Recently, I asked my oncologist what I should be doing in addition to chemotherapy to prolong my life. He came up with several suggestions, one of which was to listen to uplifting music, and there is nothing more uplifting than the CD I am going to review for you today.

Dion Dimucci (a.k.a. Dion and the Belmonts), had a number of big hits in the late fifties and early sixties, among them Teenager in Love, Runaround Sue, and his signature song, The Wanderer.

Although most people don't realize it, Dion has remained active in recording to this day. In 1989, he released a new CD, Yo Frankie, which contains the absolutely delightful, rip roaring rocker, And the Night Stood Still and the lovely ballad Always in the Rain. In 2000, Dion released a new CD, Deja Nu, which includes Shu Bop (The Lost Track), a lovely song about the first time he saw his future wife, a wonderful ballad Every Day (That I'm With You), and a gorgeous acapella version of Springsteen's If I Should Fall Behind.  Buy both CD's now - you won't be disappointed.

But the CD I want to review at length today is Dion's newest recording, New Masters. This year, Dion and his backup band went into the recording studio and recorded completely new versions of his greatest hits. Now I am normally opposed to revisionism of this kind, but after listening to this CD, I am pleased to report that these are the definitive versions that everyone should be listening to. In fact, if you have the original recordings, throw them out and buy New Masters. Here's why.

The Voice. Aging rock stars (Dion is now 64) often have problems hitting the high notes (for example, Paul McCartney, Elton John). They change the melody to accommodate their voices, and the results are disappointing. Dion has no such problem. His voice is as sweet and pure today as it was in 1960 - there is absolutely no discernible difference. In fact - and this is the shocking part - Dion effortlessly adlibs into even higher registers than in the original recordings, and he does it without resorting to a falsetto. Simply stated, Dion still has the best voice in rock and roll, and it shines on New Masters. Damn it, when Dion sings Teenager in Love, he still sounds like a teenager in love. Incredible.

The Arrangements. Dion does not attempt to exactly duplicate the original arrangements of his hits on New Masters, and we listeners are the ultimate beneficiary of this decision. There are four things about these new arrangements that make these the definitive versions of Dion's hits: the length, the saxophone, the new lyrics and melody lines, and the endings.

The Length. Back in the early sixties, radio stations wouldn't play any record more than two and a half minutes long. Commercials were the holy grail, and long records interfered with commercials. I can remember listening to WIBG in Philadelphia as a kid. A real treat was two songs in a row, and they typically only played about seven songs each hour.  Under no such restrictions now, Dion has recorded much longer arrangements of each song, with additional verses and longer instrumentals. These are the versions that Dion surely would have originally recorded had he not had to live within the two and a half minute restriction of the early days of rock and roll radio.

The Saxophone. The saxophone has always been a staple of Dion's recordings, and it shines on New Masters in a greatly expanded role. Only one other group, Hall and Oates, has made the saxophone a signature part of their recordings.

The Lyrics and Melodies. Dion has added new lyrics and melody lines to a number of songs. This is most noticeable and effective on Lovers Who Wander.  Dion also weaves half a verse of Elton John's Crocodile Rock into his new version of Donna, the Prima Donna, and it comes off exceptionally well.

But Dion's new treatment of his signature song, The Wanderer, is the highlight of New Masters. Allow me to digress for a moment here. Several years ago, my wife and I and my (then) ten year old daughter, Mallory, a  HUGE Dion fan, attended a concert at the intimate, acoustically astounding Roswell Mill here in Roswell, Georgia. Dion began The Wanderer with the following spoken verse, the Bronx edge evident in his voice:

Now here's a story that must be told,
Italian Tony he just sold
His house, car, all he got
Went to the states, opened the gates
To crime,
That's what he was doing, Yeah
The gangs
That's what he was doing
The people in doubt they shouted out
The Wanderer, that's what its about
I say Hear Ye
I say Hear Ye
Turn up the music, roll on, YEAH!

The audience had absolutely no idea where he was going with this, even though in retrospect the verse was spoken over the chords to the verse of The Wanderer. When Dion burst into the first verse of the song, "I'm the type of guy, who'll never settle down..." the place went absolutely nuts. On New Masters, Dion inserts the spoken verse in the middle of the song, after the saxophone instrumental. It's my favorite part of the song. In fact, my wife and I will stop the song in mid play and "rewind" just to hear this fabulous spoken verse.

(I've always enjoyed the dichotomy of The Wanderer. It's a joyful rock and roll song about a complete loser: "With my two fists of iron, but I'm going nowhere.")

The Endings. A common technique used on recordings in the sixties was the fade out ending. That just doesn't cut it on live recordings - even live studio recordings - and Dion wisely chooses to put hard endings on all of the new recordings. The hard endings are inventive, soulful, and exciting, and they include some unexpected chord changes, such as in the new version of Teenager in Love.

Dion recorded two new songs for the CD. Behind Susan's Eyes is an autobiographical song focusing on his life with his wife of 40 years, Susan Butterfield. It's an instant classic, bound to be a favorite of any couple who have been married a long time. It's lyrics are haunting, the melody is beautiful, and Dion's voice is at its most heartfelt. The other new song, Come Heal This Land, is Dion's response to September 11.

Dion also covers 8 rock and roll classics on New Masters, which in my opinion are unnecessary and detract from the theme of the album. Personally, I've no more interest in hearing Dion singing Del Shannon's Runaway that I do hearing Del Shannon singing The Wanderer. (Sadly, Del Shannon is no longer singing anything, having taken his own life in 1990.) I would rather Dion have included more of his hits like Little Diane, Lonely Teenager and Sandy on the album instead.

Drip Drop is my guilty pleasure on New Masters. I've always loved this song because the lyrics are so bad that they are absolutely sublime:

My buddy come to see me to give me a tip, tip, tip
I said “now listen here friend, I tell ya I’m hip, hip, hip”
“Why don’t ya mind your damn business, shut your lip, lip, lip”
“I know when my girl’s gimme me the slip, slip, slip”

Folks, buy Dion's New Masters today. It is simply the most joyous, uplifting music you can ever listen to. Even the sad songs sound so good, to borrow a phrase from Elton John.

Click on the link below to learn about Alan Luber's new book
 PC Fear Factor: The Ultimate PC Disaster Prevention Guide!