ALYSON: Hi WIAA, I’m sorry I missed adding to your pages last weekend but I was away from home, having a wonderful couple of days with another man.
WIAA: Oh. Didn’t expect that to be the reason! What did your other half say about that or did you not tell him?
ALYSON: No, he knew and was ok with it. In fact he joined us during the day for long walks and trips to coffee shops but went home at night to leave us to it.
WIAA: This is getting weirder and weirder Alyson, and I thought I knew you.
ALYSON: It was magical WIAA. We snuggled up in bed at night and I stroked his gorgeous brown curls. In the morning his head was lying next to me on the pillow and his paw was on my shoulder.
WIAA: Paw, paw – what kind of half-man/half-beast is he?!?
ALYSON: Oh sorry, did I not make it clear? I was spending the weekend with Alfie the puppy whilst his mum and dad were away.
WIAA: Grrr… I think you were messing with me there Alyson.
ALYSON: Maybe I was, a bit, but I fooled you didn’t I? Anyway that’s why I wasn’t able to write a new blog post last weekend but now that I’m a regular blogger again I’m sure I’ll make up for it down the line.
WIAA: Ok, you’re excused. Any appropriate songs for me?
ALYSON: Well I have been looking for songs about dogs but they’re either overly sentimental, novelty songs or just plain bad. I did find this one though written by Harry Nilsson called The Puppy Song. I didn’t even realise it was his song as the only version I knew was the one by David Cassidy from 1973, when it was released as a double A-side along with the song Daydreamer.
The Puppy Song by David Cassidy:
I remember being gifted a flexi-single with Jackie magazine in 1973. It had a few words from David Cassidy in conversational style then he shared snippets of both the songs on the upcoming double A-side. It got to No. 1 on the UK Singles Chart so that little bit of promotion obviously did the trick, although at that time he was selling out stadiums all over the world, so he perhaps didn’t need any help in achieving sales.
We first got to know about David Cassidy from his role playing Keith Partridge in the kid’s television show The Partridge Family. It first aired in the UK in 1971 when I was still in Primary School and it’s fair to say most of us girls developed a huge crush on David and he started to fill the pages of our magazines. By the time I got to Secondary School he was a bona fide teen idol, outselling every other artist in the world. As the teenage hormones started to kick in I found myself bursting into tears as I listened to his songs, and I didn’t even understand why.
Poor David died young at the age of 67 in 2017 and I wrote a tribute for him (link here). I also made him the main character in a bit of fairy-tale fan fiction the following year (link here). It centred around his rivalry with fellow teen idol Donny Osmond and although it was fun to write, it perhaps didn’t do my music blogging credibility much good!
Anyway the last word should go to the real life puppy, my lovely weekend companion, Alfie. He was genuinely upset when I packed my bag to go home and apparently sulked with his mum and dad all Sunday evening, giving them the side-eye as if to say, “I had much more fun with granny”. There will be many other weekends and holidays I’m sure.
I know, I’m a very cute puppy
Until next time…
The Puppy Song Lyrics (Song by Harry Nilsson)
Dreams are nothing more than wishes And a wish is just a dream You wish to come true, woo woo
If only I could have a puppy I’d call myself so very lucky Just to have some company To share a cup of tea with me
I’d take my puppy everywhere La, la, la-la I wouldn’t care And we would stay away from crowds And signs that said no dogs allowed Oh we, I know he’d never bite me Whoa de lo……. We, I know he’d never bite me
If only I could have a friend To stick with me until the end And walk along beside the sea Share a bit of moon with me
I’d take my friend most everywhere La, la, la-la I wouldn’t care We would stay away from crowds With signs that said no friends allowed Oh we, we’d be so happy to be Whoa de lo…………. We, we’d be so happy to be together
But dreams are nothing more than wishes And a wish is just a dream You wish to come true Whoa whoa……….
Dreams are nothing more than wishes And a wish is just a dream You wish to come true Whoa whoa woo……..
If anyone ever tells you that a cost effective way of having your floors replaced is to do them all at the same time, ignore that bit of sage advice. It might be good for the pocket, but really not good for your head, your back or your living conditions, especially if it’s happening around Eastertime.
Apologies for the rant but I had planned a nice Easter Sunday lunch for DD and her other half but that’s had to be cancelled as for a week now we’ve been living like this (see below), and another few days to go. The first two floors have now been laid after a bit of a delay because mysterious hatches / lumps & bumps appear when you lift the carpet and underlay in a 50-year-old house. Also, the best time to decorate a room is when it’s empty so in-between humping furniture around we’ve been furiously painting walls and skirting boards. I think Mr WIAA still thinks of me as a spring chicken (apt for this weekend), which is nice, but my arms and back tell a different story.
I’m going to have to write quickly this morning as the room I’m sitting in is about to be dismantled, ahead of its rejuvenation on Monday. Sadly there is nothing more likely to cause marital strife in our house than a spot of DIY, so needless to say tempers are frayed but if punctuated by frequent stops for a cuppa, it’s all bearable. Cue Bernard Cribbins and his ditty from the early ’60s, Right Said Fred.
Right Said Fred by Bernard Cribbens:
In other news there is a rumour fast spreading around our town that the actress Wendy Craig has been putting in shifts at the charity shop where I volunteer. Now that we’ve moved to the centre of town, footfall is far higher and older ladies love to come in for a browse and a chat with the staff. I love these little exchanges and you soon find out never to judge a book by its cover as all sorts of stories pour out.
The actress Wendy Craig, or is it?
The nickname I got from some of the other volunteers when I started working at the shop was indeed Wendy, as they all thought I looked a lot like the famous actress from our youth. The fact that she is now aged 90 worried me a bit, but I expect they were thinking of her from her younger days. Well it seems some of our customers are now thinking the same thing, as volunteers have been stopped in the street and asked if she was helping us out. Personally I don’t know what they’re talking about!
Wendy in Butterflies at age 43 and my good self at age 43
I watched the sit-com Butterflies back in the day but here is another that Wendy starred in that I don’t remember at all. It was called Not In Front Of The Children and just as with her character in Butterflies, Wendy played a bit of a scatter-brained stay at home housewife. I’d like to think I’m not that scatter-brained but I have for a time been a stay at home mum, so maybe more similarities than I admit to. The theme tune for Not In Front Of The Children was certainly of its era – classic 1967 telly.
Not In Front Of The Children by Wendy Craig:
Amongst all the big scary news stories going around at the moment (I’ve been avoiding talking about the ones initiated by the orange man-baby) there is also a big feelgood news story. The first lunar travellers since Apollo 17 in 1972 have taken off successfully and are on their way to the “dark side” of the moon. There was such excitement back in 1969 when Neil Armstrong first set foot on the moon but this time it’s not such a big deal and I don’t think children will be as fully invested as we were back then. I’m not entirely sure what their motives are but it’s probably to find out what the Chinese did on the dark side of the moon when they sent robots up there in 2024. Either that or those in the know suspect our planet is on its last legs, so a permanent moon base will have to be set up to save the great and the good (but not the orange man-baby). Whatever their real motives, it will be interesting to see pictures from the side of the moon that never faces us.
Of course back in the 1960s, the music industry became totally influenced by these space missions and many songs were recorded about rockets, spacemen and even aliens. The most famous of them all was probably this one by a young David Bowie, Space Oddity. Although the song was really about a fictional astronaut named Major Tom, and its title and subject matter were inspired by the film 2001: A Space Odyssey, it was rush-released as a single to capitalise on the Apollo 11 Moon landing and was used by the BBC as background music during its coverage of the event. It initially sold poorly but soon reached the No. 5 spot in the UK Singles Chart, becoming David’s first and only chart hit for another three years. He revisited the Major Tom character in later singles, notably the sequel song Ashes to Ashes.
Space Oddity by David Bowie:
So, “What’s It All About?” – By this time next week my back will hopefully have recovered and we will have some very smart refloored and redecorated rooms. To be fair I did exaggerate, as it’s not the whole house it’s only four rooms but as one of those rooms is the hall it’s been very disruptive. As I said, don’t do it if you’re still living in the house – there may be a divorce afterwards!
As for my life as a doppelgänger, I think I might have some fun with it. I could wear my cardigan with the butterflies on it and answer only to Wendy. Our customers would probably enjoy that.
Again, by this time next week we’ll have seen pictures of the dark side of the moon. Who knows, it might even look like this.
Until next time…
Space Oddity Lyrics (Song by David Bowie)
Ground Control to Major Tom Ground Control to Major Tom Take your protein pills and put your helmet on
(Ten) Ground Control (Nine) To Major Tom (Eight, seven, six) Commencing countdown (Five) Engines on (Four, three, two) Check ignition (One) And may God’s love (Lift-off) Be with you
This is Ground Control to Major Tom You’ve really made the grade And the papers want to know whose shirts you wear Now it’s time to leave the capsule if you dare
This is Major Tom to Ground Control I’m stepping through the door And I’m floating in a most peculiar way And the stars look very different today
For here am I sitting in a tin can Far above the world Planet Earth is blue And there’s nothing I can do
Though I’m past one hundred thousand miles I’m feeling very still And I think my spaceship knows which way to go Tell my wife I love her very much She knows
Ground Control to Major Tom Your circuit’s dead, there’s something wrong Can you hear me, Major Tom? Can you hear me, Major Tom? Can you hear me, Major Tom? Can you he—
Here am I floating ’round my tin can Far above the Moon Planet Earth is blue And there’s nothing I can do
Well, last time I celebrated publishing my 500th post and also this blog’s 10th birthday, but enough of all that back patting and time to crack on with post 501 and my 11th year of blogging. Thanks to everyone who dropped by to congratulate me though.
In the early days of the blog I was often surprised by how one post led onto another, as a connection I hadn’t hitherto noticed became apparent by the time I got to the end. This happened last time. In my very first post I had shared the song Life On Mars? with the video clip of David Bowie in his pale blue suit, as he had passed away the day before on the 10th of January 2016. For the blog’s 10th birthday and anniversary of his death I decided to share it again, with another Bowie song at the end of the post, Heroes, chosen mainly because again he was wearing a pale blue suit. He was after all voted The Best-Dressed Briton in History.
So, what’s this amazing connection I hear you ask? I had also compared pouring over the new UK Singles Chart back in the ’70s, when David Bowie was at his prime, with the UK Singles Chart of today which I have just started to follow again. Because we consume our music so differently nowadays with downloads and streaming rather than purely physical copies counting towards “sales”, it can look very different. Last year the UK Top 10 was awash with hits from the smash Netflix animated film Kpop Demon Hunters, and for the last two weeks the actor/singer/songwriter Joe Keery/Djo (the handsome Steve Harrington from Netflix’s Stranger Things) has secured the top spot in the Singles Chart with his song End of Beginning.
Last week I was more fixated on my blog’s anniversary to dive deeper into the effect Stranger Things has had on music charts, but now I have, and I will share it with you. For anyone who hasn’t watched Stranger things yet, why not? It’s a drama set in the 1980s, centred on a group of young people from the fictional small town of Hawkins, Indiana. A nearby secretive government research facility experiments on children, and after a young girl called Eleven with psychokinetic powers inadvertently creates a wormhole known as the Upside Down, it connects Earth to a hostile realm. It blends investigative drama with supernatural horror, and references the popular culture of the ’80s. The final episode, of the final season, aired on New Year’s Day here in the UK and after an emotional ending where this little gang of misfits saved the world, the song used for the end credits was David Bowie’sHeroes, suggested by Joe Keery himself.
Because of it’s inclusion in this top rated show, Heroes is now back in the UK Singles Chart along with other relevant songs like Diana Ross’sUpside Down. The soundtrack contains some of the biggest hits of the 1980s and they have been propelled back to fame, the biggest success story being the Kate Bush song Running Up That Hill used to great effect in Season 4 (written about here). After 37 years she finally reached the No. 1 spot in 2022. In Season 5, one of the characters is given a cassette tape with Tiffany’sI Think We’re Alone Now and yes, you’ve guessed it, it’s back in the UK Singles Chart.
I think We’re Alone Now by Tiffany:
Other songs used on the S5 soundtrack are as follows:
When Doves Cry by Prince
Purple Rain by Prince
Landslide by Fleetwood Mac
Here Comes Your Man by Pixies
The Trooper by Iron Maiden
Sweet Jane by Cowboy Junkies
Rockin’ Robin by Michael Jackson (The Jackson 5 version also featured)
Fernando by ABBA
Pretty in Pink by The Psychedelic Furs
I have just checked and eight songs are now back in the current Singles Chart because of Stranger Things, but although I said such lists look very different nowadays because of these popular Netflix shows, maybe it’s selective memory coming into play. I seem to remember in the summer of 1978 most of the songs in the charts were either from the film Saturday Night Fever or Grease (it was a John Travolta summer). Likewise, our Saturday evening cop shows often threw up a hit or two from the stars involved – I’m looking at you David Soul and also you Telly Savalas. Even our own home grown shows could generate successful top-selling artists once Mr Cowell got his hands on them – Robson & Jerome anyone? Maybe things haven’t changed all that much after all.
I Think We’re Alone Now was written and composed by Ritchie Cordell and first recorded by Tommy James and the Shondells. The song was originally written as a romantic ballad, but when James and Cordell recorded a quick demo, they made the song faster. Tommy James later wrote: “Ritchie originally wrote the song as a mid-tempo ballad. I said no way and started speeding it up. I put on a nasally, almost juvenile-sounding lead vocal, and without realizing it, we invented “bubblegum” music.”
Until next time…
I Think We’re Alone Now Lyrics (Song by Ritchie Cordell)
Children behave That’s what they say when we’re together And watch how you play They don’t understand
And so we’re running just as fast as we can Holdin’ on to one another’s hand Tryin’ to get away into the night And then you put your arms around me And we tumble to the ground And then you say
I think we’re alone now There doesn’t seem to be anyone around I think we’re alone now The beating of our hearts is the only sound
Look at the way We gotta hide what we’re doin’ ‘Cause what would they say If they ever knew?
And so we’re running just as fast as we can Holdin’ on to one another’s hand Tryin’ to get away into the night And then you put your arms around me And we tumble to the ground And then you say
I think we’re alone now (alone now) There doesn’t seem to be anyone around I think we’re alone now (alone now) The beating of our hearts is the only sound
I think we’re alone now (alone now) There doesn’t seem to be anyone around I think we’re alone now The beating of our hearts is the only sound
Well, I didn’t know if I could do it but I have timed things to perfection and this will be my 500th post, just ahead of this blog’s 10th birthday, which is tomorrow. 500 posts in 10 years won’t seem like a lot to some of the daily bloggers, but my efforts are usually quite long, require a fair bit of research, and at times I’ve been MIA (regular followers know why), so I’m quite chuffed with myself. Of course the fact I wrote 100 posts in my first 10 months of blogging shows that I’ve really slowed down over the years, but 50 posts per year seems like a good average to me. I hope to get an achievement badge from the WordPress people once I press the publish button on this one, and a birthday badge tomorrow!
I started this blog, by coincidence, the day we heard the news that David Bowie had died, so it was inevitable my first post would feature him. I had planned to write about “music and memories” – pick a song from my past and write about what life was like back then, with a few musical anecdotes thrown in. The decade I was most invested in chart music was the 1970s, as anyone born right at the start of the ’60s will probably agree. The songs you listen to then stay with you for life, and in a Pop Quiz, I am the expert on the Top 30 for those years.
And so it came to pass, on day one of the blog, I was writing a tribute for one of the few true icons (that word is used far too loosely nowadays) this country has ever produced. It didn’t take long for me to realise this would become a pattern as if I was getting older, my pop idols of the ’70s would be getting even older. David Bowie died of cancer, on this day in 2016 at the relatively young age of 69. We didn’t ever have to watch him get really old and infirm which is a bit of a blessing, and right up until his death he was still crowned the best-dressed Briton in history. I’m sure, however, his family would have liked to have had him around for a lot longer.
The very first song I shared around here was therefore Life On Mars? and I have pretty much shared a Bowie song every year since on this date. The film for Life On Mars? (we didn’t yet call them videos) still looks pretty avant-garde today, 53 years on. This leads me to believe I was born at just the right time for a life-long fascination with the theatre, frills and falderals of pop music. In the 1960s we watched our favourite pop stars in black and white, and in the main, especially on UK prime time telly, they were dressed fairly conservatively – men in suits and women in those evening dresses that looked a bit like nighties. It was starting to change at the tail end of the decade but once we started to watch them in colour at the start of the 1970s, glam rock had really taken hold in Britain, and boy were we in for a treat. David Bowie was definitely the most flamboyant but we also had T. Rex, Sweet, Slade and Roxy Music. What a great time to be entering our teenage years and I know many of my blogging pals still hold those years very dear indeed.
Life On Mars? by David Bowie:
Here is something I haven’t mentioned before – last summer I started following the Official UK Charts again, and I get an email every Friday at 6pm telling me what’s changed since the week before. As the months have gone by I’ve become familiar with the runners and riders, but because we consume our music so differently nowadays, via streaming mainly, the charts are nothing like the ones my friends and I used to follow with avid interest in our teens. In the weeks leading up to Christmas, the Top 10 was hogged by only three artists, Taylor Swift (with three songs from her The Life of a Showgirl album), Olivia Dean (with three songs from her The Art of Loving album) and three songs from the stars of the animated film, KPop Demon Hunters (the most watched film in Netflix history). The song Golden stayed at the top spot for weeks in the autumn of last year, performed by the fictional, animated, K-pop girl group Huntrix (the first time this had happened since the Archies achieved the same feat in 1969 with Sugar, Sugar).
I don’t think K-pop is really for my generation (you don’t say!) but for the youngsters of today, it seems all pervasive. During the month of December the Top 10 stayed pretty much the same with Wham!’s song at the top spot, Mariah Carey as runner-up and the usual suspects filling the other slots (all songs from 40-60 years ago). Now we are into the new year we’ve had a song that’s been sitting around the Top 10 for quite a while finally reach the top spot (Raye’sWhere Is My Husband!), and yesterday I got an email telling me that it had been replaced by someone called Djo. Who the heck is that I thought, and blow me down, if it isn’t the musical moniker of Stranger Things actor Joe Keery, aka the handsome Steve Harrington. His song End of Beginning was originally released in 2022 and has hovered around the lower rungs of the chart since then, but with Season 5 just having ended his fan base have taken to streaming his song in big numbers. Another Netflix show that has influenced our UK Singles Chart. Here is Joe/Djo with his song.
Well I don’t know about you, but I think the Top 10 of my teenage years was far more innovative and interesting, with big change happening every week. In the interests of research however I will keep tabs on things and give all of you who would rather poke your eye out with a sharp stick than listen to the current Top 10, an update!
I didn’t really expect my 500th post to go this way but I often don’t know what I’m going to write about until I sit down at my computer. The really great thing that’s happened since I started this game 10 years ago, is that I’ve made an awful lot of new like-minded friends, both virtual and in the real world, which I certainly didn’t expect. There are regular features I join in with, like Rol’s Saturday Snapshots, John’s Photo Challenge and Ernie’s Pun Fun. We’ve had four quite big BlogCons in cities all over the UK and a fair few mini meetups with two or three bloggers. It’s not how we made new friends in the old days, but it’s how things happen nowadays, so maybe I shouldn’t be so dismissive of how the teens of today operate.
I’m definitely going to keep going, and if I’m spared I’ll aim for another 500 posts in 10 years. Whether blogging and WordPress will still be around at that point is anyone’s guess, but I hope it survives in some form.
To end, I really think I should share something else by David Bowie on this, the anniversary of his death. Here he is singing 1977’s Heroes [starts at 1:00] at Live Aid in 1985. There is no bright blue eye-shadow this time, but just like in the film above, his hair is tinged with red and he is sporting a well-cut pale blue suit – an homage I suspect. I still have my copy of Words magazine from when the song Heroes was released and back then they wrote, “Of all our current top rock stars, David Bowie is the one most likely to remain a major musical force decades hence… .” And they continue, “Listening to this [Heroes], you realise that Bowie’s strength and durability lies in the fact he refuses to fit neatly into any specific category. He will constantly surprise even his most dedicated followers, while maintaining an unvarying high quality of performance.” They weren’t wrong.
Heroes by David Bowie:
Until next time…
Heroes Lyrics (Song by David Bowie/Brian Eno)
I, I will be king And you, you will be queen Though nothing, will drive them away We can beat them, just for one day We can be heroes, just for one day
And you, you can be mean And I, I’ll drink all the time ‘Cause we’re lovers, and that is a fact Yes, we’re lovers, and that is that
Though nothing, will keep us together We could steal time, just for one day We can be heroes, forever and ever What’d you say?
I, I wish you could swim Like the dolphins, like dolphins can swim Though nothing, nothing will keep us together We can beat them, forever and ever Oh, we can be heroes, just for one day
I, I will be king And you, you will be queen Though nothing will drive them away We can be heroes, just for one day We can be us, just for one day
I, I can remember (I remember) Standing, by the wall (by the wall) And the guns, shot above our heads (over our heads) And we kissed, as though nothing could fall (nothing could fall) And the shame, was on the other side
Oh, we can beat them, forever and ever Then we could be heroes, just for one day We can be heroes We can be heroes We can be heroes Just for one day
We can be heroes We’re nothing, and nothing will help us Maybe we’re lying, then you better not stay But we could be safer, just for one day Oh-oh-oh-oh, oh-oh-oh-oh
Postscript
I did get my achievement badge for publishing 500 posts so have edited it in above. Yeah me.
Last time I wrote about the death of Robert Redford and of how I had been a big fan during my late teenage years. I even shared an old photo of the large poster I had of him on my bedroom wall. The time before that, I wrote about having spent a lot of time this summer reconnecting with very old friends, and of how it had been such a joy reminiscing about those things that made us friends in the first place. This week I discovered the sequel series to one of my favourite ever shows on telly, Sex and the City, featuring Carrie Bradshaw and her pals, and all three subjects have somehow converged to create this post.
The day I heard Robert Redford had died I was due to visit a friend for the evening as her husband was away and she had the house to herself. A film, a few snacks and a couple of supermarket cocktails is how we usually roll (we’re cheap dates), but this time I made the special request to watch The Way We Were, my favourite Robert Redford weepie. It also starred Barbra Streisand and covered the period from when their characters, Hubbell Gardiner and Katie Morosky, first met at college right through to the years they lived together in a beach house in Malibu, him writing for the Hollywood film industry and her primarily a housewife, albeit one with very strong political views.
Barbra Streisand doesn’t sing in that one but she did record the theme song of the same name, The Way We Were, where the lyrics detail the troubled relationship her character had with with the aforementioned Hubbell Gardiner.
The Way We Were by Barbra Streisand:
The very final scene of the film, however, jumps forward many years to New York [spoiler alert: they are no longer together] where Katie and Hubbell meet by chance in front of the Plaza Hotel – Katie is campaigning to Ban the Bomb. It’s a difficult encounter (“Your girl is lovely, Hubbell.”) as they have so much history and still probably love each other, but they both have new lives and partners, and have to ultimately part with a tender, bittersweet farewell. This scene always makes me break down in tears but because of the meds I’ve been on since being ill, I have lost the ability to cry – I had to make do with just being really sad instead. Here is a clip of that scene:
That emotional final scene
Ironically I had never watched The Way We Were all the way through until it was referenced in an episode from the original series of Sex and the City. It became one of my favourite scenes when Carrie finally realises that her failed relationship with Big (the nickname her ex-boyfriend was given because he was supposed to be The Big One, the one she married) was down to the same reason that it didn’t work out for Robert Redford and Barbra Streisand in The Way We Were. The world is made up of “complicated girls” with wild curly hair (Carrie and Barbra) and “simple girls”, the ones with tame straight hair. Big and Hubbell chose the simple girls.
The HubbellMoment
Even before Redford’s death, I had already been thinking about Hubbell Relationships ahead of my recent trip to The Granite City, my old stomping ground. My trip was purely to meet up with as many old friends as I could and it was really successful – even after more than 45 years apart, the meet-ups I had with old school friends were joyous affairs, with so much to reminisce about.
One person I would have loved to meet up with is mentioned around here often as he is kind of “My Hubbell”. We shared a love for ’70s/’80s music so he pops up in my posts as the s/bf (school boyfriend), again as the s/bf (student boyfriend) and sometimes the BOTT (the boyfriend of the time), when we were in our 20s. Many of us have a Hubbell, and there is no-one from those days I would have more to reminisce about with, but it just isn’t possible. We didn’t particularly part on bad terms, but it became obvious, again like with Hubbell and Katie, that we weren’t “going to make it”. I’m not particularly complicated and certainly don’t have wild curly hair like Carrie Bradshaw but the situation at the end was quite complicated, so there has been very little communication in nearly 40 years. I know Mr WIAA would get on well with him, as they are very alike, but bar bumping into each other outside the New York Plaza, probably not going to happen.
Do you have a Hubbell or a Katie, someone you shared so much with but then never saw again, or did you stay “friends”? I would love to hear about it in the comments boxes.
There have been lots of film clips in this post and not much music, but just the way it’s turned out. I feel I have to add the lyrics to The Way We Were despite them being a tad oversentimental (you don’t say!). The song was written by Alan Bergman, Marilyn Bergman, and Marvin Hamlisch, and it won two Academy Awards. The single was also a commercial success becoming 1974’s most successful recording in the United States placed at number one on the Billboard Year-End Hot 100. In the UK we are probably all more familiar with the Gladys Knight & The Pips version, also from 1974, where she did a bit of a mash-up with the song Try To Remember.
Try To Remember/The Way We Were by Gladys Knight& The Pips
Until next time…
The Way We Were Lyrics (Song by Alan Bergman, Marilyn Bergman/Marvin Hamlisch)
Mem’ries light the corners of my mind Misty water-colored memories of the way we were Scattered pictures of the smiles we left behind Smiles we gave to one another for the way we were
Can it be that it was all so simple then Or has time re-written every line? If we had the chance to do it all again Tell me, would we? Could we?
Mem’ries may be beautiful and yet What’s too painful to remember We simply choose to forget
So it’s the laughter we will remember Whenever we remember the way we were The way we were
Last time I wrote about my favourite things of 2024, concentrating mainly on what I’d heard, read and seen. Unbelievably, a week into the new year, I think I’ve already seen my favourite things of 2025. If I’m wrong, I’m going to be in for a treat this year. If I’m right, how weird that the year has peaked in week one.
Cinema
The day after New Year’s Day, I went out with a friend for lunch and a film. We thought we’d give the new Robbie Williams biopic a go and boy was I glad I did. I’m not generally a fan of biopics as we usually know the star’s life story already and why watch an actor sing and dance their way through the film when we can still watch plenty of footage of them via other means. Also, it’s often a highly edited version of the star’s life and only from the age of adulthood. All that was turned on its head in Better Man as Robbie was played by a CGI chimp. It sounds ridiculous but you get used to it incredibly quickly and the 8-year-old Robbie/chimp is very, very cute. The story takes us up to Robbie’s concert at the Royal Albert Hall around the time of his Swing While Your Winning album and despite the fact he has had to face his many demons along the way (the messy side of addition is not shied away from), at this point in his career he has made peace with himself and those closest to him.
My friend and I both loved the film and it seems the reviews have been very kind too. What comes across loud and clear is that Robbie was a born showman and from a very young age wanted to entertain people. He was stifled during his Take That years as their manager very much saw the band as being Gary Barlow plus friends, friends who did a bit of backing singing and a lot of dancing. Understandably this was not enough for Robbie and once he met up with his songwriting partner Guy Chambers he was on his way to a very successful solo career. The video clip for this song is a bit manic but the sentiment very appropriate. Let Me Entertain You was the fifth and final single from his debut solo album Life Thru a Lens. In March 1998, the track peaked at No. 3 on the UK Singles Chart.
Television Drama
The next thing I’ve been blown away by (no pun intended) in this first week of the new year is SAS Rogue Heroes, again about real people. I’m not usually a fan of action films and dramas but this one is quite exceptional. We watched the first season a couple of years ago and the second season started on the BBC on New Year’s Day. It had to be binge-watched. I am no fan of war, but 80 years ago one was being waged across the continent of Europe, and it can’t be underestimated how big an influence the small newly formed regiment called the Special Air Service played in bringing that war to an end. The main character in this season was Major Paddy Mayne, a poetry-loving, slightly mad (you had to be) solicitor from Northern Ireland. His regiment didn’t play by the normal rules of engagement and having read up about the real-life man, he was only in his mid-20s at the time. Paddy was played by the actor Jack O’Connell and although it looks as if he overacts much of the time, I have a feeling the real man was probably just as eccentric.
The drama was created by Steven Knight who also created Peaky Blinders. If you enjoyed it you will probably enjoy SAS Rogue Heroes. There is black and white footage of the time interspersed between scenes, and throughout it all, the soundtrack uses urgent punk rock music which perfectly suits the drama taking place. I’ve researched the tracks used and they are listed below with a link to a clip. I’ve also added a video clip of the Cult’s 1985 single She Sells Sanctuary which appeared in one of the episodes.
This one could be peculiar to me amongst my blogging circle but I really, really enjoyed the BBC documentary Sir Alex this week. Most people probably know of Sir Alex Ferguson from his time as manager of Manchester United where he achieved everything there is to achieve in football, but he cut his teeth at Aberdeen FC, and it coincided with my happiest time living in that city. Every time there is a documentary about Aberdeen’s amazing win against Real Madrid in the European Cup Winner’s Cup final, I have to watch it, as all the memories of that time come flooding back and I remember exactly what I was doing and who with. Some of those I’m still in touch with but others I’m not, which is sad, but what a time for the city.
I thought the doc was very clever in that it bounced back and forth throughout the years of Fergie’s career and I did learn quite a lot I didn’t already know. What I do know was that my Aberdeen flatmate taught his sons during his 8-year tenure there and we often had their homework strewn across our kitchen table. I also remember that the oil company I worked for had a Christmas night out in 1985 in one of the city’s nicer restaurants. As was my wont I recited a festive poem for all my colleagues and then we exchanged the joke presents we had bought for each other. We were being a bit bawdy to be sure and poor Fergie and his wife were sitting next to us trying to have a quiet dinner together. I don’t think our party poppers landed in his soup, but they came close.
Willie Miller holding the European Cup Winners Cup in 1983
A lot of the Aberdeen players were interviewed for the documentary (as he ended up taking a lot of them with him when he moved to Manchester – grrr) and right at the end of part 2, the final word came from “King” Kenny Dalgleish – he said that despite all his success with Manchester United, Fergie’s biggest achievement was winning a European Cup with a provincial Scottish club. Whatever the final judgement, I know it contributed to making Aberdeen a wonderful place to live in the early ’80s. It’s probably going to be my favourite documentary of the year.
Until next time…
Let Me Entertain You Lyrics (Song by Robbie Williams/Guy Chambers)
Hell is gone and heaven’s here There’s nothing left for you to fear Shake your ass, come over here, now scream I’m a burning effigy of everything I used to be You’re my rock of empathy, my dear
So come on, let me entertain you Let me entertain you
Life’s too short for you to die So grab yourself an alibi Heaven knows your mother lied, mon cher Separate your right from wrongs Come and sing a different song The kettle’s on, so don’t be long, mon cher
So come on, let me entertain you Let me entertain you
Look me up in the yellow pages And I will be your rock of ages You see through fads and your crazy phrases, yeah Little Bo Peep has lost his sheep He popped a pill and fell asleep The dew is wet, but the grass is sweet, my dear
Your mind gets burned with the habits you’ve learned But we’re the generation that’s got to be heard You’re tired of your teachers and your school’s a drag You’re not going to end up like your mum and dad
So come on, let me entertain you Let me entertain you Let me entertain you
He may be good, he may be out of sight But he can’t be here, so come around tonight Here is the place where the feeling grows You gotta get high before you taste the lows Come on
Let me entertain you Let me entertain you (let me entertain you) So come on, let me entertain you (let me entertain you) Let me entertain you (let me entertain you)
Come on, come on, come on, come on Come on, come on, come on, come on
As this place seems to act as my web diary nowadays I no longer keep a paper diary. I did get a small one from a neighbour at Christmastime however (think it was surplus to requirements) and I’ve been using it to record the films and TV dramas I’ve watched this year, plus the books I’ve read. Time to share some of my favourites here I think.
I’ll start with the telly – I last did a roundup of what I’d been watching 10 months into the pandemic, and although it was a well-received post, I did feel a tad guilty about having had so much free time for boxset binging, especially when many of us were really struggling at the time, what with home-schooling kids and remote working. Hopefully this time, the divide between the time-rich and time-poor who visit this place will be less pronounced. Also, I’ll not admit to all of it, just the ones that have really made an impact.
Well, we didn’t dilly dally with this one and have finished it already, but if you haven’t yet watched BBC Scotland’s dark comedy-drama, Guilt, I would thoroughly recommend it. Think Better Call Saul relocated to Edinburgh, or Fargo on the Firth of Forth. Here is the trailer.
You really need to watch the first two series before embarking on the latest (and final) series, but only four episodes in each so very doable. I have always liked Scottish actor Mark Bonnar who seems to pop up on our screens regularly, but in Guilt he really is the lead actor and gets a chance to shine in the role of Max, a Leith boy done good, but a Leith boy whose charm and lawyer shenanigans don’t always get him out of a fix. I won’t offer up any spoilers but I would urge you to watch it. For the music bloggers who visit here, Max’s brother Jake runs a record shop very much like the one in the film High Fidelity, so lots of musical anecdotes interspersed throughout the show. Catch it on the BBC iPlayer.
But this is a music blog, so next up we have the Amazon Prime show Daisy Jones & The Six. Regulars who visit this place will already know I have a real fondness for the music that came out of Laurel Canyon in the late ’60s/early ’70s, so it was a no-brainer that I would watch this drama set in that very place. It charts the rise and fall of a fictional rock band made up of an amalgam of real-life characters from that time (we spotted Fleetwood Mac, Ringo and George, plus many more).
One of the lead actors, who played the titular Daisy Jones, was Riley Keough who interestingly is Elvis’s granddaughter. Both she and British actor Sam Claflin, who played Billy Dunne in the band, provided the vocals and if this is indeed the case they both did really well. Again I don’t want to give away any spoilers but the format they used, with documentary style footage included of their future selves, worked really well I thought. Oh, and Daisy’s extensive wardrobe of hot pants and diaphanous garments felt right for the times. There is a soundtrack album, and a couple of the songs from it have been released as singles. Here is a clip of Look At Us Now (Honeycomb). Wonder what Elvis would have thought. He would have been a proud grandfather no doubt, but that was never going to be.
Looking at my little diary, here are the other dramas I’ve really enjoyed so far this year: Happy Valley final series (BBC iPlayer), The Gold (BBC iPlayer), Dead To Me (Netflix), You (Netflix) and Blue Lights (BBC iPlayer). The common factor amongst really memorable telly is the writing, and there can’t be many people in the UK who didn’t watch the final series of Sally Wainwright’s Happy Valley. It was going to be tough coming up with an ending that tied up all the loose ends and left viewers satisfied, but I think she managed it. What a fine young man Ryan had turned into too. As for Neil Forsyth, the Scottish writer who gave us Guilt, it seems he also wrote the screenplay for The Gold, the mini-series centred on the Brink’s-Mat robbery of 1983. It makes sense now that I enjoyed both so much and it was good to see the talented actor (with a wonderful voice), Emun Elliot, pop up in both. Blue Lights, set in Belfast, follows the trials and tribulations of three probationary police officers and it was so well-received a second series has already been commissioned. More synchronicity here in that one of the police officers is played by the same actor who played Max’s wife in Guilt.
From across the pond came the black comedy, Dead To Me, very much centred around the bond of friendship between two women (in amongst all the death!). It reminded me of the days before I met Mr WIAA when I was lucky enough to have a series of very close female friends, the kind you do everything with and can depend on entirely. These kind of friendships are by their nature short-lived, especially once a boyfriend or partner comes along, but I have fond memories of those days and this drama reminded me of how important it can be to have such a friend. My last pick, You, was also from across the pond, although in the final season the action moved to London. It’s a psychological thriller and although I thought it lost its way a bit in the second season we persevered with it and enjoyed the twists and turns along the way.
I will finish with the song that was used as the opening theme to Daisy Jones & The Six, one that formed an earworm when we were watching the show. Dancing Barefoot by Patti Smith was recorded for her second album Wave in 1979 but was the perfect fit for this new drama released in 2023. Something timeless about it I think and the lyrics really did work for the character of Daisy.
Dancing Barefoot by Patti Smith:
So, a lot of telly there but not as much as I admitted to during the long periods of lockdown. What have you been watching of late? If you have anything you think I might like, please do share. I’d love to hear from you and as you know by now, I always reply.
Until next time…
Dancing Barefoot Lyrics (Song by Patti Smith/Ivan Kral)
She is benediction She is addicted to thee She is the root connection She is connecting with he
Here I go and I don’t know why I fell so ceaselessly Could it be he’s taking over me…
I’m dancing barefoot Heading for a spin Some strange music draws me in Makes me come on like some heroine
She is sublimation She is the essence of thee She is concentrating on He, who is chosen by she
Here I go and I don’t know why I spin so ceaselessly, Could it be he’s taking over me…
She is re-creation She, intoxicated by thee She has the slow sensation that He is levitating with she …
Here I go and I don’t know why, I spin so ceaselessly, ’til I lose my sense of gravity…
(oh god I fell for you …)
The plot of our life sweats in the dark like a face The mystery of childbirth, of childhood itself Grave visitations What is it that calls to us? Why must we pray screaming? Why must not death be redefined? We shut our eyes we stretch out our arms And whirl on a pane of glass An afixiation a fix on anything the line of life the limb of a tree The hands of he and the promise that she is blessed among women.
Something that we music bloggers never want to happen is for our blogging output to become a bit of a chore, yet…, we can get ourselves into a cycle of writing about things we kind of have to write about as opposed to what we want to write about, and that’s not a good position to find yourself in.
I don’t know about everyone else but this blog is starting to feel like an obituary column, but all down to that old chestnut age– if we are getting older then our musical heroes are getting even older, and we are starting to lose them at an alarming rate. The option not to write about Burt Bacharach was never there for me, as this blog’s name came from the opening line to one of his songs, but going forward I think I’m going to have to limit the number I write.
What’s It All About, Alfie?
Then there’s the series. Over the years I’ve really enjoyed some of the ones I’ve published (the Full Moon Calendar In Song being my favourite) but some of the others have petered out early on, especially if they’ve been particularly epic like my American Odyssey in Song (it was all Delaware’s fault). At the moment I have a series about songs relating to months of the year, but I always seem to be up against a deadline, just managing to fit the latest edition in before we move into the next month – it’s not turned out to be as much fun as I thought.
Perry, it was all your fault!
As for my 50 year retrospective series, where I intended to revisit my folder of pop star pinups from 1973, that has hit a bump in the road. Some of the artists that populated the Top Ten back then, and the pages of magazines aimed at 12-14 year old girls, were later found to have been predators of the worst kind, and it now makes for uncomfortable reading. No, Mr Paul Gadd, I never did want to “touch you, there, where, there”, but the editors of our mags obviously thought differently and his hairy chest and grinning face appeared in every copy in 1973. I do think teenage girls are a good judge of character but back then we were often let down by adults who should have known better, but who inexplicably missed all the signals. Different times indeed.
Last but not least, I always watch the Brit Awards and usually write about them afterwards (or as Jez said in the comments boxes last year, “Alyson, she watches the Brits so we don’t have to”). So far, despite the show airing a week ago now, I’ve not yet come up with anything for this year’s extravaganza. There always used to be a standout performance, or shocking moment, but the main takeaway for me this year is that music has become very corporate indeed with the artists sitting at tables surrounded by “their team” – the money men, the label bosses, the songwriters – all looking very smug. It’s nigh impossible to become really successful by just plugging away at your craft as per the old days, and the big winner of the night, Harry Styles, was someone who started out in a boy band put together by Simon Cowell for a prime time television show. It seems that Sam Smith’sdemonic performance with Kim Petras did however ruffle a few feathers and, wait for it, Ofcom received the grand total of 109 complaints about it. Considering the show was aired live on ITV on Saturday night and was watched by 4 million people, if they had set out to cause outrage, they failed miserably.
Harry Styles, the big winner of the night
One big bonus for me this year is that I now understand why so much fuss has been made about Isle of Wight band Wet Leg. They have been mentioned often amongst the other “cooler” blogs, whose hosts have their finger on the pulse, and it seems those bloggers were on the button as they came away with two big awards, one for being Best Newcomer and the other for Best Group. Straight to the top in their first year so a bit of a stratospheric rise considering their debut album only came out last year. Here is their performance of debut single Chaise Longue which is delivered in deadpan style by lead singer Rhian Teasdale. She apparently wrote the song in only a day whilst sitting on bandmate Hester’s grandfather’s chaise longue. The lyric, “Is your muffin buttered?/Would you like us to assign someone to butter your muffin?” is supposedly a direct quote from the 2004 teen comedy Mean Girls. Having watched that film with DD many years ago, I can believe that, but yet again I’m probably being naïve.
It was all happening on the Wet Leg stage – Morris dancers, pastoral scenes, bonnets and cows.
So, “What’s It All About?” – I hate feeling under the cosh around here and with four time sensitive posts to be written this month (more if anyone else passes away), it’s all got a bit too much. I really need to get back to what I do best – simply picking a timely song from the tracks of my years, finding out so much more about it than was ever possible back in the day, and sharing a few memories. Maybe next month.
In the meantime, and before I sign off for today, here’s an idea. Instead of a 50 year retrospective where I concentrate on those artists who featured in the Smash Hits equivalent of the day and who made it to the Top Ten of the UK Singles Chart, how about I revisit those songs which only made it to the lower reaches of the charts but which have since become classics. Billy Paul recorded Me and Mrs. Jones in Philadelphia in 1972 but it peaked on our British charts in the February of 1973. It’s such a lush song, and one I have always loved, although at the age of 12 I probably wouldn’t have picked up on quite how heart-breaking the lyrics are. Glad I’ve never found myself in such a position as the subterfuge would cripple me. I would crack early on and tell Mr WIAA exactly what I’d been up to at 6.30pm every day (if indeed it is pm and not am). A beautiful song though.
Me and Mrs. Jones by Billy Paul:
A strange one this but I still managed to touch on the Brits and revisit a favourite song from 50 years ago. Quite something considering I sat down today to say I wasn’t going to do any of those things!
Until next time, to our our elder statesmen of rock and pop, please keep well until next month, as at the moment I can’t keep up.
Me and Mrs. Jones Lyrics (Song by Kenny Gamble, Leon Huff, Cary Gilbert)
Me and Mrs Jones We got a thing going on We both know that it’s wrong But it’s much too strong To let it go now
We meet every day at the same cafe 6:30 I know, I know she’ll be there Holding hands, making all kinds of plans While the jukebox plays our favorite song
Me and Mrs, Mrs. Jones Mrs. Jones, Mrs. Jones, Mrs. Jones We got a thing going on We both know that it’s wrong But it’s much too strong To let it go now
We gotta be extra careful That we don’t build our hopes up too high Cause she’s got her own obligations And so, and so do I
Me and Mrs, Mrs. Jones Mrs. Jones, Mrs. Jones, Mrs. Jones We got a thing going on We both know that it’s wrong But it’s much too strong To let it go now
Well, it’s time for us to be leaving It hurts so much, it hurts so much inside Now she’ll go her way And I’ll go mine But tomorrow we’ll meet the same place The same time
Me and Mrs, Mrs. Jones Mrs. Jones, Mrs. Jones, Mrs. Jones We got a thing going on
We gotta be extra careful We can’t afford to build our hopes up too high I wanna meet and talk to you At the same place, the same cafe, the same time And we’re gonna hold hands like we used to We gonna talk it over, talk it over We know, they know And you know and I know it was wrong But I’m thinking strong We gotta let ’em know now That we got a thing going on, a thing going on
I have been music blogging long enough by now to know which subject matters are best avoided – generally football, weddings and the Royal Family. I can’t however ignore the momentous news that our monarch of 70 years died last Thursday at her beloved home in Aberdeenshire, a place very close to my own heart. It came as a bit of a shock in the end, as only two days earlier she had carried out a very important piece of constitutional business, inviting the new leader of the Conservative Party to form a government. That has almost been forgotten about now.
Balmoral Castle in Aberdeenshire
Whatever your thoughts on the place of the monarchy in our national life, someone who was probably the most famous and recognised person in the world has left us, and news channels around the world are covering every step of what happens in the aftermath of such an event.
I seem to be alone in my little corner of the blogosphere, but I have been deeply affected by this massive change in the status quo. Prime Ministers come and go, recessions come and go, wars come and go, but throughout my lifetime the Queen has always been there, on the stamps, the money, giving Christmas broadcasts… . It’s a lot to take in that she is gone for good.
As someone who is a bit of a ‘quitter’ when the going gets tough, who found it hard to juggle work and motherhood, and who has not always kept her own counsel when it would have been wise to do so, I have always admired the many qualities the Queen had in spades. To have suddenly found herself thrust into the ‘big job’ at the tender age of 25 must have been frightening, especially as she was a mother to two young children at the time, but few can question her dedication and work ethic over the 70 years of her reign. There will never be another like her and I suspect things will change quite significantly, both at home and around the Commonwealth, now that she has gone.
The Queen’s coffin leaves Balmoral
Another reason why Mr WIAA and myself have been quite deeply affected by the Queen’s passing, is because we both also lost a parent quite suddenly, and have been reliving the raw emotion that came with it. My mother-in-law was abroad on holiday when she died, and my own dad went into hospital for a routine operation but didn’t ever wake up. They were both 25 years younger than the Queen was when they died – far too young. As for my own mum who now lives in a local care home, but who no longer recognises me, she is of the same generation as the Queen and all through the decades looked just like her. Because of the fashions of the day many of us probably say that about our mothers, but no, my mum always looked just like her. Not many of that wartime generation left now.
Because we have been reliving sad moments over the last few days, I am going to share the two pieces of music used at our own parents’ funerals. The first is called The Dark Island and it was the theme tune to a 1962 television series of the same name set in the Outer Hebrides. Mr WIAA’s parents were from different corners of England but they met whilst on holiday on the Isle of Skye in the 1950s and after watching this TV drama, once married with children, they decided to move to the Highlands of Scotland permanently. The second piece of music is called Highland Cathedral and is often heard at Scottish cultural events. We used it for my dad’s funeral but I hadn’t reckoned on choking up every time I now hear it, which is often.
The Dark Island by Leigh Garden:
Highland Cathedral:
So, ‘What’s It All About?’ – I don’t quite know why everyone has chosen to make no mention of the fact the Queen has died, and I might be committing ‘sidebar suicide’ by doing so, but this place is also my web-diary so it would be weird for me not to.
My place of birth has been showcased in all its glory over the last few days, and I hope others will appreciate why the Aberdeenshire countryside held such a special place in the Queen’s affections. Likewise, Scotland’s capital city, where we had a wonderful Blogger’s Summit earlier in the year, has never looked better. After today the focus will turn to London and all that that entails, but if it was her time, I think the Queen would have been content that she ended her days quietly in Scotland, the only Queen Elizabeth we ever had.
Until next time…
The Dark Island Lyrics (Song by David Silver/Iain McLachlan)
Away to the westward, I’m longing to be Where the beauties of heaven unfold by the sea Where the sweet purple heather blooms fragrant and free On a hill-top, high above the Dark Island
Oh Isle of my childhood I’m dreaming of thee As the steamer leaves Oban, and passes Tiree Soon I’ll capture the magic, that lingers for me When I’m back, once more upon, the Dark Island
So gentle the sea breeze that ripples the bay Where the stream joins the ocean, and young children play On a strand of pure silver, I’ll welcome each day And I’ll roam forever more, the Dark Island
True gem of the Hebrides, bathed in the light Like a midsummer dawning, that follows the night How I long for the cry, of the seagulls in flight As they circle high above the Dark Island
Now that I no longer take any heed of what is going on in the music charts, I get most of my inspiration for this blog from the music that pops into my life from other sources, one of those being the soundtracks to films and television dramas. It seems many others are the same and that’s why the charts of today, based on the volume of downloads/streams in the last week (I can’t pretend to understand it all), can sometimes be infiltrated with songs from the distant past.
Many of us who have just watched the first batch of episodes from the latest season of Stranger Things, seem to have been afflicted by an earworm, and it’s driven us to seek out this song in it’s entirety. Running Up That Hill by Kate Bush was first a hit for her in 1985, but because of it’s association with the popular science-fiction/horror drama set in ’80s Indiana, it’s right up there at the top of the UK Singles Chart again in 2022.
Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God) by Kate Bush
I’m sure Ms Bush is quite bemused by all this sudden attention her song is receiving, especially as she now lives a fairly quiet life in an English village. Watching the clip for the song, she is just as I remember her – flowing hair, a leotard and an interpretive dance performance. She has appeared around here before and when I looked into her career back then I was shocked to find out how young she was when she wrote some of her most successful songs. A bit of a child prodigy that’s for sure.
As for Stranger Things, it seems to be the biggest thing on Netflix at the moment and like many other series affected by the pandemic (Ozark, Better Call Saul…), the season has been broken into two halves, as filming took much longer than usual. Only got a few weeks to wait until the final episodes air however and thankfully there seems to be a fifth season in the pipeline as most of the quality dramas have now ended for good (bar Saul, whose final few episodes, ever, will air soon).
The kids from Stranger Things
The kids from Buffy (plus Giles)
I can’t help compare Stranger Things to Buffy the Vampire Slayer which we became heavily invested in as a family 20 years ago. A bunch of small town kids from very different social groups come together to fight evil, the grown-ups and figures of authority seemingly unaware of, or unable to process, what is going on. The difference this time is that it’s a period drama and although to me, the ’80s doesn’t even feel that long ago, for most viewers it will seem like ancient history. If you lived through that time you will spot where they have got the period details, like the clothes and the hair, just right. Sometimes in the first season it was a bit off, but in season four the perms and shoulder pads are spot on. In case of giving away spoilers I won’t include a clip of the scene where Kate’s song is used (to great effect), but if you’ve already seen it, here is the link – not for the faint-hearted. It was apparently chosen because, ‘it’s deep chords connected with (the character) Max’s emotional struggles’. Gives us one of the best musical moments in television history.
Max levitates
I usually include a music clip in my posts but I get nervous about sharing something that is so current as you can fall foul of the ‘internet police’ and get a take down notice. Instead, as a treat for new fans of Kate Bush I will include one of her other songs, one to which I have a personal story attached, but perhaps for another day. Cloudbusting was also a big hit for her in 1985 and the video for it stars Donald Sutherland as an inventor/father trying to get his cloudbusting machine to work (inspired by Peter Reich’s 1973 Book of Dreams).
Cloudbusting by Kate Bush:
I’ve already mentioned around here that I seem to have become a bit of a telly addict since Lockdown 1, but I don’t suppose I’m alone. We as a family didn’t even have access to Netflix or the like when I started this blog so there were far fewer distractions of an evening and the quality of these distractions seem to be getting better year on year. What can I say, I’m a weak, weak woman – BUT, as a lover of music from decades past who is ‘revisiting the tracks of her years’, there is often something on a television soundtrack to enjoy, and I certainly don’t seem to have been alone in enjoying the unexpected musical star of Stranger Things Season 4. Way to go Kate – you have a new legion of young fans who are adept in the ways of the world wide web. Expect to be at the top of the charts for quite some time.
Until next time…
Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God) Lyrics (Song by Kate Bush)
It doesn’t hurt me Do you want to feel how it feels? Do you want to know that it doesn’t hurt me? Do you want to hear about the deal that I’m making? You, it’s you and me
And if I only could I’d make a deal with God And I’d get him to swap our places Be running up that road Be running up that hill Be running up that building See if I only could, oh
You don’t want to hurt me But see how deep the bullet lies Unaware I’m tearing you asunder Ooh, there is thunder in our hearts
Is there so much hate for the ones we love? Tell me, we both matter, don’t we? You, it’s you and me It’s you and me won’t be unhappy
And if I only could I’d make a deal with God And I’d get him to swap our places Be running up that road Be running up that hill Be running up that building Say, if I only could, oh
You It’s you and me It’s you and me won’t be unhappy
C’mon, baby, c’mon darling Let me steal this moment from you now C’mon, angel, c’mon, c’mon, darling Let’s exchange the experience, oh
And if I only could I’d make a deal with God And I’d get him to swap our places Be running up that road Be running up that hill With no problems
So if I only could I’d make a deal with God And I’d get him to swap our places Be running up that road Be running up that hill With no problems
So if I only could I’d make a deal with God And I’d get him to swap our places Be running up that road Be running up that hill With no problems
So if I only could Be running up that hill With no problems
(If I only could, I’d be running up that hill) (If I only could, I’d be running up that hill)
What's It All About? 