Sun, 15 June: Weekly Review 66

Tonight I watched my Dusty Springfield Live at the BBC dvd. This is made up of the two TV series she did for the Beeb in 1966 and 67, plus some guest appearances on other shows. Unfortunately half of the 1966 series was wiped and lost, leaving only three episodes. But what’s there is fabulous. Dusty is so confident and versatile, and looks so great in a series of outfits and hairstyles (wigs?). I especially liked the mini skirt on the final night (nice pair of legs). She sings show tunes, soul tunes, folk songs, some of her singles, and a bunch of classics and obscurities. The show featured a guest performer, but these segments were cut out. It’s just Dusty all the way, with the occasional appearance by her amazing backing singers. Madeline Bell, Leslie Duncan and Maggie Stredder.

Some highlights were I’ll Try Anything, Two Brothers (an old Springfields number), My Lagan Love (Sitting down with a guitar whilst wearing that mini – a tricky move. Kate Bush did this much later!) and Losing You. This last one was introduced as a song that sounds very Italian but written by an Englishman; which I think was code for it’s a You Don’t Have To Say You Love Me knockoff, which it is. But a very good one. The last song she does in fact is You Don’t Have To Say You Love Me. The extras were also great. Dusty in 1970 on Morecombe and Wise, in 1973 on The Tom Jones Show (doing I Am Woman), and 1978 on Saturday Night At the Mill for her It Begins Again comeback – all showing how she changed over the years. This last included a strange interview where she talked about cats and L.A. and the fact her present tour wasn’t going well. To this point she was wearing a black veil as if in mourning. At one point she said, ‘The people who didn’t buy tickets can sit on it’. Her hair had an ugly perm and she’d had a nose job, but it was still Dusty. She still sang and performed beautifully the song I’m Coming Home Again. I think I fell in love with her again watching those Sixties segments. The voice, the eye makeup, the hair, the outfits, the dance moves, the hand gestures. The dvd comes with a wonderfully informative booklet written by Paul Howes. He mentions there was a third BBC series in 1969, but it was also wiped and never recovered. Maybe these lost tapes will show up one day? I hope so.

I had a listen to Dusty Springfield’s album Longing on Spotify in the car today. This is an album that was supposed to be released back in 1974, but Dusty nixed it due to her insecurities, or some such. It’s just been newly released and I plan to buy a copy. It’s not bad, so far. I’m liking a song called Exclusively For Me, written by Colin Blunstone, of The Zombies (incidentally, I’ve always thought of him as the male Dusty Springfield – very husky voice). The second track, In the Winter, by Janis Ian, is often cited as a lost gem, though I’m not feeling it yet. I always think Dusty missed her chance when she didn’t do her own version of Elton John’s The Bitch Is Back, which he released in that year, 1974. It’s said she sang backing on it. If she’d released Longing with that track on it I think it would have done the business. Oh well. At least now we have a legit version of Longing. Yay! There’s also one other ‘lost’ album by Dusty called Faithful that I want to get.

All this Dusty content I’ve been taking in has got me revisiting my old notion of writing new lyrics for You Don’t Have To Say You Love Me (because it needs it!), which I do from time to time. The new lyrics for the chorus go like this:

You don’t have to say you love me just because I am

Your first taste of sweet sweet lovin’, don’t be overwhelmed.

You pleased me, believe me, but I can’t keep loving you (boy).

Coz believe me you’ll never tie me down.

I know it doesn’t quite scan as well as the original, but the intent is much tougher and less beholden to the icky sentiment of ‘female surrender’.

I also listened to the album Best Scandal by the Japanese girl band Scandal. This is an album I bought when I was in Japan, and I’ve only just got around to listening to it. It’s pretty fine rock and power pop. It also comes with a dvd of music videos which I watched tonight and was a lot of fun. They were rocking schoolgirl outfits back then and had a youthful exuberance. I really like their first single, Space Ranger, a driving rocker. I’m also digging Mabaroshi Night, a nice Britpop meets rockabilly thing.

In the course of doing some online banking today I noticed a bill from Netflix on my account. It seems they’ve been charging me all this time, even though I canceled my subscription months ago. What gives? I decided to renew it anyway. The final season of Squid Game’s coming up. Plus there’s an anime called Kpop Demon Hunters that I must watch. Especially as the theme is sung by Twices Jeongyeon, Chaeyoung and Jihyo.

I got hold of my borrowed copy of Eternal Flame, an authorised biography of The Bangles, today at the library. It’s written by Jennifer Otter Bickerdike and I’ve started reading it. I saw the Bangles back in 2005 at the Palais on their comeback tour. I had tickets for them back in the day in 1990, but they broke up before they got here. A really important band for me at the time, for lots of reasons. I’m looking forward to getting the goss about their career. This book now makes it about five books I’ve got on the go. There’s also Down and Out in Paris and London, Modesty Blaise, Tori Amos’s Resistance, and that big Tao Te Ching book my patron Libby loaned me. I think I’ll be giving most of my attention to this Bangles book first. I do bite off more than I can chew sometimes.

I got some more good Twice news today. It seems, not only are they releasing a full Korean album and doing a tour that will take in Australia, but they’ll also be releasing another full Japanese album this year. It will be called Enemy. Wow, this is insane! Their normal practice is to release a couple of Japanese singles first, but they haven’t done this.

I made an order for some goodies with K-pop Time today. These were the new Twice album, This Is For, the new Aespa mini, Dirty Work, and the ridiculously expensive single by Twice Jihyo, Jeongyeon, Chaeyoung for Kpop Demon Hunters, a new anime show on Netflix. I mean, it’s $65, just for two little songs! But I’ll be happy to pay it.

Today is Twice Tzuyu’s birthday. She’s the youngest member – the ‘maknae’ – and turning 26. There’s a lot of anticipation for her this year as she’ll be performing for the first time in her home country of Taiwan on the upcoming world tour. I wonder if we’ll ever get another solo album from her.

I finished the first volume of Bocchi the Rock manga. It was nice to go back to the beginnings of the story, which make up most of the first season of the anime. There were of course some differences from the anime, mostly omissions the anime filled in. The origins of Hitori’s social anxiety aren’t detailed in the manga. And that terrific moment when she plants her foot and lets loose during Kessoku Band’s first tryout at Starry is not really specified in the manga.

I watched some Youtubes, including a new Twice Date ep featuring Jihyo and Sana at a massage centre. It’s pretty chill with them mainly talking comfortably whilst being pampered. Jihyo mentioned the awkward date she had with Momo, trying to explain why it was so awkward. It made me want to re-watch that episode as I’d forgotten it being awkward. There was also some behind the scenes shorts of Aespa working on their new album Dirty Work. I was especially taken by Ningning’s short bob wig she wore in her trailer segment. So kawaii! A Kpop Audrey Hepburn.

I just saw on Twitter/X that Twice have announced some of the dates for their upcoming ‘world tour’. They include Australia! They’ll be playing at Rod Laver Arena on November 8 and 9, which is perfect because by then I’ll be back from my England trip. The notes say they’ll be performing from a central stage with the crowd completely surrounding them. It should be very interesting. It’s interesting too that they’re going back to Rod Laver, after playing at Marvell Stadium last time. I suspect it’s because they didn’t quite sell that out. I will definitely prefer seeing them at Rod Laver. Can’t wait.

After the news yesterday that Twice will be touring later this year, now Twitter/X is telling me Twice Chaeyoung will release a solo project this year too. It’s not quite completely confirmed yet, so we’ll see. I actually thought Jihyo might release a new solo this year. This would fit the pattern of a Nayeon solo in 22, Jihyo in 23, Nayeon in 24, and now Jihyo 25. It could still happen. Tzuyu released her solo album last year, not long after Nayeon’s second album. There’s room for both. But first, they must make way for the new full Twice album, coming soon.

I’ve given up on that Samuel Delaney novel, Nova. He’s introduced some strange elements, like Tarot, into the mix, and a number of side stories that take away from the main narrative. I mean, I like Tarot. I’ve become interested in it over this last year, but I don’t like the way it’s used in this story. It’s not well integrated at all. Thing is, I’m over half way through this book, but I really can’t be bothered anymore. I’ve moved on…

So I picked up my copy of Modesty Blaise, by Peter O’Donnell. This is a novelisation of a script he wrote for the film, starring Monica Vitti as Modesty, but which mostly was not used. I used to read the old comic strip of Modesty Blaise, and always enjoyed its cool vibe and Modesty’s teasing relationship with Willie Garvin. I have two Modesty novels, and both are in my bedside draw. I should explain, my bedside draw has a little bookshelf beneath it where I keep my James Bond Complete collection, plus sundry other later Bond books. Since Modesty is a kind of female James Bond I figure she belongs here too, but I can’t fit her on that shelf. So she goes inside the side draw. It feels right. I think everyone should have some Modesty Blaise books in their bedside draws. For easy reference, you understand.

I started reading Down and Out in Paris and London, the Orwell book. The Introduction was informative, telling us about the book’s origins, and also the fact that some details Orwell relates are not entirely accurate. Also, in actuality, he wasn’t quite as down and out as he suggests in the book, because he always had ultimate recourse to either return home to his parents, or visit his aunt in France. None of this takes anything away from his account though.

Since I’ll be going to Paris and London later this year (we’ve just sorted our accommodation for Paris – five days in a hotel near Montmartre!), it feels right to read things like this Orwell book now. I’m thinking a lot about Paris and its many literary and pop culture references. For example, I just saw a Youtube video about 10 Real Places From Miraculous In Real Life, which details things like the boulangerie where Marinette lives. It’s the Boulangerie du Moulin de la Galette right near Montmartre!. You know I’ll be going there!

I watched the Ingrid Bergman film Inn of the Sixth Happiness tonight. It’s been long on my To Watch list and today I just felt like watching it. It was one of those films that was always on the telly in the black and white Seventies (made in 1958), and I’d see bits of it, but had never seen the whole thing. It was amazing to see it all in colour and on widescreen. I liked it a lot. Bergman plays an inexperienced though idealistic Christian woman called Gladys Aylward who wants to be a missionary in China. So, she works to save up the money to go there, and does just that. She ends up at the titled Inn in an out of the way province run by an old woman missionary called Mrs Lawson who helps her settle into her role. I liked that the film didn’t push the whole Christian missionary angle. Even though Mrs Lawson tells stories from the Bible to the many travellers visiting the inn, it’s mostly through the many actions of self sacrifice and dedication that demonstrates their true faith and the value of their religious beliefs. To this end, the final section has Bergman guide a group of one hundred children through hazardous mountains to sanctuary when the Japanese invade the country.

It’s an epic film and Bergman looks wonderful in it, even though she’s meant to be a dowdy missionary. There’s even a love interest for her with Curt Jurgen’s soldier character (which did not happen to the MC in real life). Robert Donat plays a local chieftan who helps Gladys, and he’s very good as usual – even though he’s a white actor playing a Chinese character. Some reviewers on Letterboxd derided him for doing this, but I say shut up, he’s fine. While the first Five Happinesses are known, I like that the whole point of the Sixth Happiness is that it is unknown and has to be found within each person’s own heart. Bergman’s character clearly discovers this Happiness within herself in her life in China. I felt like this was a film I needed. It was great to complete my memory of those fleeting old black and white viewings.

Today we had the sad news that Beach Boys legend Brian Wilson died. I listened to Till I Die in tribute to the great man. Listening to it, it occurred to me that the three verses cover three of the four elements: water, earth and air. But there isn’t a verse for fire. So I thought I’d try and write one for it.

‘I’m a light from a candle, softly casting a golden glow…How long will this flame burn? How long will this flame burn?’

RIP Brian.

I was working in Ringwood and bought some goodies in the shopping mall there. Was hoping to get that Dusty Springfield album, Longing, but JB didn’t have it. But I picked up a K-On omnibus edition manga, plus Bocchi the Rock volume one at some book stores. I also got a couple of anime dvds at that second hand electronics shop. They were Burst Angel Infinity and the movie Vexille.

I didn’t plan it this way, but I’m now reading three books that are each about female rock bands. There’s the Bangles biog, Eternal Flame, The K-On manga, featuring Ho Kago Tea Time, and the Bocchi manga, featuring Kessoku Band. Then there’s the all-girl Scandal album, Best Scandal, I’m listening to in the car at the moment. I guess I like girl groups!

I watched most of the Burst Angel Infinity dvd. It was just an OVA episode that was made after the tv series. There is also an unusual long montage sequence included which I’ll get to later. Infinity is a flashback story featuring our two heroines, Meg and Jo, involved with a mecha monster that is murdering people. Not having seen the show before, I was impressed with its smooth combination of two and three D animation. It also reminds me of other animes I’ve liked, like Bubblegum Crisis.

Watched the montage sequences included in the Burst Angel Infinity dvd. It’s a kind of highlights reel of the TV show that goes for one and a half hours. It’s weird to have it here, but I don’t mind. I had the opportunity to buy a copy of the show years ago, but it was Region One, and at the time I thought I wouldn’t be able to play it. But I forgot my Pioneer dvd player is a universal unit, so I could have. Oh well. At least I’ve got this highlights reel. The show looks fantastic and reminds me of a bunch of my favourites, including Ghost In the Shell, Evangelion and Bubblegum Crisis. The character Jo must be one of the most kickass female characters ever. It’s suggested she might be an alien. I think she could beat Revy from Black Lagoon!