NEW RELEASE - AUGUST 2006!
Back before Dad was a dad, back before CDs and mp3 downloads, the main format for new pop music was the 45 rpm record. In the spirit of his huge collection of these 7" plastic disks, Dad is releasing his new material as "singles" with two tunes on each (45's would usually have one song on each side).

The August 2006 release is actually credited to the Aquatudes, Dad's new instrumental pursuit (and hopefully, before long, an actual band). The two songs are titled "Shim Jambs (Before Cutting Bands)," and "Bongo-Shmongo." They feature Dad on all the instruments, including drums. The tunes evoke the classic guitar instrumentals of the early 1960's, but with a 21st Century twist. Dad plays a number of his cool vintage "cheapo" guitars and amps to help get the authentic vibe. Full-length mp3's of both songs are available on the Aquatudes site.

The August 2005 release, titled 45 Number Two, includes "She's Too Much" and the instrumental, "Venture This." We later combined 45's One and Two into a 4-song release called Too Much (EP). Check out snippets from the other two songs:

• She's Too Much
• Venture This

The August 2004 release, titled 45 Number One, features his first two recordings on the digital 8-track: "Back When I Thought It Didn't Matter" and "In a Pickle." For a short mp3 sample from each, click on these links:

• Back When I Thought It Didn't Matter
• In A Pickle

You can score a copy of 45 Number One for $3 US postpaid. E-mail Dad at bittlwrks@aol.com for more info about purchasing his music. In fact, if you don't have the DNB album yet, order it NOW and Dad will throw in 45 Number One as a FREE BONUS and put both CDs in a double-CD jewel box.

Dad released his first full-length album in 2002. It's titled "Dad's Noisy Basement," since that's where most of the recording took place. Some parts were also recorded in the living room, in the spare room, and in Dad's Suzuki Sidekick. The live drums for In Between were recorded in his friend John Kaukas' basement - John also helped (a lot) to create the drum track for It's No Joke.

This album was five years in the making - which is not to say that Dad spent a huge amount of time on it, but that he only got to do a little bit here, a little bit there...

"Dad's Noisy Basement" has 13 tracks. All of the tunes were written by Dad except "In Between," which was written by Dad and Cynthia Dodd (aka Mrs. Dad). Instruments and vocals are by Dad. Selections were recorded on a Tascam Portastudio 414 from January 1997 through January 2002. Mixed, edited, and mastered digitally on a Power Macintosh using Sound Studio 1.5.3, D-SoundPRO 3.5.1, and sonicWORX® Artist Basic 1.0. Dad used a cool application called Virtual Drummer to create the drum parts on four of the tracks. Click HERE to learn more about Dad's gear.

Dad wants to thank his family for putting up with the equipment all over the house and all the noise from the basement.

OBTW: All this stuff is for sale. Please contact Dad at bittlwrks@aol.com for more info about purchasing his music.

Here's the track listing:
NOTE: Songs in bold yellow type have a short MP3 sample to download and play. Check them out! Then order the CD and hear the whole thing - it's about 45 minutes long all together.
01. DNB Theme
02. Groovy Thing
03. Max’s Theme (Instrumental)
04. Do or Say
05. She Let Me Go
06. It’s No Joke
07. Fine Line
08. In Between
09. Blue Without a Clue
10. George’s Theme (Instrumental)
11. Stupid Questions
12. Bad Punch-Ins (On Purpose)
13. DNB Theme Reprise (Demo with Self-Indulgent Chatter)

All songs Copyright © Thomas J. Bittel, except In Between, which is Copyright © Tom Bittel and Cynthia Dodd.
For info about the songs and the recording process for each, click HERE.