So, I’m just surfing around, looking at quotes from famous musicians on random websites.  Fascinating!  Some made me literally laugh out loud, others made me immediately go and play some of that artist’s music again to listen with “new ears”.  Overall, I’ve passed a very entertaining hour or so, which I desperately needed after this crazy-nuts day from suck that I’ve had today!

And, being the loving sweetheart that I am, I’m of course sharing with you.

Now, these are totally random grabs, and may have to be the first in a series because there’s a crap-ton of quotes out there.  Evidently musicians never shut up…

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“Anyone who lip-synchs in public on stage when you pay £75 to see them should be shot. That’s me off her Christmas card list. But do I give a toss? No.”
– Elton John in October 2004, accusing Madonna of lip-synching during her Re-Invention world tour (Madonna denied it)

I made ‘Bo Diddley’ in ‘55, they started playing it, and everybody freaked out. Caucasian kids threw Beethoven into the garbage can.  – Bo Diddley

“Ask yourself: Have you been kind today? Make kindness your daily modus operandi and change your world.” –Annie Lennox

My vocal style I haven’t tried to copy from anyone. It just developed until it became the girlish whine it is today.  – Robert Plant

“Actually ‘78 was a really exciting time for U2. We had just discovered F sharp minor. So we had the fourth chord and we’d only had three up to then.”  – Bono on U2’s early days

“When we lost Freddie, we not only lost a great personality, a man with a great sense of humor, a true showman, but we lost probably the best, the really, the best virtuoso rock ‘n’ roll singer of all time. He could sing anything in any style. He could change his style from line to line and, God, that’s an art. And he was brilliant at it. “  – Roger Daltrey about Freddie Mercury

“AC/DC’s ‘Highway To Hell’ is the greatest meshing of vocal, guitar and content I’ve ever heard. That’s what I aspire to.”  – Bonnie Raitt

Journalist: Do you think of yourself primarily as a singer or a poet?
Dylan: Oh, I think of myself more as a song and dance man, y’know.
– Bob Dylan, press conference at KQED, San Francisco, Dec. 1965, quoted in: Joe Kohut and John J Kohut, eds., Rock Talk (1994)

“I heard that your brain stops growing when you start doing drugs. Let’s see, I guess that makes me 19.” — Steven Tyler

We like this kind of music. Jazz is strictly for stay-at-homes. – Buddy Holly on rock and roll music

Either be hot or cold. If you are lukewarm, the Lord will spew you forth from His mouth. – Jerry Lee Lewis

If you tried to give rock and roll another name, you might call it ‘Chuck Berry’.  – John Lennon

If you don’t know the blues… there’s no point in picking up the guitar and playing rock and roll or any other form of popular music. –Keith Richards

Rock and menopause do not mix. It is not good, it sucks and every day I fight it to the death, or, at the very least, not let it take me over.  –Stevie Nicks

I just didn’t expect an acoustic version of Rock’n'Roll All Nite.  –Ace Frehley

I think the rock’n'roll myth of living on the edge is a pile of crap.  –Robert Smith

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Yes, they did.

And yes, I do take requests. Here’s the proof.

See, just now on Twitter, HootSuite,  I saw that DiPM (that’s the rapper name I gave her) over at Chicken Nuggets of Wisdom sent me the following Tweet:

And so I give you…By Order of DiPM…the Monday Funk-Shakin’ Mix.  I’m sitting here in Panera with my headphones on, trying my best not to make a total and complete moron of myself.  I can’t stop myself from boppin’ and groovin’.  If YOU can…well, then check your blood sugar.  You may need a twinkie.

xoxo

Ri

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So you think your baby can disco-dance like a llama…? Well, if you’re in NYC next Sunday, you can find out.

The popular kiddie dance party, Baby Loves Disco, is descending on (Le) Poisson Rouge…and the diaper-clad booties will be shakin’, yo! On Valentine’s Day from Noon to 3:00 the trendy West Village hot spot will be child proofed and Lysoled so that parents and their progeny (aged 7 and below) can boogie on down with their rad selves.

Per the (Le) Poisson Rouge website:

Make no mistake, this is NOT the Mickey Mouse club, and Barney is Banned. Baby loves disco is an afternoon dance party featuring real music spun and mixed by real djs blending classic disco tunes From the 70s, & 80s guaranteed to get those little booties moving and grooving. The fun spills out from all corners of the club: bubble machines, baskets of scarves and egg-shakers, a chill-out room (with tents, books and puzzles), diaper changing stations, a full spread of healthy snacks and dancing, LOTS of dancing. But at it’s core, Baby loves disco is a community event that brings kids together with kids and parents together with parents.

I KNOW, right? Does that not sound like a BLAST?!? A check on the BLD website confirms that they now have these things EVERYWHERE – some monthly. Dude…I am so going to the next one in our area. For fifteen bucks in advance (per walking person), eighteen at the door, you can give your offspring a glance at how you spent your college years.

…wait. On second thought, perhaps you shouldn’t mention that…

But…I can hear you…you’re saying:

“Ri. What the cheesewhiz does this have to do with llamas? And WHY do I care about this if I’m not in the New York area?? Are you drinking AGAIN?”

Well, the obvious answers are (a.) DUH – of course I am, it’s Superbowl Sunday, and (2.) the part about the llamas is the cool bonus that benefits all of us, even the ones NOT able to make it to this particular gig!

See, I learned about the event from a contact at The Musebox, and he shared this lil’ bit of info about what else is going down at the Valentine Shindig:

As a special element of this year’s Baby Loves Disco Valentine’s Ball, The MuseBox will be introducing a “So You Think You Can Llama Dance” theme, inviting kids to create and even record their own unique “Llama Dances.” Inspired by the song “Llama Dance” by quirky UK rockers Patrick & Eugene, this is sure to add a whole new fun element to the day’s events. The creator of the best llama dance will win a family four-pack of tickets to the Children’s Museum of Manhattan!

A link to the “Llama Dance” video and a gratis download of Patrick and Eugene’s new CD was attached for my perusal.  My opinion…?

OMG. I LOVE THESE GUYS.

Patrick and Eugene

Right off the bat, while I watched the video…they had me at “ungulate”…

Llama Dance by Patrick and Eugene via YouTube

Quirky doesn’t begin to describe the tres’ cool infusion of childlike joy their music imbues. Per their Press Bio: “Try to imagine Noel Coward on stage with the Duke Ellington Band at the Monterey Pop Festival and you’re getting close.” Ha! Indeed. With backgrounds that run the gamut from playing percussion with Groove Armada and Richie Havens to impromptu accidental arson, these guys are an absolute kick in the pants.

Their current album, All Together Now, is the very definition of “feel good.” The effervescence of the melodies and pre-meditated silliness belies the musicianship and just carries you away on a tide of fun…but a closer listen brings the realization that they are REALLY good. The multi-instrumental sounds and beats overlap seamlessly to create a rich tapestry of aural layers. Forget about theme or genre – this is just thoughtfully crafted, well balanced,  good music.

This isn’t Patrick and Eugene’s first trip to the rodeo, either. They’ve put out two other albums… one of which is entirely comprised of deliciously unexpected covers which include ditties originally by the likes of Beyonce, Simon and Garfunkel and The Arctic Monkeys.  Nope – they’re not just a Kids’ Band, kids!

As Exhibit A,  I present to you the Patrick and Eugene reworking of  Can’t Get You Out of My Head, originally by Kylie Minogue:

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Uh huh…see?  What’d I tell you?

So, if you ARE in NYC for V-Day, try to get out to the Baby Loves Disco event. If not, do yourself a favor and listen to some Patrick and Eugene.  Either way, you’re coming out a winner.

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Guest Poster: Melisa from The Suburban Scrawl!

Everyone knows that music is an emotional thing. It can take you back to another time, a specific moment in your life. It can cheer you; it can mellow you out. It can give you strength; it can inspire. Most people have certain “it” songs that can stir them up. I know that I do.

I have seen the musical “Wicked” three times, so far. (I was totally over the moon a couple of days ago when I heard that it’s coming back to Chicago in December: I’m saving for #4!) I won’t go on and on about how much I love this musical; the fact that I spent money on it three times already should tell you all you need to know about that.

Two main themes run throughout the fiber of the musical: the importance of fighting for what you believe in and the question of what is good and what is bad (or, wicked). Driving these ideas home were strong performances each time I sat in the audience, by the two female leads. Two songs in particular, “For Good” and “Defying Gravity”, made me sob the big, ugly tears. THAT’S how good the performances were.

The song “For Good” is about how a friendship can impact a person’s life:

“I’ve heard it said
That people come into our lives for a reason
Bringing something we must learn
And we are led
To those who help us most to grow
If we let them
And we help them in return
Well, I don’t know if I believe that’s true
But I know I’m who I am today
Because I knew you… “

The placement of that song within the musical is, of course, perfect (duh!), and, well, that along with the idea of a friendship so powerful has me through half a box of tissues before the song is half over.

“Defying Gravity” is the song that is performed at the end of Act I, just before the curtains close for intermission. The television commercial for “Wicked” (at least, when it was playing here in Chicago), ended with a line from the song:

“And nobody, in all of Oz, no Wizard that there ever is or was,

Is ever gonna bring meeeeee dowwwwwwwwwn!”

Naturally, I saw that commercial about five million times before I actually saw “Wicked” for the first time. I heard that line over and over…about five million times. It meant nothing to me, really, because other than knowing that “Wicked” was the backstory behind “The Wizard of Oz”, I had no knowledge of the plot.

Once I saw it? The scale of the production, especially during “Defying Gravity”, was MIND-BLOWING. When the actress who played Elphaba in Chicago (sadly, I never saw Kristin and Idina perform it live) sang that line that I had heard five million times, I finally got it. And…then came the waterworks.

I’m not sure I have ever—IN MY LIFE—heard two songs that have affected me so deeply as these two, because even now, a couple of years after the last time I sat in the theater audience, I can listen to the soundtrack of the OG Broadway cast and, within the first 15 seconds of either song (sung by Kristin Chenoweth and Idina Menzel), be crumpled up in those big, ugly tears (I did it yesterday!). At my computer: crying. In the family room: crying. Even in the car: crying. Sure, I have other favorite songs that pull at my heartstrings and provoke various emotions deep within me, but not as much as these two.

What about you? Are there any songs that, upon hearing the first few notes, rattle you to your very core?

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Good night, nurse – I don’t think I’ve written an actual post myself for over two weeks.

The Holidays have officially kicked my ass.

Well, wait – if I’m being truthful, I’ve been slacking on you for considerably longer than two weeks, and it would be decidedly disingenuous of me to blame it completely on the Holidays. I got a little distracted…lost my focus…got so many great, new ideas that I forgot to concentrate on tasks at hand. I totally dropped the ball around here. I suck.

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