Ballad of Jayne, L.A. Guns, 1989
In general, the L.A. Guns make me think of being in high school and cruising McFarland on Sundays. All the cool cars had T-tops -- gas was cheap and taking hours and hours just to complete the small loop at the river bottom was just what we did on Sundays. When Cocked and Loaded came out, it was summer. I heard this song yesterday and I ached for my youth. Shining like a summer day in the sun.
All of our beloved glam metal bands of the day had their token power ballads but this one was and still is so special to me. I loved the L.A. Guns' debut album and when their sophomore album came out, I immediately fell in love with this song. It's a great song. Beautiful, touching lyrics.
I am not usually a big fan of songs that tell stories. Yeah, I know ... I consider myself somewhat of a storyteller so how does that make sense? It doesn't. All I know is, I love this song and I love that it tells a story. I love that its story is of Jayne Mansfield -- who does that? Most everyone defaults to Marilyn as the iconic, tragic, bombshell blond.
I remember seeing the made for TV movie about Jayne Mansfield when I was a kid and being horrified and totally smitten. I really connected with this song from first listen. It's in my favorites hall of fame for sure.The hook is so perfect. The verses, too. "She's breaking hearts in heaven" seriously chokes me up sometimes. Actually, a lot of this song makes me want to cry. I just love it ... still ... completely love it. Let's karaoke, y'all.
OK. It's officially Day 1 of Study-cation and I'm already feeling sidetracked. Not good.
Happy Monday, y'all! https://youtu.be/s6198qSm0Y0
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