#my gypsy troubadour

[izzystradlindoesitforme]

Ixzl Appreciation Day

Part VII

"They were fucking hardcore on stage. Izzy was doing knee slides and Axl was bashing down. It was cool, like, 'F**k…'"

Izzy & Axl

Ixzl Appreciation Day

Part VII

You've been breaking down my back and I've been racking out my brain.

It don't matter how we make it cause it always ends the same.

You can push it for more mileage, but your flaps are wearing thin.

And I can sleep on it 'til morning, but this nightmare never ends.

Don't forget to call my lawyers with ridiculous demands.

And you can take the pity so far but it's more than I can stand.

'Cause this couch-trip's getting older, tell me - how long has it been?

Cause five years is forever, and you haven't grown up yet!

Above quote: Slash, describing the first time he saw Izzy Stradlin and Axl Rose performing onstage together. - Kerrang! interview

[izzystradlindoesitforme]

@nenynra They weren't always that big, but YES, he did like them like that. That is one of his signatures. I love his huge guitars.

Hence the tag: 'It's not just his guitars that are huge.'

This is his Gibson Chet Atkins Country Gentleman.

Izzy Stradlin, 1987

[izzystradlindoesitforme]

Baby Boy in Leopard Print and Pearls

Oh, gosh yes.

Testosterone and pearls never looked so good.

♂️🐆🦪

Thank you, my dear friend Jackie, for posting this earlier when I didn't even realize you had! You have excellent taste and an exquisite eye. @jakelinestradlin And thank you, @dreamcastgirl99 for sending it to me. ♥️

[mzannthropy]

I make no secret of the fact that I dislike many of the regular Gilmore Girls characters (not dislike in the way that I see them as villainous; antagonistic characters bring conflict, for example I don't consider Richard Gilmore to be a nice person at all, but that doesn't mean I don't find him interesting, but dislike as in, I find them annoying or stupid, my two main reasons for disliking characters). Unpopular opinions ahead: I despise Michel, I don't like Sookie and Jackson and Liz and TJ and I hate Zach, April and Anna. But otoh I like characters who don't appear as much, and I wish they did. Miss Patty, Babette, Moray, Cesar from Luke's diner (he's just so entertaining in every scene he's in), Gypsy. Even the town troubadour. At least there's Kirk, who gets just the right amount of time. But they could have shown a bit more of Lulu.

Also on this rewatch, I came to really like Gil, who joins Lane's band.

[espresssobean]

FMK Stars Hollow Townies Edition

Miss Patty, Babette, Gypsy

Kirk, Taylor, Tom

Troubador, Andrew, Bootsy

oh my GOD!! i have NEVER been more excited for a question.

ok.

F: Miss Patty, Kirk, and Troubadour. Miss Patty just has raw sexual energy (obviously), Kirk I think would be surprisingly bendy, and Troubadour would sing you sweet songs before and after.

M: Babette, Tom, and Andrew. Babette is so silly goofy but she just has a good soul and a warm presence. Tom can construct our cozy little house, and he seems like he’s secretly cuddly. And then Andrew owns a bookstore…what else can I say.

K: I regret to announce that I’m forced to kill Gypsy (I’m sorry my sweet), Taylor (lol), and Bootsy. Bootsy just cause I *had* to marry Andrew

This was so fun! Thank you for sending this in bestie!! <3

[izzystradlindoesitforme]

Nothing would be more satisfying than eating a hot, fresh, gourmet Belgian waffle while getting the mind-numbing, thigh-shaking, convulsions-inducing, magnitude 8.9, world-famous, five-star Izzy Stradlin 'treatment'.

Except if the waffle had blueberry compote and whipped cream. And Izzy was feeding it to me at same time.

Reblog if you like waffles or if you want your 80s rock star crush to fuck you into next week

[izzystradlindoesitforme]

Slizzy Appreciation Day

Part I

'Izzy brought simple chord patterns that fell around the beat instead of on it. For every downbeat, Izzy had an upbeat.'

Izzy & Slash

Slizzy Appreciation Day

Part I

But that old man - he's a real mother fucker - gonna kick him on down the line.

I love these guys.

[scotianostra]

The singer songwriter, poet and folk musician Jackie Leven was born on June 18th 1950.

Born as Alan Moffatt in Kirkcald in the Pictish region he called "the Kingdom of Fife," a few miles southwest of the River Leven to a London-Irish father and Northumbrian mother, both Romany Gypsies, he was an outsider from birth. His mother played blues records around the house, and by 16 Jackie was playing in local folk clubs, and briefly married.

Though a prize-winning pupil at school (where Gordon Brown was in his year), he claimed he was the first Scots student expelled for drug-taking. A vendetta by a local gang forced him to flee Fife aged 17. During the late 1960s, he spent months huddled homeless around London's South Bank, and worked as a labourer in Kerry, Berlin and Madrid, where he recorded his first album, Control (1971), under the pseudonym John St Field. He also once mentioned he had married a millionairess.

He met his Doll by Doll bandmates while squatting Dorset farmhouses in the early '70s. "In some respects the best days of our lives, in a wonderful dream of Old England," he recalled. They reconvened in 1975, in a west London squat, Bristol Gardens, a street with "a huge contingent of badly damaged, but nevertheless wonderful fun Scottish guys ... prostitutes and petty thieves".

Doll by Doll carried their own "serious unresolved edges". Leven had a near-fatal overdose before they made Remember in 78, a blunt instrument of a debut which approximated their confrontational live act. "I can remember a couple of nights at the Marquee where I would have given anything to be in that audience," he recalled. "At the same time, there were people thinking, 'If I don't get away from this band right now, I might literally go insane.'"

Their second album, Gypsy Heart in 1979, was Leven's lyrical breakthrough. Its romantic Celtic soul music explored what would become enduring themes: identity, wanderlust and landscape. "I've never had my own place to live, I've always ended up living at other people's, and that continues to this day," he said in a 2007 interview. "But that record made me feel I had a place in the world, even if it was a very unpleasant place that wasn't going to do me any favours."

Record-company politics and their own unstable natures did for Doll by Doll after two more albums. In 1983, Leven was strangled and had his throat slashed in a mugging. Unable to speak or sing for over a year and dropped by his label, he found solace in heroin. He would sit for weeks in Marylebone station, silent and profoundly depressed.

Recovering in 1985 via acupuncture and "psychic healing", he co-founded the CORE Trust, a charity which offers holistic help for addiction. Through it, he met Princess Diana. Moving to Scotland's West Coast, he soaked up the "fierce warmth" of trawlermen in the bars at night, and began to write again.

In 1994, he returned to music with The Mystery of Love is Greater Than the Mystery of Death, the first of 24 albums for Cooking Vinyl. These formed a prolific, redemptive songbook about a cruel world, often sung and played with deceptive lightness. His own partial healing, and 1990s fascination with the "Iron Man" philosophy of Robert Bly, gave him new perspective on the scarred tough men of great songs such as "Classic Northern Diversions". He settled happily in Hampshire with his long-term partner Deborah Greenwood, but each year he took a sleeping bag, and wandered country lanes again. "My missus says, 'Jackie, you're a vagabond and I accept that'," he said. To me it must have been that Romany blood he inherited.

In concert he was a charismatic troubadour. Settling at the bar for a pint before the gig, he'd then leaven his songs with dryly hilarious tall tales. Four live albums released in 2009, under the general heading "The Haunted Year", give the fullest picture of his work. A yarn where he announces Sting's death on a Kirkaldy commuter train is inseparable from the songs. His last album, Wayside Shrines and the Code of the Travelling Man, was released in 2011, during which he continued to tour, until the cancer which killed him made it impossible. "I sometimes think I'm too connected to the pain of other people," he once said, unsure if this was a good thing. "Out of that, and anger about that, I find myself writing." This sympathy for often violent, stoic people who were rarely offered it had, in his finest songs, few parallels.

Leven died on 14 November 2011, aged 61, of cancer.  Ever the performer and knowing he was dying, Leven had been due to perform at the Green Hotel in Kinross for Mundell Music on Friday night 18 November.

I’ve chosen a great song by Jackie call Exit Wound, I first heard this after reading the Ian Rankin Rebus novel, by the same name in 2008, Ian was a big fan of Jackie’s, I know this is the part of the post where most people move on and don’t bother listening to the song, but I implore you, please for a change have a listen to it, Jackie Leven is one of the most underrated geniuses of the Scottish music scene.

"If you could look inside my heart You'd see a body without a soul" Deserted villages - forget-me-nots Blowing in the cold "If you could look inside my heart You'd see a body without a soul" Deserted villages - forget-me-nots Blowing in the cold

It was the time of spring and song The lilac had already been and gone I had just returned from walking By the sounding sea I came back from the hotel Where you turned and said to me

White bars of heaven keep me from you I know you're living in hell, but what can I do

White bars of heaven keep me from you I know you're living in hell, but what can I do

I stood under the shattered star And watched the drunks fall by With every stumble that I saw A picture cleared in my mind's eye I see you walk away with your heels Sparking on the ground And though I lie alone I feel your fingers deep inside My exit wound

Now I have been on your side so strong Though something in your kiss was all wrong And now you say there's something Something wrong inside my mind You're gonna let me go I hear you whisper from behind

[doomandgloomfromthetomb]

Robyn Hitchcock - McCabe's Guitar Shop, Santa Monica, California, July 18, 1987

Hitchcock o'clock again! We've made it to the summer of 1987 ... Spaceballs and Predator were in the theaters, Orel Hershiser was pitching for the Dodgers, "I Wanna Dance With Somebody" was topping the charts — and Robyn Hitchcock was playing solo at McCabe's Guitar Shop in Santa Monica. He'd visit the legendary SoCal venue pretty regularly for the next decade, before the Largo lured him away — indeed, this is where I first saw Robyn in 1994. A great place to catch a show, super-intimate and laid-back. You always feel like you're in on a secret when you're at McCabe's.

At this point, Hitchcock would've been in the midst of making Globe of Frogs with the Egyptians, which came out in early 1988, and he takes the opportunity during these two sets to debut a handful of songs from that great record — the title track and "Sleeping With Your Devil Mask." This is early days for Robyn as a solo acoustic troubadour, but he seems extremely comfortable and confident, his guitar work sparkling, his vocals precise, and his between-song monologues surreal and hilarious. Those monologues even creep into the songs themselves — check out the versions of "Raymond Chandler Evening," which drift into dreamlike zones midway through. Beware the Evil One!

There's also a "lost" song of sorts here — "The Angel Upstairs," which may have morphed into "Wax Doll" later on. The loose late show's encores are especially great — "Donna Summer" is an incredible improv, while the rare covers of the trad-folk "False Knight on the Road" and Dylan's "Went To See The Gypsy" are lovely. A beautiful evening on Pico Boulevard ...

Robyn Says: My friends and family are all "Artists". I have never met an ordinary person. But I am English and so not very exotic from a distance — like a minesweeper full of fruit and fireworks. I'm six foot two inches tall and made entirely of dead sea creatures. I have never wanted to be anything but a singer, although I'm basically a draughtsman. My songs are simply pictures. A song has no opinion. I want the pictures to be as intense as positive — ideally one glimpse would detonate the spectator permanently. But, inevitably, things are lost in translation, or there is a delayed re-action. I have no ambition but I am very persistent. The great thing about human beings is that they can walk and eat at the same time.

Robyn Hitchcock | Web | Patreon | Bandcamp

[izzystradlindoesitforme]

Izzy with his guitar lookin' like I wanna jump him.

Baby doll. Hot, sweaty, sexy, dangerous, rock n' roll baby doll.

Izzy With His Guitar Lookin' Like A Hunk

[bobdylanrevisited]

Desire

Released: 5 January 1976

Rating: 10/10

Bob Dylan is a mayfly. He lives for a day and dies, only to return the next as a new being. Nowhere is this more evident that on this album, released a year after ‘Blood On The Tracks’. Gone are the bluesy guitars and country overtones, now it’s all carnival crescendos and adventure movie plots. This is an album made up of four individuals, the first obviously being Bob, who’s voice is astonishing. Then we have Jaques Levy, a playwright who co-wrote most of the tracks and clearly helped with the narrative on many of the best songs. Then there’s Emmylou Harris, an incredible artist in her own right, who effortlessly provides backing vocals and blends with Bob just as well as Joan Baez did. Finally, we have the star of the show, Scarlet Rivera. A violinist who Bob saw on the street one day, her addition to the recording band is magical, and this album is elevated to a new realm almost solely due to her. Between the recording and the release of this record, Bob began touring small venues in America with his gypsy travelling band as the Rolling Thunder Revue (RTR), and this mad tour is captured in the Martin Scorsese Netflix documentary of the same name. The performances of Bob caked in white paint are unmissable, as is this album, which is often overlooked in the Dylan pantheon, but is deserving of a place on the list of greatest albums ever made.

1) Hurricane - The return of Bob ‘I Don’t Sing Protest Songs’ Dylan. This is not only an epic retelling of the horrific events that lead to Ruben Carter’s wrongful arrest, but it’s also the perfect way to showcase the unique sound achieved on this album. Scarlet’s violin is the perfect accompaniment to Dylan’s voice, which sounds better than ever here. It’s a brilliant track and is always nice to be reminded that, despite his own hatred of the label, Bob was still a huge figure in the civil rights movement. The live footage of him singing the song in 1975 is spellbinding, and you can tell how much Ruben’s story means to him.

2) Isis - Fucking hell, no one tells a story like Dylan. Hot off the heels of a true story of injustice comes this bizarre fiction about death and adventure. I won’t begin to sum up the twists and turns Dylan narrates, just know that you hang on his every word as he paints masterful characters and scenes, whilst his backing band are in full force conjuring up mystical locations and exotic sounds. As with most of this album, the live RTR performance is a must watch, if only to see Dylan acting out the story with a madness in his eyes and some hilarious dance moves.

3) Mozambique - Apparently, this song came about as a bet to see how many words would rhyme with the titular country, and therefore the song is light and cheerful. Whilst the lyrics do have romantic imagery and political undertones, it is largely a throwaway tune that is still always fun to listen to.

4) One More Cup Of Coffee - The best song on the album, and perhaps Dylan’s best ever vocal performance, with beautiful harmonies with Emmylou Harris. A dark love song that makes you feel both spellbound and uneasy, it’s just pure magic that can be listened to on repeat, with Scarlet’s violin being the star of the show. Again, the RTR performance is among the finest things Bob has ever done.

5) Oh, Sister - This song is about Joan Baez, I don’t care what anyone else says. It’s a touching sentiment about their friendship, and the mystical, biblical imagery fits perfectly with the rousing music. Emmylou’s backing vocals are gorgeous and the whole song works perfectly together, particularly when performed live on the RTR.

6) Joey - This is a weird song. I love the music, the singing, everything about it except for the lyrics. Critic Lester Bangs described this deification of mobster Joey Gallo as ‘repellent romanticist bullshit’ and it’s hard to disagree. Bob’s story has changed over the year, he’s defended the song and Gallo, as well as stating that Jaques Levy wrote the words. Either way, it is easily my worst song on the album as I find it uncomfortable to listen to, which is unfortunate as all the components are there, I just can get onboard with the worship of a murderer.

7) Romance In Durango - A sprawling story set in Mexico with vivid imagery and Spanish tongues, this song really captures the whole mood of the album. The instrumentation is perfect, it’s a brilliant troubadour number that is both incredibly unique and also quintessentially Dylan: a bit strange yet always fresh and invigorating. The RTR version is one of Dylan’s best ever live performances and the energy is infectious.

8) Black Diamond Bay - Much like track 2, another song that tells a fantastical story that rivals the greatest writers in fiction. Like the album as a whole, all of the individual elements work seamlessly here to create a wondrous tune. It’s a song that doesn’t get enough praise, which shows just how amazing this period of Dylan’s work is, as for any other artist this would likely be their masterpiece. Yet for Bob, it’s just an album track tucked away towards the end.

9) Sara - The closing track is heartbreaking, Bob’s last ditch attempt to win back his wife. Of course it was too little too late and the marriage was irreparable, though Bob did play it for Sara during the recording sessions and it was understandably emotional. The song is a sequel to ‘Sad Eyed Lady Of The Lowlands’ at the end of the their relationship 10 years later. It’s both sweet and sad, with Bob sounding pained and the music sweeping over the track with raw emotion. He rarely lays himself bare like this and you can feel his desperation pouring out of the speakers. It’s a depressing note for the record to end on, but it’s an important moment in the history of Bob’s personal life.

Verdict: A masterpiece, plain and simple. The music is original, the songs are interesting, and the vocals are inspired. No other artist could follow up ‘Blood On The Tracks’ with an album that’s almost equally as perfect, yet Bob does it with ease whilst also completely changing his sound. My one complaint is again with Bob’s song choice. Listen to the studio outtake ‘Abandoned Love’, it is mind boggling that a song as genius as that was left of the album, yet ‘Joey’ was still included. In spite of this, I will never tire of this album and it holds a special place in my heart as it’s also my fiancé’s favourite Dylan era. Going forward, after the Rolling Thunder Review, Bob’s divorce was finalised and his attention would begin to turn to a higher power. Whilst he wouldn’t be born again for another 3 years, his next album began to embrace the gospel sound and sent Bob on an unexpected path.

[babs74]

Sunshine of your Love

Hallo! So this is my STL valentine for the lovely @anotheronebitestheskye. It’s my first ever go at writing, so please be gentle with me! But I’ve also actually really loved it! This is defo the start of a beautiful habit.

(I may actually be tempted to continue this story. It defo has legs!)

Fem!Reader x Ben Hardy

Mention of drugs, alcohol and cigarettes, but otherwise pretty vanilla.

It was the ocean y/n would miss most about this summer. The ocean and the music. Something about the way she could feel the cool spray against her face made everything feel that little bit more like an adventure.

Although to be fair, tonight was an adventure! Bernie had come to the ranch at the beginning of the summer to see the horses, and y/n had hoped he’d be back. Not that spending a summer in California wasn't her absolute dream, but after her first few weeks it was so lovely to hear a British accent again.

Not that she could even remember the quiet homesick girl from a few months ago. Maybe it was the ocean. Maybe the fact that months working outdoors made her legs look amazing in her tiny suede skirt (the one she was always too scared to wear back home, but had packed just in case…). Or maybe it was the music.

There has never been much of a music scene back in her quiet seaside hometown, but California in 1970 seemed to breathe music. Y/n had been reluctant when the other girls on the ranch had tried to drag her out to the Troubadour, but they said there had been this act last week called Elton John who was absolutely incredible, and they’d heard he might be back for more shows.

And he was British!

Well, she had been feeling low, so maybe something familiar would lift her mood.

It turned out Elton wouldn’t be back to the end of the summer, but the band that had played that night had blown her mind! The melodies, the lyrics, she’d never heard anything that felt so much like it was made actually for her. Definitely not the easy listening that seemed to constantly be on her parents radio back home.

Soon all her earnings from the ranch were going straight to Tower Records. She started to worry how she was going to get her ever growing record collection home! But she’d figure that out later.

She had one week left of this magical summer, and Bernie had been back at the ranch to invite her and the rest of the girls to the Troubadour where his ‘band’ were back to play. There was something different about him. His hair was that little bit longer, and he had definitely grown in confidence.

Maybe with some music and liqueur in him, he might actually have the confidence to make a move, y/n hoped.

*******

“Y/N! You came!!” Bernie shouted across the rammed bar.

“Bernie! Why the FUCK did you not mention you ‘band’ was Elton John, you sly little git”

Y/n made her way over to Bernie giggling and gave him a hug. As she broke away, she became painfully aware that in her enthusiasm for the set Elton had just played, she’d totally sweat through her gypsy top, and Bernie must have noticed. She cringed slightly.

She needn’t have worried though.

“Y/n, this is Heather. Heather, y/n. She works out on that ranch I was telling you about. It’s so beautiful out there, there are horses, and its all so wild, and...”

Y/n could see this wasn’t going to be the night. The look on Bernie’s face talking to this absolute goddess was enough for her to realise the battle was lost before she’d even managed to get a drink out of him!

Ah well, nothing lost I guess, thought y/n, so she grabbed herself a beer and was about to head back to her usual table when Bernie turned.

“Hey, you coming back for the after party? Think we’re going to head up to some cabin in Laurel Canyon, its meant to be amazing!”

Old y/n would have said no. Old y/n would have been worried she wouldn’t know anyone and been too nervous and just slink off home. But new y/n? California y/n? She had music in her soul, beer in her belly and a pack of smokes in her bag. Fuck it.

“Yeah sure! Will Elton be there? I can only imagine how crazy he is in real life. Shall I grab the girls as well?”

But Bernie was already back to swooning over Heather, so y/n grabbed the girls from their table and headed out front. She quickly spotted Elton’s band by their van, and was about to rally herself to go say hi when Penny, her closest and wildest friend at the ranch launched herself at them.

“Dee, hey baby!” She purred, wrapping herself around the bassist. Of course she had hooked up with the band when they first played here. Obviously. It was Penny. God y/n was going to miss her.

They piled into the back of the van, and two joints were sparked and handed round before they even got the door closed.

*******

Smoke and musicians tumbled out the van as they reached the house in the hills. Y/n had no idea whose place it was, but right now she didn’t care. She’d had a few swigs of Southern Comfort on the drive up, and in her head she was basically Janis Joplin, if only with slightly less hair.

She swung into the party with a gaggle of funsters; musicians, writers, groupies; no one could tell any difference now. You certainly wouldn’t have picked her out as a farm girl, but then that skirt really did work wonders!

But as y/n saw Penny disappear off with the bassist, she realised she didn’t actually know anyone here! She tried as best she could to imitate her best friend’s swagger, but the SoCo was wearing off, and she’d need some more Dutch courage if she was going to brave the party alone.

Drink in hand, y/n headed to the porch for a quick cig to calm herself before she threw herself headfirst into the hedonism. She fumbled a Marlborough light in between her lips (maybe the SoCo hadn’t worn off as much as she thought), but couldn’t for the life of her find her lighter in her small fringed bag.

“I swear I threw it in here before we…”

“Need a light?” Came a deep, gruff voice from behind her.

“That would be amazing, tha...oh...thanks!”

Y/n stumbled over her words as she spun around to be faced with the most beautiful, piercing eyes she had ever seen. She wasn’t sure if it was the booze coupled with the fresh air, but she suddenly felt quite dizzy.

She finally managed to get her sense back together.

“Yeah...yeah, thanks, I thought I had mine...but I must have...sorry you don’t care. Hi! I’m Y/n.”

“Hey y/n” he chuckled, “I’m Ben. Nice to meet another Brit out here.”

He looked down at his feet then fixed y/n with another mesmerising stare. God it felt like he could ruin her just with a look. But also, that kinda felt like...a move? Was that deliberate? Was he...flirting?

Y/n let out a giggle she wasn’t particularly proud of, but this man made her feel like a teenager! Get it together girl.

“Yeah, I’ve only met a few since I’ve been here. Came here with one actually, do you know Bernie?”

“Taupin? Yeah he’s an old mate! Reason I’m here actually as well. So...you’re here with him then?”

Those goddam eyes suddenly became incredibly puppy dog, and y/n couldn’t help but melt a bit. But also… “hang on”...she thought… “is he disappointed I might be taken?”

Y/n took it as a boost (along with another swig of her drink), and went for it.

“No no, not at all. I’m here by myself. Well, with you now I guess!”

Y/n tried to shoot Ben a flirty glance over the rim of her glass, but she suddenly felt incredibly inadequate in her eye-fuck game! She giggled to herself, but thought hell, we’re here now!

“So why are you here for Bernie?” Y/n continued.

“I’m a photographer. He asked me to come here with his band. I’ve been following that lot around all summer. It’s been great, but if I’m brutally honest, I’ll be glad to get back home. No one here can make a decent cuppa, and I know it sounds ridiculous...but…” he trailed off, smiling to himself and looked down at his feet again.

“What’s ridiculous? I’m sure it's not!” Y/n tried a tentative stroke of Ben’s not-insignificant arm as she started to feel really warm around him. And she was fairly sure this wasn’t just the booze anymore!

“It’s just, I miss my dog! She’s so cute, and...ah shit, I’m trying to come off as cool…I’ve ruined it haven’t I! Shit…” he trailed off with a chuckle.

“Not at all! I love animals. I’m actually working at a ranch down in the valley for the summer. I love working with the horses, hoping I can get a proper job in it one day. Need to finish uni first though. God, now I’m the one blabbering…”

“No, no way! I love hearing people talk about what they love. Girls always like the idea I’m a photographer, but they switch off as soon as I actually start talking about lenses and stuff.”

He’d gone full puppy dog again, and y/n couldn’t help but stare. God he was beautiful.

“Well!” She broke the silence, just on the verge of becoming awkward. “I can’t do anything about the dog, but you can definitely come by the ranch for a proper cup of tea! Might even have some custard creams my mum sent me left.”

Ben’s eyes lit up. Y/n could tell if it was the invite generally, or the biscuits in particular, but she knew that her stomach was suddenly doing backflips at the sight of his cheesy little smirk.

“Yeah definitely, sounds amazing! It’s a date.”

Those last few words nearly knocked y/n to the floor. She could feel another school girl giggle coming if she wasn’t careful.

Thankfully she heard the muffled opening riff of ‘Sunshine of your Love’ coming from the party inside. Cream was one of her favourite discoveries of the summer.

“Great! Come on, I love this song!” Y/n grabbed Ben’s hand and dragged him inside to enjoy the music. She thought she just might have discovered her best favourite yet...

[harrysdimples]

“Hello. Just like a white-winged dove sounds like she's singing. Stevie Nicks is the first female artist to be inducted to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame for the second time. [motions for the crowd to make more noise] The first female artist to be inducted to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame for the SECOND time. First it was for Fleetwood Mac and now for unforgettable solo music. With Stevie you're not celebrating music from long ago from the mists of time, she was standing on stage headlining a place this size, doing her best work, just three nights ago. Stevie is forever current, she is forever Stevie. But what exactly does that mean?

In my family, we listened at home, we listened in the car, we listened wherever we could. Dreams was the first song I knew all the words to, before I really knew what the words meant. I thought it was a song about the weather, but I knew it was a beautiful song about the weather. I always knew the words and I loved them all. Thunder only happens when it's raining, Players only love you when they're playing. She's so wise and serene, she sees all the romance and drama in the world and celebrates it. She will stand on stage introducing a song, telling you how she wrote them honestly, like you're the only other person in the world. You're more than a fan, you are her friend, and her words say in so many ways that 'I understand you and you are not alone' and that is true Stevie. 

She walked a path trailed by Janis Joplin and Joni Mitchell, visionary women who had to throw a couple of elbows to create their own space. She was far ahead of her time, creating her own sound. It was bright, it was fresh, it was magical. Next she formed a duo with Lindsay Buckingham, Buckingham Nicks. Then on New Year's Eve 1974, Mick Fleetwood invited Lindsay Buckingham and herself to join Fleetwood Mac and everybody's lives became brilliant and a lot more crazier. Stevie Nicks stepped onto the world stage with unforgettable ease, I remember it well. [smiles] She began creating stories that flowed from her heart to her pen which ended up in our souls, characters that we would always remember. Classic songs like Silver Springs, Rhiannon, Gypsy and Sarah. In the 1980s she released Bella Donna, the rare first solo album that was as powerful as the supergroup she was still in. With Stop Dragging My Heart Around, she and Tom Petty took it to another level.

Then she did it again, with albums like Wild Heart, Rock A Little, whether on her own or in a duet, with her band, it's probable she found herself in a barber shop quartet. Stevie can do it all and that is true Stevie. You can't take your eyes off her, as we've seen tonight. She's the magical gypsy godmother that occupies the in-between. It's a space that can and will only ever be hers. She's a lot like a rock and roll Nina Simone finding the niche only she can and by being so unapologetically herself, she allows others to do the same and that is true Stevie. If you’re lucky enough to know her, she’s always there for you, she knows what you need; advice, wisdom, a blouse, a shawl. 

Her songs make you ache and on top of the world, make you want to dance, and usually all three at the same time. She is responsible for more running mascara, including my own, than all the bad dates in history combined and that is true Stevie. There are few people who own the stage like her, I was lucky enough to play with her at the Troubadour a few years ago and all I could do was watch. The show is no longer yours, it is hers, and you take a knee and she takes it from you. that’s true Stevie. She has many, many solo hits, If Anyone Falls, Edge of Seventeen, Talk to Me, but there are so many gems hidden within the albums. However you feel or want to feel, there is a Stevie Nicks song that will meet you there. Each song is a dance, an emotional ballad, it is a letter to a lover or a friend and every single year she gathers more momentum. Somewhere around 2005/2006, this woman became God. I think we can all agree on that. 

On Halloween, 1 in 7 people dress as Stevie Nicks. She is both an adjective & a verb. To quote my father, ‘That was so Stevie Nicks.’ and to quote my mother, 'I Stevie Nicks-ed that shit so hard." Mick Fleetwood also had a fearless leader, she is Mama Lion to her friends, she is the family member you can always count on. I hope she knows what she means to us, and what she means to other generations of artists who look to her for inspiration and trail-blazing courage. That is true Stevie. She is so much more than a role model, she is a beacon to all of us, whenever you hear her voice, your life just gets a little bit better. When she sings, the world is hers, and it is yours. She is everything you’ve ever wanted in a lady, in a lover and in a friend. 

Stephanie Nicks, I love you, we all do, and THAT is true Stevie.”

- Harry Styles on Stevie Nicks, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Induction 2019. 

[everything-lauramkelly]

A Look Back on LMK's 2010s

2010

Laura continues to play Mary Poppins on Broadway. On August 24, she is reunited with her original Bert, Gavin Lee, who replaces Christian Borle.

She performs at Broadway in Bryant Park and on America Celebrates July 4th, and attends a few galas.

Rumours about an involvement in the world premiere of Ghost The Musical arise.

2011

Laura leaves the Broadway production of Mary Poppins on March 6, and rejoins July 19 until October 9, which marks her final performance in the show.

During her time off, she's shooting the movie Goddess in Australia alongside Ronan Keating and Magda Szubanski. It is released in 2013.

She takes part in a reading of Amazing Grace in New York City.

2012

Goddess premieres at the 65th Cannes Film Festival.

Laura makes her Muny debut as Anna Leonowens in The King and I in August.

She returns to the UK to play Paula Tanqueray in The Second Mrs Tanqueray at the Rose Theatre in Kingston from September to October.

She attends film premieres, after parties and awards shows.

2013

On February 14, Laura performs alongside Michael Ball at the See You Soon concert in Shanghai. The concert is broadcast on TV.

Goddess is released in Australia on March 14.

On April 11, she's part of Dave Stewart's concert at the Troubadour.

She reprises the role of Eliza Doolittle in My Fair Lady for one night only on May 5 and is praised by critics.

Full of love for the Muny, she returns to St. Louis to play Ensign Nellie Forbush in South Pacific alongside Josh Young in July.

She performs in the concert Sondheim: Inside Out at London's Queen Elizabeth Hall on November 10.

2014

Laura returns to the Kennedy Center to play Guenevere in Camelot on May 4 alongside Brian Stokes Mitchell.

Shortly after, she's part of a reading of the new musical Republic. She was involved in either a workshop or reading of Carousel as well, playing Julie Jordan.

She originates the role of Sylvia Llewelyn-Davies in Finding Neverland alongside Jeremy Jordan at the American Repertory Theatre. The musical is confirmed to open on Broadway the following year.

2015

Livin' the Broadway Life™!

Laura opens Finding Neverland on Broadway with Matthew Morrison, Kelsey Grammer, Carolee Carmello and Teal Wicks.

She attends several awards shows (Tony Awards, Broadway.com Audience Choice Awards) and movie premieres.

She performs at Stars in the Alley, Broadway in Bryant Park, Gypsy of the Year, Broadway at the White House, Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade and records the cast album for Finding Neverland.

Her backstage vlogs called Never Grow Up get a ninth episode on Broadway.com.

2016

How does one even begin to summarize that year?

After several cast changes and a run of almost 15 months, Finding Neverland closes on August 21.

However, there's a new project just around the corner: she's cast as Anna Leonowens in the National Tour of The King and I alongside Jose Llana. She's delighted to get to explore the role even more from November onwards.

She's part of several concerts: My Fair Lady and Scott and Zelda at 54 Below, the Cinema Musical Concert in Tokyo and Ragtime on Ellis Island, to name a few.

She makes her solo concert debut at 54 Below with three concerts called All That Matters, with an encore at 42 West.

Laura gets to attend the Tony Awards once again, this time as an interviewer. She also makes another appearance at Broadway in Bryant Park.

2017

Continuing to play Anna in The King and I, Laura tours the US.

She takes some time off in November to perform another series of solo concerts, Both Sides Now, at 54 Below.

She is recorded singing Hello Young Lovers on multiple occasions.

2018

Laura leaves the King and I National Tour in March.

She returns to the Muny for a solo concert that's part of the series Muny Magic at the Sheldon.

In May, she reunites with Christian Borle for the New York City Center Encores production of Me and My Girl, and everyone's delighted.

From June to July, she originates Julie Cavendish in The Royal Family of Broadway in Pittsburgh.

Later in July, Laura and Matthew Morrison get to perform with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir for the Pioneer Day Concert. She announces her engagement to Sean Helleren.

The rest of the year is spent on wedding plans and throwbacks!

2019

On January 24, Laura marries Sean Helleren on Maui, Hawaii.

Preceding her return to the London stage, she is interviewed by many radio stations and magazines.

On February 24, Laura makes her London solo concert debut at Cadogan Hall. Two concerts at the Green Room 42 scheduled for March are cancelled.

She takes the stage as Sally Bowles in Cabaret at the Connecticut Repertory Theatre July 4-21.

Next up: Matilda at the Muny as Miss Honey in August. Unfortunately, the last performance is rained out.

In October, she originates the role of Jane Austen in Austen's Pride at the Fifth Avenue Theatre in Seattle.

Due to her pregnancy and health issues, she is forced to take several performances off. Shortly before the end of the run, her first child Raphael Benjamin is born.

Congratulations on an incredibly successful decade, Laura Michelle Kelly! May the 2020s be kind to you and your family.

[izzystradlindoesitforme]

Slizzy Appreciation Day

Part III

'... What Izzy played was the simple heart of the songs, no matter who wrote them; if everything else was taken off one of our songs, you'd hear the grace of Izzy's simple scratch rhythms.'

Slizzy

Appreciation Day Post

Part III

That old man - he's a real mother fucker - gonna kick 'em on down the line.

I love these guys.

[strangenewfriends]

“ Just like the white-winged dove, sings a song, sounds like she’s singing… 

Stevie Nicks is the first female artist to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame a second time. First, with Fleetwood Mac, and now for her unforgettable solo work. With Stevie, you’re not celebrating music from long ago through the mists of time. She was standing on stage headlining a place doing her best work just three nights ago. She is forever current. She is forever Stevie.

But what exactly does that mean? In my family we listened at home, we listened in the car, we listened wherever we could. “Dreams” was the first song I knew all the words to, before I really knew what all the words meant. I thought it was a song about the weather. But I knew it was a beautiful song about the weather. I always knew the words and I love them all. “Thunder only happens when it’s raining, Players only love you when they’re playing.”

She’s so wise and serene. She sees all the romance and the drama in the world and she celebrates it. She will stand on stage introducing a song, telling you how she wrote them — honestly — like you’re the only other person in the world. You’re more than a fan. You are a friend. And the words say in so many ways: I understand you and you are not alone. And that is true Stevie.

She walked a path created by Janis Joplin, Joni Mitchell — visionary women who had to throw a couple of elbows to create their own space. Her early band Fritz opened for Jimi Hendrix and they held their own. She was far ahead of her time, creating her own sound; it was bright, it was fresh, it was magical. Next, she formed a duo with Fritz’ bassist Lindsay Buckingham. Then on New Years’ Eve 1974, Mick Fleetwood invited Lindsay Buckingham and herself to join Fleetwood Mac and everyone’s lives became brilliant and a lot crazier.

Stevie Nicks stepped onto the world stage with unforgettable ease. I remember it well!

She began creating stories that flowed from her heart to her pen, which ended up in our souls, with characters we’d always remember. Classic songs like “Silver Springs,” “Rhiannon,” “Gypsy” and “Sara.” In the 1980s she released Bella Donna — as powerful as the supergroup she was still in. With “Stop Draggin’ My Heart Around,” she and Tom Petty took things to another level. Then she did it again with albums like The Wild Heart and Rock A Little. She went out on her own. It’s probable that at some point she found herself in a barbershop quartet. Stevie can do it all, and that is true Stevie.

You can’t take your eyes off of her, as we’ve seen tonight. She is the magical gypsy godmother who occupies the in-between. It’s a space that can and will only ever be hers. She’s a lot like a rock ‘n’ roll Nina Simone — finding the notes that only she can. And by being so unapologetically herself, she gives others permission to do the same. That is true Stevie.

If you’re lucky enough to know her, she’s always there for you. She knows what you need, advice, a little wisdom, a blouse, a shawl — she’s got you covered. Her songs make you ache, feel on top of the world, make you want to dance, and usually all three at the same time. She’s responsible for more running mascara — including my own — than all the bad dates in history combined. That is true Stevie.

There are few people that hold the stage like her. I was lucky enough to play with her at the Troubadour a few years ago, and all I could do was watch. The show is no longer yours, it’s hers, and you take a knee as she takes it from you, and that is true Stevie.

She has many solo hits: “If Anyone Falls,” “Edge of Seventeen,” “Talk to Me.” But there are so many gems within the albums, songs like “Belle Fleur” and “Garbo.” “Annabel Lee” and “Ooh My Love.” However you feel, or want to feel, there’s a Stevie Nicks song that will meet you there. Each song is a dance, an emotional ballet, a letter to a lover or a friend. And every single year, she gathers more momentum.

Somewhere around 2005, 2006, this woman became God. I think we can all agree on that. On Halloween, one in seven people dresses as Stevie Nicks. She is both an adjective, and a verb — to quote my father, “That was very Stevie Nicks!” or to quote my mother, “I Stevie Nicks’ed that shit so hard.” Mick Fleetwood calls her the “fearless leader.” She is “Mama Lion” to her friends. She is the family member that you can always count on. I hope she knows what she means to us, what she means to yet another generation of artists who look to her for inspiration and trailblazing courage. That is true Stevie.

She is more than a role model — she’s a beacon to all of us. Whenever you hear her voice, life gets a little bit better. When she sings, the world is hers, and it is yours. She is everything you’ve ever wanted in a lady, in a lover, in a friend.

Stephanie Nicks, I love you. We all do. And that is true, Stevie. Ladies and gentlemen, It has been an honor to be here with you all tonight, please join me in welcoming to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Stevie Nicks.”