We’ve got a power-packed issue this month starting with our exclusive Tommy James interview for the “Up Close” section conducted at his wedding to my music-biz mentor Carol Ross. In 1984, I had finally left the employ of the Aquarian Weekly after owner Jim Rensenbrink busted me down from Music Editor to Ad Rep. As I traipsed around New York City hitting the same clubs in the afternoon that had treated me like royalty at night, I knew I had to escape. Carol Ross worked in a beautiful brownstone on Riverside Drive on the upper west side and took me in. Goodbye editorial. Hello publicity. Carol taught me some valuable lessons. For the next five years, I learned the ins and outs of Public Relations working campaigns for British billionaire Richard Branson, heavy metal band Krokus, ex-Cream drummer Ginger Baker, The Animals, Johnny Winter, Clarence “Gatemouth” Brown, Eddie “Cleanhead” Vinson, The Princeton Review, The Comic Strip and an assortment of one-armed jugglers like in the Woody Allen movie Broadway Danny Rose. I’d play on their vanity by writing bios on them as if they were the second coming. My trick was to read it to them aloud. I’ll never forget the singer who actually started crying after one of my recitations and said, “that’s the most beautiful thing I’ve ever heard.”

This month you’ll meet Stefani M.C. Janelli. She’s not a singer. She’s not a songwriter. She’s not a musician. But she’s really good at what she does. In “Jersey Bookshelf,” we go back to 2008 for Newark author Harlan Coben’s Hold Tight. In “Visual Sound,” we present a video from the night Tommy James jammed with Gene Simmons at The Wellmont in Montclair plus clips from sweet soul singer Eric Roberson, prog-rock shredder Steve Dadaian and the little girl who stole the show in our documentary, The Jersey Sound, Myzz-London. I think she was 11 when she appeared in our film. Now she’s a seasoned pro at 13.

There’s a new Hot 100 (we change it every other month) and Connie Francis, 87, who just went viral on TikTok with “Pretty Little Baby,” a song she recorded 62 years ago, makes its debut at #24. Don’t forget to check out our Calendar of 60 New Jersey shows in 60 nights, the “Events” section where we spotlight certain shows, the “Press” section with reactions to our doc, and the “Jersey History” of PM Dawn. Summer’s here and the time is right for racing in the street.