Radio Fragments

At the risk of gloating, we're having a beautiful early spring here in the Pacific Northwest. Cherry blossoms abound, bees are starting to come out, and once in a while that great white ball in the sky makes an appearance.

Does it have any bearing on the music I'm playing? Well, no. But it is awfully nice.

The show is available from the streaming archive, or you can download the podcast/mp3 version by hour (below).

Hour 1 – 1-2 am (Download - 57 Mb)

Bibi Tanga et Le Professeur Inlassable, “It’s the Earth that Moves”
Quantic, "Sound of Everything"
Single Gun Theory, "I Am What I See"
Alexie Sayle, "Didn't You Kill My Brother?"
Lambert, Hendricks, and Ross, "Twisted"
Donovan, "Atlantis"
Duran Duran, "Secret Oktober"
Fruteland Jackson, "Blues 2.0"
Louis Jordan and his Tympany Five, "Whiskey Do Your Stuff"
Tommy James and the Shondells, "Draggin' the Line"
The Fiery Furnaces, "The Wayward Granddaughter"
Tom Waits, "It's All Right With Me"
AFX, "Analog Bubblebath"

Hour 2 – 2-3 am (Download - 57 Mb)

Raymond Scott Quintette & the Gene Lowell Chorus, “By Rocket to the Moon”
Simple Minds, "Constantinople Line"
The Crystal Method, "Cherry Twist"
Roxy Music, "To Turn You On"
Jenny Toomey, "Your Inarticulate Boyfriend"
Chris Cornell, "Billy Jean"
Dungen, "Familj"
Fourth Way, "The Far Side of Your Mind"
Ken Nordine, "Fibonnaci Numbers"
Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet, “5 American 6 Canadian”
Sting, "Be Still My Beating Heart"
The Radio-Television Orchestra of Bosnia-Herzogovina, "Call To Prayer"

A lot of great stuff on the show tonight, including a set of music about high school & teen years, a set of crazy vaguely space themed or sounding songs, and a great epic track from the first Grateful Dead album.

But the pick of the night for me, however, was "Leash" by Fat Tree. These folks are out of Phoenix and have a great raw sound, some nice harmony and just put a smile on my face. I put them up against that epic Dead jam because I think that what they are doing is kind of what I like about the Dead.

So listen, enjoy, and if you dig 'em, check them out on MySpace or Facebook.

The show is available from the streaming archive, or you can download the podcast/mp3 version by hour (below).

Hour 1 – 1-2 am (Download - 57 Mb)

Space Raiders, “Song for Dot”
Mercan Dede, “Ab-i Beka”
Susheela Raman, “Manasuloni”
The Aquabats, “Pool Party”
Barenaked Ladies, “Grade 9”
Bruce McCulloch, “Grade 8”
The Flamin’ Groovies, “Teenage Head”
George Washington and the Cherry Bombs, “Crisco Party”
Steve and the Board, “I Call My Woman Hinges”
That Handsome Devil, “Rob the Prez-o-dent”
The Real Tuesday Weld, “The Life and Times of The Clerkenwell Kid”
Butthole Surfers, “Underdog”
Komeda, “Flabbergast”
Salmonella Dub, “Love Sunshine and Happiness”

Hour 2 – 2-3 am (Download - 57 Mb)

Grateful Dead, “Viola Lee Blues”
Fat Tree, “Leash”
The Five Blobs, “The Blob”
Stories in Sound, “Space Battle”
Thomas Marriot, “On The Road Again”
Angelo Badalamenti, “Dance of the Dream Man”
Tones on Tail, “Movement of Fear”
Gary Numan, “Aircrash Bureau”
Laika, “Badtimes”
MC 900 Ft. Jesus, “Regression Session”

I like to refer to my show as "The Coolest Music of the last 100 years", but I recognize that sometimes I spend a bit more time in the last 40 years than that tagline deserves.

So, tonight, we're going back to the past. Starting 10 years ago with an album released in February 2000, we just go back, back, back. The 90s and 80s flash by in the first set. We dwell in the seventies for 25 minutes or so, rush through the 60s, going deeper and deeper. Soon we're into the 40s, the 30s...a couple of songs from 1929, and then to one of the oldest pieces in my collection, dating from 1915.

And these aren't going to be 'old standards'. Many are quite subversive, some tackle social issues, some technological issues. There's a piece of experimental electronic music from '72, a song about drug use from '44, some of the oldest blues recordings we have, a 'New Sound' (the newest sound around, doncha know), what may very well be the first all-girl rock band...and then a piece called "Dinner Music for a Pack of Hungry Cannibals". Tell me that isn't a show!

The show is available from the streaming archive, or you can download the podcast/mp3 version by hour (below).

Hour 1 – 1-2 am (Download - 57 Mb)

Supreme Beings of Leisure, "Under the Gun" (2000)
Ministry, "Jesus Built My Hotrod" (1992)
Skinny Puppy, “Glass Houses” (1985)
Kate Bush, "The Dreaming" (1982)
Throbbing Gristle, "Hot On The Heels Of Love" (1978)
Langley Schools Music Project, "Space Oddity" (1976)
Tom Waits, "Diamonds on my Windshield" (1974)
Sadistic Mika Band, "Dance Is Over" (1973)
Ingram Marshall, "Cortez" (1972)
T.Rex, "Motivator" (1971)
Sly and the Family Stone, "I Want To Take You Higher" (1969)
The Continental Coets, "Live for the Present" (1966)
Phil Moore, "Watch Your Step, Please" (1964)

Hour 2 – 2-3 am (Download - 57 Mb)

Charles Mingus, "Freedom" (1963)
Fabian, "About This Thing Called Love" (1960)
Ella Fitzgerald, "Do Nothing Till you Hear From Me" (1957)
Elvis Presley, "Mystery Train" (1955)
Tony Burello, "There's a New Sound" (1952)
Roy Brown, "Butcher Pete Pt. 1" (1950)
Harry ‘The Hipster’ Gibson, “Who Put The Benzadrene In Mrs. Murphy’s Ovaltine” (1944)
Foy Willing & The Riders of the Purple Sage, "Texas Blues" (1943)
Bukka White, “Fixin’ To Dies Blues” (1940)
Robert Johnson, “Travelling Riverside Blues” (1937)
Raymond Scott, "Dinner Music For a Pack of Hungry Cannibals" (1936)
Cleoma Falcon, "Blues Negres" (1934)
Cab Calloway & His Orchestra, “Minnie The Moocher” (1931)
Bill Johnson's Louisiana Jug Band, "Get the 'L' on Down The Road" (1929)
Billy Murray, "Which Switch is the Switch, Miss, For Ipswitch?" (1915)

Until recently, the show that followed mine was "Recycled Music" with DJ Chairman Moe. It was two hours of cover versions of songs, every week. I have a soft spot for cover versions -- the crazier the better -- and I always enjoyed listening to his show as I drove home from the station after my own show. The Chairman retired his show a couple weeks back, and in tribute to it, I present two hours of my favorite covers.

Sometimes they are earnest, heart-felt tributes to the originals. Some times they have their tongues lodged so firmly in their cheeks it's hard to imagine how they can possibly sing. Other times they take the song and put it in such a strange new context it's practically unrecognizable. And I love them all.

The show is available from the streaming archive, or you can download the podcast/mp3 version by hour (below).

Hour 1 – 1-2 am (Download - 57 Mb)

Bela Fleck & The Flecktones, “The Ballad of Jed Clampett”
Sebastian Cabot, “Like a Rolling Stone”
The Bad Plus, “Comfortably Numb”
Big Daddy, “Once in a Lifetime”
Ladysmith Black Mambazzo w/ Des’ree, “Ain’t No Sunshine”
Senor Coconut, “Home Computer”
Harry James, “Shine (DJ Spooky Subliminal Big Band Remix)”
Cowboy Junkies, “State Trooper”
Harry Connick, Jr. “Don’t Get Around Much Any More”
Depeche Mode, “Route 66”
Bauhaus, “Ziggy Stardust”
Love and Rockets, “Ball of Confusion”

Hour 2 – 2-3 am (Download - 57 Mb)

Gary Jules, “Mad World”
Devo, “RU Experienced?”
Snake River Conspiracy, “How Soon Is Now?”
Richard Cheese, “Hot For Teacher”
Disposable Heroes of Hiphoprisy, “California Uber Alles”
William Shatner, “Common People”
Starchildren, “Isolation”
Styrofoam & Sarah Shannon, “I Found Love”
Rayzd, “Tank”
The Squirrels, “Time”
801, “TNK (Tomorrow Never Knows)”
Led Zeppelin, “Traveling Riverside Blues”
Dread Zeppelin, “Stairway to Heaven”

Sometimes, when I'm carefully crafting my show from a huge pile of CDs, I tend to favor the shorter to medium-length songs. I start to worry that people won't want to hear a long song, that I have to keep things moving, changing, to stay interesting. Tonight was my attempt to prove myself wrong.

2 hours, 10 songs. Some of my favorite long-format music.

The show is available from the streaming archive, or you can download the podcast/mp3 version by hour (below).

Hour 1 – 1-2 am (Download - 57 Mb)

James Brown, "Get Up (I Feel Like Being A Sex Machine)"
Can, "Future Days"
Talk Talk, "After The Flood"
Pink Floyd, "Shine On You Crazy Diamond"
Richard Thompson, "Season of the Witch"

Hour 2 – 2-3 am (Download - 57 Mb)

Bauhaus, "Bela Lugosi's Dead"
Suicide, "Frankie Teardrop"
These New Puritans, "Navigate Navigate"
Fela Kuti, "Zombie"
Bill Laswell, "Rebel Music"