What’s up, you guys? Do you like my outfit? That big shirt and those high top sneakers are pretty bitchin’ right? And how about that haircut? I stepped in a pile of goddamned SASSY and you better recognize how fierce I am. WHY? Because it’s my fucking birthday.
I turn 33 today (I look so young, right?) and, so far, the day has been pretty good. I made a visit to the DMV to get my driver’s license renewed, where I was told for the umpteenth time that I look like I’m in high school (the older I get the more flattering and hysterical that compliment gets) and later this evening, my wonderful friends have planned some birthday shenangians for me — don’t ask me what because, besides dinner, I don’t know what’s going to transpire.
For this week’s mix — which, you’ll notice, is a few songs longer and is posting early because it’s my party and I want to dance early and a lot — I wanted to post songs that I love, that I have at one time or another been obsessed with and that hold a lot of memories for me growing up in the 1980s.
For example, the first 45s I ever bought with my own money were “Gloria” by Laura Branigan and “Maneater” by Hall & Oates. And the first LP I bought with my own money was the Bangles’ Different Light, the album on which “Walk Like an Egyptian” appears. I also eventually owned the 45 of “Strut.”
The extended version of “Mountains” is so crazy and amazing — and contains the flute, which we all now know means that it isn’t fucking around. I also love that Eddy Grant’s “Romancing the Stone” gets a nine-minute mix, even though it only appears in the movie of the same name for a split second.
Many of these mixes I also own on vinyl, treasures I’ve been collecting over the past eight years since I first acquired my own turntable (the one I have kind of sucks, though, so if you want to buy me a new one, I won’t stop you). One of my favorite purchases is the 12″ single of Wham!’s “I’m Your Man.” It’s a two-sided picture disc that I found for only $.99 at a Half-Price Books.
I also adore the 12″ of Whitney’s “So Emotional,” which I found for $1.99 at Laurie’s Planet of Sound in Chicago, because it came with this poster, which is in perfect condition. Best $1.99 I ever spent.
One of my favorite cheap finds was the 12″ of Sheila E.’s “Belle of St. Mark” for $.69, again at Half-Price Books (people, that place can be a gold mine of 12″ singles). At the time, I didn’t even know that song had a dance remix.
I was so obsessed with Fleetwood Mac’s “Little Lies” in 1987 that I taped it off the radio twice on the same tape – once on each side. I was at a record store in Boston a couple of years ago and when I found the 12″ buried under a pile of “bargain” records, I squealed with delight.
I’m also especially fond of the 12″ of “Lovergirl,” which I purchased at Dusty Groove in Chicago a mere month before the Ivory Queen of Soul passed away.
OK, enough of my jabbering. It’s time for you to pour yourself some type of bourbon drink (bourbon’s my fave) and “get out on this dance floor” with me to celebrate being one year closer to 40. Hopefully, we’ll remember everything in the morning.
Prince and the Revolution – Mountains (Extended Version)
Grace Jones – Slave To The Rhythm (Extended)
Eurythmics – You Have Placed A Chill In My Heart (Dance Mix)
Eddy Grant – Romancing The Stone (Original Extended 12″ Version)
Wham! – I’m Your Man (Extended Stimulation)
Will Powers – Kissing with Confidence (Extended)
Fleetwood Mac – Little Lies (Extended Version)
The Bangles – Walk Like An Egyptian (Extended Dance Mix)
Cyndi Lauper – Girls Just Want To Have Fun (Extended Version)
Laura Branigan – Gloria (Original 12” Mix)
Hall & Oates – Maneater (Extended Club Mix)
Sheena Easton – Strut (Dance Mix)
Madonna – Material Girl (Jellybean Dance Remix)
Apollonia 6 – Sex Shooter (Extended)
Paula Abdul – Coldhearted (Quivering 12″)
Whitney Houston – So Emotional (Extended Remix)
Sheila E. – The Belle of St. Mark (Dance Remix)
Teena Marie – Lovergirl (Special 12″ Dance Mix)
Janet Jackson – What Have You Done for Me Lately (Extended Mix)
M/A/R/R/S – Pump Up The Volume (Extended)
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