Armageddon It

Well, I am long, long overdue for a post here at Becky's World.  I took a bit of a hiatus over the holidays and will try to get back into the swing of daily posts.  Meanwhile, since we all made it to 2013, I thought it would be the perfect chance to talk about one of my favorite Def Leppard tunes, "Armageddon It."  Yes, it is a play on words (Are you gettin' it?  Yes, Armageddon it).  Pretty cool, and with this awesomely guitar-saturated rock anthem, "Armageddon It" is the perfect phrase to have fun with in this tune.  In fact, it seems pretty clear as to what the song references (in terms of "gettin' it), so why not take charge of the opportunity to play around with words?  If you read the lyrics, it seems to be an overture to someone who seems all fired up and ready but then hesitates to "trigger the gun."  So, nothing left to do at this point but cut to the chase:

Gimme all of your lovin', ev'ry little bit
Gimme all that you got, ev'ry bit of it
Ev'ry bit of your lovin', oh, c'mon live a bit
Never want it to stop

Pretty '80s looking jacks here

Makes perfect sense to me!  And you just have to love a song that uses the term "lovin'."  Yeah, only in rock lyrics can one be so creative.  I mean, I don't think that would be realistic in casual conversation...  So, it's great to hear it in this tune.  I must admit that I never realized that "jumpin' jack" was part of the lyrics, though.  Kind of reminds me of playing jacks back in the '80s.  Anyway, I hope you'll enjoy this tune and video as much as I do.  Gotta love the big bear slippers on Joe Elliott at the end of the video, too.  I think I may have bought those for my dad or brother back in the day.  I'm definitely gettin' every bit of the nostalgia from this video...  Thank you, Def Leppard -- rock on!

Fleetwood Mac Tour - "Dreams" Can Come True

The other day I was driving home from work and heard this fabulous Fleetwood Mac tune on the radio.  I've probably heard it a million times, and you know, I never bothered to find out what the name was.  Sheesh.  After all these years, all I knew was "Thunder only happens when it's raining..."  Well, those are the lyrics in the chorus, but the title is actually "Dreams."  Yup.  I'm sure just about everyone in the world knew this except me  -- until now!  But, the nice thing about Fleetwood Mac is that their songs are so amazing lyrically that the title can escape you from time to time.  Certainly not like canned pop where the title can be very obvious and perhaps even the most prevalent line.  Anyway, I thought it would be perfect to post this since it was just announced that Fleetwood Mac will be touring in 2013.  YES!  I have to see them.  I think their first dates are in April, and they will begin rehearsals in February.

Meanwhile, this song was written in 1977, so I cheat once again here, but hey, Fleetwood Mac is a legendary group that spans the decades.  They haven't had a dull moment in over 30 years, so it seems perfectly fine to include them here.  I have to say that I hadn't really listened to the lyrics carefully until this evening, but as I thought about it, I figured it would be something heavy.  "Thunder only happens when it's raining..."  Yeah, I should have known it was about heartbreak.  Amazing how they can mask that in this amazingly soothing tune that seems perfectly slotted musically.  Kind of like trumpet players when they talk about how a trumpet "slots."  Kind of hard to explain, but in a nutshell, it means everything falls into place.  I am mesmerized at how Stevie Nicks sings this in such a calming, soothing tone -- almost like a lullaby.  Hmmm...  maybe that was her remedy for a broken heart.  Anyway, this video of their live performance is more perfect than ever.  I hadn't realized Mick Fleetwood could tear up the drums like that.  Wow.  Amazing as always.  Hope I get to see them!

Pat Benatar Live in NH

Finishing up with the series of concert videos here.  Pat Benatar was actually the second act to go on for the concert with Loverboy and Journey.  There was quite a long intermission to change the stage set after Loverboy and before Pat Benatar, yet oddly enough, she did not have an elaborate stage set at all.  Nope -- just Pat and her husband Neil Giraldo (on guitar) as the main focus.  When she came out on stage, it was quite thrilling.  Such a tiny lady with a huge voice -- and so much mystique and rock and roll power!  I remember seeing an interview with her, and the interviewer asked, "So how can we be as cool as you?"  She said, "it's all in the pointing," and proceeded to demonstrate her famous awesomely cool pointing technique.  I believe she said that it "makes you look tough."  Works for me!  I'm going to practice that now.  In the meantime, I hope you enjoy these videos.  I am so glad I saw her -- finally!

Journey Live in NH

Well, somehow time has escaped me again, and I am ashamed that it has been a month since I went to see Journey, Loverboy, and Pat Benatar in Manchester, NH.  I took several short videos with my Blackberry but had trouble uploading them directly from my computer -- so I added them to my YouTube channel.  I know they aren't the clearest or the best quality, but I think they certainly capture the excitement and general essence of the concert.  I can't tell you how blown away I was when Journey took the stage.  They basically exploded onto the stage with "Anyway You Want It."  I honestly felt like I was going to pop out of my seat - which I did!  I stood for their whole set, just mesmerized in a Journey trance.  The new lead singer is so full of energy, and the veteran band members are nothing short of amazing.  I hope you enjoy the videos!

Detroit Rock City

It's getting pretty late in Becky's World, and tomorrow is Friday.  Thank goodness.  As tired as I am right now, I am excited for the weekend.  Last weekend I heard "Detroit Rock City," another Kiss classic, on the radio while I was driving.  Again, I cheat a bit here because the song was written in 1976, but that is alright.  I am sure this song was heard on classic rock stations in the 80s, and it is still getting airplay today.  I never actually heard the song until this year when I discovered the Kiss Symphony video.  I had very little idea of what Paul Stanley was singing (other than "get up...get down...") and then I discovered the sad inspiration behind the song.  Becky's World is pretty happy, so I will leave the research on this one (for those who don't already know) to my readers.

I really do think the performance with the Melbourne Symphony ads an exceptional punch and huge level of excitement to the song.  Well, that and the awesome pyrotechnics.  I couldn't help but notice that at 1:59 in the video, the brass section comes in to join the guitar melody.  Oh yeah, the brass can really kick some, uh, rear.  How cool is that?  I can only sit here and drool over that part, because even if the woodwinds had it, well you can't see or hear them in that part of the video.  That's okay.  Plenty of good music to go around for everyone.  I think I am getting addicted to this performance video.  I guess the song isn't really that sad if you think about it as a celebration of spirit and life.  Alright, it's sad, but this video is kickin', and the guitar solos cranking along give the tune unbelievable gusto and momentum.  Perfect to ring in the weekend.  Enjoy!