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toms-cherry-trees · 2 years

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A Piece Of Me || Michael Gray Flashback

Summary: Not every search ends in a gain

Word Count: 2062

Warnings: Violence, mentions of canon death, implied past child abuse and possible PTSD, you know the drill

Author’s note: I have no justification for this one. Enjoy!

Let me know if you wanna be in my taglist

The car jolted gently every time the wheels hit a bump on the road, causing the passengers in the back seat to rock rather abruptly from side to side. Charlie kept dozing off in Michael’s lap, unable to fully fall asleep with the noise from the engine and the perpetual bumping. Or perhaps he felt uncomfortable with the vice tight grip his uncle kept around his little body, as if he feared the little child would slip again at the smallest chance.

Or perhaps it was Michael who needed someone to hold onto.

The events kept replaying over and over again in his mind. Not those of the last 2 hours, but in fact the last 17 years. Every single thing he had been through since he was ripped from his mother and placed in foster care, with the so-called “holy fathers”. Holy my ass, he thought to himself, his arms tightening a bit more around Charlie. They shielded behind their white cassocks and golden crosses, bathed in their feigned purity, when they were as rotten and dirty as the worst ones the world had to offer. Michael wasn’t sure there was a God up there, because no God would stand his envoys behaving the way these men did.

He entered the parish house, but never left it. The boy who walked out of the orphanage, hand in hand with Mrs. Johnson was not him. Not quite. He had something missing. Something deep and meaningful he had brought with him when the parish took him, but had been lost along the way, bit by bit, every time he saw a child who was not himself leaving with a new family, and every time Father Hughes summoned him to his office for confession, every Monday before bedtime. A little something he had been searching for ever since.

He could not recall what life had been before. He didn’t have any memories prior to his life as Henry Johnson. They had indoctrinated him until he didn’t know who he was anymore.

And he could not recall a single moment in his life in which he didn’t feel angry.

Even in times he truly felt joyous, like sharing with his classmates in the schoolhouse’s little yard, or kicking the ball with his little brother under the scorching summer sun; picking fruits in the orchard with his adoptive mother until the skin in his palms cracked, all of those memories were obscured by the shadow of resentment. Seemingly unjustified, focused on nothing and no one in particular. Just a never ending, seething fury against the world.

How many hours he spent sat in the meadow, his gaze fixed in the wishing well with the white bricks. Surrounded by little colourful flowers, buzzing with life in the summer, and withstanding the elements in winter. His “mom” used to tell his little brother that fairies lived in the flowers, and the buds closed down in the winter so they could take shelter from the rain. Michael felt like snorting when she repeated that story, every single day when they passed the well on the way home. He wanted to go up and stomp on the dainty little flowers until only roots remained, and then rip the roots off the earth with his bare hands, and spread them all over the bright grass for everyone to see. And then he’d load up the pretty little well with explosives, just like his father had told him they did in the western front, and blow it up to smithereens. He’d probably get blown up too, but it would be worth it just to see it gone.

But Michael never destroyed the flowers, nor did he try to damage the wishing well. Because the only thing he wanted more in this life than ruining that pretty meadow was fitting in. He wanted to belong, fit in, just a regular teenager in a regular world. And for the sake of it, he kept it all inside. All his rage, his resentment, his eternal thirst for revenge, all carefully stored within the depths of himself; far from reach, where no one would ever be able to find it. Buried between the shadow and the soul, where it would hopefully one day wither and die, and he’d finally be able to fit in.

But destiny had handed him an opportunity. A new family, although it didn’t exactly count as new. They were his family, the one he had been unjustly taken from; the one where he truly belonged. Where he didn’t have to change himself to fit in; he didn’t need to struggle to find a place. What had Tommy said to him? “You are Polly’s son alright” And he had just proven it, twice in one day. He may carry the Gray surname, but he was a proper Shelby now.

The gun had felt natural in his grip, an extension of his own arm, just like they told him that night in Arrow House, when John and Arthur filled him with liquor and thrusted a pistol in his hand. He felt all the boundaries built over the years melt away in a wave of whiskey and testosterone. All that pent up rage, bubbling from the bottom of his soul like a shaken up champagne bottle, ready to pop the cork and spill out. He had tethered so close to the edge that night, so fucking close, he had tasted it. They drove him to madness, and he had played along. He could have let loose and released the beast, but fate and his nosy mother had stopped him last second. But who knew, perhaps it had been better that way. He had saved his first time for something bigger.

But that first shot had been nothing. Just a blur, and act without thought, something which entered his brain and immediately slipped away. All he could remember was a surge of adrenaline coursing through his veins. He didn’t even see the face of that man; he didn’t know his name. All he saw were a pair of large hands holding Tommy’s collar, and then a hole right through the skull. He didn’t falter, didn’t stutter and didn’t miss. As if he had been meant to hold onto that gun all along. As if he had been meant to kill someone.

The real deal came later on.

When he left the parish home, he never expected to encounter any of them again. Not any of the orphans…nor any of the fathers. When he laid eyes again on Father Hughes, an icy coldness spread down his body. His muscles tensed and his pulse picked up; he walked on the tips of his toes, ready to sprint into a run at the slightest hint of danger. Fly or fight mode, acquired over long nights where the boys took turns guarding the door at night, perking up their ears in anticipation of steps going up their stairs. They had learned to distinguish between the low heels of the sisters and the polished shoes of the fathers, and could tell the priests apart by the sound of their gait and the smell of their clothes. He could recall Hughes smelled of cheap cigarettes and dampness.

He could still remember the crack. A crack in the wall behind Father Hughes’ desk, right in middle, almost reaching the roof. It was shaped like a spiderweb. When Michael stared long enough, he could imagine a big spider, with long legs and a big red splotch on its back, crawling out of it, its pincers clicking and its beady black eyes fixated on him. The idea of something coming out of that crack terrified him, but he still stared. Because he didn’t want to look the priest in the eye. Because he wanted the big black spider to come down and eat him whole.

But he had no crack to stare now to distract his mind, nor any hopes that a magical creature would aid him in his cause. Just his gun, the life of his nephew on the line and an unclenched thirst for revenge.

He could have shot, point blank, the moment he set foot through the door. He had him, right in his line of vision, no obstacles in the way. The gun uncocked, the bullet in the chamber. But he couldn’t. Because he wanted Hughes to know it had been him. He wanted to stare at him, right in the eye, in the same way he was forced to do while he “took confession”, while the bullet went through his brains. He wanted Hughes to know he had come back, like the ghost from Christmas Past, to claim what had been taken from him.

But even there, with the upper hand, with the surprise factor, the barrel of his gun shoved right into Hughes’ eye, he couldn’t help but shiver. His own body betrayed him, his palms sweating and his heartbeat quickening. His mouth dried up like sandpaper. And for a moment, for a split, fateful moment, he was once more little Michael, aged just five years old, sitting in front of a big desk, his feet dangling from the chair, while a grave looking priest told him that he had been given up by his mother for being a bad boy, but that they would help him atone for his sins. The priest had placed a big, coarse hand in the back of his head and given him a piece of candy, whispering that he would take good care of him.

Just for a moment, his determination faltered. Fear had overpowered his determination. And in that brief hesitation, he had lost his upper hand. Hughes had beaten him and trashed him around, and now he had him on a table, his hands tightly wrapped around Michael’s throat. He could see black spots dancing on the edge of his vision. The images in front of him blurred and he seemed to be slipping away…

And then the splash.

Michael couldn’t even recall putting a knife in his pocket. He didn’t know why, or how he got it. But he felt so thankful at the moment. Yes he had brought a knife to a gun fight and not he did not care it was honourable. He wasn’t honourable. He was a gangster through and through. And the satisfaction he felt, pushing that blade through the priest’s neck, couldn’t be compared to anything in this world. He felt again that coursing of adrenaline through his veins, stronger than any drug they could offer him. It got to his head and warmed him from the inside out. His pupils dilated and his cheeks flushed. He could breathe easier, a heavy weight finally being lifted from his shoulders. He stood on top of the world.

But like all highs, afterwards came the drop.

He had not noticed the car halting to a stop, nor the driver opening up the door for him. He moved like his body did not belong to him; like a puppet, with an unknown puppeteer. Charlie had calmed down, clinging to his uncle’s shirt with his head propped on his shoulder.

Somehow, Michael had found during the journey the integrity of mind to wipe his face, but that only left a dried red smear across his cheek, with dark specks dotting his skin and the collar of his shirt.

When he crossed the threshold of Shelby Company Limited, in less than a heartbeat he had two crying women on him, prying Charlie away and making the boy cry too. He stood there, a dumbfounded grin tugging at his lips as his mother finally locked eyes with him. Their shared glance made up for unneeded words. She knew. She knew he had taken a step that could never be undone, one she had hoped and prayed he would never do. Something she didn’t believe her darling son was capable of. Her fingers caressed his face, and Michael only smiled, and walked away, his grin never faltering as he moved past Polly.

He may have gotten back what the holy fathers took from him. What he spent his whole life searching for. But he had lost something else, and that one, he’d never get it back. No matter where he went, nor what he did. That piece of him was forever lost.

#michael gray #michael gray fanfic #michael gray one shot #michael gray imagine #michael gray x reader #peaky blinders fanfic #peaky blinders one shot #peaky blinders imagine #peaky blinders s3 #father hughes #michael gray solo #michael gray x oc #marsie writes #marsie posts #finn cole #Michael gray x you #charlie shelby

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teddy06writes · 4 months

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X Reader Fic Masterlist

Dead Poet Society:

General/Unit:

Charlie Daltons Annuel Dead Poets Holiday Party: Halloween Edition Diner Days Everything Falls Apart Study Session Repercussions Dating the Dead Poets HCs

Neil Perry:

Music of the Night Why'd I Guess the Ending? Anywhere... Just Not Home Happiness Here For You A Quiet Moment Everyone But You

Todd Anderson:

Favorite Poet Surprise Cuddle Sessions Friday Night Fun, Monday Meetings

Steven Meeks: Of Little Love Poems, Secret Admirers and Anonymous Notes

Charlie Dalton:

Friends to Lovers Hcs

Gerard Pitts: None yet

Richard Cameron: None yet

Knox Overstreet: None Yet

~~~

The Outsiders:

General/Unit:

Being the Fourth Curtis Brother HCs

Dallas Winston:

Never Fall In Love Again No Matter What Ghost Stories Late Nights By The Fire Oh How The Turn Tables People Watching

Sodapop Curtis:

Golden Too Old? Yeah Right!

Two Bit Mathews:

I'll Try Too Old? Yeah Right! Spooky-est Place On Earth

Darry Curtis:

Pumpkin Spice Everything Hot Tea Heals The Soul

Johnny Cade:

Protective Cool, Calm, and Collected-- Until He Smiles

Steve Randle:

1955 Chevy Delray

Polyam Jally:

Take Me Back to the Night We Met

Polyam Dallypop:

I Told You It Was A Dumbass Plan

~~~

Top Gun: Maverick:

General/Unit:None Yet

Bradley 'Rooster' Bradshaw: None Yet

Jake 'Hangman' Sersin: None Yet

Javy 'Coyote' Machado:None Yet

Natasha 'Phoenix' Trace: None Yet

Robert 'Bob' Floyd: None Yet

Mickey 'Fanboy' Garcia: None Yet

Ruben 'Payback' Fitch: None Yet

Polyam Hangster: None Yet

Polyam Bobnix: None yet

~~~

The Bear:

Carmen Berzatto: None yet

Sydney Adamu: None Yet

Richie Jerimovich: None yet

Marcus: None Yet

~~~

Peaky Blinders:

Tommy Shelby:

Can't Sleep?

Arthur Shelby: None yet

John Shelby: None yet

Lizzie Stark/Shebly: None yet

Alfie Solomons:

Interrupted Date Nights Lost Words Win Win

Michael Gray: None Yet

~~~

Star Wars:

Cassian Andor:

Stubborn

Jyn Erso: None Yet

Polyam CassianxJyn: None yet

Bhodi Rook: None Yet

Din Djarin: None Yet

Han Solo: None Yet

~~~

Lord Of The Rings/The Hobbit:

The Fellowship: None Yet

The Company: None Yet

Aragorn: None Yet

Boromir: None yet

Legolas: None Yet

Gimli: None Yet

Frodo Baggins: None Yet

Samwise Gamgee:

Harmony

Pippin Took:None Yet:

Merry Brandybuck:None Yet

Faramir: None Yet

Eomer: None yet

Eowyn: None Yet

Bilbo Baggins: None yet

Thorin Oakenshield:None yet

Kili: None yet

Fili:None yet

Bofur: None yet

Bard Bowman: None yet

~~~

The Umbrella Academy:

General/Unit: None yet

Number Five Hargreeves: None yet

Klaus Hargreeves: None Yet

Diego Hargreeves: None yet

Allison Hargreeves: None Yet

Luther Hargreeves: None Yet

Viktor Hargreeves: None Yet

Lila Pitts: None Yet

~~~

Marvel:

Bucky Barnes: None yet

Sam Wilson: None yet

Natasha Romanoff: None yet

Loki: None Yet

Druig: None Yet

Makari: None yet

Sersi: None yet

~~~

The Breakfast Club:

General/Unit:

None yet

John Bender: None yet

Andrew Clarke: None Yet

Brian Johnson: None yet

Claire Standish: None yet

Allison Reynolds: None yet

~~~

More potentially to be added...

#teddy 06 #teddy06writes #Dead poets society x reader #The outsiders x reader #Top Gun x reader #The bear x reader #Peaky Blinders x reader #Star wars x reader #Lord of the rings x reader #the hobbit x reader #The umbrella academy x reader #Marvel x reader #the breakfast club x reader

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itscherrylipsforme · 4 months

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Characters I write for

The list is always open to changes. You can ask me if I would write for characters who are not in the list and I will see what I can do. This means author personal favourite

ღ Harry Potter: Sirius Black, Remus Lupin, Regulus Black, Newt Scamander, Theseus Scamander, Bill Weasley, Charlie Weasley, Neville Longbottom and Cedric Diggory

ღ Marvel: Bucky, Loki, Druig, Charles Xavier, Logan Howlett, Matt Murdock, Peter Parker and Miguel O'Hara

ღ DC: Bruce Wayne, Jason Todd, Dick Grayson and Damian Wayne (aged up)

ღ Star Wars: Obi-Wan, Han Solo, Din Djarin, Poe Dameron and Ben Solo

ღ The Hunger Games (I have only read the preque for nowl, sorry): Sejanus Plinth and Coriolanus Snow

ღ The Chronicles of Narnia: Peter Pevensie and Prince Caspian

ღ Stranger Things: Steve Harrington and Eddie Munson

ღ Peaky Blinders: Thomas Shelby, Michael Gray and Duke Shelby

ღ The Umbrella Academy: Ben Hargreeves, Five Hargreeves, Viktor Hargreeves and Diego Hargreeves

ღ Cobra kai: Robby Keene, Demetri and Miguel Diaz

ღ La Casa de Papel/Money Heist: The Proffesor, Berlin, Rio and Denver

ღ Saltburn: Felix Catton, Oliver Quick and Michael Gavey

ღ Dead Poets Society: Neil Perry, Todd Anderson, Knox Overstreet, Charlie Dalton, Steve Meeks and Gerard Pitts

ღ Others: Morpheus (The Sandman), Luke Castellan, Jake Seresin, Minho TMR, Arvin Russell (The Devil All The Time), Paul Atreides, Nicholas Scratch (The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina), Rodrick Heffley, Tom Hansen (500 days of Summer), Dodge Mason (Panic), River Cartwright and Donald Ressler

This account does not support J.K Rowling and her transphobic ideas. Trans women are women

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crunchie-morris · 9 months

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At long last, in honor of it closing, here are my notes from Newsies UK from the June 10th matinee 😌

(I wrote these totally for myself so pardon the gushing lol but I decided to share because I’ve seen a lot of people post their notes and to reminisce!)

Under the cut because it’s loooong!

- Michael’s Jack was much more humble than I’ve ever seen Jack played. I really saw a 17 year-old kid who was just thrust into this leadership position, who was scared but excited and not sure how to approach it, especially during that moment when they lift him up during TWWK and he looked around like, “all this for me?”

- THE SANTA FE POSTCARRRRRD HOW JACK AND CRUTCHIE HAD IT AT THE BEGINNING AND THEN JACK PULLED IT BACK OUT DURINF SANTA FE

- Speaking of Santa Fe - the lighting started off with a cold, white-gray wash and shifted until there was a big yellow moon projected on the back wall - LOVED IT

- Back to the beginning - the sudden open with the blackout that snapped into the sound of a gate opening and the newsies were SURROUNDING THE STAGE

- All the chitter-chatter during the overture was so fun

- Also!! The reorchestrations??? AMAZING!! I noticed entirely different orchestrations for the overture, Seize The Day dance break, and KONY dance break, but also added drums in Watch What Happens (EPIC), strings in LFTR (heartbreaking), and something I can’t pinpoint added in OAFA (epic again)

- Crutchie’s a fellow Catholic 😌 he had a little rosary that he wore all the time, he prayed with it when the nuns came out. He wasn’t wearing it in The Refuge but he pulled it out at the very end (like scene transition) to pray again

- A NEWSIE ZIP-LINED OVER ME

- A NEWSIE SWUNG ON A LAMP OVER ME

- Crutchie had more solos in Act One, thank God

- Davey was such a NERD, his line delivery was hilarious

- Crutchie and Les’ friendship is something that can be so special, like when Crutchie was riding on the wagon during TWWK and Les was pulling it, and Crutchie poked Les with his crutch like he was a horse pulling a carriage, and then later after TWWKR, when Les started to follow Crutchie out before Davey called for him, and Crutchie gave Davey a look like, “what gives?!”

- Katherine and Jack had sO much more chemistry than I’ve ever seen. Right from the scene in the theatre booth, I could see her warming up to him, and then during the interview scene, they were literally just two kids flirting. The way Jack was awkwardly like, “can’t you see it in my eyes?” trying so hard (and failing) to be suave, and then him sing-songing, “I’d rather tell you what I’m hoping for toniiiight?” was just hilarious, and Katherine was just smitten for all of it already. Plus, after they got together in STBI, they were so close to each other all the time, constantly hugging and teasing. It was so adorable 🥺

- I want Bronté Barbé’s voice

- This Katherine had the newsies’ best interest from the beginning, she didn’t start out just chasing a story. It makes me think that she interacted with them a lot before the strike, even if she didn’t know them by name

- Spot calling Jack an asshole after he betrays the newsies was iconic

- Actually Spot in general was iconic. Rather than playing her very stoic and tough, she was a leader who ate up the spotlight and loved the power she had over people. She even made Bunsen/Seitz (idk which one they kept, they removed one) cower, and she loved it. She was also very loud and boisterous, something I’ve never seen in Spot before

- H A N N A H omg Bobbie Chambers was The Hannah Of All Time. Her line deliveries were hilarious, like her mocking Pulitzer with “he got elected!” and crying on the phone at the end when she was like, “Mr. Pulitzer can’t come to the phone right now 😭”

- When one of the newsies literally jumped on another one (idk who’s who and that’s so sad, they even did a role call) with excitement when Kath said they could make the front page, and then them immediately stepping away from each other like, “we’re cool, oh yeah”

- I really liked that they had Crutchie on a few boxes on the ground surrounded by other boys leaning against it for the Refuge. I feel like that communicates the tight, uncomfortable space he’s in much better than the typical move of having him on top of the tower

- Also loved the foreshadowing to the next scene with Crutchie coughing during LFTR, then falling on his way off-stage, then Jack says how he couldn’t make it to the window

- Also!! Another Refuge inmate helped Crutchie offstage after LFTR, which was necessary due to the fact that Crutchie’s crutch was left after he was arrested (😢), but the thing that got me was that the boy with him was reassuring him that it’d be okay, and continued doing so after he fell and he helped him up

- Another lovely bit of foreshadowing: how Katherine looks toward “The World” door on “no sir, we’ll stay young forever” (she was literally talking to her daaaaad)

- Jack was ALWAYS ready to pick a fight. Like the scene where he writes “strike” on the chalkboard is normally a funny, slapstick back-and-forth, but he straight-up kicked the chalkboard writer really hard, and the writer was reeling until he was done writing “strike”. This fight-instinct made it that much more impactful when the boys want to fight the scabs and he tells them not to.

- And then his speech to the scabs was just so touching. I’ve heard that speech a million times and it felt just like the first time. When he went up to one of the newsies in particular and was like, “there ain’t no crime to being poor” and he looked doubtful and he was kinda like, “hey, there ain’t” and looked him in the eye? Powerful stuff, man.

- I loved the choice not to have Jack sing during WWHR. Katherine and Davey were comforting him during the chorus, which was so sweet.

- Similarly, Jack got choked up when he saw the amount of newsies that came to help print The Children’s Crusade and I just :’)

- Not a part of the show but Bronté Barbé and one of the newsies both noticed (at different times) how amazed I was by the show. Bronté grinned and like scrunched her nose at me (it was during bows) and that’s just the magic of live theatre. Core memory right there

- Back to the show - Jack and Davey actually danced during Seize The Day? Iconic

- Medda and the Bowery Beauties were way more of a burlesque show than a vaudeville

- Overall, reactions were more grounded and less “Disney” than every other production I’ve seen, but they still managed to be big and theatrical. It was the perfect balance of realism and showmanship.

- The Delanceys weren’t as loud and boisterous, which honestly made them scarier

- Jack really said “but I’m pretty scared of you” and booped Katherine on the nose - precious

- Also Katherine sticking her tongue out after being like “imagine my father blissfully snoring while we take him down with his own printing press!”

- The way Davey was super excited when he found out that Jack did the painting and then looking at Jack and immediately getting all flustered and being like, “you’re really good?” Happy pride month everyone

- JACK AND CRUTCHIE’S SECRET HANDSHAKE JACK AND CRUTCHIE’S SECRET HANDSHAKE

- WHEN ONE OF THE NEWSIES MAKES ENOUGH MONEY TO GET AN APPLE, HE’S ALL EXCITED AND HE BUYS ONE, AND THEN HE SEES ANOTHER NEWSIE LOOKING SAD AND HUNGRY AND HE GIVES IT TO HIM??? 🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺

- The newsies watching Medda’s show “she’s talking to me!” “No, she’s talking to me!!”

- ONE OF THE NEWSIES LYING FACE-DOWN ON THE FLOOR WHEN JACK ASKED WHO WANTS BROOKLYN

- Katherine’s spoon crown 😌

- They managed to still show the trauma Crutchie went through during the Snyder sendoff scene without changing a word! He does the whole “guess who’s back! And I brought along a little treat from the Refuge!” (Wearing the police cap) but then when he turns face-to-face with Snyder, his smile drops and he composes himself. But then he handcuffs him and kicks him off as usual 😌 but again, another example of the balance of realism and theatricality!

- It really seemed in this version, just by the line delivery and reactions, that Jack made up his mind about staying in NY long before Katherine says “you’ve got one more ace up your sleeve” and I love that

#newsies #west endsies #newsies uk #newsies London #🥹#edit: I said this was June 11th at first but it was the 10th #I was very jet-lagged lol

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foxes-that-run · 4 months

Note

https://genius.com/Michael-buble-someday-lyrics

Do you think this is about TS? I feel it might be because of this part:

I remember that love song I sang every word wrong But you didn't mind, no no

Hi Anon, thanks for asking!

The TLDNR is yes, this song references Taylor, with that line about his temper trap tattoo.

Maybe Someday

When was it written

It is one of a few songs he wrote in mid-2014, including I Love You and Just a Little Piece of Your Heart. He had been hanging out with his friend and now manager Jeff Azoff and he was either stretching a creative muscle and/or considering a solo career. He later told Rolling Stone he first suggested a break from 1D late in 2014, about 4 months after writing this.

Harry wrote it with Johan Carlsson (if I could fly) and Meghan Trainor. Meghan said they worked together after "all the base" (June). Harry was in LA on 21-24 July 2014 - when this was likely written. The press mentioned it August 2014. Harry was on tour, he and Taylor seemed more on/ than off Feb 2014 - Feb 2015 (Timeline)

In 2015, when asked if it was for 1D Meghan said it was "a duet between a boy and a girl, so we're not sure yet." She's also said:

"He heard the song and was apparently a fan and a mutual friend told me he wanted to write with me [...] So I walked in with a prepared verse and chorus. But he gave me very poetic, mature lyrics. I was like, 'Well, damn, Harry, you know what love is.'" not like the Harry Styles who everyone is in love with. We finished the song in an hour or two and I love it. I was nervous 'cause I thought he'd be like a Justin Bieber, like 'he's so famous' and love himself, but he was just so normal... I immediately wasn't nervous any more." When asked about dating Harry she responded ‘Everyone I meet is taken. They’re all dating people.

It was released more than 2 years later in October 2016 by Michael Buble with Meghan singing. (How I would love to hear the demo with 2014 Harry's vocals and a Ukulele.)

Lyrics

I love seeing you happy I miss seeing that smile It's been such a long time And although I don't have you I know now that I need to Somehow make you mine And I won't lie, it's hard seeing you with him 'Cause I know he can't hold you like I can

Trouble "When I see that smile therе’s trouble"

It's unclear if either was dating someone else in this period. I see this as related to Is it Over Now? "At least I had the decency / To keep my nights out of sight" where they were dating others. To me, these are an indication that they agreed to be together in the future due to the difficulty of dating with their careers. In October, Harry reportedly wrote another song called 'not our fault' that sometimes external things cause a relationship to not work. Harry has mentioned not wanting others to hold her in:

Woman "I hope you can see the shape that I’m in While he’s touching your skin He’s right where I should, where I should be"

Happily "You know I wanna be the one to hold you when you sleep."

Perfect "Or the arms that hold you any time you want them"

TBSL "Do you think it's easy being of the jealous kind?"

Him "'Cause I don't wanna hear about him / How he is holding you better at night"

[Chorus} Someday maybe when we're old and gray We could be in love once more Till then I won't give my love away Darling, I'm forever only yours

Meghan Trainor said she had written a chorus before she met Harry and he loved it. Harry has also sung about waiting for love a lot:

Satellite "Spinning out, waiting for ya to pull me in"

Without You "Waiting everyday I don’t wanna wait for you"

Already home "I’ve been waiting, every day since"

Talk "Don't you, don't you wait"

Golden "So you wait for me in the sky"

Oh, I remember that love song I sang every word wrong But you didn't mind, no no And I'll admit that I miss you But only if you do 'Cause you know that I'm shy And I can't lie, it's hard seeing you with her 'Cause I know she can't love you like I can

Mis-remembered lyrics are a reference to Harry's Temper Trap Tattoo, Taylors arm lyrics and the birthday gift of the hand written lyrics. Harry has also referenced this in Canyon Moon: "She plays songs I've never heard / an old lover's hippie music/ Pretends not to know the words"

Lots of missing, and in FTDT also never being the first to break:

FTDT "Why won't you ever be the first one to break? / Even my phone misses your call, by the way"

Late Night Talking "It's only been a couple of days / And I miss you"

Falling "You said you cared / And you missed me, too"

If I could fly "I'm missing half of me when we're apart"

Without you "Now you’re with him i must admit I’m missing / The part of your skin"

Ophelia "I miss you so, miss you so"

And my lovin' works for you then (it works for you) We've got nothing to lose 'Cause I'm forever only yours (in love once more, once more, once more) No need to complicate it That smile is worth the wait, yeah I'm forever only yours (hey, yeah) Someday maybe, Someday maybe Someday maybe I'll be yours (woah, baby)x2

Similar to not complicating it:

I just wanna love you "I just wanna love you, that's all I gotta say"

Olivia "I love you, it's all I do / I love you"

Similar to forever only yours:

Ophelia "The definition of devotion, baby"

Fine Line "You've got my devotion"

Happily "I just want it to be you and I forever."

End of the Day "She said the night was over, I said it's forever"

#haylor #harry styles #harry styles unreleased

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wipbigbang · 6 months

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WIPBB 2023 - Fic & Art Master List (S - Z)

Below is the master list of all the bragging rights/posts that were posted to Tumblr and Dreamwidth, organized alphabetically by fandom from S to Z. Please go show these people some love for all the hard work they did!

Star Trek

Deep Space 9

Free Advice Is…: Fic | Art (Odo/Quark)

Way Harsh, Ziyal: Fic | Art (Julian Bashir/Elim Garak, Jake Sisko/Tora Ziyal, Jadzia Dax/Kira Nerys)

Discovery

How We Remember: Fic (Art Is On AO3) (Keyla Detmer, Joann Owosekun, Airiam, Sylvia Tilly, Michael Burnham)

Novels (Beyer)/Prodigy/Voyager

The Universe to Mend: Fic | Art (Denzit Kathryn Janeway/Q, Hologram Janeway/Maquis Chakotay)

The Next Generation

Begin to Hope: Fic | Art (Beverly Crusher/Deanna Troi, Implied Data/Geordi La Forge)

Star Wars

Legends

The Book Of Kenobi - Part I: Fic | Art (Obi-Wan Kenobi & Anakin Skywalker, Obi-Wan Kenobi & Luke Skywalker, Obi-Wan Kenobi/Original Female Character(s), Obi-Wan Kenobi & Original Characters)

Original Trilogy

Scoundrel: Fic | Art On Dreamwidth | Art On Tumblr (Luke Skywalker/Han Solo)

Prequel Trilogy

Cabur'ika: Art (N/A)

Entrusted With This: Fic (Art Is On AO3) (Jango Fett/Obi-Wan Kenobi, Obi-Wan Kenobi & Anakin Skywalker, Jango Fett & Jaster Mereel)

I just want to go home: Fic (Quinlan Vos/Obi-Wan Kenobi)

Rebels

The Last Fear: Fic (Art On AO3) (Jenson Kallstrom/Eagle Eyed Dan, Kallus/Zeb)

The Clone Wars

Ahtehn: Art (Dooku | Darth Tyranus/Quinlan Vos)

GFFA: Fic (Quinlan Vos/Fox, Obi-Wan Kenobi/Cody)

Where do you run when you’re at your limit: Fic (Kit Fisto/Obi-Wan Kenobi, Cody/Mace Windu/Quinlan Vos, Depa Billaba/Luminara Unduli)

Sequel Trilogy

Color Coded: Fic/Art (Kylo Ren/Rey)

Death Comes To Call: Fic/Art (Kylo Ren/Rey)

The Gray Between Black and White: Fic/Art | Art (Kylo Ren/Rey)

The Mandalorian

Pyroclasts: Fic | Art (Din Djarin, Grogu, IG-11, Peli Motto, Cara Dune, Original Droid Character)

Stargate: Atlantis

Roundabout Way to a Family: Fic | Art (John Sheppard/Laura Cadman)

Stargate Atlantis/Stargate SG-1

Journeys all Start Somewhere: Fic | Art (John Sheppard/Cameron Mitchell, Evan Lorne/John Sheppard/Cameron Mitchell)

Stranger Things

Love’s Such an Old-Fashioned Word: Fic/Art (Jonathan Byers/Steve Harrington/Nancy Wheeler)

Supernatural

After Apple Picking: Fic | Art (Dean Winchester/Sam Winchester, Castiel/Dean Winchester/Sam Winchester, Mentioned Dean Winchester/OCs)

I’ll Find Him Through the Depths of Space: Fic (Still Posting) | Art (Dean Winchester/Castiel)

One Last Curse: Fic (Dean Winchester/Castiel)

Supernatural/Black Mirror

Hang The Author: Fic | Art (Castiel/Dean Winchester, Amy/Frank)

Teen Wolf

A Pauper's Prince (Revised): Fic (Derek Hale/Stiles Stilinski)

Better Off Bread: Fic On Dreamwidth | Fic On Tumblr (Art On-Site) (Derek Hale/Stiles Stilinski)

Hands Off, He's Mine!: Fic (Art On AO3) (Peter Hale/Stiles Stilinski)

Hunting the Hunters: Fic | Art (Derek Hale/Stiles Stilinski)

Intarsia: Fic | Art (Derek Hale/Stiles Stilinski)

the family you choose: Fic/Art (Peter Hale/Chris Argent, Background Derek Hale/Stiles Stilinski)

Under My Skin: Fic | Art (Stiles Stilinski/Jackson Whittemore, Stiles Stilinski & Lydia Martin, Stiles Stilinski & Derek Hale)

Untitled Swan Stiles: Fic | Art (Derek Hale/Stiles Stilinski, Allison Argent/Isaac Lahey/Scott McCall, Danny Māhealani/Lydia Martin/Jackson Whittemore, Vernon Boyd/Erica Reyes)

Ted Lasso

Load of Whites, Hand-Wrung: Fic (Art On AO3) (Nathan Shelley/Bex, Secondary Ted Lasso/Rebecca Welton)

The Hunger Games

Every Spot Reminds Me of You: Fic (Art On AO3) (Katniss Everdeen/Peeta Mellark)

Feed the Beast: Fic (Katniss Everdeen/Peeta Mellark, Minor Effie Trinket/Haymitch Abernathy)

The Legend of Korra

Legend of Korra - The Winter Soldier: Art (Korra/Asami Sato)

Starvation Paradise: Fic/Art (Iroh II/Asami Sato)

The Wheel of Time (TV)

stars fading (but i linger on): Fic (Art On AO3) (Rand al'Thor/Mat Cauthon)

Word Of Honor

look who i found: Art (Wen Kexing/Zhou Zishu, Han Ying/Zhou Zishu (pre-relationship), Han Ying & Wen Kexing, Han Ying & Siji Ducklings, Han Ying & Zhou Zishu, Han Ying & Zhang Chengling)

to the roots of something greener: Fic | Art (Wen Kexing/Zhou Zishu, Han Ying/Zhou Zishu)

Yuri!!! on Ice

Light At The Edge Of The Galaxy: Art Post 1 | Art Post 2 (Phichit Chulanont & Katsuki Yuuri, Katsuki Yuuri/Victor Nikiforov)

#wip big bang #fanfiction #fanfic #fanart #!masterlist #!artwork #!completed shit #!2023

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lambtotheslaughterr · 8 days

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500 FOLLOWERS CELEBRATION

✨REQUESTS OPEN✨

rules & requirements below:

i know, or at least i think, most people celebrate at 1000 followers but considering i've had this blog for nearly two years 500 followers is a big deal to me. SO to celebrate i am opening my requests. now, before you go shooting me a request please read & acknowledge the following.

RULES:

must be following me. that’s a no brainer.

first come first served basis.

i will make an announcement after i have received 10 requests that requests are closed. please DO NOT make any requests after i have closed them. they will be dismissed/deleted. so just save your request for the next celebration. AGAIN those who request off anon will be priority.

because i don't want those whose requests don't get picked or didn't make it into the 10 qualifying spots to miss out on their request i will be saving requests to roll-over into the next celebration post (which will be at 1000 followers) so don't fret! however, a REMINDER that if you make a request AFTER i closed the requests those ones will be deleted.

you may only request oneshots. i will not be accepting any series or mini series requests. however, your oneshot requests can include requesting a sequel to any standing series or oneshots i have already written. for example, 'may i request a 'where are they now' oneshot for reader & rafe in 'always you''. or 'may i request a sequel oneshot to your ransom drysdale 'leatherbound' oneshot'. but of course, feel free to request something totally new!

no naming the reader. these requests are 'reader x whoever character you request'.

also! this is a dark!fic noncon!fic account. keep in mind that when making your request that you know exactly what you're requesting & from who. no fluff, no cutesy romantic stuff (unless it goes dark), etc.

i will include a list of characters below that i will write for that you can choose from, so please pick from there. if there is someone else you have in mind that isn't on the list DM ME first to ask.

along with a list of characters, i will also list the kinks/themes i WILL NOT write about. so be extra sure to go over those because any requests that include anything from my 'will not write about' list, will be dismissed.

lastly, after i recieve 10 requests, my other series i'm currenty writing on here (Rise & I Burn) will be on a momentary pause until i complete all requests. so to my dedicated readers for those two series, i do apologize in advance, but please be patient. they will be returned to.

that's all, folks! make sure you make your request via dropping an ask (i will not accept requests via dm (dm is only if you're asking clarifying questions about characters or boundaries)). be sure to REREAD my rules, too. it doesn't hurt to double check.

happy requesting! muah😘

beau<3

CHARACTERS by fandom: those in CAPS are who i really want to write for

CHRIS EVANS CHARACTERS: Ransom Drysdale | Andy Barber | CURTIS EVERETT | Lloyd Hansen |

OUTER BANKS: Rafe Cameron | Daddy Cameron (a.k.a Ward Cameron) |

DC: Clark Kent | Joker (Heath Ledger's joker) | KGBEAST

PEAKY BLINDERS: Thomas fucking Shelby (or any of the Shelby's) | Michael Gray |

THE BOYS: Billy Butcher | HOMELANDER | Black Noir

CALL OF DUTY: Konig | SIMON 'GHOST' RILEY

DEAD BY DAYLIGHT: Frank Morrison ('The Legion' ) | The Trapper | GhostFace | Michael Myers

THE VAMPIRE DIARIES: Stefan Salvatore | Kai Parker | Klaus Mikaelson |

DIVERGENT: ERIC | Four |

STAR WARS: Darth Maul | Darth Vader/Anakin Skywalker | Kylo Ren/Ben Solo |

HARRY POTTER: Aged Up Draco Malfoy | Aged Up Tom Riddle (don't you dare request that noseless snake version of him) | Young Sirius Black

AMERICAN ASSASSIN: Mitch Rapp | Ghost

THE WALKING DEAD: Negan | Nick Clark

WILL NOT WRITE ABOUT: these either weird me out or bore me & for me to produce my best work for you i ask that you not request any of the below

SPOTS:

1. alt!reader x rafe cameron one shot

2. virgin!reader x rafe cameron one shot (best friends)

3. reader x rafe cameron one shot (best friends boyfriend/roommate)

4. 'the night shift' reader x stefan salvatore sequel one shot

5. romani!reader x soft!roman godfrey one shot

6. ‘always you’ reader x rafe cameron sequel one shot

10.

#dark!fic #non con fic #500 followers celebration #requests open #get in while you can

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lboogie1906 · 1 year

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Fred David Gray (born December 14, 1930) is a civil rights attorney, preacher, and activist who practices law in Alabama. He litigated several major civil rights cases in Alabama, including some, such as Browder v. Gayle, that reached the SCOTUS for rulings. He served as the President of the National Bar Association in 1985, and in 2001 was elected as the first African-American President of the Alabama State Bar. He matriculated at Alabama State College for Negroes, and received a BA in 1951. He received a JD from Case Western Reserve University School of Law in 1954. At the time no law school in Alabama would accept African Americans. He returned to his hometown and established a law office. He began preaching at the Holt Street Church of Christ, where his parents had long been devout members. During the Civil Rights Movement, he came to prominence working with Martin Luther King Jr. and E.D. Nixon, among others. In some of his first cases as an attorney (and solo practitioner), he defended Claudette Colvin and Rosa Parks, who were charged with disorderly conduct for refusing to seat themselves in the rear of segregated city buses. He represented plaintiffs in the class-action lawsuit about the controversial federal Tuskegee Syphilis Study (1932-1972). He is portrayed by Cuba Gooding, Jr. in Selma. Shawn Michael Howard portrays him in Boycott, he plays a cameo role as a supporter of Martin Luther King Jr. He was depicted in the 2016 stage play The Integration of Tuskegee High School. The production premiered at Auburn University. He is portrayed by Aki Omoshaybi in Doctor Who, "Rosa". #africanhistory365 #africanexcellence https://www.instagram.com/p/CmJZOiuLFUY/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

#africanhistory365 #africanexcellence

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faebirdie · 2 years

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request rules and character list

Before requesting a fic or headcanons, please make sure that you have fully read through these rules and assured that the character or characters you are requesting are on my writing list.

Rules:

I am currently only writing fics based off of prompts

Headcanon requests don't need a prompt

If the request is for a prompt, please do not send in a bunch of extra plot requests with it, as this really limits my ability to be creative in my writing

If you send in a request for a fic please include the prompt number (unless the prompt doesn’t have a number), the prompt itself, the character you are requesting, and your preferred pronouns

Only request fics or headcannons when requests are open. If requests are not open I will delete the request

Only request for characters that I write for

Just because I used to write for a character does mean that I do anymore. The current list of characters I write for is below

Please don’t pester me about when your request will be finished, it will only make it harder for me to find the motivation to write

I won’t fill any requests that I am not comfortable with and I am under no obligation to give an explanation for why something might make me uncomfortable

I do not write about eating disorders, self harm, suicidal ideations, or other related topics as I find these subjects especially triggering

I have recently started to write smut, so feel free to send in smutty requests. All of the above rules still apply

I don't write watersports, ddlg/mdlg, or mlm smut. no shame or anything, it's just not in my wheelhouse.

Characters I write for:

Bridgerton:

Anthony Bridgerton

Benedict Bridgerton

Kate Sharma

DC:

Bruce Wayne

Clark Kent

Diana Prince

Jason Todd

John Constantine

Rick Flag

Selina Kyle

Extended MCU:

Bucky Barnes

Druig

Frank Castle

Jennifer Walters

Layla El Faouly

Loki

Matt Murdock

Natasha Romonoff

Peter Parker (TASM)

Steve Rogers

Valkyrie

Wanda Maximoff

Xu Xialing

Yelena Belova

Peaky Blinders: (on hold until the i finally actually watch the new season)

Ada Shelby

Alfie Solomons

Gina Gray

Michael Gray

Thomas Shelby

Star Wars:

Boba Fett

Cassian Andor

Din Djarin

Fennec Shand

Han Solo

Kylo Ren

Poe Dameron

Rey

Stranger Things:

Nancy Wheeler

Steve Harrington

Eddie Munson

The Umbrella Academy: (on hold until i finally watch the new season)

Diego Hargreeves

Klaus Hargreeves

Viktor Hargreeves

The Witcher:

Geralt of Rivia

Tissaia De Vries

Triss Merigold

Yennefer of Vengerberg

Xmen:

Alex Summers

Axel Cluney

Erik Lensherr

Ororo Munroe

Warren Worthington III

Miscellaneous:

Gordon Merkel

Jay (Okja)

John Wick

Spencer Reid

Takeshi Kovacs

Poly Relationships:

Anthony Bridgerton x Reader x Kate Sharma

Boba Fett x Reader x Fennec Shand

Bruce Wayne x Reader x Selina Kyle

Bucky Barnes x Reader x Steve Rogers

Eddie Munson x Reader x Steve Harrington

Gina Gray x Reader x Michael Gray

Nancy Wheeler x Reader x Steve Harrington

Rick Flag x Reader x Takeshi Kovacs (Bionic Exile Universe)

Geralt of Rivia x Reader x Yennefer of Vengerberg

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loser-user-noaccuser · 2 years

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wife, love of my life, my everything

from questions 5 to 15 GO

NELLA MY PRETTY BABY

You have gave me quite a challenge and that made me love you even more

5. Song you don’t like but love the music video: the only one that came to mind was “The Joker and The Queen” by Taylor Swift and Ed Sheeran

6. An artist you like but are embarrassed to admit: don’t come for me but … Harry Styles his fans scare me

7. Would you wear a tshirt of a band you’re not into: if it’s and artist that i have heard at least a song or two of yes but if I know nothing about the artist or their discography then no

8. Artist/song you like despite being of a genre you usually don’t listen to: i’m not big on R&B/Rap so does Childish Gambino count?

9. Fave band/s: Top 5 here we go. 1. Green Day (hence my name) 2. Greta Van Fleet 3. The 1975 4. MCR 5.INXS

10. Fave solo artist/s: Maisie Peters, Peach PRC, Michael Aldag

11. Fave songwriter/s: any of the above as well as Conan Gray bc he has made me cry a lot lately

12. Most obscure artist you listen to: Kisschasy, Australian alt rock band from like 2006-2011(?) they had one album that’s just bangers

13. Most popular artist you listen to: Taylor Swift, and i hate to say it even though midnights comes out tomorrow i really dont care for it 🫣

14. a song/album from the 50s or earlier: my all time favourite piece of music is Peter and the Wolf from 1936

15. Fave song/album from the 60s: when i hear 60s i automatically think of any song by Jefferson Airplane or The Mama’s and The Papa’s

#ask game

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byneddiedingo · 2 years

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It's Always Fair Weather (Gene Kelly, Stanley Donen, 1955) Cast: Gene Kelly, Dan Dailey, Cyd Charisse, Dolores Gray, Michael Kidd, David Burns, Jay C. Flippen. Screenplay: Betty Comden, Adolph Green. Cinematography: Robert J. Bronner. Art direction: Cedric Gibbons, Arthur Lonergan. Film editing: Adrienne Fazan. Music: André Previn, songs by André Previn, Betty Comden, Adolph Green. Since they satirized (albeit mildly) Hollywood and Broadway in their screenplays for Singin' in the Rain (Gene Kelly, Stanley Donen, 1952) and The Band Wagon (Vincente Minnelli, 1953), it seems almost inevitable that Betty Comden and Adolph Green should set their sights on television, and particularly TV advertising, in the screenplay for It's Always Fair Weather. Maybe it's just that television was seen as the enemy in Hollywood, but the last in their triad of MGM musicals of the 1950s seems a little sharper in tone than than the other two. The movie scores some nice hits on TV tearjerker shows like Ralph Edwards's This Is Your Life and on absurd commercials: The row of dancing soapboxes is a hit at the actual commercial in which a dancer wore a giant Old Gold cigarette pack. The unsentimental tone is there from the very beginning, when after a trio of just-demobilized GIs vows to reunite and celebrate their friendship ten years later, the film jumps ahead to a sour and disillusioning revelation of their midlife failures. Ted Riley (Gene Kelly) has become something of a lowlife, the manager of a boxer he won in a crap game; Angie Valentine (Michael Kidd) had wanted to become a famous chef, but runs a hamburger joint in Schenectady that he calls the Cordon Bleu; and Doug Hallerton (Dan Dailey), once an aspiring artist, is now an advertising executive with a sour stomach and an impending divorce. It all ends well, of course, with the help of a brainy TV producer played by Cyd Charisse and her feather-brained star played by Dolores Gray. Although André Previn's song score is only passable, it supports some fine production numbers staged by Kelly and Donen that take full advantage of the CinemaScope screen, like the trio in which Kelly, Dailey, and Kidd dance with garbage can lids on their feet, or the split-screen effect in which they perform a perfectly synchronized number with each in a different setting. Kelly gets one of his big solo numbers, a kind of echo of the celebrated "Singin' in the Rain" routine, but this time on roller skates, and Dailey, Charisse, and Gray also have good solos. (Kidd, better known as choreographer than performer, got shorted.) I think one reason that It's Always Fair Weather may not have the reputation of the other MGM musicals of the period is that when it came time to release it on television, the big numbers had to be chopped up, panned-and-scanned for small TV screens. Fortunately, it works well letterboxed on today's bigger, wider screens.

#It's Always Fair Weather #Gene Kelly #Stanley Donen #Michael Kidd #Dan Dailey #Cyd Charisse

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mineofilms · 2 months

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Review of: Dokken – Shadowlife (1997)

Dokken, a name resonating with '80s rock. The anti-cool kids at the musical table, serving up anthems in leather and loud guitars. The vibes of my early music listening experiences. Dokken's the kind of band that roared into the scene, belting out melodic metal and hair-flipping jams through the 1980’s. For me, I discovered them in 1987 after seeing “A Nightmare on Elm Street Part 3 Dream Warriors.” Dokken broke up, the first time, after the 1988 Monsters of Rock tour. This band, probably known for just as much dysfunction a band can have than hits and records the band created in all its incarnations. This Blog right here and now focuses on the departure from their classic sound and later lineup in the later 1990s. This was the first hint the old Dokken would never be the same, but rather an evolving thing moving forward. Which is neither bad nor good. It is whatever one needs it to be. If you love the Dokken sound, or maybe you only like the classic sound and never liked the 90s and early 2000s run. Perhaps you discovered Dokken at a fair or a festival and love it all. Perhaps you love the later material from the band. There is so much to choose from. Almost like Black Sabbath with how many different eras and different types of sound for the band.

Dokken released 'Shadowlife' on April 15th, 1997. This was about two and a half months before my High School graduation. I was absolutely going through some tough mental shit that year. That is another story. Music for me, SAVED me that year for sure. I am amazed I never got serious about music during this time. The writing was all over the wall there but I was so busy working and being miserable I just wanted to listen and escape. I was a major fan of Dokken’s 1995 comeback record “Dysfunctional.” I really loved that record and I still do. They later released a live acoustic-style record playing reincarnations of their classic material with a few choice favorites from ‘Dysfunctional’ and an instrumental from George Lynch’s last solo record. ‘Shadowlife’ marked a departure from their classic sound and received mixed reviews upon its release. These mixed reviews are largely negative or passively positive, giving the band credit for doing something experimental. People who love Dokken, like me, will defend ‘Shadowlife’ up and down but even I, concede, this is a bad record, sonically. However, that does not mean I do not like the record, all-round. I absolutely do. I just recognize that I have listened to this album so many times over the years, out of all the newer Dokken material out there, this one stays with me. The songs I like on it, I really like and the album always reminds me what that year was like for me. However, I do have issues with the album and how it sounds.

Tensions within the band were beginning to resurface. Dokken ‘Shadowlfe’ would be recording this record without long time engineer/producer for the band’s music, Michael Wagener. There was a decision by Lynch, Pilson and Brown to explore a new musical direction on this record. For 'Shadowlife' the decision to go with Kelly Gray as the sound engineer/producer for the album. Kelly had some early success producing Candlebox and Pride & Glory. A shift towards a more 90s alternative and grunge influence, which deviated from the melodic hard rock style that had defined Dokken's success and the more heavier more progressive style they demonstrated on the ‘Dysfunctional’ album only eighteen months prior.

George was highly experimental in the 90s. Allegedly influenced by his interest in bands like Monster Magnet and Tool. I will argue this a little bit. If you go back through Monster Magnet’s first three records, all released from 1993-1998 there are not a whole lot of similarities of what they were doing at the time and how Lynch plays. I know some of that is subjective, but some of it isn’t either. The title track “Superjudge,” one of the more well-known songs on Monster Magnet’s first record, by the same name, sounds nothing like Dokken or Lynch Mob. It’s a completely different style of Hard Rock. Sure, you can throw them in with Alternative Metal or Alt-Rock. What you shouldn’t do is say Dokken, Lynch Mob have songs in common, sonically, with Monster Magnet or Tool! Even Candlebox, the producer’s other works that had a huge single on the radio, have little to nothing in common with Dokken and Lynch Mob. So I am confused as to how that influenced Lynch to play what he played and how it was tuned on the ‘Shadowlife’ record? Even Tool, is a stretch. I’d say Lynch tries to imitate the style, but I always felt he is sounding great when he is playing heavy stuff and not so much the ambient stuff. I am just not going to swallow that at face value. The departure from Dokken's signature sound was met with criticism from fans and the music industry in general. The album struggled commercially, selling significantly fewer copies compared to their previous works.

“To put it into perspective, ‘Dysfunctional’ sold 450,000 copies after its cycle, when we released ‘Shadowlife’ it sold 50,000 copies.” – Don Dokken

The reception of 'Shadowlife' contributed to the already strained relationships among band members, and the subsequent tour faced challenges. Lynch was out halfway through the tour. I know ‘Shadowlife’ gets a lot of hate. I feel its aged way better than it did when it first came out. I was probably the only real Dokken fan in all my school. Mind you we were a 5A school at the time. Creed's "My Own Prison" (band’s self-release CD/Tape) were starting to make the rounds. Tool was FK'n huge that year. No Doubt, Tonic, Bush, Pantera, Type O Negative, Nine Inch Nails, White Zombie, Rollins Band. Rush had a new record that was doing well at the time. Queensryche had a new record that was getting heavy radio play. Even Motley Crue's ‘Generation Swine’ was getting air play. So it wasn't that far a stretch for Dokken to release an album during this time. When ‘Dysfunctional’ came out I was blown away by it. It was the perfect modernized-Dokken record for my 15-year-old-ass... I still feel this is the best record as far as judging the band on Metal/Hard Rock standards of being Heavy, produced really well, with highlighting a lot of what the band did well with their originals. ‘Dysfunctional,’ for me, was a Dokken record for grownups that kids/teens that followed the band during the first run of Dokken records were released, listened to. Sonically, Dokken was going in a great direction. ‘Dysfunctional’ was heavy, melodic and groovy. It was a great sound for hard rock in 1995. 1997 rolls around and all hell breaks loose.

‘Shadowlife’ Track by track. I implore you to listen for yourselves. Especially if you know the band’s signature style and sound. “Puppet on A String” https://youtu.be/UG0PM1RgOnA?si=xIiJhF4TUl_ZO_lu

This used to be rough for me. It isn’t exactly knocking you out of the park here. Especially where we left with the band with “What Price.” This song was hard to like at first. It did grow on me over the years. There are a few live versions of this floating around on YouTube that gives a better context on what this song is supposed to sound like. This is where I feel having a non-melodic rock producer hurt this song and the record overall. It’s got some solid grooves to this that sound much heavier live than the studio cut of this song. On the studio version Dokken’s vocals are scaled way back and have some pretty questionable vocal filters/effects on it. In the live version it sounds more Dokken-esh. Instead of making this song and alt-rock song they should have made it a heavier/darker song. They still could have pulled off a more alternative sound and it still be heavy and not shrouded in ambient guitar effects, which really destroy a lot of these songs from the record. If they just would have played them straight, like a hard rock band should, just be what you are and beef everything up. Instead we get this and this isn’t bad. Like I said, it has grown on me, but it still sounds like Dokken trying to be an alt-rock band not a hard rock or melodic metal band.

“Cracks in the Ground” https://youtu.be/akzY-2M3C6U?si=f2gIvK-nbxgLt12w

1996-1997 was what it was, but hard rock was still doing alright for itself. Metal was a thing. Some of the bands from the 1980s that were still active in the 1990s, were putting out pretty heavy records that were more related to metal than say 1980s hard or glam rock. It was like bands from the 80s were done with the makeup and the pop sound it came with for wearing all black and playing harder driven rock music. Not all bands did this. Some experimented due to the popularity of alternative/grunge music. Rock music in general was getting heavier and using more electronic aspects of music to replace guitar as the main focus of a song. Guitar solos were either much much shorter or replaced altogether with groovy power chords. Some bands just couldn’t do this at a level where the fans could understand what was happening.

“Cracks in the Ground” largely does this with all its ambience from George Lynch. While the song itself is quite good, I think if this song came out now people would notice it more. What hurts this song is the weird guitar effects in the background that doesn’t seem to end. The chugs sounded good, when they there, and needed more of it. Jeff Pilson’s bass sounds great on this song particularly and has a good sound across the entire record.

“Sky Beneath My Feet” https://youtu.be/L6UtkisAaj8?si=5SDqDr6Y_1aeBwMc

This song, while I like, really needed some heavy chugs on this one. The guitar tones here is where this song gets drowned out. There are a few cues on how this song sounds and reflects how the whole record sounds. Lynch’s guitar tones for the songs and the drowning out of Don Dokken’s vocals. Jeff Pilson’s bass sounds thick all the way through the record, but the off-sound of Don and George are also evident throughout the album.

“Until I Know” https://youtu.be/1LTJnBh_sRI?si=2SEpKuNPOzdD3ebl

I do like this song, but it is weird, even for Dokken. It’s like an outtake turned song. The ambience in particular here ruins the song. It would have been better served as a purely acoustic song. Played that way the song would have sounded a whole lot better and like a real rock song. Lynch’s constant use of these effects on his playing on this record in combination with how Jeff sounds on bass and the drums just makes the song feel like a filler-song that is a filler song.

“Hello” https://youtu.be/TWCaw7gzQ8U?si=6OznMaFqN3XC1dFF

Another song where they tried to be an ALT-Grunge band. This song doesn't work for me. To me, it sounds like Jeff is EQ’d for metal. Mick for grunge, Lynch in whatever sound he feels he is in and the muted down of Don’s vocals. All that together is where “the weird sound” comes from. Lynch really needed the power chords or the tones he brought on Lynch Mob’s first record, ‘Wicked Sensation’ here. He has to constantly put ambience in his stuff. It works sometimes, but a lot of times it’s just distracting and that is down the board with Lynch's playing and style over the decades. I would never hire Lynch to get his take on DJENT, Thrash or Thall in today’s metal culture. Great soloist and has on Post-90s Lynch Mob records; played a grittier, darker, heavy guitars that have more in common with Monster Magnet and Tool now than this did for the time period of ‘Shadowlife’. This song would make me laugh due to it being an inside joke at the time with one of my little brothers. There was an ad on TV going around about alcoholism where a drunken father would yell at his little son because he broke a glass trying to get himself some water due to his dad being too much of a drunk to take care of his son! The dad yells at the kid, appears threatening, and the kid whimpers away in fear saying; “all I wanted was a drink of water…” There is a line in the song, used twice and two other times in a variance; “All I need is just a drink of water.” My brother and I still have an odd sense of humor with things like this. When talking about scary things, he will just bust out with the line from “Aliens;” ‘They mostly come at night... Mostly.’ You can say that about badly recorded records too…

“Convenience Store Messiah” https://youtu.be/AURJtWpqTBQ?si=lL9y1u9FDG9fH3jU

It’s a decent song. I loved the Dokken – “One Night Live,” where they did a live, mainly, acoustic record. I am not shocked they tried to do a song or two on ‘Shadowlife’ like that. Also I get heavy Beatles vibes from this song and on “One Night Live,” where they did a Beatles cover on that record, “Nowhere Man.”

“I Feel” https://youtu.be/W1xmVFpm0GI?si=YR7TcoAMFZegxfhR

Resembles “Hello” too much but the song is much better delivered here. One of the few rockier songs on the record. It’s how the guitars sound (again) that make me question this one. Lynch isn't all ambient on this one as much and just plays more straightforward. Still could use more chugs and thickness. Some of the guitar filters sound bad but one can say that across the whole record. The guitar tones on the record are very questionable here. It wasn't just all Smashing Pumpkins and Alice in Chains the entire decade. 1997 had a number of older bands with new records that were getting heavy radio play. The excuse bands from the 80s couldn’t write songs for the 90s is just bullshit. There is some of that happening during this time and it is easy to point to Dokken as part of this, but they were not the only 80s bands in the 90s that were flat lining here.

“Here I Stand” https://youtu.be/xvLEZKqZ3B0?si=5xJvQoFyvLkFYlj3

Jeff Pilson on vocals is fine for me. He can sing… We had already experienced War & Peace from Jeff. Those records are pretty good. This isn't weird outside the lack of heaviness of the guitars. We needed more from George on this one but it’s still a good song. Putting “I Feel” and “Here I Stand” back to back on the record I think helps to drive the record as a Rock record, but we needed more batches of songs like this. Probably the closest song on the record trying to achieve an alternative sound but still be a rock song. If they would have dropped all the bizarre choices like the drowning out of Don’s voice and all the guitar ambience, filters, and just did more songs like this –this album might have reflected what it was trying to do better.

“Hard To Believe” https://youtu.be/8KWw4oNGkQg?si=-s_hdUTIRIAfYGj8

This is a great ballad that never got a chance. I understand why many do not like this song. More of the same with the guitars. However, the darker tones help to drive this one. One of the few songs they let Don be Don more on and it works for me. I often sang this to myself when it came out. I was heavily depressed my senior year of High School. This song pretty much spoke to me that way... I still listen to this in my current "songs to be depressed to" playlist.

“Sweet Life” https://youtu.be/oC-N--QBFEA?si=mMv1v_Unvrl3AMxz

Ugh... Yeah... This song didn't really work for me either. It’s too much NOT DOKKEN here... As I said, I do not mind trying new things on a song here/there, but down the whole record, this sound doesn't work for the band. The song really needed heavier guitars here. While Lynch’s playing is quite good here, it is some of the tones that bust this song up for me. He could have kept what he did here and just add that layer of heaviness this song needed. It is just missing something. Ah, yes. It is missing Dokken…

“Bitter Regret” https://youtu.be/fsq14IbEr28?si=STLK0pOo1gN7aoBa

A great song... I have rediscovered this song lately and I still love this. It captures grown-up-DOKKEN very well... I am learning this song for a future “bust out a song for no reason out in public." For all the other reasons I love the acoustic material the band had put out up to this point. If “Until I Know” was done as a purely acoustic song this would have made the third acoustic song on the record and if you count “Hard to Believe” would have marked four ballad-style songs on a record that was supposed to match a more Monster Magnet and/or Tool vibe. This is why I argue that point of view so vigilantly. When I listen intently to these songs I do not hear this in the songs. This album seems to have so many hands in the cookie jar no one seemed to know what it was they were creating. I have stated this in and out all through this blog.

“I Don't Mind” https://youtu.be/WpTeXhmxlnY?si=R0sFkfAmbvyjHVZS

More of the same with the songs that ruin this record. “I Don’t Mind” is just a jumble. Just doesn’t sound like Dokken. Sounds like Dokken playing a song written by someone else, EQ’d by someone that doesn’t know how Dokken is supposed to sound, and that just sums the entire record for me.

“Until I Know” (Reprise)https://youtu.be/XXYimIklhBI?si=xLAOG-q9j6mPGW3w

Not only did we get “Until I Know” as an afterthought we get it twice here... Just as bad the first time.

“How Many Lives” – Japanese Bonus Track(Could not find an official stream of the song)

Hey if you can find it, it’s worth a listen. It tries to be heavy with Lynch's playing; but it doesn't work. It’s a more DOKKEN-askew song and isn’t bad, but the guitar tones do a good job of ruining this where it could have been a rockier song. It tries too hard to be that grunge song that it isn’t. Would have made a better choice on the record than the “Until I Know” (Reprise) we got.

“Deep Waters” – Japanese Bonus Track(Could not find an official stream of the song)

This song should have been on the record. It wouldn’t have saved the record, but if Dokken wanted to take Dokken and morph them into an ALT-Grunge band, this song does a better job than any of the songs that tried to pull this sound off that made the record. I feel the guitar sound is sort of what they were going for, where the tones actually work for this song better than it did on the other songs where I say the guitars ruin it.

“Damned” or “The Damned” – Unused songhttps://youtu.be/fkt9Yt0J95o?si=yMoIGcjMx0VCM86R&t=2453

Do not have much on this song. I found it surfing YouTube looking for live versions of songs from ‘Shadowlife’ and this song came up. In the video it is referred to as “Damned,” but I found another text-based entry from a radio station using the name, “The Damned.” To my knowledge there is not a studio version of this song, at least not one on the Japanese import where “How Many Lives” and “Deep Waters” come from. I couldn’t even find any other recordings of it outside of this one. The song is good. I think it should have been recorded and been added to the record.

‘Shadowlife’ Conclusion:

All-in-all, it is still a bad record. It’s still the Worst DOKKEN record out there. However, there are some really good stuff on this album that shouldn’t be ignored or trashed. That if one takes these songs and puts them on other records they might have been bigger songs for the band. I really do feel that this album ages better, sonically, than a lot of the other Dokken materials as far as looking at Dokken from a more modern-day metal perspective. I do not know if there is or was a path to make ‘Shadowlife’ a great FK’n Dokken record. I have stated what I love and hate about the songs, their structure, how they sound, what Kelly Gray did to Don’s voice, to George Lynch’s playing and tuning choices on the record.

Every member has their own story why this record bombed and sure people can blame whomever. At the end of the day I feel like of all the opinions I have heard about this I feel like it is a case of tensions being there, always, and no one really had direct communications on how to address these tensions. It is possible ALL couldn’t do this anymore, it is also possible it is just Don and George not being able to be in a band together. Mick being along for the ride and Jeff being the best voice of reason that the band could muster. Sure they can do a few shows and cut a song in the studio but to write, record, tour a whole record as a band. I just do not think these guys can do it. When they were younger it was easier. Age, money, life, changes tend to be the great communicator. There really isn’t a right/wrong here. We all cannot go back in time, retrospectively fix the band, and tensions within the band.

I have always believed that the stories out there about the band, have been, exaggerated. Hell, probably by design. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out that if media sources still talk about Dokken then Dokken is still relevant. You look at all the bands that came, saw, broke up, resurfaced with new members, broke up again, changed their name, broke up, went to court over the use of the band name, have multiple versions of the band by past members, started a new band, to come full circle and still be doing it. Dokken is right up there. Sure, they won’t be G’N’R but not even G’N’R is G’N’R. So who cares? Yeah… Love them or hate them. Love ‘Shadowlife’ or hate it. Regardless of how disappointing ‘Shadowlife’ was to most, I’d still wear the CD out four or five times a week leading up to and well past my graduation. I listened to ‘Shadowlife’ and defended it all through the 2000s. I have always talk about this record in terms of what I love about it and what I also hate about it. Dokken was there all those times as a young person listening to five to eight year old cassette tapes, riding my bike in the trails of North Port, FL in 1990. All I really have left to say is; Enjoy DOKKEN… I did, I still do… Enjoy DOKKEN…

Review of: Dokken – Shadowlife (1997) by David-Angelo Mineo 2/21/2024 3,846 Words

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twins2994 · 7 months

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Twins Edge Angels To Clinch Division!

Angels 6 Twins 8 W-Lopez (11-8) L-Daniel (0-1) SV-Duran (27)

The Minnesota Twins just need to win to clinch the division for the first time at home since 2010 tonight. They welcomed the Angels for the final homestand of the regular season at Target Field this evening. The Twins got rolling in the second inning when Max Kepler drew a lead-off walk and Kyle Farmer singled to left. With two outs, Michael Taylor lined a run-scoring single to center to put the Twins on the board first. The Twins had a one-run lead after two innings of play. The Twins quickly loaded up the bases in the fourth. Matt Wallner drew a bases loaded walk to double the Minnesota lead. Alex Kirilloff hit a sacrifice fly to center and the Twins extended their lead to three after four frames. The Angels answered in the fifth with a Jo Adell walk and Jared Walsh smoked a Pablo Lopez fastball out to right for a two-run homer. Anaheim pulled within a run and they were not done yet. Randal Grichuk and Michael Stefanic singled. Nolan Schanuel plated a run with a base hit to left and the game was tied in an instant. The Twins jumped back ahead in the sixth as Alex Kirilloff knocked a Davis Daniel fastball out to right for a solo homer. The Twins added on in the seventh when Max Kepler reached on an error by David Fletcher. Willi Castro drew a walk and Kyle Farmer doubled home a run. Eddie Julien followed with a walk to load up the bases and Michael Taylor plated a run with a walk of his own. Alex Kirilloff hit a sac fly to center and Jorge Polanco doubled home another run as the Twins lead grew to five. The Angels would not quit as Brandon Drury reached on a two-out single and Logan O'Hoppe smoked a Caleb Thielbar curveball out to left for a two-run homer. The Angels continued to comeback in the ninth. Jhoan Duran walked Randal Grichuk and David Fletcher singled off him. Michael Stefanic hit an RBI single to center and the Angels pulled within a pair. Duran got the second out before Zach Neto walked to load up the bases. Brandon Drury grounded out to second base as the Twins clinched the American League Central Division tonight.

-Final Thoughts- Pablo Lopez was very good despite a rough fifth inning. He went six innings and allowed three runs on five hits with seven strikeouts. Louie Varland had a 1-2-3 seventh, Caleb Thielbar gave up two runs in the eighth, and Jhoan Duran allowed a run in the ninth to pick up the save. Jorge Polanco and Kyle Farmer had two hits each. The Twins hit 3-for-10 with runners in scoring position and left ten men on base. The Twins clinch the division with a little over a week left in the regular season. They will celebrate tonight and a hangover lineup will be in place if they play tomorrow. Kenny Rosenberg faces Sonny Gray on Saturday afternoon.

-Chris Kreibich-

#Twins #MnTwins

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mrcooledit · 8 months

Video

youtube

Stratovarius @FlavioOntivero Black Diamond #music #musica #top #karaoke ...

SUSCRIBITE! : http://goo.gl/IhqNaq Español: Bueno, en esta canción no solo me tarde con respecto al tiempo ya que mi trabajo y carrera universitaria no me dieron respiro, sin contar que yo tuve problemas al ensamblar el famoso redoblante de jorg michael, y que me saco canas verdes, no se si quedo o no quedo bien, pero es lo que hay. es hora de descansar el cerebro y las orejas. 🤘😖🤘 English: Well, in this song I was not only late with respect to time since my work and university career did not give me a break, not to mention that I had problems assembling the famous jorg michael drum, and that I got green gray hair, no I know if it turned out well or not, but it is what it is. It's time to rest your brain and ears. 🤘😖🤘 Subscribe to my youtube channel and click the bell for more notifications!! Flavio Ontivero Mastering and Mixing Service Contact: [email protected] https://www.youtube.com/user/flavioontivero Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/flavio.ontivero https://www.facebook.com/FlavioOntivero80 Twitter: https://twitter.com/FlavioOntivero My Patreon for Custom karaokes, or got high resolution (.Wave) ones that I made! according the level of service that you choice! https://www.patreon.com/flavioontivero SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/flavio-ontivero ReverbNation: https://www.reverbnation.com/flavioontivero #avidprotools #stratovarius #Servicio #producerlife #mixing #mastering #metal #metalmusic #metalheads #metalband #music #musica #musicvideo #musician #musically #topnews #visions #black #blackpink #blackscreenstatus #diamond

#youtube

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amandachristine92 · 8 months

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Let The Kids Play Only to Lose Another Series

NYY vs. WSH

Game 1

RHP Carlos Rodón returned from the injured list to start the game versus the Washington Nationals and RHP Josiah Gray, a local guy from New Rochelle, NY.

In the top of the third inning, 3B Carter Kieboom hit a solo home run off Rodón, making it 1-0 Nationals.

In the next half inning – the bottom of the third – C Ben Rortvedt hit a solo home run of his own, tying the score 1-1. These would be the only runs that Rodón and Gray would give up, respectively.

In the top of the eighth inning, RHP Tommy Kahnle made two outs before giving up a solo home run to SS CJ Abrams. Kahnle has significantly struggled since the second half of this season, especially after returning from the injured list. More on Kahnle’s numbers later.

The Yankees would go on to lose 2-1 in this game.

Game 2

Struggling RHP Luis Severino of the Yankees would go up against LHP MacKenzie Gore of the Nationals.

DH Aaron Judge got the party started in the bottom of the first inning by hitting a solo home run off Gore, making it 1-0 Yankees.

In the bottom of the second inning, rookie and LF Everson Pereira got an RBI on a fielder’s choice with the Nationals opting and attempting to throw out CF Harrison Bader at home plate. Once Bader was ruled safe, the Yankees extended their lead against the Nationals 2-0.

In the same inning, Judge hit his second home run of the game – a grand slam – off Gore, scoring Pereira, C Kyle Higashioka, 3B Oswald Peraza, and Judge himself. It was now 6-0 Yankees.

In the bottom of the seventh inning, 1B DJ LeMahieu hit a solo home run off LHP Jose A. Ferrer. The Yankees extended their lead to 7-0. Unfortunately, RF Stone Garrett got hurt going after LeMahieu’s HR ball and had to be escorted off the field in a makeshift cast on his leg.

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Later in the same inning, Judge hit his third home run of the game – another solo home run – off Ferrer, extending the lead to 8-0. SS Anthony Volpe soon followed the scoring with an RBI single to CF Alex Call. Bader scored and it was now 9-0 Yankees.

In the top of the ninth inning, 1B Dominic Smith hit a solo home run off LHP Wandy Peralta, putting the Nationals on the scoreboard for the first and only time in this game. The Yankees won 9-1, breaking their nine-game losing streak.

Game 3

Yankees’ RHP Michael King, who wants to become a starter at some point in his MLB career, was used as an extended opener versus the Nationals’ LHP Patrick Corbin.

In the bottom of the first inning, RF Judge picked up right where he left off in the prior game. He hit another home run, a solo shot off Corbin. It was 1-0 Yankees.

In the top of the third inning, DH Joey Meneses reached base on a fielding error by Volpe, causing NJ native and LF Jake Alu to score. It was tied 1-1 with RF Lane Thomas stranded at third base and Meneses at first base. The Yankees avoided further damage in that inning.

In the bottom of the third inning, 2B Gleyber Torres hit a two-run off Corbin, scoring LeMahieu and Torres himself. The Yankees took the lead 3-1.

In the top of the seventh inning, Kahnle – that man again – made a relief appearance. With two out in the inning, Kahnle gave up an RBI to Alu – who was now playing 2B – making it 3-2 Yankees.

With Alu at first, Call hit a two-run home run off Kahnle, causing the Nationals to take the lead against the Yankees at 4-3.

After that, Abrams proceeds to homer off Kahnle once again in this series, extending the Nationals lead to 5-3. While Abrams admired his HR and flipped his bat, Kahnle looked like a psychopath as he stared at the hitter.

After the All-Star Game break, Kahnle’s ERA is near or over six. Maybe Kahnle never fully recovered from his injury because his performance lately has been atrocious.

Moving on to the bottom of the eighth inning, DH Giancarlo Stanton hit a solo home run off RHP Jordan Weems. It was 5-4 Nationals.

In the same inning with two outs, Pereira got his first major league hit, which was a double. Unfortunately, he would be stranded at second when PH Jake Bauers struck out when he came in to hit for Higashioka.

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I understand that the Yankees were trying to pair a left-handed hitter with a right-handed pitcher. However, this was completely the wrong move to make. Isiah Kiner-Falefa, who manager Aaron Boone has benched for all three games in this series, would have been the better move to make.

IFK, as I’ve mentioned in a previous blog post, has an average of over .300 with RISP. He’s the only one who hits over .300 with RISP on the Yankees roster. Plus, from what I understand, IKF does well off the bench as a pinch-hitter.

My question is did IKF get hurt in the last game he played against the Boston Red Sox when he slid into catcher Connor Wong at home plate? Other than letting the kids play or using IFK as a trade piece, why else is he being sat?

Before game one of this series, IKF received the Heart & Hustle award so it’s ironic that he hasn’t played at all recently.

Anyway, in the top of the ninth inning of this game, Meneses hit an RBI single off RHP Clay Holmes. The Nationals extended their lead to 6-4. Holmes is not a closer or holder of late-inning games in any shape or form!

In the bottom of the ninth inning, the Yankees tried to mount a comeback against closer and RHP Kyle Finnegan. Stanton hit an RBI single, scoring Peraza. It was now 6-5 Nationals.

With Torres representing the tying run at second with two outs, Bader – who struck out four times in this game (dawning the golden sombrero) – made contact with the baseball. Unfortunately, it was a flyball out to right field.

The Yankees lost the rubber game to the Nationals 6-5. Again, IFK could’ve been in this situation to pinch-hit for Bader instead of Higashoka since he wasn’t used then.

A side note about this last game is that two erroneous baserunning plays were made. The first one was made by Higashioka after he hit a double in the bottom of the second inning. When Peraza made contact, the ball was hit in between second and third base, yet Higashioka ran toward third and was tagged out.

Peraza reached on a fielder’s choice, only to get picked off in an attempt to steal second. He got into a brief rundown before being tagged out and caught stealing with LeMahieu at-bat. This was the third out and second baserunning mistake.

These brain-fog moments loom large when the Yankees lose a game by one run.

Now, the Yankees are in St. Petersburg, FL about to face the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field. In recent Yankees history, they haven’t performed well against the Rays and haven’t for several seasons, especially in road games at Tropicana Field.

I call it “The Garage” because it looks like a large, enclosed warehouse/garage inside.

Anyway, what also scares me about this next series is that the Rays just swept the Colorado Rockies.

#new york yankees #nyy #yankees #ikf #youtube #washington nationals #wsh #nationals #isiah kiner falefa #Youtube

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trascapades · 9 months

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🕊#ArtIsAWeapon Peaceful journeys to the ORIGINAL #influencer, Mr. #ClarenceAvant, who transitioned yesterday, Aug. 13 at age 92. The ultimate dot-connector and deal-maker, Mr. Avant's impact and influence on Black entertainment, culture, sports, politics and activism is astounding and unmatched. His legacy will live forever. Sending my deepest condolences to his family. #TheBlackGodfather

Images 1&2 - portraits by artist @chazguest

Story via APNews.com

Clarence Avant, ‘Black Godfather’ of entertainment, and benefactor of athletes and politicians, dies

NEW YORK (AP) — Clarence Avant, the judicious manager, entrepreneur, facilitator and adviser who helped launch or guide the careers of Quincy Jones, Bill Withers and many others and came to be known as the “Black Godfather” of music and beyond, has died. He was 92.

Avant, inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2021, died Sunday at his home in Los Angeles, according to a family statement released Monday.

Avant’s achievements were both public and behind the scenes, as a name in the credits, or a name behind the names. Born in a segregated hospital in North Carolina, he became a man of lasting and wide-ranging influence, in part by minding two pieces of advice from an early mentor, the music manager Joe Glaser: Never let on how much you know, and ask for as much money as possible, “without stuttering.”

He exemplified a certain level of cool and street smarts that allowed him to move confidently into worlds that nobody had prepared him for, never doubting he could figure it out,” former President Barack Obama and former first lady Michelle Obama, among the many prominent people he befriended, said in a statement. “Clarence was part of a generation that served as a bridge from a time when there was very little opportunity for Black people to a time when doors began to open. He demanded the world make room, and he paved the way for the rest of us.”

Sometimes called “The Godfather of Black Music,” he broke in as a manager in the 1950s, with such clients as singers Sarah Vaughan and Little Willie John and composer Lalo Schifrin, who wrote the theme to “Mission: Impossible.” In the 1970s he was an early patron of Black-owned radio stations and, in the 1990s, headed Motown after founder Berry Gordy Jr. sold the company.

He also started such labels as Sussex (a hybrid of two Avant passions — success and sex) and Tabu, with artists including Withers, Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, the S.O.S Band and an obscure singer-songwriter, Sixto Rodriquez, who decades later became famous through the Oscar-winning documentary “Searching for Sugarman.” (Rodriquez died last week).

Other work took place more quietly. Avant brokered the sale of Stax Records to Gulf and Western in 1968, after being recruited by Stax executive Al Bell as a bridge between the entertainment and business industries. He raised money for Obama and Bill Clinton, helped Michael Jackson organize his first solo tour and advised Narada Michael Walden, L.A. Reid and Babyface and other younger admirers.

“Everyone in this business has been by Clarence’s desk, if they’re smart,” Quincy Jones liked to say of him.

Avant’s influence extended to sports. He helped running back Jim Brown transition from football to acting and produced a primetime television special for Muhammad Ali. When baseball great Henry Aaron was on the verge of surpassing Babe Ruth as the game’s home run champion, in 1974, Avant made sure that Aaron received the kind of lucrative commercial deals often elusive for Black athletes, starting with a personal demand to the president of Coca-Cola.

Aaron would later tell The Undefeated that everything he had become was “because of Clarence Avant.”

Avant met Jacqueline Gray, a model at the time, at an Ebony Fashion Fair in mid-1960s and married her in 1967. They had two children: Music producer-manager Alexander Devore and Nicole Avant, the former U.S. ambassador to the Bahamas and, along with her husband, Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos, a major fundraiser for Obama. Besides his Rock Hall induction, his honors included two honorary Grammys, an NAACP Image Award and a BET entrepreneur award.

In 2021, Jacqueline Avant was murdered in their Beverly Hills home, her death mourned by Bill Clinton and Magic Johnson among others. Nicole Avant would credit her mother, who became a prominent philanthropist, with bringing to Clarence Avant and other family members “the love and passion and importance of the arts and culture and entertainment.”

Born in 1931, Clarence Avant spent his early years in Greensboro, North Carolina, one of eight children raised by a single mother, and he dropped out of high school to move north. A friend from North Carolina helped him find work managing a lounge in Newark, New Jersey, and he soon got to know Glaser, whose clients ranged from Louis Armstrong to Barbra Streisand, not to mention Al Capone. Through Glaser, Avant found himself in places where Black people rarely had been permitted.

“Mr. Glaser would have me go with him to these dog shows,” Avant told Variety in 2016. “And you’ve got to imagine I was the only Black person at the goddamn dog show. He also had these 16 seats behind the visiting dugout at Yankee Stadium, and whenever he’d take me I would try to walk to the back row, and he’d grab me and say, ‘Goddamn it, sit your ass up here with me.’”

Avant became especially close to Jones, their bond formed through a missed record deal. It was the early 1960s, and Jones was a vice president at Mercury Records, one of the industry’s few Black executives. Avant was representing jazz musician Jimmy Smith and had heard that Mercury recently signed Dizzy Gillespie for $100,000. For Smith, Avant aimed much higher, closer to half a million.

“Are you smoking Kool-Aid?” Jones would remember saying to Avant, who then negotiated with Verve Records.

“He went and got the deal,” Jones, whose collaborations with Avant would include the TV series “Heart and Soul” and the feature film “Stalingrad,” told Billboard in 2006. “I respected him for that.”

As he rose in the entertainment industry, Avant became more active politically. He was an early supporter of Tom Bradley, the first Black mayor of Los Angeles, and served as executive producer of “Save the Children,” a 1973 documentary about a concert fundraiser for the Rev. Jesse Jackson’s “Operation PUSH.” Three years earlier, when he learned that the civil rights leader Andrew Young was running for Congress, in Georgia, he gave him a call.“He said, ‘In Georgia, you’re running for Congress?’” Young later told CNN. “He said, ‘Well, if you’re crazy enough to run, I’m crazy enough to help you.’”

Avant, whom Young had never met, offered to bring in Isaac Hayes and other entertainers for a benefit and arrange for it to be held at the baseball stadium in Atlanta.

Young had forgotten about their conversation when, a month later, signs promoting the show appeared around town.

“We had about 30,000 people in the pouring down rain,” Young said. “And he never sent us a bill.”

Trailer - Netflix documentary "The Black Godfather"

Story via @npr: One of the great connectors in the music and entertainment industries has died. The executive and businessman Clarence Avant boosted the careers of generations of musicians, entertainers, sports stars and politicians.

A family statement sent to NPR said that he had died "gently at home in Los Angeles" on Sunday at age 92. A cause of death was not shared.

Avant was a giant power broker in several fields, helping to nurture the careers of major Black artists and shaping the field for Black-owned companies. Among his many accomplishments: He signed singer-songwriter Bill Withers. He was the promoter for Michael Jackson's first solo tour. He was the chairman of Motown Records. He nurtured producers, including Jimmy Jam, Terry Lewis and Diddy — and also worked with sports heroes including Jackie Robinson, Hank Aaron, Jim Brown and Muhammad Ali. He also became a major behind-the-scenes force in politics...

Avant was born Feb. 25, 1931, in Greensboro, N.C. As a young man, he started out by managing a range of musicians, including blues singer Little Willie John, film music composer Lalo Schifrin, jazz vocalist Sarah Vaughan and jazz organist Jimmy Smith.

Netflix — where Avant's son-in-law, Ted Sarandos, is co-CEO — created a documentary about Avant in 2019. The film's title carried Avant's longtime nickname: The Black Godfather. In the documentary, former President Obama observed: "Clarence was the bridge from the time where there was no opportunity [for Black talent] to a time where where doors began to open."

Avant was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2021.

Read more: www.npr.org/2023/08/14/1193720263/clarence-avant

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