• Jonathan Rhys-Meyers is into shoes and gossip according to Scarlett Johannson. That’s funny. So are we! [Left Coast Breakdown]

• England’s equivalent to the Grammy awards, the Brits, were announced and two Queerty faves were nominated: the strangely beautiful Kate Bush and the beautifully strange Antony and the Johnsons. [WOW Report]

• The official Wigstock site has been revamped and they’re selling really cute, really gay shirts. We want one. [Lady Bunny]

• Some New Yorkers are in a tizzy because of the closing of the 2nd Avenue Deli. [Gridskipper]

• We’re alright though. We’ve always been much bigger fans of Veselka, the place for Ukrainian soul food. It one block away and has killer sauerkraut. [Veselka]

Like we promised you last week, every day between now and Christmas we are listing the reasons why 2005 was gay. So Gay! Need proof? Take a look at the musicians who made 2005 gay, gay, gay!

5. Green Day. The punk trio released the brilliant American Idiot technically in late 2004, however its staying power lasted all through 2005. Front man Billie Joe Armstrong gave kids everywhere one positive message: you can wear make-up and be tough at the same time. And we love him for that.

4. Gwen Stefani. Like Green Day, she too released her Love. Angel. Music. Baby. album in late 2004, but the first single “What You Waiting For?” tanked at radio. Fear not, she rebounded big with hit single after hit single, a clothing line co-designed by Zaldy at Fashion Week, and an album that stayed near the top all year. While Britney becomes a mother, it’s this Southern California girl who has, dare we say, become the new Madonna.

3. Melissa Etheridge. Melissa Etheridge does not get the credit she deserves. It took a battle against cancer and a soaring Janis Joplin cover to prove that this woman, who appeared to be past her prime, still has a lot of rocking left to do. Green Day and Kanye West look like sissies next to her.

2. The 1980s. The 80s have been back in fashion for a while and the decade’s influence on music has been apparent in many hip-hop and pop records of late. But 2005 could have been 1985 all over again. New records were released by Kate Bush, Cyndi Lauper, the Eurythmics, Depeche Mode, and Erasure. This revival gave us a reason to break out our parachute pants and leg warmers.

After the jump, the #1 gayest thing in music in 2005.

[Read On ...]

• Though he dissed us in his diss of Madonna we are still loving Rich’s site. His Madonna commentary is not our feelings exactly, but we think he makes many valid points. But coming from a Janet Jackson fan, you gotta take it all with a grain of salt. Check out the comments section in the Madonna thread for more on the subject of Madge and The Gays.

• Two women with better vocal chops and songwriting abilities than Madonna are releasing albums today. Run and get the new stellar albums by Kate Bush and Cyndi Lauper. Rolling Stone agrees with us. Then again, they like the new Madonna a lot too.

• The B Squad is back. Their movie is titled Valtrex, and obviously it’s not safe for work.

• Club Fly is just what the homo traveler needs. It’s Google Maps for gay bars and will be a valuable travel companion when you’re in a foreign city and want to get friendly with the locals.

• Last week we told you about Jackie Beat’s garage sale. Tickets for her Christmas show are now on sale. It is the funniest show of the year.

• “When he told me he was gay I wanted to take a lamp and bash him in the face with it," is what author Terry McMillan says about her husband’s outing himself. Oprah will hear the whole story on Wednesday.

•Finally. Kate Bush releases her new single on iTunes. It only took, what, ten years.

•The incomparable Holly Woodlawn, Warhol muse and pioneering trannie, is playing one night only in NYC next Tuesday. Expect a who’s who of the downtown scene to be in attendance.

•Philadelphia, Washington, D.C., Pittsburgh, Ft. Lauderdale, Seattle, Portland, Los Angeles, and San Francisco are in for a treat! Kiki and Herb are reunited and touring the US. Dare we say Justin Bond is the best drag performer alive? Thanks Aaron.

•Any friend of Matty is a friend of ours. That is why we are totally going to see the self-proclaimed “gay comic hottie” Adam Sank. He is performing this Saturday and Sunday in NYC. Wonder if he is better than our fave fag comic, Jimmy Fallon. Oh wait. He’s straight.

•F.A.G in a bag? It is grooming products. Not cocaine.

Kate Bush is the iconic singer who simply vanished from the face of pop music more than 10 years ago. Today her fans are saying their prayers; she releases a double album entitled Ariel in November.

Bush's cult following is akin to Tori Amos and Bjork, two women who note Ms. Bush as a musical influence. Before Bush there was no cultish, mythical figure in music. Our icons were disco divas(Donna Summer), singer-songwriters(Joni Mitchell), grand stage dames (Judy Garland), and R&B songstresses(Diana Ross). Ms. Bush made it acceptable to be a little strange. And gay men loved her for it.

Her records are unique and experimental and every one of them critically hailed. Most women in rock today have been influenced by her and even Colplay's Chris Martin said he tried to capture the rhythm of her hit Running Up That Hill on his band's latest single, Speed of Sound. We cannot wait for return.