For my entire life (and I know you can find other examples, but this is for me), there were three constants. Constants in the sense of my love of their music as well as them always putting out new and fantastic new music for the bulk of my life. All started at the beginning of my lifetime passion for music.
The first was Tom Petty and when he passed in 2017, I literally grieved. I had just seen him with Joe Walsh opening and it was great. He had just released his first No. 1 album, Hypnotic Eye, and it was fantastic. The second artist along for my ride, Bruce Springsteen. He is always someone I had an undying resect for and I liked almost everything he ever did. The Rising, coming out of the 9/11 tragedy, is a top album, start to finish, over almost anything I have heard. I am a big fan, but my passion does not run deep there.
Southside Johnny and The Asbury Jukes, my personal all-time, all-timer, from the Springsteen, Little Steven family tree. For me, he never did a bad song, he never hit the wrong key. He was it for me. His music was a passion for me. It was my map from a pimply-faced punk to whatever the Hell it is that I am now. Top of my all-time list of artists. From my youth (which we all know was just after the Big Bang) to the present day. I am not sure exactly, but I probably saw him at least 15 times. Big venues and on the casino circuit.
I know that it's getting late
But I don't want to go home
I am in no hurry baby time can wait
I don't want to go home
Listen to the man sing his song
I don't want to go home
I don't mind baby to stay all night long
Cause I don't want to go home
Listen baby
I know we had to try
To reach up and touch the sky baby
What ever happened to you and I
That I don't want to go home
So, let’s take a walk around our home and my memorials of Southside. He is the most represented of any artist on our home.
At left, right above The Knack, you can see his debut album, the namesake of this post. That is my office.
On the right, one of the most underappreciated albums of the 70’s (Rolling Stone said so, not me as I LOVED it), Hearts of Stone. Pretty sure the entirety of the album was written by Springsteen and/or Steve Van Zant. From my album wall.
At right it speaks for itself, a concert poster. On the left, next to the ELO poster (discussed here recently), is a picture of Southside and Springsteen, taken by Anastasia Pantsios, who was the preeminent photographer of the Cleveland rock scene for The Plain Dealer (a newspaper, when such a thing existed) for decades. She has taken pictures of anyone and everyone you can imagine, and I have met her on a few occasions. She would know me by name. She has shot everyone from the Beatles, the Stones to my favorite here.
Again, my office with a concert poster from a concert I actually attended and the Jukes second album, This Time It’s for Real. Why do I torture with so many close ups of me? I don’t mean to, just step back from your screen.
A few lingering pics off social media of my recent bridal walk. Not the best quality photos, but amazing memories!
Pics provided by BFF, who knows how this social stuff works!
February 22, 2026, I was staring at the seventh day of work in a 17 consecutive day stretch of work, between two trucking jobs and two volunteer commitments, while negotiating to purchase a “new” truck. I have been with a company driving for Amazon since the last week of December and until the other day, I had no clue how we got scheduled, etc. I finally had an extended conversation with the operations manager (not as easy as it sounds as he manages 125 or so drivers and has been doing so only for a few weeks). I learned a lot and let him know it is quite alright to not give me work when I am scheduled if we don’t have the routes. He had been placing extra drivers on standby, which got us about 2 hours of pay. But for me, it required completely upending my sleep schedule and a drive back and forth across town around midnight. An investment of time not worth a few hours pay. Being on standby required being prepared for what could be a 14-hour overnight shift and then after getting the proper sleep being home at 2:00AM, eyes wide open and nothing to do.
This day he took me up on the offer and I had an unexpected day off! I do want to go, or rather be, home!
Now, I have an unexpected open day, it’s snowy out, but I hadn’t gotten my girl on for a week. Yeah, cry me a river, I know, but that is a long time for me to go cold turkey. Once I knew I was off, the first thing immediately was to plan a crockpot dinner for Sunday. I decided on crack chicken. Me, I thought of the drug crack, like “that was so good, it was like crack…”. But it actually means a popular, creamy, and savory comfort food dish made by combining shredded chicken with cream cheese, dry ranch seasoning, bacon, and cheddar cheese.
I got my crack on, cracked open a bottle of wine and reached back into my bag of tricks for a pandemic game I played to stay sane. Then I would select one piece of clothing, a dress, skirt, top, etc. and create five different outfits using that piece for photoshoots. I am not normally a dress to stay home type of gal, but today, it scratched my itch.
The ground rules are I do a neutral makeup pallet and change from one outfit to the next, assembling shoes, accessories and purses as I go, creating different photo spots until done. This day I used things as much as possible that I would not wear out for one reason or another. This included items from my wife’s wardrobe, all of the skirts. She really wouldn’t care, but since I have a massive wardrobe myself, I try never to use her things. Plus, I quite literally own about 10 times the skirts that she does.
So, ladies and gentlemen, let’s play Five Skirts! Tomorrow….
Life is not a zero-sum game. If I win it does not mean you have to lose.
Seek those win-win situations.
6 Responses
Hearts of Stone is definitely a great album.
My senior year of college I was the coach of a local high school debate team. One of the seniors, Jill, bought me the album as a thank you. Corresponded with her post college, but in the pre-internet days I lost track of her. I wonder what she is doing these days.
“It’s over now, the light don’t shine no more.”
Another walk down memory lane.
One recent (boy) story to tell. My wife’s high school classmates have been meeting at a pub about an hour away a couple of times while we’ve been down under. The husband of one of the classmates is a bassist Ina band that plays at the pub. The ages of the musicians are my demographic.
The second time, a Sun-Dee ago, I was talking to the group attending. The partner (girlfriend) of the drummer mentioned that the drummer used to be in Goanna, an Aussie band that had a song that got air play in the US, “Solid Rock”. I looked the drummer up and sure enough, he was listed on their Wikipedia page. He actually left the band before “Spirit of Place”, their album with Solid Rock (he went to work at the Ford auto plant).
I told Don, the drummer, I had the album way back when (it came out in 1982). He says he’s still in contact with the lead singer. So the first time I’ve ever met someone who was in a band of an album I have owned.
Great stories!!
Kandi,
I was intrigued by your comment stating you assembled some items from your wife’s wardrobe , OK she doesn’t mind which is great . The question is does she use any of your items ? I assume being so open with her she has full access to your wardrobes .
I guess that leads on to the question have you ever been out together as Kandi ?
My wife has no reason to use anything of mine.
While she is welcomed to do so, she has plenty of clothing and works a job five days a week that requires a uniform, so opportunities for her to dress up are not as frequent.
We have shared a thing or two, but in my home, it’s a nonissue.
Saw Southside Johnny a few times, last time was at the Kent Stage. When I walked in to the auditorium I told my friend that there’s a lot of old people here and he responded “These are our peeps!” I enjoyed the concert nonetheless! Talk to Me and Trapped Again are two of my favorites!
Saw him there as well (maybe the same show)!
Yes, I am old and decaying by the day, right in South’s wheelhouse.
Sadly, health has retired him.
You name two gems off of Hearts of Stone, but he kept pumping out fantastic music for decades.