Donna Summer: She could sing anything, anywhere, with anyone, at any time.

[JAN 27] Just sneaking in with one little (or big depending on your point of view) update on the upcoming Encore box set. SuperDeluxeEdition.com has the scoop - art and track list!

[JAN 26]  Happy Sunday all! Big news this week....  Amazon UK is listing a new box set due out on March 27.  The set is called Encore and it will be a 33 CD set  all of Donna's studio albums (starting with Lady Of The Night up through Crayons).  Also included ate both Live & More albums, On The Radio and a whole bunch of "non album singles" and extended mixes. One of the tracks includes will be the first time ever commercial release of Junior Vasquez's mix of My Life. And that's not all. (God, I sound like an infomercial now!  LOL)  The disc will be in mini replica sleeves, there will be a 40 page 12x12 book with a new 25,000 word essay by Christian John Wikane, a foreword by Giorgio Moroder, tributes from 25 industry legends, and the album label copy info.  This thing just screams collectible! :-)

[JAN 26] Moving on to the musical, Sao Paulo Brazil, you get to see the show March 5 to June 28. If I am interpreting the Portuguese right, it looks like  Amanda Souza is playing the young Donna (Duckling Donna), Jeniffer Nascimento is Disco Donna, and Karin Hils is Diva Donna.  Welcome to the family ladies! Get used to your audiences dancing in the aisles.  :-) You can read a longer article about the show here.

[JAN 26]  Bruce Sudano fans - Bruce is live on his couch again on Facebook.  This is #27 and is a new song Bruce is working on that will probably resonate with anyone who has been in a relationship.  :-)

[JAN 26] I think that brings us to YouTube. First up, in honor of the box set we have the studio version of My Life. Then we have the rare track, Sometimes Like Butterflies, another b-side called Tearin' Down The Walls, another one called Face The Music, the original Love On And On, Donna's cover of Someday, and finallyDonna's "duet" with Dave Koz on A Whole New World.

[JAN 19] Greetings all! First let me say CONGRATS! to Summer: The Donna Summer Musical. The tour just played its 100th show. And it's still got plenty more to go, so catch it when they come to your area.  :-)

[JAN 19] Collectors: We have a new limited edition yellow vinyl pressing of She Works Hard For The Money due out on March 27. It is available for preorder at Amazon now,  and it is the same album you know and love - it's just yellow.  :-) (Too bad they couldn't add the red lines too...   I'm so demanding!  LOL)

[JAN 19] There is an interview on YouTube with photographer Bruce Talamon and Earth Wind & Fire's Verdine White. At one  point talks about a photo session with Donna that directly led to his first national magazine cover. The Donna part starts at about 19:05 - my link should bring you right to it.

[JAN 19] Bruce Sudano fans - his upcoming EP now has a new title. It will be called Spirals Vol 1 and he said not a straight line is to be found. (I'd also like to note that anything called Vol. 1 is bound to be followed by a Vol.2  :-) )  This is the EP that will have  In The Garden Of November, and With Him. The EP is due out this Spring and if you head over to Bruce's Facebook page, you can see some shots of him and Steve Addabbo working in the studio.

[JAN 19] And that brings us to YouTube. Let's do some interviews because I ran into a few good ones I hadn't watched lately while looking for something else. So first up, a 1994 interview in 2 parts. Part 1 is here and part 2 is here.  Then we have a 1984 interview with Paula Yates and a 1986 GMA interview with Donna and Dick Clark. And finally, here is a clip of State Of Independence that I don't remember seeing before.

[JAN 12] Happy Sunday all! Let's start with Johnnyswim. They have announced a Valentine's Day show  in Los Angeles. Tickets are available NOW for those who want to go. (And, yes you want to go if you can.  :-) )

[JAN 12] Moving on to Donna, we have a new article from Stereogum celebrating MacArthur Park. We also have an old interview posted by Paste Magazine from 1982 promoting the Donna Summer album.  That one is audio so you get to hear Donna's voice.  :-)

[JAN 12] We have a couple of ummmm.... unusual things this week as week.  Let me start with the prayer candle. There is a company out there called Kitschup Creations that makes celebrity prayer candles. Basically, they are prayer candles that would ordinarily depict a saint, but these depict various celebrities as saints. And yes, there is one for Donna. 

[JAN 12] Then in another head-scratcher I found this week, someone posted  an "afterlife interview" with Donna on YouTube.  The premise of the channel is that this woman uses a medium to contact her dead son and in some videos they get the son to put them in touch with famous people who have passed away.  Whatever you think of the "interview", personally I think it is proof that you can find literally ANYTHING on the internet - whether you want to or not! LOL

[JAN 12] Ok time for some sane stuff on YouTube! lol First up is actually a Daily Motion video of She  Works Hard For The Money taken from the Nobel Peace Prize concert (and decorated with a border of portraits of Donna). Then on YouTube we have (from the same Nobel concert) Bad Girls/ Hot Stuff, and Last Dance.  For something a little different, we have There Will Always Be A You as an acapella version. (Obviously somebody stripped the music off the original recording, but it's pretty cool to hear.) And then for those of you interested in Donna's vocal range, someone on YouTube broke it down with clips from various songs. It's interesting in a music geek sort of way.  :-)

[JAN 5] Happy New Year all and Happy Birthday to Brooklyn Sudano!

[JAN 5] It's been a really slow week  since everybody has been off celebrating the holidays,  but we do have Albumism's tribute to Donna in honor of her birthday.

[JAN 5] In musical news, the tour wraps up its stay in Seattle tonight and then opens in Tempe, AZ on Tuesday.  So catch it you can.  :-)

[JAN 5] Oh yeah, I almost forgot - the new Summer Fever Pick is up. This time we are dancing to Once Upon A Time.

[JAN 5] And that brings us to YouTube.  Let's do some clips in honor of the Summer Fever Pick. First up, the title track live in Japan.  Then we have audio of the single versions of Rumour Has It, Once Upon A Time and Winter Melody.  (Yes, I know Winter Melody is from a different album - call it a bonus.  LOL) After that we have Working The Midnight Shift set to clips of an old movie featuring office workers, and finally, I Love You love from 1978.

[DEC 29] Happy Sunday all! Can you believe New Year's Eve (and more importantly, Donna's birthday) is just a couple of days away? So this will be your final reminder that Mary Gaines Bernard is doing her annual tribute to Donna at the Old School Square Pavilion in Delray Beach, FL on Tuesday night. Ticket info is available on the Old School Square Website.  Here is a little taste from a previous year just to show you why you need to go to see the show.

[DEC 29] I mentioned a couple of weeks ago that Johnnyswim added a new little baby Swim to the family.  Well, they have finally announced her name and she is Paloma Grace. And if you hang around Johnnyswim's Instagram, you will see pics of little Paloma, her brother Joaquin, and her sister Luna. You can also check out their Touring Toddler page as well.

[DEC 29] You might remember that a couple of weeks I posted interviews from Signed Media.  I thought there was more out there and hoped they would post it.... there is more. They just posted a new clip of Donna talking about the creation of Love to Love You Baby. It's about 7 minutes long and worth watching. :-)

[DEC 29] That brings us to YouTube.  It's Donna's birthday in a couple of days, so let's have some fun!  First up, (to set the tone) Foggy Day/Never Lose Your Sense of Humor with Paul Jabara. Then we have Donna being silly in 2008, a funny interview from the 90s, Donna and Barry Manilow having way too much fun with Could It Be Magic (I can't even tell you how much I love this clip!),  Donna and her sisters fooling around on stage in 1983, and then..... ummm.... this. lol (And then there are so many funny things from concerts I wish had made it to YouTube - like maybe one really good version of the red Ferrari story, or Donna as "Hattie Mae" introducing Mary's solo number....) And of course I have to include Donna's cover of Happy Birthday. It wouldn't be New Year's Eve without it!

[DEC 29] And since I will be in bed New Year's Eve (thanks a lot work! lol), I will leave you with this now. You can click for a bigger version.

[DEC 21] Happy Saturday all! Let me take this opportunity to wish you all a Happy Hanukkah, a Merry Christmas, and a Happy anything else you feel like celebrating.  :-)  (Click image below for larger version.)

[DEC 21] Let's start with some musical news. If you are going to see Summer: The Musical in either San Francisco or Seattle, then you will get to see Storm Lever back in the role of Duckling Donna. (You will recall that she played the role on Broadway.) She's just filling in temporarily though. Olivia Elease Hardy will be back for other locations.

[DEC 21] in Bruce Sudano news, he was interviewed on BSS Radio's Interviewing The Legends this week.  If you missed it (like I did) you can catch it in the show's archives (like I did LOL).

[DEC 21] Don't forget that Mary Gaines Bernard is doing her annual celebration of Donna's music and legacy on December 31 at the Old School Square Pavilion in Delray Beach, FL. Ticket info is available on the Old School Square Website. If you are going to be in that area - GO! You will be happy that you did.

[DEC 21] On to Donna herself. An interview just turned up on YouTube where Donna talks about State Of Independence. They call it The Story Behind The Song. It's about a 5 minute piece from Dutch public television. But it is presented in English with Dutch subtitles. It's really interesting - give that a play when you can.  :-)

[DEC 21] I think that brings us to YouTube. We're going to do a holiday play list this time starting with a YouTuber reacting to Donna singing The Christmas Song.  Spoiler alert: he was impressed.  :-) Then we move on to an actual Christmas playlist I made with clips of Donna, a couple of Johnnyswim Christmas clips, and one from Mary too.

[DEC 13] Greetings all! Let's start off with the musical. Summer: The Musical was the subject of the latest Lifetime Broadway Balances America segment of their morning show the other day.  It will be repeated on December 31, or you can just catch it on YouTube right now.  Just so you know there are interviews with the touring Donnas and  some rehearsal footage, but the actual performance clips they used are from the Broadway production.

[DEC 13] In honor of the musical's tour hitting San Francisco, MercuryNews.com has a list of "21 Cool Facts" about Donna.  There is nothing there that will be news to us diehard fans, but casual fans may pick up some trivia they didn't know.

[DEC 13] In other Donna news, there is a new clip on Soundcloud from 1979.  You know the part in Live & More (1978) where Donna introduces the band in the middle of I Feel Love? Well, this is the 1979 variation of that where her backing girls are going by the name Oreo, she is backed by the Peter Graves Orchestra, and there are some fun jokes and interesting vocalizations. Even though this is not a full song, you want to listen. It's a lot of fun to hear.  :-)

[DEC 13] For those of you interested in the charts,  both I Feel Love and the Bad Girls Gigamesh remix have been on the Billboard Dance/Electronic Digital Song sales chart recently. Both peaked on November 16 - I Feel Love was #5 and Bad Girls was #19. You guys realize that in a couple of weeks, we start a new decade, right? We need to get something to chart so we can add to Donna's list of decades with chart action.  :-)

[DEC 13] In the Donna's music is everywhere category, Dancing With The Stars used Last Dance for the opening number on the finale. It was a pretty long number for a TV show. You can watch it on YouTube.

[DEC 13] For those of you in Florida (or who can be in Florida on New Year's Eve) - don't forget that Mary Gaines Bernard is doing her annual tribute concert to celebrate her sister Donna.  She will be at the Old School Square Pavillion in Delray Beach, FL. Ticket info is available on the Old School Square Website.  Facebookers who want a taste of what to expect should check out this video Mary posted.

[DEC 13] I think that brings us to YouTube.  First up is a cleaned up version of the Work That Magic video.  Then let me go into my archives and see what else is interesting... Oh here is a French documentary about Donna.  Now here is the thing - every clip where Donna speaks is shown as is with French subtitles. But every clip with someone else speaking has a translator speaking over the English dialog.  You can sort of hear  the English, but it's challenging.  Then we have the short clip from 1999 where Donna did a bit of Love To Love You for the first time in YEARS. And finally for a not so random clip, here is Donna singing Amazing Grace. I dedicate it to the Gaines family who so recently experienced a tragic loss, in the hopes they will find some comfort in faith, family and friends.

[DEC 13] I'm not sure which day I will be back for the next update. This one was early because my weekend is shaping up to be busy. (I'm cat sitting again - Facebook followers can expect more cat pics on my feed!  LOL)  One thing I do know is that I will have a special Christmas picture for you next time.  :-)

[DEC 8] Happy Sunday all! Let's start with the musical which is currently playing in San Francisco.  Some of the cast will be playing at a charity gala tomorrow (Monday December 9} at Marines Memorial Theater in San Francisco at 7:30 pm.  The event is hosted by the Richmond/Ermet Aid Foundation which is a non-profit that raises funds for AIDS services, hunger programs, and youth programs in the San Francisco Bay area.  Oh and I almost forgot - St. Louis - your tickets are on sale now for January 15 to 26.

[DEC 8] Bruce Sudano fans - check out his new interview with All Access in which he talks about the upcoming EP (among other things). Then head over to Facebook to see Bruce's latest video where he sings a new song about the Edward Snowden situation. (For my international readers who might not know about Edward Snowden - Wikipedia has an article that will give you the background. )

[DEC 8] Moving on the Queen herself, there is a new book out now on Amazon by Craig Halstead called Donna Summer: All The Top 40 Hits. It's a detailed chronological listing of songs that hit the top 40 in at least 1 major market (so it's not just US figures) and it includes dates, catalogue numbers. etc. There is also a list of the "almost top 40s" which are songs that peaked between 41 and 50 in one or more of the major markets, a points based list of the top 30 singles and top 20 albums over all, and a trivia section.  Go check it out!  :-)

[DEC 8] That brings us to YouTube and we are going to start with an interview that just surfaced on YouTube from Signed Media. Allow some time for this one - it's about a half hour long with no filler.  :-) Then check out this other video (from the same interview session) where Donna talks about Aretha, Madonna, Beyonce and Diana.  (That one is only about 3 and a half minutes.) I feel like maybe there is more to this interview that is still yet to be seen.  There is no date on the clips (well, other than the date it was uploaded to YouTube) but I would guess somewhere between 2009 and  2011. (The company that filmed it is based in Hamburg so For comparison, here is Donna performing with David Foster  October 1, 2011, and here is Donna performing live in Berlin 2009. And then I really want to add this 2008 clip of Donna performing I Feel Love because, I KEEP hearing that  Target ad with Sam Smith's I Feel Love and even though his cover is fine, I hear those first notes and then am immediately disappointed it's not Donna.   :-(

[DEC 1] Greetings all and Happy December!  Of course since it's a new month, it's time to change the Summer Fever Pick, and if you think it would be anything but Christmas Spirit this month... well then you must be new here. :-)

[DEC 1] First things first - CONGRATS to Johnnyswim! Amanda and Abner have just welcomed their third child! Full details have yet to be announced, but if you head over to the @Johnnyswim Instagram and click on their story called #3, you will get a brief glimpse of the new little Swim. (If you see Abner talking about  Black Friday deals, then that's the right video. And then if you are like everybody else on Instagram, you will go back through all the recent Johnnyswim photos to see how Amanda hid her belly.  LOL)

[DEC 1] Moving on to the business side of Johnnyswim - they are having Black Friday sales on their site thru Cyber Monday. It's 25% off most things and they have  "Mystery Boxes" where for $50 you get $100 worth of  random Johnnyswim merchandise. (Yes they do ask for your size, so your items will fit. :-) )

[DEC 1]  Bruce Sudano fans - he has another concert date lined up. This one is April 9 at the Manship Theatre in Baton Rouge, LA opening for the Zombies.  If you are in that area (or will be) go check out the show! Now if you need a little Bruce fix right now - check his Facebook live on the couch video for In A Stormy Season.

[DEC 1] In musical news,  Lifetime Channel's Lifetime Morning Show is doing their 6th season of Broadway Balances America, and coming up on December 10th (and 31st) at 7:30 AM, they will feature Summer: The Donna Summer Musical. If you can't catch it on TV, keep an eye on their YouTube channel. Previous episodes are posted there (along with a bunch of their other segments.)

[DEC 1] Moving on to the Queen herself, Donna got a mention when Kelly Rowland appeared on Andy Cohen's show.  Rowland would love to do a Donna Summer biopic!  So somebody needs to make that happen!  LOL

[DEC 1] I think that brings us to YouTube. Let's start with one that has been making the rounds a lot lately - Addicted To You.  This is actually a fan mix made from 2 clips released by Nathan DiGesare a couple of years ago. Let's see where YouTube takes us from there.... next up Donna on David Foster & Friends with Seal.  Up next is a video by Suecase Hall remembering Donna, Donna on Oprah, Donna with Rona Barrett in 1978,  and finally a 2004 interview promoting The Journey.

[NOV 24] Happy Sunday all and Happy (almost) Thanksgiving to my American friends! Let's start off with Summer: The Donna Summer Musical. The 3 touring Donnas made an appearance on Access Daily this week to perform Hot Stuff.  It unfortunately didn't air everywhere due to the impeachment hearings, but the show did tweet out the clip of the performance, so you can see it right here.  :-) Then you can catch Diva Donna Dan'yelle Williamson on the West Of Broadway Podcast. The tour closes tonight  in Hollywood then the cast gets a much deserved break for the Thanksgiving holiday before they get San Francisco up dancing on December 3.

[NOV 24] Speaking of the musical, the Brazilian production has announced 2 of its Donnas:  Karin Hils and Jeniffer Nascimento. Welcome to the family ladies!

[NOV 24] Mary Gaines Bernard fans - don't forget she is doing her annual concert on December 31 to celebrate her sister's life and career. It is, as always, at the Old School Square in Delray Beach, FL.  Be there!  :-)

[NOV 24] Bruce Sudano fans:  his single The Garden Of November had debuted this week on Ditty TV.  For those who don't know, Ditty TV is a streaming music TV station that you can watch on your computer, smartphone, smart TV, TIVO, Roku, etc.

[NOV 24] I think that brings us to YouTube.  I think in light of all the stuff we Americans will be eating Thursday, we're gonna need a little exercise! So this week let's dance with Donna.  Let's warm up with some robot moves on I Feel Love. Then we have She Works Hard For The Money live at the Grammys,  then we can pick up the pace a little with Romeo live, then kick it into high gear with a classic performance of Hot Stuff. (Bonus points if you have a leopard print skirt to wear!  LOL) By that time you will need to catch your breath, so the slow to fast pace of Last Dance should help you out.  :-)  Of course if you don't want to dance and would rather just look at some eye candy with your music - there is always Donna performing Enough Is Enough with Westlife.  ;-)

[NOV 17] Greetings all! I guess we can start with the musical this week.  You guys in Brazil will be happy to learn that you will get to see Summer: The Musical some time next year. ABroadwayEAqui.com.br has an article announcing a casting call for the show, so hopefully we will be hearing more soon.  :-)

[NOV 17] Moving on to Bruce - he's got a video now for his new song, In The Garden Of November. Check it out on AmericanHighways.org.

[NOV 17] In Johnnyswim news, new dates are on sale now  for their tour with Lauren Daigle.  Check out their website for ticket info, and maybe even to score some  VIP meet & greet passes.

[NOV 17] Now here's someone I don't get news about often enough - Brooklyn Sudano. :-) She's scored herself a pilot for a show called Last Summer which will be a thriller from Freeform. You can read more about it here,  but it is described as a story that takes place over 3 summers about 2 girls - one who is abducted and one who transforms from awkward outlier, to most popular girl in town, to most despised person in America. Each episode will be told from the point of view of one of the girls. It sounds interesting - can't want to check it out.  :-)

[NOV 17] I think that brings us to YouTube.  Let's start off with a mix that people have been talking about lately - Love On & On the original mix. Next up is  the lost song Ordinary Miracle,  a live acoustic vaulted track called So This Is Lonely, the Ordinary Girl song, No Ordinary Love Song, Donna's live cover of Georgia On My Mind, and finally the unreleased Crayon's track, Run With It.

[NOV 10] Happy Sunday all! And happy Veteran's Day to all the vets out there! Thank you for your service.  :-) Let's start off this week in the land of covers. I mentioned last time that Sam Smith has recorded I Feel Love and that this cover would be used in Target's holiday ads. Well, the holiday ads have started and holy cow, I have heard I Feel Love about a million times already! (And I don't even watch a lot of normal TV.  LOL)

[NOV 10] In musical news, Summer: The Musical is playing the Pantages Theater in Hollywood until November 24. If you are out that way go check it out. And everybody can check out this video celebrating opening night in Hollywood.

[NOV 10] Bruce Sudano fans - check out this clip he posted on Facebook of True Believer filmed at the LOLA concert this past week. Brooklyn Dreams fans can spot Eddie Hokenson on the stage too. Rounding out the crew are Steve Addabbo and Andrew Zehnal.

[NOV 10]  I think that brings us to YouTube. In honor of the Summer Fever Pick, let's look at some of the songs from I Remember Yesterday. First up, Can't We Just Sit Down live. Then we have Love's Unkind live,  Take Me live, I Remember Yesterday live,  and of course I Feel Love live. And finally we have the alternate studio version of Can't We Just Sit Down that turned up unexpectedly on the remastered album a couple of years ago.

[NOV 3] Greetings all! It's a new month so you know that that means - time for the new Summer Fever Pick. This month we look back to I Remember Yesterday.

[NOV 3] Ok, Bruce Sudano fans check out his new single In The Garden Of November available at all the usual places (Spotify, ITunes, Amazon, etc). If you want to catch him live,  he'll be in New York City November 5, Washington DC on November 6, Stamford, CT on November 7 to 10 and then next year he'll be On The Blue Cruise in Miami, FL April 1 to 8. Ticket info for all of those shows is here. And you can watch a Facebook video of him listing al the dates. And speaking of Facebook videos, Bruce was live from the couch with In A Stormy Season.

[NOV 3] Moving into the land of covers, there is a new cover out there of I Feel Love by Sam Smith.  According to Rolling Stone, it will be used in Target's holiday campaign. (The article also includes the song so you can check it out for yourself.)

[NOV 3] I think that brings us to YouTube.  I was sent a couple of clips in my email this week, so I'm gonna start with them and see where that leads me. First up an interview for Entertainment Las Vegas Style (including some performance clips),  Donna and Bruce Roberts talking about (and performing) Whenever There is Love from 1996, that lead me to Donna on Arsenio Hall in 1989,  which lead me to Anyway At All on Jay Leno,  and that lead me to Try A Little Tenderness with Joss Stone in 2005. And finally in honor of the Sam Smith cover, I think we should take a look at the original I Feel Love. (Do your best robot dance as you play it!  LOL)

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