It’s Friday and the weekend is here. For many that’s enough to be happy.
So, I’ll quickly vent (bitch) and educate a few people and then move on and share fun thoughts. 🙂 Have a great weekend!
HAPPY PRIDE MONTH
To all my LGBTQ+ friends and my “straight, but not narrow” friends, Happy Pride month!
Now, joking aside, two WTH or WTF thoughts.
DING DONG!…THE WITCH IS DEAD
Televangelist and notorious homophobe Pat Robertson is dead at the age 93.
Now, who’s going to blame the gays for every natural weather disaster in the U.S.? Did I mention he was a very bad weather forecaster?
In 1998, he sent out this warning to Orlando, Florida, because of its “Gay Days” at Walt Disney World that began in 1991, “I would warn Orlando that you’re right in the way of some serious hurricanes and I don’t think I’d be waving those flags in God’s face if I were you.”
And, in late December 2010, Christmas travel around the country was disrupted by this winter storm on the East Coast.
Despite the weather science behind the storm, here was Robertson’s explanation:
“Because of the bad road conditions the Almighty has made, any gay activities that people were planning on doing will have to be postponed by a day or two.”
He also said God shut down all the big airports in New York “so that people who were hoping to fly to do something of a gay nature would have to take a train or a bus, so it might be days before the gay thing they were going to do could occur.”
Parting thoughts: God, please set this man straight now. Funny, I said “straight”.
And, I’ll even ask for forgiveness when I pray tonight for feeling no compassion toward him. Maybe he should have asked for forgiveness for his lack of compassion for the LGBTQ+ community! (Who knows, maybe he did on his death bed!)
BOYCOTTS THIS SPRING & SUMMER
Boycotts are nothing new.
We boycotted the 1980 Olympics and there was a boycott of that antigay fast food chicken chain restaurant.
This spring, Bud Light lost a lot of money because people are transphobic.
And, now Target is being boycotted because of their support of the LGBTQ+ community and Pride month.
I’m writing this very carefully because I don’t want to give an antigay rap song and its “artists” any publicity. However, it was the #1 downloaded song last week. (Luckily, the novelty has worn off and it’s dropped considerably on the chart!) Bye, Felicia!
My issue is that the rapper told a conservative “news” show, “We’re living in a culture right now where people need to speak out. We need to stand up for the children.”
Blah, blah, blah. We’ve heard that all before!
By the way, how’d that work out for you Anita Bryant?
But, here’s the part that got me. He said, “There’s no place for LGBTQ for fourth- and fifth-graders.”
Wait, if you choose to dislike LGBTQ people, I’m sorry for you and your narrow-mindedness. However, if you’re just ignorant, educate yourself.
Let me tell you, I knew I was gay before I started first grade.
And, kids these days, with access to smart phones and computers before they can put sentences together, know far more about sex and things they shouldn’t know about by the fourth and fifth grade.
Maybe “the children” need real facts from educated people and not education from a Google search!
THIS! — ME AS A CHILD 🙂
SPEAKING OF DELICIOUS…
I still haven’t tried the Peanut Butter Puppy Chow Blizzard or the Cotton Candy Blizzard from Dairy Queen…
Or, the new Cotton Candy Oreos!
TO SHAVE OR NOT TO SHAVE?
Last fall when I visited Turkey, I decided to grow a mustache to see what I thought of it. When I was young, it really wouldn’t fill in.
Once I got home, I shaved it off and started growing it again in December while in Palm Springs and I loved it.
I was almost to the point of shaving it off when a package arrived at work this week. In the past, I’ve been sent books, a pug figurine, and baked good.
This time, it was disposable razors!
Subtle, NO! Hilarious, YES!
So, I posted the story on my work Facebook page asking if I should shave it off? Here are the results over the past three days.
GONE COUNTRY?
A couple of months ago, I talked about slowly taking a chance on country music again. There’s still so much I have no desire to listen to, but some of it is enjoyable.
Since I gave up on the genre almost two decades ago, I thought Michael Ray in 2015 would win me over, but it didn’t.
And, I still think that Canadian Brett Kissel should be a huge star in the U.S. I wrote about him in early 2016.
“Drinkaby” by Cole Swindell is the song that caught my attention this spring and made me program a local country station into my car stereo.
Since then, I really enjoy hearing “Famous Friends”, the most played country song of 2021, from Chris Young and Kane Brown.
“80 FOR BRADY”
I absolutely love Sally Field and Jane Fonda and I like Lily Tomlin and Rita Moreno. They’re all great in this box office smash from earlier this year.
And, of course, Tom Brady is a hottie.
Now, what was I saying? Oh, the movie.
The first part was okay setting up the story of these older women wanting to see Brady play in the Super Bowl.
Well, they get to the game and the movie really takes off after they’re given edible cannabis at a party. (OMG, I’m glad I proofread. Originally, I wrote “cannibal”! Maybe I had the next movie review on the brain!)
The funniest scene in the movie is when Betty (Field) is flirting with a very sexy young man (36) and she crushes him with a comment about his smile. It still cracks me up thinking about it!
GRADE: B
“BONES AND ALL”
Who doesn’t pine for a good cannibal love story? Okay, there aren’t too many of them.
The subliminal love story between Hannibal Lecter (Mads Mikkelsen) and Will Graham (Hugh Dancy) in the three-season NBC series, “Hannibal” was amazing.
I wish it’d be brought back on some network or as a movie.
“Bones and All” is a cannibal love story between a Kentucky kid (no, not me), Lee, played by Timothee Chalamet, and Maren (Taylor Russell).
I struggled to stay interested in the two-hour-plus movie until about midway through. And, the ending was the best part of the movie.
GRADE: C-
THAT’S IT
With all the craziness in the world, make it the best in your little part of it!
If you’re a regular reader of my random thoughts, you know I love making lists and countdowns.
On September 11, 2020, I posted a blog of the 13 biggest events of my first 35 years. (13 because I was born on the 13th and it’s my favorite number).
Along with that, I intended to share my 35 favorite songs of those first 35 years. Well, the initial list ended up with 236 songs, so I decided to be like the Billboard Hot 100 and share my top 100 songs of that era of my life.
In case you didn’t see it last year or last week when I posted it again, here it is:
Well, it was well-received, so why not be like Hollywood and make a sequel???
So, here are the top eight events that shaped the next era of my life (1999-2021) along with not my just my 22 favorite songs of the past 22 years, but my 100 favorites of that era!
EVENTS THATSHAPED MY LAST 22 YEARS
MEETING REBA McENTIRE (APRIL 2005)
While Reba McEntire became a powerhouse superstar in the mid-1980s, I was all about dance and pop music in my 20s during her rise to super stardom.
However, I discovered her at Sidetrack, in Chicago, on country night in 1990. That voice singing “Rumor Has It” blew me away and I’ve been a huge fan ever since.
Regardless of what was happening in my life, good or bad, when Reba released a new album, there were songs I felt she recorded just for me.
I’ve now seen Reba in concert thirteen (13) times and I got to meet her in Virginia Beach, Virginia, in 2005.
MOVING BACK TO CHICAGO (JUNE 2002)
After my mother died in November 1990 and my grandmother, Helen, passed away in November 1993, I felt it was time to leave Kentucky and I moved to Chicago the following summer.
I stayed for two years before kicking off my television news career in the summer of 1996 in Rhinelander, Wisconsin. After jobs in Lubbock, Texas, and Mansfield, Columbus, and Youngstown, Ohio, working for a homophobic, racist, and sexist news director, I felt it was time to take a break from television.
So, Miss ABBA, my golden retriever, and my ex, Christopher, headed back to Chicago, where we had met in early 1995. (Look at how youthful we were 26 years ago!)
It was a very enjoyable return to the “windy city”.
I had a great time at Roscoe’s Tavern (a very popular gay bar on Halsted), worked as a freelance writer for the morning show at Fox News Chicago, and went back to school to earn my meteorology certification.
By the way, I don’t make it a point to lie, but I saw that sticker and it was just too much fun not to stick it on my shirt for a photo op! 🙂
In the summer of 2004, Christopher and I realized our nine-year relationship had run its course, so I took a job in Salisbury, Maryland, and Miss ABBA and I moved to Delmarva for a year-and-a half before returning to the Midwest in November 2005.
When I started putting together the recap of my second era (1999-2021), I thought about the events that shaped the past 22 years of my life and I started thinking of my favorite songs of the past two decades-plus.
That list started with 221 songs and after the first cut, it was still at 155. After thinking long and hard, I narrowed it down to one hundred, just like the Billboard Hot 100!
Here’s to you, Casey Kasem! (Hint, the other 60 are at the bottom of this blog, along with some surprises!)
#40 “LOVE YOURSELF” (JUSTIN BIEBER) (2015)
#39 “I’LL BE” (REBA McENTIRE) (2000)
#38 “WOMANIZER” (BRITNEY SPEARS) (2008)
#37 “FADED” (ALAN WALKER) (2015)
#36 “THE EDGE OF GLORY” (LADY GAGA) (2011)
While that’s the official version of “The Edge of Glory”, here’s the version I love more. And, I “borrowed” the sparklers idea for my wedding reception!
#35 “WHO WOULDN’T WANNA BE ME” (KEITH URBAN) (2003)
#34 “CAN’T GET YOU OUT OF MY HEAD” (KYLIE MINOGUE) (2001)
NOW, BACK TO MY LIFE EVENTS….
LIVING NEAR MY SISTER AGAIN (AUGUST 2011)
Other than my years of living on campus at Murray State University in the 1980s, less than a half hour from where I was born and raised, I never lived apart from my sister, Tammy, until I moved to Chicago in 1994 and she moved away, too.
My career took me all over the country and my sister made Clarksville, Tennessee, home. After her marriage with her L-O-S-E-R husband ended and life dealt her several bad hands, I convinced her to move to the Quad Cities (Moline, Illinois) in 2011.
While she wasn’t thrilled to have to make her home there and deal with more snow than she was used to, it was nice to be in the same city again. We could now see each other whenever we wanted and we’d spend holidays together again.
After I moved away for 3.5 years, she joined me in Decatur, Illinois. It’s nice to have my best friend around again!
Love you Tammy!
MY 50TH BIRTHDAY TRIP TO PARIS & TEL AVIV (OCTOBER 2014)
While I don’t remember my first birthday, you see from the picture above that it happened and it was celebrated.
Other birthdays that stand out for me are my 30th, in Chicago, when I met a very attractive man that ended up being a psycho that try to kill me (stalker much?), my 48th, in Las Vegas, in 2012, seeing Elton John the night before and Madonna on the big day…
… and my 54th on an incredible solo trip to Morocco with a surprise birthday cake from my tour group!
However, it’s going to be really hard to top my 50th birthday!
In 2013, I took my first “real” international trip (officially, Cancun was the first in the early-1990s, but North America doesn’t really count any more!).
For my ex’s 50th, he chose a Danube River cruise of Europe. The following year, for my 50th, I chose to celebrate the milestone birthday with a trip to Europe (Paris, France) and the Middle East (Tel Aviv, Israel).
While the trip was incredible and I paid my own way, my actual birthday present was like a fairy tale. (He did well!)
I was treated to a dinner cruise on the Seine River, followed by a trip to the top of the Eiffel Tower at night to see the sprawled out city of Paris twinkling in the distance.
And, the night didn’t end there.
It was then off to the historic Moulin Rouge for a show and champagne.
At midnight, I turned 50 during the show sitting right at the stage staring at boobies, acrobatic routines, and a woman in a water tank with snakes!
For the record, years later, in the spring of 2019, I’d have my own encounter with a beautiful albino python in Bangkok, Thailand. I called it my Britney Spears moment! Britney is now free!
Then it was off to Tel Aviv for three days. From the hotel room, you could see the sandy beaches of the Mediterranean Sea!
Each morning, I looked forward to the Israeli breakfasts, which are world-renowned and very tasty and filling!
However, my favorite meal was at בני-הדייג, which translates to Benny The Fisherman, right on the Sea.
That was just the salads and “starters” that they brought out. Yes, fifteen of them, including the bread basket!
Sadly, I didn’t get a stamp on my passport from Israel.
This was during the 2014 Ebola scare and the customs agent was so flustered from ranting at a woman in front of us for sticking her passport in her mouth that he forgot. He refused to let her go through his line because he wasn’t going to touch her passport. And, I really don’t blame him. However, his approach was a little abrasive.
On the return flight home, the snow-covered Alps were beautiful!
This crazy song went viral in 2013 and ended up being my third favorite song of that year. It didn’t make the Top 100 on this countdown, but it was on the initial list. So, it’s a bonus. 🙂
Now, back to the countdown of my favorite songs of the past 22 years!
#33 “LOOKIN’ FOR A GOOD TIME” (LADY A) (2008)
#32 “TURN ON THE RADIO” (REBA McENTIRE) (2010)
#31 “I KNEW I LOVED YOU” (SAVAGE GARDEN) (1999)
#30 “TOXIC” (BRITNEY SPEARS) (2004)
#29 “YOU BELONG WITH ME” (TAYLOR SWIFT) (2009)
And, of course, there’s a cute and sexy alternative version of the Taylor teen love story!
#28 “IF I DIE YOUNG” (THE BAND PERRY) (2010)
#27 “MUSIC” (MADONNA) (2000)
#26 “LOVE AT FIRST SIGHT” (KYLIE MINOGUE) (2002)
#25 “LIFE GOES ON” (LEANN RIMES) (2002)
#24 “BECAUSE OF YOU” (REBA McENTIRE & KELLY CLARKSON) (2007)
#23 “IT’S BEGINNING TO LOOK A LOT LIKE CHRISTMAS” (MICHAEL BUBLE) (2011)
What! A Christmas song made it onto the countdown!!! Don’t be shocked!
My fourth favorite song of my first 35 years was Mariah Carey’s “All I Want For Christmas Is You”!
NOW BACK TO MY LIFE EVENTS OF THE PAST 22 YEARS!
MEETING PRESIDENT JIMMY CARTER & ROSALYNN CARTER (JULY 2017) …
In September 2016, I got to visit the Jimmy Carter Presidential Library & Museum in Atlanta, Georgia.
However, it would take a major change in my life and relocation to meet my childhood idols, President Jimmy Carter and Rosalynn Carter.
In the summer of 2017, I was living in Panama City, Florida, and I drove 180 miles (3.5 hours) through the backwoods of Florida, Alabama, and Georgia in the darkness of night to fulfill that life-long dream.
Once I arrived in Plains, Georgia, at the Marantha Baptist Church, I was one of the last people to make it in to hear a Sunday school lesson from President Carter.
After his lesson and the Sunday service from the pastor, I got to meet the man and woman that I helped put in the White House in the 1976 presidential election.
For the record, I was just a 12-year-old boy, but I got to go into the voting booth with my grandmother Helen back in Mayfield, Kentucky. She let me choose her candidate and, of course, it was Jimmy Carter.
My vote four years later didn’t keep the Carters in Washington D.C. and they headed back to Plains.
You might notice that the photo is autographed! I sent a copy of the photo inside of an anniversary card to the lovely couple and they signed it and sent it back!!!!!!!!!!
… AND HILLARY CLINTON (JANUARY 2016)
I’ve admired Hillary Clinton since she became the First Lady of the United States in January 1993.
There is no politician that hasn’t been raked over the coals in their career. And, now with 24-hour news channels and less objectivity in their reporting for higher ratings, it’s easy to vilify people, especially if it’s a strong woman — like Hillary.
I went to hear Hillary speak on a cold winter’s day in Davenport, Iowa, in January 2016.
When she finished, I politely edged my way through the crowd toward the roped off area in front of the stage. I lucked out and we talked a little – we exchanged hellos and I wished her success.
“Politely edged” sounds nicer than “aggressively made” my way through the crowd! 🙂
Now, my 22 favorite songs of the past 22 years!
#22 “I WANNA GO (BRITNEY SPEARS) (2011)
#21 “CAN’T FIGHT THE MOONLIGHT” (LEANN RIMES) (2000)
#20 “SURRENDER” (LAURA PAUSINI) (2002)
#19 “IF I FALL YOU’RE GOING DOWN WITH ME” (THE CHICKS) (2001)
I’ve never met Natalie Maines of The Chicks and it’s one of the biggest regrets of my life.
When I took my second television job in Lubbock, Texas, (Natalie’s hometown), in 1997, as a reporter and Saturday anchor at the CBS affiliate, her sister, Kim, was the 10 p.m. weekday producer. What a sweetheart!
1997 was also the year that Natalie and sisters Martie Maguire and Emily Robison exploded onto the country music scene with “I Can Love You Better”, which went on to reach #7 on the Billboard Country chart.
I had a chance to see them and meet the unknown band and real life prevented me from going! Bummer!
#18 “MY BOYFRIEND IS GAY” (HAILEY ROWE) (2013)
#17 “SOMEBODY LIKE YOU” (KEITH URBAN) (2002)
#16 “YOUTH” (TROYE SIVAN) (2015)
#15 “WE’RE SO GOOD TOGETHER” (REBA McENTIRE) (2000)
#14 “SOME DAYS YOU GOTTA DANCE” (THE CHICKS) (2001)
#13 “SILENCE” (MARSHMELLO & KHALID) (2017)
#12 “YOU’LL THINK OF ME” (KEITH URBAN) (2004)
NOW, BACK TO MY BIGGEST LIFE EVENTS OF THE PAST 22 YEARS!
MEET, FALL IN LOVE, GET MARRIED, AND THEN DIVORCE (2009-2017)
We’ve all been there (well, at least half of us).
You meet someone that’s an Edward Lewis (Richard Gere) to your Vivian Ward (Julia Roberts) — with or with sex work involved!
You fall in love and sometimes it works out and sometimes it doesn’t.
I got to have a wedding, a beautiful reception, and a gorgeous cake!
And, I was a “like a dad” and I got to experience helping to raise a child. I loved and was loved in return, we traveled the world — Europe, Israel, China, and Scandinavia — and my golden retriever, ABBA, had two more people to shower her with love, and I got to foster 60 koi and goldfish!
While things didn’t work out, I’m glad that I got to experience the good before the bad.
There are many things I miss about those days and there are things I don’t miss. The serenity of the koi pond is definitely high on the list of things I miss!
This is a feeding frenzy in the summer of 2016!
Oh, if you were hoping for sordid details, there were several circumstances leading to the demise of the relationship. Those are being saved for the book (which is being written)!
WE NEED A BREATHER!
Now, back to my favorite songs of the past 22 years!
#11 “SOMETHING” (LASGO) (2001)
#10 “TILL THE WORLD ENDS” (BRITNEY SPEARS) (2011)
#9 “BAD ROMANCE” (LADY GAGA) (2009)
#8 “BLANK SPACE” (TAYLOR SWIFT) (2014)
#7 “EVERYTIME WE TOUCH” (CASCADA) (2005)
#6 “EVERYTIME” (BRITNEY SPEARS) (2004)
NOW BACK TO THE BIGGEST EVENTS OF MY PAST 22 YEARS
MISS ABBA (MAY 2000-FEBRUARY 2012)
My golden retriever, ABBA, and I traveled down many roads together.
From the llama farm in Ohio where I picked her up in July 2000 to swimming in Lake Michigan when we lived in Chicago to the salty waters of the Atlantic Ocean on Maryland’s Eastern Shore and then back to the cold, snowy Midwestern winters in the Quad Cities, Miss ABBA loved it all and she loved life!
She didn’t mind doggie sitting (or walking) her blind Shar Pei friend, Panda, and she loved road trips so much that you had to spell out R-I-D-E. She loved her fast food hamburgers and she loved treats and cakes!
And, she was the perfect drinking buddy!
From that first ride from the Ohio llama farm to her new life away from Dolly and Fletcher (her mom and dad) and her siblings to the last fateful ride, she enjoyed life so much and never met a stranger.
I wish we were more like ABBA!
As I was lying on the bed comforting ABBA on those final two days in early 2012, these words just came to me and I put them on paper.
While I’m not a poet, I still love this — my goodbye to Miss ABBA!
If you can’t read my writing through the tears:
The fog hangs in the air shrouding the light, not only in the sky, but in your eyes
You look lost and just want to sleep with me close by your side
I listen to you breathe and each breath sounds deeper
Is it the end or just a peaceful sleep
As I caress your neck and shoulder blades,
You snore even louder as I try harder to hold back the tears
I don’t want you to hear me cry,
I want you to let go and not fight for me
You’ve been there for me all your life
And I want to be there for you now, my love.
My best friend — ABBA (May 22, 2000-February 3, 2012)
This is one of my favorite pictures taken of Miss ABBA in her last month with us…
The song in the video tribute below is “Over My Shoulder” by one of my favorite singers, Patty Loveless, from her 1994 album, “When Fallen Angels Fly”.
Okay, this silly photo will take the sadness away…
FINAL BONUS TRACK!
When I put together a recap of my first 35 years and my 100 favorite songs of that era of my life (1964-1999), Olivia Newton-John placed four songs on the countdown: #3 “Xanadu”, #47 “Let Me Be There”, #50 “If You Love Me (Let Me Know)”, and #68 “Magic”.
I finally got to see her in concert at The Flamingo in Las Vegas in May 2014.
As a bonus, I’m featuring two of my favorites in one video — Olivia and Las Vegas.
In 2015, DJ Dave Aude re-worked Olivia’s hit “Magic” and “You Have To Believe” became a #1 dance song for Olivia and her daughter, Chloe Lattanzi.
And, one final fun fact, Olivia met her future husband and Chloe’s dad, Matt Lattanzi, on the set of the movie, “Xanadu”!
Just a random thought, since you know me for random thoughts, I think #Pug2020, which became #Pug2021, and then #Pug20-something, needs to become a reality in 2022!!!
I need a new drinking partner or, at least, a movie and television binge-watching partner!
When I was in Bangkok, Thailand, in the spring of 2019, I saw this in the taxi and I know it was a sign!
NOW BACK TO THE COUNTDOWN OF MY FIVE FAVORITE SONGS OF THE PAST 22 YEARS!
#5 “SOMEBODY” (REBA McENTIRE) (2004)
#4 “NOT READY TO MAKE NICE” (THE CHICKS) (2006)
#3 “CONSIDER ME GONE” (REBA McENTIRE) (2009)
Before I reveal my two favorite songs of the past 22 years, how about another bonus track!
This one didn’t make the list of my Top 100 favorites, but it was one of the 221 on the initial list and was my 13th favorite song of 2014! 🙂
As I reveal my two favorites from 1999-2021, both are two of the most underrated songs that radio should have sent to the top of every chart!
#2 “ALL THE LOVERS” (KYLIE MINOGUE) (2010)
This one did top the airplay chart in Poland and it reached #1 on the Billboard Dance Club songs chart!
And. it’s so naughty and scandalous! 🙂
#1 “DANCING ON MY OWN” (ROBYN) (2010)
This one only topped the chart in Robyn’s native Sweden!
NOW, THE BIGGEST EVENT OF MY PAST 22 YEARS…
THE DEPLORABLE 2016 PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION! (NOVEMBER 8, 2016)
While this could be a divisive discussion starter, that is not the purpose.
We know “what happened”, since there’s a book about this with that title. It’s been five years now — almost half of the country was on the winning side, but a majority of us were on the losing end.
That statement, “a majority of us were on the losing end”, doesn’t just mean the almost 66 million people that voted for Hillary Clinton.
I’m talking about America’s reputation on the world stage and the handling of the COVID-19 pandemic in the first months — a major misstep that had now resulted in more than 700,000 deaths since early 2020 in the United States.
DISCLAIMER: If Hillary Clinton had been elected president, we would still likely have seen a significant death toll from Coronavirus. However, I believe with all my heart and intelligence, it wouldn’t be at 709K and counting…
But, is that why the 2016 U.S. presidential election is the biggest event of my past 22 years? In part, yes. However, it ranks above ABBA’s death and the failure of my relationship because it’s partly to blame for the separation and divorce.
That loss affected me greatly as 2016 turned to 2017. In the five years since, I’ve accepted it and moved on. Does it still bother me? Yes. Is there anything I can do about it? No.
Michelle Obama, in her 2018 autobiography, “Becoming”, sums it up best the day after that shocking loss: “And I will always wonder about what led so many women, in particular, to reject an exceptionally qualified female candidate and instead choose a misogynist as their president. But the result was now ours to live with.”
If you want to share comments about how/if that win or loss affected you, feel free. Do it diplomatically with respect to me and my friends.
The point was not to discuss politics, I’m just sharing my life — the good, the bad, and the ugly.
Thank you for taking the time to travel down the road of the second era of my life!
Before you leave, if you’re not interested in #41 to #100, scroll down a little for some of my favorite photos of the past 22 years!!!
Will I write a third? Probably not. Do you know how old I’d be by then! 🙂
However, if I had two front-runners for favorite songs for my final chapter of life — the new Kylie Minogue and Elton John songs rock my world and are on repeat!
Now, that’s it…. except for some of my favorite photos of the past 22 years!
Wait, my friends, let’s keep going. They haven’t made “last call”!
You know I love lists and I’ve mentioned 100 favorites songs several time in this life recap even though the countdown started at #40 like “American Top 40”.
Scroll down and see which songs just missed out.
You might find one of your favorites on here, you might discover several songs you’re not familiar with, and some that might make you say, “Anthony has some very interesting tastes”, or “No <musical act> on the countdown?”
#41 “MY LOVE IS YOUR LOVE” (WHITNEY HOUSTON) (1999)
#42 “NEED YOU NOW” (LADY A) (2009)
#43 “THAT’S THE KIND OF MOOD I’M IN” (PATTY LOVELESS) (2000)
#44 “MURDER ON THE DANCEFLOOR” (SOPHIE ELLIS-BEXTOR) (2001)
It’s officially summer now and that can only mean one thing!
Yes, this Moscato Sangria will work just fine, thank you! 🙂
I appreciate you taking the time to check out my random thoughts.
PRIDE EVERYDAY — ESPECIALLY IN JUNE
As many of you know, June is “Pride Month”. Yet, Pride festivities happen at different times of the year depending on where you are.
The Duluth Superior GLBTAQI Pride Festival will be held Labor Day weekend (August 30-September 2) this year.
I plan on attending, but I can guarantee it won’t be Chicago! 🙂
Speaking of my “second home”, here are two of my favorite Pride photos that I took in Chicago back in 2010.
So, cheers queers and to all of our “straight, but not narrow friends”!
THANK YOU BRETT KISSEL
I’m a very liberal thinking person, but there are still things that I learn everyday — even about being more inclusive.
There are good people and bad people in every walk of life — regardless of demographics or whatever group they belong.
Country music is one of those genres that typically gets a bad rap (oh wait, rap is another) for not being very inclusive when it comes to the LGBTQ community.
Yes, there are exceptions: Reba McEntire, Dolly Parton, Kacey Musgraves, and others.
Now, add sexy Canadian country music singer Brett Kissel to that growing list!
For years now, since I discovered his “Pick Me Up” album, I’ve written about Kissel and his amazing voice and stage presence.
Yes, he’s sexy, but that doesn’t mean I’m going to drop $10 for a CD! But, he has what it takes to warrant buying his music — not just good looks!
He’s incredible with a beautiful wife, Cecilia, and two daughters, Mila and Aria.
I like him even more knowing he supports all people, including me and my LGBTQ brothers, sisters, and they.
Here’s his latest single, “Guitars & Gasoline”.
Come on America, start playing Kissel! He’s already had eleven Top Ten hits on the Canadian Country music chart.
“THE ASSASSINATION OF GIANNI VERSACE: AMERICAN CRIME STORY”
If you didn’t catch this amazing FX series during its winter run earlier this year, watch it now!
I’ve written several times about the series and I’m bringing it up again as we near the Emmy nominations in July because it popped up in a recent issue of “Entertainment Weekly”.
Here’s what I wrote on March 30, 2018:
“Sadly, this excellent series is over. I think when Emmy nominations are announced in July that Darren Criss and Judith Light will get acting nods for their roles of Andrew Cunanan and Marilyn Miglin.”
In the new “Entertainment Weekly”, critic Kristen Baldwin chose “The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story” as her #1 best TV show of 2018, so far.
Baldwin adds, “And if Darren Criss (who played Cunanan) and Judith Light (as the wife of one of his victims) do not win big come Emmy season, it will be (ahem) a crime.”
DIANA ROSS “MEMOIRS”
Since moving to Duluth, I haven’t had a chance to read a book and I’m starting to fall behind on magazines.
But, before moving, I read Diana Ross’s “Memoirs: Secrets of a Sparrow”.
It was interesting hearing her version of how she became the face and name of The Supremes and how that and other behind the scene dramas ended the successful trio.
She talked extensively about the racial tensions in the South in the 1950s and 1960s and how it made touring there scary.
Ross also talked about AIDS and her gay fans and friends.
An interesting story she told was going on her second honeymoon. Since her husband owned the Tahitian island, they ran around naked! 🙂
At times, she sounded a little out there, but she comes across as a genuine woman and entertainer.
It was a little gossipy when she talked about her working relationship with Lionel Richie when they recorded the iconic ballad “Endless Love”.
Ross says, “the working relationship between us was difficult.” She added, “I am a perfectionist. I like to be on time always. Lionel was not always on time.”
LIONEL THEN (?) AND NOW
I don’t doubt Diana Ross’ story of working with Lionel. He was young and coming off huge success with the Commodores and was launching his solo career.
I know him as a gentle, fun man that I met in Las Vegas last December. When I went to shake hands with him, he grabbed me and said, “I’m a hugger”.
Earlier this week, Lionel turned 69! To honor that, here’s my favorite Lionel Richie song.
If you want to know what my other 19 favorites are since you know I love countdowns, click here. It’ll open in a new window!
Living in Duluth, my television market covers parts of Minnesota and Wisconsin and two counties in Upper Michigan.
My part of the state is called the “Northland”, which is not to be confused with the “Northwoods” of northern Wisconsin!
My first Wisconsin experience was in the late-1980s visiting a friend’s family in Merrill. In the summer of 1990, I moved to Milwaukee for four months before moving back to Kentucky.
In July 1996, I took my first network affiliate television job in Rhinelander, Wisconsin. I was there for just about five months.
However, moving back to the upper Midwest makes me nostalgic about those times even though they were short.
So, over the new few weeks, I’ll share some of the songs that were impressionable to me during those times!
Remember this one from 1990?
That was Taylor Dayne’s seventh consecutive Top Ten Billboard Hot 100 hit. It was the third release from the “Can’t Fight Fate” album.
THAT’S IT
With all the craziness in the world, make it the best in your little part of it!
Two years ago, in February 2016, I blogged about a hot Canadian country music singer in “American Country Radio Needs Brett Kissel”.
I was talking about his amazing album, “Pick Me Up” and I concluded that blog with, “Here’s hoping American audiences will get to hear Brett on the radio in 2016!”
Click here to read that first blog (it’ll open in a new window):
Well, that didn’t happen in 2016 or 2017! Hopefully, 2018 will be Kissel’s year to break here in America.
Last December, he released his latest album, “We Were That Song”.
The title track became his 10th Top Ten hit song on Canadian country music radio!
The album features many standouts and potential singles.
My favorites are “Damn!”, “Cecilia”, “Slow Me Down”, “Between You and Me”, and “Guitars and Gasoline”.
By the way, “Damn!” features Dave Mustaine of Metallica and Megadeth fame and country music legend Charley Pride makes an appearance on the track, “Burgers and Fries”.
The second single, “Anthem”, just cracked the Top Ten in Canada on the country charts marking his 11th Top Ten. It’s also one of my favorites from the album.
“We Were That Song” is a strong album, but it’s not doing as well on the Canadian country album chart as its predecessor.
“Pick Me Up” was fantastic, so check out the new album, too.
By the way, American Country Radio (STILL) Needs Brett Kissel!
I hope March is treating you well. For the winter-weary, spring can’t be too far away.
Thank you for taking the time to check out my “Random Friday Thoughts”!
AN UNOPPOSED MORON
Leslie Gibson, a Republican running unopposed in Maine’s House 57th District, deleted a tweet calling 18-year-old Emma Gonzalez a “skin head lesbian”.
She’s a student at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, where last month a shooter killed 17 people and injured 14 others.
The complete tweet said, “There is nothing about this skin head lesbian that impresses me and there is nothing that she has to say unless you’re a frothing at the mouth moonbat.”
Gibson apologized in another tweet: “I would like to extend to you my most sincere apology for how I addressed you. It was wrong and unacceptable.”
He added, “You are doing work that is important to you. I would like to extend my hand in friendship and understanding to you.”
While he’s a moron, he does have a right to an uneducated opinion. But, maybe he does know a thing or two about being a “frothing at the mouth moonbat”, whatever the hell that is!
By the way Gibson, Gonzalez is not a lesbian. She identifies as bisexual — you know the “B” in LGBT!
“CALL ME BY YOUR NAME” ON DVD!
If you didn’t catch this four-time Oscar-nominated, critically acclaimed movie in its theatrical run, please see it now!
89-year-old James Ivory won the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay for the movie.
It’s beautiful, touching, loving, heartbreaking, and sensual.
As I wrote back in January, “It’s not only a coming-of-age love story between Elio (Timothee Chalamet) and a slightly older American graduate student Oliver (Armie Hammer) visiting northern Italy, but it’s a beautiful bond of love between a teenager and his parents.”
GRADE: A
WE ALL DESERVE AN ELIO MOMENT
After I saw “Call Me By Your Name”, I shared my own stories of innocence, lust, and living.
It’s been my most read blog (non-weather-related) of 2018! Thank you for all of you that checked it out the first time.
If you didn’t get a chance to read it, please click below on the link and it’ll open in a new window so you won’t lose your place in this week’s “Random Friday Thoughts”!
Just finished reading my sixth book of the year, Mike Wallace’s “Between You and Me: A Memoir”. While it isn’t an autobiography, it did cover part of his career.
It tells stories about the news he covered including interviews with Anwar Sadat, Martin Luther King, Jr., and Malcolm X.
Also, it talks about some of the people he admired — Tina Turner, Barbra Streisand, and Shirley MacLaine.
BRETT KISSEL
Two years ago, in February 2016, I blogged about a hot Canadian country music singer in “American Country Radio Needs Brett Kissel”.
I was talking about his amazing album, “Pick Me Up” and I concluded that blog with, “Here’s hoping American audiences will get to hear Brett on the radio in 2016!”
Well, that didn’t happen in 2016 or 2017! Hopefully, 2018 will be Kissel’s year to break here in America.
Last December, he released his latest album, “We Were That Song”.
The title track became his 10th Top Ten hit song on Canadian country music radio!
The album features many standouts and potential singles.
My favorites are “Damn!”, “Cecilia”, “Slow Me Down”, “Between You and Me”, and “Guitars and Gasoline”.
By the way, “Damn!” features Dave Mustaine of Metallica and Megadeth fame and country music legend Charley Pride makes an appearance on the track, “Burgers and Fries”.
The second single, “Anthem”, just cracked the Top Ten in Canada on the country charts marking his 11th Top Ten. It’s also one of my favorites from the album.
“We Were That Song” is a strong album, but it’s not doing as well on the Canadian country album chart as its predecessor.
“Pick Me Up” was fantastic, so check out the new album, too.
By the way, American Country Radio (STILL) Needs Brett Kissel!
GRADE: B+
Here’s that blog from two years ago to hear more about and from Brett Kissel:
Margaret Sanger (founding mother of the “birth control” movement before women were given the right to vote in 1920): “No woman can call herself free who does not have control over her own body.”
Sanger, who died in 1966, was not afraid to go up against and speak out against the very powerful Catholic church and its views on birth control and natural law.
She told CBS newsman Mike Wallace, “Oh, I certainly take issue with it, and I think it’s untrue and I think it’s unnatural. It’s an unnatural attitude to take. How do they know? I mean, after all, they’re celibates. They don’t know love, they don’t know marriage, they know nothing about bringing up children nor any of the marriage problems of life, and yet they speak to people as if they were God.”
Just imagine what she would have said about the sexual abuse scandal!
“THE FLORIDA PROJECT”
This movie about people down on their luck and finances living in a “project” (The Magic Castle Motel) in Kissimmee, Florida (near Walt Disney World), is sad and incredible.
The real star of the movie is Brooklynn Prince, who plays 6-year-old Moonee. She’s spectacular for a child actor expressing a happy childhood of not knowing just how bad things are in her life.
Bria Vinaite, is great as Moonee’s white trash mother, Halley.
My sister and I grew up in a bug-infested apartment and we didn’t have much during our childhood, so I could definitely relate to this movie.
Willem Dafoe earned a “Best Supporting Actor” Oscar nomination for his role as Bobby, the manager of the motel. Either it was a slow year for actors in that category or Defoe was just too great and very subtle in his touching role.
GRADE: B+
“DARKEST HOUR”
This historical drama about Winston Churchill earned six Oscar nominations including “Best Picture” and “Best Actor” for Gary Oldman.
A couple of weeks ago, I predicted that Oldman would win the Oscar, even though Timothee Chalamet (“Call Me By Your Name”) deserved it more.
I went on to say this about Oldman, “He was great and so was the make-up.” By the way, the movie did get a nomination for “Best Makeup and Hairstyling”.
However, while compelling, “Darkest Hour” was too cut and dry.
I enjoyed John Lithgow’s Churchill on the first season of “The Crown” better.
GRADE: B-
THAT’S IT
With all the craziness in the world, make it the best in your little part of it!
People still buy albums, but not as many as in the past. It’s easier to download songs you like and not buy the complete package.
I guess I fall into the first category since I only bought seven new releases in 2017!
Before I get to my countdown, here’s a recap of my favorite albums of this decade:
“Night Works” – Scissor Sisters (2010); “Femme Fatale” – Britney Spears (2011); “MDNA” – Madonna (2012); “Push Rewind” – Chris Wallace (2013); (tie) “The Violet Flame (Erasure) and “Sex + Love” (Enrique Iglesias) (2014); “Deja Vu” – Giorgio Moroder(2015); and my favorite album last year was:
The first story in today’s blog may not set well with some. That’s fine. Read it or scroll past it and check out the rest of my thoughts.
If you’d like to comment (and I’m asking for your opinion), do it diplomatically!
Have a great weekend and thank you for checking out my random thoughts.
REFLECTIONS — ONE YEAR LATER!
It’s been one year now since that fateful night in 2016 when the truly impossible happened.
The bottom line is that former FBI Director James Comey’s October 27th bombshell of reopening the email controversy was (and still is) the main reason for the unthinkable. If that proclamation hadn’t been made, Hillary Clinton would be the 45th President of the United States!
Now that I’ve had a year to reflect on it (and you have, too), I’m still no more at ease than I was in the early morning hours of November 9, 2016.
In retrospective, I’m not mad at the minority of people that voted for “that man”. While I don’t know, I try to understand why they did.
I’m still angrier with the people that voted for Gary Johnson and Jill Stein. Did they really think that either of them had a chance to win the election? No!
Did they vote for them to make a statement against Hillary? Yes!
But, was it worth the outcomes in the battleground states of Arizona, Florida, Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin? If a fraction of the votes for Johnson and Stein in those all important states had been cast for Hillary, she would have had the electoral votes to win the election.
Now, my question for those who voted for Trump, are you happy with what he’s done for America? Also, do you think he’s well representing the U.S. and what we stand for on the world stage?
And, I didn’t even get started on the Bernie Sanders supporters that didn’t vote or didn’t vote for Hillary. Again, was the outcome of that anger worth it?
Those are some of the questions I’ve asked myself every day for the past year! I can’t answer them.
I just know how I feel waking up daily and not having Hillary Clinton as my president. 😦
I hope things change.
“AMERICAN HORROR STORY”
The seventh season of “American Horror Story” wraps up Tuesday night, November 14th!
Wait, wrong graphic! 🙂
I can’t wait to see how “Cult” ends. After the dismal fourth and fifth seasons (“Freak Show” and Hotel”, respectively), and the so-so sixth season, “Roanoke”, this season was entertaining and thought-provoking.
FAILED AGGRESSORS!
“History is filled with aggressors who triumphed for a moment. Then failed.”
Who do you think Madeleine Albright, the 64th U.S. Seceretary of State, was talking about in “Time” magazine in 2014?
Since you know me so well, I know who you’re thinking!
Surprisingly, it’s not “that man”. It’s this slime bag– Vladimir Putin!
But, as time will likely tell, it’ll fit well into our current situation, too!
LAS VEGAS AND NOW TEXAS…
It sounds like a broken record.
Here’s what I wrote on July 14, 2017, before the worst mass shooting in modern U.S. history in Las Vegas and before the Texas church shooting last weekend.
“When something like the Pulse Nightclub shooting, the Sandy Hook school massacre, or the bombing outside the Manchester Ariana Grande concert happens, we’re shocked for a few days before the news cycle moves on to the next story.
People go crazy on Facebook sharing “Remember <insert city>” or “Pray for <insert city>. And, then we move on, too!”
Why is this a regular part of our lives now?
DONNA BRAZILE & HER NEW BOOK
EMMA STONE & SEXISM
In her new movie, “Battle of the Sexes”, Oscar winner Emma Stone plays tennis legend Billie Jean King.
It’s about the historic tennis match with sexist, misogynist Bobby Riggs (Steve Carell).
In “Out” magazine in August 2017, Stone talked about where King and women were in the 1970s and where we are today “with anarcissistic, self-focused, constantly-stirring-the-pot kind of guy — again this incredible, qualified woman, and at the same time be playing Billie Jean King…”
Stone adds, “Obviously the way this has all panned out has been fascinating and horrifying, and it still feels like we’re in a bad dream, but those parallels make sense to me — the equal-pay issue makes a lot of sense to me. At our best right now we’re making 80 cents to the dollar.”
“LOSING SLEEP” — CHRIS YOUNG
I’ll admit upfront that I grew up on country music in the 1970s and abandoned the genre for Top 40/English Invasion/Dance music in the 1980s, and then re-discovered country in the 1990s with Reba McEntire and Patty Loveless.
Once radio cooled on Reba and Patty, I pretty music gave up on the format and especially with its love of bro-country.
When I do buy a country album, it’s usually by female singers. The last male country album I bought was Canadian Brett Kissel’s phenomenal “Pick Me Up”, my #7 CD of 2016.
Before that, it was Michael Ray’s self titled full length in 2015.
I went out a limb and bought the latest from country crooner Chris Young.
I really like the texture of his voice on past hits, “Getting You Home (The Black Dress Song)”, “Voices”, “Think of You” (with Cassadee Pope), and “Sober Saturday Night” (with Vince Gill).
On this album, there are some standout perfect songs.
My favorites and I’m putting them in the order of how I’d love for him to release songs as singles: “Losing Sleep” (his current hit, just outside the Top Ten), the ballad “Where I Go When I Drink”, “Holiday” (the perfect summer song), and “She’s Got A Way”.
“Blacked Out”, “Trouble Looking”, and “Hangin’ On” are also great.
GRADE: B+
I KID YOU NOT! 🙂
This is the “The River 100.5” WTRV in Grand Rapids, Michigan, playlist from yesterday morning!
24-hour Christmas music was being played just after Halloween at some stations! Who needs to wait until Thanksgiving anymore?
As you can see, several Christmas songs are already charting on the Adult Contemporary charts.
CHRISTMAS ALBUMS SALES
In 2016, overall album sales dropped almost 17% (falling from 241.4 million in 2015 to 200.8 million in 2016).
However, Christmas albums sales jumped 10.6% (climbing from 7.2 million units to 7.97 million).
HOT NEW CRUSH
You may not know the name “Henry Golding” now.
But, you will when “Crazy Rich Asians” hits theaters August 17, 2018!
Golding is a 30-year-old British-Malaysian actor and he got married a year ago in August! 🙂 😦
MORE MID-FALL TELEVISION THOUGHTS
“How To Get Away With Murder” — Absolutely loving the fourth season. Analise is incredible and I can’t wait to see what this whole blood bath is all about. Plus, Connor and Frank are so hot this season!
“Mr. Robot” — I’m glad that Tyrell (Martin Wallstrom) was given a full episode to expand his back story. And, Wallstrom is so sexy!
Also, I love Darlene (Carly Chaikin) and I’m always surprised at what comes out of her mouth. In a recent episode, it was “muff divers” and “diddle your skittle”! *The horror!* 🙂
As much as I’ve enjoyed the three seasons so far, I hope it ends with this season.
“Law and Order True Crime: The Menendez Brothers” — I’m DVR-ing it, but have not watched the first episode yet. Should I just delete it and free up the space?
“The Walking Dead” (again) — Episodes 2 and 3 of Season 8 sucked! I’m giving it one more episode and I’m done.
This whole Ezekiel, his pet tiger Shiva, and the Kingdom plot line is such a laughable joke.
PICK HIT
EDM (electronic dance music) producer and DJ Marshmello, who’s identity is unknown (but may be American DJ Christian Comstock), has scored seven hits in the U.S. on the Billboard Dance charts since 2015.
Two have reached the Top Ten. “Alone” reached #9 in 2016.
His current hit featuring Khalid, “Silence” is currently at #2 on the Billboard Dance Club Songs chart. It’s also #36 on the Mediabase Top 40 airplay chart.
“Silence” already topped the Australian Dance chart and hit the Top 5 in Belgium, Norway, Sweden, and on the UK Dance chart.
THAT’S IT
With all the craziness in the world, make it the best in your little part of it!
It’s been a heartbreaking week with the mass shooting in Las Vegas (more on that below). While sad and tragic, there are some happy things going on in the world and I hope some of that is happening in your life.
Thank you for taking the time to check out my random thoughts.
WHAT AN HONOR!
If you’ve followed me on Facebook since 2009 or read my blog since 2012, you know that I’m a strong believer in equality — LGBT, marriage, women’s rights, for people of color, and more.
While some of you may disagree with my views, that’s fine. I do have to walk a fine line when I state my opinions and in my responses to people who don’t think like me (especially now, considering where I live and the climate we live in)!
With that being said, I got a big surprise when I started reading the October/November 2017 issue of “The Advocate”.
The magazine had a feature on the “50 Most Influential LGBT People In Media” and I absolutely love lists and countdowns. I had a thought on who might be number one, so I was curious.
Since I always read magazines from the front to back and I don’t skip ahead, I got to page seven and Editorial Director Diane Anderson-Minshall’s “Editor’s Letter”.
Below that was this segment. As I was reading it and walking, I was shocked and surprised!!!!!!!!!!!
A shout-out in the nation’s biggest and longest-running LGBT magazine in the country, which is celebrating its 50th Anniversary this year!
What an honor! Diane, I’ll keep up the fight for equality and visibility in these very trying, dark post-November 8, 2016 days!!!
Stay woke! Resist!
AND, IF THAT WASN’T ENOUGH…
A dear friend from back in the Quad Cities, Clayton, posted a message on my blog a couple of weeks ago that touched my heart just as much as the name check in “The Advocate”.
Clayton said, “I hope that you realize the lasting effects you have had on the many people who feared going public”.
MY IDOL CELEBRATES 93rd BIRTHDAY
On October 1st, President Jimmy Carter turned 93 years old.
It’s no secret that I love President Carter and his wonderful wife, Rosalynn, and I had the pleasure to meet them in July at their Plains, Georgia church.
While there, I had my picture taken with them. I sent them a copy inside an anniversary card celebrating their 71 years of marriage on July 7th.
I just hoped that with all of the fan mail they still get that they would see the card.
Weeks passed and I opened the mail recently to find an envelope from the “Office of Jimmy Carter”! I gingerly opened it.
Not only did the Carters see my anniversary card and the picture, but they took the time to autograph it and send it back to me!
What a thoughtful, loving couple!
I’ve now met three of my four living idols. I wrote about them this summer and if you missed that blog, here it is. It’ll open in a new window.
“I REALLY LIKE YOU” (PRESIDENT CARTER & MS. ROSALYNN)
What a perfect time to share one of my favorite Carly Rae Jepsen songs.
This is from her show at Terminal 5 in New York City in March 2016. It was one of the best concerts I’ve seen in years.
It’s also from one of the most underrated pop albums ever, “Emotion”.
It was my third favorite album of 2015 and I still listen to it today and marvel at its excellence.
LAS VEGAS DEADLY SHOOTING
Sadly, the Pulse nightclub shooting in Orlando, Florida, in the summer of 2016, is no longer the deadliest mass shooting in modern U.S. history!
That heartbreaking title is now bestowed on Las Vegas, Nevada, after a man opened fire on a country music festival near Mandalay Bay on the Strip Sunday night.
58 people were killed and around 500 were hurt.
The senseless violence in the United States and the world saddens me. While we still don’t know the motive of the shooting, the man is purely evil or suffered from a mental illness. I’m only speculating, but I think he was just evil and filled with hate!
Mental illness is something that we, as Americans, are still uncomfortable discussing. It comes up after each mass shooting, but then we’re on to the next “breaking news” and nothing is accomplished.
Enough!
Las Vegas is one of my favorite places and I’m still considering moving there.
My thoughts and prayers are sincerely with you!
MEANWHILE IN PUERTO RICO
On the morning of this senseless tragedy, Carmen Yulin Cruz, the mayor of Puerto Rico, tweeted this to the people of Las Vegas!
Her compassion is incredible!
To take the time to think of Las Vegas even as her people try to put their lives back together after the devastation of Hurricane Maria and Hurricane Irma!
SHANIA TWAIN “NOW”
Pop and country superstar Shania Twain released “Now”, her first album of new music in fifteen years, last week!
It’s hard to believe that “Up” came out in 2002!
When you have three consecutive albums to sell more than 20 million copies each worldwide (“Come On Over” sold more than 40 million) and it’s been a decade-and-a-half since you last released an album, expectations are high!
The album starts out strong with the perfect “Swingin’ With My Eyes Closed” and “Home Now”, which begins with a very Asian/Americana sounding combo.
“Light of My Life” is one of the three strongest songs (perfect songs) on the album. The other is the first single, “Life’s About to Get Good”.
“Who’s Gonna” is the song that sounds like pure Shania from her late 1990s-early 2000s years of chart domination. “Poor Me” is another great song.
Some of the other six songs would have been fantastic Shania songs if there hadn’t been 15 years since the last album. Here, they’re just really good songs.
This is also the first album (other than her debut) that wasn’t produced by her ex-husband Mutt Lange. That difference is noted here. But, then again, it could be the absence of a new Shania Twain album, too.
The song, “I’m Alright” addresses that relationship ending and her moving on with her life.
It’s great to have Shania back and “Now” is an very enjoyable album.
Early on, only Adult Contemporary radio is showing any interest in the new music. “Life” is currently at #11 on the AC playlist.
GRADE: B+
“THE BIG SICK”
This romantic comedy (dramedy) is loosely based on the lives of lead actor Kumail Nanjiani and his wife Emily V. Gordon. Both Nanjiani and Gordon were co-writers of the script.
Without giving away the “big sick” part, it’s the story of a Pakistani comedian (Nanjiani) in Chicago. One night at a show, he’s heckled by a cute, young woman (Zoe Kazan).
A romance ensues, but things get complicated by the fact that Emily is white.
Holly Hunter, who plays Emily’s mother, is incredible in the movie. It’s so great to see the Oscar winner back in a powerful role. I seriously think that she could get another Academy Award nomination for this movie. If so, that’d be her fifth Oscar nomination!
“The Big Sick” is a must see!
GRADE: A
“WONDER WOMAN”
Except for “Batman Returns” and the Christian Bale-Christopher Nolan “Batman” trilogy, superhero movies bore me.
They’re so unrealistic. I know, I know, they’re “superheroes” with super strength and powers, blah blah blah!
I was huge fan of the “Wonder Woman” television series in the 1970s with Lynda Carter, so I wanted to see this movie.
Israeli actress Gal Gadot is stunning as Diana, the daughter of Queen Hippolyta on the hidden island of Themyscira, a land of Amazonian warriors.
She rescues an American pilot Steve Trevor (Chris Pine) and is intrigued by his worldliness and the fact that he’s a man! 🙂 Okay, as beautiful as Gadot is, it’s Chris Pine! I’m intrigued, too.
Diana heads off with him to stop World War II and Ares’.
The fight scenes were typical superhero-fakery, but when the movie dives into storytelling and drama, it does it well.
Plus, the always incredible Robin Wright (Claire Underwood on “House of Cards”) plays Diana’s aunt, General Antiope, who trains her to fight.
GRADE: B
PICK HIT
Canadian country music hottie Brett Kissel, with just two hit albums under his cowboy belt buckle, has already scored nine Top Ten hits on the Canadian country charts.
Sadly, American radio hasn’t taken a chance on him yet. As Julia Roberts’ Vivard Ward says to the snooty women on Rodeo Drive, “big mistake, big, huge!”
Brett is back with a brand new single that’s burning up the country charts in his native country.
“We Were That Song” is already at #22!
Back in February 2016, I wrote about Brett and his fantastic album, “Pick Me Up”, which was my #7 album of that year!
Here’s that blog again so you learn more about Brett. And, by the way, he’s fantastic with being personable with his fans on social media!
Brett, I can’t wait for the new album! You have a lot of American fans, too!
R.I.P. TOM PETTY
For rock & rollers, this is a heartbreaker!
The Gainesville, Florida rocker died Monday night after being found unresponsive and in full cardiac arrest at his Malibu, California home the night before.
Petty would have been 67 on October 20th.
On the Billboard Hot 100, Petty scored 16 Top 40 hits.
Three of them reached the Top Ten: “Don’t Do Me Like That” (#10, 1980), “Stop Draggin’ My Heart Around” (#3, 1981, from Stevie Nicks’ “Bella Donna” album), and “Free Fallin'” (#7, 1990).
While it wasn’t one of his Top Ten Hot 100 hits, “The Waiting” (#19, 1981) was one of my favorite Petty songs. (It did spend six consecutive weeks at the top of Billboard’s Rock Tracks chart!)
THE HOLIDAY SEASON IS HERE!
Now that October is here, so is the holiday SEASON! 🙂
THAT’S IT
With all the craziness in the world, make it the best in your little part of it!
I shared my 20 favorite movies I saw in 2016 with you yesterday.
If you missed it because of work, real life, or the hustle and bustle of the holidays, here it is again. (It’ll open in a new window, so you won’t lose your place in today’s countdown.
As we kick off my favorite 16 albums of 2016, let’s start with a quick look back at my past favorites.
In 2010, it was “Night Work” by Scissor Sisters. It was “Femme Fatale” by Britney Spears in 2011, “MDNA” by Madonna in 2012, and “Push Rewind” by Chris Wallace in 2013.
There was a tie for my favorite album in 2014 between Erasure’s “The Violet Flame” and Enrique Iglesias’ “Sex And Love”.
Last year, my favorite album was “Deja Vu” by Giorgio Moroder.
Now, let’s kick off my favorites of 2016!
“MATTER” — ST. LUCIA
“THANKS” — MEGHAN TRAINOR
“PAPER GODS” — DURAN DURAN
“A VERY KACEY CHRISTMAS” — KACEY MUSGRAVES
“GLOW” — BRETT ELDREDGE
“START HERE” — MADDIE & TAE
“50” — RICK ASTLEY
“SUPER” — PET SHOP BOYS
“CLOUD NINE” — KYGO
“PICK ME UP” — BRETT KISSEL
“DNCE” — DNCE
“MIDWEST FARMER’S DAUGHTER” — MARGO PRICE
Margo was born in Aledo, Illinois (Mercer County), just 35 miles from the Quad Cities!
“7/27” — FIFTH HARMONY
“SIT STILL, LOOK PRETTY” — DAYA
“NOBODY BUT ME” — MICHAEL BUBLE
This year’s best album is by a repeat performer. “Femme Fatale” from Britney Spears topped my year-end list in 2011.
Her follow-up, “Britney Jean” only ended up at #6 in 2013.
But, Britney’s back in all her “Glory” as my favorite album of 2016.
What's Peeps Thinking About Now? It's Probably Random! 