Curing the Holiday Blues with "Rock Steady"

Okay, face the white page and hope some words start to flow. It's true I have been living under a rock of late and I have no idea what hot bands are doing what in the last month or so, but the one thing I can tell you is I have feverishly kept track the economy, and how it has quickly soiled my professional career.  Therefore in order to try and cure my ever increasing holiday blues, I am making an early New Year's resolution to stop watching CNBC, NYSE and every other piece of media that capitializes on fear. The vultures will no longer pick at my weak and fragile state of mind. 

I need to retreat and re-group in the womb of my music collection. That's right I am going into hibernation with just my pen, my music collection, and what's left of my liquor cabinet. 

One bright spot that deserve mention before I head into the cave:

Some of the crew attended a wedding in a very warm and sunny climate south of the border last week.  The whole event took place on the grounds of a 5 star 62 room spa. Suffice it to say the place was the benchmark for relaxation and luxury, and almost everyone in attendence realistically could not afford to be there. However most of us laughed at the absurdity of the situation and decided to go big and worry about the finacial consequences on Monday. 

After a great warm up Thursday evening, Friday night's after party turned old school as people sat on the deck over looking the ocean and took turns pulling up gems on the ipod.  My Morning Jacket's version of  The Velvet Underground's "Oh, Sweet Nuthin" from Bonnaroo 2008, a bunch of Ryan Adams, Sharon Jones' "How Do I let a Good Man Down" were highlights but after listening and gigging to Aretha's alternate version of "Rock Steady" TWICE, we called it a night.  Sometimes you just can't go any higher.

What made this even more blissful was after the spectacular wedding ceremony, while grabbing our seating assignments, we were amazed to discover that all the tables were named after Aretha tunes. To add to the head shaking coincidence, much of the same small crew from the previous night was seated at "Rock Steady".  After hours and hours of sweaty dancing, flips off the stage, star gazing, full fireworks, and the happy couple waltzing off down the beach, the DJ finally dropped the hammer and played the track in all it's mega watt glory. Sometimes you just can't go any higher.

"Let's call this song exactly what it is... what it is what it is.... ROCK ... STEADY"

While this is the normal version you can hunt down the Alternate Mix on the essential Funk collection: What It Is! Funky Soul & Rare Grooves: 1967-1977 (Disc 3)

I need to retreat and re-group in the womb of my music collection. That's right I am going into hibernation with just my pen, my music collection, and what's left of my liquor cabinet. 

One bright spot that deserve mention before I head into the cave:

Some of the crew attended a wedding in a very warm and sunny climate south of the border last week.  The whole event took place on the grounds of a 5 star 62 room spa. Suffice it to say the place was the benchmark for relaxation and luxury, and almost everyone in attendence realistically could not afford to be there. However most of us laughed at the absurdity of the situation and decided to go big and worry about the finacial consequences on Monday. 

After a great warm up Thursday evening, Friday night's after party turned old school as people sat on the deck over looking the ocean and took turns pulling up gems on the ipod.  My Morning Jacket's version of  The Velvet Underground's "Oh, Sweet Nuthin" from Bonnaroo 2008, a bunch of Ryan Adams, Sharon Jones' "How Do I let a Good Man Down" were highlights but after listening and gigging to Aretha's alternate version of "Rock Steady" TWICE, we called it a night.  Sometimes you just can't go any higher.

What made this even more blissful was after the spectacular wedding ceremony, while grabbing our seating assignments, we were amazed to discover that all the tables were named after Aretha tunes. To add to the head shaking coincidence, much of the same small crew from the previous night was seated at "Rock Steady".  After hours and hours of sweaty dancing, flips off the stage, star gazing, full fireworks, and the happy couple waltzing off down the beach, the DJ finally dropped the hammer and played the track in all it's mega watt glory. Sometimes you just can't go any higher.

"Let's call this song exactly what it is... what it is what it is.... ROCK ... STEADY"

While this is the normal version you can hunt down the Alternate Mix on the essential Funk collection: What It Is! Funky Soul & Rare Grooves: 1967-1977 (Disc 3)