Boppin' (Like The Hip Folks Do) willed itself into existence on January 18th, 2016, prompted by the unexpected emotion I felt when I heard of the passing of David Bowie the week before. The blog was briefly called CC Says before I decided the title was too generic; Boppin' (Like The Hip Folks Do) may not be much more distinctive, but it's a nod to my first ever rock 'n' roll opinion piece, Groovin' (Like The Hip Folks Do), and it's staying put. It took just under a year to log 50,000 views, and just over four more months to bring that tally to 90,000. Now, 90,000 is not quite a cosmic number, and is quite modest in this age of clicks, but I maintain it ain't bad for a virtually unknown writer, hawking his bid for notoriety via Facebook and word-of-mouth.
The blog's original foolish goal was to post something each and every day. But damned if we haven't met that goal and then some; Saturday should see Boppin' # 500. While I have a large inventory of older writing to use as needed, it takes me almost as long to retype a previously-published piece as it does to write a new one. And I tend to be wordy, so this is a lot of content generated in a short time, and on an ongoing basis. If I'm able to continue, I want this blog to become a daily destination for interested parties, folks who just like to see me riff on pop music and comic books, or whatever other shiny object captures my fickle gaze. Shiny! Because so much of what I write is autobiographical, there is a lot of criss-crossing of subject matter, and some inevitable repetition of reference points. While I hope the reader doesn't grow weary of me mentioning AM radio, Phonograph Record Magazine, spinner racks, Batman, and Suzi Quatro, I will at least try to gussy these familiar refrains into interesting narratives. (Still, if you're sick of Suzi Quatro, I suspect you're reading the wrong blog.)
Running a number of series has been helpful in generating content here, and most or all of my recent series will continue for the foreseeable future. Comic Book Retroview will continue its (popular!) look back at DC's 100-Page Super Spectaculars, which should run for at least a few more chapters. My album retrospective series Rescued From The Budget Bin! will be joined by Second-Hand Sound, the latter focusing on used-album purchases, though both series are otherwise identical. Love At First Spin will return with a piece about Rocket To Russia by The Ramones; I hope to have that completed in time to run as my 500th post. I have yet to publish an installment of Groove Gratitude (A Gift Of Music) publicly--the sole entry thus far, my reminiscence of receiving The Beatles' White Album as a high school graduation gift, was distributed only to my $2 a month paid subscribers--but there will be public Groove Gratitudes a-plenty before long, covering KISS, Elvis Costello & the Attractions, and The Spongetones, among others. The White Album piece will be available to the public this summer.
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| A glimpse at a few of the more than 60 items in the Boppin' draft file |
And there will be non-series pieces, like my recent Batman Meets The Monkees (which I'm told will be receiving a mention at the cool comics blog 13th Dimension). Those come unbidden, unplanned, and are an absolute blast to write. I am still thinking of going back to complete my unfinished, unpublished Goldmine retrospective on Nuggets; the introduction from that abandoned piece will be May's private post for subscribers. I'm sure I'll have something to say about The Flashcubes and their 40th anniversary this year, and I always have a lot to say about This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio, the weekly radio show I co-host with Dana Bonn. And there will be much hype regarding our forthcoming compilation CD, This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio, Volume 4. Keep watching this guy!
Writing a blog is an exercise in narcissism. It is not necessarily substantively different from jumping up and down and shouting LOOK AT ME!!! But I love writing. And I really love writing this blog. I'm grateful to all of you who come here and notice me as I jump and shout. No cause for alarm. It's just the normal noise in here. Awright, maybe normal isn't the best possible choice of words in this space....
On to 100,000!
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