kicks books

Dig: Nick Tosches on Poets Of The Tabloid Murder

2011-09-07T19:10:00.002-04:00

Photo: Robert Maxwell

TOSCHES!

2011-08-10T19:10:00.034-04:00

KICKS BOOKS PRESENTS…

WHEN: FRIDAY SEPT 9 • 8 PM
WHERE: JEFFERSON MARKET LIBRARY, 425 SIXTH AVE (at 10th Street), NYC
telephone (212) 243 4334
FREE ADMISSION

SAVE THE LAST DANCE FOR SATAN is set to hot-foot onto bookshelves, and into hip pockets, across America, bringing this long anticipated new NICK TOSCHES scorcher to fans of the inveterate scribe, who is correctly described as “the story-teller from Hell” by French magazine L’Officiel Homme.

SATAN launches with a public afterhours reading in the historic vaulted top floor of JEFFERSON MARKET LIBRARY, located in New York City’s Greenwich Village, Friday September 9th. SATAN is sure to stun stalwarts and sophisticates alike during this rare in-person live appearance by Tosches.

SAVE THE LAST DANCE FOR SATAN delivers Tosches at his storytelling best, tackling the squirming roots of rock ’n’ roll history with a finesse previously reserved for night workers at a rendering plant.

One hundred twenty-eight pages are packed into the “hip pocket paperback” format created by KICKS BOOKS, the New York publishing house that has injected a new attitude into the book world with SWEETS (AND OTHER STORIES) by Andre Williams and THIS PLANET IS DOOMED: THE SCIENCE FICTION POETRY OF SUN RA.

Scheduled for release from KICKS BOOKS in November is PULLING A TRAIN: SEX GANG AND OTHER STORIES by HARLAN ELLISON and in February 2012, TALL COOL ONE VOL. 1 by KIM FOWLEY.

NICK TOSCHES is the author of COUNTRY, HELLFIRE, UNSUNG HEROES OF ROCK ’N’ ROLL, CUT NUMBERS, TRINITIES, DINO, THE LAST OPIUM DEN, KING OF THE JEWS, THE DEVIL AND SONNY LISTON, POWER ON EARTH, FRANKIE PARTS 1 AND 2 (with Richard Meltzer), CHALDEA/I DIG GIRLS, WHERE DEAD VOICES GATHER, NEVER TRUST A LOVING GOD and THE NICK TOSCHES READER.

Photo: Lorna Doone (LORNOGRAPHY)

A big screen version of Tosches’ third novel, IN THE HAND OF DANTE, is currently in the works with director Julian Schnabel and actor Johnny Depp.

Jefferson Market Library, erected as Jefferson Market Courthouse in 1874, is a New York City landmark building, designed by Calvert Vaux and Frederick Clarke Withers. By 1927, the Court was used solely for trials of women. Thousands of female criminals and accused innocents faced the gavel here. Famous cases include the murder trial of architect Stanford White, which inspired the book The Girl In The Red Velvet Swing. Mae West’s 1927 “Sex” trial was set here.

Jefferson Market Library houses a massive collection of New York City historical files and serves the neighborhood, the city, and visitors worldwide as a branch library of the New York Public Library system, and yet with a personality all its own.

Kicks Books and Jefferson Market Library are delighted to present NICK TOSCHES in person and on fire at this free public after-hours reading.

Jefferson Market Library closes at 5 PM on Friday. Doors will open for the event at 8 PM, with the reading set to start at 9 PM.

------

SAVE THE LAST DANCE FOR SATAN will be available for purchase at the event.
Also available will be TOSCHES, a limited promotional fragrance created specially for readers of SATAN.

Jefferson Market Library 425 Avenue of the Americas (at 10th St.) NYC

Kicks Books PO Box 646 Cooper Station NYC 10276

Contact Kicks Books

kicksbooks.com

Click these pick hits!

NYPL Interviews Author of SATAN

The Nick Tosches Society

In the Hand of Nick Tosches

More Tosches to acquire here... and there, too!

SUN RA • THIS PLANET IS DOOMED

2011-06-16T16:43:00.038-04:00

KICKS BOOKS • DATE LINE • NYC

THIS PLANET IS DOOMED: THE SCIENCE FICTION POETRY OF SUN RA
Foreword by Amiri Baraka • Introduction by Bhob Stewart (KB2)

T-minus 30... the countdown is on for the publication of a new hip-pocket paperback from the masterminds at KICKS BOOKS!

THIS PLANET IS DOOMED, which collects the science-fiction poetry of Sun Ra, explodes into the stratosphere on 7/7/11, an auspicious day for numerologists and doomsday enthusiasts alike. 7/7 coincides historically with the detonation of 20 kiloton Little Feller II, the first of the last four above ground nuclear warhead tests conducted in the US.

The date will also evidence interstellar overdrive when Saturn, Pluto, Uranus and Venus form an intense and rare alignment known as the Cardinal Grand Cross.

THIS PLANET IS DOOMED serves up a traumatic torrent of future shock—deeply personal and critical commentary and unsettling advice to the people of Earth, who fail to acknowledge this planet’s role in the universe.

Poet Amiri Baraka's estimable foreword, together with science fiction historian Bhob Stewart’s revealing introduction, set the stage for the heavy dose of the real and the unreal, which are delivered in the pages of THIS PLANET IS DOOMED.

Poet Amiri Baraka’s estimable foreword, together with science fiction historian Bhob Stewart’s revealing introduction, set the stage for the heavy dose of the real and the unreal which are delivered in the pages of THIS PLANET IS DOOMED.

This book was collected from tape recordings and transcriptions culled from the Sun Ra Archives by director Michael Anderson, who worked with Norton records to compile a total of six albums—three collections of rare and unissued music recordings (on LP and CD) and another trio (vinyl only) of unissued spoken word Sun Ra.

THIS PLANET IS DOOMED was expanded with the addition of several key “lost” poems which appear here for the first time.

In conjuntion with the publication of THIS PLANET IS DOOMED, the Orchard has launched downloads of the vinyl spoken word albums, which are entitled STRANGE WORLDS IN MY MIND, THE SUB-DWELLERS, and THE OUTER DARKNESS.

An out-of-this-world promotional fragrance, SATURNIA, will be available in a limited edition of THIS PLANET IS DOOMED. This trend was set with the Andre Williams’ book SWEETS. All future KICKS BOOKS will issue with limited edition promotional sister scents.

THIS PLANET IS DOOMED will be available here on July 7.

For further information please contact press secretary Paige Turner.

VARIETY DIGS SWEETS!

2010-06-20T18:12:00.007-04:00

Click here to Order SWEETS

"Sweets," a raw, hard-edged tome about streetwalkers, drug runners and other gutter-jumpers in the manner of paperback blaxploitationists Iceberg Slim and Donald Goines.... A funky renaissance man? No doubt... Norton's also given Andre his own fragrance line, Bait and Switch Perfume. A bottle costs 10 bucks and is accessorized with a plastic switchblade. Eat your heart out, Sean John.

- Christopher Morris, VARIETY

Read the VARIETY story here

ANDRE'S HOME STATE DIGS SWEETS

2010-04-23T01:48:00.004-04:00

Tuscaloosa News story by Ben Windham:

Had I not got involved in ‘Sweets,’ things now probably would have been a lot different,” Williams says in his alligator tenor. “I probably wouldn’t have completed the time that I needed in rehab (at Chicago Lakeshore Hospital). Doing this thing kept me busy. Mentally.”

“Sweets” may have saved Williams’ life, but the story it tells is no thing of beauty. It’s a raw, unvarnished tale that minces no words.

It centers on a luscious 17-year-old African-American woman named Sweets. Six of her seven brothers are killed in a shootout between Black Panthers and the FBI, and she is unmarried and pregnant. Hank, the father of her unborn child, is slain in a drug deal gone bad, her surviving brother joins the Navy, and Sweets realizes she has to hustle to cope for herself and her unborn baby.

Williams wastes no time on sociology or psychobabble. Like a hit of speed, his narrative races brutally head, plunging into prostitution, drugs, lesbianism, murder, bribery and treachery...

Read Ben Windham's interview with Andre Williams

OFFBEAT DIGS SWEETS

2010-04-22T21:25:00.003-04:00

Andrew Hamlin raves.. "I proclaim Williams’ true philosophical antecedent as Hadrurus arizonensis, the giant desert hairy scorpion. Like the beast, this book is hairy, hot, and thrives after the sun sets. Pages fly by without adjectives. Action plunges into time like a riptide through breaking waves. In terms of style (not philosophy), I proclaim Williams a follower of the Lascaux cave paintings. He wastes nothing. Every line, word, and letter perform a function."
read the whole review

Andre Williams • Sweets

2010-04-15T00:42:00.003-04:00

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
ANNOUNCING... KICKS BOOKS

ANDRE WILLIAMS • SWEETS • CHICAGO BOOK LAUNCH • KB1

Dateline: New York City

Kicks Magazine announces KICKS BOOKS, posh pocket paperback originals!

The debut title from this singular new imprint is SWEETS (AND OTHER STORIES) by entertainer Andre Williams. It is the first fiction effort from the 73 year old Williams, who first entered the public eye by denting the BILLBOARD Top Ten charts in 1957 with dance ditty Bacon Fat.

SWEETS is a narrative which takes you for a wild ride from Chicago to Houston, New Orleans, and New York City, as a teenage girl finds herself in a family way, without a family. Forced to fend for herself, she is taken under the wing of a local pimp who entices her into prostitution. The adventures that follow are a free for all foray through the fantastic world of pimps and their women, funeral directors, gangs and drug running, with sidebar anecdotes that are guaranteed to appall, alarm and astonish. Extreme entries remain unedited, and none of Williams' raw drawl storytelling style has been tampered with in this standout fiction debut.

The creation of SWEETS was unique, as the writing process in itself served as the reconstructive vehicle for the author's six-week stint in a drug and alcohol rehabilitation center. Upon entry into the forty-two day program, Williams called upon longtime friend Miriam Linna at Kicks magazine, for moral support. Linna encouraged him to give fiction writing a try, if only to wile away the long days ahead at the center, and agreed to work with him to see him through the project.

* * * *

Andre Williams was born in Bessemer, Alabama in 1936, migrating with his family to Chicago when he was a child. After the death of his mother in 1943, he was sent South to the care of his grandparents. The North-South transition was unbearable for young Andre, who was to return to live in the Windy City with his father, a steel mill worker. With little parental supervision, Andre traded into a penny ante career as a juvenile delinquent, barely escaping Illinois State Reformatory by using his older brother's ID card to enlist in the US Navy. His career in the Armed Forces came to a halt when it was discovered that he was underage. As a civilian once again, he chose to avoid the pitfalls of Chicago and relocated to Detroit, Michigan, where his musical legend begins, joining the Five Dollars, and writing and recording for Fortune Records. Bacon Fat, Greasy Chicken, and the extraordinary Jail Bait are the tip of the iceberg of Andre's contributions to popular music which span these early, 1950's compositions to working at Motown with Stevie Wonder, Mary Wells and the Contours, to producing (and co-writing) the Five Du-Tones 1963 hit with Shake A Tail Feather ( #28 on BILLBOARD R&B charts) to writing Alvin Cash's R&B chart topper Twine Time in 1965 to delivering late sixties solo hits like Cadillac Jack to Chess Records.

* * * *

The design of KICKS BOOKS is an tribute to vintage PBO paperback originals, from the "tall" seven inch format of Signet Books, to the line art reduction of the Kicks Books pompadour logo (a nod to Avon's similar depiction of their mascot, the old Bard, William Shakespeare) to the inclusion of adverts in the end pages, which was common practice for independent softcover publishers of the past. The KICKS BOOKS imprint hatched out of KICKS magazine, which this year celebrates its thirtieth anniversary.

You're invited! Join KICKS BOOKS in celebrating Andre William's arrival as an author! Andre will read from SWEETS and will be on hand for a Q&A session and book signing. DJ party to follow featuring Andre Williams music selected and spun by DJ John Phillips!

See why Nick Tosches says, "Andre Williams has proven himself to be a survivor. The stories he has here written deserve to survive as well. They most certainly deserve to be read, as the rewards they offer are many and fine. Heed what I say. Otherwise you got nobody but your own self to blame."

November 14 (Saturday) 7 PM Phyllis' Music House, 1800 West Division St, Chicago 60622 tel (773) 486-9862 Reading, Q&A, book signing, record spin of Andre's music by DJ John Phillips.

Memo from Andre

Don't ask me
How I came this far
I don't even know myself
I've done lived out one life
Now I'm working on two
I born in Bessemer, Alabama
Moved to Chicago
At the age of six
My mother and dad
Was at the prime of their lives
And that was when I lost my Mother
At the time I realized
It was gonna be rough
Dealing with this
Thing called life
Boy!!!!!
It is gonna be tough
My Daddy tried to
Raise us two boys
Fresh out of the country
That was a little
Too hard
I met a few rich folks
And I've met a few crooks
I've been through life's
Ups and downs
And I've read a few books
I've been through quite a few hospitals,
Some I stayed a while
All the rest I didn't stay long
I've done some things right
And I've done some things wrong
I been in jail a couple of times
But I didn't stay long
I drank my share of whiskey
And I drank my share of gin

But here I am, I got a smile
On my face again

But let me tell ya
Dem damn drugs almost
Did me in
I've changed religions
A time or two
But! Old Andre!
Ain't a damn thing in
This world I wouldn't do
And there ain't too many
foreign countries (that)
I haven't seen
Met some good women in my life
An d I met some down right mean
I made a lotta money in my life
But I just wasn't able to keep it
Never thought the day would come
That I would see it and weep it

So here I am, I got a smile
On my face again

Thankin' Mos High
Looks like I win again

Andre Williams

(P.S. For more information on me, read the book)

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••

A Word from Nick Tosches

From his foreword to SWEETS

...And sure as the God in that Baptist church in which he sang as a boy was made of plaster, those juices surely did flow; and from them grew this book, which is to be taken more seriously than most other books that are published in these gone-dead days. Andre Williams is a real, natural-born, blown-in-the-glass writer, the kind they hardly ever make anymore. When I first peered into this book and saw the words “Sweets got in the cab and asked the driver to take her to a good fortune teller,” I was mesmerized, drawn in by what I knew to be a rare new voice in American fiction.
Andre Williams has proven himself to be a survivor. The stories he has here written deserve to survive as well. They most certainly deserve to be read, as the rewards they offer are many and fine.

Heed what I say. Otherwise you got nobody but your own self to blame.

Kicks Books Website!

1/5/10

2010-04-14T23:16:00.000-04:00

ANDRE WILLIAMS & NICK TOSCHES:
SWEETS & OTHER STORIES

Join us as these twenty-first century titans appear together for the first time in recorded history to celebrate and enunciate, as The Poetry Project at St Mark's Church hosts the NYC launch of Williams' fiction debut, SWEETS AND OTHER STORIES.

The countdown is on.... thirty days until blast-off!

PRESS RELEASE FROM KICKS BOOKS NOW AT POETRYPROJECT.ORG

Nick Tosches & Andre Williams
Friday
February 5, 2010
10:00 pm

Nick Tosches was born in Newark, New Jersey and is the author of three novels, eleven books of non-fiction,and three volumes of poetry. His books include: Hellfire: The Jerry Lee Lewis Story, Dino: Living High In The Dirty Business Of Dreams, Where Dead Voices Gather, In The Hand Of Dante, and Chaldea. His latest, Never Trust A Living God, is a collection of poetry illustrated by Gravieur. He lives in New York City.

Andre Williams was born in Bessemer, Alabama in 1936, migrating with his family to Chicago when he was a child. After the death of his mother in 1943, he was sent South to the care of his grandparents. The North-South transition was unbearable for young Andre, who was to return to live in the Windy City with his father, a steel mill worker.

With little parental supervision, Andre traded into a penny ante career as a juvenile delinquent, barely escaping Illinois State Reformatory by using his older brother’s ID card to enlist in the US Navy. His career in the Armed Forces came to a halt when it was discovered that he was underage.

As a civilian once again, he chose to avoid the pitfalls of Chicago and relocated to Detroit, Michigan, where his musical legend began, on joining the Five Dollars, and with writing and recording for the legendary Fortune Records label. Bacon Fat, Greasy Chicken, and the extraordinary Jail Bait would be the tip of the iceberg of Andre’s musical contributions. From his start at Fortune in the 1950’s, he went on to work at Motown with Stevie Wonder, Mary Wells and the Contours. He produced (and co-wrote) the Five Du-Tones’ 1963 hit Shake A Tail Feather ( #28 on BILLBOARD R&B charts) and wrote Alvin Cash’s 1965 R&B chart topper Twine Time. In the late sixties, he produced solo hits including the standout Cadillac Jack for Chess Records. He has composed several hundred recordings and continues to be one of the most widely collected and respected of original soul and rhythm & blues artists.
Hard drugs eventually took a toll on Andre, leaving him homeless and destitute. In 1995, his career was revived by George Paulus, who produced the acclaimed comeback album GREASY for Norton Records. Andre continued to record for Norton, as well as for In The Red, Bloodshot and Pravda, while touring internationally to great acclaim. The 2007 film AGILE, MOBILE, HOSTILE documented a year in Andre’s life.

With the return to constant touring and performing came a return to old vices. He was in and out of short-term rehabilitation, but always, there was the return to hard habits. Hitting the age of seventy without a permanent address and with his health rapidly deteriorating, Andre checked into a six week program at a Chicago substance abuse facility.

At a friend’s urging, he began trying to write fictional stories, in an attempt to keep his mind and hands busy. Writing became his self-imposed rehabilitation, and his hand scribbled no holds-barred tales evolved into a short set of various-length entries which he immediately began referring to as “The Book”.
This debut volume from 73 year old Andre Williams is Sweets (And Other Stories). The title story is a narrative novelette which takes you for a wild ride from Chicago to Houston, New Orleans, and New York City, as a teenage girl finds herself in a family way, without a family. Forced to fend for herself, she is taken under the wing of a local pimp who entices her into prostitution. The adventures that follow are a free for all foray through the fantastic world of pimps and their women, funeral directors, gangs and drug running, with sidebar anecdotes that are guaranteed to appall, alarm and astonish.

Extreme entries remain unedited, and none of Williams’ raw drawl storytelling style has been tampered with in this standout fiction debut. Sweets is the first hip-pocket paperback from New York publisher Kicks Books.

• RADIO FEB 4! Dave The Spazz to host the duo on his Feb. 4 WFMU radio show! (Music To Spazz By with Dave the Spazz, WFMU 91.1 FM online and archived at wfmu.org Thursday February 4th 8-11pm)

• ANDRE WILLIAMS & NICK TOSCHES READING! Andre Williams debuts his first fiction book SWEETS with this historic tag team effort with Nick Tosches! 10 PM at The Poetry Project at St. Marks Church, 131 East 10th Street, NYC poetryproject.org

• TWIN SPIN AFTERSHOCK FEB 5! Late nite Smashed Blocked pop-in after reading event! Join SB kingpin Josh Styles as he hosts this velvet rope stop-in pop-in! (Andre rumored to spin seven of his sevens! Smashed Blocked at The Beauty Bar 231 East 14 Street, NYC smashedblocked.com)

• FAN FETE FEB 6! Top secret Greasy Chicken farewell fan fete fracas TBA! Stay tuned kicksbooks.blogspot.com

Press Contact: Paige Turner at Kicks Books
kicksbooks.com

And from the peanut gallery... Chicago cartoonist John Battles remarks...

Check out the Poetry Project at St. Mark's Church NYC!
http://poetryproject.org/tag/andre-williams

1/4/10 SWEETS • CHICAGO • REPORT

2010-04-14T23:06:00.000-04:00

Double click on this photo for a slide show of the Chicago Launch Party for Sweets!

HOT SCOOP! ANDRE WILLIAMS TO NYC POETRY PROJECT On the heels of his wildly successful Chicago book launch reading, Andre has been invited to read from his landmark new novel SWEETS at the esteemed Poetry Project at St Mark’s Church, NYC. Few are considered, fewer are called for this great honor. Top secret guest details on this big-big Feb. 5 event will be in our New Years Day newsletter! Andre Williams' fiction paperback SWEETS debuted in Chicago on Nov. 14. The event was organized by local artist/DJ and Andre Williams acolyte John Phillips, who tapped the wonderful Phyllis Musical Inn for the book debut, an exceedingly homey neighborhood tavern with an intimate stage and original musical murals and decor. Chicago was chosen for the debut reeding because it is where Andre chose to set the scene for his stories, where he wrote SWEETS, where he spent his pre-teen years, and where he now resides. With the book hot off the press, I hit-git-and-split for the Holyland (birthplace of Vin Saxon a/k/a Ron Haydock) for what was to be a truly memorable and historic evening. This was the night that our hero Andre Williams (he of Jail Bait, Greasy Chicken, Mozelle, Bacon Fat, and Cadillac Jack fame, to name but a fraction of his musical accomplishments) was to appear in public for the first time as a writer, an author, a scribbbler of acrid prose. None of us, Andre included, knew which way the pendulum would swing. Would people be interested? Would they come to listen to mere words, without music? And if they came, could Andre hold their interest with stories concocted in drug rehab, while his mind was in bedlam? You see, SWEETS, is an odd little book, the title tale containing a multitude of plot lines that revolve around a teenage girl with a survival instinct to rival even Andre's. It was written a rebours, literally against the current, with Andre fighting to grasp and develop entertaining and surprising elements, grappling with the task of setting it down by hand-- all the while tormented by addiction. Andre Williams has unmatched perseverence, an unkillable sense of humor, and a will to do it all. That said, let's get back to the night in question. John and I got to the venue early to set the stage up, and even then, hours early, there was a gaggle of fans gathering. By the time we returned for John to begin pre-show DJing (as "Mr Wiggles"), Phyllis's was already getting crowded with thrill-seekers, garden variety lushes, and loads of local musicians, record execs, newspapermen, and full on rock & soul stars, all curious and excited to see and hear Andre. By 9:30, the joint was rampacked. R&B slinger Bo Dudley showed up dolled and decked head to toe in electric blue sateen, and Lords/Amboy Dukes lead singer John Drake held court with his fiancee Mary Ann. Top cat guitar slinger Danny Doll Rod of the Gories and Demolition Doll Rods had jetted in from Detroit to support the man of the day. When Andre arrived, there was much whooping, as the sea of people parted, to allow him passage to the stage. Dressed to the nines-- two tone shoes, red silk tie, impeccably tailored suit and hat-- he began the beguine, slowly introducing himself, all the while rolling his manuscript into a tight scroll. He would not refer to it again, choosing instead to ad lib an hour-long, jaw dropping spoken word production, all the while, punctuation the air with the rolled scroll as though he were orchestrating our emotions with a baton. Andre began by describing how he had fallen into the role of paperback writer, about street life as real life, about going into rehab one mo' time again, about molding real deal memories into fiction. He then began an incredible-- alternately funny and heartbreaking-- telling of SWEETS, describing the characters in great detail, and playing the x-rated segments a la Red Foxx. This was an amazing evening, one to cherish as the night that Andre Williams reinvented himself and... us. I'd say he received a standing ovation, but everybody was standing throughout anyway. Regardless, the crowd went crazy, and Andre stayed to speak with fans, sign books, and cut the massive cake that was emblazoned with the book cover-- talk about Sweets! Mr Wiggles pumped the sounds deep into the night, the dance floor packed with stompers wailing to the beat of Andre Williams' records, celebrating the life of one of our key figures. Congrats, Andre Williams and long may you reign! See you in New York City in February! PS The next day, John and I visited Bo Dudley at his boss pad. Dig the pix.

1/19/10 ANDRE WILLIAMS MIDNITE RAMBLES

2010-04-13T02:53:00.000-04:00

ANDRE WILLIAMS NYC BOOK BLAST DEBUT! Introducing "SWEETS" from KICKS BOOKS... request it at fine minded book shops nationwide or order direct Limited first edition available online only-- numbered, boxed, inscribed by both Mr. Andre Williams and Mr. Nick Tosches. Mr. T scheduled to read with Andre exclusively at the Poetry Project. Read, and take heed.

ANDRE WILLIAMS NYC SCHEDULE UPDATE
as divulged on our favorite radio blog
http://wfmuichiban.blogspot.com

FEB 4 MUSIC TO SPAZZ BY WFMU RADIO INTERVIEW 8 PM Three hour all-Andre radio show! Dave the Spazz hosts Mr Rhythm with very special guests and very incredible Andre Williams records. Tune in live to Music To Spazz By

FEB 5 SIRIUS RADIO! 12:30 PM- 1 PM Tune in, siriusly! Andre live on Freewheelin' with Meredith Ochs and Chris T on the Road Dog Trucking channel, Sirius 147, XM 171

FEB 5 POETRY PROJECT AT ST MARK’S CHURCH MAIN EVENT! Andre Williams and Nick Tosches read from "Sweets & Other Stories". Cavalier magazine legend Lenny Kaye to emcee for the rare pair at this literary landmark! poetry project info 10 PM $8 ($6 students & seniors/$5 PP members) Authors will be on tap to sell-n-signify afterward! Mr. Tosches scheduled to appear with Mr. Williams only at this event.

Once the Poetry Project reading wraps up, shake a tailfeather up to Josh Styles’ SMASHED BLOCKED all-45 RPM record dance at the Beauty Bar where Andre is due to guest DJ (and more!) at 12:30.Free admission. Follow the crowd to Beauty Bar at 231 W. 14 St. between 2nd & 3rd Ave. Smashed Blocked Site!

FEB 6 SATURDAY NIGHT FISH FRY • GREASY CHICKEN MIDNITE RAMBLE Celebrate "Sweets" with author Andre Williams at the fabulous Tip-Top Bar and Grill in historic Bed-Stuy, Brooklyn! Andre to hold court at this all-out dance blast for our glittering illiterati. Andre will read to rumored accompaniment, and will hawk and Hancock "Sweets" and assorted ltd edition accoutrements, all available at this swingin' Saturday soiree. Musical director Dave the Spazz (WFMU's Music To Spazz By) to blast all Andre floor fillers all-nite-long! Come hungry for fins and feathers - fried fish and chicken, plus $3 beers and $4 hi-balls at the long, well stocked bar! Midnight ramble, you all! Admission free to anyone with the password (barnyard utterance from Greasy Chicken). See you at the Sweets Soiree, Tip-Top Bar & Grill, 432 Franklin Ave (between Madison & Putnam) Brooklyn (718) 857-9744 9 PM-?

BAIT & SWITCH PERFUME FOR VALENTINES DAY AND BEYOND! Limited edition BAIT & SWITCH PERFUME "Fragrance By Andre" Be transported to the mean streets of Sweetsville with Andre's signature perfume. Badass half ounce bottle in badass gift box. Label depicts our heroine with Andre and Nick sauntering on by. Limited numbered edition. Available only at the Poetry Project and the Tip Top. A seasonal Hi-Lo product, of course.

THE REVIEWS FOR "SWEETS" ROLL IN

A tawdry slab of old-school, Iceberg Slim-style pulp fiction with characters -- from the sexed-up, drug-dealing spark plug of the title story to a preacher-loving nymphomaniac with a terrible family secret-- straight out of Williams' own colorful life. - AOL Spinner

Could easily serve as a Bible for Tiger Woods - Now Dig This (UK)

Fans of Iceberg Slim and Donald Goines will find themselves right at home in the pages of ‘Sweets’: a headlong run through a gritty underworld written with the intimate veritas of someone who has most definitely lived there. - Broken Headphones

Andre Williams adds to his R&B legacy by penning an adventure that's funny, truthful and scary. Sweets is a breezy and scandalous fun house ride that reads like an X-rated police blotter. An original literary event that is not to be missed. - Dave the Spazz (WFMU)

http://culture.wnyc.org/articles/features/2010/feb/03/cult-figure-gets-down-dirty-again-new-book/

Voice interview Feb 2!

2/11/10 SWEETS spawns BAIT & SWITCH

2010-04-12T17:09:00.000-04:00

"Better than Smell Good!" exclaims author Andre Williams, announcing his perfume BAIT & SWITCH, due out on Valentines Day. The original fragrance, first planned as a limited promotional tie-in with local readings of his book "Sweets", was such a hit that Andre decided to make it available to the general population.

AOL Spinner was the first to break the news worldwide. Read on...
http://www.spinner.com/2010/02/11/randb-legend-andre-williams-shows-his-nose-for-the-ladies-with-his/

BAIT & SWITCH PERFUME by Andre Williams One precious half ounce conjures up fleeting images from Sweetsville... from the hot summer streets of Chicago, to the hazy raunch of a Texas cathouse, to the smoky drama of a New Orleans fortune teller's salon, to the rose covered rooms of a mortuary. Cotton-padded collectors box contains bottle of perfume and commemorative miniature plastic switchblade.

available now at http://www.nortonrecords.com/sweets.html

2/26/10 SWEETS • NYC • REPORT

2010-04-11T20:41:00.000-04:00

Photo by Jacob Blickenstaff 33-13.com

Full report to publish March 1. Meanwhile, dig the...
ANDRE NYC SLIDESHOW!

3/7/10 MIDWEST BOOK BLASTS

2010-03-07T09:41:00.013-05:00

Photo by Jacob Blickenstaff 33-13.com

ANDRE WILLIAMS MIDWEST WEEKENDER! Andre and the stellar Party Stompers (Jeff Meier & Mike Hurtt’s wildass combo), blast Cleveland, Detroit and Ann Arbor in March. Dig…

Wed. March 17 (Ann Arbor) WCBN Living Writers Interview Host T Hetzel in a live interview with Andre Williams, talking about music, mayhem, and fine literature, with plenty of revelations in the pipeline!

Fri. March 19 (Cleveland) Andre Williams & the Party Stompers, plus the Hi-Risers, book signing and show and dance at the Beachland Ballroom, 15711 Waterloo Rd, Cleveland (216) 383-1124 8 PM doors, show at 9 PM sharp

Sat. March 20 (Detroit) 5 PM Andre Williams book signing at the Book Beat, 626010 Greenfield Road, Oak Park (248) 968-1190

Sat. March 20 (Detroit) 9 PM Andre Williams & the Party Stompers show and dance at the Park Bar, 2040 Park Ave, Detroit (313) 962-2933

Sun. March 21 (Ann Arbor) 5 PM book signing at Cafe Ambrosia, 326 Maynard St, Ann Arbor (734) 929-9979

Who are the Party Stompers? Check 'em out:

http://www.myspace.com/partystompers