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

{DEC 21] Greetings all and Merry Christmas,  Happy Hanukkah, Happy Solstice, Happy Kwanzaa - whatever you like to celebrate! Let me start off this week with an apology to anyone who had trouble accessing the site recently. My webhost made a few changes that I didn't discover until I tried to upload the last update. (An email from them would have been nice!) I have to say it was strange to get security alerts while trying to access my own site. It was like I was trying to hack myself! LOL I believe the problem should be fixed now. I had to change a setting with my webhost and it did take a little while for the change to work its way through the system. Fingers crossed we'll have no more problems!

[DEC 21] Ok, here's a story I need to nip in the bud. You may have run into a story (or stories - there were 3 last time I checked) about a new Donna Summer album coming out in February. It's NOT true. The article was AI generated (and I was able to make ChatGPT spit out a VERY similar story about Michael Jackson with the right prompts. And let's not mention the other ridiculous stories I could make it spit out about - well, anybody. LOL It's a lot of fun actually - I made it write a story about Donna raising elephants in a tiny Brooklyn apartment and another about Cher raising giant killer ants in Hawaii!) The AI story appeared in only one place - a very click-bait-ish sort of site that had a ton of other stories that also seemed to be AI generated. Well, unless, Justin Bieber really is recording an album of kitchen utensil sounds. (Yeah, that's really a story on that site! LOL) So the lesson here is, AI is going to make us all crazy! But seriously, with all the AI out there you have to be really careful about what to believe. An album release is one thing, but imagine AI unleashed on the news of the day. If you want to check out the website involved, It's HalfTimeNews.co.uk BUT.... before you go there, know that you will run into pop-up ad after pop-up ad unless you have a good ad-blocker. I think that's how the site host makes money - they post a bunch of AI content guaranteed to get clicks and then they inundate you with ads.

[DEC 21] On to better things!  LOL Fans of State Of Independence will like a video that I ran into on YouTube.  It talks about the story behind State Of Independence. It's pretty cool - they have a little of Donna's vocals isolated, a little bit of the backing vocals isolated, and they demonstrate the bass lines used in the song. It's a great clip for the music nerds out there. :-)

[DEC 21] If you are in The Netherlands, you might run into a tribute band in the Netherlands called Donna's Hot Stuff. Yes you guessed it - they play Donna's music. They sound pretty good too, although nobody can ever replace Donna.  :-)

[DEC 21] I think that brings us to YouTube.  Rather than give you individual clips, I'll just post my annual holiday YouTube playlist that also includes a little Bruce, a little Mary, some Johnnyswim, and a lot of Donna.  :-)

[DEC 15] Happy Sunday all!  Just 10 days to Christmas and Hanukah!  So if you haven't grabbed a copy of Christmas Spirit (for yourself or to give as a gift), you better do it soon!  LOL

[DEC 15] Ok - now for the sad news I didn't report last week.  On December 7, Donna's older brother Ric sadly passed away.  Donna fans have probably seen him in the A&E Biography about Donna, and you have heard his voice in the documentary. Some of you may have even met him at one of the Donna Summer days in Boston.  If anyone wants to see his obituary, it is posted here and it includes a nice video with photos from Ric's life - and it looks like a life well-lived.  My deepest condolences to the entire Gaines clan.

[DEC 15] On to Donna.  Super Deluxe Editions have posted  an article about the Cats Without Claws upcoming release.  The article has the complete track list and a little history of the album.

[DEC 15] Hypebeast.com has posted an article about the collaboration between  Noah and Donna's estate.  There's nothing there we haven't seen on the Noah website, but it's nice to see a little publicity.   :-)

[DEC 15]  The UK's Guardian has an article in the magazine about late-era releases in an artists career. They features a number of what they feel are the best ones, and Another Place And Time made the list.

[DEC 15] IN Johnnyswim news, their Christmas tour is over now but they still have Christmas merch available for sale on their site.  You can read a review of their recent show in Santa Barbara on edhat.com.  If you are kicking yourself because you missed the Christmas concerts, then head to Johnnyswim.com and look the Spring tour list and grab some tickets to a venue near you.  They put on a really good show - so don't miss out!

[DEC 15] Bruce fans - he wrote a song with Kenny Vance and Johnny Gale called Doo Wop Christmas. It was recorded by Kenny Vance and The Planotones and it is being used in the  Netflix holiday thriller called Carry On. You can also listen to the song on Spotify if that's more your style.  :-)

[DEC 15] I think that brings us to YouTube.  First up, a new fan mix by Q of The Christmas  Song (Q's Eskimo Mix Parts 1 and 2).  Then we have the newly remastered video for There Goes My Baby on Donna's official YouTube channel.  Also in the land of remixes, we have the 2024 New Club Mix of Lucky, and  the Horse Meat Disco Edit of the same song. (Seems like a Lucky sort of week!) Then as a bonus, we have an orchestral celebration of Giorgio Moroder's music from Britain's Heritage Orchestra. The concert runs over an hour and a half and yes, they use some of the songs he did with Donna.

[DEC 08] Happy Sunday all! So let's jump right in with Donna. As I mentioned last week, Cats Without Claws is coming out in a 40th anniversary edition in April. If you want a peek at what it will look like, here's the link for photos. The CDs will be pink and blue, while the vinyl will be pink and white.  As usual, they look beautiful.  And, you don't have to wait until April to get a taste of the album. The Steve Anderson remix for Forgive Me was already released on Friday. You can catch it on YouTube or any of the other usual places.  Now I know that Forgive Me might seem like a strange song to remix. But definitely check it out. It's not everybody's cup of tea, but the people who like it really love it.  I'm sort of on the fence with it because as you may recall I am a ballad freak.  So it's hard to get me behind making the ballads danceable.  LOL

[DEC 08] In other Donna news... well actually this covers more than just Donna.  There is a clothing company called Noah NY (also listed as Noah x)  and they will have a line of Donna shirts out  tomorrow December 9.  You can see Brooklyn and Amanda (and some of their kids) modeling the clothes on Facebook.  And you can read an interview with the ladies on Noah's blog. (It's all about Brooklyn and Amanda remembering their mom, so it's a really sweet read.)

[DEC 08] Well, since we're talking abut Amanda, let's look at some Johnnyswim news. First up - the latest Magnolia Journal (Winter 2024) has one of Amanda's recipes and quotes from Johnnyswim.  You can also catch them in a Facebook video posted by the Recording Academy about Johnnyswim's favorite microphone. The video also features an appearance by cartoon Abner and cartoon Amanda.  And don't forget they are currently on their Christmas tour for a few more dates.

[DEC 08] In Bruce news... he's got a concert coming up in West Hollywood on Tuesday. Ticket info is on his site.  You can also hear Bruce on The Great American Folk Show episode 126 from November 30.

[DEC 08] I think that brings us to YouTube. In honor of the new remix, let's start with a live version of Forgive Me from 1984. Then I have a small collection of clips that I would like to dedicate to the people who need to hear these songs right now. (If you know who I'm talking about, then you know - but I am not going to elaborate further on that at this time.) So that list starts with Donna's cover of Celebrate Me Home (live), her cover of Smile (live), and one of her many live versions of Amazing Grace.  And finally, a stampyurfeet video for Take Heart.

[DEC 02] The new Summer Fever Pick is up! To the surprise of absolutely no one - it is Christmas Spirit! (Now available in vinyl for you vinyl hounds.  :-) (And that's an affiliate link - I am required to let you know that.)

[NOV 29] Happy Friday all! I hope everybody had a nice holiday yesterday (or at least a nice Thursday if you are outside the US.) I figured I'd do the update a little early since both Bruce and Johnnyswim are having Black Friday sales on their websites until December 2.  So if there is some swag you've had your eye on either for yourself or to give out as a gift this year, this is the time to grab it.

[NOV 29] In Donna news - she has reached a new career peak on the UK charts with the new On The Radio release.  The album debuted at #25 on the UK album sales chart.  :-) Forbes has an article about it.

[NOV 29] Singersroom.com has published its list of the 15 Best Disco songs. Donna is in there at #8 with Hot Stuff and #15 with Last Dance.  (Strange - I Feel Love isn't on the list....)

[NOV 29] In release news - the new vinyl Christmas Spirit is officially out and since it is now the Christmas season here I can hound you all until you buy it!  LOL  Of course if you prefer streaming, you can do that too.  We have another upcoming release as well - Cats Without Claws will be celebrating it's 40th anniversary with a special anniversary deluxe edition. Amazon UK [affiliate link] has it listed with a release date of April 18. It looks like it will be a 2 CD set with  the second disk being all mixes.

[NOV 29] And if you are looking for something a little different this year, there is a seller on Etsy who  sells little mini album replicas - they are 1:12 scale meant for dollhouses. The seller has 4 of Donna's albums available and they are really cute. They are detailed enough that the album comes out of the sleeve (and has the appropriate label on the disc), the inner lyric sleeves are there (you probably can't actually read them though), and with the double albums they have the front, back and inside art all there. Live & More is a little weird the way it was done because when it's folded closed, the wrong art is on the  "back", but it's still adorable.

[NOV 29] I think that brings us to YouTube.  Let's go with the Thanksgiving (ish) theme.  So first up we have Donna on Queen Latifah's Thanksgiving show first with the interview and a performance of Love Is The Healer, and then with the two of them performing Bad Girls.  Then we have Donna on an episode of The View that was filmed right before Thanksgiving. Then just for fun we have one of the McDonald's commercials from 1999 that used a variation of She Works Hard For The Money.  As a special bonus - for those looking for some Christmas music to play while decorating (and you have already played Christmas Spirit 100 times  LOL), check out Johnnyswim's Live From The Backyard Christmas edition.  (I gotta say - Live From The Backyard was one of those things that made the pandemic more bearable.)

[NOV 24] Greetings all!  It's a pretty quiet week as everyone is gearing up for the Thanksgiving holiday.

[NOV 24] First up, Johnnyswim posted a live performance of their new single, Fairytale New York. It looks like they took over a pub for a nice intimate performance in front of friends and fans.

[NOV 24] Bruce Sudano fans - check out his clip of Times Are Changing live in Italy on Facebook.

[NOV 24] If you follow Brooklyn and Amanda on Instagram, you will see that they have been modeling some jewelry  the past couple of days.  They have been wearing pieces from the Claudette Collection by Sarah Hendler. Also, if you have been following Brooklyn, you will know that she is a dancer in the Work That Magic video.   :-) (It's so much easier to see now the video has been remastered. Look at about 1:55.)

[NOV 24] That brings us to YouTube.  I thought I'd do some deep cuts this week. So first up (as a little warm-up for Christmas  LOL) we have When The Dream Never Dies.  Then we have Dreamcatcher, the Studio 54 mix of Love On And On, A Whole New World (with Dave Koz), That's The Way It Is, and Donna's live performance of If There Is Music There from Live & More Encore.

[NOV 24] Happy Thanksgiving to all my American friends!  Have a safe holiday surrounded by people you love...

[NOV 17] Happy Sunday all! This week in release news, the new On The Radio collection is available now from various sellers. From Donna's official social media sites:

'On The Radio' is a 40-track 2CD collection of the greatest hits from 1975-2008 from the Queen of Disco and it's out on Friday! This collection is also available as a 24-track 2LP edition on gold and silver colour vinyl, exclusive to Amazon. You can also purchase the vinyl edition on black vinyl. Order now: https://dsummer.lnk.to/ontheradio.

[NOV 17] Hey Johnnyswim fans - they have a new single out - a Christmas single - called Fairytale New York. It just came out Wednesday, and you can find it al all the usual places you get music. Also - if you are planning to catch them in concert on the Christmas tour, you better have your tickets in hand already because they are selling out FAST.

[NOV 17] Well, Johnnyswim isn't the only one who has a new single - Bruce is also in that club with the release of Prisoner Of Reality this past Friday. He's posted a lyric video on YouTube. Make sure you check it out - I'm pretty sure most of us can relate to feeling like a prisoner of reality from time to time.  Also in Bruce news, he posted a live clip of Cardboard World on Facebook today.

[NOV 17] That brings us to YouTube. This week we have a couple of remixes that came my way this week and a couple of remasters. First up, Q's It's Not The Way Alternate Address Mix has moved to Soundcloud. (He was unhappy with the sound quality on YouTube and is hoping Soundcloud is an improvement.)  Then we have the Moreno J Remix of MacArthur Park, and VP DJ Duck's Original Disco Hits Mix which is a compliation of several of Donna's songs/mixes put into a nice 16 minute track that uses lots of clips from the documentary to make the video. In the remastered category, Donna's official channel has posted State Of Independence, and Work That Magic is scheduled to drop tomorrow November 18.

[NOV 09] Greetings all and happy(?) Saturday!  Yeah, I know some people are not particularly happy this week, but we WILL get through this. Take a little time to feel what you are feeling, then take a deep breath and move forward - one day at a time.  Like Bruce sings, it does no good to worry about tomorrow. We'll figure it all out together as we go.

[NOV 09] Let's get the bad news out of the way first. This week we lost a legend in the music industry, Quincy Jones. He, of course, produced Donna's self-titled album, and the all-star chorus on State Of Independence laid the groundwork for what he later did with the charity song, We Are The World. The New York Times (among other places) has an obituary posted and it does mention Donna in it. If you can't see the NY Times article, someone quoted the whole thing on the forum.  My condolences to the family, friends and fans of Q.

[NOV 09] Ok - no more bad news! Let's have some good news!  And that good news comes out of Italy this week. Remember our friends Andrea Bufalini and Giovanni Savastano? They wrote an awesome (and beautiful) book about Donna called Donna Summer: La Voce Arcobaleno. [That's an affiliate link to the US Amazon - you can probably do better using your own version of Amazon if you are outside the US.) It was only available in Italian.... until now!  The guys have had the book translated into French under the title Donna Summer: La Voix Arc-en-ciel. [Affiliate link to the US Amazon store - but use your local Amazon site.] The book is gorgeous no matter which language you choose, so make sure you check it out.

[NOV 09] Johnnyswim fans - as you know they LOVE the Christmas holiday season, so they have a new single coming out soon.  They literally just finished recording it and it's called Fairytale New York.  Keep an eye on their Instagram for a release date.  In the meantime, head over to your favorite music service and play Monte Carlo is you are looking for some calming music, or Ring The Bells if you find yourself in need of a strong anthem.  (Ring The Bells is doing really well on Spotify at the moment.)

[NOV 9] I think that brings us to YouTube. First up - the latest remastered video from Donna's catalog is All Systems Go.  And then... just a bunch of songs that have spoken to me this week.  I'm gonna start with Stamp Your Feet (this version from David Letterman), Donna's cover of Someday, a liveandmore video for Smile,  Donna's cover of The Impossible Dream, a Suecase Hall video for Let There Be Peace/ Enough Is Enough, the unreleased Begin Again, and finally the ballad version of I Will Love For Love. (Thank you Donna for leaving me with hope even from beyond the grave...)

[NOV 03] Happy Sunday all! And to my American friends - Election Day is Tuesday. Soon this circus will be over (and the next one can begin.  LOL) Get out and vote if you haven't already.

[NOV 03] So it's a new month - and how it got to be November already I will never understand - so you know what that means. It's time for the new Summer Fever Pick.  This month we are celebrating Four Seasons Of Love.  That's probably extra appropriate around here - I feel like during the course of a week we experience all four seasons!  LOL

[NOV 03] On to the news. As you know MacArthur Park is used in the new Beetlejuice Beetlejuice film.  Instagram has a reel showing the pressing of one copy of the colored vinyl soundtrack. At the end, you can see MacArthur Park listed prominently on the label - but to be honest, I find it fun just watching them make the disk.

[NOV 03] As you probably know, Donna's YouTube channel has been posting remastered copies of her videos. The latest one in the collection is When Love Takes Over You.  That video was always hard to come by so it's extra nice to have a good copy of it.

[NOV 03] Greatest Hits - a UK radio station kind of like BBC Radio only with ads - polled their listeners and came up with their Top 500 Songs. Donna came in at #97 with the 12" version of I Feel Love and at #207 with Hot Stuff. The whole list is available as a Spotify Playlist.

[NOV 03] Congrats to Brooklyn Sudano and  Roger Ross Williams on their Deems Taylor/Virgil Thomson Broadcast/Media Award in pop music for Love To Love You Donna Summer. These awards go to outstanding books, articles, lines notes, and broadcast programs in this case for pop music.  The whole list of awards is posted on Billboard.

[NOV 03] Brooklyn Dreams fans - you can hear their song Street Man featured in the  new film The Apprentice available now in some theaters and for rental on various streaming platforms. (Google, YouTube, Apple, Amazon, Fandango)

[NOV 03] Johnnyswim fans - if you have plans to see them on their Christmas tour and haven't purchased tickets yet, you better do so NOW. At least one venue is already sold out and others are getting close to it.

[NOV 03] That brings us to YouTube. This week we are looking at clips related to Four Seasons Of Love.  So we have Summer Fever studio footage ( with a few interview bits included), the video for Winter Melody, the video for Autumn Changes, and Spring Affair from Disco Circus TROS.  As a bonus, we have a 1995 live clip from Brazil featuring Spring Affair, Summer Fever, Heaven Knows, and Melody Of Love.

[OCT 27] Happy Sunday all! Let's start this week with Johnnyswim.  As you know they have a Christmas tour planned for December. They have now added dates from March through May to support the new album When The War Is Over.  Mots of those dates are here in the US, but the last 2 and in London and Amsterdam.  And of course all of those dates have VIP options for those who would like to get up close and personal with team Swim.  :-)

[OCT 27]  Now if you are looking for a Johnnyswim fix before the upcoming tour dates, then head over to Spotify (or your favorite music distributor) and catch the new single Monte Carlo.  Read what Johnnyswim has t say about the song here on Instagram.

[OCT 27] Bruce Sudano fans - Bruce is finally up to performing again so if you are in either Samarate, Italy on November 15, or West Hollywood on December 10, go catch his show!

[OCT 27] Also in Bruce news - he released the final video in the Brooklyn Dreams Stages And Stories series.  The topic this time is "Who is most likely to...?"  You can also catch Bruce singing a bit of American Sunset on Facebook as part of his reminder for Americans to get out and vote.

[OCT 27] I'll just take this moment to echo Bruce's reminder - if you are an American who is eligible to vote, make sure you get out and do it! If you fail to vote, then you forfeit your right to complain about the results, and you know there is nothing Americans like to do more than complain about election results!  LOL

[OCT 27] I think that brings us to YouTube.  First up, a video I just ran into that is a compilation of clips of Donna talking about Michael Jackson.  Then we have Donna talking about Lady Gaga,  and Donna talking about Aretha, Madonna, Beyoncé, and Diana.  And finally Donna covering Aretha's Natural Woman.

[OCT 20] Greetings all! I guess we'll start with Bruce today. He's posted another episode of Stages & Stories with The Brooklyn Dreams. In this one they talk about some songs they like, and what they might be doing if they weren't making music.  He also posted a Facebook video of Under The Gun live in Italy.

[OCT 20] Johnnyswim fans - check them out on October 26 in Hickory, NC supporting Lauren Daigle.

[OCT 20]  In the land of covers, REDHOUSE has just released his cover of This Time I Know It's For Real. Find that on his website.  (You might remember that he previously recorded a version of If There Is Music There featuring Oliviya Nicole.)

[OCT 20] I think that brings us to YouTube.  Q just released his new remix of It's Not The Way, so let's do a bunch of mixes this week.  Up next is the Thunderpuss Club mix of Love Is The Healer,  liveandmore's video for Donna vs Giorgio The Chase X I Feel Love,  the 2022 tribute Disco Mix VP DJ Duck), and finally we come full circle with Q's Reflected mix of Reflections.

[OCT 13] Happy Sunday all! I guess we can start off with Donna. I Feel Love was used in The Serpent Queen season 2 episode 5.

[OCT 13]  Moving on to Bruce - he posted a new episode of Stages And Stories the other day. They talk a little about writing now, and they even jam on Make The World Go Away.  Bruce also posted a Facebook video of him performing Talkin' Ugly Truths Tellin' Pretty Lies live at the Nuovo Roxy bar.

[OCT 13] That brings us to YouTube (yes it was a quiet week!  LOL) Since the AMA's recently aired a 50th anniversary special (that inexplicably ignored Donna), I thought I'd share some AMA/Dick Clark related clips. So we have Donna's 1976 interview on American Bandstand, her 1978 interview on American Bandstand, and her 1984 interview on American Bandstand. Then we have Donna and Dick Clark on Good Morning America in 1986. Then in case the AMAs forgot that Donna picked up a few of their awards, here she is in 1979 with the Favorite Disco Album, Disco Single, and Best Female Disco Vocalist. And finally Donna's 1979 AMA performance of Last Dance, and her 1982 AMA performance of Hot Stuff.  On a side note, even though the AMA special ignored Donna, if you get a chance find the tribute Jennifer Hudson did to Whitney Houston. That was amazing!

[OCT 7] Happy Monday all! To all of you in the path of hurricane Milton, please stay safe!

[OCT 7]  Let's start with a time sensitive item.  There is a contest online to win tickets to Johnnyswim's March 21 concert in Louisville. The link is here and you have to enter by October 13.

[OCT 7] Bruce Sudano fans - you have a bunch of new videos to watch. Episode 10 of Stages & Stories is out talking about Flashdance/Stayin Alive period of time, the latest Album by Album is out talking about the current album Talkin' Ugly Truths Tellin' Pretty Lies, and on Facebook there is a short clip of Bruce performing Cardboard World.

[OCT 7] You can also catch Bruce on the Follow Your Dream podcast.

[OCT 7] That brings us to YouTube. Thanks to the Beetlejuice Beetlejuice movie, MacArthur Park is finding its way into my YouTube feed more than usual.  LOL So let's start with a montage of clips from that movie set to MacArthur Park.  Then we have a 10 minute version of MacArthur Park - it's the suite with Heaven Knows and One Of A Kind edited out.  But if you'd like to hear those 2 songs, there is a version of One Of A Kind with alternate vocals,  and the Brooklyn Dreams version of Heaven Knows with the vocal parts switched.  Then if you want to see something fun, someone made a YouTube short of a Norwegian dance set to MacArthur Park.

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