Not Guilty, Just Pleasure - I'm Every Woman

It's been a rough week.

Yesterday, watching (well listening, I was at work) Dr Christine Blasey Ford give her testimony in the final confirmation hearing of Judge Kavanaugh, was harrowing to say the least.  It was difficult to hear her relive her ordeal for the goodness only knows "th" time since July.

@GlennonDoyle tweeted, "They know he’s lying. They know she’s telling the truth. It doesn’t matter to them. They don’t care." She's right, they don't.  They want their guy on the bench and don't give a flying poo what he may have done in the past.  It's disgraceful but, unfortunately, not shocking in 2018 in the USA.

I believe women when they come forward with allegations like this.  To put yourself (and your loved ones) through an ordeal like this for a lie, well no one would do that.  She's obviously telling the truth and was clearly traumatized by it.  Like all survivors, this is something that she will carry with her forever. It's changed who she is.  How could it not?  I also believe her when she says she came forward because she felt it was her civic duty to do so, not to seek any financial gain from it.  She should have been able to do this privately, to be protected from those who would assault her again with their words and their threats.


For "not guilty, just pleasure" Friday, I wanted to share a song that I love (because Fridays are always about the love) and something that makes me so proud of all women.  I decided that Chaka Khan's classic, "I'm every woman" would fit.  It's empowering and inspiring and it makes me want to dance.  Listening to it just now, made me smile.  I hope it makes you smile too.  We really need to cherish the things in life that bring us joy and make us strong.

Thank you Dr Ford, Chaka, and women everywhere.  Please continue to support and love and most of all, believe one another, we're all in this together xo

CanCon Thursday - Small Minds

Once again, it's time for me to share some Canadian Content with you.  This time, I'm sharing another local gem, Vera Sola.

The first time I had heard anything about her was a few weeks ago.  I received a notification that she would be appearing at the Grand Theatre to open up for the Barr Brothers.  I looked her up and found a version of her song "Honey and Peaches" (performed with the Aster Quartet) and was immediately taken with her voice. 

I was fortunate enough to have tickets for the Barr Brothers show (and that was amazing but that's a story for another time).  As promised, Vera Sola opened up for them and she was captivating.  Her voice is spellbinding and she's just a fantastic guitar player.  All of her songs were performed with just an electric guitar.  Her performance on Friday evening gave me goose bumps at times.  She had a few things for sale at the merch table after the show so I picked up a couple of 7"'s.  In November, she's releasing a full length record and I'm looking forward to hearing that. 

The video I'm sharing with you today is for a song called "Small Minds." For those of you who reside in Kingston (or who have taken a very popular tour over the last couple of years), you'll recognize our very own Kingston Pen appearing in the video.  Enjoy and keep an ear out for Vera Sola kiddies xo

Way Back Wednesday - Somebody's Baby

Well kids, it's Wednesday so I'm going to share with you an older song.

Today's song is one that I liked when it was new and I still regularly listen to it, over 35 years later.  It's catchy and hooky and super sing-a-long-able (yeah, that's a word!).  It's Jackson Browne's "Somebody's Baby."  It was pretty popular during the summer of 1982.  Partly because of the catchy factor.  It seemed to be everywhere but in actual fact, I think it would just get stuck in your head.

The other reason it was so popular was the film "Fast Times At Ridgemont High."  The song was featured in the film and I don't know any teenagers who didn't see that movie.  Looking back at it, there was no way to guess that most members of the cast would go on to have long and successful careers in TV and movies.  I've been watching a show on Netflix recently called "ATypical" starring Jennifer Jason Leigh.  She really has aged wonderfully well and hasn't changed all that much from back in the Ridgemont High era.

Speaking of aging gracefully, Mr Browne himself is doing very well on that front too.  It's nice to see...and to hear.  I hope you enjoy this tune, it's well and truly stuck in my head for a while but I'm totally okay with that xo

Because It's Tuesday - week of September 25

It's a dark and rainy Tuesday morning here in Kingston.

It's okay though, it's sunny in my head, well in my ears anyway.

If it's Tuesday, you know I'm sharing a cover with you.  Back in the mid-1990's, and I've written about it here before, an amazing compilation was released.  It was entitled, "If I Were A Carpenter" and it was a tribute to the best sister and brother duo ever, The Carpenters.  I've shared songs from that compilation here before.  Today I'll share another.

I'm sharing this particular song as I've been thinking about this band a lot recently.  My brother was clever enough to schedule his vacation while this band was on tour.  He got to see them play last night and by all accounts, it was an incredible experience.

This clip makes me laugh because whoever put it out felt it was necessary to add closed captioning to it.  As if we didn't all know the words already!! C'mon, it's the Carpenters!!  Well, actually, it's Shonen Knife (yes!! Shonen Knife!!) performing "Top of the World."  Just try and have a dark morning with this in your ears.

Enjoy kiddos xo

Not Guilty Just Pleasure - Dream A Little Dream

When I was a littler girl, my mum had a copy of Cass Elliot's "Bubblegum, Lemonade, and... Something for Mama" and I remember listening to it a lot.  I just loved her voice and what's not to love.  She was a fantastic singer!!  I found a clip of her on YouTube, being introduced by the one and only Sammy Davis Jr.  I laughed when he described her as "the most fantastic lady of the now sound" but he was right. 

Anyway, as it's Friday and I always share a song that makes me happy or a song I just plain old love, here is "Dream a little dream of me" by the unforgettable Cass Elliot.  Enjoy kiddos & happy weekend xo

CanCon Thursday - You Would Have To Lose Your Mind

If it's Thursday, you know I'm going to be sharing some Canadian music with you.

Each week, it's tough to decide which song I'm going to share here.  We are so fortunate to live in a country with so much amazing music.  This week I'm going to share something with you by the Barr Brothers.

The Barr Brothers are not folks I knew much about until the last year or so.  I'd heard their name but hadn't checked them out.  One day, I heard the song I'm sharing with you today.  Instantly I was smitten.  Something in this song just spoke to me.  I started to listen to more of their music and developed a real appreciation for what they are doing.

The band was founded in Montreal and two of the members are legit brothers, Andrew and Brad.  They are starting a fall tour this week.  The tour starts here in Kingston, on Friday evening at the Grand Theatre.  There are still tickets available and Vera Sola is opening up the show for them.  Maybe I'll see you there.

In the meantime, I leave you with the video for You Would Have To Lose Your Mind.  Enjoy kiddos xo

Way Back Wednesday - Big Time

As I have mentioned here before, I turned 13 in 1980.  The music of the 1980's heavily influenced my musical tastes and I'm grateful for that.  Some of our hair style and clothing choices were, to say the least, unfortunate in retrospect but the music, it was good.

I learned about (and fell in love with) the Smiths, the Fall, the Cure, the The...you know, all of "THE" bands.  I also discovered solo artists who had previously been in successful bands in the 1970's but to my teen-aged self, were brand new.

Enter Peter Gabriel.  My first memory of him was from grade 7.  "Games Without Frontiers" was a very popular song with me and my friends.  Beyond that, I didn't know much about him, never really bothered to investigate further and basically forgot about him until he re-emerged on MuchMusic, a few years later.

This guy, Peter Gabriel.  Man, he gave GOOD video.  He was the shit.  Did it matter what the music was like? not really because video! "Sledgehammer," "Big Time" ...those are some classic videos right there, for the 80's and beyond.  It's hard not to enjoy them.  They are truly awesome.

Today, for Way Back Wednesday, I'm sharing Peter Gabriel's video for "Big Time" just because I didn't want share both so I picked the first one, alphabetically.  Enjoy this one kittens, it's way fun! xo

Because It's Tuesday - Week of September 18

When Toni Braxton was burning up the charts, I was not paying attention to her.  I was into stuff which was very different from her particular thing.  She's got a fantastic voice, in the years between when she was a very big deal and now, I've become familiar with a couple of her songs.

Around the time she was a big deal, her song "Unbreak My Heart" just seemed to be everywhere.  It was hard to go pretty much anywhere without hearing a snippet of it, in the mall, from a car stereo.  I even recall attending Canadian Music Week one year with my friend Jane.  I had been invited to participate in a panel on campus radio and we had some time to wander around the exhibition hall.  At one booth, we received a gift that keeps on giving, a kazoo.  For no apparent reason, Jane started playing "Unbreak My Heart" on her kazoo and it was just about the best thing I had ever heard.

Fast forward a few years (more than a few) and Weezer releases their version of this, by now, classic Toni Braxton song.  I invite you to listen and enjoy, and play along with your kazoo, "Unbreak My Heart."

Not Guilty, Just Pleasure - All You've Got To Do Is Fall In Love

It's my belief that the folks who don't love Benji Hughes are just folks who haven't heard him yet.

I only recently stumbled upon his music (summer of 2017) and I instantly became obsessed with his "Songs In The Key of Animals" album (released on the awesome Merge Records in early 2016).  He's got a deep, unusual voice.  I guess you call his stuff quirky. In one article I read, they called it demented pop music.  Demented or quirky, whatever you want to call it, I think it's fab, I really enjoy it and as the months passed, I went looking for more of his stuff. 

The song I am sharing with you today, "All You've Got To Do Is Fall In Love" is (apparently) one of his better known songs.  I had no idea about that when I first heard it.  I just thought it was sweet and showcased his voice really well. The video for it is adorable, the cartoon version of Benji is pretty cute.  I hope you enjoy this, happy Friday kiddos xo

CanCon Thursday - Broken F*%?#@! Heart

If it's Thursday I'm definitely sharing some home grown music with you, lovely reader.

Not just Canadian but Kingstonian. I've been attempting to share local music on CanCon day recently..  Today I'm sharing an older song by a fantastic local band, Luther Wright and the Wrongs. This song, "Broken Fuckin' Heart" is a toe tappin', dance your pants off kind of tune.

If you want to know about Luther Wright and the Wrongs, you can find out about all of their releases, what they're upto, shows (Ottawa peeps, Luther is in your hood this weekend!!), merch and more, - http://www.lutherwright.com/

I'm going to keep this short and sweet today.  Support local music, go to shows, buy records, share the love online and to your friends. Spread the word about all of the awesome music that's happening in your town (and trust me, it's happening, you'll find it if you look for it).



Kingston folks - October 21 - you'll want to be at the Mansion!

"Luther hosts and performs at the Ford Nation Elimination event along with Christopher Brown, Suzanne Jarvie, Rusty Ford (no relation), Burke Carroll, Brian Sanderson and special guests, speakers and more. 2-5pm. PWYC"

Way Back Wednesday - Revolution

At this particular moment in time, the world feels tense.  Between the weather and the political climate around the globe, I know I'm not alone in feeling uneasy.  Perhaps that's why I woke up on Monday morning with "Revolution" in my head and I haven't been able to shake it. Something is going to have to give, I'm optimistic that when the mid-term elections in the US are over, things will be changing down there and the ripple effect of restored sanity will be felt all over.

You say you want a revolution
Well, you know
We all want to change the world
You tell me that it's evolution
Well, you know
We all want to change the world

As earworms go, it's never bad to have The Beatles in your noggin.  Well I think that anyway.  Of course, their songs ARE timeless and relevant no matter when you're listening to them.  So, for Way Back Wednesday, I'm sharing with you a not great (video is terrific, audio is meh) performance of Revolution from 1968.

Enjoy kiddies xo

Because It's Tuesday - week of September 11

As you know, if you are a regular reader of my little blog, I'm a fan of both Nirvana and covers of Nirvana songs.  Somehow, the covers convey more sadness than the originals (which were sad but also sort of angry).

I recently stumbled upon this cover on YouTube.  Sometimes when you're down the YouTube rabbit hole, you find the best stuff (and other times you find absolute garbage).  Not sure what else this guy has done but I really enjoyed this so I'm looking forward to hearing more.

Because it's Tuesday, I'd like to share with you Imaginary Future's take on "Come As You Are."

Way more mopey than the original and I like it like that.  Enjoy kiddos xo

Not Guilty, Just Pleasure - September Fades

A few weeks ago, I started seeing things promoting songs by Ralph.

I love Ralph.  I used to subscribe to his beautiful zine back in the 1990's and enjoyed his jazz / beat poetry records.  Ralph Alphonso is a fantastic, creative, lovely person and I was so excited to learn that he had a new record out.

I clicked through on a link to a song by Ralph and was pretty surprised.  I saw a photo of a cute, blonde, 20 something woman.  My first instinct was to just ignore it and go listen to "I Love you Baby, but you gotta stop wearing those ugly shoes."  Instead I listened to a song called "Tables Have Turned" by this feminine Ralph.  I was surprised by how much I like it.  She had a fantastic voice and when I read her bio, I discovered that she was a Toronto gal and that she had a new album coming out soon.

As you know if you read my blog regularly, I'm a sucker for a good pop song.  I'm not ashamed to admit that either.  Ralph's got plenty of excellent pop songs.   She's not over produced like some folks, in fact, I heard a couple of acoustic versions of her songs and they are absolutely lovely.  I found out that she's coming to Kingston later in the year (in December at the Mansion) so I grabbed some tickets.  I'm looking forward to seeing her perform. 

In the meantime, I'll be happy to listen to fun songs in my headphones while I'm busy at work.  She also gives great video.  Don't believe me?  Check out her video for "September Fades" and let me know what you think about this "new to me" artist and the video xo

CanCon Thursday - Strawberry Blonde

When I paused to think about how long exactly it was that I've been a fan of Ron Sexsmith, the first thing that went through my head was "a pretty long time." More specifically than that, it's well over 20 years.  Personally, I think he's a genius.  His writing is remarkable and he's a true Canadian legend.

Admittedly, over the years, I've only had a couple of opportunities to see him perform.  He's a terrific live performer, his records are wonderful and if you're not already familiar with him, I suggest that you jump in deep, with both feet, into his catalogue and be prepared to fall in love.

For CanCon Thursday, I'm going to share with you a video from the 1990's for the lovely "Strawberry Blonde."  Enjoy kiddies xo

Way Back Wednesday - Steal Away

When I was in 8th grade (I think), one of my favourite songs was Robbie Dupree's "Steal Away."

I also remember really liking "Woman" by John Lennon, "He's so shy" by the Pointer Sisters, "Rock Lobster" by the B-52's and "It's Still Rock'n'Roll to Me" by Billy Joel.

"Steal Away" was a song I could listen to over and over again.  I didn't know that "Yacht Rock" was a thing, maybe it wasn't back then, I think it was called "soft rock" or just "music." I see now that stuff like that (in addition to several Hall and Oates songs I liked) have been categorized as "Yacht Rock" and given all of that sailing Christopher Cross sang about back in the day, it's not too surprising.  In grade 8, I was still listening to the local AM radio station a lot (Much Music wasn't a thing yet) and you can certainly tell that it was a big influence on what I liked in 1980.

Watching this video again after a really long time, and listening to the song again, I feel like I need a box of triscuits to go with the cheese.  It actually sounds a ridiculous amount like "What A Fool Believes" by the Doobie Brothers.  I'm not going to lie, I still really enjoy it.  It's super cheesey though and unlike other songs I've talked about on Wednesdays, this is not a classic for the ages.  Sorry Robbie Dupree, you're no Buddy Holly.  Not that you ever claimed to be but as I wrote recently, his music has a timeless quality that is hard to achieve.

On that note, I hope you have some crackers handy.  Enjoy the Yacht Rock classic, "Steal Away." xo

Because It's Tuesday - week of September 4

Well, it's Tuesday kids.

It's not just any Tuesday though, it's the one after Labour Day which, in this part of the world is the first day of school for elementary and high school students.  College and university students will start their classes in a few days.

Not sure what kids to do to mark the end of summer now.  We used to watch the Jerry Lewis Labour Day Telethon for MD.  Feels weird that you can no longer do that, can't see a sweaty, overtired, clearly wired Mr Lewis croon "You'll Never Walk Alone" ...times have changed.

When I was a little girl, on the first day of school, you'd usually hear "welcome back" (the theme from the hilarious sitcom "Welcome Back Kotter") on the radio.

In honour of the first day of school, I'm sharing Rex Daisy's version of "Welcome Back."  I first heard this version on a compilation in the mid-90's.  Southern Culture on the Skids version of "Venus" is also on it, it's a fun throw back to the K-Tel compilations of our 1970's childhood.  There is no video but the audio is pretty decent.

Hope you have a good first day kiddies, enjoy and welcome back xo