i know that i've been gone for a long time. honestly, i wasn't really expecting to post with any kind of regularity. but i have to be honest, since thursday night, i've been doing a lot of thinking.
i'm not going to be maudlin here, or grandstand about how amazing and awesome michael jackson was. or how important he was to me. (although he was both)
in the end, he was a complete stranger. both to me, and i imagine, the rest of the world, even those who thought they were close to him. so now people who can't even spell his NAME properly, and who a week ago dismissed him as some weird pedophile are now crying all over the internet. whatever.

here's what i know:

thriller was the first album-as in, actual record-i ever owned, and i grew up listening to the wiz soundtrack. bad was one of the first tapes i owned, and dangerous one of the first cds. then i just kind of...got into other things. but always had a soft spot for mj, and a 2 or 3 seconds long intro of pretty much any track of his would get me on the dance floor.

i wore out the first and second copies of bad, and lost dangerous, but you'd best be sure i checked on the wiz and thriller this weekend.

i remember everyone being in church one sunday, and as we bowed our heads in silent prayer, my younger brother belting out the beat it chorus, my mom putting him under one arm and walking him out of the back doors while the rest of the congregation snickered.

i remember being in dance class with stephanie nichol and trying to moonwalk in our tapshoes, which worked awesomely because they just slid across the floor.

i remember hurrying home from trick or treating to watch the thriller video on tv with nanny, and then years later, hurrying out of the washroom onto the dancefloor at a halifax bar (pacifico?) when the same video played on halloween some nearly 20 years later.

i remember earlier this year when i was trying to teach the kids at work about pop music history and watching them connect the dots from jackson 5 era michael, to thriller & bad, to the "creeper" they knew him as, and start to re-evaluate what they thought of him and wanted to know more about him

so yeah...
a lot of people are taking this time to sort of (further) demonize or idolize the guy. i don't really think that, for awhile now, i considered the michael jackson that dangled babies and went into hiding and showed up to court in his pjs to be the same michael that posed with the baby tiger or danced through the subway station.
similarly, i don't think of the latter jackson as being same as the adorable little boy in the purple hat, fronting a band of brothers.

no matter which michael you grew up with, you can't deny the man made some of the best music in the world.

i don't even really know what my point is, other than he lived at least 3, and likely many more lives within his lifetime, so it's a weird kind of sadness that i'm feeling with his very sudden (although not wholly unexpected passing), since it's almost like the michael i "knew" has been gone for quite some time now.

but this is an mp3 blog, and you're not here to listen to me ramble on, like the billion other people talking about him since last thursday. it's just kind of shitty that last wednesday no one really seemed to care any more (and i am as guilty as everyone else, i admit).

anyway...
i'm not going to post the stuff that's blazing around the interwebs. i'm quite sure that for now, we've exhausted the remixes and covers (although for sure someone somewhere will be capitalizing on future remixes for the next while). here's the wiz. it's pretty awesome, and was the soundtrack to many an afternoon when i was younger.

you can't win - michael jackson (from the wiz)

ease on down the road - michael jackson and diana ross (from the wiz)
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herein contains the following:
hints of things to come, thematic elements including summer, nights, driving, driving in the summer at night, thunderstorms, sing alongs, rock and roll and also: good looking rock and roll. also: good 80s memories and tapping your knee/the steering wheel in time with the beat, while possibly rocking your head back and forth.
and another hint of things to come: Z.
alright alright, on to the music in a second. but first: if you were stymied by my bandwidth being exceeded, i apologize. i am working to solve the problem, and so i hope if you have any hosting suggestions or other commentary on the subject, you will share them with me. and now, with no further brouhaha, i give you the music.

cadence weapon - tattoos (and what they really feel like)
the spill canvas - all over you
jason mraz - i'm yours (NOT the new version, in my opinion, this older version is much nicer)
mark ronson feat. amy winehouse - valerie
mates of state - my only offer
robyn - be mine!
annie - i know ur girlfriend hates me
level 42 - lessons in love
danko jones - still in high school
the republic tigers - buildings and mountains

**please note, with my apologies: for the time being, no more right clicking on the links, kids...it's left clicks for now while i sort out the situation**
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i have new hardware, so i am VERY busy making multiple playlists, all with exceedingly (and unnecessarily) cryptic names. some involve long strings of numbers. it's good time. alas, the ipod has seemingly bit the dust, but in between gadgets, i found time to make a pant load of mix cds. here are some of the songs that made appearances, and also: i think you would look super cool if you were playing them loudly at a red light with the windows down. because as we all know, music isn't about art, it's about looking cool.

Coolzey - He Did

tittsworth - easy like sunday mornin (commodores remix)

Ghosthustler - Someone Elses Ride

alphabeat - 10000 nights of thunder

MGMT - Time to Pretend

the hush sound - honey

The Cool Kids - What Up Man

Arrested Development - Mr. Wendal

Naughty By Nature - Everything's Gonna be Alright

so...how do we all feel about "mixtapes" and "playlists" once or twice a week? I feel very very good about it.

also, keep an eye out while i reveal the awesomeness that is my new toy!
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(starting tomorrow)
for now, enjoy this and relive my youth with me:

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i'm going to try to make a go of this thing again, albeit with a slightly different format. in lieu of an actual post today, please strap yourself into a time machine with me...and enjoy.
















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i won't give this any introduction beyond the following:

if you aren't already a jesse dangerously fan, i dare you to watch this and not be charmed. think about it, the rascalz never put out a video on ice.


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so some stuff's been not so awesome (car breaking down, fighting with EI, looking for a new job) but who cares, because it's my birthday. and also, kim and kelley deal, and judy garland, and if imdb is to be believed, a whole lot of other people. but what matters is the 4 of us. here is our most recent family portrait. also some music for you to enjoy. also i am old now. also, i need to get my stickers for my plates. (also: cheese rangoons and chocolate cake and starbucks) (and yes, i fully realize that a lot of this post reads like i was spammed...apparently that is how i talk/type/write now that i am old, i guess we are all just going to have to get used to it together.)

cracker - happy birthday to me

the breeders - no aloha
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