A few months ago, I brought home my Dream Car, a red Mustang convertible. That full story is for another day but suffice it to say that I have wanted that car since I was 16 years old. The day I drove one home was, as you might guess, dreamy. My Dad loved my car. LOVED. IT. I remember the June day we drove it over to show my parents. Jim and I got out of the car and after I rang their doorbell, we stood way back (thanks, pandemic) so they could walk to the driveway and see it up close. My dad went around to the passenger side…
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My Name Is Melisa and I’m a Born Again Fanilow.
When I was a kid in the 70’s, Barry Manilow was totally my jam. He was the first artist I truly loved; I collected his record albums (real vinyl ones, kids!) and played them so much I’m surprised the needle didn’t wear the grooves down. Is that even possible? Never mind. I was a Child Fanilow. Exhibit A: When I was 7 or 8 I was taking ballet classes every week. One week, my ballet teacher announced that we had an upcoming Parents’ Night and we were each tasked with picking a song–any song of our choosing!–and choreographing a routine for that special evening. I chose Barry Manilow’s “Mandy,” and…
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Live.
Today we finally saw “Bohemian Rhapsody,” the film about Freddie Mercury and the origin and subsequent climb of the band Queen. The part I was most looking forward to in the movie was the end, because the filmmakers recreated Queen’s iconic performance at Live Aid, the epic 1985 concert that was held at both Wembley Stadium in London and JFK Stadium in Philadelphia to raise money for the relief of Ethiopian famine. I thought it would be cool to see it “again.” In fact, it was incredible and I cried from the time Freddie (played by Rami Malek) took the stage at Wembley until the very end of the movie.…
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Sold Out.
Back in the day, companies had original product jingles for radio and television written by their advertising agencies. It was unheard of to have popular music playing in the background on advertisements for everything from computers to cars to cleaning products. When bands started selling the rights to their music for the purpose of marketing things to the public, it was considered selling out. Of course, money talks (as does exposure!) so over the past couple of decades jingles have become more extinct and pop music, either well-known or not-yet-discovered, is the soundtrack of choice. Musicians are no longer accused of selling out; it’s a point of pride to be…
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Live From the Cheap Seats
Last week we went to a blues concert here in town. The concert was good, but not my favorite. No offense to the artist who shall remain unnamed here; part of my problem is that the venue was standing room only and that is one of my least favorite things in the world: I need that chair behind me. Even if I’m going to stand for hours at a concert I love–like Foo Fighters–I am mentally more comfortable knowing that I have the option to sit in a chair for a few minutes if I need to. At the concert last week we took the recommendation of a friend and…
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I’ve Lost the Power.
I picked Dylan up from the airport last week and, upon arriving at my house he said he had a couple of YouTube videos to show me. “Sure,” I said. “Put ’em on!” As he was searching for the videos on his phone he said, “Oh! I found 2 Unlimited on YouTube!” I know 2 Unlimited, but couldn’t remember their music. Dylan said, “Remember? We used to listen to them in the car all the time! Here, I’ll show you.” He went on and on about how he missed listening to that entire CD. He quickly found the video for “No One” and as he started it, I recognized the…
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How To Spend an Epic Twelve Hours*
It was a busy twelve hours. Here's why.
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#StreamTeam Has a Justin Timberlake 20/20 Experience
I am a member of the Netflix #StreamTeam and will be happily sharing monthly tips and stories about how my family uses Netflix on a regular basis. (Okay, that’s an understatement. I should say CONSTANTLY. We use Netflix CONSTANTLY.) This post is sponsored by Netflix, of course! I. Love. Concerts. If I could go to a concert every single week, I would. That’s the truth. Unfortunately I have neither the time, money, or energy to keep up with my life if I were to do that: I’d make a horrible groupie. Anyway, I’ve been very fortunate to see some major musical acts in person, many of whom are near and…
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#StreamTeam Gets Down With The Get Down
I am a member of the Netflix #StreamTeam and will be happily sharing monthly tips and stories about how my family uses Netflix on a regular basis. (Okay, that’s an understatement. I should say CONSTANTLY. We use Netflix CONSTANTLY.) This post is sponsored by Netflix, of course! Okay, let’s talk. If you have not or are not watching Netflix’s “The Get Down”, you need to remedy that now. As in, right now. I know it’s weird for me to start off a post like that before even telling you about this phenomenal series, but perhaps because I did that you’ll get a sense of my love for it. Now that…
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The Concert of My Lifetime: Billy Joel at Wrigley Field
When I was a kid in the seventies, we had a pretty nice-sized vinyl collection thanks to a friend of my dad’s who owned a record store and shared lots of the albums that he no longer needed. The square covers always had a 1/2-inch notch cut out of the top and a sticker that said “For Promotional Use Only: Not for Resale”. These days I’d have to sit and think about which albums were in our collection in order to talk about them except for two standouts, “The Jacksons” and this one, Billy Joel’s “Piano Man”: When I was six and seven, that album cover both intrigued and terrified…
