Granted, I've loved everything Tanya has done since her days back in the Throwing Muses, from her first album offering Green through The Real Ramona's Not Too Soon, her work with Kim Deal in both Breeders and This Mortal Coil, and her own projects including Belly and her self-titled albums, but 'Vanilla" is really a rare gem, one of those hard-to-find songs that are worth every minute and penny of your searching, because the reward of getting your hands on the tune is SO heart warming, catchy, full of Tanya Donelly goodness.
Just the other day I was telling my friend Gerg that I consider Tanya one of the finest songwriters out of that whole Alt/Rock movement, in MY opinion , anyway!
The pic on the side isn't the cover for Vanilla, by the way, as most fans will recognize it as the cover to "The Bright Light", but the blurry cover of the Pretty Deep 7" isn't so great, and Tanya looks just fantastic on this cover, so I opted for this one instead!
Man, if there ever was a hall of fame for "Feel Good songs of the 90's", The Sundays ultra-catchy song "My Finest Hour" surely gets my vote! The penultimate track off of the band's debut LP "Reading, Writing and Arithmetic", one feels that they only tacked on "Joy" after it because the end would have been too uplifting for the album to end!
A melody about the eternal hope of finding that special someone in your life, tinged with the self-deprecating bitterness (a la Morrisey) all Sundays tracks seem to have, happy or not!
And who can resist the winsome Harriet Wheeler cat-calls at the end?
So a few weeks ago, I was working in the warehouse at work, and was subjected to the random hip-hop-rap-pop tunes that the morning crew’s radio station was tuned in on. Not my cup of tea, but I got used to it.
At some point, the DJ announced that the new single from the Pussycat Dolls was about to play, and as the song “When I Grow Up” began, I was shocked to hear the opening riff of Jeff Beck’s guitar for the Yardbirds song He’s Always There, off the classic Over, Under Sideways, Down album! Holy Obscurities!
I told my friend, “Hey! this is sampled off an old YARDBIRDS album!” After listening to the Pussycat Dolls song, my friend wanted to hear the original song the notes were lifted from, so I told him I’d upload it to my blog so he could give it a listen!. Then It occurred to me that some of my classic rock friends who only knew the Yardbirds song might be interested in hearing the Pussycat Dolls song …(hey, stranger things have happened) so I uploaded that one, too!
When I mentioned the sampling to my friend Jas, a HUGE Jeff Beck fan, his only comment was, “Well, if they sampled a whole riff, maybe Jeff Beck will get a royalty!” We laughed and thought that would be AWESOME, but I was later to realize Jeff hadn’t written that particular track, and so only composers Paul Samswell-Smith (bassist) and Jim McCarty (rhythm guitar) would be getting any kind of residuals! Well, at least SOMEBODY in the Yardbirds is gettin’ something! :)
"When was the last time you were at a wedding that had a death defying hike, rogue waves, a luau, ultimate fighting, a presidential candidate and a budding bromance?" asks Papi Chulo. For most of us, the answer is never, but luckily, Papi Chulo and Secret Agent Scotch took the time to Vox all the amazing moments during their unforgettable Hawaiian wedding on 08.08.08 so we could all take part in the festivities.
The story began last February, when Papi Chulo popped the question and Secret Agent Scotch said yes! Since then, they've kept us in the loop about all the details, from the bride's veil to the wedding song to the final To-Do List. And throughout it all, they inspired us with their love for each other. (I'm pretty sure it doesn't get any better than knowing your future husband thinks you are The Perfect Girl.)
It's an amazing love story and we are thrilled they shared it with us. Watch the video of the ceremony and please join us in wishing Papi Chulo and Secret Agent Scotch the fairytale ending they deserve.
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Can't get enough of the wedding? A few lucky Voxers - Krissy, djchall, and Beau Smith - made the trip to Hawaii to take part in the celebration. Check out their Vox blogs for more pictures and stories.
Congratulations again to Secret Agent Scotch and Papi Chulo! Enjoy the Honeymoon!
Two Ducks and Their Girls
Up next are two beautiful gals who are (or WERE) usually associated with talking ducks a la Donald Duck, the two being Marvel’s Howard The Duck, and Frank Cho’s same-named fowl Frank in his original strip University (squared)
First we have the gorgeous red head Beverly Switzler, your typical “Damsel in Distress”, til Howard came along and rescued her. The two began a lifelong partnership, one that was filled with many separations and diversions, but they always found themselves back together in the end!
As conceived by Steve Gerber, Bev was supposed to be the optimistic, steadfast character (albeit a bit naïve at times) to contrast Howard’s grouchy, pessimistic outlook on life, and as such, always radiated a sunshiney aura whenever she was in the story. In fact, every reader would wonder how Howard could be such a downer when he had such a beautiful maiden as his partner!
Originally pencilled by Frank Brunner (he of Red Sonja fame, among others), the role of penciller ultimately fell to Gene Colan, and I personally think his version of Bev to be THE version that all others must compare to!
At some point, Beverly was semi-written out of the comic when she heroically married the evil Dr. Bong to spare Howard’s life, but Steve managed to bring her back every now and then, and years later, in the pages of THE SENSATIONAL SHE-HULK, brought her back (sort of) for good!
Beverly Switzler
First Appearance: Howard the Duck #1
By Steve Gerber and Frank Brunner
Casual readers of Liberty Meadows may wonder what I’m doing calling Frank a duck, but the fact of the matter is, that’s just what he was during his original manifestation in the pages of University(squared) before ultimately becoming the neurotic human in Liberty Meadows!
Of course, the change didn’t make all that much difference since most of the readers were reading the strip for Brandy, anyway!
Originally part of an ensemble cast, Brandy has gone on to become Frank Cho’s signature character. She’s supposed to be styled after Lynda Carter of Wonder Woman fame, ( get it? "Carter" is her last name...?) and Frank even wrote hilarious story where Brandy goes to a comic-con, and all the nerds and geeks obsessively follow her around, convinced the 70's superstar has attended the show!
I remember when my friend Gerg first introduced me to the strip, after reading a few weeks of stuff, I said “It seems like this guy Frank Cho is using thin plots and storylines simply as an excuse to draw this chick Brandy!” Then I thought about it, and added, “Gee, what a dream job! I wanna draw a strip like this!” Ahahaa!
Brandy Carter
in University2 and Liberty Meadows
by Frank Cho
British Alternative magazine SELECT would occasionally give away free music cassette samplers of upcoming / rare tracks from groups like Gene, Lucy’s Fur Coat, and Lush as a free bonus shrunk-wrapped with their issues.
On one of these fantastic collections, there was an incredibly catchy, jangly pop-perfect tune called Love of the Bottle, by new indie Britpop group Tiny Monroe. Fast- paced, and sassy, I fell in love with it immediately and knew I wanted to have a “hard” copy on CD (we all know how temporary those cassettes are), and I made a mental note to grab the release when it came out.
When the CD from Tiny Monroe called VOLCANOES came out, however, I was shocked to find the version on the album being QUITE different from the version on the cassette that I’d loved for so long! I was utterly baffled! Was the version on the sampler a single version? Or a work-in-progress? I do know that the LUSH song on the same sampler, a song called “The Childcatcher”, was a demo form, which was ALSO quite different from the LOVELIFE release, so maybe that was it.
The Album version was slower, more rock-oriented, and NJ’s voice was double-tracked during the choruses. The entire structure of the song seemed different, with new guitar breaks and guitar riffing during the second verse. Oh, and there were new vocals overlaid over the lead-out, as well… a LOT more polished, but where was that happy, poppy song?
In any case, although I did like the Volcanoes version and the Album in general (esp. Cream Bun), part of me wasn’t satisfied, knowing I was still missing my favorite song from the band! What I ended up doing was taking that precious SELECT cassette to a friend’s house, and having him rip it to MP3 for me. I know it ain’t “State of the Art”, but at least I can relax, knowing that my song won’t warp or demagnetize out of my life when I try to listen to it!
Hey, if there’s anyone out there who knows exactly what the scoop is with the cassette version, I’d really appreciate if you’d drop me a line!
NJ (vocals)
Richard Davies (guitar)
Steven Walker (guitar)
Garry Becker (bass)
Dan Neumann (drums)
My beloved SELECT Cassette Sampler Version:
And the Polished, Rocking Album Version:
"Don't let them reduce you to pieces!"
There isn’t a single thing I can add about having a crush on Liesl Von Trapp in The Sound Of Music that hasn’t already been uttered by countless generations of guys ever since the movie debuted in 1965!
But for the record: 1. I saw Sound Of Music. 2. I set eyes on the oldest daughter Liesl, played by Charmian Carr.
3. Developed Crush. 4. Wheee!
In fact, out of all the wonderful songs featured in the Rodgers & Hammerstein soundtrack, my favorite just has to be “Edelweiss”, simply because I always waited for that scene where she sang it along with her father, playing his guitar.
Funny thing, growing up I would hear “The Sound Of Music” and “Climb Ev’ry Mountain” regularly sung on TV variety shows , regarded as the broadway classics they are, and I remember a local pastor named Allan Fisher singing Climb Ev'ry Mountain on a just-before-sign-off show called Making Life Simple! In elementary school, we even sang songs like “Do Me Ri” and “My Favorite Things” during assemblies, but despite this total American immersion in the soundtrack, until I saw The Sound Of Music (and fell in love with Liesl) for myself, I never noticed Edelweiss!
Once I was watching Sound Of Music with a friend, and I offhandedly mentioned how much of a crush I had on Charmian Carr when I was younger. "I guess I was into that 60's teenager look", I theorized. She looked at Liesl on the screen and asked, "Yeah, but, how OLD do you think Liesl IS here? She ain't any "16 going on 17", THAT'S for sure! She looks more like 23!" Which was a pretty good point, but that didn't diminish my love of Liesl one bit!
Plus It didn't matter- we were both big Sound of Music fans, and I remember her even stopping by my workplace straight from her Ukelele Lesson once because she'd just learned to play "Edelwiess"! So we had a little singalong, and I have to say a hawaiian flavored Edelweiss is a strange thing to hear indeed! Ahahaha!
Years later, when me and my friend Car were talking about favorite songs from The Sound Of Music, I said “Well, the song that’s MY fave isn’t a common one!” She said, “Well, what IS it?” and when I told her “Edelweiss”, she dismissively cried “EDELWEISS?! That’s so OBVIOUS! EVERYBODY’S favorite song is that one!”
I said that I begged to differ, with songs like Sound of Music, Climb Ev’ry Mountain, Do-Re-Mi and My Favorite Things out there, I’d hardly say that Edelweiss was EVERYONE’S favorite song, but she stood her ground on that one!
Anyway…
When The Sound of Music got the “Special Edition” treatment on DVD back in 2000, there was a terrific addition for us Liesl fans! Included in the bonus section was a little-seen documentary short called Salzburg Sight and Sound, which was basically a 36 minute little featurette they shot during the taping of The Sound Of Music of Charmian Carr wandering around the beautiful city of Salzburg!
She narrates the short, and besides taking in the beautiful scenery, we get glimpses of the cast behind the scenes as they work on the movie, we even get to see Charmian getting lessons with her vocal coach! Ah, what a great bonus!
Life after Sound of Music, Charmian Carr became an interior designer for upper-class home-owners, ans she said that one of her clients was Michael Jackson! In fact, she said that he hired her to do his house, simply because he loved her so much as Liesl!
Well, If I had
1. MONEY for an Interior Designer and
2. A HOUSE in WHICH to redesign,
I’D hire her, too!
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The next two entries into my personal “Super-Heroine Hall Of Fame” I’ve dubbed “Super-Vixens" are the two leading ladies of the original 1970’s futuristic heroes, THE GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY.
When Gene Colan and Arnold Drake created the futuristic team of spacemen in MARVEL SUPER-HEOES, the group was strictly a boy’s club, and it wasn’t until the Guardians got updated in the hands of Steve Gerber in titles like DEFENDERS and MARVEL PRESENTS that the gang got some much needed femininity!
Seeing the obvious void of girls in the team, Steve created a couple of heroines to join the team, first with Aleta along with her counterpart Stakar in the pages of DEFENDERS, the duo of course would unite to become a single being, the Guardian member called Starhawk.
Aleta is one character who has been revamped in recent years so far from her original look as to be unrecognizable! Nowadays she sports the modern “pin-up” look of most heroines in the biz, but back then she was portrayed as a more serious character, only occasionally appearing to chew out Starhawk and confuse Vance! I’m not sure if she was supposed to be a “sexy” heroine, but she definitely had that appeal to me, although she always seemed to remind me of Cathy Lee Crosby! And that’s whether Al Milgrom OR George Perez was drawin’ her! Ahahaha!
Aleta
First appearance Defenders #29
by Steve Gerber and Sal Buscema