I'm going to see Duran Duran tonight

I took these photos at the last Duran Duran concert that I went to at the Wellmont Theater in Montclair, N.J. on December 14, 2008. I was lucky enough to be close to the stage because it was general admission (is that the right term?) and I got there 3 hours early so I was 3 rows from it. I did use a bit of zoom which isn't that great on my camera. I kind of went bonkers with the photo taking and the battery ran out before the last 5 songs. I had never taken a camera to a concert before because I prefer to focus on the music so I don't know what possesed me to do so this time - never again.

Well, tonight my brother and I will not be this close to the stage. We are going to Madison Square Garden in NYC and our seats are on the first level but almost directly across from it towards the left which should be okay. I've never been that far down at a concert - it's normally nosebleed seats for us. I'm really excited but also nervous about this event. I worry that the NJT trains will be delayed which seems to be happening alot lately but I'm praying that this won't be the case. I hope that we will be able to get a spot in the parking lot at the station too. I will try not to let my anxieties spoil the evening though.

I read a review and set list from their Chicago show and they did 7 songs from the new album and 13 hits. No Girls on Film but it's alright if they skip it as long as they do Planet Earth which I always liked better than that anyhow. My brother might be disappointed though. I hope that they do Is There Something I Should Know and Careless Memories as they did for that show. My brother seems to like Wild Boys but I don't really care for that and even sometimes skip over it on the CD. I will be doing a post about our concert experience soon. I wish that I could go to the Atlantic City show too but after all I spent at the US Open this year that is definitely not in the budget plus I'm kind of scared to go there. It's easier going into the city for us.

My K-tel Albums

I had the K-tel album Wings of Sound which I got as a gift in 1980. I played it on my record player alot. I remember some of the songs on it - Rock With You - Michael Jackson, This Is It - Kenny Loggins, Escape (The Pina Colada Song) and Gold. I should've kept it despite the fact that it started skipping eventually. I got these 3 albums and the 2 tapes in the late 80's and early 90's at flea markets and a record exchange store. I actually had the Soundwaves one on an 8 Track that my friend got me for Christmas in 1980 or 1981. I like these and a few other songs on it - Upside Down - Diana Ross, Steal Away - Robbie Dupree and Let Me Love You Tonight - Pure Prarie League.

I went to the Wikipedia site to find out some info on this company. Their first album was 25 Great Country Artists Sing Their Original Hits in 1966. They were started in Winnepeg, Manitoba and then in the U.S. in Plymouth, MN and also in the UK and Germany. In 1984 the US division filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. They had compilation series such as Super Hits, The Number One Hits and Dynamic Hits. I can't help laughing at the titles of some of their albums. One called Power Hits had a Carpenters song Yesterday Once More on it. I used to like that song. Summer Crusin' had 1950s music.

My favourite songs on Hit Express are Do You Believe in Love - Huey Lewis and the News and Don't You Want Me - Human League ; from Blast Off - Hurts So Good - John Cougar. I used to like more of the songs on each of these albums and tapes but I guess I kind of lost interest in them after a while. I'd love to see which other albums that this company had. A disco one called Night Moves from 1979 was mentioned. Maybe I can look into that somewhere on the internet.

Favourite 80's songs - Part 4

1. Is There Something I Should Know? - Duran Duran

2. It's Still Rock and Roll to Me - Billy Joel

3. Easy Lover - Phil Collins and Phillip Bailey

4. The Living Years - Mike + The Mechanics

5. Take On Me - a-ha

6. Don't Dream It's Over - Crowded House

7. The Promise - When In Rome

8. True - Spandau Ballet

9. It's My Life - Talk, Talk

10. Don't Talk to Strangers - Rick Springfield

11. And We Danced - The Hooters

12. Freezeframe - J. Geils Band

13. How Soon Is Now - The Smiths

14. Let's Dance - David Bowie

15. In My House - Mary Jane Girls

16. Throwing It All Away - Genesis

17. Always Something There To Remind Me- Naked Eyes

18. Something About You - Glass Tiger

19. Who Can It Be Now - Men at Work

20. Everybody Wants to Rule The World - Tears for Fears

Favourite 80's Songs Part 3

1. Forget Me Nots - Patrice Rushen
2. Cherish - Kool & The Gang
3. Planet Earth - Duran Duran
4. Heat of the Moment - Asia
5. Photograph - Def Leppard
6. How 'Bout Us - Champagne
7. Turn Your Love Around - George Benson
8. No Reply At All - Genesis
9. Hold Me Now - Thompson Twins
10. No One Is To Blame - Howard Jones
11. Stuck On You - Lionel Richie
12. I Can't Go For That (No Can Do) - Hall & Oates
13. Lights - Journey
14. The Power of Love - Huey Lewis and the News
15. Addicted to Love - Robert Palmer
16. West End Girls - Pet Shop Boys
17. Hurts So Good - John Mellencamp
18. Bad Medicine - Bon Jovi
19. If You Leave - OMD
20. Roseanna - Toto

Favourite 80's Songs Part 2

I haven't been in the mood for the rock and new wave music lately. I'm enjoying the mellow and soft stuff mostly.

1. Let Me Love You Tonight - Pure Prarie League
2. Private Eyes - Hall & Oates
3. Cool Night - Paul Davis
4. One Hundred Ways - James Ingram
5. Slow Hand - Pointer Sisters
6. Joanna - Kool & The Gang
7. Try Again - Champaign
8. We've Got Tonight - Kenny Rogers and Sheena Easton
9. Do You Believe In Love - Huey Lewis and the News
10. Tonight I Celebrate My Love - Peabo Bryson and Roberta Flack
11. Key Largo - Bertie Higgins
12. Steal Away - Robbie Dupree
13. Lookin' For Love - Johnny Lee
14. What's Forever For - Michael Martin Murphey
15. Can't We Try - Dan Hill and Vonda Sheppard
16. With You I'm Born Again - Billy Preston and Syreeta
17. Give Me The Night - George Benson
18. Please Don't Go - KC & The Sunshine Band
19. It's Gonna Take A Miracle - Deniece Williams
20. Just The Two of Us - Grover Washington Jr.

YouTube is my jukebox

I have a very long wish list of CDs but because of going overboard on buying clothes, jewelry and other stuff I couldn't stick with my plan of buying 1 or 2 a month. I don't know how long it will be before I can fit CDs back in my budget but for now I'll just have use YouTube as my Jukebox. I really had not thought about doing this until a few days ago. I didn't even know that you can save stuff in a favourites section. I have 32 songs in it now.

I have figured out how to get songs at Amazon.com and have about 12 of them only when I tried figuring out how to put them on a disc I was getting confused. I got them on there but the disc only plays on the computer. Not sure what I did wrong. Maybe part of it was that I used the wrong kind of disc. Well, even getting these MP3s will have to be put on hold too.

I enjoyed seeing some of the live performances and even the cheesy videos of the songs that I have saved so far. I never really watched MTV. I haven't seen that many videos in my life. Yesterday it was Kool & the Gang - Joanna and Cherish also. Some of the songs just have slideshows which is okay. The one for Wildfire was nice - pretty horses. I'm looking forward to saving more songs.

My Only Nightclub Experience

I never was that interested in going to a nightclub, but last year a small part of me did want to see what it was like and I had an oppurtunity to go to one in NYC . There was a get together of DD fans that I read about at a fan site and I thought that it might be fun. I did almost chicken out though because of my social anxiety and the fear of going into the city alone.

I had only been to the downtown area once before with a boyfriend in the early 90s. I went to a site to get directions. I took the train into Penn Station. The subway line that I was supposed to take was closed so I had to overcome my fears and ask someone what to do. The lady was very nice. I thought that I'd have trouble finding the club but I didn't. I was there like an hour early so I went to McDonald's and had some juice.

I met some nice people at the party only I'm bad with names so I forget most of theirs except for Stacey and Paula because I used to have friends with those names. I remember them in other ways- kitty cat girl, nice necklace girl, Florida girl and DC girl. Everybody was nice but I was still feeling very nervous.

The music was very loud. It was mostly 1980s music. I heard about 12 Duran Duran songs. It was hard talking to people over that noise and it was hurting my ears. I felt like I ran out of gas in the socializing department after about 2 hours. I sat down on the comfy bench like chairs built against the wall and wrote in my journal. Part of me wanted to rejoin the party but I was feeling tired and like an outsider. Everybody was drinking alcohol which I don't like to do. After about an hour I decided that I should just leave. I didn't even say goodbye to anybody.

I left the club and was crying a little. Part of me wanted to go back inside. The bouncer saw that I was upset and asked me if I was okay. I told him how I was feeling. He said some things that made me feel a little better, like if you do decide to go back inside to take off that ridiculous rain hat. I wanted to catch the 12:40 train- the next one wouldn't be until like 4 am.

I guess that clubs are not my scene. Maybe it would have been better if I had never even gone but then again, I might have regretted that decision.

Some Favourite 80's Songs

1. Mad World - Tears For Fears
2. Rio - Duran Duran
3. It's A Sin - Pet Shop Boys
4. Invisible Touch - Genesis
5. The Prisoner - Howard Jones
6. You Make My Dreams Come True - Hall and Oates
7. Raspberry Beret - Prince
8. Careless Whispers - Wham!
9. Major Tom(Coming Home) - Peter Schilling
10. Tainted Love - Soft Cell
11. Lay Your Hands on Me - Thompson Twins
12. The Look of Love - ABC
13. Human - Human League
14. Seperate Ways - Journey
15. Some Like it Hot - The Power Station
16. Take It On The Run - REO Speedwagon
17. Pressure - Billy Joel
18. Our House - Madness
19. White Wedding - Billy Idol
20. You Give Love A Bad Name - Bon Jovi
21. Jack and Diane - Mellencamp
22. Heart of Glass - Blondie

Free Tickets

Bon Jovi added a fourth show to Giants Stadium. It was so tempting to go back into credit card debt for this but I have to be a good girl. If the state government were still giving the homestead rebate checks I would be able to afford this. I don't even want to get into how angry I am about that.

WPLJ is giving away free tickets to that show today but I really don't feel like trying for this. I get so anxious making phone calls plus I would have a better chance of being struck by lightning than winning anyhow. I wasn't always this afraid to make such a call though and did come very close to winning tickets to events.

The first time was back in the early 90s when they were giving away tickets to the Goldeneye Premiere in NYC. I was the right number caller and thought for sure that I knew the answer to the trivia question. I had just read an article about the Bond films in the paper that morning. Part of me was thinking that I should recheck this while I was waiting but my bossy idiot side wouldn't let me and of course I wound up giving the wrong answer. I have such a craptastic memory too. I never did see the first half hour of Goldfinger but even if I had I probably would've forgotten. So much for getting to see Pierce Brosnan and other stars in person.

I tried winning Bon Jovi tickets one day a few years ago but did not hear that there was also a trivia question that had to be answered until I was on the phone. The girl asked me what was the name of the character that Jon played on Sex and the City, or was it Ally McBeal? Whatever- I had no idea. I don't watch either show and not even him being a guest star made me interested in seeing them. It just figures- I'm finally the right number caller but there just had to be a question along with this.

I can't remember if it was 2005 or 2006 that I tried to win Bon Jovi tickets for the concert that was going to be on December 21, the date of my birth. That would have been a nice present. I actually got to talk to the dj and my request was on the air. I was a nervous wreck and sounded like such a doofus. I requested Invisible Touch by Genesis. Naturally I did not win the All Request Lunch Hour contest either. I'm not lucky at anything.

I was one away from winning Hall and Oates tickets once. I didn't even try to call for Duran Duran ones the time that you had to name all the members of the group in alphabetical order. I'm sure that the devoted fans can easily do this. I was sitting there writing the names down and by the time I finished someone had probably already won. Another time the dj played clips of 5 of their songs and you had to say the names twice. I knew them but was driving at the time and didn't have a cell phone so I wouldn't even have been able to pull over to the side of the road to call.

I only ever tried 5 or 6 times to win DD tickets, it was many more than that for Bon Jovi. Guess that I wasn't as scared then. My cousin Mary was lucky and won tickets to a country music concert with a few performers including Travis Tritt and Billy Ray Cyrus. She was in the second row. I went through a country music phase in the 90s. I liked Travis back then so I was a little jealous.

8- Tracks

I was thinking about the 8-Tracks that my family and I used to have. We didn't have that many, maybe 10. Doris Day's Greatest Hits, The Village People, Dolly Parton's Heartbreaker, Englebert Humperdinck, Shenandoha, Oklahoma, and a goofy one with CB related songs on it. There were also 2 Christmas music mix ones- I liked Nat King Cole's Mrs Santa Claus on the one. My friend got me a K-Tel Soundwaves with hits from 1980 on it. I had a couple of K-Tel records too.

My father put an 8-Track player in our 1976 Chevy Malibu station wagon. We thought it was so cool to have this in our car at the time. Our family friends also had one in their car. I remember listening to Billy Joel in their car once and also on the stereo in their home. We had a big stereo that played records and 8-tracks.

I see 8-tracks at flea markets sometimes and laugh a little inside. Am I having a false memory or was there a clicking sound right during the middle of some of the songs and it switched over to the next section? I keep meaning to look up on the internet when 8-tracks first came out and when they offically died. Same with cassette tapes. I still have plenty of those but no 8-tracks, didn't even keep those for nostalgic purposes.

Music Dream

January 15,2003
I had a weird dream with music stars in it. It was one of those autograph signing events in a hotel and they each had their own rooms. The ticket price was high. Some of the money was for charities. Mom, Mark and I won the tickets. You had to also pay for the autographs. I didn't read about or hear about all the guests so some of them were a suprise when I saw them. Some of the stars were actually performing their songs. REO Speedwagon was in one room and did Can't Fight This Feeling. Mark and Mom went off together. I was feeling overwhelmed and anxious. I wanted to find Mark to tell him that a Def Leppard guy was there. It was the lead singer, Joe Elliot. John Taylor from Duran Duran was in the next room. I just looked at him for a few seconds and felt kind of panicky so I had to get out of there. When I was in the hallway I bumped into someone and said sorry. I turned around and saw that it was John. How embarrasing. There were alot of stars at this event but the only ones that I remember were these and Hall&Oates,Lionel Richie and Emmylou Harris.

There was one other group that stood out in this dream. I was walking around looking for my brother when I heard the Bon Jovi song Lay Your Hands on Me. At first I thought it was on the stereo system but when I walked past the one room I actually saw that group. I felt like I was going to have an anxiety attack. I looked at them for a minute but then turned away and just listened. After the song someone started talking to me. It was the keyboard guy David.Don't remember what we talked about but he said that he'd like to meet up with me later so we set up a place for this. I found mom and Mark. He didn't seem overly thrilled when I told him about Def Leppard guy.They wanted to go home. The alarm went off then so it ended like this. Why would David even want to talk to me more? Wish that I hadn't been afraid to look at and talk to John. I was also feeling uncomfortable looking at Jon Bon Jovi.

my music 2

Certain songs or albums bring back chilhood memories. My mom and I used to listen to her albums of musicals and watched the movies too. Gypsy, Bye Bye Birdie, Gigi, Oklahoma,South Pacific, The Sound of Music, The Music Man . I don't really like musicals anymore though. Mom said that when I was a little girl that I sometimes danced around to a song from Gypsy-how embarrasing- and also to the theme of I Dream of Jeannie.

I remember listening to Lionel Richie's Can't Slow Down tape during the car ride to the mall with my cousin Mary and Gene David's girlfriend Sue. We were going to see the movie Star Trek 3 there. During the ride to upstate NY in the late 80's I had Mellencamp's Scarecrow on my walkman. Mark had his Styx tape Kilroy Was Here tape on during the drive back from AC. Dad asked "what is this?' Don't think that he cared for it. He's mostly into classical music. Not such positive memories of my high school prom themes because I didn't have a boyfriend and was set up with friends of a friend. Never Say Goodbye for senior and One More Night for junior.

Whenever I hear Billy Idol's Eyes Without a Face I think of Great Adventure because this was playing during one of the rides- I think it was called the Matterhorn. That was in the early 80's. My friends Suzy, Jenny and brother Mark were disco dancing to Donna Summer in the basement in the late 70's. It was fun until Suzy fell and hit her head on the coffee table. A Blondie record was playing at Kathy's birthday/slumber party. When I hear The Tide Is High I sometimes think of this. Karen brought her Off the Wall album to school one day. Cindy gave me John Cougar- American Fool as a secret santa gift. That's what got me into Mellencamp's music.

I remember my parent's being very upset when they heard on the radio that Elvis had died. Didn't know much about him then other than I enjoyed his Christmas album. I loved most of my parent's Christmas albums and still do. The classics are the best. Bing Crosby, Frank Sinatra, Nat King Cole, Rosemary Clooney, Doris Day, Dean Martin and others.

We could've seen Rosemary Clooney at the Regis and Kathie Lee show in the late 80's but mom was in the hospital and I was afraid to go into the city alone. That's a shame because she is mom's favourite girl singer. We did go to that show a few other times but I don't remember much about this- my brother remembers more than me. The day that mom and I went Phil Collins was there. We had 2 extra tickets and these 2 girls had driven from Ohio,I think. They were so greatful to us. He did a bit of In The Air Tonight on the drums. Mom took pictures of him for me. Petula Clark was a guest the day that Mark and I went. Mom was in the hospital again. The audience sang part of Downtown. My memory of the musical guests is fine. Mark said that Gary Coleman was there the time that Mom, Dad , Mark and I were there in the mid 80's. Dad made me get Regis' autograph even though I really didn't want it and he took a picture of me and Regis together. How embarrasing. Mom, Mark , our friend Stacey and her mom Barbara and I went there once. The only thing that I remember about that was that the producer Gelman made me move over a seat and I wouldv'e won the prize if I had been in that seat. Still mad about that. Mark said that the guest was Dom DeLouise and that Stacey was wishing it had been his son Peter because she liked 21 Jump Street. I guess that music is significant to me which is why that part sticks in my brain more than other things.

I still have the list of the top 95 songs from 1983 from WPLJ and hadn't looked at it for a very long time and got a kick out of it when I did. Two by my favourite group-Hungry Like the Wolf and Is There Something I Should Know. I don't even really remember them from before 1993. I do remember the one day on the playground in 82 or 83 when some of my classmates were talking about them and saying which one was their favourite and I was laughing on the inside and wondering why they wer going so ga ga over Duran Duran but now I can understand why and kind of wish that I had been into them back then too. I could go on and on about this topic but I'll save it for another day.

My music

My memory has been pretty craptastic lately yet I can remember the 45s that I had as a kid, which was only about 10. Gloria, Hungry Like The Wolf, Africa,On The Wings of Love, Shadows of the Night, Goody Two Shoes, Mickey, Do You Really Want To Hurt Me.

I still have some records but not many. I foolishly got rid of alot of my music stuff in the late 90's. Mom has some Rosemary Clooney 78s. I like some of my parent's music like Elvis, Sinatra , Nat King Cole and Doris Day. I am ashamed to admit some of the music that I like though but I might as well try to get over that. Bon Jovi and Duran Duran are my favourites. I didn't really get into them until late though-2000 for Bon Jovi and 1993 for Duran Duran but only a little then. Mostly into country music in the 90's so mainly the past 4 years for them. I could go on and on about this subject but I'll save it for the future. this blogging stuff is new to me. Seems like fun. Don't know if anyone will be interested in what I have to say but might as well try to connect with others. I would like to post my concert experiences also.

I didn't really get into going to concerts until 2000. My brother and I did go to 3 in the early 90's-Rod Stewart,Styx, and John Denver. Should I be ashamed to admit to the latter? Whatever. Hopefully I will be going to a Duran Duran concert in December. My brother thinks that I've only been to 3 Bon Jovi concerts but it was really 7. I don't admit this to him because he is always teasing me about JBJ . He is pretty immature-still teases me about my childhood crush Don Mattingly . Well, time to watch CSI-NY. More to come soon.