Saturday Night Retro

What a week!  I know that I am not the busiest person I know.  In fact, I have friends who have 10+ children and run small family farms, so there is no doubt in my mind that I am not the busiest person I know.  However, it has been a busy, busy week.  I intended to get a couple of blog posts up during the week.  I even worked on them some, but didn't get anything finished.

I was able to finish a few DIY projects around the house, and I hope to blog about those soon.  I haven't done as much of that type of blogging as I thought I would.

Ok, on to the cool, smooth tones that will help you unwind on what is a beautiful, warm evening with a huge full moon (it's at perigee this weekend) here in northwest Arkansas.

First up:

Ahhhh, that's better. Who's next?  How about...

Ok, let's go back and listen to that one again.

Done?  Ok,  The last musical interlude for the evening is from one of my favorite musicians from my childhood.

I am so relaxed now I can barely type.

On Mondays I do a post about my thrift store and yard sale finds.  Many of them are vintage items (that's how this ties into Saturday Night Retro).  This week I will be showing an old wooden Fisher Price Little People toy that I found.  Here he is with two other Little People finds.

 My sister and brother and I played with Little People endlessly in the 1970's.  My kids have all played with them, as well.  Some day soon I'll do a retro post about my little collection of vintage toys.  Have you collected anything as an adult that you loved as a child?  Share with me in a comment.

Saturday Night Retro

Tonight's retro came about in a strange way.  I was driving Joshua to meet his Boy Scout troop for camp, and I had my XM radio set to the 70's on 7.  I'm pretty knowledgeable about 70's music, particularly anything that enjoyed some popularity.  In high school in the 80's I used to fill the time by making lists of my 100 favorite bands or songs, and ranking them.  Other than the heavy metal, most were from the 70's.  So imagine my surprise when a song started that I had never heard, and it was good!  It caught my attention immediately with the music, and I glanced at the radio to see what it was.  It said the band was "Osmonds".  Well, my thought was, "Oh, I didn't know there were two bands called Osmonds."  Then the vocals started, and I was rocking along with it, really enjoying it, and wondering about this "other" Osmonds band.  Then I heard him.  Donny.  Unmistakable.  I was floored!  This was an Osmonds I had never encountered.

Listen to that and tell me it's not better than you expected.

I was 8 years old in 1976, when Donny and Marie had a hit with "Deep Purple".  In my neighborhood you were either a Donny Osmond girl or a Shaun Cassidy girl.  (some older girls were David Cassidy girls, but we thought they were weird.  now i know they were the smart ones.)  I really only knew "The Osmonds" as Donny, Marie, and a bit later, Jimmy.  The only song I knew that included the older brothers was this.

But the bulk of my Osmonds experience was more like this.

Yeah, not quite the same.

So there's your retro for this week.  Have a little fun and poke around the web for old Osmonds songs.  Who knows what you'll find.

Saturday Night Retro

Saturday night.  Not such a relaxing one this week.  The forecast for horrendous storms has prompted Joshua's Boy Scout troop to cut short a camping trip, and Husband is on his way to get him.  I'm glad they are erring on the side of caution.

Tonight's Retro will be with a twist.  I'm featuring songs I didn't like when I was in high school.  Why?  No reason, just thought it might be fun.

First up is one of my all time least favorite songs from one of my all time least favorite frontmen for one of my least favorite bands.

Painful.  And more so if your name is Sharon, and you go by Sherri in high school.

Moving on... how about this gem.  The picture alone is criminal.

And a terrific suggestion from my sister.

She asked my brother in law to name the worst songs of the 80s and he said, "Most of them."  Hehe.

In order to make this blog post I had to listen to several versions of each of those songs, so I could pick the "best" one.  I deserve combat pay.

Let's end on a happier note.  Who remembers these?

Roller skate covers!!  These were huge when I was in early high school in Tennessee.  I've encountered very few people who have heard of them, though.   How about you?  Have you heard of them?  Did you have them?  Leave me a comment.

ETA:  Husband returned with Joshua, and asked me to include this late entry in the bad songs list.

Saturday Night Retro

Wow, it seems like forever since I've been home on a Saturday night.  Shooting competitions, Boy Scout campouts, and a myriad of other activities have kept me hopping.  I was tempted to go to bed when the kids did tonight, but I decided to soldier on.

This has been stuck in my head all week.  It's a great song, so it hasn't been too annoying, though Joshua did mention that I've been singing it a lot, so I guess it's not entirely in my head.

That led me to this.

And this.

(which Husband does not care for, but to each his own, right?)

So there ya go.  Golden Earring to Edith Piaf in two easy steps.

How about a bit of retro fluff?  Here's a pic of my sister, a friend whose name I've forgotten, and me in about 1972.

Joshua saw this and exclaimed, "YOU WERE A BUNCH OF HIPPIES!!!"  Hehe.  I think our friend is flashing the Girl Scout symbol.  That cracks me up.

Ok, how many of you remember Space Food Sticks?

We just called them food sticks, but most of the info I've found calls them Space Food Sticks.  Here's an awesome commercial for them.

My sister, brother and I loved those things.


What was your favorite snack as a kid?  Share in the comments.

Saturday Night Retro

Sometimes you look back at something from your youth and wonder how you could have missed just how weird and confusing it was.  Such is the case of Suzi Quatro.

Suzi Quatro

Suzi Quatro was the first female bass player to hit the big time.  Granted, she only hit the big time in Europe and Australia, but she was undeniably a pioneer in the field of female rockers.  Joan Jett patterned her style and early stage persona on Quatro.

Suzi had a lot of success across the pond in the early 1970's with hits like these

48 Crash

Can the Can

Being born in 1968, I knew nothing of Suzi Quatro during her heyday.  No, my first awareness of Suzi Quatro was more like this

Leather Tuscadero

That's right, Leather Tuscadero.  Younger sister of Pinky Tuscadero, Fonzi's one true love.  Pinky appeared on Happy Days in 1976.  Her character didn't return, but the next year we met her younger sister, Leather.  Leather showed up in Milwaukee straight from reform school.  She fronted an all girl band, Leather and the Suedes.  In one of television's most painful moments, Joanie Cunningham steps in when one of the Suedes gets cold feet and runs off.

Concurrent with her stint as Leather, Suzi had her biggest hit in the US

I was in my teens, in the mid 80's before I encountered Suzi Quatro, the rocker chick.  I was a big fan of heavy metal and the music that inspired the bands I listened to at that time.  I listened to Suzi the bass player for several years before I made the connection and realized it was Leather Tuscadero.  There was no Google at that time, so information like that wasn't readily available.  It struck me as weird, but since there was no way to watch those old Happy Days episodes on demand at that time, I wasn't able to get the full effect.

Husband and I watched the clips with Leather and the ones with Pinky, and I have to say, bad TV today has nothing on bad TV in the late 1970's!

(slap, slap) POW!

Saturday Night Retro

Ahhhhh, it's been a beautiful day  here in northwest Arkansas, and Joshua and I got a lot of yard work done.  C'mon Spring!  We're ready for you.

Tonight I can add a little physical exhaustion to my normal Saturday night mental exhaustion.  Definitely time to mellow.  How about this...

And this...

A little different than the usual Saturday Night Retro.  Be sure and come back next week for a fun look at the road from cool rocker chick to "are you kidding me??" TV role.  Any guesses?

I'll leave you with a game from my youth that was middle of the road for fun, but had the best name EVER!

That's right folks, I'm bringing Gnip Gnop into play here.  What other blog will give you that?  (be sure to click the pic to watch the commercial)

Saturday Night Retro

It's that time again already?  Wow, this has been a quick week.  We've all had head colds, and I'm still suffering a bit, so I'm extra ready for some downtime.  I think I'll go a different route tonight.  Instead of some of my favorites, how about some reminders of yesteryear that might be a little less classic, but still fun.  Remember this one?

And this...

Don't pretend those never made you cry.

And how many of you had these?

Puffy stickers.  When I was in about 5th grade, 1979ish, the girls in my class collected them.  We put them in photo albums, stuck to the pages.  I only had about two pages worth, but some girls had dozens.  I don't think we traded them, since they were already stuck.  I think we just showed them off to each other.

Share a favorite memory from elementary school in the comments.

Saturday Night Retro

Saturday Night Retro has been on hiatus for two weeks.  First, because of this, and then because of this

I was just exhausted last weekend.  I think I was in bed by 10 pm, which is unheard of for me.  I'm still tired tonight, after a whirlwind of activity this week, but I'm ready to sit back, relax, and travel down Memory Lane.  Won't you join me?

Husband recommended this one.  It definitely is a blast from my past!

 

I went to a Def Leppard concert in the 8th grade.  I went to A LOT of concerts in the 8th and 9th grades.

However, SNR requires something more mellow, so let's try this.

 And this.

Now for something a little different.  Husband and I were watching, and laughing at, videos from the 80's.  One of Joan Jett's band members had on a fringed jacket, similar to this.

And for some reason, it struck us both as hilariously awful.  Because, you know, there are no pictures of either of us wearing anything embarrassing in our youth.

Let's break that one down, mkay?  Big perm?  Check.  Pastel random print shorts that come two inches above the belly button?  Check.  Faux leather bootlets with plastic jewels on the sides?  Check.  Scrunch socks?  Check.  Reading the Weekly World News?  Wow, let's move on, shall we?

I began thinking of other fashion disasters from the past.  Frankly, critiquing 80's fashion is like shooting fish in a barrel.  But that won't stop me.  I give you...

Now I'm not naive enough to think that we won't laugh at today's styles in the future, but right now is right now, and we all need to be laughing at fashions from the past.  So what's your favorite bad fashion item from your youth?  Post a link or description in the comments.

Saturday Night Retro

It's Saturday night, the dishes are done, the kids are in bed, time to harken back to my teen years.  This was retro even then, but it was at the top of my hit parade.

I'm calling it a night early tonight, so I'll leave you with this gem.

Saturday Night Retro

Saturday night.  Time to sit back, relax, and remember some of the great music from the past.  Etta James passed away this week, so it's fitting that we enjoy her amazing gift.

And when I was a kid, several of my friends' moms had these lamps.  I loved to watch them then, and now I think they are totally boss.  I want one!  (my poor husband is mortified at the thought)

What item from your childhood would you love to get your hands on now?  Leave a comment with a link if you can find one, if not, a description will do.

Saturday Night Retro

It's been a busy week.  The sewer pipe in the house clogged.  The temperatures dropped into the teens.  We made a long drive at the last minute.  I'm ready for some downtime, how 'bout you?

Let's start with...

 

And follow it up with...

And raise your hand if you remember these...

Saturday Night Retro

This is the first in what I plan to have as a weekly feature.

It's Saturday night.  Sit back, relax, and enjoy some blasts from the past.  Let's begin with the legendary Bonnie Raitt...

And these entries from Husband...

And finally...