Although, around here, Friday just means that I’m getting ready to work the entire weekend.
And starting next week, I’m picking up a couple of double shifts on Fridays, but the evening shift will be out here in Muskingum County, on a farm way out in the woods. And since it’s Spring, it will still be light out when I have to drive the 30 miles back home.
So, I’m okay with it.
Meanwhile!
Surf’s up in Australia for the Lewis family!!
The first photo from Wayne arrived on WhatsApp last night! I think I saw it at around 3am and it just made me feel so happy!
Wayne with his 2 brothers and a sister-in-law
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And in case you needed to see this…. (I know I did)…
Yet another photo from yesteryear of Jack Kerouac typing!!
And in case you’re curious —
Through my birth dad’s side of the family, I am cousins with Louisa May Alcott! (Through her mother’s side). Maybe I should go visit this cool place! You know, go on the road …
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And I don’t want to , you know, start trouble or anything, but there appears to be a veritable plethora of lighters in this world–
Keith, contemplating lighters
And I still have not received my really cool Tom Petty Zippo lighter!!
You never know, though, I might get lucky and actually receive it sometime!!
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Speaking of Tom Petty!!
From yesterday–
And last evening, I did begin reading that new book I got the other day, about Tom Petty, written by his long-time record promoter, Jon Scott:
It’s really good, but I did start to cry while reading it.
I had a rough day yesterday, so I was really emotionally worn out, but also I never really knew any of the details about why the first album by Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers took so long to break in America. (It was a hit in England first.)
Just reading about what total dickheads the record company was toward them with that first album — even knowing that the story had a happy ending, it still just made me cry.
That said, I am hoping today will be a better day.
It’s sunny and should be nice all day. And I’m taking my favorite 95-year-old Japanese man out to the Rural King to start getting his baskets of flowers for his back deck! (Although Annie was the one who always did that, but we are trying to just move forward and get stuff done and not get too sad.) However, about every half hour or so:
HE (quietly): “Annie is gone now?”
ME:” Yes, she’s gone.”
HE: “She didn’t tell me, you know.”
ME: “I know, she didn’t tell me, either.”
(That she had cancer.)
And later today, I’m picking up my new printer from Best Buy. So my writing/promoting world can get back on track…
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In the meantime–
Here’s a photo of the Stones looking almost happy in 1977!
Photo by Ken Regan
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And in case you also needed THIS —
Here are two more photos of Nick Cave & Blixa Bargeld — this time, doing that thing where they keep their eyes open!! (Or behind a pair of shades, as the case may be…)
And while we’re at it — here’s this fantastic song from Iggy Pop, 1986 — “Shades,” co-written by David Bowie, from Iggy’s incredible album Blah-Blah-Blah. I love this song!!!
“Shades”
You gave me a present The paper was blue and green I unwrapped it with pleasure These are the best shades I’ve ever seen You can be my girlfriend Forever and a day I never thought I was worth much Or that anyone would treat me this way
[Chorus] I’m not The kind of guy Who dresses like a king And a really fine pair of shades Means everything And the light that blinds my eyes Shines from you It makes me come in the night It makes me swim with delight I like this pain I like this mirror I like these shades
I could have had a problem I might have never followed through The other guys are in trouble They wouldn’t listen to a girl like you These shades say something I’ll bet they cost a lot I hope I don’t break ’em I hope we don’t break up
A reminder that the soundtrack for the TV series, “The Death of Bunny Munro” is available for streaming HERE on the platform of your choice!
And there is an upcoming documentary about Kylie Minogue on Netflix — launching Wednesday May 20th — which will have music contributions and some comments from Nick Cave!
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And I think that is going to be it for today, gang!! I’m gonna head out soon and get the whole thing moving all over again.
Enjoy your Friday, wherever you are in the world!
Thanks for visiting.
I love you guys. See ya!
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Let’s close with this.
I find it a little creepy and I still have not been able to watch it all the way through.
It is allegedly not AI — it features “doubles”, actual actors. But still. God knows, I prefer the original “old” Stones to fake ones…
Anyway. The new official video from the Rolling Stones for “In The Stars”. (You can pre-order the upcoming new album, Foreign Tongues, HERE.) Enjoy, gang.
As in: Sayonara, baby!! Kiss the printer goodbye!!
After about an hour of trying everything imaginable to fix it, I got onto the Best Buy app and just bought a new one. It will be ready for me to pick up on Friday.
AND– it was actually cheaper than I could have ever imagined!! (When did printers get so affordable??)
I’m just not gonna stress over any more shit right now, you know? Just get a new printer! But it did totally wreck the creative flow I was having with Caiaphas…
Meanwhile, I’m hoping that the backup ink cartridges I have will fit the new printer. I tried to buy the closest model I could find to the old one. We shall see.
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In other good news!!
The guy in NYC finished reading the review copy of The Curse of Our Profound Disorder!! He really liked it. He said, among other things, that he had gotten “emotionally invested in what happened to Jem” (the protagonist).
He ultimately said: “Bravo! It reads like a true fairy tale — in the best sense of that categorization.”
As soon as the book becomes available for sale, he’ll review it on Amazon for me.
Meanwhile, if you want to pre-order it, you can do that HERE. Thank you!!
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You know, I keep forgetting to mention here that I don’t think “Wild Thing” works at the Rural King anymore.
The last 5 times I’ve been there — different days, different times — he hasn’t been at the checkout counter. Well, maybe they moved him to a different department (the guns & ammo section??), I don’t know. I usually only buy cat food and then pay and go.
Well, wherever he is — Paris, perhaps?? Brushing up on his French?? — I hope he’s having the best life!!
“Excusez-moi, où est le toit ?”
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Okay. I kinda gotta get moving here and head to town soon. It is a really lovely day today, though. I hope my clients want me to go out and run a bunch of errands!!
I don’t have many “here’s this’s” today but–
Here’s this!!
Keith and Mick in California, in 1969! Photo by the legendary rock photographer, Ethan Russell:
And Keith, smoking while going somewhere and looking happy, while also wearing a grey suit and some shades!!
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I loved this!!
Eric Burdon turned 85 yesterday!!
Posted by his grandchild:
And here’s this, while we’re at it! “Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood,” by Eric Burdon and the Animals, 1965!
(BTW — I quoted the chorus to this song as my comment accompanying my Graduation photo in my Senior High School Yearbook, 1978.)
“Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood”
Baby, do you understand me now Sometimes I feel a little mad But don’t you know that no one alive Can always be an angel When things go wrong I seem to be bad
But I’m just a soul whose intentions are good Oh Lord, please don’t let me be misunderstood
Baby, sometimes I’m so carefree With a joy that’s hard to hide And sometimes it seems that all I have to do is worry And then you’re bound to see my other side
I’m just a soul whose intentions are good Oh Lord, please don’t let me be misunderstood
If I seem edgy I want you to know That I never mean to take it out on you Life has its problems and I get my share And that’s one thing I never meant to do Because I love you Oh, Oh baby don’t you know I’m human Have thoughts like any other one Sometimes I find myself long regretting Some foolish thing some little simple thing I’ve done
I’m just a soul whose intentions are good Oh Lord, please don’t let me be misunderstood Yes, I’m just a soul whose intentions are good Oh Lord, please don’t let me be misunderstood Yes, I’m just a soul whose intentions are good Oh Lord, please don’t let me be misunderstood Yes, I’m just a soul whose intentions are good Oh Lord, please don’t let me be misunderstood …
c – 1965 – Sol Marcus, Bennie Benjamin, Gloria Caldwell
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And from Nick Cave Official yesterday:
And here’s this!!
Nick Cave in London, in 2022!
Interesting composition, no?
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And that is it.
I really gotta scoot!
Have a terrific Tuesday, wherever you are in the world!!
Thanks for visiting.
I love you guys. See ya!
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Okay, we’ll close with this!!
One of those songs I recognized from the very first piano note–
As it came out of the Oldies FM Radio Station on my retro boombox, when I was getting ready for bed last night. I could not help but sing along!
“Tiny Dancer,” Elton John. From his classic, Madman Across the Water, 1971. Enjoy, gang.
Day 2 in absolute mental overload — but the brain is still working just fine.
I am of course referring to the commitment I made to write an entire play about Caiaphas in the month of June (wherein I will also be in NYC for 4 days). (See yesterday’s post if you missed it.)
I have to say, gang, just going over the piles of notes — alone — will take an entire month, but I’m still moving forward. And I feel really good about it.
This bit of monologue floored me. (First, let me just point out that Caiaphas’ entire reputation for being the man behind killing Jesus is based on basically one line in the New Testament and it basically only states that the “trial” went on in his home. It was more the doings of his father-in-law and brothers-in law (also High Priests), but after 70 AD, Pharisaic Christians wanted to re-frame that. Hence, my desire to write a play about how a man’s horrific reputation, which, throughout eternity has basically been false, is seen from that man’s POV in the afterlife.)
Anyway. I digress.
I came across this scribbled bit of monologue in my notes from 2014 and I loved it:
(Caiaphas speaking): “The bounty I gave to the world because I gave it a picture of the crucifixion of God’s son.”
FUCK, right??!! Think of everything that has come from it: Religions, wars, art.
Anyway.
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Okay.
So I’m in a good place. I’m not losing my mind or living in overdrive. My only –albeit small — regret, is that I didn’t write the whole play back in 2016, when all the notes were fresh. (Most of the notes are historical and archeological, and now it’s looking like I gotta read all that stuff again.)
Easy-peasy!
But I’m okay.
And yesterday, since it was Mother’s Day, I had a nice phone chat with my birth mom, finally.
Yes! I called her on the phone and she actually answered it.
But it appears that on Friday and Saturday, the other daughters, granddaughters and great-granddaughter, celebrated Mother’s Day with her in various lovely ways.
And my brother was going to be stopping by later in the afternoon yesterday, so she was sitting alone in her living room with nothing to do and so when the phone rang, she answered it.
Yes! Call mom! She might answer it!
She sounded in good spirits and that always makes me feel great.
Regarding all the caregiving stuff in my world, though, it is still a bit overwhelming and I have to make a dedicated effort to draw some sort of inner emotional lines for myself. We’ll see how that goes. But meanwhile.
Oh! I finally finished watching the Netflix film, “Je m’appelle Anjeta” last night, and I really just loved it, all the way through. It was so fun!
And, speaking — sort of — of France (the movie is in Swedish and French and takes place in Provence), I’m still studying my French every evening and, after studying French for something like 57 years now–
This past week, I learned 3 new words. Well, I’m always learning new words, but these 3 are for common, ordinary things, but I am JUST NOW learning them. I find that so weird.
The words are:
Plafond (ceiling)
Grenier (attic)
Toit (roof)
I guess, you know, I’ve always needed to learn about stuff that didn’t involve looking up in any way. But I just find that so weird. After all these years. And I did not even realize that I did not know these words.
ME (all over Paris): “Excusez-moi, où est le toit ?” [“Excuse me, where is the roof?”]
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Okay!
Yesterday was not only Mother’s Day (here in the USA) — it was also this guy’s heavenly birthday!
Happy Heavenly Birthday to Sid Vicious!
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And here’s this!
Keith, doing something he’s really good at besides smoking– being HAPPY!
And here’s this!
Keith and Mick, not smoking at a soundcheck in Malmo, Sweden, in August 1970. (I think they are singing that classic Beatles’ song, “Help,” but I’m not 100% sure.)
Photo by Jan Persson
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I loved these!!
Nick Cave not smoking in a brownish suit!
And Nick Cave not smoking onstage in Hamburg in June, 1982!
And don’t forget!!
If you missed the Hamburg gig in 1982, Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds will be all over Germany this summer and tickets are still available! Buy them HERE!!!
******** And I think that is it, gang!
It is, of course, my illustrious day off.
Laundry is already done!
No vacuuming is needed today!! (I will give you a moment to pick yourself up off the floor after that shocking remark!)
And all that I gotta do now is take a deep breath and, I guess, dive into a truckload of notes I made 10–12 years ago, sort them all out, and create a play!
Enjoy your Monday, wherever you are in the world, gang.
Thanks for visiting.
I love you guys. See ya!
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I leave you witih this!
Morning-listening music!!
I had it on “repeat” through most of breakfast.
I love this song so much. (It reminds me of most of my family, on my birth dad’s side, going back 150 years…)
Recording the song caused Tom Petty a lot of problems:
Story of Tom Petty punching a wall in 1984 breaking his hand (2 mins):
Originally from the album, Southern Accents, Tom Petty & the Heartbreaker’s “Rebels”, 1985. (This is an alternate take, from his posthumous collection, An American Treasure.) Enjoy, gang!
“Rebels”
Honey, don’t walk out, I’m too drunk to follow You know you won’t feel this way tomorrow Well, maybe a little rough around the edges Or inside a little hollow I get faced with some things sometimes That are so hard to swallow, hey!
I was born a rebel, down in Dixie On a Sunday mornin’ Yeah with one foot in the grave And one foot on the pedal I was born a rebel, born a rebel
She picked me up in the mornin’ And she paid all my tickets Then she screamed in the car Left me out in the thicket Well I never would’ve dreamed That her heart was so wicked Yeah but I keep coming back ‘Cause it’s so hard to kick it, hey, hey, hey
I was born a rebel, down in Dixie On a Sunday mornin’ Yeah with one foot in the grave And one foot on the pedal I was born a rebel, born a rebel
Even before my father’s father They called us all rebels As they burned our cornfields And left our cities leveled I can still feel the eyes of those blue-bellied devils Yeah, when I’m walking ’round tonight Through the concrete and metal, hey, hey, hey
I was born a rebel, down in Dixie On a Sunday mornin’ Yeah with one foot in the grave And one foot on the pedal I was born a rebel, born a rebel
I was born a rebel, down in Dixie On a Sunday mornin’ Yeah with one foot in the grave And one foot on the pedal I was born a rebel, born a rebel
But, man, life just keeps getting so fucking weird that I never really know if I’m having a good day until it’s, like, basically over.
However.
So far, today is seeming pretty good. It’s sunny. I have the day to myself. The only thing on the “List of Things to Do” besides yoga and washing my hair, is, of course (always) this:
Oops! Excuse me. Of course, I meant this:
Oh! Shoot!! Sorry. No, I meant THIS:
Yes. This.
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Yesterday was, overall, sort of lovely.
My favorite 95-year-old Japanese man is now very aware that Annie has died. And he’s sad but handling it very well. We had a good day together, and early tomorrow morning, I’m heading over there to help him get into his suit and tie in order to go to the funeral.
He said about 7 times yesterday that he doesn’t want to go to the funeral. But we’ll see what happens in the morning, when his stepson comes by to get him.
Meanwhile, his daughter has requested that I be the new primary contact person for her dad, now that she’s back in Seattle.
The Agency asked me how I felt about that and, obviously, I said “okay”, since it all landed in my lap anyway, when Annie suddenly went into the coma and then died. (And then I suddenly had to find out who/where his Primary Care Doctor was and go to the office and explain what had happened and who I was; then find out where he got his prescriptions filled and go pick them up; and find out who and where his favorite barber is; and then find someone to cut his lawn this summer because the boy who did it last summer moved away; and then go to the grocery store, and then, you know, go to the grocery store, and then, yesterday, yes, go back to the grocery store….)
All the stuff Annie always did. For 8 years…
Anyway.
Of course I will do it.
But I also have a new novel coming out and I’m trying to find people who will give the book an advance review online, and trying to get my profile updated on the various social media sites. And get that weekly mini-podcast underway and launched with my best friend Valerie in Brooklyn, who desperately needs a new iPhone and who always seems to be at the dentist’s. And Sandra & I have a play that has a Staged Reading Off-Broadway in NYC in November. And we might or might not be writing a new TV pilot this summer — we don’t know yet.
While I’m also taking care of 17 love-filled, happy cats…
So I feel a little overwhelmed…
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However!
Tomorrow, after I get my favorite 95-year-old Japanese man into his suit and tie, I’ll be heading over to the old train station to get my review copy back from Wendy and then– !!
Having lunch there with my friend Steve!! The guy I’ve been friends with since we were 11 years old, and who has texted me sort of repeatedly for the last 5 months, wanting to know when we can go out to lunch again…
So tomorrow is finally the day and that will be nice.
Having lunch with the only person left on Earth who’s known me since I was 11.
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And then this morning, for God only knows what reason, I found myself suddenly thinking:
ME (suddenlythinking): I should go to Columbus more often. Go to the theater and see more plays….
WTF???
You know, where did that come from??? Did it have something to do with that dream I had the other night, that I had moved back into my old house and was really happy???
I have no fucking idea.
Me, when I have no fucking idea.
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Okay.
Meanwhile!!
I am watching this movie on Netflix and LOVING it!! (It’s in Swedish and French, with nothing but tons of subtitles so my eyes get a little tired, but I love it!)
“Je m’appelle Agneta”:
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And here’s this!
Keith! At Redlands, in 1966:
And Keith! Not at Redlands, and not in 1966!
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And here’s this!!
“The Weeping Song” from 1990, because I love this video and because I’ve been listening to The Good Son album a lot lately (such a great album):
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And I think I’ll close this with that. (And NO! I’m not going to say: “I can ‘t believe this video is 36 fucking years old already… where is the fucking time going??”)
I’m just going to leave it. With no comment about TIME.
And get on with my day.
Maybe hop in the car and drive all the way to fucking Columbus and see a play…
Meanwhile!
Enjoy your Thursday, wherever you are in the world.
Thanks for visiting.
I love you guys. See ya!
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I leave you with this!
My making-the-bed music from this morning!
From Keith’s 2015 album, Crosseyed Heart, his version of the classic, “Goodnight Irene.” Enjoy, gang.
It’s Primary Election Day here in Ohio, so I had to go out and do that thing.
But I am back!
I don’t know if it’s just me, gang, but things feel so weird today.
For one thing, I had so many vivid dreams last night. Like someone was trying really, really hard to tell me something.
In one dream, I was in the house I owned about 10 years ago. I was unpacking and moving back in. And I was really happy about it, but it was as if I was returning there from having been in a sort of coma.
All the cats were there and happy I was back. And then at one point, an official sort of woman — don’t know how to describe her — brought in my Aunt Sylvia, my Great Aunt Gertrude, and my grandfather!!
All of these relatives have been dead for a really long time. But they were all really happy to be back and I was so happy to see them. (They were from my adoptive maternal side of the family.)
In another dream, I literally could not keep my eyelids open and I was going around doing important stuff (including drivingon the freeway) with my eyes shut — trying really hard to lift my eyelids so that I could see.
But there was a lot more to the dreams than that, and all of it was totally lucid dreaming. Not something I’ve done in a really long time. So that, in itself, felt really strange.
But I did get the impression, when all the dreams were over, that I’ve been “asleep in the dream of life” for a few years or something and I’m trying to wake up again.
However — wasn’t it sort of like this image I posted yesterday??? About letting anxiety take a back seat for awhile?? Too weird!!
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Okay. Anyway.
I voted. I have the day off. I’m not super happy about losing all that money for today — Tuesdays are good money days for me. But I’ve decided that I will try to just stay relaxed (that’s my new “idea” — to relax). And have a good day.
It’s too fun. It opens with a “studio surveillance system” — you click on the various cameras and get grainy black & white footage of the Stones in the studio, making the new album. Some of the cameras “don’t work.”
Anyway. It’s fun. And then you can also enter the main web site.
Tonight, Mick Jagger is going to be on late night TV, I guess introducing the new single from the upcoming album. Methinks I will not be awake, but I feel pretty certain I will get bombarded with it all over Instagram tomorrow morning…
Meanwhile, here’s this!
From 60 years ago… the original Rolling Stones:
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NewFest Pride announced their film line-up that will launch Pride Month in NYC.
There will be big outdoor screenings, but if you no longer live anywhere near NYC — you can get a virtual pass, and watch the films online.
There are many different options for purchasing passes to the screenings and parties and Q&A’s in NYC HERE.
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And by accident, last night I re-listened to chapters 12 -17 of TheDharma Bums on YouTube! I was listening to something else and trying to skip the ad, when it suddenly took me to a totally different video that I had listened to several months ago.
But I was quietly very happy with this twist of fate! I love that book. (Chapters 12 -17):
And I think maybe it was Jack, once again helping me make peace with the ever-upcoming release of The Curse of Our Profound Disorder and how it will likely be a book that won’t sit well with people….
Jack’s spirit is really good at helping me come to terms with that.
Jack Kerouac in Greenwich Village, NYC — looks like late 1940s or early 1950s.
I did get a really wonderful text from Wendy yesterday, saying she had finished reading the novel. It was difficult for her to get through (see yesterday’s post), but she liked how everything was resolved in the end.
And she also said: “If you don’t have a book launch, how will people know the book is out?”
Which, obviously, is a very good point…
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Okay. Well, on a somewhat different note!
Here’s this! So similar to yesterday!
Keith, drinking Jack Daniels onstage!
And so here’s the follow up to what I alluded to yesterday about my dad’s parenting skills in 1972:
I was 12, and closed up in my bedroom, as usual. I was always closed up in there, listening to music or playing my guitar and writing songs.
My dad came in and told me that my grandmother (his mother) had just called to tell him that Karen and I had been drinking whiskey and smoking cigarettes.
ME: “How’d she know about that?”
HE (laughing but trying hard not to show it): “You mean it’s true?”
ME: “Yeah. But how’d she know?”
HE: “She saw you. You weren’t doing a very good job of trying to hide it. Do you even like whiskey?!”
ME: “No, but Karen does.”
And then my dad went on to tell me that I was too young to drink whiskey and smoke cigarettes, and that if I was going to keep on doing it, I better try harder to not get caught.
HE: “If you do get caught again, then I’m gonna look like I can’t control my own daughter. And then I’m gonna get angry.”
It is sufficient to say that, forever after, I tried really hard not to get caught drinking whiskey and smoking cigarettes… the rest of the stuff I got up to, not so much.
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All righty!
And here’s this!
Nick Cave in Berlin, 1986! Similar, but different! (I think I posted this one not too long ago, but it came up again today!)
And this!!
Nick and Blixa in the 80s!! Yay! (Apparently having no trouble at all keeping their eyes open…)
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And with that, I should close this, because the morning is almost gone around here.
Have a terrific Tuesday, wherever you are in the world, gang.
Thanks for visiting.
I love you guys. See ya!
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Let’s close with this.
Morning-listening music!!
From Full Moon Fever, Tom Petty’s totally addictive “The Apartment Song”!! 1989. Enjoy, gang.
For some reason, I just love that ad (above). The energy of it. And it reminds me of all the times I’ve made great progress — here at this very desk, in this very Old House — writing.
A not-so-long-ago time of my life that I want to return to now at all times…
I never actually smoked Pall Malls, although my parents did in our first house in Cleveland. Then they switched to Larks:
And of course Eddie Van Halen (or at least his guitar) famously smoked Pall Malls:
And my birth mom still smokes Pall Malls, which is why there was a pack of them that I found in a kitchen drawer in this old house, several years ago, when I was craving an unlit cigarette that I could snap the filter off of and then sit with at my desk, and write….
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Wait!
First of all, I have to say THIS:
I did get a text from my favorite 95-year-old Japanese man’s daughter yesterday and she is not — AT THIS TIME — planning to put him in a nursing home!!! Those plans are on hold, sort of indefinitely.
Yay!!
Which means that many more tiny vodka cocktails are in our (his) future!!
Yesterday, his wooden leg was being wonky again so we didn’t go out for sashimi & sake (he’s getting a brand new leg on Tuesday). And late in my shift, he was sort of staring at the little end table next to his recliner, where upon there were 2 unopened bottles of protein drinks, some Greek yogurt, an organic ham sandwich, and a little bowl of organic non-GMO potato chips…and the little framed photo of his dad in Tokyo in 1957.
ME: “Are you looking for something?”
HE: “A gallon of vodka.”
So I promptly went to the fridge and got him about an ounce of the Smirnoff pre-mixed cocktail thingie that he loves. And he was delighted.
He also had great mental clarity yesterday, although, sadly, it was about his private nurse:
HE: “What’s going on with Annie? Is she still in the hospital?”
His daughter will be telling him the sad news later today, so I just said that I didn’t know. But I was so relieved that he remembered her name and that she’s been gone for a couple of weeks now.
So, overall, it was a great day but emotionally, I was still worn out.
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Okay.
Here’s this!
I was lying in bed this morning with my coffee. A few of the cats were on the bed with me, happily dozing. The sun was up and it was a beautiful Sunday morning.
Then I heard something clutter to the floor, so I sat up in bed and disturbed all the furry slumberers. But discovered that Calico had selected some reading materials for us from the bookshelf!!
Princess perusing our reading materials for today, selected by Calico.
The Stoned Apocalypse, an erotic classic about the 1960sby Marco Vassi, 1993 edition from Masquerade Books.
The Sick Bag Song by Nick Cave, hard cover, 2014 (and I was, you know, absolutely stunned that this book has been out for 12 years already. Christ. Where does the fucking time go??? But what a great book.)
And the navy blue book is a journal that I bought at the Kirtland Temple in 2018, when I was friends with 2 wonderful young Mormon missionaries. Two blonde girls, from out-of-State.
Original Mormon church from the 1830s, near Cleveland
The Kirtland Temple was incredible, btw. I am so glad I went there. But I forgot that I even had this journal. I opened it and on the inside cover, I’d written that Gus Van Sant, Sr. had died on Jan. 13, 2022. And I had also scribbled the Portuguese chorus from Nick Cave’s stunning song “Foi Na Cruz”.
In the actual journal, on the opening page, I’d written “January 2, 2020” but the entry itself is torn out.
And then the next page is from January 6, 2022, and it is one line from the poem “You, Dr. Martin” by Anne Sexton:
From breakfast to madness
And the rest of the journal that I’d forgotten I even had is totally blank!
And then as I was putting the books back on the bookshelf, right next to where the forgotten journal had been sitting was a composition theme notebook, so I pulled that out and discovered it was filled with all sorts of notes from plays and screenplays I was working on in 2014!!
Oh my god! So many incredible backstory notes for “Cleveland’s Burning” — a TV pilot that was in development forever with Bohemia Group Originals out in LA, until it came to a screeching halt with the scamdemic.
And then — I am not exagerrating (although I am misspelling “exaggerating”) — there were amazing scribbled notes for my in-progress play about the historical Jesus — “The Gospel According to Caiaphas”!! A play that is heavily influenced by Tom Stoppard’s 1967 masterpiece, “Rosencrantz & Guildenstern Are Dead.”
Crap, you know??? When am I going to get all this stuff done??
I’m guessing there are no amount of Pall Malls in the world that can give me actual TIME, but once I get the time, here’s hoping they will still be manufacturing Pall Malls.
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Well, okay.
Other interesting news– apparently my press release for the upcoming release of my forever-in-progress-but-finally-published novel The Curse of Our Profound Disorder, was also picked up by the Columbus Dispatch!!
Yes!! The main newspaper of the city of my rather un-illustrious birth to a 13-year-old Pall Mall-smoking girl!!
Wow. I was kinda stunned to see that. But I figured, you know, my feelings about Columbus and all the terrible things that happened to me there aside, I should probably send that newspaper a review copy…
What it looks like when I get an idea
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Okay.
I do have to get some stuff done around here before I head out to see the retired Minister and his wife and lovely cat.
So, here’s this!!
Bob Dylan!! Photographed by Bent Raj at Kronborg Castle in Elsinore, May 1st, 1966. Smoking! In black & white!
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And here’s this!!
2 of my intensely influential literary influences, together in Greenwich Village, NYC, in 1969!!
Patti Smith and Jim Carroll, on Minetta Street!!
(A street that became my stomping ground in 1982. There was a very small folk club there that’s gone now, but I used to hang out there all the time. In fact, the very first time I played “She Ain’t No Virgin At All” — alone with my guitar, I had just written the song the night before — was in that little club on Minetta Street. AND! In 1984, when I brought the demo of the song to the songwriting class I was taking with Jim Carroll at the West Side Y, and he played the tape in class, he said: “I have no advice for this. This song is perfect.” Below is that demo.)
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And here’s Keith smiling onstage, in a blue shirt!
And Keith onstage in 1975 (that Holy Year of Our Lord), in a mostly red shirt!
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And as luck would have it–
I was looking through all the movies I have in my Amazon Prime account last evening, and when I came upon “20,000 Days On Earth” — the Nick Cave film from, yes, 2014!! — which I’ve watched about 3 times, but it’s been a while since I last watched it, and I was thinking that I’d really like to watch that again…
Anyway, this still from one of my favorite scenes from that film was in my hashtag feed on Instagram this morning!
Methinks I’ll probably start watching it again tonight!
And here’s this!!
Nick Cave in the wind in Hamburg, 2024!!
Soon enough, it will be 2036, and I’ll see this photo again and I’ll think: Fuck, that was 12 years ago!! Where is the fucking time going??!!
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And with that, I think I will close and get stuff done before I have to head to town.
Enjoy your Sunday, gang, wherever you are in the world.
Thanks for visiting.
I love you guys. See ya!
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Let’s close with this!
I kid you not, gang, when this song came on the Oldies FM Radio Station on the retro boombox as I was making my bed this morning and was singing loudly along to the chorus, the cats came prancing in with their tails up high and they just seemed so frisky and happy. I think they really liked the feel of the chorus to this wonderful song!!
From 1984, by Jon Parr, “St. Elmo’s Fire (Man in Motion)”. Theme song from the movie, “St. Elmo’s Fire.” Enjoy, gang!! We sure did!!
“St. Elmo’s Fire (Man In Motion)”
Growin’ up You don’t see the writing on the wall Passin’ by Movin’ straight ahead, you knew it all
But maybe sometime if you feel the pain You’ll find you’re all alone Everything has changed
Play the game You know you can’t quit until it’s won Soldier on Only you can do what must be done
You know in some way You’re a lot like me You’re just a prisoner And you’re tryin’ to break free
I can see a new horizon Underneath the blazin’ sky I’ll be where the eagle’s flyin’ Higher and higher
Gonna be your man in motion All I need’s this pair of wheels Take me where the future’s lyin’ St. Elmo’s Fire, ooh
Burnin’ up Don’t know just how far that I can go (Just how far I go) Soon be home Only just a few miles down the road
I can make it I know I can You broke the boy in me But you won’t break the man
I can see a new horizon Underneath the blazin’ sky I’ll be where the eagle’s flyin’ Higher and higher
Gonna be your man in motion All I need’s this pair of wheels Take me where my future’s lyin’ St. Elmo’s Fire
I can climb the highest mountain Cross the wildest sea I can feel St. Elmo’s Fire Burnin’ in me, burnin’ in me
Just once in his life A man has his time And my time is now I’m comin’ alive
I can hear the music playin’ I can see the banners fly Feel like your man again And hope ridin’ high
Gonna be your man in motion All I need’s this pair of wheels Take me where my future’s lyin’ St. Elmo’s Fire
I can see a new horizon Underneath the blazin’ sky I’ll be where the eagle’s flyin’ Higher and higher
Gonna be your man in motion All I need’s this pair of wheels Take me where the future’s lyin’ St. Elmo’s Fire
I can climb the highest mountain Cross the wildest sea I can feel St. Elmo’s Fire burnin’ in me
Burnin’ Burnin’ in me I can feel it burnin’ Ooh, burnin’ inside of me
The weather is very sunny today but still really cold.
Nevertheless, my favorite 95-year-old Japanese man and I decided yesterday to go out for sashimi & sake today. Now that his private nurse is gone, he hasn’t been out for lunch since he and I went to the golf course last Friday.
When I’m around him, it’s easy to get my energy into a good place and keep things upbeat and happy, so I’m looking forward to going out with him today if he feels up to it. But I have to say, gang, that on a deep level, it feels to me like everything has changed.
The feeling of loss is like a blanket over everything in that house now. He knows something is missing but he doesn’t know what. He also knows that something big in his life has changed forever. He doesn’t remember his private nurse’s name, or who she was, or anything like that — he only knows that there was a girl who used to come see him but that she had to go to the hospital.
His daughter is going to tell him everything when she sees him in person, tomorrow.
Since his daughter has been texting me the last couple of days about her upcoming trip, I finally decided to just text her this morning and ask her if she’s planning to put her dad into a nursing home soon. I want to start getting the hanging flower baskets for his back deck, but it’s a lot of money to spend if he won’t be there much longer.
We’ll see what she replies. But I’m thinking that I already know what she’s going to say.
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On a happier front…
It looks like Rasha’s mom and her little baby will be staying here, to take care of Rasha and all the other cats, while I’m in NYC.
This is such a relief to me. I’ve been worried that all these cats now — including Rasha, who is still unwell — will be too much for my birth mom to really handle, even though she’s happy to do it. (My birth mom is 79 now.)
I feel so much better about this arrangement, though. Because the girl knows full well that Rasha is sick, since Rasha is her cat. It’s not going to be any sort of unhappy surprise for her.
And I also talked to a friend of mine yesterday about her and her husband staying here the last weekend of September, when I go to North Carolina for James Tabor’s conference thingie. They had offered to cat-sit before, so she’s thinking they probably will.
And by September, Rasha’s mom should be in her own place and able to take Rasha back. So that is potentially another huge relief.
Now all I want is for my birth mom to just come out here and visit for a few days, just to hang out again. To smoke and drink beer (her, not me).
What I would really like her to do at this point is answer her phone... she’s not a really big phone-answering kinda gal.
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Anyway.
So there’s good stuff going on and sad stuff going on. But meanwhile, here’s this!
If you’re too young to know that Patti Hansen used to be not only a top super model in the late 70s, early 80s, she also had a reputation for being a real party girl!! (To me, she always just seemed like a down-to-earth girl from Staten Island.) It did not surprise me a bit that Keith fell in love with her.
Anyway! Here they are in 1981, and Patti does not seem to be in any way intoxicated!!
And here’s this!
Keith smoking in 1972, maybe overdoing the guitar thing a little bit…
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And here’s this!
Nick Cave!
I’m thinking “just out of the shower” but not 100% sure:
I’m also thinking the reason my really cool Tom Petty zippo lighter has not arrived yet is because they sent it to Nick Cave!! (Not 100% sure on that, either, just thinkin’…)
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And that’s it.
I guess I better get moving here and plan on having a great day, come what may!
Enjoy your Saturday, wherever you are in the world.
Thanks for visiting.
I love you guys. See ya!
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Let’s close with this!
Something else that reminds me of the old New York…with the old skyline and everything.
“The Critic” is also free now on Tubi!! I loved this show. I’d forgotten all about it! (From 1994-95.) Enjoy, gang.
A grey Tuesday morning here in the Hinterlands. It’s supposed to get sunny later. We’ll see.
But my overall mood — I’m really battling an entire brain full of grey rain.
Yesterday afternoon, my wonderful day off came to a screeching halt when I got a phone call from Seattle. It was my favorite 95-year-old Japanese man’s daughter. She has never called me before — she rarely even texts me. She had awful news — and she was just as shocked by the news as I was.
Her dad’s private nurse — who has been with the family for 6 or 7 years now (she was the private nurse for his 2nd wife when she got ill), and who has had “health problems” for the last week or so, is dying.
As in — in hospice already, in a coma, with only a few days left to live.
I had no clue she had cancer. She’s about 20 years younger than me, and always seemed full of energy and life.
So, not only am I stunned that I will never see or speak to her again, but it also sounds like I’m going to be needed to pick up more responsibilities — time-wise — with my favorite 95-year-old Japanese man, and even though he matters so much to me, I am just not prepared to take on anything else. I’ve been aiming all my energy and attention at the writing projects.
We shall see.
I immediately called my supervisor at the Agency yesterday and asked her to please start lining up some additional caregivers for him. But since this is catching us all out of the blue, I might have to pick up some extra hours until the schedules can be arranged. I will find out more later today. But I have been praying, gang, that they find people right away, even though, obviously if they need me, I won’t say no.
The daughter is flying in from Seattle on Sunday, just for 2 days, and she hopes to take her dad to say goodbye to the nurse, if she is still alive by then.
I’m also worried that with the nurse gone now, and since she oversaw his meds, his doctor appointments, his trips to the barber, his lawncare service, etc., there’s even more reasons for the daughter to put him in a nursing home now.
I’m really trying to just sort of ignore everything I’m feeling and just see where everything falls. I think it’s called avoidance, but it’s almost the best I can do right now.
After all these years of watching it sort of float out there in limbo, it really makes me feel so happy to see people have access to it again.
If you missed my post yesterday, I believe the eBook edition is free to download all this week, with or without Kindle Unlimited.
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That’s really kind of it for my brain right now, so here are few “here’s this’s”.
The beautiful Charlie Watts at Villa Nellcote in 1971, during the recording of an album that certainly changed my 12-year-old life forever: Exile On Main St.
And I’m not kidding you when I say that I actually have the very same creamer that’s on the table there. It’s by Johnson Brothers/Wedgewood Group. Back then, the dishes were made in England. (I have the whole set, service for 8.) (I’m a dish-a-holic, if you’re new to the blog. I live alone and yet have more fine china than you can possibly imagine.)
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A very early shot of Keith! 1963:
And then a few years later… he switched out wearing the watch for a pair of handcuffs:
And here’s Keith with Robbie Shakespeare and Sly Dunbar, the greatest reggae rhythm duo that ever lived:
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Oh!
Here’s Cuddles McGee this morning, looking out the bedroom window:
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And some more wonderful old photos of Nick Cave.
A multi-patterned Nick in London, 1989:
I don’t know where or when or photo-by-whom, but I love this:
And this one is by Mike Owen:
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And that’s it for now.
My best friend Valerie in Brooklyn and I had a great phone chat yesterday — before the call from Seattle came in.
We are aiming to start the mini-podcast of “Marilyn’s Room” in mid-May. And we’re hoping to have 2 if not 3 episodes out there before I leave for NYC in mid-June. We might even try to do a mini-podcast from my hotel room in NYC, or someplace where we can be in the same room together while we tape it.
That’s the plan, anyway. (And wow, did she tell me a really fun story from the early 80s that she’d never told me about!!! It involved Debbie Harry!!)
So even though I’ve known Val since 1983, there are still great stories for me to hear, too!
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Okay.
I gotta put on my “I’m happy and here to help you” face and scoot to town to see my clients for today.
Have a terrific Tuesday, wherever you are in the world, gang.
Thanks for visiting. (And for buying my books. It means so much to me.)
I love you guys. See ya!
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Let’s close with this.
The awesome Debbie Harry, onstage with Blondie — 1978!
I’ve been having a really nice morning out here in the Hinterlands, and now my brain is actually putting in an appearance, too!
So it should be a nice day-off.
Yay!
Before I forget — it looks like the eBook edition of 1954 Powder Blue Pickup is totally FREE to download this week, with or without Kindle Unlimited. The link is HERE.
And that said — a continued thank you to all of you who have continued to purchase the book!! I just appreciate it so much.
I was actually glancing through the book last night for the first time in a few years, and I just want to say that I don’t remember writing all that filthy dirty stuff!!!
Actually, I do remember.
I remember every moment of it because the Muse was in high gear throughout the writing of that book. (I originally wrote it for Black Lotus Books, and they designed the cover, which I love. But the company soon closed down when they couldn’t get a distributor.)
Anyway, whenever I’m working on a novel, I always have an unlit, unfiltered cigarette in my mouth — usually a Pall Mall, because they are the closest thing to a Chesterfield that is still in circulation.
I haven’t smoked a lit cigarette in about 16 years. Luckily, I never had a real smoking habit. I was what was called a “social smoker” — I smoked when cocktails or wine were lurking about.
Anyway, I remember NOT smoking an entire pack of unfiltered Pall Malls while writing 1954 Powder Blue Pickup (whenever a cigarette got too soggy, I tossed it out) and I remember the Muse being a sort of palpable presence throughout that book. Which is the very best feeling when you’re trying to write something under a deadline.
All these years later, though — skimming through it last night. Man. Non-stop sexual shenanigans!!
ME (thinking): “Christ! Did I really go there??”
Yes, I really did.
What’s in those Pall Malls?!
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Okay!
Since it’s my day-off, I’ve got a load of laundry going. And at some point, I need to walk over to the dollar store and buy a can of coffee.
I usually buy hoity-toity fairtrade coffee from somewhere in Central America that “is characterized by balanced acidity, distinct tasting notes (chocolate, nutty, fruit), and a clean finish”, etc., etc.
But I ran out this morning. I guess my brain was elsewhere when I did the grocery shopping in town on Friday. And I absolutely need my coffee in the mornings, so I’m not going to get picky. (The dollar store actually has an interesting brand of coffee from Vietnam. It tastes, well, interesting.)
Other than that, despite living in a veritable cat sanctuary these days, I am hoping to have a totally relaxing day. And I really hope it includes finally completing that short story that STILL only needs about 400 more words… we shall see.
Not me! Since this gal appears to be smoking a lit pencil…
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This just in!!
Ronnie Wood has added a show in Barcelona on Saturday, September 12th! Buy tickets HERE!
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And this also just in!
“The Original Series Soundtrack for Jo Nesbo’s Detective Hole by Nick Cave & Warren Ellis is out now on digital and streaming services.”
I have already added it to my library on Amazon Music, but haven’t listened yet.
Even though the series is streaming now on Netflix, when I read stuff like this:
“We loved working on this adaptation – Harry Hole’s murky, morally complex world has been brought to life in all its darkly brutal glory, and it was an honour to work with the legendary Jo Nesbø.“ – Nick Cave
Methinks that I will likely be skipping the series itself. Just gonna listen to the music part.
“In Soviet-occupied Prague, a young female photographer embraces wild nights of rebellion, desire, and resistance to conformity. Through thousands of her raw and candid photographs and personal diaries, I’M NOT EVERYTHING I WANT TO BE traces her twenty-year quest for freedom and self-acceptance.”
I started watching it last night, but since it’s all in subtitles, my eyes kinda wore out, but I’m hoping to finish it tonight.
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And meanwhile–
Here’s this!!
A lovely photo of George Harrison, almost smiling in Los Angeles:
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And a few of Keith!!
Keith, with a guitar, smoking. I don’t know where or when:
Keith, with a guitar, not smoking, I don’t know where or when, but it probably only lasted a minute — the not-smoking part, I mean:
And Keith, not smoking with his dog, his Bentley, probably London, probably 1966, etc.:
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And last but certainly in no way least!!!
Nick Cave!! Smoking and multi-tasking onstage in Melbourne, 1990!!
And here’s this upbeat little ditty. Excuse me, here’s the above-mentioned song!
“The Carny”
And no-one saw the carny go And the weeks flew by Until they moved on the show Leaving his caravan behind It was parked out on the south east ridge And as the company crossed the bridge With the first rain filling the bone-dry river bed It shone, just so, upon the edge Away, away, we’re sad, they said
Dog-boy, atlas, half-man, the geeks, the hired hands There was not one among them that did not cast an eye behind In the hope that the carny would return to his own kind And the carny had a horse, all skin and bone A bow-backed nag, that he named “Sorrow” Now it is buried in a shallow grave In the then parched meadow
And the dwarves were given the task of digging the ditch And laying the nag’s carcass in the ground And boss Bellini, waving his smoking pistol around Saying, “The nag is dead meat” “We can’t afford to carry dead weight” The whole company standing about Not making a sound And turning to dwarves perched on the enclosure gate The boss says “Bury this lump of crow bait”
And then the rain came hammering down Everybody running for their wagons Tying all the canvas flaps down The mangy cats growling in their cages The bird-girl flapping and squawking around The whole valley reeking of wet beast Wet beast and rotten hay Freak and brute creation Packed up and on their way
The three dwarves peering from their wagon’s hind Moses says to Noah “We shoulda dugga deepa one” Their grizzled faces like dying moons Still dirty from the digging done And Charlie, the eldest of the three, said “I guess the carny ain’t gonna show” And they were silent for a spell Wishing they’d done a better job of burying Sorrow
And as the company passed from the valley Into higher ground The rain beat on the ridge and on the meadow And on the mound Until nothing was left, nothing at all Except the body of Sorrow That rose in time To float upon the surface of the eaten soil
And a murder of crows did circle round First one, then the others flapping blackly down And the carny’s van still sat upon the edge Tilting slowly as the firm ground turned to sludge And the rain it hammered down And no-one saw the carny go I say it’s funny how things go
c – 1986 – Nick Cave
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And I believe that is it!
Have a great Monday, wherever you are in the world!!
Thanks for visiting.
I love you guys. See ya!
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I leave you with this!
Late-night listening music!!
I just love this song, gang.
From Tom Petty’s first solo album, Full Moon Fever — which recently turned 37 years old!!
“A Face in the Crowd,” 1989. The original official video. Enjoy, gang.
“A Face In The Crowd”
Before all of this ever went down In another place, another town
You were just a face in the crowd You were just a face in the crowd Out in the street, walking around A face in the crowd
Out of a dream, out of the sky Into my heart, into my life
And you were just a face in the crowd You were just a face in the crowd Out in the street, thinking out loud A face in the crowd
Out of a dream, out of the sky Into my heart, into my life
And you were just a face in the crowd You were just a face in the crowd Out in the street, walking around A face in the crowd
A face in the crowd A face in the crowd A face in the crowd
It’s not raining here, but it’s really grey and cool, and since it’s Sunday, it makes me feel like just being lazy all day.
Here were some of us being lazy about an hour ago — Freddie and Calico snuggling against my legs, on the bed; Cuddles McGee on the corner of my desk:
And here’s a couple of the things we were listening to while I had my coffee (in bed):
These hymns startled the cats because usually they prefer rock & roll…. so I switched back over to rock & roll!
Anyway.
The lawncare guy has already been here and my lawn looks great!! (He got here at 8:15AM. I’m curious if my neighbors appreciated that…)
And my Sunday shift with the retired Minister and his lovely wife and cat starts earlier now, so I don’t really have time to just hang out and do nothing…
So I’m up, and dressed (after being awake for 5 hours) and now here I am.
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If you saw my post from late yesterday afternoon, you know that yesterday was a really great day.
My trip to NYC is set. And my books are selling on Amazon!!
Plus, my shift with my favorite 95-year-old Japanese man was just terrific. About 5 minutes after I got there yesterday, he was up and dressed — had his wooden leg on, his hearing aides in, his glasses on, his teeth in and he had even made his bed. He was still beaming and just so happy from our trip to the golf course on Friday. He made his way into the kitchen and said: ‘Thank you so much for that beautiful trip yesterday!”
He brought it up many times during my shift. It had made him so happy.
I find it so interesting, how he can remember our trips there so well, when he has almost no short term memory. Clearly, when he’s completely engaged in something, his mind connects. (He always remembers when we go out for sashimi & sake, too. And he remembers that I get off the freeway whenever possible and take the backroads, which are so beautiful. He always says: “You are the only one who takes me on this road. I love this road.” I love it, too.)
Anyway. We had another really great afternoon yesterday, just hanging out and chatting in his living room. He was thoroughly engaged.
Several times during the afternoon, he sang me the chorus of “You Are My Sunshine.” (So, yes — the thought of this man stuck a nursing home with no visitors, just waiting to die, breaks my heart. I have not heard anything more from his daughter, but she communicates through the private nurse, who has been really sick this past week.)
Obviously, I’m hoping his daughter will change her mind. But if he does get put away, I can’t imagine not visiting him all the time. And where I would find the time to do that, who knows…
Some neighbors are taking him to a guitar concert tonight in Granville. His neighbors all adore him, too. He is going to love that concert.
Just some random Japanese guy, 72 years ago…
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Since I get home earlier now on Sundays, this evening I’m planning on watching this on Metrograph:
I’m Not Everything I Want to Be (Directed by Klára Tasovská, 90- mins, 2024):
“Oft referred to as the Nan Goldin of Czechoslovakia, Libuše Jarcovjáková chronicled after-dark Prague in the 1970s and ’80s, her photographs of let-it-all-hang-out gay clubs, factory hands working the third shift, and clandestine parties giving a picture of communist-era Czechoslovakia very different from the official one. Klára Tasovská’s candid and compelling documentary provides Jarcovjáková with a platform to tell her story: that of one woman’s tireless search for liberation in an era of state repression.”
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And a slight, though none-the-less cryptic update regarding the streamer channel, BET+, closing down in June — a few of their shows have moved over to Paramount+, and Sandra will be shooting another episode of “The Miss Pat Show” with them in late June — and having a “discussion” with a couple of the producers who have seen our TV proposal and who also moved over to Paramount+….
So I’m extremely, well, interested.
However, this also means that when I’m in NYC in mid-June, I will be able to focus on just hangin’ out in NYC and seeing old friends (we’ll be working on the play later in the summer):
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Okay!
Here’s this!
A triple-play!! And of course, it’s from Phyllis Stein!
Patti, Bob –and Keith!! At the Bitter End in Greenwich Village, 1975!! (And I played on that same stage in the early 1980s, gang. What a history that stage had!! It was so cool.)
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This next one was very long but very informative and had a few photos. But here is the main gist:
Gram Parsons at Harvard in 1965:
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Which, of course, leads to Keith!
I liked these photos because they were just sort of a little strange — Keith, staring at something:
And Keith and Mick backstage in 1972 — on the phone??
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And I loved these!
Two photos of Nick Cave and Blixa Bargeld in Japan in November, 1985. Photos by Midori Tsukagoshi:
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And I believe that is it for now!
I’m going to do a little yoga and then get ready for my drive to town!
Have a great Sunday, wherever you are in the world.
Thanks for visiting.
I love you guys. See ya!
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This is what the cats insisted on listening to after the Sunday-hymn-singing was over!!
A few great ones by The Kinks!
I have narrowed it down to the 2 that they seemed to like best!! (And it turned out they were also long-time favorites of mine!)
From 1981, “Better Things,” from the album, Give the People What They Want:
“Better Things”
Here’s wishing you the bluest sky And hoping something better comes tomorrow Hoping all the verses rhyme And the very best of choruses to Follow all the doubt and sadness I know that better things are on the way
Here’s hoping all the days ahead Won’t be as bitter as the ones behind you Be an optimist instead And somehow happiness will find you Forget what happened yesterday I know that better things are on the way
It’s really good to see you rocking out and having fun Living like you just begun Accept your life and what it brings I hope tomorrow you’ll find better things I know tomorrow you’ll find better things
Here’s wishing you the bluest sky And hoping something better comes tomorrow Hoping all the verses rhyme And the very best of choruses to Follow all the doubt and sadness I know that better things are on the way
I know you’ve got a lot of good things happening up ahead The past is gone, it’s all been said So here’s to what the future brings I know tomorrow you’ll find better things I know tomorrow you’ll find better things I hope tomorrow you’ll find better things I know tomorrow you’ll find better things
c – 1981 – Ray Davies
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And from 1983, “Come Dancing,” from the album, State of Confusion. Enjoy, gang!!
“Come Dancing”
They put a parking lot on a piece of land Where the supermarket used to stand Before that they put up a bowling alley On the site that used to be the local Palais That’s where the big bands used to come and play My sister went there on a Saturday
Come dancing All her boyfriends used to come and call Why not come dancing? It’s only natural
Another Saturday, another date She would be ready but she’s always make them wait In the hallway in anticipation He didn’t know the night would end up in frustration He’d end up blowing all his wages for the week All for a cuddle and a peck on the cheek
Come dancing That’s how they did it when I was just a kid And when they said come dancing My sister always did
My sister should have come in at midnight And my mum would always sit up and wait It always ended up in a big row When my sister used to get home late
Out of my window I can see them in the moonlight Two silhouettes saying goodnight by the garden gate
The day they knocked down the Palais My sister stood and cried The day they knocked down the Palais Part of my childhood died, just died
Now I’m grown up and playing in a band And there’s a car park where the Palais used to stand My sister’s married and she lives on an estate Her daughters go out, now it’s her turn to wait She knows they get away with things she never could But if I asked her I wonder if she would
Come dancing Come on, sister, have yourself a ball Don’t be afraid to come dancing It’s only natural
Come dancing Just like the Palais on a Saturday And all her friends will come dancing Where the big bands used to play
Marilyn's Room 