ALTERNATE TITLE:
for the next phase of my blogging career.
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"Bermuda" - Linda Scott
(Feb./Mar. 1962, highest chart pos. #16 Easy Listening,
#70 Hot 100/#78 Cash Box)
"Changes In Latitudes, Changes In Attitudes"
- Jimmy Buffett (2016 live perf.)
Kicking off my "comeback special," that was the late, great Jimmy Buffett,
pioneer of the Gulf & Western music genre aka The Key West Sound,
with "Changes in Latitudes, Changes in Attitudes." Released in
1977, the ditty was a hit on the Pop, Easy Listening
and Country charts in the U.S. and in Canada.
Before that, you heard Linda Sampson of Queens, NY, better known as
Linda Scott, do her version of "Bermuda." Released at the start of 1962,
Linda's single was a cover of a top 10 hit from exactly ten years earlier,
February, 1952, a song written by 16 year old Cynthia Strother and
recorded by Cynthia and her 11 year old sister Kay, an act billed
as The Bell Sisters. Linda Scott's cover made the top 20 on
the Adult Contemporary chart, while another cover by
Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons, released
around the same time, failed to chart.
Greetings and salutations!
I am The Geator With The Heater Shady Del Knight...
finally back from my prolonged hiatus. Yessum, five
whole months have passed since my last post.
"April Come She Will" - Simon & Garfunkel
acoustic cover by Boyce Avenue (Aug. 2023)
That was Alejandro Manzano, lead singer and acoustic guitarist
for the Sarasota, Florida-based band Boyce Avenue, with a fine
cover of "April Come She Will," the hit Simon And Garfunkel
song featured in the 1967 Dustin Hoffman film The Graduate.
To get you back up to speed... in case you
just plain forgot... I needed to break away from the blogging
community for a prolonged period of time while Mrs. Shady
and I moved far away from Florida, the place we had called
home since the 1980s. Exiting Florida was a bittersweet
experience because we needed to leave behind
several of Mrs. Shady's family members.
Here we stand, worlds apart,
hearts broken in two, two, two...
"Separate Ways (Worlds Apart)" - Journey
cover by Zero Hour (Mar. 2023)
That was the great sound of Zero Hour, a brand new cover band
from Akron, Ohio, with their rendition of the 1983 Journey
hit "Separate Ways (Worlds Apart)."
So, to get back to my story, I am now coming to you from my
new home "way up north" as the Johnny Horton song goes.
Further clues to help you pinpoint my exact location
can be found in the lyrics to that 1960 hit:
Way up North (North to Alaska)
Way up North (North to Alaska)
North to Alaska, we go North, the rush is on
North to Alaska, we go North, the rush is on
Big Sam left Seattle in the year of '92
With George Pratt, his partner, and brother Billy too
They crossed the Yukon River and found the Bonanza gold
Below that old white mountain, just a little South-East of Nome
Yessum... the autumn winds blow chilly and cold... but I was
thrilled to see colored leaves for the first time since 1983... and
I'm looking forward to building a snowman in the months ahead.
I am delighted to have a new wife life but, along with this new
life, I have new and greater responsibilities, making it necessary
for me to adjust my priorities. To be frank (as opposed to Tom),
I cannot and will not be spending as much time blogging.
With that in mind, I now present...
8 simple rules
for the next phase of my blogging career.
RULE #1
From now on, I will be operating on a significantly reduced blogging schedule.
I will continue to publish new posts, but only once a month, not every five
to seven days as I have been doing for more than 15 years. Yessum, it's
a drastic cutback, but the alternative would be for me to quit blogging
entirely. Many times in recent years I have considered doing just that,
because I am getting tired of having to deal with persistent technical
problems on Blogger and Wordpress, and the YouTube Secret Police
who apparently get their jollies routinely deleting music videos on
grounds of copyright infringement, the latter making it especially
difficult and frustrating for someone who operates a music blog.
RULE #2
As I have always done in the past, I will continue to reply to comments
submitted by loyal friends and reciprocate by visiting their sites, reading
their posts and leaving thoughtful comments. However, given my
added responsibilities and time limitations, my visits to other
sites will be necessarily less frequent and my comments
brief. It's either that or quit blogging entirely.
RULE #3
Here is another major change. Whenever I publish a new post,
I will remain on "active status" that day plus two additional days -
three days in all. At the end of that three day period, I will revert
to "inactive status" and go off the grid until I resurface with my
next post. It means I will not be present on the blog circuit to
reply to late comments on my posts or to visit other blogs and
read and comment on new posts friends publish in the interim.
That's all I am able and willing to do from now on. It's either
that or quit blogging entirely.
RULE #4
The principle, the rule of thumb from now on, is that if you show up for me,
I will show up for you. One worthwhile comment from you on my site will
result in a reply from me, plus one reciprocal visit to your site and one
worthwhile comment. For 15 years, I avoided this "tit for tat" style
of blogging - trading comments, one for one - but my new
circumstances dictate that this is how it needs to be.
It's either that or quit blogging entirely.
RULE #5
To my dismay, I have discovered that some of my posts don't find
their way into wide circulation on blog reading lists, meaning
you might not be aware of them when they are published.
You will need to check to see if I have a new post running.
If we miss each other one month, we can catch up the next.
RULE #6
My new reduced blogging schedule means that I might be skipping
some of my annual birthday tributes. V.I.P. death date observances,
Mother's Day, Father's Day and traditional holiday features.
So be it. If I miss a holiday or tribute post one year, I'll
try to work it into the schedule the following year.
It's not the way I wanted it to be, but it is all I
am able to do going forward. Say it with me:
It's either that or quit blogging entirely.
RULE #7
It was a tough decision for me to adjust to the new normal and downshift
to a diminished presence on the blog circuit. Looking on the bright side,
it's not the end of the world. I will be here enough of the time so that
we can touch base, catch up and maintain our friendship. That is
especially true if you and I are already corresponding by email.
If you and I have not yet established an email connection and
you wish to break the fourth wall and do so, let me know.
RULE #8
So now, as I begin this new chapter of my so-called blogging career,
I would like to reiterate what to me is the most important rule of all,
a common sense principle that has guided me throughout my years
as a blogger. I laid it out in my first post in the summer of 2008:
"Admission is free, but visitors are asked
to bring along three things: a youthful spirit,
a respectful attitude and a sense of humor."
So let's get back to enjoying each other's company, singing, dancing,
laughing and having fun. That's what teenagers did at the Shady Dell in
the 20th century and the way I want it to be at Shady's Place in the 21st.
Don't touch that dial
Leave it on this station
Shady's gonna make
a special dedication
Oh yeah, oh yeah!
This one goes out to
Falcor
dedicated from
Annabelle,
to
Pat
dedicated from
Benny,
and to
Harley
dedicated from blog mascot
Toto Moto!
"The Dedication Song" - Freddy Cannon
(Feb./Mar. 1966, highest chart pos. #41 Hot 100/#50 Cash Box,
perf. on Sept. 24, 1966, ep. of The Clay Cole Show, NYC)
Thanks for reading my...
8
sinful
simple rules
simple rules
for the next phase of my blogging career.
This was merely an announcement to let you know
what to expect. It does not count as my November post.
That's coming soon and I'll see you then.
"Oh That's Good, No That's Bad" - Sam The Sham And The Pharaohs
(Mar./Apr. 1967, highest chart pos. #50 Cash Box/#54 Hot 100/#52 Canada)
Have a Shady day, and remember the Shady's Place motto:
"Never grow up, never grow old."
Oh yesterday's over my shoulder
So I can't look back for too long
There's just too much to see waiting in front of me
And I know that I just can't go wrong
With these changes in latitudes, changes in attitudes
Nothing remains quite the same
With all of my running and all of my cunning
If I couldn't laugh I just would go insane
