I don’t usually mark celebrity birthdays, but I just had to note that ICON and GODDESS, Grace Jones, is turning 78 today.

Sheesh. What a brain drain of a week!

Work has been MIND NUMBING! And, I have been dealing with a sinus infection. I finally got put on drugs midweek after blowing a bunch of blood out of my head on Wednesday morning. Yay.

Here’s some smooth music to listen to while I regroup …

Anyone who knows me knows that I can be a bit of a karaoke fiend when the mood strikes. About a month ago, Michelle and I went for her birthday and ate/drank/sang too much. It’s always an ’80s hits/new wave/alternative flashback when I am on the mic. Little did I know that she videoed a little bit of me in action. Press the play button if you want a good laugh or your ears to bleed.

Karaoke at our favorite spot runs from 9 pm to close on Wednesdays. I will say that I am a little too old for tons of mid-week drinking and late-night shenanigans. Lordy.  They really need to institute “senior” karaoke for us old farts who are in bed by 9 pm.

That saying about idolizing someone always proves to be true. It’s been nearly three years since the big red flag. And now it’s been eight months or so since she fully came out, and I am still struggling. Not so much with denial. It’s all in black and white on her Twitter (I refuse to call it X) feed. I can’t deny that my favorite singer and performer is a nasty, hateful, transphobic piece of trash. I have anger because she courted the queer community and used us for her art. I have anger because she is freely punching down on a vulnerable community. I have anger because she has said some really disgusting and hateful things to longtime fans who have expressed their hurt and confusion over her coming out as viciously transphobic. I have anger that she thinks she is some brave free speech “warrior” who has been cancelled by the “woke mob.” I have anger that she was probably always an awful person all along and duped us all into believing she was an ally. And, I have a lot of depression because I now can’t listen to the music that I loved and has been such a part of my life for the last 7+ years.

Wow. Today marks the 40th Anniversary of my favoritest album of all time.

When I was in high school, a guy named Normal would walk around the halls of Tuscola carrying various Siouxsie and the Banshees albums. This is how I became aware of them as a band. Being a small mountain town in the ’80s, it was hard to come by what was, at the time, more exotic or alternative music. It took until the summer of 1987, while we were on a trip to Florida, for me to get my hands on two Siouxsie and the Banshees cassettes, Tinderbox and Through the Looking Glass. Tinderbox immediately imprinted on me. Everything about it was so mesmerizing. Siouxsie’s voice, the instrumentation, the lyrics, the way the songs are sequenced, the album art. Later, when I was able to get the CD, I discovered the equally enthralling B-sides that were released with the “Candyman” and “Cities in Dust” singles. I listen to this album often. I buy anything Tinderbox-related on vinyl when I run across it. I have even thought about having the ampersand from the album cover or the distinctive 33-1/3 from the record label tattooed on me.

If you had told my 15-year-old self that I would be here 40 years later typing about my undying love for eight album tracks and four B-sides, I would have told you to go take a hike. Thank you, Sioux, Severin, Budgie, and Carruthers for making this absolute gem.

I am ghost walking through life right now.

You don’t wanna be around me anymore
I don’t wanna be around me anymore
You can’t stand to be around me anymore

I’m not here
And it’s all too
Far too clear

What’re you doing?
And why do you do this?
Why do you do this to yourself?
Why do you do this to yourself?

Late last year, Capitol Records finally repressed the IRS run of Concrete Blonde albums. This was pretty exciting news. I missed out on the 2017 pressings (because I just wasn’t paying attention, dammit). Those are now selling for about two times more than their original retail price.

Years ago, I found an original pressing of their self-titled debut in Charleston for a reasonable price. And, I got a 2024 pressing of Bloodletting at the Asheville FM Record Fair. I have been on the hunt for an original pressing of Free and the 2017 versions of their last three albums (which were never released on vinyl in the States before), but never found any of these at a price point I was willing to accept.

My only gripe is that I wish these 2025 versions were black vinyl like the 2017 pressings. Concrete Blonde is not the kind of band or music that screams out for color vinyl treatment. Someone once said that colored vinyl had become the Funko Pop of record collecting … and I can’t say that I totally disagree.

Anyhoo. Maybe I should dip into the tip money and order all these. *Drools*

Here’s the original, stripped-back album version of 6 Underground by Sneaker Pimps.

Weekender’s Sunday Session

After 16 years (and at least five years of teasing from Robert Smith), it feels totally surreal that the new album from The Cure is suddenly here. Get thee to your favorite streaming service (to listen) and your favorite local record store (to purchase).