Baby Washington

When blogger Nicole Nared-Washington got pregnant, she knew she was going to miss Bellinis with her girlfriends and a glass of wine with dinner—and then she realized she this was an opportunity to stay social and fun without the booze. In Baby Proof, Nared-Washington shares the 50 recipes that got her through dinner parties, barbecues, date nights, and even morning sickness.

There is no bigger issue for healthy infants than sleeping through the night. In this simple, straightforward book, Suzy Giordano presents her amazingly effective "Limited-Crying Solution" that will get any baby to sleep for twelve hours at night - and three hours in the day - by the age of twelve weeks old.

"Dave Godin's Deep Soul Treasures - Taken From The Vaults… Vol. 1-5 (1997-2019)" is a series of compilation albums curated by Dave Godin, a renowned soul music expert, journalist, and compiler. The albums feature a selection of classic soul and R&B tracks, with a particular focus on deep, often obscure or rare, cuts that were influential in the development of the genre.

Including tracks from her early-'60s period at Roulette, Ballads is a collection aimed at casual fans of Dinah Washington, one of the most bewitching vocalists of the jazz era. Granted, this wasn't the peak of her career; she only recorded five records with the label, most of them shortly before her death. Contrary to the thoughts of jazz critics, though, Washington was still singing with strength and subtlety, and the compilers deftly build the theme of an ongoing relationship with this sequence of standards. Beginning with the dreamy "Lover Man," Ballads progresses through the first blush of a love affair ("I Didn't Know About You") and takes in a few highs ("If It's the Last Thing I Do") along with plenty of lows ("He's Gone Again," "What's New?," "These Foolish Things," "Baby Won't You Please Come Home"). The arrangements are smooth and occasionally overly maudlin, but the assured voice of Dinah Washington triumphs in every setting.

With this jewel we start a little excursion into classic soul. Ella's singing and phrasing often reminds me of Janis Joplin's "Kozmic Blues" from the same year. Very soulful, very bluesy, every song gives me shivers down my spine.

Dave Van Ronk epitomized the "folksinger's folksinger" apprenticing through immersion in the folk music revival's epicenter of Washington Square, mentoring musicians such as Bob Dylan, Suzanne Vega, and many more. Drawing from unreleased recordings as well as from the Smithsonian Folkways vault, Down on Washington Square paints a musical mosaic of Van Ronk's artistry from his first Folkways album to his final concert in 2001. It keeps alive the genius of a consummate folk performer who inspired audiences, musicians, and a motion picture - Inside Llewyn Davis, directed by Joel & Ethan Coen.