Watch David Cassidy Perform "How Can I Be Sure?"

Hot Trax '72: Godspell! Royal Scots Dragoon Guards!Cher! More!

New records entering the charts 50 year ago this week.

Pipes and Drums Military Band of the Royal Scots Dragoon Guards - Amazing Grace

America - I Need You

David Cassidy - How Can I Be Sure

Marvin Gaye - You're the Man

Cher - Living in a House Divided

Joe Tex - You Said a Bad Word

The Raiders - Powder Blue Mercedes Queen

ZZ Top - Francene

Godspell - Day By Day

J.J. Cale - After Midnight

Jerry Butler - I Only Have Eyes for You

The Guess Who - Guns, Guns, Guns

New Pop Culture Books: Rocketeer Art of Dave Stevens! DC Book of Lists! Marvel Fun and Games! More!

Click the links to order items from Amazon.

In April of 1982, The Rocketeer debuted as a backup feature from Pacific Comics. From those humble beginnings the artistry of Dave Stevens caught the imaginations of countless readers and became a worldwide sensation, even being turned into a big-budget feature film! And in 2009 when IDW launched its award-winning Artist’s Edition series, The Rocketeer was the inaugural release, even winning a coveted Eisner Award that year. The book quickly sold out and went into a second printing. Now, more than 10 years later, The Rocketeer is soaring back with a new 40th anniversary printing.
    As with all Artist’s Editions, the art reproduced in this book has been meticulously scanned from the original art. Readers will be able to peruse these pages and see all the quirks and nuances that make original art so unique—blue pencil notations, white out, gradients in the ink, and so much more. Unless you were looking over Dave’s shoulder as he painstakingly drew these pages, this is your best chance to see the art of The Rocketeer as close to the originals as possible!

A weave of biography, criticism, and memoir, Shine Bright is Danyel Smith’s intimate history of Black women’s music as the foundational story of American pop. Smith has been writing this history for more than five years. But as a music fan, and then as an essayist, editor (Vibe, Billboard), and podcast host (Black Girl Songbook), she has been living this history since she was a latchkey kid listening to “Midnight Train to Georgia” on the family stereo. 
    Smith’s detailed narrative begins with Phillis Wheatley, an enslaved woman who sang her poems, and continues through the stories of Mahalia Jackson, Dionne Warwick, Aretha Franklin, Gladys Knight, and Mariah Carey, as well as the under-considered careers of Marilyn McCoo, Deniece Williams, and Jody Watley. 
    Shine Bright is an overdue paean to musical masters whose true stories and genius have been hidden in plain sight—and the book Danyel Smith was born to write.

Ronnie Spector's first collaboration with producer Phil Spector, "Be My Baby," stunned the world and shot girl group the Ronettes to stardom. No one could sing as clearly, as emotively as Ronnie. But her voice was soon drowned out in Phil Spector's Wall of Sound, and lost in Ronnie and Phil's ensuing romance and marriage.
    Ronnie had to fight tooth and nail to wrest back control of her life, her music, and her legacy. And while she regained her footing, Ronnie found herself recording with Stevie Van Zandt, partying with David Bowie, and touring with Bruce Springsteen.
    Smart, humorous, and self-possessed, Be My Baby is a whirlwind account of the twists and turns in the life of an artist. More than anything, Be My Baby is a testament to the fact that it is possible to stand up to a powerful abuser and start on a second―or third, or fifth―act. In fact, almost six decades into her career, Ronnie Spector is still touring.

Take a tour behind the scenes at the NBC television special that relaunched Elvis Presley’s career as a stage musician. Author Steve Binder—who directed the TV special—provides exclusive content that gives fans even more insight into the performance that many see as a high point in the King of Rock’s reign of American music. Elvis ’68 Comeback includes full-color photographs and detailed commentary on the show’s development and production, making this an excellent addition to the shelf of every Elvis fan. Foreword by film director Baz Luhrmann.

Each entry in this book celebrates another corner of DC's past, present, and future. It revels in the rich tapestry of DC's characters and history. Or histories, for that matter. Each first meeting of Batman and Superman is listed, as are highlights of Hawkman's many reincarnations and Jimmy Olsen's transformations. Harley Quinn’s most peculiar career choices? They make quite a resume. The DC Comics Book of Lists also has a chronological list of artificial intelligence, from the 2nd century to the 823rd—with Metal Men, Brother Eye, and Computo along the way—and a Mount Olympus family tree presents Wonder Woman’s expansive list of relatives. Legacy characters like the Flash and Green Lantern are highlighted, profiling each character to don the mantle, and Suicide Squad members are memorialized in a breakdown of who was killed on each mission. From superheroes and villains with tattoos to the many cats prowling around the DC multiverse, you’ll find a surprise or two on every page.
    Illustrated with full-color comic book art throughout, each page of The DC Comics Book of Lists presents a new discovery or way of looking at cherished characters.

Mike Mignola has been (and remains!) one of the preeminent comics creators of the past several decades. His career was already firmly established for his outstanding work on characters like Batman, Wolverine, a myriad of beautiful covers and more… And then came Hellboy. Mignola’s iconic creation struck a meteoric chord with fans from the very start and has not abated in the 25-plus years since the character’s debut.
    This Artisan Edition features the first five issues of Hellboy in Hell as well as a wealth of historic supplementary material: the first three Hellboy stories–the two initial four-pagers, produced for promotional purposes, and the 10-page story from John Byrne’s Nextmen #21–plus The Corpse, and two other tales selected by Mignola for inclusion. Nearly every page has been scanned from Mignola’s original art and showcases the artist's gorgeous work as closely as possible to the physical page–this is a book for fans of great storytelling and students of the craft.
    An Artisan Edition endeavors to mimic as closely as possible the experience of viewing the actual original art–for instance, corrections, blue pencils, paste-overs, all the little nuances that make original art unique. Unless you are holding Mike’s art in your hands, there is no way to better experience his original art.

Can you solve riddles with the genius of Iron Man? Spot the Invisible Woman before she disappears? Crack Nick Fury’s secret codes?
    Hulk-smash through every challenge and help your favorite Marvel characters conquer the most head-scratching, pulse-pounding puzzles and games in the Multiverse. Journey through Doctor Strange’s mystic maze, unscramble Spider-Man’s word webs, weather Storm’s seek-and-find, fly through word searches faster than Falcon, and learn to conjure the Scarlet Witch—all you need is a pencil. Featuring crosswords, mazes, word searches, trivia, drawing tutorials, connect-the-dots, and more from Marvel’s Fun and Games magazine, this a-maze-ing compendium is a throwback to classic comics and an activity-packed adventure perfect for Marvel fans young and old.

From 1968 to 1976 Martin L. Greim's COMIC CRUSADER was one of the most highly respected comics fanzines in the country. This volume collects all 17 issues, complete and uncut.

Just as his Rock 'n' Roll oldies album hit the market, Morris Levy, the Mob-connected owner of Roulette Records, released Roots, an unauthorized version of the same record. Levy had used rough mixes of John's unfinished Rock 'n' Roll recordings-and claimed the former Beatle had verbally agreed to the arrangement. The clash led to a lawsuit and countersuit between Levy and Lennon.
    Attorney Jay Bergen, a partner in a prestigious New York City law firm, represented John in this epic battle over the rights to his own recordings. Millions of dollars were at stake.
    Jay tells the intimate story of how he worked closely with John to rebut Levy's outrageous claims. He also recounts how John explained his recording process in poetic, exacting terms before a judge who knew little about the Beatles and John's solo career.
    Lennon, the Mobster & the Lawyer catches the high drama of the courtroom skirmishes in this previously untold story. It also paints a detailed personal picture of John and his world in 1975-76, when he was soon to have a new son and went into happy seclusion to be a husband and father.

Between 1966 and 1967, "the Monkees sold more records than the Beatles and the Rolling Stones combined!" Whether this is true or not, they had a revolutionary TV series and they raised the bar of rock concerts. As songwriters and musicians, their musical diversity ranged from the pioneering use of the banjo and the Moog synthesizer in pop music to becoming one of the forerunners in the creation of country rock. This creative unity won admirers like the Beatles, Jimi Hendrix, Frank Zappa, and Timothy Leary. However, when they exposed the modus operandi of the American record industry, they paid the consequences, and public opinion designated the Monkees as just a prefabricated group at the height of the counterculture. After the band broke up, its members were relegated to brutal ostracism. Peter Tork was the most affected. Though he was a scholar, a classical musician capable of playing seven musical instruments, and an excellent actor and songwriter, for some Peter was simply "the dummy." This book seeks to do justice to the Monkees' extraordinary legacy in pop culture, revealing the ups and downs of the band's backstory and tracing Peter's dramatic trajectory and pilgrimage through life. A true rock and roll survivor, but, above all, a brilliant artist. "

New Music Friday Playlist: Ty Segall! Hollie Cook! Nancy and Lee! More!


What caught our ear this week.

New Teaser and Poster for Marvel's Baymax Series on Disney+

Pop Culture Roundup: Daredevil on Disney! Detective Comics #27 Redux! More!


ITEM!
 DC Comics is republishing Detective Comics #27, which features the first appearance of Batman.

ITEM! Disney+ is planning a revived "Daredevil" series.

ITEM! Frank Miller and artist Emma Kubert (daughter of Andy and granddaughter of Joe) are collaborating on a fairy tale-inspired young adult comic.

ITEM! Electronic music composer Vangelis, famed for his themes to "Chariots of Fire" and "Blade Runner" has died at age 79.

New Music Out May 20: The Clash! Coltrane! Mavis and Levon! More!

Our picks this week. Click the links to order from Amazon.






New Marvel Legends Figures: Mojoworld! Japanese Spidey! Retro Sentinel! More!

Check availability on Amazon.

Mojoworld 4-Pack
Mojoworld figure 4-pack includes Longshot, Marvel’s Mojo, and Dazzler 6-inch action figures, as well as a Wolverine slug figure 

Marvel Legends Series 60th Anniversary Japanese Spider-Man

War Machine

Retro 375 Sentinel

Firelord

Disney+ Sharon Carter

Pop Pic: Tallulah Featherhead

 


Pop Culture Roundup: Marvel Buys Stan! Wonder Twins Deactivated! More!


ITEM!
Marvel Comics has purchased the rights to Stan Lee's name and likeness. I just hope they give Jack Kirby credit for creating him.

ITEM! An Elton John documentary is planned by Disney+.

ITEM! A Wonder Twins movie planned by HBO Max is no longer planned.

ITEM! Whoa! The Matchbox Mobile Command Center is cool!




Watch Marvin Gaye Perform "What's Going On," 1972

Check Out This Cool "The Curse of Frankenstein" Poster by Francesco Francavilla

A cool image by one of the better comics artists working at the moment. Available tomorrow, 5/19, only from Mondo. Details here.

Pop Pics: Laurel, Hardy and Sheila Ryan


 

Check Out Mezco's New, Retro Amazing Spider-man Figure


More info here.

Details:

The One:12 Collective Amazing Spider-Man evokes the nostalgic look and feel of his early appearances in his comics, suited up in a classic Spider-Man suit with web detailing and a spider insignia on his front and back. The Amazing Spider-Man figure boasts a whooping 5 head portraits! These include a light-up eyes portrait, 2 masked portraits with different eye shapes, an unmasked Peter Parker portrait, and a Spider-Sense portrait.

Peter Parker has perfected his web formula and is brimming with all-new web accessories including a shield, parachute, body slingshot, lasso loop that attaches to the torsos of most One:12 Collective figures, a backpack that he can wear, and more. Track down the Green Goblin with the included spider-tracers or capture the perfect photo for the Daily Bugle with the included camera that can be worn around Spider-Man’s neck.

Part time student, scientist, and photographer - full-time superhero. With arachnid abilities, Peter Parker swings above it all as Spider-Man who lives and fights with the wisdom of “with great power comes great responsibility”.