Some Girls

These two didn't stay around long and they wouldn't pose. But they did sit in the tree for a few minutes, rare and unusual visitors to our corner of the suburbs.I was doing some surfing this morning, looking at Jimmy Fallon as Justin Bieber, that sort of really important cultural reference maintenance, when I came across the news of a re-issue of Some Girls by the Rolling Stones.

Guest appearance by Ludacris.

Anyway, I was especially amused by the blog bit about the Rolling Stones re-issue stating that Some Girls had one of the most celebrated and controversial covers of all time.

The State of Minnesota paid a veteran's bonus in about 1973 to all who had served in the armed forces during the Vietnam war. The bonus was paid on a sliding scale based on number of months having served during a specified window of eligibility with a special additional $300 for those who could by use of their official military records demonstrate actual service not just in the military but in the Republic of Vietnam. I qualified for the maximum amount of the bonus, $600. This was completely found money, a true bonus. I decided to spend at least part of it on something a bit frivolous.

I already owned many or most of the Rolling Stones albums. A special note here to young people who might accidentally tune in: that's what we back in the pre-modern era used to call compilations of new materials made available for sale by the popular groups of the day, the compilations were on a substance known as "vinyl" which required a "stereo" with a "turntable" to allow listening to the "album".

Back to the story, at the moment in time when I received the bonus, I was spending a huge amount of time listening to the 1972 release "Exile on Main Street". I decided that my frivolous purchase would be to complete my collection of Rolling Stones albums. As soon as I cashed the bonus check I went to the neighborhood "record store" (record was another term used pretty much interchangeably with album) and completed the collection. I maintained the complete set for several years thereafter. For people who actually know, I think about through "Steel Wheels" (I should check actually, I think I may have "Voodoo Lounge" and maybe even "Bridges to Babylon" but absolutely certainly not "A Bigger Bang") before finally deciding that if Mick and Keef didn't care about the music anymore there surely was no reason for me to keep buying it.

So along the way I purchased "Some Girls" within days, perhaps hours, of its official release.

Therefore I own one of the aforementioned celebrated and controversial covers.I went on eBay and see that at least one entrepreneur has placed his "near mint" copy up for auction with a starting price of $500.

I doubt $500 but this is the most fun I have had owning a "collectible" since the bottom dropped out of the market for the Jose Canseco rookie card that I also own.