Tuesday, September 20, 2011
Friday, August 19, 2011
SUZI QUATRO - "In The Spotlight" (Cherry Red) BRED 511
Five years since the release of her comeback album "Back To The Drive", Suzi Quatro delivers one of her most satisfying albums yet on the indie label Cherry Red Records, who recently re-released some of her early 70's albums.
And indeed she goes back to her roots of straight, anthemic, no frills radio-killing rock on this album. Produced by Mike Chapman, this album is sure to hook the kids into her universe as well as take the older listeners back to a time when music could grab you by the balls and brain alike and get you rocking out on the dancefloor.
Opening with the stompy rocker "A Girl Like Me", it has a killer chorus reminiscent of Robert Palmer's "Bad Case Of Loving You" and big dirty guitar work courtesy of one of Chapman's more recent proteges Natalie Allison.
"Whatever Love Is" is a more 80's soft rock affair with great introspective lyrics, and "Spotlight" follows on in the adult orientated rock ballad vein with dreamy synths, a lighter-waving chorus and a melody which owes a bit to Max Merrit & The Meteors 1976 smash hit "Slipping Away".
Just when you think that this album is going to be a solely adults music affair, the pace changes to show that Quatro has been keeping up with some of the more recent girl pop trends. She covers Goldfrapp's "Strict Machine" in a great glam boogie style and cheekily weaves a "Can the Can honey" line towards the end, and the momentum is made even better with the cover of Rihanna's "Breaking Dishes" which is an appealing mix of 70's rock combined with the R&B sensibilities of the original.
The next track is my personal favourite from the album "Rosie Rose", as it was the first track that I heard from the album a couple of years ago on Mike Chapman's MySpace website. Opening with some chinking clicky guitar scrubs, she yells "Do you love me?!", whilst the chords take on the same progression of Nirvana's "Smells Like Teen Spirit" to a more funky shuffly beat. Great vocals which are amongst her most aggressive.
"Hurt With You" is a reggae affair about an Australian fan whom she is particularly close to, and the only track to use brass. Almost sounds like the sequel to her 1978 hit "The Race Is On". The next two tracks "Hot Kill" and "Turn Into" take a bit of time to get used to, but the album quickly picks up again with a furiously fast jiving cover of "Hard Headed Woman" which finishes off the album nicely.
For Australian fans, the closing track is one of Quatro's finest ballads ever and her most poignant. "Singing With Angels" is an acoustic guitar affair about her undying love for Elvis Presley featuring his backing singers The Jordinaires doing the harmony and backing vocals. I felt a lump in my throat when she performed this song at Twin Towns Services Club in 2009 with her horn section doing the harmonies, I'm pretty sure that Elvis will be smiling upon her if he can hear this song in the heavens.
This album definitely shows that Suzi still has what it takes to be every rock fan's girl, and even at the age of 61 she shows no signs of slowing down. Once you're in the spotlight, everyone wants to see you at your best.
And indeed she goes back to her roots of straight, anthemic, no frills radio-killing rock on this album. Produced by Mike Chapman, this album is sure to hook the kids into her universe as well as take the older listeners back to a time when music could grab you by the balls and brain alike and get you rocking out on the dancefloor.
Opening with the stompy rocker "A Girl Like Me", it has a killer chorus reminiscent of Robert Palmer's "Bad Case Of Loving You" and big dirty guitar work courtesy of one of Chapman's more recent proteges Natalie Allison.
"Whatever Love Is" is a more 80's soft rock affair with great introspective lyrics, and "Spotlight" follows on in the adult orientated rock ballad vein with dreamy synths, a lighter-waving chorus and a melody which owes a bit to Max Merrit & The Meteors 1976 smash hit "Slipping Away".
Just when you think that this album is going to be a solely adults music affair, the pace changes to show that Quatro has been keeping up with some of the more recent girl pop trends. She covers Goldfrapp's "Strict Machine" in a great glam boogie style and cheekily weaves a "Can the Can honey" line towards the end, and the momentum is made even better with the cover of Rihanna's "Breaking Dishes" which is an appealing mix of 70's rock combined with the R&B sensibilities of the original.
The next track is my personal favourite from the album "Rosie Rose", as it was the first track that I heard from the album a couple of years ago on Mike Chapman's MySpace website. Opening with some chinking clicky guitar scrubs, she yells "Do you love me?!", whilst the chords take on the same progression of Nirvana's "Smells Like Teen Spirit" to a more funky shuffly beat. Great vocals which are amongst her most aggressive.
"Hurt With You" is a reggae affair about an Australian fan whom she is particularly close to, and the only track to use brass. Almost sounds like the sequel to her 1978 hit "The Race Is On". The next two tracks "Hot Kill" and "Turn Into" take a bit of time to get used to, but the album quickly picks up again with a furiously fast jiving cover of "Hard Headed Woman" which finishes off the album nicely.
For Australian fans, the closing track is one of Quatro's finest ballads ever and her most poignant. "Singing With Angels" is an acoustic guitar affair about her undying love for Elvis Presley featuring his backing singers The Jordinaires doing the harmony and backing vocals. I felt a lump in my throat when she performed this song at Twin Towns Services Club in 2009 with her horn section doing the harmonies, I'm pretty sure that Elvis will be smiling upon her if he can hear this song in the heavens.
This album definitely shows that Suzi still has what it takes to be every rock fan's girl, and even at the age of 61 she shows no signs of slowing down. Once you're in the spotlight, everyone wants to see you at your best.
Saturday, May 21, 2011
Saturday, May 7, 2011
Sunday, April 24, 2011
100 Things To Do In A Year
The List - 100 Things To Do In A Year
Inspired by biodegradablewoman's list of 100 things to do in a year, I thought I'd make up my own list of things that I want to achieve for 2011 with or without other people in tow. If anybody wants to suggest something for me to do, then just message me and I'll put it up (within reason - I'm not going to do stupid things like take up using illegal drugs or drive with no seat-belt on!).
1. Take up Zumba dance classes
2. Go to a soccer game
3. Climb the Story Bridge
4. Watch the sunrise at Manly
5. Get my driving license back
6. Get all of Robert Johnson's songs put onto MP3
7. Find a new girlfriend
8. Do a first aid course with Red Cross
9. Go vegan for a month
10. Do Yoga for a month
11. Write a book
12. Write a song about the band Sparks
13. Move into a new house
14. Go to a jazz concert
15. Go to an Anzac Day dawn service
16. Replace my musical gear
17. Don't drive the car for a week
18. Live without Facebook for a week
19. Take up Life Drawing classes
20. Drink nothing but 8 glasses of water for a week
21. Plant a tree
22. Skinny dip
23. Go to The Black Bear Lodge
24. Have lunch under a tree
25. Play in the rain
26. Make a pizza
27. Do a jumble sale of some of my old stuff
28. Attend Christmas/New Year Confest
29. Go stargazing
30. Sleep outside
31. Attend church for a month
32. Stay up all night watching Rage
33. Go to bed at exactly 10am for a fortnigh
34. Get my photography published in a nudist magazine
35. Make a cheesecake
36. Form bands Laissez-Fayre and my own solo act
37. Take part in World Naked Gardening Day and World Naked Beach Party
38. Go to a new suburb and take photos
39. Go to a danceclub
40. Do a diary entry each day for the last six months of the year
41. Get weight down to 82kg
42. Do gigs with John Kylstra
43. Get involved with the social club at work
44. Attend every local event I am invited to on Facebook
45. Spend a full day at the beach
46. Introduce a friend to social nudism
47. Update my massage credentials
48. Go to a protest rally with the Democratic Socialist Party
49. Do the Zombie Walk
50. Go kayaking along the Brisbane River
51. Climb one of the Glasshouse Mountains nude
52. Meet Suzi Quatro in person
53. Wave at strangers
54. Write an anonymous love letter
55. Put a "here's looking at you" in MX
56. Clear out contacts in my mobile phone whom I haven't spoken to in the last 2 years
57. Learn to do counselling
58. Do some volunteering at St. Vinny's, Bookfest
59. Get a free t-shirt
60. Photograph a model with her pet snake
61. Make websites for The Busymen, Laissez-Fayre and Myself
62. Watch 'One Flew Over The Cuckoos Nest'
63. Read Andrew Matthews book 'Happiness In Hard Times'
64. Take up kundalini dancing with the hope of teaching it to naturists
65. Write a blog about my 100 things in a year
66. Respond to one of Barack Obama's tweets on Twitter.
67. Have my own naturist group set up
68. Have my car paid off and panelbeaten back to its original state - DONE!! 11/5/1169. Learn to play 'Stairway To Heaven' on guitar
70. Participate in Lord Krishna's birthday anniversary at Graceville
71. Do a meditation course
72. Learn the art of scrying
73. Make Easter eggs
74. Sing karaoke with one of my friends
75. Attend an opening night
76. Go on a date
77. Do a photo shoot with one of my musician friends
78. Go ten pin bowling
79. Eat dessert first
80. Go to an astronomy group meeting
81. Listen to Subterranea for a month
82. Do not say a single swear word for an entire week!
83. Consult a pyschic
84. Learn to play harmonica
85. Go to church and pray for the things you want for one month
86. Do the forks, flip the birdy and blow raspberries at every opportunity for a day
87. Put all my old tapes onto MP3 and old movies onto one DVD
88. Make more podcasts for The Brisbane Naturist Show
89. Renew my subscription to Free Beaches Australia
If anybody can think of 10 more things that they reckon would be great for me to do, then I'll post them here and let you know when I've achieved them with a separate blog. :-)
Inspired by biodegradablewoman's list of 100 things to do in a year, I thought I'd make up my own list of things that I want to achieve for 2011 with or without other people in tow. If anybody wants to suggest something for me to do, then just message me and I'll put it up (within reason - I'm not going to do stupid things like take up using illegal drugs or drive with no seat-belt on!).
1. Take up Zumba dance classes
2. Go to a soccer game
3. Climb the Story Bridge
4. Watch the sunrise at Manly
5. Get my driving license back
6. Get all of Robert Johnson's songs put onto MP3
7. Find a new girlfriend
8. Do a first aid course with Red Cross
9. Go vegan for a month
10. Do Yoga for a month
11. Write a book
12. Write a song about the band Sparks
13. Move into a new house
14. Go to a jazz concert
15. Go to an Anzac Day dawn service
16. Replace my musical gear
17. Don't drive the car for a week
18. Live without Facebook for a week
19. Take up Life Drawing classes
20. Drink nothing but 8 glasses of water for a week
21. Plant a tree
22. Skinny dip
23. Go to The Black Bear Lodge
24. Have lunch under a tree
25. Play in the rain
26. Make a pizza
27. Do a jumble sale of some of my old stuff
28. Attend Christmas/New Year Confest
29. Go stargazing
30. Sleep outside
31. Attend church for a month
32. Stay up all night watching Rage
33. Go to bed at exactly 10am for a fortnigh
34. Get my photography published in a nudist magazine
35. Make a cheesecake
36. Form bands Laissez-Fayre and my own solo act
37. Take part in World Naked Gardening Day and World Naked Beach Party
38. Go to a new suburb and take photos
39. Go to a danceclub
40. Do a diary entry each day for the last six months of the year
41. Get weight down to 82kg
42. Do gigs with John Kylstra
43. Get involved with the social club at work
44. Attend every local event I am invited to on Facebook
45. Spend a full day at the beach
46. Introduce a friend to social nudism
47. Update my massage credentials
48. Go to a protest rally with the Democratic Socialist Party
49. Do the Zombie Walk
50. Go kayaking along the Brisbane River
51. Climb one of the Glasshouse Mountains nude
52. Meet Suzi Quatro in person
53. Wave at strangers
54. Write an anonymous love letter
55. Put a "here's looking at you" in MX
56. Clear out contacts in my mobile phone whom I haven't spoken to in the last 2 years
57. Learn to do counselling
58. Do some volunteering at St. Vinny's, Bookfest
59. Get a free t-shirt
60. Photograph a model with her pet snake
61. Make websites for The Busymen, Laissez-Fayre and Myself
62. Watch 'One Flew Over The Cuckoos Nest'
63. Read Andrew Matthews book 'Happiness In Hard Times'
64. Take up kundalini dancing with the hope of teaching it to naturists
65. Write a blog about my 100 things in a year
66. Respond to one of Barack Obama's tweets on Twitter.
67. Have my own naturist group set up
68. Have my car paid off and panelbeaten back to its original state - DONE!! 11/5/1169. Learn to play 'Stairway To Heaven' on guitar
70. Participate in Lord Krishna's birthday anniversary at Graceville
71. Do a meditation course
72. Learn the art of scrying
73. Make Easter eggs
74. Sing karaoke with one of my friends
75. Attend an opening night
76. Go on a date
77. Do a photo shoot with one of my musician friends
78. Go ten pin bowling
79. Eat dessert first
80. Go to an astronomy group meeting
81. Listen to Subterranea for a month
82. Do not say a single swear word for an entire week!
83. Consult a pyschic
84. Learn to play harmonica
85. Go to church and pray for the things you want for one month
86. Do the forks, flip the birdy and blow raspberries at every opportunity for a day
87. Put all my old tapes onto MP3 and old movies onto one DVD
88. Make more podcasts for The Brisbane Naturist Show
89. Renew my subscription to Free Beaches Australia
If anybody can think of 10 more things that they reckon would be great for me to do, then I'll post them here and let you know when I've achieved them with a separate blog. :-)
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
Saturday, February 26, 2011
Relationships And The Internet.....
This is one of the best videos on YouTube. I hope it goes viral. :)
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