1964 Lite

Manfred Mann

Manfred Mann--then or now--can have my babies.

Welcome to Summer



Music Mix: Unrequited Tuesday Love

RIP

Bummer.

I have these great old memories of being a teenager and listening to a Bee Gees pre-disco album over and over in my best friend's room . . . with strawberry incense. Good times.

Movie Night: Summer and Smoke (1961)

Summer and Smoke 

From IMDB: Since childhood, spinster Alma Winemiller has loved handsome young Dr. John Buchanan, Jr.. But John has fallen hard for Rosa Zacharias, the town's sultry vamp, and descends into a seamy nightlife while ignoring Alma's dreams of romance and possible marriage.

Get Summer & Smoke on DVD

Friday Night Hop 5/18

A few lesser known tracks mixed in with well known ones. 

Enjoy!

Kerouac

How freaking amazing is it to live in a time where you can listen to

JACK KEROUAC read to you

ANY TIME YOU WANT

I'm just sayin'.

Valerie

What's up with girls named Valerie?
I realize that the last three are the same song cover/original/cover. It's sometimes hard to listen to the last version (which is an awesome cover), because it's a tribute to Amy Winehouse and (to be honest) sometimes I forget she's dead and then I get sad all over again. Then there's the Monkees' Valleri. I know, I know . . . wah! Davy Jones! Growing up, I had this daydream that involved playing the guitar solo on a mandolin in a tree. I spent a lot of time alone. There's also a Steve Winwood song named Valerie, but I didn't post it because I'm not really a Steve Winwood fan. Sorry.

Movie Night: D.O.A. (1950)

A poisoned man spends his last hours hunting down his killer.

Happy Birthday, Baby

Another year, another birthday. Here is a short and sweet birthday inspired playlist. I'm ending it with Neil Sedaka's Happy Birthday Sweet Sixteen, because it's always been my favorite (and today is my birthday).

Enjoy!

Kim Sisters

Kim Sisters, 1958

These Korean sisters started out singing to support their family after they lost everything in the war. After some time of singing for the troops (above), they moved to Las Vegas where they performed for many years and eventually became regulars of the Ed Sullivan Show. 

Unfortunately, recordings of the sisters are hard to find. You can pick up Their First Album at Amazon in MP3 format--otherwise, hit the flea markets and estate sales.

Shimmy, Shimmy, Yeah, Yeah, Yeah

Once upon a lazy Saturday morning, I recorded my first mix tape in seclusion of my sea green bedroom. I had a helluva time getting the AM oldies station in from ninety miles away. The clearest sound was produced by a balancing act of holding my radio just so on the corner of my bed, antenna tilted toward a north facing window.  It became a weekend ritual--curating collections of songs, the delicate art of hitting stop before the DJ came on air and the ultimate reward of listening to the perfect tape for weeks, after. All these years later, I still have the tapes--black with white labels and tiny pink polka dots.

This is how my first tape started . . .

Get MP3: Shimmy, Shimmy, Ko-Ko-Bop

Get MP3: Wishin' And Hopin'

Movie Night: Shirley Temple - War Babies (1932)

I love the WW1 baby costumes.

Blue Moon/Sunshine of My Love

Everyone is talking about the Super Moon. Let me tell you about the Blue Moon. No, not the six pack in my fridge.

You know what sounds a whole lot like Blue Moon?  The guitar solo in Sunshine of Your Love. Skip ahead to 2:01 for the solo.

And then . . .



It seems that everyone has a recording of Blue Moon. I hadn't heard the Supremes' version, before.
It's nice, but this remains my favorite:

Rosie & the Originals

One of my favorite mix tapes of youth included Angel Baby. It was Valentine's Day(ish)--not that it mattered that much to a sixth grader. I'm a fan of the ethereal, lo-fi/mono sound on the track--kind of the same way I like the Beatles' bootleg Cavern Club recordings.

The band only put out one full length album (royalty/legal problems) and Rosie came back temporarily in the late sixties with a few singles.

You know who else loves Rosie?