appetizers were the bomb, and the main menu - roast beef, turkey, ham, macaroni and cheese, green salad, rolls, greens, green beans, dressing - were served up with aplomb and guests were calling to talk about the food the following day. I had to hurry and put aside some of my favorites before they were either eaten up or snatched up by partygoers! The peach cobbler for dessert had tongues smacking and wagging simultaneously and multiple trips to the cobbler pan were witnessed.

Tucker's Catering is already in demand in the Oakland area and with good reason. They returned the following day to help with cleanup and remove their equipment, and the Tucker Sisters proved not only to be superb cooks and caterers, but delightful party planners as well. Their reputation is well earned and my freezer is testimony to delicious leftovers to be served in the future.

But don't take my word for it. Check them out for yourself. You can reach Eunice Tucker at 510-632-1621 or 510-866-4571 and Gwen Tucker at 510-299-1149.

Don't sleep on this! You deserve food this scrumptious to be served at your function. They are well worth their extremely affordable rates for homecooked goodness and party panache.

Dining Out in Puerto Vallarta: Epoca and VallarTako

Spent a week in Puerto Vallarta, tropical, humid and gorgeous, my first time to Mexico, surprising considering how close it is to California. We stayed at the Hacienda Spa and Hotel, a wonderful resort about a five dollar taxi ride from el centro and zona romantica where all the action is. I felt like I was staying at the Ponderosa! The included meals were surprisingly good, and the staff was gracious, accomodating and helpful, especially Arturo, who actually wrote down movie theatres, addresses and such for me when I asked about them.

Even though our meals were included, we had to venture out and try some of the restaurants raved about in the guidebooks and a couple we happened upon. In the former category, Daiquiri Dicks did not disappoint, with terrific shrimp appetizers, fish tacos and a fabulous fish sandwich.

In the latter category, Epoca was a real standout. Just over the Vallarta bridge to zona romantica, we sat at a table right on the beach on the edge of the world with waves crashing inches away yet never getting us wet. Torches blazing, balladeer singing "Guantamera" to us, the atmosphere could not have been more perfect and then the food came. It was beyond delicious all the way into one of the best restaurant meals I have ever eaten. I had the sea bass on a potato cake bed, perfection on a plate, and my friend's chicken made me wish I'd ordered a second main course. It was that good. The crab cake appetizers were scrumptious as well and the service above reproach.

We happened upon VallarTako on a day of back street shopping and vowed to return the next day for lunch. Turns out it was only their second day of business according to the delightful manager, Andrea, but if our visit is any indication, they will be open forever. The lachambres, tacos and quesadillas we wolfed down like we had no bottom were savory, tasty and pretty darn addictive. I'm sure there will be a whole chain of VallarTakos in Andrea and company's future. They are that good.