I warned you, denizens. There was a reason for my last Flashback Friday choice. <\/p>\n

Truth be told, Joan Jett’s 1988 release Up Your Alley<\/a><\/em> is my favorite album, holistically speaking. This probably stems from the fact that this was my first taste. However, I can find something enjoyable from all of her Blackhearts releases. I can even dip back into her Runaways years and find stuff to make those long commutes at least audibly enjoyable. All I have to do, though, is just see the cover art for Up Your Alley,<\/em> and the Loba Happy-O-Meter is cranked to 11. <\/p>\n

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None more black, indeed. <\/p>\n

This was quintessential Jett in many ways, especially in visual style: teased black rocker hair, black leather all around, kohled eyes, “come here if you dare” stare. However, I’ve always had a soft spot in my heart for the cover of her 1983 release, Album.<\/a><\/em> Atrocious jaundiced background aside, this has always struck me as one of her most “fun” covers: <\/p>\n

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Nothing better than a Jett in flight, eh? I’ve always loved this pose…so much so that I’ve considered getting the silhouette on a T-shirt. Plus, she’s decked in her trademark black, including the leather pants, but she’s still holding onto her punkier Runaways style with her red Chucks, that bandanna thing she kept going for quite a while, and some badass black leather-studded accoutrements. <\/p>\n

I love this version of Jett so much that this is the photo I chose as the inspiration for my own Joan Jett costume for a rock-themed party this weekend: <\/p>\n

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Close enough for government work, right? I was pretty pleased with the overall look (although I’m sure there was more makeup on my pasty face that night than on an episode of RuPaul’s Drag Race<\/em>). I thought about taking my Guitar Hero controller with me for effect (after covering the Aerosmith logo, of course), but decided that I didn’t want to run the risk of spilling anything on it. And there was much to be spilled. Open bars make awesome parties. <\/p>\n

Most people immediately twigged to who I was supposed to be. One couple, however, did ask if I was Jack White.<\/a> <\/p>\n

Damn young people. Learn your rock history!<\/p>\n

Of course, I did have a disturbing epiphany when I finally stumbled back home that night and caught a quick glimpse of myself in the foyer mirror. With my mullety hair and my thickly lined blue eyes? I looked a little less like an 80s rock star and more like a motorcycle-riding graduate of Eastland Prep…<\/p>\n