I'm off today, doing some errands, chilling out, basically setting the blue print for the next few days.
It's also Isolation Friday and this week I'm sharing a song I love, just because I feel like it.
I hope you enjoy this wonderful song by Blondie, "Atomic." During the pandemic, I've been revisiting songs from my youth and have discovered that I still love some of them, just exactly the same amount that I did when I heard them for the first time. This is certainly one of those simply great songs. You can find it on Blondie's fourth studio album, 1979's "Eat To The Beat." It was released as a single in February 1980.
Hope you all have fun this weekend. Well, as much fun as you can safely have, under a stay at home order. Take care and stay safe kittens xo
Thursday feels like Friday today. I'm so ready for the long weekend. You truly have NO idea how good I'm feeling right now, to be facing a four day holiday weekend.
It won't the typical "May 24" weekend of olden days, goodness knows. No cottage parties or any socializing for that matter. I do have some overdue yard work that's been calling my name so I suppose I'll get out and work on that. Hopefully the weather will cooperate. Kingston weather can be wonky at times. I blame the lake.
Anyway, speaking of Thursday and Kingston... for Cancon Thursday this week, I'm sharing a song by a Kingston band, Kasador. For me, this is one of those songs that gets into my head (in such a good way) and then I find myself wanting to listen to it over and over again. I let this happen when I'm in the mood and it's always a good thing. Hope you enjoy it too. It's called "Never Alone" and was released on their 2016 self-titled EP.
Stay safe kittens xo
Lightning strikes twice
Once in the summer time
She grew up knowing that the sky could always be her light
Can you even prove that you were a teenager during the 1980's if there isn't a copy of the 1982 album, "Upstairs At Eric's" by Yazoo/Yaz in your record collection?
I can and there is.
For Way Back Wednesday, I'm sharing the oh so very 80's video of "Only You" by Yazoo. Vince Clarke and Alison Moyet, what a pair. INSANE talent!
That's all I'll say for now. Hope your week is going okay. Stay safe and well and please be kind to each other xo
I'm sure I'm not the only one out there who loves a long weekend but isn't such a fan of trying to get 5 days worth of work done in 4 days. Not complaining, it's a lovely problem to have. As you know, I work at Queen's University and our wonderful Principal, Patrick Deane gave us all Friday off so we get a four day weekend (woo hoo!!). We also have two 4-day weeks, back to back so while it's worth the extra work to get a nice break like that, it's a bit hairy for me at the moment. Again, never ever going to complain about this, just saying!!
So, as it's Tuesday, I'm sharing a cover with you fine folks. Today's cover is a fantastic version of the 1985 Katrina and the Waves tune, "Do You Want Crying" (written by the insanely talented Vince de la Cruz) as performed by The Dahlmanns. From Norway, the Dahlmanns featuring Andre Dahlmanns (of the Yum Yums) on guitar and vocals and his wife Cecile Dahlmann on lead vocals.
This is a great cover of a terrific song. I hope you enjoy it. Have a good weeks kiddos xo
Happy Birthday to ME!! That's right, it's my birthday and today, this Centennial baby is turning 54. It's my second COVID birthday and I'll be spending it alone. I did see my parents for a visit on Mother's Day so I did celebrate it with them and I have a piece of yummy dump cake in my fridge which I can break out today. Yee Haw!
In honour of my birthday, I'm sharing a song I really love. It was the first song I played on the stereo of my new car when I picked it up in September. This song is so great that I keep it on most of my playlists. I'm not sure if I have shared it here before and honestly, I don't care because IT'S MY BIRTHDAY!!
So here it is, from her recently released, amazing album, Total Freedom (one of my favourite records from last year), a lovely live performance by Kathleen Edwards of her song, "Glenfern."
Enjoy it kiddos xo
I was so lucky to be under your wing
But I think I went and outgrew 'em
Now when I find myself looking back
I think of all the cool shit that happened
Like, we had a tour bus with a bed in the back
We bought a rock and roll dream, it was total crap
It's Way Back Wednesday today. I'm going to take us back to the summer of 1999. It doesn't feel like that long ago but it was almost 22 years ago now. My favourite Wilco album was released that year and I spent the best part of the summer listening to "Summerteeth" almost all summer. When I wasn't listening to that, I had "Utopia Parkway" by Fountains of Wayne in my hears but that's for another day.
Over the past couple of days I've been thinking about all of the misinformation that's being spread about the AstraZeneca COVID-19 Vaccine. It's a bunch of crap and there is a risk of huge numbers of doses being lost or destroyed because of bad information and unnecessary fear. I got the AZ vaccine, almost 2 weeks ago. Other than being a bit fatigued and having a slightly tender arm (which always happens to me whenever I receive a vaccination) I had no horrible, life-threatening side-effects. I'd take the second dose today if I could. As it sits, I'm scheduled to receive it in August.
In my opinion, and in the opinion of most health care providers, the best vaccine is the one that's in your arm. Speaking of that, while I've been reading all of this conflicting and stupid news, I've had a song from "Summerteeth" stuck in my head, "A Shot in the Arm." So, that's what I'm sharing for Way Back Wednesday today. It's a super sweet live version, recorded for KEXP. Hope you enjoy it and I hope you're either vaccinated or on the list to get a jab. Stay home, stay safe, be kind to each other xo
How is May going for you? So far, this month, because of the stay at home order, I've not had a lot of newsworthy things happening in my life. I did get my first shot of the AZ Vaccine and that was very exciting, in pandemic life anyway, that is what passes for excitement. Also, I was able to visit with my mum and dad on Mother's Day. We looked through some old photo albums and caught up on family news. It was a lovely treat to be outside of my own home for a little while.
Because it's Tuesday, I'm once again sharing a cool cover with you. Today's feature song is along time favourite of mine, originally recorded by Nick Lowe, "Cruel To Be Kind." I'm pretty sure I was in either grade 7 or 8 the first time I heard it and it's just stuck with me all of those since in between. It's always featured on any playlists I'm making for myself and I very rarely can resist the urge to sing along.
Kurt Baker's version of "Cruel To Be Kind" is fantastic. Released in 2010 on his "Got It Covered" EP (which you can pick up from his bandcamp page), it's a fantastic cover of a perfect pop song. If you like the original, I think you'll really enjoy this one. The rest of his catalogue is also worth checking out. He's a great pop songwriter and I really like his sound.
So, I hope you like this. Have a good day, stay safe, stay home, wash your hands, wear your mask, be kind to each other xo
Well I do my best to understand dear
But you still mystify and I want to know why
I pick myself up off the ground
To have you knock me back down, again and again
And when I ask you to explain, you say
You've gotta be cruel to be kind, in the right measure
Maybe because we're under a stay at home order, I've been really amused by today's song. The idea of going to where the action is, well there is no action to go to, is there? Or at least if you're playing by the rules there isn't.
So, today, for isolation Friday, I'm sharing a song that is so beyond catchy, I guarantee that you'll get it stuck in your head and you'll be incapable of controlling your urge to dance. Released in 1965 by Freddy "Boom Boom" Cannon, "Action" was recorded for Dick Clark's "Where The Action Is" TV show. He recorded it with a bunch of session guys, Leon Russell, James Burton, Glen Campbell, and David Gates. Holy crap! Hope you enjoy this as much as I do.
I'm going to keep this one quick today. Hope you don't mind.
Today's Cancon Thurdsay tune is "Dirty Water" by Rock and Hyde. This particular "Dirty Water" is nothing like the one by the Standells (which I shared yesterday). It pales in comparison but, in the late 80's, I always enjoyed hearing this and watching the goofy bathtub themed video. It was made for Much Music. I seem to recall that Much Music gave it a lot of airplay at the time.
Rock and Hyde, for those of you too young to remember much (or any) of the 1980's, were Bob Rock and Paul Hyde, formerly of the Payolas. We all know that Bob Rock became thee Bob Rock, of mega successful rock record producing fame. Paul Hyde, well, I have no idea what happened to that guy.
I hope you enjoy this bouncy tune with it's goofy but fun video. Stay safe kiddos xo
Mid-week, hump day, whatever you like to call this day, I call it "Way Back Wednesday." I always share an oldie but a goodie song on Wednesdays. Today's vintage tune is by the Standells, "Dirty Water" is an amazing song. Makes me tap my toes and normally gets stuck in my head for a while after I hear it. Unlike some ear worms, I never ever mind having "Dirty Water" play on repeat in my head.
The Standells released their "tribute" to the (at the time) super polluted waters of Boston Harbour and the Charles River in 1965. FYI, they aren't from Boston, they were formed in Los Angeles. Not a big deal, just saying. I love this song and hope you enjoy it too. Stay safe kittens xo
Today, I'd like to start this post by wishing those of you who celebrate, a very happy Star Wars day. May the fourth be with you!!
As it's Tuesday, I'm sharing a cover song today. This particular song has be covered countless times since it was originally released in 1961 on the soundtrack to my mum's favourite Elvis movie, Blue Hawaii. "Can't help falling in love" is a classic love song with broad appeal, hence the many versions of it that are around.
Forever, I'll associate this song with the movie Blue Hawaii. When I hear it, I'm immediately transported back to my childhood home, on the sofa with my mum, watching what is essentially, a beautifully shot promotional film for tourism Hawaii. Oh yeah, also, Elvis was in it, singing his dialog. Not the greatest film in the world but it sure is pretty!
My mum prefers the Elvis version I know. My preferred version is performed by Dead Moon. It was released on their 1988 "In the Graveyard" album. Here is a great live recording of their take on "Can't Help Falling in Love." Enjoy xo
I feel like I won the lottery. I am feeling happy, relieved, overwhelmed with emotions actually.
Today, I received my first shot the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine. I never ever thought that I'd be so happy to get a needle stuck in my arm but these are weird and frightening times. I'm over the moon! I had some pretty dark moments over the past few days because I worried that something would happen and my appointment would be canceled. The process was painless. I went to a small local pharmacy, had a nice chat with the pharmacy assistant (who is a neighbour of mine as it happens). I scored some brownie points for having arrived with my consent form completed and signed (and I entered all of the information on my computer so it was easy to read). While I was waiting the requisite 15 minutes after receiving the vaccination, my certificate arrived in my email inbox. Easy peasy!!
So, for Isolation Friday (because even though I'm joyful - and grateful - we're still under a stay at home order), I'm sharing one of my favourite songs from 8th grade, Kool and the Gang's classic 1980 hit, "Celebration." I encourage you to join me in a little Friday afternoon dance party in your house somewhere!!
Have a great weekend, stay safe, wear a mask, wash your hand, get a jab if you have a chance. We can do this, together!! xo
How about them thunderstorms huh?? The other night, when the thunder started rumbling, I was deep into a book and thought that my neighbour was dragging wheelie bins up and down his driveway. Eventually I looked up and realized that a crazy storm was happening. Made me think of summer. I love wild storms in the summer, especially when you sit outside and watch them roaring across the sky.
So today is Thursday and that means I'm sharing a Canadian song. It's still spring and summer feels like it's still a long way away (it's not really!) but I'm sharing "Brunette Summer" by Chixdiggit. I love Chixdiggit and this song had summer in the title so it was a no-brainer. No-brainers are good for me right now because my brain is a bit foggy so I need to keep shit simple. If you haven't heard it, you really should pick up a copy of their great 1998 album, "Born on the first of July."
Hope you're staying home and being safe and washing your hands and wearing your masks now, so we can all get outside and run around in the rain this summer. Enjoy xo
Happy hump day. I also like to call this mid-week day, "Way Back Wednesday." On Way Back Wednesdays, I share an older song. As I think about it, I don't know if I cut it off at 20 or 25 years old but today's song is a bit more than 25 years old so it's definitely eligible!
When I was a kid, I only knew about Buck Owens from watching Hee Haw with my folks. I loved his red, white and blue guitar and thought he had a great voice (because he did!!). As I got a bit older, I grew more familiar with his pre and post Hee Haw music and became a fan. I recently heard today's song again for the first time in many years. It's a great song and this is a super fun performance of it from back in 1966.
"My Heart Skips A Beat" by Buck Owens and his Buckaroos (and written by Mr Owens!) is a perfectly wonderful country song (and trust me, I know about these things, having grown up in a house where we only listened to 2 kinds of music, country AND western). It was released in 1964 and was Buck's third number one single on the US Country charts. It spent 7 weeks at number one and a total of 26 weeks on the chart - so obviously I'm not the only one who thinks this is a terrific tune!
I hope you enjoy it. It'll make your toe tap, guaranteed. Enjoy kids and remember, stay home, stay safe, stay well and if you have to go out, wear a mask!! xo
Here we are at the end of April. Our second April of this pandemic.
I had a super craptacular week last week. So far, this one is going a lot better for me. I guess when you can sleep and figure out ways to manage your anxiety, things just seem brighter. Thank goodness.
So, as it's Tuesday again I'm sharing yet another cover song with you. If you're my age (or close to it), you may have had a picture of Shaun Cassidy (carefully removed from the pages of Tiger Beat) somewhere in your house in the mid-1970's. In 1976 he had a big hit when he covered Eric Carmen's "That's Rock 'n' Roll." Pop music fans will note that Eric Carmen was in the superb band, The Raspberries. Carmen had recorded the song in 1975. Anyway, Shaun Cassidy. That singing Hardy Boy made today's cover tune popular.
Last year, as a pandemic project, Green Day leader Billie Joe Armstrong starting recording and sharing covers of some super fun pop songs. "That's Rock 'n' Roll" was on that list and I'm sharing it today. I've always liked this song and I'm a sucker for hand claps. I actually like this a lot more than I did the Shaun Cassidy version. Let me know what you think.
Stay home if you can. Stay safe, wear a mask, get a shot in the arm. Just please be well xo
Was saddened to learn of the death of Les McKeown this week. When I was a little kid, my cousin Kathy was a massive fan of the Bay City Rollers. I think she even went to Toronto or Ottawa (from Smith Falls) to see them in concert. She was pretty excited but I wasn't too impressed. At the time, I preferred KC and the Sunshine Band. It was the 1970's... anyway, sometime in the late 1980's or maybe the early 1990's, I had a chance to see the Bay City Rollers here in Kingston. They played at Stages nightclub and it was quite a show. They did all of their hits, the crowd was really into it. My friends and I had been given free tickets and I remember us being brats about it. Lots of snide remarks over cheap beers but actually, they were really good.
I thought I'd share "Bye Bye Baby" with you all today. It's a great song, so much fun and a nice way to sign off for the week.
Stay safe kiddos, wash your hands, wear your mask and don't get too close to each other. We can get through us, we really can. xo
Going to keep this quick because, well, just because.
Last week, Ralph shared her latest mega awesome pop song with us, "Tommy." I'm going to share it with you. If you're a regular reader here, you'll know that I'm a big big fan of Ralph. She's incredible and she's Canadian, from just down the highway in Toronto. I love her voice and her whole vibe.
Ralph is just generally wonderful, in my opinion. I hope you dig this. The song is really catchy and the video is FAB-U-LOUS!!
Enjoy kiddos!! Stay home, stay well, stay safe xo
Now I dream about Tommy
I can't even focus 'cause he's got his hands on me
Never had my number, but I'm mad he didn't call me
As someone who grew up in Ontario, I am completely aware that snow in April isn't a strange occurrence. Snow in April, particularly when there are tiny leaves on my trees and tulips opening up in my garden, sucks.
In other news, I slept like a dead person last night and am feeling a lot less angry (still angry, just less angry) than I was yesterday and haven't even wanted to cry once today. I'm a cry baby, sad, happy, angry, frustrated, I cry. I hate that about myself but it's something that I've come to accept over the years.
For today's Way Back Wednesday post, I'm sharing a song that I had completely forgotten about until a couple of weeks ago. One evening, I was on YouTube watching random music videos and this popped up. Having just talked about Suzi Quatro a few days earlier with Bill, I was interested to hear "Stumblin' In" again. Wow. Just WOW. It took me back to my childhood instantly. I can vividly remember hearing this song through the AM radio in my dad's 1974 Dodge Dart. This duet with Chris Norman (an Englishman and former lead singer of Smokie) is so much fun. The song, the fashion, the hair (oh yes the hair!), it's all 1970's perfection.
I hope you enjoy this as much as I did. Stay well, stay safe, stay home!! xo
You were so young, and I was so free
And I may have been young but, baby, that's not what I wanted to be
Happy 420 to those of you who celebrate. I am sure that many of you who do celebrate it, also marked World Bicycle day yesterday - quite a big start to the week.
Today, April 20, is also the birthday of my lovely grandfather, Lawrence Shanks. He passed away in 1985 and I'll be forever grateful that he lived with us during the last few years of his life. Grandpa Shanks was a good man, a solid guy, one worthy of much love and respect and I have some wonderful memories of him. Happy Birthday Grandpa Shanks, we miss you.
Honestly, I'm feeling really fried at the moment. My work is really busy right now so I look forward to being able to recharge my batteries on the weekends. I spent the entire weekend feeling enraged by the Ontario government's announcement on Friday afternoon. It probably shouldn't have been shock to me that the Ford folks have no respect or regard for low income workers, for vulnerable communities across the province, for racialized communities... we can see what they are doing, they see these groups of people as disposable. To Ford and his cronies, somehow, the lives of these people are worth less than the lives of others. It's nauseating and infuriating and I feel frustrated and helpless by the absolutely preventable tragedy which has unfolded across the province.
On that note, I don't have a lot to say about music right now (although listening to it, instead of the CBC is probably the only thing keeping me sane at the moment). It's Tuesday though, so I'll share a cover. I hope you enjoy this great version of Sweet's 1974 hit "Fox On The Run" as performed by the Regrettes.
It's Friday, yay!! And how do you like that, for the first time in a very long time, I have posted 4 times in a week. Go me! This is a quickie because I've had a bonkers week and I'm a bit fried to be honest. April is always busy for most folks I know. This year it's felt particularly crazy for me. Add on top of that, all of the anxiety we're all experiencing about being locked down and "variants of concern" and well, I'm not at my best at the moment. I'm not at my worst either, I'm just feeling like a nap would be a very good thing to have right now.
I heard this song on the radio recently and it made me smile. I hadn't listened to it in a long long time. The Jesus and Mary Chain's stuff is truly timeless. Because this made me so happy to hear, I thought I'd share it because it's still April and during this stay at home order, looking up at the sky is still allowed! Also, I should tell you that this was released on their 1987 album Darklands.
I'm starting to get back into the groove of posting here again and it feels kind of nice. I'll not say a lot more about that because in the recent past, whenever I think, "hey, I'm on a roll again!" I get side tracked and the groove disappears.
If you ever look at my instagram, you might have noticed that I've started posting photos from shows on throwback Thursdays. While I have definitely missed my friends and family during the past year and a bit, I have also found not going to shows to be really challenging. Online things have been great and I've felt good about being able to see some of my favourite artists perform and also support them with some cash but it's not the same.
Last night I went through an old photo album. I was looking for some particular pictures I wanted to post on IG. What a trip that was. Down the rabbit hole indeed. Not only did I find the shots I was looking for, I found a bunch of stuff that I had no idea I had. Looking through the album, I realized how lucky we were to have been able to see so many shows, in so many bars, clubs and halls, packed in like sardines sometimes. Shouting at each other (I'm sure sometimes speaking "moistly"), sweating on each other, dancing and generally fucking around together, enjoying the music and each other. Is that ever going to happen again? I mean, I know that live music will return but what will that look like? Even after we're all vaccinated, are we going to have to be in those Flaming Lips bubble things (a wonderful idea I think!)? Hopefully not, maybe one day we'll be able to be all squished together again, like we should be. For now, I'm just grateful for my photo albums and records and all of those memories.
So, because it's Cancon Thursday around here, I'm sharing a song by one of the greatest Canadian bands ever, Huevos Rancheros. Please do yourself a favour and check out "What A Way To Run A Railroad" from their amazing 1996 album, "Get Outta Dodge."
As today is Way Back Wednesday, I'm going to share a sweet song which was recorded by the Beatles in 1965. It could have been shared on a Tuesday (cover day) but I saved it for today. Written by Larry Williams, he released it in 1958 on Specialty records. It wasn't a hit for Williams but the Beatles had some success with it.
I love the growly early Beatles songs and this one is such a great John rocker. Whenever I hear it, I smile and think about Mark. He was kind of a bad boy and he loved John Lennon something fierce. Today is Mark's birthday, he would have been 69 today. I'm sharing "Bad Boy" and remembering all of the birthday's we celebrated together. Poor guy, having a birthday on April 14 meant that, growing up, he frequently had to share his birthday with Passover. Mark hated matzo birthday cake! I can't really blame him. Legend has it that his mom, Ida, made the best cakes on the planet but even a wonderful baker like her couldn't make that taste as good as a traditional chocolate or lemon layer cake. During the years we were together, I never baked him a matzo cake.If you're thinking about Mark today on his birthday, put on some Beatles records and have a little dance party in his honour. Pretty sure he'd like that, a lot. We love you Mark and we miss you, always will, I know xo
The Shang Hi Los are a super fun band from Boston. I was introduced them when I heard their awesome song "Sway Little Player" on Little Steven's Underground Garage. They have a new EP out, "Kick It Like A Wicked Bad Habit." You should definitely check it out, I think it's great. Again, so much fun (and fun stuff is hard to come by these days it seems).
Because it's Tuesday, I'm sharing a cover. This week's cover tune is the Shang Hi Los version of the Chicago 1972 classic, "Saturday in the Park" (originally released on their Chicago V album). I was never a fan of Chicago generally or this song particularly but this cover is terrific.
Stay home, stay safe, be sweet to each other & enjoy xo
It's been quite a while since I've posted. Things have been busy and while I've continued to listen to music (always!!), I haven't felt super inspired to share any or write about it here.
Next week it'll have been a whole year since we were sent home. In some ways that seems crazy to me, how is it that I've not seen most of my friends in over a year? How did it happen that I have been able to be in BC for almost 6 months this year?
For most of the time, I really think that I've been okay. Recently, I'm starting to experience regular feelings of anxiety, something that I haven't had happen since the first few months after Mark's death. I have had moments of anxiety, a few periods of time which don't last for more than a few hours. This is different. It's always there and I'm not loving it.
So, while I deal with that and you all deal with the stuff that's happening to you right now, I'm going to try to post more regularly because I really do feel better when I do it.
As it's Tuesday today, I'm sharing a cover. It's an absolutely beautiful cover of John Prine's "Hello In There" performed by Roger Waters during quarantine.
Take care, be kind to yourself and hang in there everyone xo
You know that old trees just grow stronger
And old rivers grow wilder every day
Old people just grow lonesome
Waiting for someone to say, "Hello in there, hello"
