The Toy Box

Retro Spins: Melissa Etheridge - Brave And Crazy

A little over a year after her self-titled debut, Melissa Etheridge released her follow-up, Brave And Crazy. Much like her debut, the album would also peak at number twenty-two on the Billboard 200 and garner a Grammy nomination.

At the time, Billboard would note, "though more polished, rocker's sophomore outing never sacrifices passion, emotion, and guts for style. Etheridge remains a one-trick artist - most of her songs are in a similar midtempo rocker guitar style - but her lyrics, delivered with startling conviction, lead her to the head of the class." Great, so more of the same which made her last album mediocre.

Playing through it, yes, that's exactly what it is. While it touts two singles, No Souvenirs, and You Can Sleep While I Drive, from my perspective, these are nothing to get excited about.

Once again, I hear inklings of a female Bon Jovi, but who just never manages to pop. There's storytelling in the tracks, ala Jovi's Blood On Blood, but unfortunately, not a very interesting tale to listen to.

I guess the point I'm making is that this one's just not for me, not that I necessarily expected it would be. I wish I could say there was a hidden gem, some kind of standout track, or in general, something which was mildly intriguing. Sadly, that's simply not the case.

Etheredge has a unique voice, which is nice to listen to. But she simply doesn't have the hits to back it up. If she would have just worked with someone like Desmond Child or Holly Knight, I imagine her career would have exploded far beyond what it did later on.

Etheridge released 1992's Never Enough, which would one up her previous albums, by peaking at number twenty-one on the Billboard 200, and win a Grammy. This was followed by her breakthrough, 1993's Yes I Am, which delivered the hits, Come To My Window, I'm The Only One, and If I Wanted To.

From there, she's released thirteen more studio albums to date, with the most recent being 2026's Ride. While sales certifications would cease with 1999's Breakdown, she would continue to chart on the Billboard 200 through 2019's The Medicine Show. As such, while I'm not personally a big fan, I will at least acknowledge that he's remained a hot act for several decades.

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Disclaimer: They Toy Box does not endorse or contribute to piracy. Retro Spins posts are intended for educational and entertainment purposes only. None of the music discussed here is available for sale, downloading or distribution.

Comics Corner: The Amazing Spider-Man Annual 21

Title: The Amazing Spider-Man Annual
Issue Number: 21
Release Date: September 1987

Highlights

The first issue in Marvel Comics history to have a variant cover
Marvel took full advantage of the event, appearing at a televised Shea Stadium baseball game to wed two actors playing the rolls of Spider-Man and Mary Jane, all of it being officiated by Stan Lee
First appearance of Willi Smith (no, not that one), Judge Spencer Watson, Bruce, Hotchkiss, and the Earth TRN1108 versions of Peter Parker and Mary Jane
The issue stands as a jumping on point for new readers, a new beginning of sorts
First appearance of the location, Louie's Fine Clothes
As Spider-Man swings around town, he arrives at a major police scene outside Louie's Fine Clothes

Inside, Electro has been sprung by his boys, and is suiting up

After a fight in the street, Spidey neutralizes him with water from a fire hydrant

Mary Jane arrives at Peter's apartment, bags in hand to settle into her new home

During their exchange we learn how Spider-Man's automatic camera works to capture all of the actions shots

Basically, a transmitter in his belt tells the camera when Spider-Man is in front of the lens, triggering the photo to be taken

Peter still has the red and blue Spider-Man costume he picked up in Berlin
Reference is made to Spider-Man Versus Wolverine, and The Amazing Spider-Man 289
Peter begins to worry about his personal finances, pondering how he's going to give Mary Jane the lavish life she's accustomed to
As Peter sells his photos to the Bugle, Robbie takes him to the lunch room where a surprise party is being held in honor of his engagement

During the party, J. Jonah Jameson tells Peter to be sure before he says I do because it's a big step with no turning back

Robbie hands a bonus check for Peter to Jameson to sign, which he is audibly surprised by

After signing it, Peter offers to give it back since he knows Jameson didn't intend for him to have it

Jameson tells him to keep it, and then tells Miss Hotchkiss to make note of every individual at the party for him to dock the expense from their checks

It appears that Betty is back to being out of it - When Peter bumps into her after the party and tells her that he missed her there, reminding her he's getting married, she tells him that her and Ned will both be at the wedding
Peter uses the bonus money to buy and present Mary Jane with a diamond ring
At lunch, Mary Jane gets a phone call from "Bruce", who invites her away with him

The inside joke is that it's alleged to have been Marvel writers having a laugh, and it's intended to be Bruce Wayne on the line

Another limo picks Mary Jane up, and she heads to Willi's office to tell him she can't be in the Bahamas this weekend for a fashion shoot as she's getting married

As she leaves, Peter once again frets over her high profile lifestyle

After meeting with Willi, Mary Jane is approached by a stranger who hands her a tape, and tells her she can listen to it in the Ferrari parked on the curb, the car has plates that say, "BRUCE"

The tape is Bruce telling her about the two tickets to Paris in the glove box, and if she changes her mind about getting married to pick him up at the airport, but either way, she can keep the Ferrari

As Peter looks through a photo album at Aunt May's house, we get a retelling of Spider-Man's origin
Peter thinks on Gwen Stacy, and how her being close to Spider-Man is what got her killed

He ponders if he should really let someone love him

Aunt May startles him, and when she asks him if he always gets scared of people who love him, he says that maybe he should

She responds by telling him he shouldn't keep distance from people who love him

The two have dinner with their aunts, and tell them the news

As the two leave Aunt May's home, Mary Jane gets in a car with Bruce, telling Peter she has plans

She finally returns to Peter's apartment at 1:00 AM

She tells him she's been walking around for hours just thinking, and asks Peter where he goes when he needs to think

He tells her somewhere quiet, and when she says to take her there, as Spider-Man, he takes her to the top of the Empire State Building

After dropping her off at her apartment, sleep eludes Peter, who sits up all night with a photo of Gwen Stacy
The next morning, Mary Jane calls and tells him about the wedding dress Willi had delivered to her
After picking up their marriage license, Peter goes to see Flash Thompson, asking him to be his best man
At dinner that night, Peter almost calls off the wedding, but gets interrupted by Mary Jane showing him a photo of her dress

He quickly changes the subject, and tells her about the bachelor party he's having the next day which Flash is throwing

At the party, which has a major attendance of two people, Flash and Harry Osborne, Peter tells them that he's wondering if getting married is the right choice

Though they both have their own perspectives, they both say he should take the chance

As he finally sleeps, Peter's mind is met by a nightmare where at his wedding all his arch enemies are present, and they've all come to do harm to Mary Jane
Bruce continues to pursue Mary Jane, and as she rides off with him to make a decision, Spider-Man sits atop the bridge that Gwen Stacy fell to her death from, still questioning what he's doing
As the wedding time comes and goes, both Mary Jane and Peter are not present

1:00 PM strikes, and Mary Jane jumps from Bruce's Ferrari, dressed in her wedding gown, and apologizing to Peter, who isn't there to hear it

Peter comes running down the street, also apologizing for being late

Mary Jane officially becomes Mary Jane Watson-Parker

J. Jonah Jameson tells everyone that the Bugle is sponsoring the reception, and wants everyone to have a good time, while he enjoys the tax break
Sad that he can't afford a honeymoon, Mary Jane surprises him with the two tickets to Paris from Bruce, as well as the keys to a private Villa there

Reference is made to Peter Parker, The Spectacular Spider-Man Annual 7, which features their honeymoon adventure

Low Points

The last issue of The Amazing Spider-Man Annual crediting Jim Shooter as Editor-In Chief - Jim was fired in April 1987 from Marvel Comics

Oddities

Editor's Day Off: The narrator says, "For this is New York City, a town that's seen it all." It's in the name - "City"
Editor's Continued Day Off: As Peter thinks back on Spider-Man's origin, several panels show his eye lenses and spider logo on his back colored yellow

Peter asks Flash Thompson, and not Harry Osborne to be his best man?
Editor's Still Off: When Flash is telling Peter why he should get married, his word bubbles are partly colored in the same color as the background instead of white

Rating (based on a 1 through 5 Stans grading system)

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Retro Spins: Melissa Etheridge - Melissa Etheridge

Led by the Juliette Lewis starring music video, Melissa Etheridge exploded on the 90's scene with her hit, Come To My Window from her 1993 album, Yes I Am. As such, one would be forgiven to think she was an all-new act of the decade. The facts, however, would be that leading up to this breakthrough, she actually had released three albums already.

Etheridge got her breakthrough through one of the wives who came to see her with her soccer team. The woman was married to Bill Leopold, a music manager at the time, who was able to secure her a contract with Island Records. However, upon turning over the tracks for what would have been her debut, the label rejected them, calling them too polished. She'd return to the studio, and over a grueling four days, hammer out the raw tracks that would be released on her 1988 self-titled debut. It would become an underground success, led mostly by the single, Bring Me Some Water, with the song being nominated for a Grammy. The album would also peak at number twenty-two on the Billboard 200.

I will say up front that expectations for me were low, and I didn't know what exactly to expect. In the 90's, I was a fan of her aforementioned hit and even picked up the CD out of a dollar bin several years back. However, I never actively looked for anything else from her.

During one of my many excisions to the used CD shop, it actually surprised me to find her debut album, but to learn at that time that it was indeed from the 80's. Digging a little further yielded her 1989 follow-up, Brave And Crazy. Even better, both were priced at a mere ninety-nine cents each.

She's kind of like a female version of Jon Bon Jovi. A raspy, yet powerful voice which can push you to the back of a room when the need calls for it. This is all smoothly layered out by solid rock music, typically led by an acoustic guitar, but backed by a full band.

While it initially starts out solid, even having a standout track, Like The Way I Do, by the halfway point it did get a bit boring, and from there, it only further went downhill. I kept waiting on Etheridge's own Livin' On A Prayer, or Raise Your Hands, you know, something big, with a lot of energy, but nothing ever reached that point. It was kind of disappointing, because the potential was there. Fortunately, the album does end on a high note with I Want You.

Though I will, this whole experience doesn't necessarily excite me to jump into her next album. Reading that it delivers more of the same even less intrigues me. If nothing else, I'm moving forward to check it off the list.

Let this be a lesson to you, kids. Just because you're a fan of 80's music doesn't mean you need to buy everything and anything from the era. There's going to be a whole lot of hits and misses, and the misses are going to be a real downer.

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Comics Corner: The Amazing Spider-Man 292

Title: The Amazing Spider-Man
Issue Number: 292
Release Date: September 1987

Highlights

First appearance of Lieutenant Eden
Spider-Man swings across Pittsburg, having just arrived at the request of Mary Jane
As Peter sits in his hotel room looking for Mary Jane's sister, Gayles's number in the phonebook, the news reports that the spider-slayer ceased its rampage, and disappeared, relieving Peter that his departure from New York didn't result in someone being hurt
Back in New York, Smythe is overseeing his crated spider-slayer being loaded onto a 747, which will soon take him to Pittsburg
Upon arriving at Gayle's home, we final find out who surprised Mary Jane in the last issue, it was her father

The two begin arguing, and Mary Jane storms out

As Peter and Mary take a drive, and then a walk, she opens up to Peter, telling him that her sister is in jail for stealing a manuscript written by Benjamin Franklin from her work to give to her dad

He was going to sell it, but cameras caught her with it, and she was arrested

Mary Jane says her dad "Phillip" wants her to find out where the manuscript is, and bring it to him, and once she does, he'll leave them both alone forever
Mary Jane tells Peter she loves him, and they kiss
Mary Jane tells her dad she will help him
Mary Jane and Peter go to see Gayle, but once again it's met with hostility

As Mary Jane storms off, Peter gets some sense into Gayle's head by telling her that her kids need her

After arriving in Pittsburg, renting a warehouse, and building his spider-slayer, Smythe tracks Spider-Man, and heads out into the city to kill him
Meanwhile, Peter and Mary Jane head to the location that Gayle said she hid the manuscript

Their find is cut short by the spider-slayer crashing through the wall of the university

Reference is made to The Amazing Spider-Man Annual 19
Spider-Man attempts to lead the slayer to an open area in the suburbs, but is grabbed and dunked under water in a firm grasp

Mary Jane rams it with her car, allowing him to get free

As Smythe once again gets the upper hand, Mary Jane once again intervenes, this time hitting it with a bat

As the spider-slayer turns its attention to her, Spider-Man unleashes all his strength

Peter and Mary Jane return to Gayle's home with the manuscript, but Peter has a secret plan to hit Phillip with a spider tracer, and go after him later

He doesn't get a chance, as Mary Jane is working with the police, who hear Phillips confess that Gayle was just a pawn in his plan

They arrest him

Though still part of the crime, and expecting a trial, Gayle is let out on bail
As Mary Jane and Peter Parker sit at the airport waiting for their flight, Mary Jane accepts his marriage proposal

Low Points

The whole idea of Peter getting married came from a fan at a convention who asked Jim Shooter and Stan Lee during a panel if they would ever allow the character to do so

From there, the concept was fast tracked into implementation, resulting in a rushed story, and ultimately a relationship transition that doesn't feel natural

Story elements are disjointed in the cluster of it all to get from point A to point B across three issues

Oddities

None

Rating (based on a 1 through 5 Stans grading system)

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Retro Spins: The Flirts - Questions Of The Heart

Today's the day. I'm on my final 80's album from The Flirts. It was a journey that initially started out great, but by album three (of five) started to wear a bit thin. The "newness" wore off, and the overall lack of hits was definitely becoming a problem for me. It will be interesting to see if the girls close out the decade with something solid.

It's interesting to note that Miss You would peak in 1986 at number fifteen on the Billboard Dance Charts. However, the song doesn't appear to have been released on any studio album. Instead, it seems it was only released as a single in two different formats. The first is the twelve inch single, which features three different mixes, and the second, a seven-inch single which includes Voulez Vous from 1985's Blondes Brunettes & Redheads as the B-side.

Well, this one took a unique turn. The opening track, All You Ever Think About Is (Sex)! brings with it a very mature theme. Additionally, the once new wave sound is overtaken with a more R&B, somewhat rap style. It's different. I don't know if it's in a good way, but different, nonetheless.

Another thing I noticed was the overall lack of singing. Several tracks were filled with standard line reading. That's a unique style in moderation but doesn't work when it's the whole schtick.

Everything became a giant joke with track three, Boys On The Beach. Here, let me give you a taste:

Save the dolphins
Down with people who wear dead animal furs
Free lunch, free dinner, free rent for everyone
Save the whales
Equal pay for equal (something incoherent)
Feed the starving muskrats of Beverly Hills
People unite against nuclear conflict
Outlaw dogcatchers

It then does a complete 180, with the girls singing about radios blasting, the sun shining, and boys on the beach. Further mind-numbing lyrics include the opening to Special Angel:

Is there really life on other planets?
No!

I'm just going to say what keeps crossing my mind. Questions Of The Heart is a really dumb album, and a real lame way to close out the decade, studio album wise.

While The Flirts wouldn't release another studio album until 1992's Take A Chance On Me, they did produce two additional twelve-inch singles. The first was 1988's A Thing Called Love, and the second, 1989's After School. Both would feature multiple mixes of their respective track, but both would also not find any chart success.

About the only noteworthy aspect I found was for After School, which featured Full Force. Though I've never heard any of their studio albums, I am familiar with them for working with Lisa Lisa & Cult Jam on their 1985 debut album.

As for The Flirts, Questions Of The Heart wraps up my trip through their 80's discography. Like I mentioned many times throughout the multiple albums, while there's nothing Earth shattering to be found here, it was still a fun time listening to all of that new wave goodness. I'd definitely like to find more albums like this. Not necessarily new wave, but 80's oriented, new to me, but also fun at the same time. That's good stuff.

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Comics Corner: The Amazing Spider-Man 291

Title: The Amazing Spider-Man
Issue Number: 291
Release Date: August 1987

Highlights

First appearance of Kevin Byrnes, and Alice Larkin
Much like the first time he proposed to her, Mary Jane Watson tells Peter no

Peter first proposed way back in The Amazing Spider-Man 183

She tells Peter it's too sudden, and that she thought they were just friends

She then tells Peter that she needs to head to Pittsburg to see her sister Gayle

Reference is made to Web Of Spider-Man 18, and 24, specifically how Spider-Man's spidey sense didn't trigger a warning during two dangerous events

Reference is later made to The Amazing Spider-Man 106, 259, and The Amazing Spider-Man Annual 19

A self driven delivery truck drives behind Mary Jane's apartment building, and parks in the ally, and from it emerges an all new spider-slayer

The mechanical beast climbs the building, and bursts through the wall into her apartment, but finds she isn't there

It simply returns to the truck, and the vehicle drives away

Peter mopes as he walks down the street alone, saddened that Mary Jane wouldn't even let him go to the airport with her
The robot returns to its lair, and from inside of it emerges its wheelchair bound master, Alistair Alphonso Smythe, the son of spider-slayer creator, Spencer Smythe
As her plane soars across the sky, Mary Jane ponders to herself why she wouldn't confide in Peter what her problems were that were taking her out of town to her sister
Smythe sends a series of electronic eyes out across the sky to search for Spider-Man
Mary Jane meets her sisters two sons, but learns that her sister isn't there from Alice Larkin, who is watching the kids
One of Smythe's cameras spots Spider-Man, and the man returns to his spider-slayer to see about the hero's demise
Mary Jane learns her sister is in jail, and goes to see her

It is not a warm reunion, and Gayle tells her sister to go home

Enclosed in his spider-slayer, Smythe attacks

We also learn that the electrical shock his last slayer, which he was also inside of, is what left him wheelchair bound, and reliant upon intravenous meals

A construction worker sees the fight, and uses his bulldozer to drive over the spider-slayer's arm, giving Spider-Man an opening to indefinitely disable the limb

Smythe retreats, and we learn that the gas he sprayed Spider-Man with was laced with a special trace chemical, allowing the web spinner to be tracked

Mary Jane returns to her sister's home, and as she fumbles for a light switch is surprised by the voice of someone, and while she recognizes the person, we don't get to see who it is
Smythe regroups, and beings a rampage of the city, but as Peter suits up and gets ready to head out, Mary Jane calls

She says she needs him, and to please come to Pittsburg, and says she loves him

Peter wrestles with his duel identities, he knows Spider-Man is needed to stop the spider-slayer, but Mary Jane needs Peter Parker

He needs to make a tough decision - With great power comes great responsibility, or Mary Jane Watson

Smythe tracks Spider-Man to the airport, and learns that the plane he's chasing after has just taken off for Pittsburg

Smythe purchases a first class ticket for the next available flight

Low Points

None

Oddities

For someone who's always broke, Peter sure scrounged up money fast for a last minute flight to Pittsburg

Rating (based on a 1 through 5 Stans grading system)

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Christmas Catalogs - Montgomery Ward 1973

Hey! You want to spend the next two years looking at the fantastic Christmas catalogs produced by Sears, JCPenny, and Montgomery Ward? Cause I do! Yeah, I said two years, cause that's a lot of catalogs! Join me on most Monday's each month as I post up one of those fabulous books starting with 1970, and ending with 1989.

Look through every page, feeling every bit of nostalgia. Chuckle at the look and style of the wardrobes those zanny past decade people wore. Gawk at the toys you used to have, but long since parted ways with. Bring back all those memories of hours spent laying on the floor, combing every inch as your young mind pined over everything you wanted. Reminisce over the Christmas that followed as you unwrapped those lucky few that you got.

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