For those of us that grew up in the 90s, "New York Undercover" is a show that we probably took for granted. As we get older and reminisce on shows from the 80s and 90s (and 2000s now), New York Undercover often gets overlooked and we probably remember it more by title over content.
New York Undercover was to the 90s what Miami Vice was to the 80s. I'm sure it was inspired by the latter as it opened each episode with a plot-relevant song being played over visuals of the crime unfolding. Although the series focused on the duo of JC Williams (Malik Yoba) and Eddie Torres (Michael DeLorenzo) working the streets of NY, the show was grounded in the sounds of Hip Hop, R&B, and Classic Soul music. The show would routinely place the duo in the fictional Natalie's nightclub where club owner Natalie (played by the great Gladys Knight), would host a slew of known musical acts. And after going back to look at the some of the performances.....I mean, wow.
The show debuted in 1994 and ran through 1998 and the first 3 seasons featured musical performances every episode, somewhere in the middle and also during the final minutes of the show as the credits played. Unfortunately the final 4th season changed formats and Natalie's would not longer be a part of the series and therefore eliminating the element of musical performances. The memory I most associate with the show is the great cover of Bobby Caldwell's, "What You Won't Do For Love" as performed by Montell Jordan. It was a song that wasn't released and you had to search for a bootleg if you wanted to hear it outside of an episode viewing. I will always remember that my older brother mentioned that he once heard this version playing inside of a Roscoe's Chicken and Waffles which proves one thing: Roscoe's knew what was up.
The series would release a 1998 CD titled, "Night at Natalies," which featured some of the songs performed within the series. The tracklisting is as follows:
1) Teena Marie - Wishing On A Star
2) Brownstone - Don't Ask My Neighbor
3) Gerald Levert - A Song For You
4) Chaka Kahn - Sweet Thing
5) Michael DeLorenzo - Don't Let Me Be Lonely Tonight
6) BB King - The Thrill Is Gone
7) 112 - After The Love Is Gone
8) Xscape - All This Love
9) Tito Nieves - Lo Prometido Es Deuda
10) Mary J Blige - Our Love
11) Barrio Boys - A Love Of Our Own
12) K-Ci & JoJo - Love Ballad
That's just a snapshot of the performances. And although there are some great tracks on that list, it doesn't even remotely represent the greatness overall. Brownstone's "Don't Ask My Neighbor" is a great rendition of The Emotions classic by the way and I suggest checking it on on YouTube.
The above listing were just what was officially released. Now let's recap some performances that were not included on the CD release:
* Montell Jordan - What You Won't Do For Love (Bobby Caldwell)
* SWV - There'll Never Be (Switch)
* Blackstreet - Yearning For Your Love (The Gap Band)
* Aaliyah - Choosy Lover (The Isley Brothers)
* Brandy & Tevin Campbell - The Closer I Get To You (Roberta Flack/Donny Hathaway)
* Monica - Let's Stay Together (Al Green)
* Groove Theory - People Make The World Go Round (The Stylistics)
* Silk - Wildflower (New Birth)
* Jon B - My Cherie Amour (Stevie Wonder)
* Mary J Blige - Natural Woman (Aretha Franklin)
* Intro - What's Going On (Marvin Gaye)
* Chantae Moore - Inside My Love (Minnie Ripperton)
* Zhane - Free (Deniece Williams) All covers of classic songs that sadly did not officially get released. And those are just the covers. The show also featured the likes of Notorious BIG (Juicy), Bone Thugs-N-Harmony (Crossroads), Erykah Badu, D'Angelo, Mint Condition, Lisa Stansfield, Tracy Chapman, and Boyz II Men. Not to mention The Four Tops, The Temptations, Ashford & Simpson, Aaron Neville, Roberta Flack, Stephanie Mills, Bobby Womack, The O'Jays, Tito Puente, George Benson, Phil Collins, Celia Cruz, George Clinton, Kirk Franklin, and Al Green. I mean, wow.
The show's theme song was also composed by James Mtume (of Mtume and "Juicy Fruit" fame) and featured a debut episode with a performance by Teddy Pendergrass (Close The Door) and would feature a final music performance in its third season by Johnny Gill doing "Sunshine," which I assume is a cover of the O' Jays classic, but I wasn't able to confirm that one.
Sadly, "New York Undercover" is not available on any streaming outlets or rather none that I've uncovered so far as well as had never had a DVD or Blu Ray release. It seems fair to assume that the show is stuck in music clearance limbo along the likes of other shows that have yet to reach deals to use copyrighted music used throughout the series. The Wonder Years was famously stuck in a similar situation for years before they reached a deal for the bulk of the music it used, but had to replace certain songs they couldn't get clearance for use. You can search the realms of YouTube and will discover a handful of clips but unfortunately they are also extremely limited. The rules of syndication TV are different so if you're lucky enough to catch a rerun carried somewhere, most likely by a newer channel that is building its image by running reruns of shows from the 70s-2000s, then you would be able to view the series in its original format. Until then, I suggest heading over to YouTube to revisit the New York Undercover theme song and opening credits ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XxjhosvM3wM ) and enjoying the audio of the Montell Jordan cover I previously mentioned, available via upload by someone on the same outlet.
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