What happened to this site?

[Djalma Junior]

Dear!

What happened to Mark, administrator of the site and this forum?
Fortunately there are great members here and where possible updated news about Burt!

But it was so good to see this site with updated news on your main page.

Best regards,
Djalma Jr.

[mark]

This is what happened?

I know, I know. She's not an excuse, but now that she's a little older and not quite as much work, I need to carve out some time to update the main page of the site, but in the meantime thanks again to everyone for posting in the forum to keep the Burt news flowing. I hope everyone enjoyed as Merry a Christmas as we did.

[vincent.cole]

Bonjour Mark;

She looks like a bundle of joy! Now the fun begins!

Congratulation!!!

P.S. I hope you bring her up on Burt's music (lol)!

Take care mon ami.

Vincent

[GehVorbei]

Congratulations Mark, all the best to you and your family!!! I really mean it...

I have been posting here for almost a decade now and I have developed a great fondness for your relaxed and permissive editorial style.
I'm glad that you permit such a wide range of discussions, sometimes on subjects with only an indirect link to Burt and his oeuvre.

And I'm glad that you allow for such spirited and sometimes heated debates without censoring them. I have some vague but maybe false memory that you might have intervened once or twice over the years but not more. And I think that has served us all very well. And it seems like everytime things get a bit too heated here, there is like a natural cooling-off period afterwards.

And while I can understand that some members want a more steady stream of "official" information, that's personally not so much my concern. These days I live (musically) on slow-burning anticipation. I'm turning 50 next year and most of my favorite artists have passed during the last decade or have stopped recording. And maybe it's different with some of you guys but I have not developed the same emotional attachment I felt to Luther and Whitney, Isaac Hayes and Teddy Pendergrass, Lena Horne or Lou Rawls for anybody "new" in a long time. Maybe with the sole exception of Amy Winehouse.

So everything that might still be coming from my few remaining, musically active favorites is greatly anticipated. Most prominently from Burt and Dionne. So the news that Burt is in the studio and writing songs with Bernie Taupin goes a long way with me...I'm pretty hopeful that sometime in 2013 there will be a new (and maybe last) great album release from Burt. And if it won't happen, please don't tell me too early:-)

If I may say so, the one major grudge I had with this site in 2012 and I hope it will not happen again with the Bacharach/Taupin thing in 2013. Is how much energy some people put into killing the anticipation on the Warwick/Ramone collaboration. After all of the negativism here I started to believe myself that "Now" probably would turn-out to be a cheaply produced, karaoke-like bunch of leftover tracks from "My Friends And Me" with only a very limited, if any, involvement by Phil Ramone.

Everybody has the right not to like Dionne's current voice, which I still treasure, because she touches me like nobody else...But "Now" is a high quality musical offering and there are tracks on that CD I will listen to till the end of my life. Most notably the 2 songs from Hal and Burt's "Love Is Still The Answer".

And I'm sure that Burt's 2013 release will be a triumph...I'm filled with anticipation.

On another high note: Dionne also has a new baby in the family...That's her son Damon's little daughter Whitney.

[gillanddon]

As you know ... I'm completely with you all the way GehVorbei. Dionne's Phil Ramone recordings are fabulous ..Love Is Still the Answer, Be Aware .. it's a great CD which hasn't had the big profile it deserves. Dionne as always has a select audience. I listened to a concert the other evening with Diana Krall and have to say ... fell asleep. What a boring voice! Lazy and boring. Where have all the great divas gone !!!! Rumer ... hey what? Adele ... lousy vocals good song writing maybe .. Post Dionne .. seriously running out of steam ..

[An Enormous BB Fan]

Awww... Julia is so beautiful, Mark! What a bundle of joy! Congratulations!

[someonenameddavid]

There will be big news in the new year for Vincent's neighborhood and our friends in Europe, but I don't really have permission to share until I get the green light from Ms Eliza

David

[Roberto Pinardi]

Mark...lucky man!
Roberto

[someonenameddavid]

Gillandon it is funny that you should mention Adele, since she has been collaborating with Ryan Tedder of "One Republic". Ryan is a childhood friend of Ms. Eliza. In fact she was just reminiscing last night about how Ryan's Pomeranian dog bit her on the nose when she was at his house....

Small world.

David

[blueonblue]

Mark,
Beautiful child !

All the best to you,
"blue"

[Djalma Junior]

Dear Mark,

Thanks for your attention!

Your daughter is beautiful! Congratulations and may God give good health, peace and long life!

A great new year to you and all the forum!

Best regards,

Djalma Jr