I’ve been feeling a bit left out of my normal circle of blogger friends lately, because so many folks are going hog wild over the upcoming Madonna greatest hits collection/end of an era/landmark. I have seen that cover so many times over the past week that I haven’t been paying as much attention to articles that I normally would read from start to finish.
Having said all of this, and knowing that certain people who frequent this blog know of my “meh” attitude toward Ms Ciccone, I must acknowledge that this attitude would have been unfathomable 15-20 years ago. In fact, I was a pretty big fan of the early years, with specific landmarks along the way:
– I remember sitting with my stepdad in the parking lot of a hospital, waiting for my mom to come out, when “Holiday” came on the radio. For some reason, I wondered what he thought of the song, although I never asked the question. He was very much into the classic rock stations, so it didn’t seem like a conversation I wanted to have and still have my dignity intact.
– The “Dress You Up” video, to this day, gives me goosebumps. I have no idea what it is about that specific performance, but it has an energy that I believe is incredibly difficult to replicate. There were afternoons during the “World Exclusive” airings on MTV where I wouldn’t leave the house so I could watch the video at the top of every hour.
– How sad is it that I remember the parody video that religious groups came up with in response to “Papa Don’t Preach”? That was just HORRIBLE!
– I drove to Buffalo from Fredonia to pick up the “Justify My Love” video for a friend who was an even bigger Madonna fan than I was. Of course, I picked up the CD single for myself at the same time as buying the video, but it didn’t hurt that I just wanted an excuse to get out of town and up to the big city.
– Erotica and the Sex book both came out around the time I became an assistant manager at Record Town. Talk about anti-climatic…neither of those releases really spawned the radical reaction that you would have pictured, given all of the news coverage they had received.
– Bedtime Stories remains my favorite Madonna CD. I played that bad boy out, and I never felt she was “selling out” by going R&B, because I felt like she pulled it off like it was a natural progression. Besides, “let’s get unconscious honey” has to be one of my all-time favorite lines in any song.
– Although I wasn’t a fan of most of the soundtrack stuff (“Hanky Panky”? Seriously?), Evita was the first serious miss for me. I had no interest in that whatsoever, and thought that her vocals, although better than usual, just seemed thin compared to the bombastic material she was singing. Ray of Light halted the slide slightly, but then American Life killed any momentum that might have been there.
– Confessions is my second-favorite after Bedtime, but it became clear that I would never look at her as an Idol again. The musician and entertainer clashed too much with her public facade, and I haven’t been able to get past that since. Even Hard Candy, which had some good stuff on it, never fully landed with me.
I guess the moral of this story is that you shouldn’t put too much weight on one figure to maintain the same level of mystique for a long time, because that’s just a recipe for failure. Especially when their expected shelf life is much shorter than what everyone else expects.
Popdose today posted a review of the 
For about five years, I attended at least one show a year at Red Rocks. Alison Krauss, James Taylor, Tori Amos, Aimee Mann and David Gray…all of them just seem to fit the vibe of the space. Not everyone can pull off a show at Red Rocks, which seems to be the gist of the Rob Thomas article. (That, and the author seems to have it out for him, too) When the artist and the venue connect, it’s absolute magic. When Emmylou Harris hits THAT note, and everyone’s spellbound, the rocks just seem to reflect that magic back on to the crowd. If asked to pick my favorite concert venue, this is the one by a mile.
As a result of the magic, Red Rocks has become THE place for many artists to play. I have heard countless opening acts say “I have always wanted to play here”, and I believe them every time. When you look at an artist like U2, and how a live show at Red Rocks just catapulted their career here in the States, you have to believe that the magic can sometimes be bottled and taken out of the venue. Stevie Nicks got a good concert video out of it, although there was some extensive work to make it fully presentable, including live bits recorded without the crowd there. In fact, most live recordings get a LOT of enhancing. You’d be surprised by how much.
The Jackson 5 had their first hit the year I was born. 40 years on, children born in a completely different century still know “I Want You Back” and “ABC”. Those are my first memories of Michael Jackson, although the first song that really impacted me was “Never Can Say Goodbye”, which came out in 1971. Even as a child of 9 or 10, I got it. That voice, that talent, that connection. How could someone so young get that? And yet, he did. Even singing Christmas songs like “I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus”, Michael had an amazing way to project and connect that I doubt I could find any other artist of his generation to do.
“Off the Wall”, “Don’t Stop ’til You Get Enough”, “She’s Out of My Life”, and especially “Rock With You”…without knowing it, my musical world was shifting along with Michael’s. There’s life in a record that you truly get. It seems to breathe on its own, and the drum beat might as well have blood coursing though it. “Rock” not only lived and breathed, it seemed to imbibe me with an energy that I would become more familiar with as I got older. It’s an energy that grows on itself and is hard to predict, but you know it when you’re in it. But even at that point, it was still just a song. Then Motown 25 came along, and I was a goner.
“The Girl Is Mine” has to be the lamest lead single for a hit album in the history of pop music. Who really cared? I mean, two stars singing a duet, but really, didn’t more people still care about McCartney at that point? “Billie Jean”, on the other hand, while not an Earth-shattering song, still set the world on fire. The performance, the video, the song…it’s an experience that only happens a couple of times in a lifetime. I wanted the red jacket, I wanted a glove, I wanted to be connected in any way possible, but the music was really my only way. (For more about my Thriller period, go 
Michael Jackson’s star may have been tarnished over the years, but I believe that many have lost sight of all of the good that he brought to the world through his music and actions. I’m not making excuses for what people have said he did, and we may never know for sure how things went down. But for me, Michael opened my eyes to not only the diversity of music, but also the diversity of people. He wasn’t afraid to be different, and he encouraged others to be themselves, rather than conform. If anyone wants to find fault with that, have at it. My choice is to remain positive, and build off the strengths of his legacy. Bashing his past does no one any good right now.
Work, school, weather, life…that’s all I’m gonna say.
Store #1 was 
One of the most talked-about songs at Country radio right now is John Rich’s “Shuttin’ Down Detroit”, which tells a tale of the fat cats in the Motor City driving off with the livelihood of the folks who work in their factories. You know, noble idea to document a real-life situation in real time. However, Rich decides to wrap himself in some pretty lame cliches, and the result is an overblown, lowest common denominator track that misses any sense of balance whatsoever. But if you think that sounds lame, 
Good – The Ting Tings appear to be getting that long-promised breakthrough, as “That’s Not My Name” breaks into the pop radio Top 40 (#39 at the moment). “Shut Up and Let Me Go” also made the Top 40, although just barely. Let’s hope “Name” has a little more momentum to make it happen. If all goes well, I will be seeing them live at the beginning of April here in Denver.
Good – I’m looking forward to upcoming new releases from the Pet Shop Boys (just pre-ordered the double disc at 
Last Saturday, I got to stop in and browse a little bit, which hasn’t happened much recently, and it seemed like every catalog item was on sale. I didn’t buy much (Alison Moyet’s “Singles” for $5), but in a weird way, it was comforting to wander around the store, listen to Snow Patrol on the overhead, and check out all of the listening stations with music that most people will never care about. I have always coveted the time I’ve spent in record stores, even after I escaped the retail rat race, and to see that opportunity go away is not a pleasant thought to me. The whole “world of music at your fingertips digitally” is great when I know what I’m looking for, but for me, there will always be a longing for a more tangible music experience.
– How about America’s Next Top Drama Queen, Tatiana! If VH1 can hand out the title of Best Week Ever, then maybe we should award the Worst Week Ever to Ms. Del Toro. Despite the fact that she had moments of brilliance on Tuesday night (mixed in with moments of mediocrity), the judges who supposedly put her through to this round were completely SHOCKED that she could sing. She’s delusional enough to work around that, though. Tonight, on the other hand, was just downright cruel. American Idol truly slipped to a new low, as the producers held Tatiana out for the final judgment against Danny Gokey, who most have already pegged to make it to the top 2. The news had to be broken to her at some point, but the true cruelty was in following her emotional breakdown all through Danny’s repeat performance of “Hero”. It was just downright evil. Speaking of evil…
– America gets the whole picture. While there was talk that Anoop Desai was destined for Top 12 greatness, a buzz was also building for Michael (formerly Jeremy) Sarver. The fact that the vote was so close between the two of them shows that folks took into account the full history of their performances, because if the viewers hadn’t taken that into account, Ricky Braddy should have easily had Michael’s spot in the top 3. Chances are good that both Desai and Braddy will be back for the Wildcard round.
– You only get one shot. Jackie Tohn, Anne Marie Boskovich, and Brian Keith…it’s been nice knowing you. Anne Marie might make it back to the Wildcard round, but all three took major falls from contenders to also-rans based on one performance. And let’s not even get into the rest of the ladies. The guys really do have the upper hand this year, with the exception of Alexis Grace, who was miles away from her female counterparts.
So Hollywood Week, with all of its drama, wrapped up this week on American Idol, and it’s hard to know where we stand, since it’s been a bit of a cluster this season so far. However, I do think we have some clear answers on certain aspects:
– Talent can shine through – I will, begrudgingly, use Von Smith as an example. Up until Wednesday night, I was extremely opposed to Von going on to the Top 36, based on some of the most bombastic performances ever seen on Idol. Problem was, boy actually can sing, and he apparently took Simon’s criticism to heart the final day of Hollywood Week, performing a much more subdued song in his final audition. Well played, Von…well played.
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