Just a Steel Town Girl on a Saturday Night...

Once again, it's pretty late, but I wanted to get a song in here before the day is completely done.   I'm looking at the time, though, and I didn't make it!  Oh well.  Anyway, I am not sure what inspired me to pick this, but I stumbled upon Michael Sembello's "Maniac" from the movie Flashdance.  That movie is one of my absolute, all-time favorites.  Actually, Flashdance and Footloose are two of my favorites.  They are both super-inspiring, classic dance movies from the '80s.  I think I have lost track of the number of times I have seen them, and both have terrific soundtracks.  I think Flashdance is an easier story line to follow, and this song pretty much sums it up.  The video does as well, since it is chocked full of scenes from the movie.  One thing that bothered me, however, is that there are all kinds of different versions of the lyrics out there.  They have three different lyrics for the first line, too.  I read, "Just a small town girl," "Just a still town girl," and "Just a steel town girl."  Aha!  Yes, ladies and gentlemen, we have a winner.  I always thought it was "steel town girl," because the movie takes place in Pittsburgh, PA---which is a "steel town."  I was dumbfounded when, at first, I could not find that lyric documented anywhere.

So, the song follows the main character in the movie, Alex.  She is just a steel town girl who works as a welder by day and an dancer by night.  Some of her dance gigs are a bit, well, different.  Not obscene or anything--just a bit provocative.  She's always dreamed of attending a formal dance school, but she doesn't have the money.  She meets her Prince Charming, he pulls some strings at the school, and she gets accepted.  She's thrilled--until she finds out he is the reason she got in.  She gets mad at him, pummels him (not enough to hurt him, though), and then they make up and everything is okay.  They live happily ever after!  I don't think he is in the video, but there are plenty of dance scenes complete with legwarmers.  I loved legwarmers--still do.  Hers were the best.  Made everyone back in 1983 want to become a dancer (or at least wear legwarmers and a torn sweatshirt).  Ah, the good old days...  Enjoy!