I know I've been missing over the past few weeks but sometimes that happens. Life just gets in the way. Trust me though, I've been listening to music and have been planning posts for you.
December is a month with many sad anniversaries for music fans. In previous Decembers we lost John Lennon, Frank Zappa, Zal Yanovsky, Joe Strummer and (in my opinion) the best female singer-songwriter I've ever heard, Kirsty MacColl.
Kirsty was killed 20 years ago this month. The "Justice for Kirsty" Campaign was what inspired me to start this blog and the title is stolen from her great song of the same name, "What Do Pretty Girls Do?" This week I'm going to be posting some of my favourite Kirsty tunes.
As I usually share a cover on Tuesdays, I'm going to share a fantastic cover Kirsty did of the classic Smiths song, "You Just Haven't Earned It Yet, Baby" to start the week off.
I had no intentions of this becoming Morrissey / Smiths week on ye olde blog but that's just what happened. Funny isn't it??
Today's Not Guilty Just Pleasure song could have been posted on a Tuesday (cuz cover) or Wednesday (cuz old) but instead I'm posting it today. I thought it would be a nice way to end this Morrissey week thing.
For those of you who aren't paying attention, this name of my blog ("What Do Pretty Girls Do?") was taken from a song by the late, great Kirsty MacColl. It's been a while since I have shared a song of hers and thought that today was just as good as any to do just that.
As much as I love the original recording of today's song, Kirsty's version was always my favourite. She recorded it for her 1989 album "Kite" (The song "What Do Pretty Girls Do" is also on "Kite") and the lead guitar (obvs) was played by Johnny Marr. For those of you who may be too young to have been a fan of Kirsty's, I really encourage you to check out her music. She was a brilliant artist, had the voice of an angel and just the best sense of humour. Kirsty was taken from us tragically in 2000 but her music still sounds fresh and new today.
I hope you enjoy Kirsty MacColl's cover of "You Just Haven't Earned It Yet Baby." If it doesn't make you dance around the house nothing will.
It's hump day today. It's a short week though so perhaps hump day doesn't start until late this afternoon. Ugh, not sure how that works in a four day week.
Either way, that means that it's Way Back Wednesday so I'm sharing a golden oldie with you today. Not that I have an official theme this week (although it's starting to feel like I do). When I found the song I posted yesterday (Morrissey's cover of "Wedding Bell Blues"), I read through some of the comments on YouTube and was mildly amused. Someone commented that Bill from Wedding Bell Blues was really William from "William It Was Really Nothing" (perhaps because when the Smiths performed "William It Was Really Nothing" on Top of the Pops all those years ago, he had "Marry Me" written on his chest). Legend has it that William from the song was Billy Mackenzie, singer of the Associates.
Same guy, not the same guy, after I read that, I had "William It Was Really Nothing" in my head for a couple of days and decided that it would be my Wednesday song this week. It does fit nicely with yesterday's song so, voila!
It was originally released during the summer of 1984 and the b-side on the single was "Please Please Please Let Me Get What I Want." Hope you enjoy it and have a happy day kiddos xo
How was the first month of the year for you? Despite starting the month off having to say goodbye to Gracie, the month was not bad for me. The weather was a bit extreme at times but that's to be expected. The days also start to get longer in January and that's just nice.
As it's Tuesday, I'm going to be sharing a cover tune with you fine folks today.
As you know, I've been a big fan of the Smiths for a really fucking long time. Like... 35 years or something ridiculous like that. For a big chunk of that time, I've also been a fan of the one and only, Mr Mojo Nixon. Combining Morrissey and Mojo...well it's a delicious thing, sort of like peanut butter cups... it's two great tastes that taste great together!!
So, without further adieu, I leave for you today, Mojo Nixon's very fine version of the classic Smiths' song, "Girlfriend in a Coma." enjoy xo
That week, we must have been finished school already, or had a day off in our exam schedule, we got into the car with my mom and dad, probably the green Buick Century, and took a little road trip together. I know we drove through Havelock, to Peterborough (to see the lift locks!) and eventually ended up in Oshawa. The Oshawa part is important. We went to the mall, the Oshawa Centre probably. My dad and my brother went to a movie and my mum and I shopped.
I don't remember much about what else I bought or looked at but I can recall, very clearly, clutching a copy of "The Queen Is Dead" in my hands for the drive home, anxiously, almost breathlessly, waiting to run to my room and put it on the turntable. That's right kids, this was 1986. Your choices at the store at that time were vinyl or cassette. I always chose vinyl for a couple of reasons. First of all, the artwork was always better and secondly, I had a turntable. I also could make a tape copy of the LP and listen to it on my walkman. How many times I listened to that album, hundreds probably. I loved the Smiths, so much, still do.
They really spoke to me and a year later, when I got my first apartment, the first poster I hung up in the living room of my brand new apartment was of them (I also had posters of Bruce Cockburn and the Communards in the bathroom but that's another post).
Everything about their lyrics resonated with me and there were only a couple of people amongst my wide circle of friends who even knew who they were, much less loved them like I did. I remember my mum telling me to "turn that down! he can't sing!!" - that always made me laugh. You could like his voice or not but the words were poetry, no argument. I spent a lot of time and probably too much money tracking down 12" singles and imported versions of albums I already had. There was no such thing as too much Morrissey and Marr for me. Even now, all these years later, I still keep The Smiths, and solo stuff by Morrissey and Johnny Marr in regular rotation. I never grow bored of them.
Admittedly, this week has been pretty rough for me, I'm feeling a lot better about things today and listening to Big Mouth Strikes Again, surprisingly, is helping.
