This was actually the very first Matthew Sweet tune that I ever heard, and although it rivals "Where You Get Love" for my favorite song by Matthew Sweet because it also has kick-@rse guitar work in it, I still think "Where You Get Love" barely beats it out. I do like the lyrics to this song better though. Interestingly enough, Texas band, Bowling for Soup, covered this one; so I'll include a YouTube clip for that under the lyrics, as well...
You don't know how you move me
Deconstruct me
And consume me
I'm all used up
I'm out of luck
I am starstruck
By something in your eyes that is keeping my hope alive
But I'm sick of myself when I look at you
Something is beautiful and true
In a world that's ugly and a lie
It's hard to even want to try
And I'm beginning to think Baby you don't know
I'll take or leave
The room to breathe
The choice to leave you
I'll throw away
A chance at greatness
Just to make this
Dream come into play, I don't know if I'll find a way
'Cause I'm sick of myself when I look at you
Something is beautiful and true
In a world that's ugly and a lie
It's hard to even want to try
And I'm beginning to think Baby you don't know
I'm beginning to think Baby you don't know
There's something in your eyes that is keeping my hope alive
Awwww... my sweet little blog turns one-year-old this week --- on Saturday --- and I thought: "Who better to help me celebrate this pivotal event than Matthew Sweet because his songs are... well, sweet?!?!?" Wowzer!!! I love the guitars in this song! In fact, this is my favorite Matthew Sweet tune. This is actually off his sixth album, Blue Sky on Mars. I never owned that album, but I had the CD single for this song. I also own his compilation disc, which has this song on it, as well. When I was reading up about Matthew Sweet and Blue Sky on Mars on Wikipedia, I discovered some interesting facts: "The cover of the album features an image by Viking 1, the first spacecraft to land on Mars; the album's liner notes include additional imagery of the planet's landscape as taken by the spacecraft on July 20, 1976. The text on the cover was done by fantastic artist, Roger Dean, best known for his work on album covers for bands such as Yes. The album's title comes from the 'Blue Sky on Mars' tour featured in the film, Total Recall." I'll include a picture of the album cover so that you can see exactly what it is to which they are referring...
Yes, my dearest Blogland readers, I am having to resort to more leftovers from my previous blog, like I did in Week Thirty-Four. However, I hope you will understand why when I tell you that I am right smack dab in the middle of a research paper with my 8th graders, that I am working on an appellate brief for my "capital murder client", and that I am sending out resumes like a mad woman before I become unemployed in a little over a month!!!
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***Nice ~~~ I didn't even have to wait until Friday. I got a call yesterday advising that the firm would like to take me to dinner the week after next. This is getting exciting!!!*** No matter how goth I ever claimed to be, a really good radio tune could still rattle my stone cold demeanor and transform me into a screaming fan girl in no time, and that's exactly what this song did to me back in 1994. It also helped that the lead singer, Gavin Rossdale, was very easy on the eyes!
So armed with the knowledge that Bush was far more popular in The States and that, as a result of this, they could often still be seen hanging out on the streets of the Shepherd's Bush area of London (thanks to one of my monthly music magazines), I was determined to locate them (and Morrissey) while I was over in the U.K. in the summer of 1995. I suppose that it never occurred to me that Bush (and Morrissey) might actually be in The States while I was over in the U.K., but it turns out that Bush was on a North American tour (and that Morrissey had actually moved to Los Angeles at some point).
I must admit that I was quite shocked when the news broke that Gavin and Gwen Stefani were an item, as a result of their touring together. Don't get me wrong – Gwen was and is a beautiful girl, but it just seemed like such an odd match to me. However, it's nice to see that the two of them are still going strong, as far as I know – but then again, I've been known to look for people in areas of the world where they have no proximity to me at the time; so I could be wrong! :-D I'll also include two others by them that I really like - "Machinehead" and "Glycerine"
Yes, my dearest Blogland readers, I am having to resort to more leftovers from my previous blog, like I did in Week Thirty-Four. However, I hope you will understand why when I tell you that I am right smack dab in the middle of a research paper with my 8th graders, that I am working on an appellate brief for my "capital murder client", and that I am sending out resumes like a mad woman before I become unemployed in a little over a month!!!
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***So sorry... didn't mean to leave you hanging after Monday's interview. It was even easier than the first one. It involved a grammar, spelling, and punctuation test and an inquiry about why I was changing careers, my favorite style of music, my favorite kind of food, and the last book I read. They will let me know the official offer by Friday!!!***
When this song was released, my younger brother, Joey, was four-years-old. I would rock him to sleep in the brown rocking chair in the living room at our house on McNeil Street and sing this lullaby-like song to him until he drifted off. I, myself, was also pretty young at the time; so although I understood the words to the song individually, I am not so sure that I understood the lyrics in their full context.
I apologized to my brother, Joey, later on in life and told him that if I, in any way, contributed to his alcoholism in his teen years, as a result of singing this song to him when he was a tot, I was truly sorry. We chuckled about my confession a bit and decided that genetic disposition was most likely far more responsible than my singing this Concrete Blonde song to him. I still tease him when I see a drink in his hand and tell him that I never should have sung this song to him. I'll include my other favorite by Concrete Blonde called "Someday"...
Yes, my dearest Blogland readers, I am having to resort to more leftovers from my previous blog, like I did in Week Thirty-Four. However, I hope you will understand why when I tell you that I am right smack dab in the middle of a research paper with my 8th graders, that I am working on an appellate brief for my "capital murder client", and that I am sending out resumes like a mad woman before I become unemployed in a little over a month!!!
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After Jenny and I did our time together in the dorm room --- and I say “did our time together” because the rooms were so small that you really did feel like you were in some kind of lock up --- she moved in with a girl named Alisha.
Alisha liked ska-punk music, drinking a lot of cheap booze, swearing like a sailor, and having as much random sex as possible. She and Jenny were complete opposites, but they managed to make it work in their favor.
Every time I bumped into Alisha around Denton, she had a new boyfriend. One time, my friend, Jason, and I were on our way to 7-11 for our customary Sunday evening blueberry Slurpee. Alisha pulled up next to us in an SUV with her latest boyfriend behind the wheel. Jason and I were on foot, and she called us over to officially meet him. This song was blasting from the SUV as we approached.
A few days later, Alisha asked me if I would be interested in a threesome with her and the latest guy. Apparently, they had discussed it the night he was introduced to me, and she decided to go ahead and proposition me. Let's just say that I avoided Alisha like I would have avoided the Bubonic Plague for the next few days, until I heard that she had a new non-threesome-loving guy!! Whew!! That was a completely uncomfortable situation, and I chuckle about it every time I hear this tune! I'll include two others by them that I really dig called "Time Bomb" and "Roots Radical"...
Echoes of reggae comin' through my bedroom wall
havin' a party up next door but I'm sittin here all alone
two lovers in the bedroom and the other started to shout
all I got is this blank stare and that don't carry no clout at all
[Chorus]
Destination unknown
Ruby ruby ruby ruby soho
[x2]
He's singin and she's there to lend a hand
he's seen his name on the marquee but she will never understand
once again he's leavin' and she's there with a tear in her eye
embraces with a warm gesture it's time, time to say goodbye
[Chorus]
Ruby's heart ain't beatin cause she knows the feelin' is gone
she's not the only one who knew there's somethin' wrong
her lover's in the distance as she wipes a tear from her eye
ruby's fading out, she disappears, it's time, time to say goodbye
Yes, my dearest Blogland readers, I am having to resort to more leftovers from my previous blog, like I did in Week Thirty-Four. However, I hope you will understand why when I tell you that I am right smack dab in the middle of a research paper with my 8th graders, that I am working on an appellate brief for my "capital murder client", and that I am sending out resumes like a mad woman before I become unemployed in a little over a month!!!
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***Great news! I am going on a second interview today for the firm where I really want to work! Wish me lots and lots and lots of luck!!!***
Back when I had my season pass to Six Flags, I was constantly meeting really fascinating people at the park. At one point, my friends and I met these two guys, Wayne and Cody, who were huge fans of Front 242, which was evident by their super-rare concert t-shirts that they scored at a live show. Front 242 was not a name to throw around loosely, and anyone who even knew who the band was immediately rose to a superior level of coolness. So we just had to meet them. That was not a difficult task since they were equally intrigued by my super-rare Siouxsie and the Banshees shirt. Now, neither of these guys was even bordering on cute, but they were really nice and knew so much about good music. Sadly, they both lived really far away from me. In fact, Wayne would often make collect calls to my house. I would make an agreement with my mom to pay for those calls via my allowance because she knew how important they were to me since I would rave for hours and hours about all the new bands I needed to check out. Actually, I don't think she ever even charged me now that I look back upon it. Thanks, mom!!!
One evening, actually it was the last evening I ever talked to him, Wayne suggested that I check out Anything Box, and that is exactly what I did. Then I never heard from him again. He had a really bad and abusive home life. I imagine that he finally ran away from home for good, since he was always threatening to do just that. So I would like to send out a “thank you” and lots and lots and lots of “well wishes” via the universe to Wayne, the guy from Six Flags who introduced me to Anything Box! I'll include another one of my favorites, "A Moment's Shifting", below the lyrics...
You can't hide the pain,
I can see it scrawled on your empty face.
And I feel the hurt,
It's in the words you say, they make me want to...
Scream out to the world,
For taking life for granted and I know.
You are by my side when
I turn to hear you cry,
I am so afraid of living in oblivion
I am so afraid of living in oblivion
Am I so blind?
With my eyes turned to a different time or hour.
At the end of the day,
When we both run down and our hopes are heavy...
Tell me what you will,
'cause I've got to know the truth inside of you.
Can you hear what I say,
When I hold you and you scorn the day?
I am so afraid of living in oblivion
I am so afraid of living in oblivion
Living in oblivion
Living in oblivion
So I ask again,
Am I so alone and full of pride?
To never speak out...
This is my world, this is my world
Don't tell me now,
I won't feel those words, I won't feel the lies they tell
No matter how many times I hear this song, I never tire of it! I also adore the fact that it was chosen for the opening scene of The Wedding Singer. I've already mentioned that film a time or two in other posts. So here is a bonus clip for that:
Something that I learned from Wikipedia is that the strings were based on Ride of the Valkyries by Wagner. Interestingly enough, I remember reading in Phil Spector's biography that he used to blast the same piece by Wagner when he was composing all of his 1960s Girl Group hits. So take heed, musicians --- turn on Wagner when you need inspiration. It worked for Burns & Spector!!!
It's practically impossible to talk about Dead or Alive without mentioning something about the lead singer, Pete Burns, because he is such a larger-than-life character! However, I didn't know a whole lot about Pete Burns, other than the fact that he has gone through a substantial number of plastic surgery procedures. So I looked him up on Wikipedia, and holy smokes, if I considered him a character before, that opinion was even more solidified after reading his write-up. For instance: "Burns has accused fellow pop star Boy George of appropriating his unique image. Expressing an overtly sexual and flamboyant style, Burns shocked audiences in the late 1970s with his androgynous clothing and hair styles, make-up, high heels, long fingernails and trademark black eyepatch." But here's the real kicker - (*note* - Lynne Corlett is a woman): "In 1978 Burns married hairdresser Lynne Corlett, with whom he remained married for 28 years, until 2006. That year, on 9 February, he announced his engagement to his partner, Michael Simpson, on Channel 4's daytime television show Richard & Judy, where he displayed their matching engagement rings designed by Vivienne Westwood. The following day, Simpson called off the engagement citing that he was finding it difficult to deal with the newfound fame, although their engagement was soon back on and their civil partnership took place on 6 July. Burns appeared on Celebrity Wife Swap, which aired on 30 September 2007, where he lived with Neil Ruddock for five days. Simpson also took part in the programme. Burns made a statement saying that gay marriage does not work and that it is better to be married to a woman." So, it's totally not my place to pass judgment, but am I the only one who is a bit confused here?!?!?! Anyhow, I'm guessing that Lynne most likely was not crying, "Lover Come Back", after all this went down!!! Regardless, I really do like this song!!!
I've been lying here so lonely
I've been wishing you would telephone me.
Oh
I just can't lose this desperation
Won't you bring around a new sensation?
Baby
you got lots of energy
yeah
Gonna give that energy to me
yeah.
Tell you
we could have a real good time
yeah
Baby
I can make you mine
aU. mine
yeah - oh yeah
oh yeah.
Lover come back to me
You don't have to knock on my door
no.
Lover come back to me
kick it right down -
Kick it right down - kick it right down - right down.
So prior to settling on nowheregirl1977 (from the B-Movie song, of course) as a screen name, I used to use MyHeartGoesBang (from this Dead or Alive song, of course). In fact, I realized that it would be wise to do a Google search to find what was still out there floating around the web prior to publishing this post. Oh, the silliness that I was able to locate!! I found a live journal that I had under that name. I had actually started it while I was still a bit of a lush, and I had abandoned it shortly after I had started teaching. I also found comments that I made on various music boards when I was a bit more musically close-minded. Don't waste your time trying to locate any of it. I deleted the live journal and the comments (and then I waited until everything appeared good and gone before having Dead or Alive week). However, if you find anything else out there under MyHeartGoesBang that sounds like something I composed and if it is even remotely embarrassing, please let me know --- I would be eternally grateful!!! And if you're wondering... yesterday's interview was a piece of cake... almost too frighteningly simple... are they supposed to be that easy? I guess I'll find out within the next two weeks when they start callbacks to interview with the attorney in Round Two!!! Otherwise, enjoy today's video selection:
Today, I'm going on my first job interview in over nine years... and I just realized how much selecting a new job is like selecting a brand new lover... so wish me luck!!! As I mentioned in a previous post, my Sunday evenings used to be dedicated to listening to The Adventure Club with Josh and Alex on 94.5 The EDGE. Once their show was over, The EDGE would go into a live broadcast from Arcadia on Lower Greenville Avenue.
They would call this Sunday night soiree Retrocadia because it was a New Wave, 80's funfest. When I was still too young to get in, I would sit across the street at Grinders Coffee House and long for the day I would be able to dance on that lovely checkered floor that I had heard so much about on the air.
That day finally came about 2 years later, when I was actually still 17-years-old, because I had the fortunate opportunity to get my hands on the ID of an older classmate (who just so happened to bear a striking resemblance to me).
I remember walking through the doors and everything being exactly as I had envisioned it from the live broadcasts. I only went to Retrocadia a few times because I quickly discovered that The Church at the Lizard Lounge catered to a crowd that I preferred over the snobbish SMU attendees at Retrocadia, and it also happened to fall on Sunday nights.
Sadly, Arcadia closed its doors not long after and turned into some totally swanky nightclub, and still even more sad is the fact that it completely burned down around 2006.
Regardless, I don't believe that a Sunday night live broadcast ever passed without playing “Brand New Lover” at least once. This is an amazingly fun song to dance to, and I will never be able to hear it without reliving the first time I passed Arcadia's box office and set foot on that checkered floor in my Smurf blue Doc Martens. Good times were had by all!!
Your sweet nature, darling, was too hard to swallow
I've got the solution, I'm leaving tomorrow
And now as I stand and stare into your eyes
I see safety there, I want surprises
What I really need to do is find myself a brand new lover Somebody with eyes for me who doesn't notice all the others
What I really need to do is find a brand new lover
When you wake up tomorrow, you'll be all alone Oh, the love that we had I have quickly outgrown
I wanted to stay, but I just couldn't do it
Couldn't stand there and put you through it
What I really need to do is find myself a brand new lover Somebody with eyes for me who doesn't notice all the others
What I really need to do is find myself a brand new lover
Somebody with eyes for me who doesn't notice all the others
Now other loves will tell you that I'm nothing but a pleasure-seeker
And for once I really must agree
I need to leave you by yourself
And go in search of someone else to satisfy my curiosity
Your sweet nature, darling, was too hard to swallow I've made my decision, I'm leaving tomorrow
What I really need to do is find myself a brand new lover Somebody with eyes for me who doesn't notice all the others
What I really need to do is find a brand new lover
What I really need to do is find myself a brand new lover Somebody with eyes for me who doesn't notice all the others
What I really need to do is find myself a brand new lover
Somebody with eyes for me who doesn't notice all the others
What I really need to do is find myself a brand new lover
Somebody with eyes for me who doesn't notice all the others
What I really need to do is find a brand new lover
What I really need to do is find myself a brand new lover Somebody with eyes for me who doesn't notice all the others
What I really need to do is find myself a brand new lover
Somebody with eyes for me who doesn't notice all the others
And here's a super-cool treat for you... a long time ago, I found this video promo for Arcadia; so you get to take your very own peek inside:
