Simple Minds - Once Upon a Time (Alive and Kicking)

Simple Minds is my wife's all-time favorite band.  A few years ago, Simple Minds played at a small club in Chicago near Wrigley Field.  It was small venue and we were right up close.  It was one of the best shows we ever attended.  I used Photoshop to stitch or merge two photos together.  This is not a double album.  The photo above is the front and back cover - as it would appear if a person could view the front and back covers at the same time, side by side.  This record contains Alive and Kicking.  And at the Oscars - the house band played Don't You Forget About Me when the Brat Pack came out to honor the life and films of John Hughes.  Simple Minds has created great music besides those two well-known hits.

The Go Go's - just added to Lillith Faire lineup

This is the back cover of the Go-Go's debut album.  OK - confession time.  I love the song Our Lips are Sealed.  The song was co-written by Terry Hall, who was in the band The Specials, and before that Fun Boy Three.  The Go-Go's remind me musically, visually, and strucurally of Bananarama.  All-girl groups are fun.  Last summer you will recall Nancy and I saw Blondie, Pat Benatar, and The Donna's at Ravinia.  What fun!

Stephen Stills: live at House of Blues Chicago this week, Thursday March 3, 2010

For my dear pal Scott - and his recent open-ended question (actually it was a post on Facebook), "is classic rock dead or on its way to extinction?" If you are reading my this, you already know my answer: No, classic rock is not dead.  The record you see here is 40 years old.  What bands and/or music from today will be around in 2050?   Will the songs of Nickelback?  Keith Urban's?  Perhaps.  The only way to know is by looking back from today.  We know Elton's music will last forever.  Did those geezers stink up the joint at halftime in Miami?  Hardly.  Today's bands could not carry The Who's guitar cases.  And please make sure to clink on the title of this post and you will land on a youtube clip.