Eli "Paperboy" Reed ...

Certainly, there will be some things that I will miss about NYC. The 'live' music scene will be one of them, as I just love to attend shows like the "Fab Faux" or "Steve Winwood" or many, many others at the Bowery Ballroom. My favorite, of course, is the annual Allman Bros at The Beacon with Derek Trucks leading the band to a constant, new territory.

That said, the move a few hours north, will not stop me from attending a NYC show now and then.

Boston, however, has one hell of a rock music heritage and I look forward to learning more and more about the bands that call "Boston" home.

Saw one of them on Saturday night at "The Paradise," as part of the great "Hot Stove, Cool Music" program.

Eli "Paperboy" Reed is a name to remember. He can play. He can sing. He has a voice that reaches your soul. No better way to put it. You have to hear it.

For the NYC readers of this blog, get out to the Mercury lounge for $10 on Jan. 9th, see this release:

"Reed stunned the crowd [as he] screeched and hollered through a no-holds-barred set of originals that could be easily mistaken for lost Stax classics." - THE BOSTON HERALD

Last week, Time Out New York implored "If you do only one thing" this week go see Eli 'Paperboy' Reed." If you didn't heed the call, you now have another chance. Reed and his band The True Loves will return to NYC for an 8pm show at Mercury Lounge on January 9.

They'll be joined for this show by female vocal group The Sweet Divines, who contribute a striking sound and look - with impeccably crafted harmonies and matching dresses - when Reed belts out his original tune "The Satisfier."

Reviewing that song, The Boston Phoenix hailed it as "the sound that's bulldozed the skeptics - dirty guitar, in-the-pocket rhythm section, goosy organ, rocking call-and-response horns, and backing vocals that out-Ronson Mark Ronson."

Who: Young soul man Eli "Paperboy" Reed and his band The True Loves What: Show previewing new album 'Roll With You' due out Spring 2008
When: Wednesday, January 9 at 8pm
Where: Mercury Lounge, 217 E. Houston St., New York, NY 10002
Tickets: $10, available at Mercury Lounge box office