Southside Johnny: Grapefruit Moon: The Songs of Tom Waits

Copy at Case Memorial Library
Sal Nunziato wrote in the Huffington Post: "Ladies & Gentlemen, I give you one of the freshest recordings of the year. … [S]omeone knew what they were doing. And that someone is Richie Rosenberg, better known as La Bamba from the Conan O'Brien show. Sure, you've got the material. … But to feel this music the way La Bamba feels it, is no easy task. Southside Johnny does a fine job interpreting the tin pan alley words and melodies of the great Tom Waits. But the real star is Richie 'La Bamba' Rosenberg, whose arrangements evoke the brilliance of such orchestrators as Oliver Nelson, Billy May, and Nelson Riddle. 'Down Down Down' becomes a kick-ass jitterbug and 'All The Time In The World' sends you speeding through the Riviera, looking for Blofeld. 'Johnsburg, Illinois,' one of my fave Waits tunes, clocks in at less than 2 minutes on 'Swordfishtrombones.' It's a tad longer here, but after one listen, you are ready to kick a can down some boulevard in the rain, wondering just why she did you wrong. Every song will either put you in a Billy Wilder film or some saloon" (9/9/08).