Miss You - The Rolling Stones

"Hey, what's the matter, man?

We're gonna come around at twelve

With some Puerto Rican girls that's been just dyin' to meet you

We're gonna bring a case of wine

Hey, let's go mess and fool around

You know, like we used to"

 I started to write an entry about the first "big" concert I'd been too since Covid (Wilco/Sleater Kinney last week in Richmond) but I couldn't get a cohesive post together. I'll get back to that one shortly but for obvious reasons it seemed like a good time to write about the Stones after the passing of Charlie Watts. 

When my wife and I first starting dating we had lists of bands or artists that we wanted to see before..well you know, they weren't around anymore. She had Paul McCartney and Paul Simon. My list was Black Sabbath and The Rolling Stones. Happy to report that in the past decade plus we've been able to cross off all these names. Caught McCartney in San Francisco, Paul Simon in Atlanta, Black Sabbath in DC and The Rolling Stones in Kansas City.

The Stones show was labeled the Zip Code Tour of 2015. This was a big year in our household as we were getting ready to move from Charleston, SC to Richmond, VA. Having a house on the market and getting ready to change our lives was a bit stressful at times. When the Stones tour was announced we went through the schedule and tried to find a Saturday night date and a city we hadn't been too. I think it was between Nashville and Kansas City. Tickets and hotels were cheaper in KC so let's goooooo! It was a perfect time to skip town and forgot about new jobs, packing, leaving friends and family, etc. 

We had a chill Friday in the city, visiting the nearby Power and Light district and grabbing dinner at a German Restaurant. Saturday we hopped over to the Westport neighborhood to check out the funky shops and restaurants. Loved going into the Mills Record Company where the owner welcomed me back (I've never been to Kansan City, always wild when that happens. Suppose we all have a doppleganger or two out there?) was able to snag two of my musical heroes in the used bin section (see below picture) Also enjoyed a couple pints at the KC Bier Co. 

After running around it was time to head back to our hotel. (A beautiful 1920's building taken over by Hilton -Hilton President Downtown Kansas City) We grabbed a couple cocktails at the speakeasy-ish bar where apparently Frank Sinatra used to hang while in town. At the bar we met a couple from Nebraska who were also in town for the show. After chatting for a bit we found out they had a driver taking them out to Arrowhead and said they had room if we wanted a free ride. Why not? Unfortunately a ride home wasn't part of the deal so we ended up waiting over an hour for a Uber at the Denny's across the street from Arrowhead Stadium..and yes I had mozzarella sticks)After we made it to the stadium we bought the couple a round of drinks as a thank you and headed down to our seats. I figured this may be my first and only Stones show so we went all out and made our way to our floor seats. I was so excited I even bought the token $10,000 dollar concert t-shirt. Ed Sheeran opened the show and then the lights came up and the riff to Start Me Up came out of  Keith's amp. The band sounded amazing and Mick strutted and danced his way around the stage for over two hours. He even had a few costume changes wearing a red sequined jacket during Sympathy For the Devil and a vest with bedazzled horses for, you guessed it, Wild Horses. So glad we got to go when we did and see the full band in action.

Hard to pick a song for today's post but I'm going with the opening track off the Some Girls album.  Love the sound of this record with it's disco/punk/new wave/country songs. Mick said his writing was influenced from living in New York at the time and this album has that 70's New York sleaze all over it. Another reason for this tune is that I was at a cousin's wedding when this song came on and one of my uncle's starting shimmying a la Mick, repeated the line typed above and then disappeared (I guess to hit the dance floor?) my wife and I still smile about that moment and picture it every time we hear this tune. RIP Charlie. Cheers.

Miss You (Remastered)

Bobby Jean - Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band

 

"Now we went walking in the rain

Talking about the pain from the world we hid

Now there ain't nobody, nowhere, nohow

Gonna ever understand me the way you did"

The first time I saw Springsteen live was back in October of 2005 at the Richmond Coliseum in Richmond, VA. This was the Devils and Dust tour so it was solo Bruce. He went from pump organ, to acoustic guitar, to ukulele, to piano jumping through the then 30 plus year catalogue all by himself. It was amazing. Cool thing was that I got to treat my dad for his birthday with tickets. 

I can't remember the first time I heard his music but it's been in the air in my household since before my existence.. My dad was/is a huge fan. Every family road trip featured whatever tape the Boss had released. Four year old me would ask for The River Album to be thrown on the turntable while I jumped on my hobby horse and went wild. This would of course be after I demanded everyone left the room. Hey, us introverts don't like to show all our hand in front of a group of people. Hungry Heart was my favorite. I've always felt like an old soul, so rockin and rollin to songs of infidelity and divorce sounded good to me at the ripe old age of 4.  

Next time I saw Bruce, it was with the full enchilada. My dad and I drove up to Charlotte from Charleston and caught the 2008 tour which I believe was still the Magic tour? Glad I saw this because I got to witness the late, great Clarence Clemons in action. He wasn't well at the time, but he was able to keep his big presence alive despite illness. Clarence had a huge throne on  stage where he sat while the band played and when it was time for his solo's he'd stand up and nail it everytime. You couldn't sense any weakness once he began to blow.

The next time I caught the band was with my wife in Munich, Germany at Olympic Stadium in 2013. My wife and I had the pleasure of bopping around Austria and Germany and as pure luck had it the last night we were in town Springsteen was playing. The first half of the trip supplied beautiful weather and then after a fateful hail storm everything went dark. Heavy rain was the name of the game and that was no exception for our last night in town. Was the show going to be cancelled? My wife and I showed up in the pouring rain. I remember taking refuge under a tent and sipping on a Paulaner before the show. We then found out the performance was on and we had GA pit seats so it was time to bite the bullet. We went out to into the pouring rain and accepted our situation. Bruce came out and played the CCR classic, "Who'll Stop The Rain" solo acoustic (the answer was NO ONE!) From that point on the band came out and despite rain and occasionally hail, Bruce and the band rolled through a 29 song set. This particular night in the middle of the set they played the Born in the USA album front to back. It was quite a surreal moment pumping our fists and singing Born in the USA with our new Munich freundins. Shows how great a leader Bruce is. He said he'll stand out in the rain the whole time with us (while the rest of the band hovered under cover, I don't blame them) but if the rain was alright with the Boss, it was alright with us.

The last time I saw the Boss is from the picture above. I was able to win the Ticketmaster lottery for the rights to buy seats..and got them!! to see Bruce on Broadway back in October of 2017. A little over 900 people in the theater so from where we sat we could've played catch with the Boss. A few minutes before the show there was some commotion below us and in came Oprah and Gail (hey, how did they get better seats than us?) 

What a great 24 hours. We had a one night stand with NYC that trip. We arrived midday after a 45 minute flight with just a backpack that had stuff for my wife and I for the day. From the airport, pizza was a priority so since we were traveling light we got dropped of at John's of Bleeker Street. After a delicious pizza we walked across the street to grab a brew at the Blind Tiger. Been fortunate to visit the city many times after this trip and we still make a point to grab a pint at this fantastic craft beer bar. After that we checked into the hotel, got closer to Broadway and made a pit stop at one more watering hole (can't recall the name) and then it was onto the show. Afterwards we jumped in a cab for late dinner at Momouku Ssam Bar. Got up early, grabbed some coffee and a bagel sandwich and was home by lunch. It was a perfect 24 hours (being in NYC in October wasn't such a bad deal either.) And yes, the show was fantastic. Suppose you can also catch it on Netflix.

So tons of songs to choose from to highlight but I'm going with one from the Born in The USA album. Bruce has always done a fantastic job of presenting the youthful desire to break out of town and experience different worlds. Such a romantic look at what possibilities exist out there somewhere. This song is another example of that mentality. Plus one of my favorite horror movies is Evil Dead 2 and it has a character named Bobby Joe that makes me think of this song. She unfortunately meets her demise (spoiler alert) from a killer tree.

If you're fortunate, you meet certain people in stages of your life to enrich you in that particular moment. Not all these people stay with you, but their assistance at the time is quite beneficial. Whether it's high school friends, past girlfriends/boyfriends, college friends or coworkers, people will weave in in out of your life. If you're lucky, one or two from each stage will still be with you while others may become funeral and wedding friends. That's okay too, because when you see them it's always great, but in an unsaid way you both know it may be awhile before crossing paths again. That's what this song says to me. Whoa a bit wordy today, thanks for reading!!

Bobby Jean (London Calling: Live In Hyde Park, 2009)

Evil Dead 2 Extended scene - Bobby Joe's Death

On My Own (Official Music Video) - Patti LaBelle ft. Michael McDonald

"Now I know what loving you cost

Now we're up to talking divorce and we weren't even 

married..."

ear*worm

noun

1. a catchy song or tune that runs continually through a person's mind

I'm sure we've all gone through this. How does a song just roll around in your head as you try to sleep at night and it's still there in the morning while the coffee's brewing? Is it masterful musicians, brilliant lyrics...some type of black magic? I'm leaning towards the later. I believe Satan himself has immersed himself into the recording and demands that this Patti LaBelle/Michael McDonald tune gets absorbed into my mind! 

(Before this 80's jewel was spinning around in my noggin, I couldn't get rid of the 90's hit How Bizarre by O.M.C..."Buy the Rights, How Bizarre. How Bizarre, How Bizarre")

About a week ago I was watching the 80's video channel on Pluto TV and up came this worlds apart breakup "classic". I'd heard the tune before but I wasn't familiar with the visual. Cut to the weekend and I'm listening to the top 40 countdown from July, 1986..(as one does) and here comes the cursed track from the Mr. ex Doobie Brother and the lady that now sells sweet potato pies at Walmart. 

If the song doesn't get stuck in your head perhaps Miss Labelle's fur coat or Mr. McDonald's luscious locks will be burned into your retinas. Don't blame me, blame the Dark Lord. 

OMC - How Bizarre (Official Music Video)