Just Doodling - Spider-Man And His Amazing Friends

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Retro Spins: Siouxsie and the Banshees - Hyæna

Shortly after the release of their 1982, A Kiss In The Dreamhouse, Siouxsie and the Banshees would face a difficult task. Guitarist John McGeoch suffered a nervous breakdown from the stresses of touring and an increasing personal problem with alcohol. The end result was being fired from the band.

With no guitarist, the Banshees turned to Robert Smith of The Cure. Smith would not only fill in on tours, but ultimately join the band for their 1984 Hyæna. However, upon its release and tour, Smith would quit the band, citing it was too much stress to be a full time member in both groups.

Upon its release, critics praised the album, but in doing so honed in on Smith. The presence of his influence and fingerprints were considered very present. However, in doing so, did Robert Smith inadvertently assist in creating a Cure album with the Banshees? Well, only one way to find out.

After hearing the opening track, Dazzle, I have one question. Why weren't Siouxsie and the Banshees ever asked to do a title track to a James Bond movie? I mean, come on. All the elements are there.

With that said, overall, Hyæna didn't honestly have all that much to offer for me. I suppose there was a descent cover of The Beetles Dear Prudence. However, not being very familiar with that song, I couldn't tell you if it was better, worse, or even close enough to be worthy.

For me, coming off of 1982's A Kiss In The Dreamhouse, and then hearing that Robert Smith had joined on guitars, I was expecting this album to be the Banshees' opus. It's not. Far from it.

I can definitely hear the influences of Smith on it, and by that I mean drab, and melancholy. However, this isn't the sound that I equate to Siouxsie Sioux, and I don't necessarily need her to be the mouthpiece for The Cure.

That's not to say it was a total bust. I did, as I mentioned, or perhaps didn't elaborate enough to imply, that I did enjoy the opening track, Dazzle, Take Me Back, and Running Town. I also added Dear Prudence to my shuffle, if for no other reason than just because of what it was - A cover of The Beetles' song. Terrible reason, I know. I will probably endlessly skip it when it comes around.

Hyæna doesn't stand in a promising spotlight right now, but we'll see how it fares in comparison to The Cure's The Top when I fire that one up tomorrow. Who knows. It could end up being the best of the worse.

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THIS WEEK ON THE CHARTS
July 21, 1984

 

Comics Corner: Marvel Team-Up 111

   

Title: Marvel Team-Up
Issue Number: 111
Release Date: November 1981

Highlights

• First appearance of Bunjie, the Spider-People, and an unnamed serpent man who impersonates Uncle Ben, who also dies
• First appearance of the Temple Of The Spider location
• Reference is made to King Kull 1
• Demon Slayer turns out to be one of the serpent men - Which makes it all the more odd that he was killing them left and right
• Reference is made to the song lyrics, "nobody does it better", the them to The Spy Who Loved Me by Carly Simon
• Spider-Man is bit by one of the serpents, and Doctor Strange informs him that unless they act quickly he will die before the end of the day

Low Points

• Right from the get go I could tell this was going to be a weird one
• Definitely not my type of Spider-Man issue

Oddities

• None

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

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Retro Spins: The Cure - Pornography

The Cure has a steep slope in front of them today. Their 1982 album is up against yesterday's Siouxsie And The Banshees' A Kiss In The Dreamhouse. That album packed a hard punch.

Things don't start off good for the band. Touring had taken its toll, people were burned out, stressed out, and The Cure were on the brink of collapse, with Smith at a turning point. He was either going to channel all of his energy into an album, and get his feelings out, or commit suicide. The sessions for Pornography's recording were riddled with drug addition, fighting, and lead singer Robert Smith's depression, which only helped fuel the lyrical direction of songs.

Upon its release, Pornography was met with negative reviews from critics, but still managed to peak at number eight. It's an album that in retrospective review has gotten more favorable with people, but remains a blemish for the band as one of their lowest selling of all time since their sophomore release.

Playing through it, it's very obvious cry for help from Smith, with a very harsh tone of depression and self loathing. I can certainly see why the goth crowd would flock to this type of record. If it weren't so tragic, it would be cliché.

That's not to say that there isn't good stuff to be found. Songs such as The Hanging Garden, The Figurehead, and A Strange Day stand out among the rest. They're not commercial by any means, but I suppose they're not intended to be either.

Perhaps the biggest benefit Pornography has (for me) in 2025, is that it's not the follow up at this point to 1981's Faith. Rather, it's just another album in a storied discography that I'm making my way through. Basically, at this point it has the benefit of the history associated with The Cure.

It's not terrible, it's not good. It's pretty much just okay. However, just okay is certainly not what's going to help it in comparison to Siouxsie And The Banshees' A Kiss In The Dreamhouse. The truth of the matter is that it simply doesn't hold a candle to the latter. Pornography is more of the same from The Cure, whereas A Kiss In The Dreamhouse is the Banshees coming to the party with experimental, and ever evolving sound.

The Banshees win this round. Tomorrow we'll start off the next bout with their 1984 released Hyæna, up against The Cure's The Top (also released in 1984). It's pretty much been back and forth so far, but will a clear winner start to emerge? I guess we'll see.

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THIS WEEK ON THE CHARTS
July 20, 1985

Comics Corner: The Amazing Spider-Man 222

   

Title: The Amazing Spider-Man
Issue Number: 222
Release Date: November 1981

Highlights

• First appearance of James Sanders as Speed Demon
• Sanders was originally known as the villain, Whizzer, who first appeared in Avengers 69
• During their first encounter, Speed Demon runs literal circles around Spider-Man, who can't land a single punch on the villain
• Reference is made to The Amazing Spider-Man 71, Avengers 70, and Avengers Annual 8
• Spider-Man uses Speed Demon's speed against him to devise his undoing

Low Points

• None

Oddities

• A thug trying to flee in a truck says to himself that there's no sign of Spider-Man, and concludes he's not as fast as he's cracked up to be - to which Spider-Man appears on a wall outside, saying that he's faster - Um, how did he hear the guy talking to himself?

• Speed Demon has his sights set on a major crime spree, and starts this off at...Bloomingdales...Wait...Is this a shameless sponsor plug? Even more odd is that Peter Parker suspects all of this

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

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Retro Spins: Siouxsie And The Banshees - A Kiss In The Dreamhouse

Fresh off their 1982 tour, Siouxsie And The Banshees returned to the studio with a new vision. Strings. Unlike many bands which were heavily leaning into the synthesizer, Siouxsie Sioux wanted to go full orchestration.

This inspiration came from their prior released single, Fireworks, which Sioux said about it, "Fireworks" indicated the direction we wanted for the album. We wanted strings ... John [McGeoch] wanted a machine but Steven [Severin] and I said it had to be real strings. They give a real, earthy, rich sound. You could hear the strings spitting and breathing and wheezing. Me and Steve have always wanted our music to be performed by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. We've always thought our songs would suit orchestration. Real strings have a very physical sound".

The album gave the Banshees the opportunity to go over the top with their sound, exploring and exploiting everything. If they came up with something big, engineer Mike Hedges would figure out how to make it bigger. He encouraged the group to fiddle with effects, and experiment with everything.

Praise was unanimous from critics, and A Kiss In The Dream House would peak at number 11 on the UK charts. Playing through it, I was raptured by the sounds, and pulled in by the haunting vocals of Sioux.

This was very reminiscent of the sounds I would later hear in their 1990 released Face To Face for Batman Returns, and what initially drew me to the Banshees. Oh my gosh, yes please, more of this!

Tracks one through three, Cascade, Green Fingers, and Obsession are so tightly woven that they feel like one long track that would be remiss without the other. Unfortunately, track four does a full 180, going back to the punchy punk sound for which Siouxsie And The Banshees carved their initial fame from. It's not bad, per se, but this sudden shift leaves the latter track not really feeling like it fits with what came before it.

Or perhaps it's the first three songs which don't fit with the rest of the album. The reason being that things didn't necessarily shift back to the stringy and deep sounds of Dreamhouse's openers for the remainder of what would be called, side A. It did, however, still continue to have that experimental sound aspect to it, which helped it to stay intriguing to hear.

Things picked back up with the side B opener, Melt!, which once again incorporated the strings with a deep rich sound. Painted Bird picked up the speed, and I really dug the fading echoes, and drum work which the track felt built around.

A Kiss In The Dreamhouse wraps up with Coccoon and Slowdive, which is like a nice layer of icing on the cake. While Cocoon has a jaunty almost doowop sound to it, albeit in a darker way which only Siouxsie Sioux could deliver, Slowdive slickly incorporates strings back into the psychedelic punk mix, giving you one last fist pump before departing.

I won't call the album perfect, but man, it could have been. It was right on the cusp for me, had it not been for the second half of the first side. Still, this puts The Cure in a tough spot. Their 1982 released Pornography, which I'll listen to tomorrow, needs to deliver hard to even be a contender.

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THIS WEEK ON THE CHARTS
July 19, 1980

 

THIS WEEK ON THE CHARTS
July 19, 1986

Comics Corner: Peter Parker, The Spectacular Spider-Man 60

   

Title: Peter Parker, The Spectacular Spider-Man
Issue Number: 60
Release Date: November 1981

Highlights

• First appearance of Jose Rivera
• Special double size issue
• Reference is made to Marvel Team-Up 108
• Peter runs into his student, Greg Salinger, and his spidey sense kicks in, but he doesn't know why - It's because Salinger is the villain, Foolkiller
• We learn that Debra Whitman makes $18,000.00 a year, and Peter is astounded by this, as it puts his salary to shame - That equated to $62K these days
• Debra admits to herself that she likes Peter, but also values the comfort that Biff brings by always being there - Whereas Peter is always cutting and running
• Something is jamming all the reporters video feed while they try to film the battle between Spider-Man and Beetle - It turns out to be the antenna in Beetles mask, the focusing point for his power source
• Gibbon gets one good punch on Beetle after the latter's fight is over with Spider-Man, and the end result is the entire city labeling Gibbon a hero
• I like that ending - It makes me curious to see more of what happens to Gibbon after the fact - Hopefully future stories revisit this
• Issue features a backup story, which is a redrawn / rewritten / retelling of Spider-Man's first story from Amazing Fantasy 15, with a lot of faithful homage panels

Low Points

• First we had a Man-Wolf issue called Dark Side Of The Moon, now we have a Beetle issue called Beetlemania

Oddities

• None

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

3 Stan's for the main story, plus an additional one for the awesome recreated origin story!

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Retro Spins: The Cure - Faith

Today we continue the contest, which I have officially dubbed, The Cure For Siouxsie And The Banshees. We skip over the latter's Juju, because I had already heard it prior to kicking off this rotating listening session of albums, and instead move on to The Cure's 1981 released, Faith.

Though the band were no strangers to the studio at this point, the album proved difficult for them to record. Despite jumping from studio to studio, lead singer, Robert Smith wasn't happy with the end results of tracks being recorded. Smith points out the example of how he was going for a funeral sound on tracks Primary and All Cats Are Grey, but the end result were songs that just sounded dull. As a result, neither original recordings were ultimately utilized.

Despite the challenges, The Cure released Faith on April 17, 1981, which divided critics. While some praised it for its new sounds, others panned it for that same reason, comparing it to 60's Pink Floyd and The Doors, essentially calling it "dated".

Personally, I was in to the whole thing. I dug the use of the six string bass from Smith, and the overall gloomy undertone it followed. It was dark and moody, but with its own sense of fun. Basically, it was the sound I though of when contemplating The Cure.

While I won't call the album perfect, there were some standout tracks for me, those being The Holy Hour, Primary, Other Voices, and All The Cats. Basically, the first half of the album.

I would also say, in retrospective review of Siouxsie And The Banshees' Juju, that Faith is today's contest winner.

In light of that, it puts it head to head with the Banshee's Kaleidoscope for winner of the next round. In careful consideration, I have to give that victory to Faith as well, which makes it our first to advance to round two.

And since it always makes me laugh, I'll also post my all time favorite Robert Smith response to an interviewers question.

Classic!

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THIS WEEK ON THE CHARTS
July 18, 1981

 

THIS WEEK ON THE CHARTS
July 18, 1987

Comics Corner: Peter Parker, The Spectacular Spider-Man 59

   

Title: Peter Parker, The Spectacular Spider-Man
Issue Number: 59
Release Date: October 1981

Highlights

• First appearance of Morrie Toshiba, and the F.B.I. agents, Lou Caldwell, and Sam Buckley
• Reference is made to The Amazing Spider-Man 111, 112, 221, and Iron Man 127
• Peter questions why he always jumps to conclusions, specifically that he thought Debra Whitman was attracted to him
• Beetle tests out his MK III armor
• Jack sees his friend Martin Blank in his Gibbon suit, and refers to him as a Wookiee
• Spider-Man saves Gibbon by throwing his unconscious body out from under a falling wall, which lands on our hero instead
• The Beetle attacks a wounded Spider-Man in a cliffhanger ending

Low Points

• None

Oddities

• None

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

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Retro Spins: The Cure - Seventeen Seconds

Yesterday, while reviewing Siouxsie and the Banshees' Kaleidoscope, I finished that post by saying I wanted to do something fun. So, in the 1980's, both the Banshees and The Cure, who were cited as heavily inspiring each other, both had seven albums. Most of these coincide with the same years, though there are some variations here and there. Anyway, the point being, with seven albums each, I thought I would bounce from one to the other, listening to their respective release, and then seeing which one was more favorable. A tournament as it were.

Now, the thing to keep in mind here is that I've already listened to the Banshees' Juju, and The Cure's Kiss Me, Kiss Me, Kiss Me, prior to making this decision. As such, when I get to those, I may have to give myself a refresh, or perhaps just re-read what I already posted about them, and go from there. We'll see. The point being, when it's all said and done, we'll have a victor of goth post punk.

Seventeen Seconds is the second album from The Cure. It starts off noteworthy for being the first to be produced by Robert Smith, and feature new bassist, Simon Gallup. The departure, or rather, final straw of prior bassist, Michael Dempsey came when Smith played him the demos for the album. Dempsey, in Smith's owner words, "Wanted us to be XTC part 2 and – if anything – I wanted us to be the Banshees part 2. So he left."

Smith would go on to say further that after playing with the Banshees himself, it inspired him to want to be like them all the more. "I wanted to have a band that does what Steven Severin and Budgie do, where they just get a bassline and the drum part and Siouxsie wails".

Critics have sighted the album as one of the earliest examples of gothic rock, describing the lyrics as vague, often unsettling, and dark with minimalistic melodies. Since then, Seventeen Seconds has also been noted as one of the must hear albums in one's lifetime.

By track three, I was already seeing how pitting The Cure against Siouxsie and the Banshees was going to be a problem. The reason being, I was already considering a tie. This would ultimately become an issue because one can't very well have a contest where no clear winner can be distinguished. This was a tough situation, indeed.

I wanted to edit myself, and carefully select songs to add to my shuffle. In the past, I've been too liberal with this, and it results in a bunch of songs that I end up skipping in the long run when they come back around. From this release I opted for Secrets, The Forest, and M.

As I continued to play through it, Seventeen Seconds did start to show a little fatigue. Which did ultimately help me decide on a clear winner. For round one, going into round two, is Siouxsie and the Banshees' Kaleidoscope.

If I hadn't already played through the Banshees' Juju, that would have been my next stop. However, since that's already in the bag, I'll give myself a quick sidebar refresher, and jump into The Cure's Faith. See you then!

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THIS WEEK ON THE CHARTS
July 17, 1982

 

Comics Corner: Marvel Graphic Novel 1 - The Death Of Captain Marvel

   

Title: Marvel Graphic Novel: The Death Of Captain Marvel
Issue Number: 1
Release Date: April 1982

Highlights

• First appearance of Zedrao, Bartak (disguised as Silver Surfer)
• Cameo by Superman
• A laundry list of heroes and villains make appearances either as part of the main story, and recaps
• Considered by fans as one of the greatest stories in Marvel Comics for its impact on the Marvel Universe, relatable a realistic storyline, and overall legacy and influence
• Captain Marvel sits in a chair on the first page, narrating into a microphone his own autobiography
• The retold origin is told of why Captain Marvel left the Kree, and instead joined the people of Earth
• Captain Marvel gives a brief synopsis of receiving his cosmic powers from the being known as Eon
• Captain Marvel concludes by telling us he's in semi-retirement on Titan
• Captain Marvel retells about the deaths of Adam Warlock and Thanos
• Mentor and Eros are there to collect the stone encased body of Thanos to take their family member back to Titan, but are attacked by various creatures who were essentially waiting for Thanos' resurrection, worshiping him as a God
• During the battle, Marvel starts to show symptoms of being sick, when diagnosed, it's confirmed he has what Titan calls the inner decay, Kree call blackened, and Earth calls cancer, a diagnosis met with no cure, and a three month life expectancy
• Captain Marvel recounts a battle with Nitro, who unleashed a canister of nerve gas, needing to seal it, Marvel grabbed it with his bare hands, and believes this served as a carcinogen which began his slow death
• Captain Marvel tells his girlfriend, Elysius of what's happening
• Captain Marvel retells the story of being tricked by the Kree, and sent to the Negative Zone where he met Rick Jones, and how the two could trade places with the use of Kree nega-bands
• Its because of this ability to shift space with each other that Marvel seeks out Rick to tell him about his disease, and inform his old friend that he's set up for him to go to Avenger's Mansion for a full physical checkup
• Rick gets angry at Marvel, and tells the hero he can't believe he's giving up on hope of a cure
• Rick seeks out Yellow Jacket, Black Panther, Vision, Wonder Man, Beast, Iron Man, and Thor, and asks them to band together to find a cure for Captain Marvel, they tell him the reality of the matter is that they're not miracle workers
• A distress call goes out across the universe from Titan - One pleading for help to find a cure
• As time passes, options come in, but none pan out, with exception of what is called a life support tunic, which slows the growth of the cancer down by 20% - It's also during this time that Marvel comments the wardrobe change is good timing because he's lost too much weight to fit in his red costume
• Marvel confides in Eros that he knows how he feels about Elysius, and asks him to be there for her when he dies
• Captain Marvel talks about how he and Elysius met
• Captain Marvel gets angry, thrashing out against the inanimate computers around him because of all the villains who tried to kill him, it turned out to be his own body that would turn on him
• While all the heroes gather around a dying Captain Marvel to visit, Spider-Man has to excuse himself, telling Beast and Cyclops that it's just too much for him
• Rick Jones comes to see Captain Marvel one final time, apologizing for his outburst
• General Zedrao of the Skrull Empire comes out of respect, and bestows upon Captain Marvel a royal Skrull medal of honor
• Captain Marvel falls into a coma
• The spirit of Thanos comes to Captain Marvel, presumably curing him, and brining him to the essence of his soul for one final battle - Thanos trying to destroy Marvel's soul, and Marvel fighting to save it - Why? Because Thanos wants Marvel to die the hero he deserves to go out as
• Captain Marvel dies as Thanos and Death take him to not the end that some people perceive as dying - Rather...

Low Points

• At its core, its a very sad story that may hit too close to home for many
• Though it's part of Spider-Man's chronological reading order, he's only in it very briefly

Oddities

• None

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

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Retro Spins: Siouxsie And The Banshees - Kaleidoscope

I mentioned back in March when listening to Siouxsie And The Banshees' Juno, how I got an itch to get all their 80's albums one day, not really knowing much about them beyond their song, Face To Face, from Batman Returns. This post came prior to the recent format I've adopted as of late, where I run through a series of albums from an artist, and not just one. As such, I started off my Banshees' journey already into the era.

Well, today I'm taking a step back to 1980 to pick up with their record, Kaleidoscope. I already did a deep dive on the band in the aforementioned Juno listening session, so I also can't necessarily do a deep dive either. Well, I could, but it would basically just be rinse and repeat of their other post.

So, let's just dive right in, focusing on the album itself.

Right before a show in support of their 1979 album, Join hands, guitarist John McKay, and drummer Kenny Morris unceremoniously left the band. The two fled from the city after an argument with Siouxsie, and manager Nils Stevenson. This prompted the Banshees to regroup, taking their sound in a different direction. While they still featured the post punk rock that gave them their following, they would also incorporate synthesizers and drum machines, stirring a new wave sound into the mix.

Ordered by her doctors to take a one month rest, Siouxsie used this time to learn to play guitar, and start composing her own music. She would use this new skill to continue work on the demoes for what would become Kaleidoscope. To fill the absences of McKay and Morris, the group brought in John McGeoch on guitars, and Budgie (Peter Edward Clarke), on drums.

When the album was released, it peaked at number five on the UK charts, which at the time was the highest the band had achieved. Not only did critics praise the album, but so too did Paul Wellers and Rick Buckler, of The Jam, who called the music innovative with unusual sounds. Kaleidoscope would also be noted as an inspirational recording for bands such as The Cure, Red Hot Chili Peppers, The Smiths, and Radiohead.

Listening through it, I definitely caught on to the "unusual" aspect of it. Kaleidoscope is a very unique record for its time, and one which I can understand how and why it would be inspiring to may artists. Everything that makes it different is also what makes it stand out, in a good way.

While I wasn't going to hear, nor expected Top Forty hits here, from start to finish, I found the album to be quite enjoyable. There were some standout tracks from the bunch, Happy House, Christine, Desert Kisses, Red Light, and Paradise Place. However, overall, and as a whole, I can't see listening to this one again without playing it from start to finish. It feels like the whole thing needs to be there to really get the full experience.

I'm excited to keep going through their music. However, I want to do something "fun" in doing so. I'll give a bit more information on that tomorrow, as I'm still working through the final details, but hopefully you'll enjoy it.

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THIS WEEK ON THE CHARTS
July 16, 1983

 

THIS WEEK ON THE CHARTS
July 16, 1988

Comics Corner: Marvel Team-Up 110

   

Title: Marvel Team-Up
Issue Number: 110
Release Date: October 1981

Highlights

• First appearance of Magma, AKA Jonathan Darque
• Real life mayor Ed Kock makes a cameo appearance
• New York is experiencing odd earthquakes
• Tony Stark calls a press conference, and as Peter Parker arrives, he's answering the question of an unseen reporter he refers to as Ms. Lane...As in Lois? Maybe
• Origin of Magma
• Magma says that he's the reason Mount St. Helens erupted

Low Points

• Villain of the week material at its best

Oddities

• Magma fills the cave with gas to stop our heroes, and despite knocking out enemies wearing gas masks, Spider-Man never takes one and puts it on, successfully succumbing to the gas in the process
• Spider-Man makes a webbing bowling ball, and uses it to bowl over enemies

• Magma has a room in his cave labeled as Quake Command Center - That's some goofiness right there to label rooms in your secret lair

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

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Retro Spins: Rush - Hold Your Fire

 

When Rush's 1987 album, Hold Your Fire was initially released, it was deemed critically disappointing in comparison to prior releases. Despite this, the band stood behind it, stating it was better than prior studio albums. Despite its lukewarm reception, it would ultimately go on to be certified platinum on the MC (Music Canada) charts, gold on the RIAA (Recording Industry Association of America), and silver on the BPI (British Phonographic Industry).

Say what you will about the album, tracks one and two are among my favorites from the band, Force Ten, and Time Stands Still, the latter featuring backing vocals from Aimee Mann. As I've said a hundred times already, these were two tracks which frequented rotation during my many listening sessions of the 1993 greatest hits, Chronicles.

Having these two back to back, and right out of the starting gate sets a high bar for the remainder of the record. Sadly, it wasn't an aspiration the rest of the album could climb to.

I don't know. Maybe at this point I was feeling Rush fatigue, but Hold Your Fire just didn't impress. It sounded very mediocre, past track two. It also felt long. Songs seemed to go, and go, and go, with most of them being five (plus) minutes. I actually started skipping songs after giving them a fair chance to hook me. At this point, I just didn't want to hear anymore Rush, unless what was coming through was awesome.

So, at the end of the day, I didn't get my perfect album from Rush's 80's era. Oh well, that's okay. I got some new stuff, I heard some of the old stuff that intrigued me to begin with, and I can say that I'm finished with the decade (for them), what with already having reviewed 1989's Presto already. Onward to other things.

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THIS WEEK ON THE CHARTS
July 15, 1989

 

DC Big Flea

My track record with DC Big Flea hasn't been one full of joyful memories. Instead, it's typically been one of disappointment, especially considering the price tag of $10.00 to get in. On the surface, that may not seem like a lot, but when you walk away with nothing most of the time, it's kind of ten dollars wasted. As such, my girl was a little surprised when I said I would go with her.

Pulling up, nothing has changed since my last visit. It's still a tenner each to get in, and there's still the usual fare of vendors which features an eclectic mix of stuff. With that said, things, for the most part, were not priced to sell. It's pretty bad when other vendors are making comments about how, "People selling today need a reality check on their pricing."

As for my purpose, I was on the hunt for some specific items, which I was hoping I would find here, but that would also be reasonable in price. Of course, I was also curious to see what type of nostalgic tidbits were out and about the various tables. This is what I mainly focused my photos on.

When I see bins full of CD's, you know I'm going to stop and take a look. This wasn't what I was here for, and nothing jumped out at me that I necessarily wanted or needed.

The usual guy was there. The one with the cool vintage toys that are all priced five times higher than anyone would ever pay. I mean, come on. When you have a Marvel Legend Retro Hulk, and you're asking $40.00 for it? Get serious. Most people have these priced at $10.00, and they still don't move.

Here's another look at those CD bins I dug through. Like I said, there was nothing in there I needed.

Don't forget to stop by the "Elderly Lost and Found" on the way out. These were literally just a bunch of chairs by the main entrance where...well...the elderly were waiting to be retrieved by their families.

When I finally came across the few vendors selling what I wanted, I dug in. I was on the hunt for vinyl for potential framing, and also wanted to experience some good old fashioned thrill of the hunt.

That's when I came across a Fleetwood Mac Rumors priced at a mere $50.00, which I literally busted out laughing and said, "$50.00?!?!" I got a nasty look from the seller as I locked eyes with him while continuing to laugh before taking the photo, tossing it back in the bin, and walking off. This wasn't an album I was interested in, but it immediately took me back to what the other vendors were saying. Reality check needed indeed. That's a twenty to twenty-five dollar vinyl on a good day.

Look, I get it. You want to sell at a premium collector's price. However, for that, you need to have a premium collector's condition item. Not some browning, 100X listened to, beater copy. Further, you need to be in the right setting for that. People come to flea markets to make deals. They're glorified garage sales. If people wanted to pay ebay prices, they'd go on ebay.

I found another table of vinyl across the hall, and immediately saw some things that intrigued me. However, once again, those prices. I shook my head as I cross referenced everything on Discogs, and then finally said to the kid at the booth, "Look, I'm interested in these, but you've got them priced twice more than what they're worth. I'll give you a hundred bucks." He told me it was his grandma's table, and that he'd have to ask her, but that she was walking around. Ultimately, I left them with him, and said I'd circle back around in a bit while he asked her.

When I returned, the kid was gone, but grandma was there. This is when the hard bargaining began. She was looking over them when I got to the table, and I said, "Hi, I'm the guy that offered you $100.00 for these." She promptly responded, "Yeah, I can't go that low."

She then held up the Guns N' Roses album and said, "This is a first pressing," to which I immediately interjected, "No it's not. The first pressing has a completely different cover that was recalled." She countered, "Yeah, but you won't find that version for less then a couple hundred dollars," to which I replied, "$90.00, actually."

She made a face of clear unamusement with me, but she did return to going through the records again before asking me, "Is there anything else you were still on the fence about?" To which I knew there was, and handed to her from her bin.

We ultimately came to an agreement, but I think it was more so on her part to get rid of me. She wanted to make money, and between annoyance and realizing she didn't have a sucker on her hands, would have to really get it together on her pricing if she was going to sell.

I guess I will be going for that second row on the wall after all. Ugh...now I need to buy more frames! I kid though. I'm happy to have these in my collection. While I would have preferred a first pressing of Appetite For Destruction, I suppose at the end of the day this one is still an iconic cover.

I did see a few other records at another table that I was interested in, but ultimately didn't bother with even asking. The pricing...oh that high, high pricing. I just didn't have it in me to get into it once again with another seller.

I also got a few extra things for the room.

Can you spot the new items?

I picked up these signs to place along the top of the blinds for the purposes of helping to block the incessant sunlight from the top windows which smashes you in the face when it comes through during the day. It's blindingly awful! Hopefully these help. I suppose, if nothing else, they look good.

I picked these up from a seller on ebay who has a ton of classic designs. He sells each one for an incredibly reasonable price, around $25.00 each, and I'm sure if you check out his shop (not an endorsed shoutout), you'll find something to grab for yourself.

Since initially writing this, I also made a few more changes to the wall. First and foremost, I decided to take the Karate Kid albums out from underneath the Star Wars ones, and instead put Superman and Superman II.

I then hung the art pieces of Freddie Mercury, Michael Jackson, and Madonna that my girl got me when at a local art show. There is also a Prince one that the guy makes, which is in the works, thus the screw already in place for it under Madonna.

But, the coup de grâce is the second, and final row, of vinyls.

The Karate Kid albums are only placeholders until I get the final two vinyls I'm wanting. Those would be Alice Cooper's Trash, and Janet Jackson's Rhythm Nation 1814. Once I hunt those down, Karate Kid will go back to the record cabinet.

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