The serialization of "Dancing With Demons" has caused alarm and concern among Dusty's friends and fans. Simon Bell, Dusty's close friend and the creator of Dusty Devotedly noted on August 9 that "any attempt to paint a picture of a woman who, in the final years of her life triumphed over the self destruction that had plagued her, is carefully avoided in favour of more negative images. We can only hope that in the book itself a more balanced picture is presented. The response from fans has been overwhelming; those who care about Dusty the person, and the artiste are appalled that her privacy has been so violated."

The comments of Andy Robinson, creator of the Dusty Springfield: The White Lady of Soul web-site, typify much of the sentiment being expressed by Dusty's fans: "[The first installment] focuses on Dusty's episodes of self harm, substance misuse, sexuality, self-loathing and incarceration in mental institutions. None of this would be news to die hard fans, but appears to show little respect towards the private and sensitive woman Dusty was . . . [This] opening article of the series concentrate[s] heavily on Dusty's less-than-happy times and [does] little in drawing people's attention to the hugely gifted singer that she was and the rich legacy she has left us."

Via an interview with Simon Bell, both Vicki Wickham and Penny Valentine intend to answer the criticisms raised by many in the wake of the serislization of their book in The Daily Mail. A transcript of this interview will be posted on Simon's web-site Dusty Devotedly. Simon has invited anyone who may have a comment or question for Vicki and Penny to e-mail him via his web-site.

On August 13 the U.K. newspaper Sunday Express published a feature article entitled "We Weren't Lovers - Dusty Wasn't My Type," wherein Vicki Wickham discusses her friendship with Dusty, her career, and her 30 year relationship with singer Nona Hendryx (see Articles).

AUGUST 2000
SECOND BIOGRAPHY TO BE RELEASED
August will also see the release by Robson Books of Edward Leeson's biography, "Dusty Springfield: A Life in Music." This book is being promoted as "the first book to give serious and detailed consideration to Dusty's music." At this point, Leeson's book will be released in the U.K. only.

Although Amazon.com.uk are taking advance orders for both "Dusty Springfield: A Life in Music" and "Dancing With Demons," I'd encourage potential buyers to instead support their local (and preferably independent) booksellers. Alternatively, subscribers to the excellent Dusty Springfield Bulletin (DSB) can purchase "Dancing With Demons" at a discounted price.

SEPTEMBER 2000
THE DUSTY SPRINGFIELD ROSE
Pat Rhodes, Dusty's secretary throughout her career, recently announced that donations for a rose to be named after Dusty are now being accepted. Colin and Jill Clayton instigated this wonderful idea and have donated the £50 required to register the name with the International Registration of Roses in the United States.

The Dusty Springfield Rose is being specially developed by John Deamer of Warley Rose Gardens in Brentwood, Essex, and president of the Rose Growers Association in the U.K. The total cost of the project is £2,500. Once developed, the rose will be inaugaurated at the Hampton Court Flower Show and made available for purchase by the public at a cost of approximately £6.00. Two pounds from the sale of every bush will go to the Royal Marsden Hospital.

Donations for this project have been coming in slowly and Pat has expressed concern that the October target will not be met. Donations can be sent to: Pat Rhodes (Dusty Rose), 7 Oakthorpe Road, Palmers Green, London N13 5HY

Checks or International Money Orders can be made payable to C.P. Rhodes. A collection box for this project has been placed in The Toy Cupboard shop in Blandford, Dorset. If the target amount is not met by October, all donations will be returned.

SEPTEMBER 2000

"DANCING WITH DEMONS" RELEASED
The "authorized" biography of Dusty written by Penny Valentine and Vicki Wickham, and entitled "Dancing With Demons," was released in the U.K. on August 31. Reviews of the book have generally been unfavorable. A selection of these are available in the Reviews section of Woman of Repute. No U.S. release date has been announced for "Dancing With Demons," although the book is available in Australia. (See also August 2000 News above).

SEPTEMBER 2000
"I AM SHELBY LYNNE" IS NO "DUSTY IN MEMPHIS"
The following is extracted from an article/review of Shelby Lynne's album, "I Am Shelby Lynne," that appeared in the September 6, 2000, edition of City Pages (Minneapolis/St. Paul). The piece is entitled "Man! I Feel Like a Woman!" and is written by Keith Harris:

I Am Shelby Lynne must be the most unconsciously ironic album title since Janet Jackson's Control--a declaration of independence tightly orchestrated by a pair of producers.

Maybe you know Lynne's mythic backstory: After a disappointing string of overproduced drawl-by-the-numbers records, the hard-drinkin' gal splits Nashville to write her own songs. In the process, she learns to express herself, grow artistically, and win all the rewards promised at the end of an episode of Behind the Music. And yet, from the recorded evidence here, I don't believe Lynne is really her own woman any more than I believe Jennifer Lopez can really infiltrate the imagination of a serial killer.

But like The Cell, you dig Shelby Lynne for the special effects rather than the plot. The means of production are controlled here by Bill Bottrell, one of Sheryl Crow's former studio consorts. The opening track, "Your Lies," is as thrilling an introduction as you could ask for. The drums act more as a sound effect than an ordinary groove; it's the sort of punctuation that session pro Hal Blaine used to pound out on Phil Spector productions. Then, an obsessive three-note guitar figure repeats, next sprawling out unexpectedly across Lynne's verses. Eventually she goes out on an a cappella coda, harmonizing with herself like an infinite choir of Sweet Inspirations.

None of this, I should quickly add, sounds remotely like anything on Dusty in Memphis, no matter what you may have read. A capable stylist, Lynne possesses two vocal speeds: one a full-force gale, the other a husky breeze of a drawl. Dusty Springfield was an entire weather pattern unto herself, a series of breathy gusts caught in her own cross current. (Besides, Lynne is steeped in her native Alabama. Even when famously diddling with the preacher man's boy, Dusty sounded as down-home as Emily Brontė). But most important, when faced with brassy, overwhelming arrangements, Dusty submitted. Consequently, she discovered that epic surrender could be a means of empowerment.

Lynne neither yields to nor chafes against Bottrell's aural illusion. Instead, she remains just another great sound effect on an album crammed full of great sound effects, ranging from the lazy drawl of the horns on "Why Can't You Be?" to the studio orchestra of "Where I'm Free," a Francophone reverie that recalls Randy Newman at his most cinematically nostalgic (minus the tempering irony). At the same time, her integration into the mix never points out the seams and problems of the producer-diva dynamic the way that Springfield did so eloquently. And so Lynne herself remains a cipher, a girl dressing up in her grandma's clothes squinting into the mirror and imagining herself enveloped in an authentic sepia tone that could transport her back to a simpler time, when life was harder.

OCTOBER 2000

SIMPLY DUSTY RELEASED
After numerous delays, Mercury Records' 4-CD boxed set, Simply Dusty was released on October 2 in the U.K.

Simply Dusty contains 98 tracks - including many of Dusty's greatest hits and several rare and live recordings. Packaging of the release is of a high standard and includes a 64-page booklet containing many color and black & white photographs, thoughtful essays by Christian Ward and Chris White, and, as usual, excellent liner notes accompanying each track written by Paul Howes of The Dusty Springfield Bulletin (DSB).

DSB is currently selling Simply Dusty at a reduced price to its members. For further information about this special offer and about DSB in general, check the DSB page on this site.

The track listing of Simply Dusty is as follows: