22 October 2008

The GMMP Great Eight

Looks like we have a great eight for my GMMP challenge — those musically daring souls willing to connect six degrees of artists or songs:

iSplotchy’s GMMP master, Splotchy

Allen L

Bad Tempered Zombie’s Barbara

The Pop Eye's BeckEye

Monkey Muck’s Dr. Monkey von Monkerstein

The KatBox’s Glassmeow

A Million Miles Away’s KS

And me!

We’re waiting on a couple entries — then we’ll hit PLAY and roll this mix tape, with Splotchy and me posting everyone's six. The kids will be tracing their six degrees of musical brilliance on their pages, as well.

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20 October 2008

Six Degrees of the GMMP

Now that Splotchy has resurrected the Green Monkey Music Project, he’s offered the GMMP masters the opportunity to helm our own mix. I’ve missed my weekly mix tapes (but still can’t find the time to put them together), so I’m grabbing this opportunity to semi-mix.

The theme: Six Degrees of Music

The idea: As with Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon, you need to connect six degrees of musicians or songs. For example:

    • The Box Tops: “The Letter” (Alex Chilton, lead singer)
    • Big Star: “Kizza Me” (Alex Chilton, lead singer)
    • Alex Chilton: “Make a Little Love”
    • The Replacements: “Alex Chilton”
    • The Replacements: “I Will Dare” (Peter Buck, guitar)
    • R.E.M.: “Jesus Christ”
Your sixth-degree connections can be by musicians, or cover tunes, or whatever musical notes you come up with.

We need six people to monkey around with Splotchy and me. Are you up for the challenge? Leave a comment here, and start connecting your musical dots.

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18 June 2008

Why Work When You Can Sing?

The pop-culturally Beckeye is running a lyrics contest on her blog — it’s tough and it’s fun. Waste valuable office minutes today trying to pin the singer and title to the lyrics. Who want to be work-productive in June when you can sing tunes from the sixties through nineties?

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18 March 2008

Me in Six

Mathman6293 at When Will I Use This? gave me the best challenge so far: write my memoir in six words. Hell, I’m a Southerner; it takes me eleven words just to say hello. But I need a challenge this week.

The Six-word Memoir Rules

1. Write your own six-word memoir.
2. Post it on your blog. Include a visual illustration if you’d like.
3. Link to the person who tagged you.
4. Tag five more blogs — and link ‘em.

I spend my workday working and playing with words, so you’d think this would be easy. When I knew what I wanted to say, the six words came easily:

Music brought my soul to life.

Worshipping the Automatic for the People-like thingie
(Brighton, 1992)


Hmmmm … which loquacious bloggers are up for the challenge? I tap:

Bliss and Bile’s Chelene has sixed!
The Road Goes on Forever’s Keith has sixed!
Land-o-Lulu’s Lulu has sixed!
Social Zimurgy’s Doc
Scrivenings’ Scrivener

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08 January 2008

7 and 7 Is

The coolest couple of the blogworld — Flannery and Doc — both tagged me for the latest in blog memes: seven things you don’t know about me. I’ve posted a few of these memes, so coming up with fourteen new things you don’t know about me is a challenge — a challenge worthy of blowing off some office hours.

Flannery’s request was for a song-laden seven — and I’m more than happy to oblige. So, Flannery’s seven will be music-related, and Doc’s will be filled with deep, dark secrets.

And so, as Love sings, here is 7 and 7 Is.

Flannery’s Seven

1. The first album I ever owned was Blood, Sweat & Tears. Santa brought it to me the year our family got a hi-fi stereo. My favorite track on the album is “Variations on a Theme by Erik Satie” — but today I’m sharing one of the hits off the album, Spinning Wheel.

2. The first album I bought with my own money was the Help! soundtrack. Since it was the soundtrack, it included the various orchestral pieces played throughout the movie. Sadly, that version is not available on CD and I have yet to get my LP converted. Probably my favorite song on the album is You’ve Got to Hide Your Love Away; John’s vocals are dreamy, and you can never go wrong with a well-banged tambourine.

3. The first 8-track tape I bought proves my extreme coolness: Jefferson Starship’s Red Octopus. Oh, yeah, I was groovin’ between the ch-chungs. It took many turntable Miracles to earn my record collection cred once I hit the college campus.

4. The first concert I was a Willie Nelson show, with Waylon Jennings and Leon Russell on piano, in the early 1970s. The whole family went. It was also the first night I smelled pot. I don’t think they performed this, but I love Willie and Waylon’s cover of (Sittin' on) The Dock of the Bay.

5. I embarrassed myself in front of Eddie Money. He was in town for a show, and came to our campus radio station for an interview. Musicians are notoriously late for interviews, so I was in the cafeteria, no doubt flirting with my latest victim. Well, Eddie got to the station early — and, as PR Director, I missed out on my job of welcoming him. I dashed downstairs to the studio, where Eddie and a couple of the jocks were hanging out. I greeted him, then told him I brought in some albums (I’d just bought) that I’d like him to sign. He asked if I was going to his show, and I explained I was very hung over; he suggested some hangover cures. I yammered like a yokel and giggled out some inane, college-age crap — until I noticed the jock was glaring at me and the On Air light was lit. I handled it professionally, shrieking and dashing into the news studio. I was, as Mr. Money sings here, Shakin’ with embarrassment. He was a charmer, coming into the news studio post-interview, bowing and asking me to make it to the show. I didn’t.

6. You’d think my favorite band during my freshman year at UGA was R.E.M., but no; Michael and Peter had yet to find each other at Wuxtry. I was a typical freshman girl in 1977, swooning over Dan Fogelberg and songs like Aspen/These Days. Still sad that we recently lost him, although I haven’t listened to a Fogelberg album in eons.

7. I’ve become a digital queen in the last few years, buying fewer and fewer CDs. The last CD I bought was Rufus Does Judy at Carnegie Hall, which includes tasty aural morsels like A Foggy Day and Medley: Almost Like Being in Love/This Can't Be Love.


Doc’s Seven

1. I coordinate my reading glasses with my outfits. I have reading glasses in all the must colors: black, brown, red, lime green, turquoise, blue, rimless. Choosing that day’s reading glasses is as important a morning ritual as baubling up with the earrings, necklace, bracelet, and watch.

2. I’m very anal about my PC’s taskbar. Applications must always be opened in a particular order. For my office PC, it’s Winamp — Outlook — Yahoo e-mail — Current Projects folder — and then the application I’m using. If one crashes, I must close, then reopen all that follow so that order is restored.

3. I’m obsessed with Bridget Jones’s Diary (alternate title: The Cup’s Life on Celluloid). More than once I’ve watched back-to-back viewings on Bravo. Nothing better than a Friday night of take-out Thai and four hours of Bridget. I have the DVD, but I must always watch the broadcasts.

4. I got in trouble in kindergarten for kissing all the boys. (RCofCHS, it was your fault, I’m sure.) I also had problems learning how to tie a bow … probably because I was always trying to tie one on with all those beaux.

My graduating class at Kiddie Dude Ranch, 1965. I’m third from the right. Look at the wide berth those bitches gave me. Why wouldn’t anyone stand close to me?


5. I may have a problem with commitment. When given the choice of a five-year or ten-year driver’s license, I opted for the shorter-term license. If you knew my problem with getting licenses renewed, you’d be concerned, too. But who knows where (or who) I’ll be in ten years?

6. My left pinky is twisted from breaking the bone. I have no idea how or when I broke it; it has been that way as long as I remember. When I’m nervous, I click the broken joint back and forth. To further mar my short, stubby hands, I sport a writing bump on the inside knuckle of my right ring finger. I’ve never held a pencil properly — and thus cannot use chopsticks, either. My Japanese bosses tried teaching me in the early 1980s, but quickly gave up.

7. I’ve been a member of the R.E.M. fan club for at least twenty years. I get opps for presale tickets and a Christmas package every year, as well as a quarterly newsletter. It’s the best ten bucks I spend every year. (Did you really think you were going to get out of here without an R.E.M. triviality?)


And thus we close out another edition of Seven Things You Didn’t Know about me with Billy Bragg’s cover of 7 and 7 Is.

But not before I tag others — that’s seven and seven others:

  • All the Way from Oy to Vey’s Katie has 7’ed!

  • Bad Tempered Zombie’s Barbara has 7’ed!

  • Gifted Typist has 7’ed!

  • Give Me My Blue Blanket

  • I, Splotchy’s Splotchy has 7’ed!

  • Politits’s DCup has 7’ed!

  • Reject the Koolaid’s Jacy

  • Ribbed for Your Pleasure’s Mountjoy has 7’ed!

  • Save Your Generation’s Pistols at Dawn has 7’ed!

  • Scrivener

  • Tanya Espanya has 7’ed!

  • Wapentake has 7’ed!

  • What I Like About the Universe's Evil Evil Genius has 7’ed!

  • Yawp's Third Worst Poet in the Galaxy has 7’ed!


  • Get your seven spillin’, kids.

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    12 September 2007

    Livin’ La Vida Musica

    Sometimes my life is fabulous. Look at this week’s clutched-ticket concerts:

    Tonight: Crowded House, with opener Pete Yorn
    I saw Crowded House at one of their very last shows — if not the last one — before they broke up in 1994. It was a great show, at a small venue. They’re playing at the much larger Tabernacle tonight. Will they still be great?
    Song Prayer Request: "Don't Dream It's Over" and few Split Enz tunes

    Thursday: Andrew Bird
    I’ve never seen Andrew Bird live — I missed last fall’s show — so I’m quite excited about finally seeing him perform. He was great on Letterman a few months ago. Added bonus: I’ll see the Scriveners at the show.
    Song Prayer Request: “Measuring Cups” and “Armchair”

    Friday: Stevie Wonder
    Cannot wait! Stevie hasn’t toured the U.S. in a dozen years, so this show is The Ticket of the Month. He’s performing at our better amphitheater — and the highs on Friday will be in the very low 80s. I’m thinkin’ it will be a night of lots lemonade with citron vodka and lots of dancing for this girl.
    Song Prayer Request: “Boogie on Reggae Woman” and "Higher Ground"

    But fabulous doesn’t stop there, kids. Next week is John Vanderslice with Bishop Allen (thanks to Coaster Punchman), and Ticket of the Month #2: Bob Dylan, with openers Elvis Costello and Amos Lee. And then the next week …

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    05 September 2007

    One Isn’t the Loneliest Number After All

    Another Great Green Monkey Music Project

    The Splotch, who seems to be as obsessed about music as I am, is back with the Green Monkey Music Project — volumes four and five in this increasingly popular series. I was lucky to be tapped for my list of eight for Volume Four. The theme and rules this round was tough; Splotchy is a one damn task-mastering bitch when it comes to these themes. And I love him for that.
    Green Monkey Music Project #4: What's in a Word? All songs must have a title consisting of only one word. The word can't be a proper noun (a person's name, a place — if it has a capital letter, it's a no-no).

    Well, I thought this would be tough — but I had twentysomething songs in the folder within five minutes. The tough part was whittling it down to eight. I cut some great tunes — by Young Marble Giants and Young Fresh Fellows, Liz Phair and Aretha Franklin, The Replacements (sorry, Haahnster) and The Ramones, Oasis and Zevon, even Automatic Baby (half R.E.M./half U2) singing “One” — but I think I have a strong eight in my hand (as is the Cup's wont, alphabetized for fairness):

    The B-52's: Topaz

    David Bowie: Fashion

    The Clash: Clampdown

    Magnapop: Garden

    R.E.M.: Stumble

    Sonic Youth: Incinerate

    Squeeze: Tempted

    Johnny Thunders: MIA


    Why are you still here? Click over to check out Green Monkey Music Project #4 to check out what the other kids submitted. That’s where I’m headed; there are some excellent songs to download. And tell Splotchy I said hello.

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    16 August 2007

    Honoring the King

    I had planned to write a long post today about my love for Elvis Presley — how his music through 1960 and from 1968 until his death still wows me, reminiscing about my two pilgrimages to Graceland, showing you some of my Elvis tchotchkes — but I decided to hold that homage until his birthday. This anniversary of his death just didn’t feel like the appropriate time to gush. But I need to honor The King in some way … so of course I’m going down music boulevard. What better way to show the love?

    Who doesn’t love covering Elvis Presley? Everyone wants to play King for a day — Sinatra and Bennett, rockers and country artists, our favorite alternative bands. There are two genres in my collection missing Elvis representation: punk and indie.

    I guess the indie kids are too young to be influenced by Elvis. Too bad; wouldn’t you kill to hear Colin Meloy singing “The Wonder of You” … Scott McCaughey warbling “Clean up Your Own Backyard” … Sam Beam with “Kentucky Rain” … Chan Marshall breaking your heart with “Blue Moon” … Jeff Tweedy making “Mystery Train” his own? Maybe that’s my project for 2008: the hippest album of Elvis covers evah. Michael Stipe, are you listening?
    I spent two weeks whittling down the list to a manageable fortysomething, trying to include as many styles and genres as I could. Click. Listen. Sing along. Shake your hips. Let me know which ones you like best.

  • Neil Young: That’s All Right

  • Vince Gill: That’s All Right


  • Bill Monroe & The Bluegrass Boys: Blue Moon of Kentucky


  • Tom Jones: I’m Left, You’re Right, She’s Gone

  • Bob Dylan: I Forgot to Remember to Forget

  • Johnny Cash: I Forgot to Remember to Forget


  • Lloyd Cole & The Commotion: Mystery Train


  • Ann-Margret: Heartbreak Hotel

  • Guns N Roses: Heartbreak Hotel

  • Terence Trent Darby: Heartbreak Hotel

  • Willie Nelson: Heartbreak Hotel


  • Fleetwood Mac: Don’t Be Cruel

  • Marty Stuart: Don’t Be Cruel


  • Rolling Stones: Hound Dog

  • Frank Zappa: Hound Dog


  • The Beatles: Blue Suede Shoes

  • Jimi Hendrix: Blue Suede Shoes

  • Buddy Holly & The Crickets: Blue Suede Shoes


  • Cowboy Junkies: Blue Moon Revisited (Song for Elvis)

  • Chris Isaak: Blue Moon


  • Norah Jones + Adam Levy: Love Me Tender

  • Frank Sinatra + Elvis Presley: Love Me Tender

  • Percy Sledge: Love Me Tender


  • Jeff Beck Group: All Shook Up


  • Queen: Jailhouse Rock

  • Blues Brothers: Jailhouse Rock


  • Bryan Ferry: Are You Lonesome Tonight


  • Elvis Costello: His Latest Flame


  • Dwight Yoakum: Little Sister


  • Erasure: Can’t Help Falling in Love

  • Bono: Can’t Help Falling in Love

  • Pearl Jam: Can’t Help Falling in Love

  • Luka Bloom: Can’t Help Falling in Love


  • Dead Kennedys: Viva Las Vegas


  • Nick Cave: In the Ghetto

  • Cranberries: In the Ghetto


  • Melissa Etheridge: Burning Love


  • And because nobody has covered it (not that I’ve found, anyway), here’s one of my very favorite Elvis songs:

  • Elvis Presley: Kentucky Rain


  • They’re Caught in a Trap

    And they can’t get out from under the covers of “Suspicious Minds” — according to my MP3 collection, Elvis’ most-covered tune, at least in my MP3 collection. Here’s a sampling of those with suspicious minds:

    Belle & Sebastian
    Bowling for Soup
    Jessi Colter + Waylon Jennings
    Fine Young Cannibals
    Flaming Lips
    Heptones
    Roddy McDowall
    My Morning Jacket
    No Doubt
    R.E.M.
    U2
    B.J. Thomas
    Dwight Yoakum
    Pete Yorn


    The best live version of “Suspicious Minds” I’ve ever heard was in the early 1990s, during the encore of a 10,000 Maniacs show at Chastain Park Amphitheater. Pal Joe and I were lolling on the grass in the back, enjoying the music coursing through our ears and the vodka coursing through our veins. A sudden shout went up, as did we — to see our beloved Michael Stipe joining the band onstage. Joe and I were front and center with a time that Carl Lewis would be proud of. Michael and Natalie were brilliant — funny, flirty, having a good ol’ time singing it together. I have searched for a boot of this duo’s duet for fifteen years … so if you have a copy …

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    15 August 2007

    Absorb … Like, Totally

    If you’ve read this blog just twice, you know I never miss an opportunity to write about music, obsess about music, muse about music. So when I saw that fellow shy-avatarist Splotchy was starting The Green Monkey Project — sure to be quite the intelligent music discourse on Blogspot — I waved my virtual hand and joined the cool kids at their table. The other players have street cred (at least on my street): Bad Tempered Zombie and Monkey Muck.

    The first Green Monkey Project assignment: Total Absorption.

    What Splotchy wanted were the songs that totally absorb us. You know the ones — those songs that keep you driving ‘round and ‘round the block until the last note fades on the radio station, even though you have the album, and the CD, and the MP3 at home. You just gotta listen.

    Being a product of the rocker 1970s and the new-wave 1980s, I was surprised that most of my songs lean toward the mellow. Here’s my list o' ten (well, okay, eleven):

    R.E.M.: Radio Free Europe
    Show of hands of those surprised by this first choice? Anyone? “Radio Free Europe” has been at the top of my must-stop list since Mitch Easter helped the boys rework it in 1983. I wish I could write the sentence that conveys the joy, the thrill every time I hear the song. It’s that magical summer of 1983 again, with Renae and Simeon and Shawn. I heard it at 4:20 this morning, and danced my absorbed ass all over the room.

    Lyle Lovett: Friend of the Devil
    I love this Grateful Dead cover (from the Deadicated tribute album). Lyle’s version is hauntingly perfect, and it brings back a very lovely memory. And that’s all I’m going to say on that.

    Michael Stipe feat. Chris Martin: In the Sun
    Here I go again with “lovely” and “haunting”; I need a new music-criticism thesaurus, don’t I? But maybe it’s those qualities that absorb my attention. This is the best Michael has sounded in years; his voice is honest and beautiful. I agree with Peter Buck that Stipe has the best rock voice out there today, but he can really nails the ballads. I have played this song over, and over, and over again for an hour straight … and I think I’m gonna do that right now.

    Nina Simone: Feeling Good
    Pure sex. Every time I hear it, I want to put on my highest-heeled black pumps, sheer black nylons, and slink across the room. Slowly. Nobody out-sizzles Ms. Nina, especially with this one.

    Oasis: Champagne Supernova
    The Gallagher brothers have written and recorded many songs that stay on my top 250 list, but this is the one that gets the most love and replays. I can never turn off the car when it’s playing — not even at 5 a.m.

    Neil Young: Philadelphia
    If there’s blood cursing through your veins and hearing this song doesn’t chill said blood, then you may not have a soul. I cry. Every. Damn. Time. I hear this song. My dad once heard me playing it and commented that it was a sad, lovely song; if you knew OM’s taste in music, you’d be impressed.

    Nanci Griffith: Morning Song for Sally
    Jerry Jeff Walker penned the loveliest, saddest, short-story-in-a-song evah. This song needs no video; the film in my head is unbeatable. Those five minutes rip my heart out every time, and Griffith’s voice is the perfect match for the song. Another song that has been replayed an hour straight. I’ve never been able to find Jerry Jeff’s version of this; anyone want to share?

    Al Green: Love and Happiness
    “Something that can make you do wrong / Make you do right.” And then that “heeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeey” that nobody can pull off like the Reverend. My shirt starts slipping off the shoulder on that "heeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeey”; I can’t help myself.

    The Replacements: I Will Dare
    Whenever I’m stressed or sad or blue, I put this on and dance around the room. The song makes me damn happy. How can you not love a song with “How young are you / How old am I? / Let’s count the rings / Around my eyes”? And that guest guitarist? The kid’s gonna be big one day.

    Brothers Johnson: Strawberry Letter 23
    This cover of the Shuggy Otis tune has been one of my very favorite songs since it came out in 1977 (my senior year in high school). I generally stop mid-sentence and lose my spot in reality when I hear it played in a store, or in the car, or at home. And, of course, I have to move my shoulders. Because I’m a funkster, y’know.


    Pop over to Splotchy’s spot to see the full mix. And gimme another assignment, DJ Splotch.


    COMING UP:
    My review of Monday's Rufus Wainwright/Neko Case show!

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    23 July 2007

    The Random, Not the Mundane

    I was tagged by Moxie to answer five random questions. I love random questions. My conversational style revolves around random questions. Hope you enjoy my random answers.


    1. If you could be a type of chocolate, what kind would you be, and why?

    A Hershey’s with almonds bar. Simple, perfect chocolate with those lovely toasted almonds.


    2. What was your favorite song the year you graduated from high school?

    I graduated from high school in June 1977 — just when music was getting interesting. I wish I could claim “Blitzkrieg Bop” or “Janie Jones,” but it was another three months before I began evolving musically. My musically naïve high-school senior self loved two wonderful songs:

    For good ol’ seventies rock ‘n’ roll, there’s nothing better than Boston’s "Foreplay/Long Time." It’s still one of my favorite songs to listen to in the car, driving as fast as I can get away with. There was an all-night party our last quarter in high school — the soccer team, the sister and me, and our best friends — and the first Boston album and a KISS album were the soundtrack until dawn. Ah, good times.

    Jackson Browne’s "Here Comes Those Tears Again" was my favorite girlie song. What lovely, heartbroken angst! I was working at Six Flags, on the Okefenokee Swamp ride, when my beau dumped me and broke my heart. Part of each work shift had me sitting in the dark, making sure kids didn’t hop off the boat … and I’d sit in that dark singing “Here Comes Those Tears” and crying over that wild boy, as only a high school girl can. Throw in Jackson Browne’s back story with his wife’s suicide, and you had the perfect song for a romantic, drama-queen teen.

    That’s me, thirty years ago, in our class officer photo (yeah, I was one of those involved dorks in high school). Too bad you can’t see the detail of that fabulous outfit — that’s quality, pure 1970s patchwork denim vest and jeans, kids. The heartbreaker’s Mustang is in the background.


    3. If you were running for president in 2008, what would be your platform?

    — Get our troops out of Iraq.
    — Legalize gay marriage throughout the nation.
    — Make sure every child has healthcare coverage.
    — Support research into alternate fuel sources.
    — Declare your birthday a mandatory day off with pay.


    4. What is your least favorite root vegetable?

    The rutabaga and the turnip. I do, however, love the radish and the carrot.


    5. What three historical figures would you like to have over for dinner and drinks?

    If I’m going for an intellectual night around my dining table, I’d have these three over for a discourse on how this country began and where it is today: Thomas Jefferson, Martin Luther King Jr., and Bill Clinton. For a memorable night of drinking and carousing and witty banter, I’d invite Oscar Wilde, Truman Capote, and Cole Porter.

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    Now it’s my turn: five random questions for five bloggers. I’m going all-chick this time:


    Here are their questions:

    1. Who was your Tiger Beat crush? Do you still find him cute?

    2. You’re the new hot voice out there, and everyone wants to play with you. Who do you pick to play in your backup band?

    3. What’s your favorite curse word? When do you use it?

    4. What’s your guilty pleasure TV show, the one you’re almost embarrassed to admit you watch?

    5. Which is your very favorite bauble?

    Confess away, ladies.

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    02 July 2007

    You Want to Know More About Me?

    So it seems, even after this, and this, and this, and this, I’ve been tagged to tell you eight more random facts about me. By Write Procrastinator. Gizmorox. And (sort of) Beckeye.

    Does that mean I have to spill twenty-four beans? I must honor the blogger code, so twenty-four it is. To make it easier on you (and easier for me), I’m splitting them up by tagger: eight bookish things for Write Procrastinator, eight musical notes for Gizmorox, and eight dishy tidbits for Beckeye.


    Eight Bookish Things About Me

    1. One room in my place is literally filled with books — boxes and boxes of books, chin-high, packed alphabetically by author, of course. Rough count of thirty-two boxes, in addition to the three filled bookcases. But that’s not all; there are books in every room, even the bathrooms (quick reads).

    2. Ninety-five percent of what I read is fiction. I enjoy nonfiction — especially histories and biographies — but I guess I prefer slipping away to another world. My favorite book so far this year, though, is a memoir: Love Is a Mix Tape.

    3. When I was in fourth grade, I won the Best Haiku award for this:

    Fuji is alone
    Fuji is alone today
    Poor, poor old Fuji

    Left by all the trees
    Left by all the little birds
    Fuji is alone.

    For you non-literary types, that's about Japan's Mount Fuji. Damn, I was hawt and talented.

    4. Like every other blogger out there, I dream of becoming a celebrated author, someone to be praised by Baby Got Books. However, my fear that I’ll be less Donna Tartt/more Danielle Steel keeps the stories in my head and away from the pen.

    5. Right after this photo was taken at (sadly, now defunct) Oxford Books:


    Jack Hanna asked if I wanted to be his Atlanta girlfriend.

    6. Although I must have music playing when I’m working, when I’m driving, when I’m breathing … I like to read in a very quiet room.

    7. I have never belonged to a book club. I’d like to, I guess, but I’d hate to get in one of those groups that always picks a sucky book, or has a member who tries to be too Diane Chambers when talking about the book. I’d rather talk about a book with my friends.

    8. Two of my favorite authors read my posts about them during the last couple of months … and I have the PDF’ed Sitemeter stats to prove it.


    Eight Musical Notes About Me

    1. R.E.M. is my favorite band. (You were guessing Supertramp, weren’t you?) Wilco is quickly moving into the second slot.

    2. My dreams have soundtracks. My brain operates like my iPod on shuffle, picking random songs to play in my head as I sleep. And, like my iPod, it doesn’t always pick the best songs. Nothing worse than waking up after a night of Bon Jovi and Skynyrd.

    3. I have a not-so-secret (and innocent) crush on a blogger, in part because he sends me at least five MP3 albums every week. I’m considering marrying him, then quickly divorcing him in a dastardly attempt to gain custody of his 350+ gigs of music.

    4. Good music and a car ride can change my mood. When the Beloved Ex and I broke up, I cried on the sofa for 30 minutes … then grabbed a CD of MP3s, hopped in my car, and drove around until 2 a.m., listening to and singing along with some of my favorite songs, the sunroof open, the hair blown wild. By the time I got home, I was okay and could sleep.

    5. I once pissed off Richard Hell. We went to a showing of Smithereens at the High Museum of Art back in 1982. As my friends and I were walking out, I was talking about how I liked him in the movie, but he left me with the same urge I had for Keith Richards: I wanted to get a white washcloth and scrub his face to see how much dirt came off. Mr. Hell, who (unbeknownst to moi) was there for the showing, was walking next to us, heard me, and glared at me all the way to our car. I still feel bad about that.

    6. Of all the rockstar beaux in my dreams, Keith Richards is always the sweetest boyfriend.

    7. I’ve hugged the wee, adorable Rufus Wainwright. He opened for Roxy Music several years ago (sadly, he wasn’t wearing lederhosen), and worked his own merch table after his set. I was so excited to meet him, I couldn’t help myself. I’m sure that squealy hug was the highlight of his East Coast swing.

    8. I once kissed Warren Zevon. I’ll tell that story one day.


    Eight Dishy Morsels About Me

    1. Julia Roberts and I went to the same high school. No, I didn’t know her, but I babysat some of the girls who became friends with her at good ol’ CHS.

    2. I was on ABC Nightly News in October 1991. I got to ride in the convertible with David Justice during the city’s World Series parade, and my best friend saw the clip of me sitting next to David.

    3. I’ve made two very good friends through the blog — two friends I chat with regularly and see often (well, one lives three thousand miles away, so I see her when I can). There are, at last count, twelve bloggers I hope to meet in person one day soon.

    4. I’ve lost one good friend over a post on this blog. The post was about someone I work with (which was obvious, and she knew about that drama), but she thought I was writing about her and thus wrote me a Dear John (Jane?) letter.

    5. Jimmy Carter and his family went to our church when he was guv’nuh of this great state. One morning between Sunday school and church, I was drinking at the water fountain outside the santuary, and kept hearing my mom apologize to someone. When my thirst was quenched, I found that my little black patents had been stomping the hell out of the tips of Jimmy’s wingtips. Much to my great disappointment, the future president’s bodyguards didn’t wrestle me to the ground; I guess my twelve-year-old self wasn’t very threatening.

    6. I loved the puka-wearing David Cassidy with all my heart when I was in the sixth grade, and my mom took my sister and me to meet him. He was sitting at a table, and the weeping, screaming throng lined up to shake his hand. My sister slipped him her class photo, with our phone number on the back, but the b*stard never called.

    7. I made Mick Jagger laugh. They were filming Freejack in downtown Atlanta, on the street where I was temping that day. I grabbed my sack lunch and (with about a thousand others) went out to watch The Other Glimmer Twin. While they were setting up a shot, Mick was standing on a trailer, filming the crowd. As he panned to me, without even thinking about it, I pulled out a carrot and fellated it. Mick laughed and gave me a thumbs-up. My mother is always proud to tell that story.

    8. I can’t watch scary movies. They make me cry and I can’t sit in my theater seat. I hate waiting for something to jump out; I can’t handle that tension. That being said, I love the Evil Dead trilogy … because Bruce Campbell is a god.



    Now I’m supposed to tag others. Twenty-four of you, I guess. That’s too much work, and many of you have already completed this meme. So, if you have yet to tackle this one, get inspired by all this trivial info and post your eight interesting things.

    And if you’ve never visited the blogs of Write Procrastinator, Gizmorox, or Beckeye, do yourself a favor and stop by today.

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    13 June 2007

    The Drought Is Over

    I went to a show last night, after six dry weeks without live music. FBB (favorite blog buddy) Scrivener and I caught Great Lake Swimmers at The Earl last night. It was a damn good show.

    Not familiar with Great Lake Swimmers? I wasn’t, either, until Scrivener mentioned them. I checked ‘em out on eMusic and liked the band immediately.


    If you’re addicted to MP3s like I am and you don’t have a subscription to eMusic.com, you’re doing yourself a disservice. I get 90 downloads for $19.95 per month (although I think those signing up now get 75 each month). eMusic doesn’t have your Bruce Springsteens or Justin Timberlakes, but it’s a great spot for discovering new bands. That’s where I first heard The Decemberists, The New Pornographers and Neko Case, Iron & Wine, Beulah, The Pipettes, Of Montreal, and many more indie bands. eMusic has great selections in most genres. Try it today — and tell ‘em I sent you.

    Great Lake Swimmers, from Toronto, remind me a bit of Sufjan Stevens, more so Iron & Wine. Tony Dekker has the most sublime voice, a voice that hooked me with the first listen of the first song, a voice like cool summer evenings under the trees. (Too corny? Okay, yeah. But it does.)


    Great Lake Swimmers' Tony Dekker,
    playing at The Earl last night
    Shot by Scrivener, using my camera


    One of the cool things about Great Lake Swimmers is they have a banjo player … but it doesn’t sound like a banjo, not in the traditional sense. It’s almost as if the banjo is played like a rhythm guitar.

    Dekker was a bit shy on stage, but I was charmed by his song introductions, such as “This is ‘I Am Part of a Large Family,’ about being part of a large family.”

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    22 May 2007

    The Now Explosion

    A newbie in my orbit has me reliving my salad days. The wannabeau and I are the same age and grew up in Atlanta, so we’ve had a lot of “Remember when Lenox was an open-air mall?” and “My first trip to Oxford Books was” and “How many times did you ride the Pink Pig?” conversations.

    Yank your nasty brain out of the gutter right now. Riding the Pink Pig isn’t a euphemism for how we hit that here in Georgia. The Pink Pig was an Atlanta tradition, a rite of passage, a kiddie train at the downtown Rich’s department store during the Christmas season. Why we celebrated Christmas by riding a train that looked like a pig is beyond me … but it was special, dammit.

    All these conversations about the Atlanta of the 1960s and 1970s got me thinking about some coolness from the sixth grade … so I Googled and I YouTubed … and found that the University of Georgia has archived footgage from — wait for it — The Now Explosion.

    You late fortysomething kids from Atlanta and Jacksonville and other blessed cities are squealing right now, aren’t you? The rest of you? I feel sorry for your lack of Now Explosionism.


    What was The Now Explosion? Nope, not Larry Tee’s first band; my Now Explosion predates that musical marvel by about a decade. The Now Explosion was music videos. In 1970. Eleven years before MTV’s moonman and that Buggles song.

    Why is that still a trivia question? Doesn’t everyone know that “Video Killed the Radio Star” by now?


    The Now Explosion played locally produced videos for Top 40 hits. For several glorious months in 1970, Channel 17 — now known throughout the world as Super Station TBS, but then just a local UHF station — broadcast Now Explosion every weekend, for about twelve hours straight, Saturday and Sunday. It was a badge of honor to brag on Mondays about the number of weekend hours wasted watching Now Explosion.


    The Now Explosion was just plain cool. No, not cool — groovy. Now Explosion was the epitome of groovy. Trippy, hippy graphics and dancing chicks. On TV. All weekend long. The right thing at the right time for an impressionable eleven-year-old girl already passionately in love with music. I was also fascinated with hippies in those days. A big thrill was the occasional Sunday drive down to Piedmont Park, where we’d watch the hippies. Being a complete and total dork, I used to make magazine photo collages of hippies.

    Now Explosion was a beautiful moment that was of the moment. It was, as the marketing materials stated, providing television that young adults really dig. Since the videos were, for the most part, shot around Atlanta, you had the connection of a favorite song with a slice of your city. It was something just for us.

    Here are snippets from some of the videos. I’ve watched this several times (more times than I want to admit) since I found it last night; I was surprised at how many of the videos I remembered. It’s well worth watching the full nine-plus minutes; some clips are brilliant, some hilarious. And now I know why I dance the way I do.


    Try to stick with this video until the end, and you'll be rewarded with a non-silver-foxed Kenny Rogers singing and emoting to “Ruby, Don’t Take Your Love to Town” (helluva great song).

    My favorite isn’t included in this clip. It was a video of a beautiful hippy girl with long hair, playing Frisbee in Piedmont Park, with Simon & Garfunkel’s “Cecilia” playing. I wanted to be that carefree hippy chick. I still want to be that carefree hippy chick.

    Skinny Bobby Harper — a longtime Atlanta disc jockey, and a family fave throughout my childhood — was one of the DJs on Now Explosion (the term “veejay” had yet to be uttered). Here’s a clip of him remembering the Now Explosion days:



    When The Beatles announced their breakup, Skinny Bobby played the video for “Let It Be,” which ended with the four-square photo collage from the album. As the song faded and the screen froze on the photo, he said something like “Look closely. This will be the last time you’ll see them together.”

    Appropriately schwaaaaaaah.

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    23 April 2007

    I Asked … and I Answered

    I’ve been enjoying the interviews going around our little corner of the blogosphere, so I wildly waved my virtual hand when my new favorite blogger, Artful Dodger over at Rants Raves Life and Anything Else That Comes, ran his Gizmorox interview.

    I enjoy Rants Raves etc., but I also love his nom de blog. I had a thing for Jack Wild after seeing him play the Artful Dodger in Oliver! I quit baton lessons because they were scheduled at the same time as H.R. Pufnstuf, and I was not going to miss my Wild fix. I could have been a majorette …

    The Artful Dodger threw five good questions at me. Let’s see if I can give him — and y’all — interesting answers.


    Artful Dodger: What was your favorite concert ever?

    Cup: You had to start with the toughest question, didn’t you? So many great shows … but I’d have to say R.E.M.’s closing show for the Green tour (Fox Theater, November 13, 1989). The boys came out, started with “Radio Free Europe,” and performed Murmur all the way through “West of the Fields” … took a break … came back, performed Green from beginning to end … then played “Wild Thing,” “Fall on Me,” “Low,” and “Finest Worksong.” Scrivener was there, too (and one of these days, I’ll dig up that boot and make you a copy, sir). It was the last time I heard a lot of those songs played live.

    First runner-up: The Warren Zevon show at Center Stage in January 1991 … because I got a backstage pass … and Warren kissed me. I need to tell that story sometime …


    AD: Name your top five favorite albums of all time and why.

    C: I’ve covered them in my soundtrack series (which returns in May), so here are the albums and the links to those posts (these posts are damn interesting, I must admit, so click away):

    R.E.M.: Murmur: Probably my favorite album ever.

    The Beatles: Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band: The album that changed my life and turned me into a music fanatic.

    Rolling Stones: Let It Bleed: I think it’s the best Stones album. And who can live without a Stones album on your top-five list?

    Warren Zevon: Excitable Boy: One of the best songwriters I’ve ever heard. He could tell a great, vivid story in just three or four minutes. And the weirdest sense of humor …

    Ella Fitzgerald & Louis Armstrong: Ella & Louis: We grew up listening to the standards, and nobody can sing ‘em like Ella and Louis. Simply brilliant.


    AD: How did you get into blogging?

    C: My friend Paul and I have had one helluva entertaining e-mail conversation going since 1997. We pontificate … we bitch … we make each other laugh … and we’re damned impressed with some of the words that come out of our fingers. He started bugging me a few years ago to start a blog and share that brilliance with the world. I’d become addicted to reading blogs — first Paul’s and Jeremy’s, then any interesting blog I stumbled across. Finally, one night about a year ago, I just sat down and started A Cup of Coffey. It’s been quite an experience and a good writing exercise for me.


    AD: If you could go back in time and change one thing, what would it be?

    C: I’d go back to around 6 p.m. on January 10, when I backed into the brick foundation of my new abode, my first day moving. This time, I’d notice the slight curve in the drive as I backed out. Still makes me sick to look at my bashed Beetle bumper. There are a couple of more private moments I’d pick first … but I’ll keep those private.


    AD: What's your favorite thing to do on a rainy day?

    C: Sit out on a covered porch (or in my new home, in front of the screened door to the deck) … bottle of wine next to me … book in front of me … iPod playing behind me. Or lie on the sofa and watch back-to-back-to-back-to-back movies.


    Want me to interview you?
    • Leave me a comment saying, “Interview me!” If your e-mail address isn’t on your blog, e-mail me.
    • I’ll send you five questions.
    • You’ll answer all five questions on your blog.
    • Include this explanation and an offer to interview someone else in the same post.

    C'mon, kids, let me get all nosy on you.

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    16 April 2007

    Okay, so I Write About Music all the Damn Time

    But this time it’s the Pug’s fault. She tagged me weeks ago … I just remembered it … and all my post ideas are midstream at the moment. And what’s the use of having an obsession if you can’t obsess?

    Meme: List seven songs you’re into right now ... no matter what they are. BUT they must be songs you’re presently enjoying.

    Thanks to the iPod shuffle, there are as many older tunes as newer ones.

    R.E.M.: Radio Free Europe
    I can’t get enough of it right now; I must listen to it three or four times a day. Maybe it’s the birthday and the workload … but my brain needs to escape to 1983 whenever it can these days.

    Ted Leo & The Pharmacists: The Toro and The Toreador
    I stop whatever I’m doing when shuffle queues up this one. It’s unlike much of Ted’s work. It’s beautiful, in its own way.

    Wilco: Pot Kettle Black
    I’m on a mega-Wilco kick these days. We saw Tweedy back in January. Scrivener got our advance tix for the June show. Sky Blue Sky is … um … going to be great, I hear. And I need to dance in my chair as much as possible to survive the workday. You should be on a Wilco kick, too.

    Regina Spektor: Fidelity
    I finally downloaded the album thanks to an iPod gift card. I love singing along when she stretches and bounces “heart.” Brilliant album; glad she’s finally getting some recognition.

    Pete Yorn: Splendid Isolation
    It’s on his new album, but he recorded it a few years ago for the Warren Zevon tribute album Enjoy Every Sandwich. Pete does a pretty good job … but Zevon’s is much better, natch.

    Amy Winehouse: Rehab
    Damn, her voice blows me away … all the way to the early 1960s soul days.

    XTC: Stupidly Happy
    Yeah, it’s old … but a really cute boy put it on a mix CD he made me. I love mix CDs. And really cute boys.


    And now I tag:
    Passion of the Dale: He’ll surprise me.
    Tanya Espanya: Lullabies?
    Tumuli: He loves “Rehab,” too.
    Lulu: We need some punk on this page.
    Some Guy’s Blog: Love songs?
    Katbox: Hitchcock-centric, maybe?
    Coaster Punchman: Because love means never having to say you’re sorry.

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    12 April 2007

    Because I Never Write About Music

    Bubs over at Sprawling Ramshackle Compound knows me well, knew that I’d get into a music-centric meme. I’m clapping my hands as I fill in my answers!

    What was the first recorded music you bought?
    The Beatles’ Help! soundtrack. The sister bought Revolver at the same time.

    What was the most recent?
    The last physical CD I bought was Sounds Eclectic: The Covers Project, which includes covers performed on KCRW by the beloved R.E.M. (“Gentle on My Mind”) and other Cup favorites — Flaming Lips (“Knives Out”), Paul Weller (“Wishing on a Star”), Rufus Wainwright (“Harvest”), Damien Rice (“Creep”), and others. The most recent electronic-format album I downloaded was Andrew Bird’s Armchair Apocrypha (a nod to Scrivener for turning me on to Mr. Bird).

    What was the first professional music show you ever went to?
    My parents took us to a Willy Nelson concert, with Waylon Jennings and Leon Russell on keyboards, in the mid-1970s. Great show — and the first time I smelled pot.

    The most recent show?
    Rickie Lee Jones, at Variety Playhouse (good show). I was supposed to see The Decemberists last Friday with the young groovies ... but damn if I didn't get sick. I'm still pouting.

    What's your desert island album?
    R.E.M.’s Murmur. What? You were expecting the Time-Life series on 1990s pop?

    What's your favorite album/song title (not the actual album or song)?
    “Nothing'severgonnastandinmyway(again),” by Wilco. I love the strength, the determination of the phrase-cum-word. I love the hell out of the song, too; playing it full blast right now and singing as loud as I can and dancing in my chair. Runner-up: R.E.M.'s Fables of the Reconstruction/Reconstruction of the Fables; the ambiguity always entertained me.

    What's your favorite album art (include an image of it if you can)?
    The Clash’s London Calling — a vibrant, violent, visual homage to Elvis’ first album. The Elvis cover was sweet and innocent, splashed with great color and typography. The London Calling design uses that color scheme and typography, but it communicates the energy and rawness of the music inside, thanks to that iconic photo of Paul Simonon a nanosecond before he smashes that guitar.


    What’s your ideal choice for a karaoke song?
    The Fifth Dimension’s “Wedding Bell Blues.” It’s one of those songs I simply. Must. Sing (read: butcher). At full ear-splitting volume. Every time I hear it.

    You hate that song … but it won’t leave your head if you hear it.
    “Seasons in the Sun.” I can even tell you that Rod McKuen translated Jacques Brel’s lyrics. Gawd, I hate that song … and now it’s playing over and over in my head. Must queue up Wilco again — fast!

    Which is cooler — vinyl? CD? cassette? 8-track?
    Hands down, vinyl. I miss being able to read liner notes (who can read 5-point type on CD covers?). The 12-inch square format lent itself to great design. I couldn’t wait to walk out of the record store, get into my car, rip off the plastic, and pour over every inch of the cover. Back then, I knew session musicians and song titles. Now, not so much. And don’t forget the cool things done to vinyl. Remember the laser-etched record for Split Enz’s True Colors? Still have it, still cool. I even miss the pops of the vinyl; it was like your personalized recording of the song. And don’t get me started on 45s …

    And now I tag:
    Scrivener, because music is as much a part of his life as it is mine (and because he turns me on to at least one new band a month) …
    Haahnster, because the boy always has something interesting to say about music …
    Land-o-Lulu, because she always writes beautifully about her music passions.

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    16 November 2006

    The Most Brilliant Waste of Time … Ever

    I started my day with this beauty, sent to me by the cousin Marni (who's psyched that she scooped me on an R.E.M. original):

    LEGO’ed R.E.M.

    From left: Peter Buck, Mike Mills, Michael Stipe, Bill Berry

    There’s a gallery of musicians. Some of my favorites:

    The classics:

    The Beatles, Jimi Hendrix, Johnny Cash, Bob Dylan, Willie Nelson, Led Zeppelin.

    The new guard:

    Sonic Youth, Nirvana, The Decemberists, Rilo Kiley, Death Cab for Cutie, the defunct Sleater-Kinney

    Even The Village People!

    Sorry, Brat, but there isn’t a LEGO’ed a-Ha; maybe you can work on that this weekend. And, Haahnster, they could use a Neil Young.


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    11 November 2006

    1,001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die

    There’s a new book out — 1,001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die — that DJ Cayenne, my favorite Baby Got Books contributor, posted about this week.

    If you love to read and you’ve never visited Baby Got Books, you’re doing yourself a disservice. That gang does a fantastic job reviewing the latest and keeping us up to date with literary news. Bookmark it today.

    The ever-cool DJ Cayenne did more that write a simple post. He put together a spreadsheet with those 1,001 albums so that you can calculate how many of these must-hears you’ve heard.

    I’ve heard 651 on the list. Added bonus: I now know my gaps, and will be filling in those unheard holes in the next several months. Being nerdy, not groovy like Mr. Cayenne, I further calculated my strengths by decade. My best showing (listening?) was (not surprisingly) the 1980s, for which I’ve heard 76.08 percent of the albums listed, followed by the 1970s, with 70.65 percent. What surprised me is I’ve heard more from the 2000s list than the 1990s.

    Now get over there and calculate your aural experiences, then come back and post your tally here. I’m especially interested in M’s and Ben’s scores; I think they’ll best me. Haahnster may beat me, too.

    And now I’m off for a cultural evening of bookstore browsing and Borat braying.

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    10 November 2006

    Shuffling into the Weekend

    I’ve been trying to avoid the laziness of posting my Friday ten, instead trying to write real posts … but, well, it’s Friday and I’m feeling lazy …

    • Elvis Costello + Nick Lowe: (What’s so Funny About) Peace, Love, and Understanding (live acoustic)
    • Decemberists: Yankee Bayonet (I Will Be Home Then)
    • Doves: Break Me Gently
    • Stevie Wonder: Boogie on Reggae Woman
    • Deep Purple: Woman from Tokyo
    • Rolling Stones: Can’t You Hear Me Knocking
    • Replacements: Bastards of Young
    • Richard Hell & The Voidoids: Blank Generation
    • R.E.M.: Out in the Country (yes, the Three Dog Night song; Mike Mills does a kick-ass job singing it)
    • Beatles: You Know My Name (Look up the Number)
    • Oasis: Morning Glory
    • Happy Mondays: Dustman
    • Public Enemy: What a Fool Believes
    Okay, I went to thirteen … but who could leave off the ornery Oasis brothers ... the snarky, trippy, pill-poppingly adorable Happy Mondays ... or anything by Public Enemy?

    UPDATE: The Split Enz's "Iris" is playing right now. Damn, I'd forgotten how much I love that song ...

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    03 November 2006

    I Heard the News Today, Oh Boy

    Actually, I heard the news on Monday, but who wants to miss the op to use a great Beatles reference?


    R.E.M., Van Halen, the Stooges and Patti Smith are among the nine acts on the ballot for the 2007 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction, to be held March 12 at New York's Waldorf Astoria Hotel. Also on the ballot are the Dave Clark Five, Chic, Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five, Joe Tex and the Ronettes.

    Five artists will be chosen for the final list of inductees, to be announced in January. To be eligible for induction, the 2007 class had to release their first single no later than 1981.

    Black Sabbath, the Sex Pistols, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Blondie, Miles Davis and record moguls Herb Alpert and Jerry Moss were enshrined in the Hall earlier this year.

    Billboard.com

    My choice for this year’s class: R.E.M., Stooges, Patti Smith, Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five, and a toss-up between the rest. Can you imagine the jam with that group? I must be there … but tickets are $2,000 each, and Mike Mills has yet to return my calls.



    I first saw R.E.M. in September 1980, at the 688 Club. At the time, they were just another fun local band. It took another three years before they fully captured my heart and became the greatest loves of my life. And there they’ve stayed, even after Up and Aftermath (both decent albums with moments of brilliance, but definitely not their best work).

    Ah, 688. Probably my favorite music club of all time. It’s long gone … but I still gaze lovingly and longingly at the address whenever I drive down Spring Street. Good times and good bands in that club — some well-known, some never heard from again. If you watch closely, Paul Rudd (and who doesn’t watch him closely?) is wearing a 688 T-shirt in Clueless. I’ve seen fellow Atlanta native David Cross wear his on “Celebrity Poker Showdown.”


    I guess that petition drive for Warren Zevon didn’t pan out. We have next year, kids.


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