The Blue Martini ...

... Birmingham, Michigan

Has been D-Listed.

I was in Birmingham last Sunday and took this photo before they begin to renovate this nightclub that brought much unwanted attention to this city. I have been in there a few times. It's everything I've heard about it. Expensive.Snobby.Crowded. but I will say, they always had a great band, safely staged above and behind the bar.

Birmingham can be described as the city that is the.place.to.be. There is still the upscale shopping, fine dining, and couture boutiques. The well known local people from politicians to media personalities from sports figures to corporate big wigs can be seen shopping or dining there.

It's snobby.

The Blue Martini shares lost their liquor license, along with the City Cellar restaurant, last week.

Over the past couple years, it has been the L.A.-wanna-be night club. Host to money, underage drinking, after hour drinking, parties that included illegal stripping, and knock-down-drag-out fights.

Such a pretty sight seeing a Prada purse being wailed at a woman with her Gucci bag held up as a shield of armor on the following morning news.

After months of police calls and warning from the city, this past week their $750,000 liquor license was not renewed.

Usually a place to be seen at for visiting performers, where are the Tommy Lee and Paris Hilton types going to hang out now when they come to town?

Prince

I have always been a Prince fan (maybe not as much as my nephew Patrick). I had no doubt he would out perform any expectation during the Super Bowl half time. I didn't want to write about him after the Super Bowl because everyone was and it was only about the "shadows." People missed the magic of his music while looking for the controversies. I just read this months Rolling Stone article on it and was pleased none of the sort was mentioned, thanks RS.

His eccentric life is off set by his electric mind. Some may not appreciate Prince as he presents himself, but may unknowingly like, sing along to, and have bought songs that he has written and composed for others. Nothing Compares To You, Sinead O'conner, Manic Monday, The Bangles, Tom Jones recorded Prince's song Kiss and most recent, music for the Batman and Happy Feet movies.

I am playing a Prince CD as I type and one of my favorite just started ... his cover of Along the Watchtower.

Treadmill Motivation

Saturday night I went to the Power Center in Ann Arbor to see a modern dance performance.

Other than my daughter Caitlin or niece Rachel's childhood dance recitals, I have not attended such a show. So, I admit I was clueless as what to expect.

The Stephen Petronio Company took stage to the music of Rufus Wainwright. I can't name a Ruffie song, but I can sing "Dead Skunk," his dad Loudon's comical song, proper to belt out after slamming a few shots in any local watering hole.

The choreography, costumes, and music, all flowed in a unique way to express Petronio's piece about optimism with a bit of regret. About young people innocent of the ways of the world, that need to be given a sense of hope. The main vision, an illustration of fragile love when someone is approaching adulthood. All expressed through dance, not a word spoken.

WTF? I must have stayed in the restroom too long because I didn't see that at all. I enjoyed it immensely but my take was more like this:

Wow cool music, *note to self, buy the CD

Whoa, look at the bodies on those strapping young men. Toned, nice butt cheeks, fabulous abs, great pecs, powerful arms! Hey, they shave their legs!

Sheesh how does she do THAT? I honestly did not know legs could spread that far apart, straight up, in the air ... with head and shoulders flat against the floor. Summm-body is talented in bed for sure. Skin tight sheer costumes, peep shows at certain moves ... this is a sensual and sexual display indeed.

There was only one puzzlement I still can't figure out. The seats occupied at this nearly sold out show were people of my age and older. I don't recall seeing any 20-30ish attendees. Does this mean the appreciation for an interpretation dance is appealing to the mid-aged crowd or does the mid-aged crowd just like to recall what we used to look and move like?