Pham Duy would get a heart attack if he listens to this record.

Both of Le Tan Quoc’s instrumental albums are perfect for Vietnamese café shops with comfortable couches and without sexy servers.

I have tremendous respect for Duong Thu. Through his lyrical virtuosity and his appreciation for nature, I imagined that he is one calm, humble individual. After reading his article, “8 mẩu suy nghĩ về giới trẻ và Élite trẻ,” however, I get a different vibe about the man. He is mad pissed off at the younger generation and criticizing heavily their attitude, lifestyle, music taste and even rhetoric.

Although I don’t disagree with his view on the use of English into the Vietnamese language (like replacing “anh yêu em” with “I love you” in writing), I find it rather amusing that he does it himself. What the heck is “Élite trẻ?” Can’t he find a Vietnamese term for Élite? Duong Thu shows his age. He just sounds like a grumpy, bitter, angry old man.

POP stands for product of production. To make a successful pop record, the beat has to be solid. Producer Thanh Tam single-handedly puts Ho Bich Ngoc on the pop-r&b map with his flossy, ear-candy productions on her new release Buoc Ke Tiep.

“Mot Ngay Moi” demonstrates Thanh Tam’s producing craftsmanship. The arrangement is an ingenious blend of jazz and r&b, in which the chime, the horn and the scatting added textures and colors to the bouncy beat. Ho Bich Ngoc’s slightly gruff voice drives home the track, which, by the way, is also written by Thanh Tam.

Vocally speaking, Ho Ngoc Bich weaves many r&b nuances in her phrasing, which comes off annoying at times. “Van Mong Duoc Ben Anh” is where she sounds most natural. The beat is also groovy and the Vietnamese rapping/chanting is intriguing.

Not every track hits the mark and some productions even sound mechanical like the slow ballad “Loi Nhan Nhu” and r&b “Co Khi Nao.” The remix of “Co Khi Nao,” however, is a whole different animal, thanks to the hard-hitting trance beat. Buoc Ke Tiep is perhaps the next big step for Ho Bich Ngoc.

Dealing with car gives me a headache. My wife’s 2003 Toyota Camry (V4) has failed inspection. The front exhaust needs to be replaced. The water pump and the oil pan are leaking. The dealer’s price is just ridiculous. Does anyone know a reliable, reasonable shop around Virginia area for these type of services? Please advise.

Thanh Lam and Le Minh Son reunite once again on a new release, Noi Binh Yen. Thanks goodness that Thanh Lam has toned her vibrato down a notch. The first two tracks, Le Minh Son’s “Noi Binh Yen” and “Em Yeu Anh,” are the proofs. Over the soothing semi-classical arrangements, she delivered each song in a relaxed, laid-back approach.

Even though she whipped up her pipe on the classical-pop “Goc Nho Rieng Em,” she did it just about right to bring out the emotion of the tune. The smartest move she made was abandoning her operatic screaming. On Nguyen Vinh Tien’s “A Nho Anh,” she recruited an opera vocalist to do the soprano soaring for her and Bich Thuy has done a damn fine job of wrapping her ghostly voice around Thanh Lam’s smoky timbre. Unlike Bich Thuy’s opposite attraction, Tung Duong is a perfect match for Thanh Lam. Their duet on Le Minh Son’s “Buon” is simply luscious and Trung Dong’s seductive trumpet added a sensational sadness to the jazz flavor.

Thanh Lam sounds most sincere on “May Trua Da Ngu.” Through Duong Thu’s lovely lyrics and Duc Tan’s delicious piano playing, she gives us a glimpse into the heart and soul of Thanh Lam as a mother. Glad to see Thanh Lam got over her dramatic hump. Noi Binh Yen is an indispensable comeback since Nang Len.

Hai Yen has a serious pipe, but the materials on her debut, Va Anh Se Den, are mediocre. Quang Duc’s pop-rock “Chi Con Toi Voi Toi” is a vocal workout while Ky Phuong’s “Nhac Khuc Cho Tinh Yeu” is a romantic cool down. What keep the album from being sleepy is her occasional wailings.

A quick conversation with my cousin who was holding Cu Dao in her arms:

Cousin K: “He’s strong boy. Stronger than Andy when he was two months.”
Donny: “Oh yeah? So when will Andy have a sibling to play with?”
Cousin K: “We’re done.”
Donny: “Already?”
Cousin K: “Yes. I wouldn’t mind one more if I have a father like you.”

Coming from my cousin K who doesn’t BS, that’s a compliment. Still, I don’t deserve such a high praise. Cu Dao’s mom is the one that do most of the hard work, such as feeding him in the middle of the night and putting him to sleep when I fail to do so. Last Sunday, I was supposed to make him fall asleep, but I got knocked out first. His mom had to pick him up and soothe him to bed.

It’s me who is lucky to have a son like Cu Dao. He changed my world. Before him I couldn’t sleep at night if I had a cup of coffee in the morning. Now coffee hardly works anymore even when he screams at night. As you may have already noticed in the photos, Cu Dao smiles quite often these days. All I had to say is “Cuoi di con” (smile my dear) and he would laugh like I just told him the funniest joke in the world.

In contrast, Cu Dao could me laugh without even saying a word. About a week ago, after he already fell asleep in his crib, which located next to our bed, we laid back to rest and tried to enjoy a quiet moment. The peaceful night was erupted by a loud passing-gas sound from his direction. We looked at each other and couldn’t hold our laugh. It was the most innocent fart we had ever heard. We still crack up every time one of us mention it. It was just price less.

The International Institute of Tourism Studies gets a new look. I always liked this peachy scheme, but it has been passed up until now.

Last night, Cu Dao slept almost six-hour straight. We put him in his crib around 10. A midnight, he made a few coughs (not sure where they come from) and we were expecting him to get up, but he went back to silence. We waited and waited and nothing happened so we felt asleep. Almost 4 o’clock, the train finally came. Dana nursed him and I lulled him back to sleep, but then he got up again around 5:45.

Cu Dao also loves to sleep on the bean bag. Whenever he stays at her aunt’s house, he would sleep on it like a little puppy. He likes the way the bag wrap around him. Just put him on the bag, push the bag around a bit and he would snore like his daddy. (Dana complaint hearing both of us snoring on both side of her ears.) We are going to get him a bean bag as well.