Bad Reputation

I wasn't sure what to write about this evening, so I started browsing through some tunes from 1980.  Have to say that I wasn't too excited about any one of them in particular tonight.  In fact, I think I found some of them to be a little on the cheesy side.  It's no fault to the singers, though, because even someone like Diana Ross can get stuck with a tune that is just downright silly.  Sometimes, it just happens...

Anyway, somehow I came across Joan Jett's "Bad Reputation," which was written just one year later in 1981.  Now, this is a classic tune that just about sums it up for me.  Yeah, I don't give a d@mn 'bout my reputation either, so this is perfect!  I'm just a clarinet player and not anywhere near as rockingly awesome as Joan Jett, but this message is probably shared by more than you'd think.  I noticed recently that Miley Cyrus covered this tune, and I even saw a video of her performing with Joan Jett.  Poor Joan.  No offense to anyone's creativity or artistic freedom, but Miley Cyrus?  Come on.  All I can think about is bubble gum and popcorn.  I just don't see Miley coming anywhere close to the renegade spirit of Joan Jett.  Teenaged rebellion just isn't the same, and I don't think Miley's hairdos or tattoos really are all that shockingly rebellious.  Anyway, back to Joan Jett.  SHE ROCKS!  Yup -- that about says it all.  The song was inspired by her search for a record company and the advice given to her by her producer Kenny Laguna.  She wasn't going to change for anyone, regardless of how many companies wouldn't sign her because of her "bad reputation."  Yeah -- right on, Joan.  I hear you loud and clear.  That message is so meaningful today -- and probably shared by even more than it was in 1981.  Let's face it, there is so much nonsense in the world today, and so many people talking about what is politically correct or not. Sometimes, you just have to say, "I don't give a d@mn" about what people think.  "A girl can do what she wants to do, and that's what I'm gonna do!"  You can, too -- just turn this tune on and crank it up!