What tunes are you tuned into right now?

"dancin' in the moonlight" (and it's still a "fine and natural sight"...)

Space Ghost's Musical Bar-B-Que CD, track 31 "Don't send in the clowns" (got it for Christmas)

listening to Bruce (Live)..."Thunder Road" the greatest performer in the history of rock and roll performing the greatest song ever created... (life is good, sometimes...)

Tougher Than Tough: The Story Of Jamaican Music Disc 1 Track 23, 007 (Shanty Town by Desmond Dekker & The Aces.

UK Pirate Radio. Check the link on the Spring's main page.

Speaking of links on the main page... did you by chance read the other topic similar to this one this morn, Terry?

I saw it flash by early this morning when I was in a daze. I'll reread later. Can you capsulize it for me?

Nick and I talked about stuff we probably shouldn't have, and was wondering if you could change the link from that other topic to this one out on the main page...

Oh sure. No sweat.

Thanks. Currently listening to the oldies station at work. They're doing a top 500 countdown of the 50's and 60's.

listening to beatles, anthology 3..."helter skelter (take2)" fascinating...

Jail House Rock. by Elvis.

San Marcos Pirate Radio on the net: Buffalo Springfield, "For what it's worth" ..stop, hey what's that sound, everybody look what's goin' down...

http://www.mediadesign.net/live.ram Pink Floyd "Money" ka ching "money .. get back... keep your hands off my stack"

I'm Your Boogie Man by KC & The Sunshine Band (I can hear nick groan from here, but, quite frankly, I don't care...)

sounds like some good stuff, terry... gonna check that out... currently listening to, uh, jewel (no snickering out there... it ain't polite) (and sam, you keep talking like that yer gonna make me cry... hell, i'm already on the edge... jewel and all, y'know)

and has anybody ever noticed that when k.c. (that IS his name, isn't it?) performs, his head bobs slightly, like, from side to side? can somebody tell him to cut it out? (that would be really cool)

He still behaves the same way now as he did then--his grin makes me laugh!!

guess it's all that "sunshine", huh?

that wouldn't be smokable, would it?

His name is Harry Wayne Casey. He & Richard Finch wrote the songs, which actually have reasonable lyrics & reasonably good music, especially when compared to the real out&out DRAGS by The Silver Convention (AAGHHH!!!)

OBTW, currently listening to Third Stone From The Sun, track 2 on the album The Essential Jimi Hendrix

Listened to Haddaway while working out today.....

allman brothers ("decade of hits")..."whipping post"... (deja vu all over again...)

sound of thunder rolling slowly away.....

...which bodes well, i hope... (i think)

yeah, considering a couple of towns in NE Texas were hit bad, we made it through unscathed.

listening to rod stewart (Every Picture Tells a Story)..."mandolin wind"...

oh, that kind of thunder... (or were you pissed at them, too?)

huh?

wha'? (we're corrupting a previously pristine topic, y'know... now listening to "i know i'm losing you", same CD...)

"we" aren't doing anything. let's move......

FLEETWOOD MAC!!!..."the dance"... on mtv...

okay, where?

storm's back, sorry 'night

listening to brian wilson (Endless Summer)... "surfer girl"... one of the dumbest, sappiest songs i've ever heard...(and i love it)

neil young...(Rust Never Sleeps)... "thrasher"...

still neil... "sedan delivery"...

van morrison...(Tupelo Honey)... "tupelo honey"... (it is holy... comme ma bel inconnu...)

Had a girlfriend once who asked me what a Tupelo was...she thought it was an insect much like a bee... How long did you have the place, Nick?

Listening to "The Fun Never Stops" by Shoulders...

this last place, about a year... the previous one (the one which brought me to central texas), 5 years...

"Old Anxieties" by Shoulders... What types o' places?

i've owned several types (some simultaneously, which can really be fun)... the last several were double drive-thru burger joints, with a pizza-pasta joint mixed in...

The Flintstones on Cartoon Network... so, where's the future headed?

"beavis and butthead do america", on hbo... that's a good question... thinking about several things, but will probably begin with a trip to the northeast (everything emanates thus...)

currently listening to van morrison (Astral Weeks)... "afterwards: the way young lovers do"... (thinking beach boys, though..."firth-ing safari" going on around here...)

still here?

are you?

yes....so where are you moving?

haven't decided yet... (several possibilities) just returned from the planet (ouch!)... is that the piece you were speaking of yesterday, that i encouraged you to post?

*sigh* bizarre encore?

what do you mean?

the piece or the question?

the poem was rather starkly direct (referring to the question)

just asking if you still feel weird

guess so. you?

yeah

did that poem pretty much express what you think?

in the heat of the moment---but am still not sure what happened or if we were talking about the same thing....am so confused, help me out here

yes, i will... i'll tell you anything you want me to, but please, elke, be sure you want to know, before you ask. (or that you don't already know- and i swear i'm not trying to talk in riddles... i'm really trying to do/say/think what is "right"...)

and remember, in the poem you said you weren't bailing on me, in spite of everything... (hope you meant that)

let me ask you this: do you want me to know? and if you tell me, what will happen to our friendship?

response to 62: how could i bail? you know the condition of my heart.....

i think you already know. and from my end, our friendship is solid, and will remain so, either way...

wait: cuz if you think I already know, then i can't handle it, or are we talking something else?

sorry- not trying to be cute- but i have no idea what you just said...

what I'm saying is: if you think I already know what you're talking about, then maybe I can't handle it.......

i cannot answer that- only you can. does this question directly involve another person? (besides you and i, i mean)

just the last three lines of my piece (and yes, it does involve you and i, not necessarily anyone else)

not sure i follow. which words do you mean?

do you want me to post it here? the last three lines of the piece (from Maddening)

not necessary- i went to the planet, and wrote them down... still not sure what you mean- which/what "fantasy of words" are you referring to?

can't quote exact words......but things that you say i assume (i.e. jump to conclusions) God Nick, my heart is in my throat. It's just that, when I asked you to be gentle in our last conversation, you said you were trying and so I immediately felt I knew what you were saying. (and it kind of scares me because of all the things we've talked about)

(an aside: the piece you posted was beautiful-i know it moved her)

if i e-mail you a response, do you promise not to shut down on me? will you come back and talk?

yes, you're my friend.....don't be cruel, ok?

send it to my alternate site, please *nervous smile* (and so you know, I'm shaky)

regarding 75, i don't know what to say... did you say that because you know i wrote it for her, or because you're asking me?

no, because i knew

what's the prefix to the address? (i can't find it)

mswolf68 (what else?)

okay, it's sent... meet you back here in 10 minutes?

10 minutes? what, so I can calm down after I over react? (is it really bad?)

you were right....i knew this, felt it.....and allowed myself to be affected by it....if it's true (when you no longer "think" it but "know" it, that would be a good thing and i'm happy because you are....

i think i know it... (but i have to find out)

have you seen each other? (i mean, you know)

how do you feel now that I know?

oh, and you don't have to look, didn't you read miracle?

yes... strange (but relieved, kind of)... i don't know what you mean...

the miracle! Hello in there..... you answered her, she wrote miracle, get it?

yeah, i guess so...

then just ask, if you really want to know! don't be chicken *smile* look, thanks for all of that, for trusting me with it, don't know why you'd think I'd hate you over it, but anyway......i gotta go, am very tired -maybe i'll post something more upbeat *laugh* and don't assume that they're about you, sometimes a compilation of experiences....but that last one, oh yeah, definately a reaction. night, sweetie

not "chicken"- of course i know what it was about... just feel weird talking about it, i guess.. g'night...

sweet dreams, you two...

cat stevens kinda day...(greatest hits)..."oh very young"...

That was my evening fare after Mary Black. This morning I was all jacked up on Stevie Ray Vaughn and Ian Moore. This weekend was a big band affair! Lotsa dancable tunes!

ever listen to sinatra's capital recordings? i really like that stuff, especially jimmy van heusen, rodgers and hart, cole porter, sammy cahn, etc... listening to van morrison... (Avalon Sunset)... "have i told you lately"...

"Jah Glory" - Third World.

rod stewart... (Every Picture Tells a Story)..."maggie mae"...

Cartoon Network... Nick, who is paula_jane, and why does she think I'm you?

*lol* (what did she say? is she okay?)

I'll send you what she wrote me tomorrow...too tired tonight. She seems fine, she even wrote me back when I told her I wasn't you, but I was willing to talk or listen anyway. Then I asked, "By the way, who are you?" We'll see...Have you talked to her today?

BTW, my turn, what's up with Elke? She hasn't been her usual loquacious self the last two days...

would you do me a favor, wer? would you send her my correct address, and tell her i want to hear from her? know it's silly, but i'm really worried about her... (thanks)

(referring to paula, of course...) ms. wolfe seems loquacious enough, so far today...

(just checked my mail... she wrote, and it is the most heart-breaking thing i think i've ever read... how can someone as young, and beautiful, and talented as she feel such despair? life really, really sucks sometimes, you know it? nothing can justify a thing like that... a girl such as she shouldn't have to deal with that kind of pain... screw all that cant about accruing "wisdom" from it, about that "which doesn't kill us" making us "stronger"- it's just plain cruelty, and i can't see a thing to be gained from it... a girl such as she shouldn't have to deal with those kinds of feelings- not ever, and especially not so (frigging) young... (anyway, thanks wer... really appreciate the help)

If it isn't betraying a trust, can you send me a copy of that e-mail, Nick? Edit out what you need to. She responded to me again today, but she isn't very open with me yet, and I need to know what direction to go with my blathering... (you're welcome)

how about if i e-mail you, and kind of paraphrase what she said? i know it sounds silly, but it would make me feel funny, otherwise, because i made some promises to her, and even though it may be in her best interest, i'd still feel kind of like i was not keeping faith (like in the poem..."my guidance councellor/ and what an asshole he is...)...

Sounds perfectly acceptable. I'm kind of in an odd spot in that I very much identify with the feelings she expressed, but she's currently referring to me as an optimist, so I just need to know what direction to take our conversations in. If she gives me specifics, great, we don't have an agreement yet, and besides, she still thinks that I'm you...

lol! she wrote again a couple of hours ago... she's coming around, i think (she's such an incredible kid)...

Just sent her a long letter, we'll see what happens. You did stick me with a huge responsiblity, though... (maybe it's what I needed...?)

i know what you mean... kinda forget your own issues, when you're helping someone else with theirs...(and besides, this kid is something special... she really gets under your skin, doesn't she? sorta touches your heart... and such an amazing talent!)

and wer, you certainly know how to make a girl smile. all innuendos and implications aside you can really see good in others (every now and then admit you have it in yourself) and you have the gift of the laughing sickness! Tunes wise... A weekend of Jimmy Buffet, The Eagles, Paula Cole, Brian Setzer Orchestra, Quidam soundtrack and Dave Matthews Band. Tonight... still at school (5:30pm) and the gentle computer whirr is all I desire.

*sigh* Yes, Miss Vura.

stop the Miss Vura crap! Or I'll start calling you william *gasp*

*lol* ok, Stacey, you didn't have to go THAT far...

Jumpin' Jack Flash, Rolling Stones. On PBS.

Marvin Gaye

(you don't gotta make fun of me... I was tired and all...)

*laugh* excuses, excuses that 'tired' thing just doesn't cut it (what if i came over in the middle of a sixteen hour shift and you were 'tired'?)

I'd guess we'd sleep together so I could regain some strength... after that, who knows?

you just lie there and rest... (i DARE ya!)

don't think I could do it, huh?

(after 20plus hours on my feet I couldn't do anything else, but dares usually bring out the best/worst in people)

Which would you prefer?

All along the watchtower...

Music from the netscape mozilla bash last night in SF on our website.

I enjoy listening to Dave Matthews Band, Van Morrison, Fleetwood Mac, Jimmy Buffett, Ben Harper....

(interesting mix... but who is ben harper?)

I like all kinds of music, I even listen to rap and some, country. Ben Harper is a folk singer, very soft, very good. I started listening to him through a friend of mine and this summer we have tickets to go see him live. He plays at small bars around the area I live in. He sings a lot about real life issues, breaking up, angels, stories, etc. Check him out, he is good.

Ben Harper also sings about smokin' dope, bucking the system and being an individual... (those are the tunes I prefer from him). Great preformer as well, saw him two years ago at Liberty Lunch. He had all these slat key guitars and groovy rythmn equipment!

hmmm... where does he fall, on the angel issue (yea or nay?)... i'll be sure and check this guy out, report back... really tried to give rap a chance... and with a very few exceptions (bradley nowell, few others) just can't get into it... hurts my soul, y'know? ("smokin' dope" tunes, miss vura, are high (no pun intended, promise) on your list of preferences? a most interesting insight)...

*shy grin*

Oh, so he gets to call you Miss Vura? I see.

actually WER, he called me 'miss vura' and it's part of our sexual role play fantasy game! *laugh* listened to CSN&Y 'So Far' and Paula Cole 'Harbinger' last night and this morning.

He does sing about smokin' dope and I enjoy those songs to. I just love the song "Waiting for An Angel," "By My Side," and "Walk Away." He is defintiely worth going to see and enjoying yourself while you are there. He literally smokes it up on stage and has been known to pass it around!

from the title "waiting for an angel", take it he's an adherent... which is good, i guess... (an informed judgement, i hope... not herbally influenced)... listening to pink floyd... "wish you were here"... (five times in a row... going for ten... like exercize, sort of- emotional calesthenics or some- thing ...such exquisite pain)...

Exquisite pain...I think that just might be what I need these days... (again)

looking for a domme?

know of a good one?

depends...

doesn't it always?

are there no certianties in life? (btw, I'm 'tuned into right now' the whirr of the vaccuum cleaner in the classroom next door)

not that I know of, but if you find one, let me know... (currently tuned into Cartoon Network, myself)

listening to Bare Naked Ladies on the radio.

How kinky!

wasn't "One Week" was it, Autumn?

You got it!

hehe...

I just got Johnny Cash's "Unchained" album last week from the record club I belong to. I've listened to it at least once every day, it's that outstanding. He can do old stuff, new stuff, turn a song into a country song that wasn't originally a country song. The man is a great interpreter of lyrics and a true original.

My dad's favorite! I seldom buy CDs--just listen to music on the radio. I keep tapes in the car, though, for when they just talk talk talk. Lately I've been listening to a Stan Ridgway tape, "Mosquitos." (I loved his band "Wall of Voodoo"!)

Twas well after 3am and the house was under the spell of Ms. Annie Lennox crooning out from her Medusa album.

Would I lie to you, baby? oooooooooooooooooooh Love that crooning! Phil Collins--No Jacket Required CD.

Phil Collins was just on doing a live concert on tv. He did all audience requests. Easy lover et al.

I caught that last night too.

Been listening to ZZ Top's "Rythmeen" album this weekend. It's a year or two old. They go back to the old ZZ Top sound (pre-MTV). That's the stuff I like.

listening to Little Axe

Hey George, "La Grange" is one of my favorite songs--I always crank up the radio when it comes on. Never heard of Little Axe. Currently listening to The Cars.

Listening to George Michael. Great voice.

listening to Maynard Ferguson, MF Horn II

U2 "War".

My what variety! Right now, Texas.

Austin is the music hub of the US. Only in Austin are new releases of every kind of music released before the majority of the country gets to hear them.

lucky buggers!

Riette, it's only one of the charms of this city.

You all seem to like Austin alot.

I guess that is why we live here, Riette. It sure ain't the cost of living!!

austin is the most wonderful place i have ever lived. i'd move back there in a heartbeat. i believe that it is one of the most unique cities in america.

I second the motion!!!

Wow, now I really can't wait to come and see it. If I like it alot, I'll get my husband to take me there forever, and ever, and we'll have barbecues every day!

That would be absolutely wonderful, Riette!

Yes, wouldn't it??? On the other hand everyone will find out how bad I am!

Riette, if you live up to everyone else's expectations, soon you may find you have no room for your dreams.

Blondie.

Debbie Harry???? What has she got to do with this???? Ah I get it, The topic. Well then, Autumn, which album/ song?

WHO???

Blondie, Riette. the lead singer is debbie harry.

Damn! Am I THAT uninformed? Do they have any hits currently?

No Riette, this group was popular before you were 5.

ha-ha! Poor Blondie, I guess they didn't withstand the test of time...I was listening to the Platinum Collection CD. Tim, you mentioned Offspring a few days ago--just figured out that they're the ones who sing "All the girls say I'm pretty fly/for a white guy..." so I guess I do know of their existence after all.

Yes, Riette, that is the song that I meant.

You guys will have to get me up to date with these things when I come! I'd love to hear Blondie and all the other groups you two have discussed - I hardly know any of them. THink it also has something to do with growing up in Namibia, where ABBA became big during the late 80's! Blondie has probably not even reached us!

Riette, I think that you have a point there. I forgot about the embargo.

Guess that means Milli Vanilli will be arriving any day now...

Oh, Joy! and that means the Bullet Boys will be, too!

Sooner or later, someone is bound to introduce something current. The possibilities for contrast are mind boggling!

Midnight Funk A KGSR Music Sampler I picked up at Technophelia when I was in Austin...

Nutcracker Suite.

neil young (cowgirls in the sand)

My first concert was a Neil Young concert.

Mary Black (No Frontiers)

lou reed (sweet jane)

I had to break down and by the CD a couple years ago when I finally wore the tape out. Have you heard someone covering that tune recently? Can't remember her name. Do you?

Cowboy Junkies / The Trinity Session 1.Mining for Gold 2.Misguided Angel 3.Blue Moon Revisited (Song for Elvis) 4.I Don't Get It 5.I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry 6.To Love Is to Bury 7.200 More Miles 8.Dreaming My Dreams with You 9.Working on a Building 10.Sweet Jane 11.Postcard Blues 12.Waking after Midnight

Marguex Timmons That's my fave Cowboy Junkies CD! (Autumn, I'm telnetting and can't back up! So, if your question was NOT related to the lead singer of the Cowboy Junkies... oops!)

I can't back up either, Autumn. That darn Marguex is chasing me again. She runs about as fast as Stacey.

Hey, that's not saying much, considering Stacey is wearing platform shoes...thanks for the name of the artist, I would never have come up with it.

that's when she's doin' that alternative modelling or when she's at work or when workin' on some mean meal at a restaurant. I'm always slippin' and fallin' tried to get away from her and Marguex when they chase after their prey down the tow path out of the woods and over to the river. They smoke everyone.

That's why, with those two especially, it's better to be where they are going instead of where they've been...

listening to Marguex at this very moment... Cowboy Junkies "Black-Eyed Man" Hey WER... sometimes I end up going where I've been... then where's it better to be?

ACCCCCCKKKKK! In the car, I just heard David Garza but the DJ called him Wes Cunningham... what's up with THAT?!?!??!

Wes was tryin' to get ahold of you any way he can but he didn't wanna be too obvious about it and that dj owes him a favor. Wes is like that, though, he just tries things over and over again that usually never work. He doesn't think them out first too well. The only contact David Garza had with him was that he passed Wes once in a post office, when Wes went in there to get help from one of the postal clerks with a flat tire. Wes doesn't have any cats. His left lung has a floor stand. His singing is induced by the interaction of magnetic fields all the way from Sedona. His mother had to regularly scoop up mud and rocks from down in the top of his opened-up cranium. He takes this drug that narrows his head and body, enough to make it possible for a heavily planned-on return trip to the womb by April. I probably shouldn't say any more, that's more information than we needed/wanted to know. Wes has an increased sensitivity to pot the more he smokes it. He uses his girlfriend's saliva to treat all his mouth and throat irritations. She, um, well he said in an interview that she would drop her pants if she was wearing smart casual trousers --- I mean he said she'd do that alot, like even when he wasn't looking, like even in public, like even when she was in motion walking along the darn sidewalk, downtown there where they live. He called it her "possum trot" --- I honestly have no idea why. I probably shouldn't really say any more, y'know.

sarah mclachlan 'angel'

"Hey WER... sometimes I end up going where I've been... then where's it better to be?" where you are "what's up with THAT?!?!??!" not sure, but it certaintly doesn't sound Twangy... and, to be topical, am listening to "Sweet Dreams" on the radio...

sinead lohan 'No Mermaid'

Enya

Too New-Agey for me, Stacy. Recently got Lucinda Williams' "Car Wheels on a Gravel Road" CD. She's one terrific songwriter. "Passionate Kisses" is probably her most well-known song (recorded by someone else). Also got "Mermaid Avenue" by Billy Bragg and Wilco. It deserves every rave review it gets. Woody Guthrie's daughter had a trunk full of songs her dad wrote that no one ever recorded, and she asked Bragg to do it, and he got Wilco to help him out.

Wilco was originally Uncle Tupelo and I used to see the religiously at the Lunch in Austin! old Enya's pretty damn soothing for me, I don't understand any of the words and just enjoy the slow, dreamy albeit random tempo. I saw Lucinda Williams at SXSW in '95 at Austin Music Hall... she opened for PoiDog and the then little known CAKE. Right now I'm listening to Angelique Kidjo's OREMI FAN-DAMN-TASTIC CD! (George, it's a pet peeve of mine when people spell my name wrong -- just so you know!)

jerry jeff 'contrary to ordinary'

Cartoon Network on the tv...

angelique kidjo (again!)

van morrison ('tupelo honey')

whirr of my computer...

Richard Scary's ABC video...

I LOVE Richard Scarry!

now how did I know that?

well, tunafish notwithstanding... we're soulmates!

I don't want to go into that, do I?

uh...

that's kinda what I thought...

uh...

*smile*

(glad you're smiling!)

this is just a strange topic for me...

and back to the topic... "Closing time" by (?)Semisonic

"Summertime" singing it to myself...

longing for the warmth?

actually I was singing it because it was so warm and sunny yesterday! It's kinda chilly and overcast today -- a CO rarity!

My stereo's dead. Don't know why (natural causes?). And I've got a CD in the tray that I can't get open. It's Dave Alvin's latest. He's a great songwriter, but I like him better when he rocks out, like with The Blasters. Fortunately, I have a jam box. But the CD on it doesn't work because I had it near an open window during a rainstorm and it got wet. But the cassette part works, and I've been listening to a Van Morrison tape I made. Been listening to it all weekend. Gonna listen to it again when I get home tonight.

listening to some bullshit techno crap on the jukebox (at an internet cafe, currently)... van morrison would be very nice just now

Stacey, hate ta break it to ya, but Liberty Lunch is being shut down by the evil bastards on the city council (they own the property). They made some sweetheart deal with a computer company to develop several city blocks downtown, and the Lunch is on one of them. The city council SAYS they'll help the Lunch relocate to another site, and they'd better not be lying or they'll have a revolution on their hands. For years there were stories of something like this happening because the city owns the lot, but it never happened because the Lunch has such a widespread following.

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

Right now...I'm listening to Peter Gabriel's "Passion" CD, the soundtrack from the movie, "The Last Temptation of Christ"....so soooooothing....*sigh*

kinda like an audio back rub?

"Peter and the Wolf" here...the kids love it.

Angelique Kidjo here

I tape Austin City Limits off the radio here (they simulcast here). Listening to a tape I made a few years back. Cowboy Junkies, Joe Ely, Taj Mahal. Not together -- they're just all on the same casette.

fun fun! Ladysmith Black Mambazzo now

Sgt. Pepper's here.

and how is (s)he?

Neil Diamond!!!

awww... cracklin rosie get on board!!!

(Neil Diamond usually leaves me speechless, too, George...)

sweeeeet car-o-line (da da daaa)

Pardon me, I was retching.

Ha-ha! Do I dare mention what I'm listening to, then? (The Monkees)

woo woo!

Well, I just did listen to the Monkees two days ago, too. Ever really listened to the lyrics of their theme song? A smack in the face of every thinking person in the 1970ies, or just pure ignorance?

Hey, not everybody is trying to make a statement, huh? Some of their later tunes actually did run a little deeper ("Pleasant Valley Sunday", "Stepping Stone"), but mostly I think their attitude is the essence of bubblegum.

which, for whatever reason, does not belong in one's ears... (okay, well, at least mine for now...although accidents do happen!)

Autumn, hold it, por favor - I don't want to get stung in every topic I visit around here... "Hey, not everybody is trying to make a statement, huh?" - ok, so some people shine entertaining us, and keep it sense (or meaning)-free. I've got no problem with that (I just don't need to listen to everything, right?). Fun rulez ok and everything. I think. Well, sometimes I think so, if I get around to thinking. But let me ask you more specific again: Listen to the Monkee's Theme Song, what do you say about the lyrics? Is that fun? Is it insulting? What do you think? (Please excuse me, Anon, if I repeat this question. I really would like to know.)

oops...did I say something out of line again? (it has been known to happen...(unfortunately!))

Dear Autumn, I have reconsidered above case (Alexander vs. Monkees Theme). I am right, but so are you. You're even more right than I am. My original position was: Knowing the Monkees were a media projection created to generate cash flow from records and the TV show, that somebody had styled this the way it appeared. And think of the US at that time - divided by generational gaps, divided by differing positions on the Vietnam involvement, deeply stuck in cold-war mentalities and interventionism, all things not even the Apollo-program could cure by distracting the people. Parents hated kids, because they grew their hair long and talked back some still do), and kids hated parents, because the weren't with it. Enter the Monkees. The show's theme song had some lyrics that - to me - revealed their purpose at first sight (well, first hear, rather). [...] Hey hey, we're the Monkees People say we're monkeying 'round But we're to busy singing to put anybody down. [...] We're just trying to be friendly Come and watch us singing and play We're the young generation And we've got something to say. So, I thought, Hmh, they are like valium to the folks (more ninetyish would be e.g. "like prozac to the people"), just make everybody believe they are harmless. And they were. Imagine John Lennon or Dylan recording a line like "to busy singing to put anybody down". That's what lots of late-sixties, early-seventies artists were about, right? But surely not the Monkees, they are so occupied with being silly, they don't tell anybody anything but niceties. They wouldn't "put anybody" down, even if there were plenty targets. "Nice kids, let's take 'em to the local chapters barbecue on the weekend. Shit hairdo, though." Culturally and socially compatible. Next thing, they claim they are the young ones. "So, the next generation is like the Monkees? Why does my teenager then have a bad hairdo and an ugly attitude?" I figured, they served like a decoy, trying to suggest the kids aren't all talking back and getting new ideas, it's just your kid, that's not adapting well. To top it off, they claimed they had something to say. Couldn't have been much, if they also didn't want to put anybody down, right? So, they would fit right in, no matter what scene, what crowd. Friendly, well-adapted teenagers. I figured, they were supposed to show the kids that you have to be harmless and go along with all the crap that happens, because challenging it and asking questions and things would make you unpopular. And you'd not get on television. Better be happy and sweet with a bad haircut, than curious about the world and taking up causes and having a bad haircut. So. I thought they were pretty establishment-supporting media-brainwash to keep the kids in line. And very conservative. I was wrong. The Monkees (or who ever designed this media entity) were very much ahead of their time. They saying, yes, you can have fun in the sun (well, you can't today courtesy of skin cancer, I know, but it's just a figure of speech, ok?), frolic around and be foolish. And you can be friendly, not wanting to step on anybody's toes. And you can say things, and make-believe they are meaningful. Maybe they are not, maybe they are. That's not important. It's whether or not you feel great and wise if you say them, not if you are really great and wise. And it's about being humble and knowing one's limits, and not transgressing them too far. And maybe suffer gentle guidance well, without talking back. Strikes a chord? Yes, they were envisioning virtuous (maybe even virtual) communities like this here place. Where people goof around, be actually harmless and silly, and vent their thoughts. Prozac for the people? Maybe that, too. Maybe not. Maybe, if you only interact here at the Spring or in other virtu-ways, and don't do it in what people used to call the real world when we were young. Take causes to the street. Do something positive for people around you. For the place where you live (physically exist, that is). And this absolves the Monkees from everything brought against them in this trial. Defendant aquitted. What do you think, Autumn? And what are you listening to right now? Musically yours, Alexander. P.S.: The following lines from the Monkees Theme Song are dedicated in friendship to my favorite Alexander-watcher, TAAKAK (The Artist Also Known As Kitchen): Anytime or Anywhere Just look over your shoulder Guess who's standing there?

nicely put everyone... (woo woo ?!?!?! - just for Mr. Schuth who is mystified by my lack of letters...) *grin*

Thank you, Stacey! Oh, do I have a gift for you! Look here: http://www.spring.net/yapp-bin/restricted/read/collecting/1.39 You asked, how to type "�" or the like - just write "oe", counts the same. So what do you think about the Monkees Theme song? And please, DO call me ALexander...

Thank you, Stacey! Oh, do I have a gift for you! Look here: http://www.spring.net/yapp-bin/restricted/read/collecting/1.39 You asked, how to type "�" or the like - just write "oe", counts the same. So what do you think about the Monkees Theme song? And please, DO call me Alexander...

Who else thinks that Jim and Alexander are cousins? Just me? oh, well...

Sorry about the mishap. Transatlantic reload times are so long, I must have hit the submit key twice in my excitement. Wer, what Jim? Was that Woolcap, Stunted Singer or Guy-On-Drums-Looks-Like-The-Band-Is-Named-After-Him? If you are one of those people who still believe in horoscopes, though they are never lucky, please bear in mind that in the chinese horoscope, monkey is a fortious sign, one of wisdom and creativeness. Also, in chinese mythology, the monkey king Sun Wu kicks butt and bashes heads big time (also, he's immortal, sympathetic and takes care of his people). What a superstar!

they both have unique ideas that they're not afraid to share (or if they're afraid, they bite the bullet and share anyway) with the rest of us. kindred spirits perhaps? but, then again, aren't we all???

Stacey, help me! Who's Jim?

Leplep le Plep... he shows up every now and again to add wit and wisdom to our conversations and most importantly, to our virtual well-being... tis certainly a compliment to be considered a 'cousin' or kindred spirit to Mr. Plep

my sentiments exactly, my sm!!!

i just this guy off the streets over here in Austin, Texas who has instant rapport with allygaters i encourage 'em to take a swim from time to time in above-ground swimmin' pools but only if that crazy ol' nut grass first leads the way and i understood immediately when WER said that Autumn's got the crabs. me and Steve at Animal Planet like very much to wrassle a croc or ally(McBeal) or each other, whichever comes first. and he, Steve, does truly collect stuff offa Alligator Records. not me, though.....but.... pleased ta meetcha, there, Alexander. http://www.alligator.com/artists.html

cool!

Alexander, you have certainly given the Monkees' theme song a lot more thought than I ever did! I never would've read all that into it, how clever of you to dissect it the way you did. Imagine what you'd make of that song about the cake that got left out in the rain. I am in awe. Since you asked, right now I'm listening to "I need to praise you like I should..." (don't know the artist)

Why, Autumn, no need to praise me, I'm just doing my duty! ;=} Anyway, some people convincingly feigned being impressed, which somewhat amazes me, as I still don't really get what I meant. The important thing is maybe: watch what media feeds you, and decide if you like the taste. Do conscious evaluations of even minor things (one of my pasttimes is e.g. finding tv commercials that contradict themselves (or compromise the manufacturer's interests, at least). Still, if yall enjoyed it, I haven't lived in vain! Well, on the other topic, it's of course all about Diana's fears of losing grip on reality. The cake is a symbol for a meaningful relationship, that she destroyed out of ignorance and neglect. Actually, that's not her main thing, as she regrets most not having the recipe anymore to do the cake (= not knowing how to find another fool who'd fall for her easily). It's like "wouldn't have to cry about spilled milk, if I knew where to get more". Oh, what a great idea I have! To come back on that praising-issue, let me just play this 45 I have of the Cramps (last years single in RED vinyl!): "Like a Bad Girl Should..."

yes, I think that would be perfect background music...

(Glad you liked it, Wer! On the flip, it plays "I walked all Night", nice cover version.)