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Show Thursday, January 21, IW9.THE DAILY HERALD, leaders get second chance p catch two award winners By Mountain" JEFF GUINN better-know- When the winners of 1998'n ational Book Awards were hnounced nearly two months feo, many dedicated readers ere pnvately embarrassed. had Few read Alice hcDermott's liough both titles had gar tered substantial critical claim. For those who have so far issed on these two exception- books, perhaps through dis-ai- n for hardcover prices, both re now available in paperback nd.are easily identifiable bv hie gold foil "National Book ward Winner stamped on heir covers. . Their paperback Drices do their notori- "Charming Billy," pub- hed in paperback bv Delta, is 12.95: Ballantine's "Slaves in he Family" is a hefty $15.95. i'hat still represents some sav ings over their hardcover prices if $22 and $30, respectively. Those are also reasonable prices for two wonderful works hat will remain part of any piscerning reader's permanent ollection. Lharmme Billv and "Slaves in the Family" are both worthy NBA winners, though in each case the choice has proved controversial. ty; new-foun- The NBA awards have always lagged far behind the Pulitzers in media attention; Frazier over DeLillo inspired a firestorm of stories, just as McDermott over Wolfe has done. novel "Charming illy, or Ldward Ball s nonfic- ion "Slaves in the Family" reflect By over the Don DeLillo. n d , 1 A win over Wolfe McDermott's win is tainted in some eyes because the NBA of judges selected panel "Charming Billy" over Tom Wolfe's tour de literary force, "A Man in Full" . With hindsight, it is easy to understand why McDermott got the nod. Wolfe's book had already received massive publicity, shooting to the top of the bestseller lists ,the day it was released. Certainly, among critics and publishing insiders, there was a sense that McDermott, a fine writer, had paid long-terprofessional dues without similar acclaim. Few recall that McDermott was also an NBA fiction finalist in 1987 for "That Night," another splendid work thatjlas long been forgotten. Then, too, it is assumed that NBA voters enjoyed reaction to their 1997 fiction pick of Charles "Cold Frazier's Don't have to be famous Over the next decade or so, it's entirely possible that the NBA will enthusiastically embrace a tradition of elevatwriters. ing In any case, McDermott's wonderfully crafted take on a dead alcoholic and the people who love him anyway can certainly stand on its own merits. little-know- n McDermott especially excels at highlighting just the right small details how a flower smells, the exact color of bloodshot eyes. Her characters are never larger than life, just absolutely true to life. Edward Ball, on the other hand, has come in for some post-wigibes for having the to painstakingly temerity describe his Anglo ancestors' lordly attitude toward their chattel. Yes, those attitudes of the past are often offensive to read about now. But honesty is not always JIM FARBER New York Daily News record companies aren't known for sharing their hit singles with one another. They prize their biggest songs as key ways to get consumers to buy the artist's full albums, to search out earlier recordings or to build loyalty for the artist's future work. At least that's how it has commonly worked before. A successful new project challenges that pattern. An album called "Now That's What I Call Music" includes hits by 17 artists belonging to a wide variety of genres culled from two of the five major American music conglomerates. The LP just rose to No. 10 on the Billboard Top 200 album list, one of only two compilation albums ever to achieve that peak. That's a greater success comeven than the multi-artis- t pilation LPs that corral hits each year by the big Grammy nominees. n African-America- n politically correct. Ball would have earned all sorts of moral congratulations had he insisted on tracking down survivors of Ball family slaves and recording their words in "Slaves in the Family" just as often as his own. But Ball's writing is exemplary, a real surprise, because he's never published a book before, having instead earned limited literary credentials as a writer for The Village Voice. behind this project. ' Ken Pedersen, executive VP of Virgin Records (the specific label chosen to distribute the n't resist an all-h- format. it tions). The "Now" album spans all of current hit pop. Its accent on Success abroad Such a strategy has long succeeded in England, Europe and "Now LP), acknowledges that "for the most part, the U.S. ual LPs involved without canni- balizing any: "Maybe you for ('Now') the bought Backstreet Boys or Spice Girls, but then you discover Everclear or Radiohead. We saw increased sales on all these albums over Christmas. No one lost." At the same time, the LP attracts a new type of consumer: - .j "Pop smash" Several years ago, album-j- ; oriented rockers ruled. Now it's , all about the pop smash, which " " has leveled the playing field,"" artists." Tommy Boy Records has enjoyed years of success with such albums, teaming with ESPN to create the hit "Jock Jams" record series and with MTV for the "Party to Go" LPs. "You need a strong brand, a strong franchise, to make this work," says Martin Davies, Tommy Boy's marketing czar. In fact, his brands commonly between all genres. , "The barriers between what"" was hip hop, R&B and alterna-V"- " tive have meshed," Pedersen says. "Try to find a trend these' other than the songs all days have nice melodies, and kids,,,,, like em." t Such a blending of styles.1"" also has been encouraged by,.a,t the trend in soundtracks, which all amount to various-artists- " ', pop compilation LPs in them-w- n selves. With all these trends-feedin- with the biggest selling between 1 million and 2.5 million copies. But those records tend to feature slightly older or hits or center around a given genre or mood TV collec (aping the old into the compilation upsurge, observers expect moresuccess in the future. "This is still an under exploited segment of the U.S. " '" market," Pedersen says. Don't expect it to be for long. ;;,", g go gold, lesser-know- people who don't traditionally go into record stores but who could -- mainstream hits reflects the focus of the industry today. Japan. In those territories, compilation albums make up 12 percent to 15 percent of the market. In the U.S., it's just 5 percent, but that may soon grow. The current Top 200 includes no fewer than 17 albums credited to "various record business has been against this kind of thing." "It's a fear factor," he says. "To get all these labels working together with their hit product, for which they'll only get a share of the profits rather than controlling them, that's a leap of faith." According to Pedersen, it's paying off. He says that by pooling their biggest recent hits on one album, the labels are promoting all the artists' individ- -' , n K-T- backing It's unprecedented for a compilation album to be assembled and promoted by more than one company. The "Now" album represents a group effort between the newly formed Universal Group (which is now compressing labels from Island and MCA to Mercury and Geffen) and EMI (which combines pqicj blEl.lCI Visit us online Orthopedic Pain Clinic 755 wwvr.her!dextra.com EAST 800 lW NORTH, OREM ao remarkably relieved my chronic ...prolotherapy disabling pain, 1 to use it on aome of began patients." C. Everet Koop, M.D., former United my States Surgeon General Capitol, Virgin and other labels). That puts no less than 40 percent of the industry TreatmenuHBoand j Certified Physkaam l J 7 Low Prices So, unlike Alice McDermott, we must wonder whether Edward Ball will ever contend for another NBA award. He can write with compassion and intensity about his own family; now he must prove he can bring the same writing fire to other, less personal subjects. But that question can be left for the future. Right now, "Slaves in the Family" is back on local bookstore shelves alongside "Charming Billy." For those who missed them the first time around, it is better late than never. book-lengt- Page C9 Record labels find success in sharing hits heavy favorite, "Underworld," by the Knight Ridder Newspapers - Provo, Llah Mill fTUrn Qlnnnn V7 rrinirrrr rJ 'n h oooFtoperSpedalfqDaysOnly! r 'mm- - rcropriirJ as. fi .J ' . - ' ft v t f InkJet Paper T aMkrsMMM J stmsMtMsa i M i blll.1 . EH. AnyMaddne... 1 VITT hri-- ,'1 In Search the Web before tyin' your travelin' shoes By REID KANALEY Time to plan a (KRT) 19fe vacation. Almost every big commercial We6isite has a travel area, but som&I hunting off the beaten Internet path can lead to fresh ideaaiJor your next real-tim- e trip. Here are some that we found. Passport services. The Dejiartment of State maintains site for travelers. Youj can't actually file a pass port; application online yet, but youjsan download the forms, y. thisj-han- dy http:travel.state.govpassporfcjservices.html - CDC travel information. To find out if the destination will be good or bad for your health, check in here, where the Centers for Disease Control advises on health conditions and recommends inoculations. http:www.cdc.govtravelindex .htm European rail travel. serThis site for a Chicago-are- a vice that specializes in European rail travel makes it look simple, with comprehensive schedules and details on the Chunnel between England and France. 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