The B-Side

For anyone who was bummed out by the cancellation of the New York Dolls' show last November at the Stone Pony, the proto-punk pioneers have got a present for you: the band has rescheduled the show for Feb. 21. The show, which was postponed due to renovations at the historic Asbury Park club, will serve as a 10th anniversary party for the Electric Ballroom on WRAT-FM (95.9) and will also feature performances by Blue Scarlet Coup -- a band whose lineup includes Joe and Alex Bouchard of Blue Oyster Cult, Dennis Dunaway of the Alice Cooper Group and Mountain's Richie Scarlet -- as well as Frankenstein 3000 and Tuff Darts.

36 years after proto-punk pioneers New York Dolls paired with producer Todd Rundgren to craft their self-titled debut album -- a disc with undeniable impact that can still be felt today -- the Dolls and Rundgren have joined forces once again for "‘Cause I Sez So," due to be released May 5 on Atco.

Before the start of Friday (May 1) night's installment of Writers in the Raw in Red Bank, summing up what was in store for the evening could sound like the setup of a joke: "So a proto-punk with blues tendencies, a rising Southern starlet, a country rocker from Texas and an indie tunesmith walk into a theater..."

Just like every other critic, blogger, scene regular and frequent record store patron around this time of year, I've compiled a "top 10" list. However, rather than throw together a list of my favorite albums, singles, videos, re-issues or beards using the same pool of nominees as every other list-maker, I've decided to make my "top 10" pretty personal. Here is a list of the top 10 shows I saw in New Jersey this year.