One Year/Year One

My life started one year ago today.

That was the day I called M, my therapist, and said out loud what I've always known:

I'm a girl. And I want to transition.

And a year later, I'm on my way.

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No Static At All

Get ready!

For Stacks of Wax!

For Platters That Matter!

For The Top of the Pops!

For the songs making the tooth on the one-armed tone cobra ache because they're Just! So! Sweet!!!

...

Uh.. sorry. Channeling my inner Top 40 DJ (circa 1957) there... (I know, I know... who hasn't, right?)

Anyway, pull your chair up to the virtual Victrola, kids - it's time to give a listen to the tunes tickling the ear of Cass currently!

(Sorry again. No more patter. I promise...)

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Peter Cottontail is back...

... and he's pissed off!

I, for one, blame this entirely on Elmer Fudd. For God's sake, it's "rabbit" with an "r," man!

***

On a more serious note, here's the beautiful title track to Patti Smith's classic 1978 album, Easter:

And here's "Because The Night," which (amazingly) was a Top Twenty hit that year:

And a jaw-dropping live version with the original lyrics from the song's co-author, Bruce Springsteen. This is from his justifiably legendary 1978 Darkness on the Edge of Town tour. (As you've probably guessed, this is one of my all-time favorite albums.) Springsteen felt it didn't fit on Darkness On The Edge of Town, so he gave it to Patti, who re-worked some of lyrics and made it her own:

Incidentally, he also gave away "Fire," which was a well-deserved #2 hit for the Pointer Sisters in 1979. Again, he felt it didn't work on Darkness. (Imagine have songs of that quality and *giving* them away?!? Wow...)

While they do a stellar job, Robert Gordon's version is one of my favorite Bruce covers. Of course, it helps when you have a ringer like Link Wray on guitar, right? :c)

Happy Easter, everyone!

Hello There, Ladies and Gentlemen! (Are You Ready to Rock?)

For the past few weeks, I've been going for a walk after getting out of work. I typically go to the gym, but because my ribs are still on the mend, that isn't an option at the moment.

Fortunately, the weather has been terrific for walking, and it doesn't hurt too much unless I overdo it. (Who, me?) Shivering and broken ribs are *not* a good combination, as I may have mentioned before.

One nice, unanticipated bonus of these extended sojourns (besides not going stir-crazy)? I'm listening to albums on my iPod that I all too often overlook in favor of the newest additions to my ever-growing collection.

Case in point? Today I listened to the first three Cheap Trick albums in a row, which they released, incredibly, in a 16-month burst of power pop perfection from early 1977 to spring 1978. Good Lord, what an amazing run of albums! Their self-titled debut and Heaven Tonight - *especially* Heaven Tonight - are as good as it gets. (Incidentally, their two most recent albums are the equal of anything they've put out since this amazing first salvo, and that's saying something.)

Not only were they the first band I ever saw live (I won't say when, since it makes me sigh when I remember how long ago it was!), but I was fortunate enough to see them perform each of these albums in their entirety, one each night, during a three night stand about ten years ago. The songs still sound great, and they're still a smoking hot live band. See the clips below for a taste of what they were like back in the day - and what they're like now.

So, a sunny, early spring afternoon, mending ribs, a long, energizing walk to think about how my new job will let me save money for the big changes ahead, and a killer soundtrack... an afternoon well spent, I'd say!

***

From Cheap Trick's first TV appearance, in early 1978:

And here they are on Conan O'Brien in 2011, doing an amazing version of "Dream Police" - with a string section! You can see why I still adore this band.

A Happy Pre-Easter to one and all!

More Bits and Pieces

Just a roundup of the goings-on the past few weeks here in Cass's corner of the world. It has been/will be pretty frantic for the next month or so. But a good frantic. :c)

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