The Luck of the Irish

What could be luckier than having your death sentence commuted?
Back in ye olde days, if an Irishman on Death Row was lucky, he could avoid the gallows by taking advantage of the Crown's travel program known as 'transportation'; a practice which provided poor persons and criminals with wealthy landowners that they could work for in exotic locales such as Van Diemen's Land; Sydney; Georgia or Boston.

Irish women were also 'transported' . Lucky them.


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Back in 1960, political pundits were asking this question: " Is America ready to elect an Irish Catholic to the office of President?"
We were, and John F. Kennedy moved into the White House.

Things didn't work out so well for JFK personally, but one thing is certain:
We are really lucky that George Bush wasn't President during the Cuban Missile Crisis.

There's a striking parallel between the question asked in 1960 and a certain question being raised during the current election season.
If we are lucky, the answer will be 'yes' and the parallels will end there.

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I played a great many songs on the radio this weekend. If you were lucky, you heard:

The New Breakfast Snob, 16 March, 2008

Snakefinger- 36-22-36
Alvin Lee- Education
Sharon Shannon-Blackbird
Jethro Tull- Cold Wind To Valhalla
Loreena McKinnett- Gates of Istanbul
Soft Boys- When I was a Boy
Alan Parsons- Hyper-Gamma Space
Jeff Beck-Freeway Jam
Moving Hearts- The Storm
Television- Prove It
Pretty Things- Pure Cold Stone
Iron Butterfly- Shady Lady
Claanad- Together We
XTC- Dear God
Steeleye Span- Lowlands of Holland
Fairport Convention- Tam Lin
Pogues-Sunny Side/Sayanora
Pentangle- Hunting Song
Claanad- Poison Glen
Maire Brennan- Against The Wind
Damien Dempsey- The Jar Song
One of my fellow DJs has started playing Dempsey! A convert! Take that, St. Pat!

The 12 Fl. Oz. Show, Monday 17 March

I play quite a bit of Irish and Celtic music on my own weekly show so I found it ironic that I was acting as guest DJ for an Americana show on St. Patrick's Day.
As a DJ, I tend to look at St. Patrick's Day the same way that an alcoholic looks at New Year's Eve- it's the one day that the rest of the world follows my lead...anyway, the playlist:

Les Paul and Chet Atkins- Somewhere Over The Rainbow
Little Feat- Oh Atlanta!
Tornados...OZ...Atlanta...nevermind.

Ken Nordine- Green
Papa John Creach- Enjoy
Mem Shannon- S.U.V
Johnny Cash- Personal Jesus
Marcy -The Gospel Express
Roy Clark- Steel Guitar Rag
Sandy Nelson -The Boss Beat
John Prine - Sweet Revenge
Sam Bush- Howlin' at the Moon
This song mentions Heaven and moon-howling...Christianity and Animism!
Holy 'Dual'ing Banjoes, Batman!

Steve Earle- Hillbilly Highway
Big Brother & Holding Co. - I'll Change Your Flat Tire, Merle
Granpa Jones & Friends- Pft, You Were Gone
This is from Hee Haw.
Bill Anderson- The Reverend Mr. Black
Ken Nordine- Yellow
Steve Earle & Del McCloury- Dixieland

Mitch H. Price- Shopping Mall Moan
Flaming Groovies- Jailbait
R. Crumb- Confessions of R.Crumb
Ten Years After-Baby Won't Let Me Rock and Roll ya?

X- Come Back To Me
Ken Nordine- Flesh
Les Paul & Chet Atkins- Lazy River
Mitch H. Price- Save me a Slice of That
Clarence 'Gatemouth' Brown & Roy Clark- Tobacco Road
Hot Tuna- Ode to Billy Dean
Steve Earle-Galway Girl
Factoid: Ireland and Scotland are two different places.

Mitch H. Price - Voodoo
Steve Earle & the Pogues -Token Drinking Song
Leo Kottke- Morning is a Long Way Home
Tony Trishka & Bela Fleck- John Hardy
Lucinda Williams- Concrete & Barbed Wire
Billy Pilgrim- Dominique
Roy Clark- Under the Double Eagle
Honest to Baal, Roy Clark is one awesome MFing guitarist. Clark's rendition of this John Phillip Sousa classic is nothing short of amazing.
Buck Owens and Roy Clark- Turkey in the Straw



Good Night and Good Luck.

Jazzed

Exactly one reader might know why hearing "jazzed" breaks my heart. It shouldn't, but it does. It's a perfectly good non-word; just not for me.
Anyhow, we had a Jazz Emergency and I wound up hosting one of our Jazz shows directly following my own, non-Jazz program. Our resident Jazz Man set me up with a couple CD's, which I will get to , but first, my show -
The New Breakfast Snob, Sun Aug 19:

Brian Eno- SkySaw
Eno. E-no. Not Emo. What the hell is wrong with you kids today? You haven't heard of Brian Eno? You should get up earlier and listen to more radio- sheesh.

Genesis-Can Utility and the Coastliners
I bet you kids didn't know there was a time when Phil Collins didn't suck. There was- in the early 1970's he played drums for Genesis. He was awesome until he stepped out from behind his drumkit. Musically, he went straight downhill- financially, he hit it BIG. Funny how that works...

Altan-Beidh Aonach Amarach
Another new (to me ) old Celtic band that I'm liking more every time I hear. It'll be worth getting a job so I can buy some of their older stuff.

Tangerine Dream- Darwin's Motel
Tangerine Dream is one of my new, old-time favorite 'morning' bands. Goes well with coffee.

Gong- White Doves
I just can't seem to get my frenzy going. I keep playing calming, pleasant songs. Oh well.

Don McLean-If We Try
See? I'm playing goddamned love songs. At least it's a good one.

Chieftains- Morning Dew
This is old Chieftains. They've played with ten gabillion famous artists, but this song is just them.

Pentangle- Once I Had A Sweetheart
Oh, this is more like it. Recently I was trying, with difficulty, to explain to a friend how a profound sadness can sometimes be so intense- almost transcendent- that the experience is beautiful, even if you might not realize it at the time. This song is like that.

Fiona Joyce- Long Road To Travel
I'm a new fan of Joyce, who has been around for some time. I read her books a long time ago, but I was drinking a lot and don't remember much...oh, that was a different Joyce? A guy?
Get outta here...

Briege Murphy- The Sea
Listening to Celtic ballads, one gets the impression that a fishing village would be a great place to meet women. Lots of widows.

Steeleye Span- The Storyteller
And witches. The good kind.

Maire Brennan- Beating Heart
Today's got a green groove- why fight it?

Fairport Convention- Meet on the Ledge
"Don't jump!"

Pretty Things- She Says Good Morning
A caller told me that these guys sound like the Rolling Stones or the Beatles. He had it backwards. It's my belief that the Stones, The Beatles, Pink Floyd and even The Who ripped off the Pretties to some degree or another. It's not when the album was released that matters- it's when it was recorded.

Loreena McKinnett- Hearts of Space
Go buy her stuff. It's often labeled 'New Age' but I pretty much fucking hate most 'New Age' and I love this...she combines many musical elements into a unique but instantly familiar sound...entrancing.

Hot Tuna- The Water Song
Sometimes ya gotta have some guitar-pickin' and who better than Jorma Kaukonen?
(I spilled coffee on my Leo Kottke LP)

Bob Dylan- The Boxer
One great songwriter to another...

Neil Young- Sedan Delivery
Another great American songwriter...he's what? Canadian? Well, Canada fuckin' rocks then!

Soft Boys- Muriel's Hoof
Twin guitar instrumental madness. Frenzy at last!

Steve Hillage- Hello Dawn
I lost my innocence while this album played. This very copy, in fact. That's why it skips.

Robert Fripp- North Star
I really shouldn't make fun of Robert Fripp's fashion sense on-air, but I did anyway. I hope he wasn't listening.

Damien Dempsey- Celtic Tiger
Damo is one of very few current artists that I really, really want to see live. Too bad no one in America cares.

Claanad- Why Worry?
Well...I lost my job and my savings account in the same month...I have nineteen dollars until the unemployment kicks in...fuck. It could be worse. Tune in tomorrow.

Ten Years After- I'd Love to Change the World
This is one of the first songs I learned on guitar. It's a lot easier to play the song than to change the world, but it's a nice thought. If everyone was 5% nicer, it would make a difference...*sigh*

Flaming Groovies- Whiskey Woman
Ok, Mister Caller- here's a song that really does sound a LOT like the Stones , circa Let it Bleed.
Played directly off the original Kama Sutra vinyl. I like the way that sounds...Kama Sutra vinyl...it was a old record label- a division of Buddah Records, 'natch.

Ok, so I got to play my own selections...not the case for the Jazz show...probably a good idea. My Jazz show would sound like a tribute to Sun Ra...which I like, but our audience is used to more, um, 'normal' cuts.
All I did was babysit a two-hour recording of the 2006 Detroit International Jazz Festival. After six cups of coffee, I was ready to start throwin' down my 1970's punk rock records, but this is what I wound up with:

Clayton Bros. Quintet- Sat. Night Special
Dianne Schuur- If You Want It
James Dapogny- Way Down Yonder in N.O.
Ahmad Jamal- Poinciana
Joe Locke- It Don't Mean a Thing
Johnny O'Neal- Tight
Donald Harrison- Cool Breeze
Jaco Pastorious Word of Mouth Big Band- Soul Intro/Chicken
Wait...Jaco is dead and has been for a long time. This doesn't sound like him at all.
Moutin Reunion Band- MRC
Lou Donaldson- Lou's Blues
Marcia Ball- Just Kiss Me, Baby
organissimo- Back At The Chicken Shack
Lewis Nash- Beyond the Bluebird
Shahida Nurallah-A Felicidade

Jeez, I thought I played long songs on MY show, but this list is only 14 songs...and it took two hours. I need a nap.

Who Knows?

Oh no.
My worst nightmare realized.
I forgot to reset my alarm after last night's brief power outage- it's exactly 7 AM. I have to be on-air in zero seconds. I call the studio and ask DJ KB to give me 15 minutes, on the way, etc...
(Thanks K)
Then I realized I hadn't put my show together- I was gonna do it in the early morning hours- so I just grab the first box o' crap I see and bolt.

At 7:10 I'm signing on. It's a good thing I live near the studio.

Lou Reed- What's Good?
This album, Magic and Loss, was gift to me from my mom as she was dying of cancer. For years I couldn't listen to it without falling apart but now I fall back on it when I need strength.
This morning I fell back on it when I needed an opening song.

Jefferson Airplane- Other Side of This Life
It always looks better here from over there.
I'm a big fan of the Airplane family and this live LP is one of my faves- those guys could really tear it up on stage- none of that polished Marty Balin Starship crap that came later...

Larry Graham-Hair
I cut the hell out of myself while shaving my head yesterday- had blood running down my face like Sissy Spacek in Carrie-well, it wasn't quite that bad. It was more like a few drops, but it's more dramatic to describe it as 'torrents'.

Tom Verlaine- Down on the Farm
As heard in Television- from his solo LP, Mr. Blur. I found this in a box of closet junk- cool find!

King Crimson- Heartbeat
I need to land sometime...right next to you.
This LP, Beat , and the following one, Three of a Perfect Pair, contain some unusually sweet and accessible love songs by Crimson standards. After they broke up, singer/guitarist Adrian Belew released a couple of solo albums celebrating the wonders of fatherhood and domestic bliss, so I guess the Crimson tracks were a form of foreshadowing.

Tangerine Dream- Little Blond in the House of Attractions
Right now I need a song that's seven minutes long. Maybe longer. The radio in the bathroom is broken...much time is left? Aaaaaaa!
This should be titled : Little Bald in the Outhouse of Spasms

Pentangle- Hunting Song
This group is better than a dozen Xanax. Their recordings have a timeless, hypnotic clarity to them. I haven't had any coffee and I start drifting off...pretty guitars...sweet voice

Stranglers- Golden Brown
Bad choice- I love this ballad, but the faux harpsichord and airy harmonies are puttin' me to sleep. La lala la...

Loreena McKinnet - Mummer's Dance
If I'm gonna lapse into dreamland on-air, I might as well play McKinnett and hope that I fall into a shamanistic trance state. Those are educational.

Clannad- Love and Affection
Why is this so hard to find? The song asks, but doesn't answer.

Fiona Joyce- The Juggler
One of the few new Celtic CD's received recently. I like Joyce a lot, hard to find in the stores though.

Bob Dylan- Mighty Quinn/ Little Sadie
When in doubt, a double Dylan will do. From Self-Portrait.

Damien Dempsey- Celtic Tiger
Swift would like this song. A lot. If you can find Dempsey stateside, buy it.

Marianne Faithfull - Broken English
I love this LP. My favorite song contains some of the most beautiful profanity ever recorded. Too bad I can't play it.

Hot Tuna- North Wind Rise
Jack Casady and Jorma Kaukonen from the Airplane Family.

Lucinda Williams- I Lost It
Hahahaha...I love this song! Finally starting to wake up. LW is my new coffee!

Patti Smith - Free Money
Wanna know how to make free money? Hmmm? No one? Aw.

Robert Fripp- Chicago
I love the muted howling of the guitar in the background...it reminds me of sitting on my brother's shady Chicago back porch. It's calm and peaceful, but in the distance something loud is always happening.

Alan Parsons Project- Don't Let It Show
Sometimes I feel like this song. Not sure that's a good thing.

Soft Boys- Positive Vibration
Keep it positive! Manic happy!

Flaming Groovies- Comin' After Me
Ten headhunters with a buzz-saw! Not that I'm paranoid or anything...

Clash- Brand New Cadillac
When I was kid, I listened to the Grateful Dead. When I got older I listened to the Clash.
I still listen to the Clash.

Quicksilver Messenger Service- Gold and Silver
This jazzy dueling guitar instrumental should be a nice intro to the next show, which is called Be-Bop and Beyond- it's hosted by a former New Orleans DJ, Mr. Jazz, and his theme song is by jazz great Horace Silver- done special for Mr. Jazz! Hep!

Damn...why am I so tired? Oh yeah. I know why I'm so tired.

Sweet dreams and have a pleasant valley Sunday!

Oui Hours

If you catch me in the right mood, I can be agreeable to almost anything. I was in that kind of mood when I said:" Yes. I will fill a two-hour slot with music early Sunday morning. But only once."
That was seven months ago.
I've been doing it every Sunday since then.

Similarly, I will occasionally partake in a meme. Like now. I am doing this at the bequest of my new blogpal Cowbell, who wants me to list eight things about myself and then force this chain of confession on eight of you.
I am refraining from doing that. My blog circle is small and incestuous and the resulting tags would likely have webbed toes and harelips.
Feel free to tag yourself.
I'll use my playlist to talk about myself. My list of eight starts with #2.


Peter Tosh- I'm The Toughest
This song is about me.
2) I can do drugs that would kill a lesser mortal.
Witness:
This morning I stopped at 7-11 for coffee and they were selling a scorched brown liquid called "Energy Coffee", which is really just bad coffee with extra caffeine and guarana added. (Guarana is to caffeine what corn syrup is to sugar - the same, only more so.) They also had a box of single-serving non-dairy screamers -a sign advertised :" Espresso Flavor Shots...40mg caffeine per serving."
They were free.
It took 48 of them to fill a 24 0z. coffee cup.
I filled a second cup with "Energy Coffee."
Fuck with me now, you bastards.

Chris Spedding- Breakout
Chris never did break out on his own, but he played with some greats- Eno, Cale, Nilsson. This song sounds like Joe Strummer.

Joe Strummer- All in in a Day
This song also sounds like Joe Strummer. It doesn't sound like Chris Spedding, though.

Red Hot Chili Peppers- Behind The Sun
Songs about dolphins are cool.
3) I once played in a band that opened up for the Chilis. They weren't famous then, but you could tell they would be. We were not a hard act to follow.

Steve Hillage - Motivation
The title of the album is Motivation Radio.

Loreena McKinnett- Mummer's Dance
This song is six minutes long. That should be enough time for a coffee achievement.

Altan- The Trip To Cullenstown
4) I would like to visit Ireland one day.

Damien Dempsey- Marching Season/Seize the Day
5) If you asked me, right now, who my favorite band was, I'd tell you "Dempsey."

Fiona Joyce- Trees
5a) "Joyce."

West of Eden- High Ground
5c) Not West of Eden. They're OK, but I miscued this disc. The espresso shots are taking over.

Steeleye Span- The Storyteller
6)Among other reasons, I love blogging because it helps keep the art of storytelling alive.

Be Bop Deluxe- Love is Swift Arrows
7) Cupid is a drunken knife-thrower and I am on his spinning target wheel.

Talking Heads- Don't Worry About The Government
8) I am distraught over the current state of American Government.

Steeleye Span- The Blacksmith
Back in the day, the village blacksmith was often considered to be quite a stud; Maddy Pryor sure sounds enthusiastic as she lustfully sings of doing her duty. Once you've had blacksmith...

Bob Dylan- Gotta Travel On
Been stuck around this old town too long.

Ten Years After- I'd Love To Change The World
It is possible.

The Kinks- Starstruck
Ye Olde Rocke Gossiper sez : the original lyric "...addicted to wine and cocaine... gonna drive you insane" was changed to to "wine and champagne" at the last minute by the record company, which really angered Kinks songwriter Ray Davies. Davies then went on to write concept albums about how much he hated the music biz.

Pretty Things- Trust
Excuse me. Please.

Pentangle- In Time
Another five minute song. I'm glad there's a radio in the bathroom.

Jefferson Airplane- Pretty as You Feel
I hope that you are feeling beautiful, because you are.

Patti Smith -Privilege
Playing Patti on Sunday mornings gives me something to live for.

Fairport Convention- Tale in Hard Time
Dude, just play 4/4 like the rest of us. Kidding! I love this band- their first few albums sound especially good.

Neil Young - Vampire Blues
Neil singing about Big Oil back in 1974..."I'm a vampire, babe, sucking blood from the earth."

Flaming Groovies - Headin' for the Texas Border
Flee! Get out while you still can!

Funkadelic- I'll Stay
Don't go! I'll wait!

ELP- In the Beginning
Damn. This remind me that I was planning on playing some Genesis. Too late now.

Blonde Redhead- Cure
I wonder if the Cure have a song called 'Blonde Redhead?'
I used to know a blond redhead...sigh...where are you now? I could use some asylum.

My Head Is My Only House Unless It Rains

A double-shot of programs this weekend.
First, Songs From The Big Hair, our weekly 1980's show. This week I was training JY, a new volunteer. She has previous DJ experience and picked up our system easily; it was nice having another person in the booth.
DJing is sort of a lonely job, y'know? Like being a lighthouse keeper or something.



SONGS FROM THE BIG HAIR

Replacements- Go
12" vinyl on 45rpm. Hi-Fidelity! Go! Go! Oh, wait...later for them.

Danielle Dax- Big Hollow Man
I call my program 'The New Breakfast Snob' in honor of Michael Hawkesworth, the original Breakfast Snob. Mike had an all-nighter show on Park City, Utah's NPR station. He let me hang out while he played weird art rock and experimental punk. Among other things, he turned me onto Danielle Dax . Mike and I once played live on his station, doing a Residents-style Casio, feedback and poetry jam...Mike, this one's for you.

God will provide the way You read about it every day -I'm tellin' ya All you gotta do is pray And furnish His house with silver

X- Poor Girl
So, like, if you call me with a serious problem and you ask me to help you, I will.
And I won't take it lightly. But don't talk to me when you are drunk, because being drunk is your problem.
You should know better.

Lou Reed- Don't Talk to me About Work
This is another sore subject.

George Clinton- Tweakin'
Chuck D joins George C for some serious slammin'.
Hookin' into the extra input...

Oingo Boingo- No Spill Blood
Who makes the rules? Someone else!
This is Danny Elfman's old band. Great arrangements and lyrics...now go watch The Forbidden Zone.

The Kinks - Add it Up
So I have done the math, see? And it doesn't add up.
It never does.
I can triple-check it, but it won't help. The error is caused by a constant variable and it all adds up to nothing.

The Stranglers- Ice Queen
I was never sure of the accurate score...and so it goes.

The Damned - Grimly Fiendish
Yep.

The Soft Boys- I Got the Hots for You

Well, yeah, whatever. *yawn* So what else is new?

Meat Puppets- Meat Puppets
It's amazing that the Meat Puppets were allowed to record a second album. Their first one is almost unlistenable.
Their second LP is a modern Lo-Fi classic.
This is from the first album.

Snakefinger- The Model
Former Residents guitarist Snakefinger does a great cover of a Kraftwerk orange.


Lizzy Mercier Descloux - Wawa
Antena - Easy Street
Pet Shop Boys - West End Girls
New Order - Thieves Like Us

I let JY fly solo for a couple cycles while I listened in another room, filling out her evaluation. Before she went on she asked :"Is 'West End Girls' too Top 40?"
I didn't want to admit that I had no idea what a 'Pet Shop Boy' sounds like, so I said, sure, play it.
Now I remember...aaargh...yeah, it is too Top 40.
Nevertheless, I gave her high marks in every category because she earned them- welcome to the station, JY!

Chameleons - Up the Down Escalator
The Go Go's - We Got The Beat
Psychedelic Furs -Sleep Comes Down
Cowboy Junkies - Sweet Jane

JY's second set- The Furs reminds me of...well, nevermind. It's a fond memory.
Whim enjoyed the Chameleons, which I second...thanks for tuning in!

Crack the Sky-All the Things We Do
Am I the only living Crack the Sky fan? These guys were great- they used to play around Baltimore when I was a teen. Terrific band, but I think there were problems-nevertheless , John Palumbo rocks! Meat guitar played with a scalpel, not a cleaver.

Pere Ubu- Bus Called Happiness
It passes without stopping, splashing mud on my trousers as it roars past.
I hear the laughter of aquatic mammals. They are laughing at me.

XTC- Poor Skeleton Steps Out
Joey D. Viver!

Nena- 99 Red Balloons
This song is about nuclear annihilation. Let's take it one step further- how about we divide the world's nukes into two equal piles and place one pile at the North Pole and one at the South Pole?
Bam! The polar icecaps become a gigantic cloud of cleansing radioactive steam! All of humanity's problems are solved in an instant.

Elvis Costello- Poisoned Rose
Dude.

Cocteau Twins- Violane
Years ago , one of my female friends asked me why I liked this CD, they told me that straight punk dudes weren't supposed to like the CT's.
But this CD sounds so good it's impossible for me to dislike. Production...how did you get that sound? I bought my first set of condenser microphones after hearing this record.
That's why I like it.

Talking Heads- Once in A Lifetime
Same as it ever was...


( For deep delving into the video vaults of the 1980's go directly here: the Eighties)
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The following morning found me back on-the-air, this time it's my weekly show:
THE NEW BREAKFAST SNOB

Steeleye Span- Blackleg Miner
Feeling like some Celtic beats this morning, this is a recent acquisition and it sets me up nicely.

Fairport Convention- The Way I Feel
This version of the Gordon Lightfoot song is wonderful. The way I feel is not.

Maire Brennan- Beating Heart
Does she mean 'beating heart' as in 'beating a baby seal to death with a baseball bat?'
I don't think so, but that's what I hear anyway.

Claanad- The Other Side
Maire Brennan is the lead singer for this group, which has several members with the surname Brennan. Like a family or something...more great production.

Pentangle - The Hunting Song
"Whoever said, 'the heart is a lonely hunter' should have their head stuffed and mounted above my mantelpiece."
-AB

Velvet Underground- Sunday Morning
Yes it is. This song, like the one before it, features bells. Bells trail off, bells lead in; it's an epic cross-fade.
A beautiful moment of transcendental DJ bliss. I wish someone else had heard it.

Damien Dempsey- The Jar Song
Damien Dempsey sings about getting drunk with the likes of Shane MacGowan...have one for me , boys!

The Kinks - Mr. Pleasant
Last week's listener request, filled too late- which sort of fits with the theme of the song...

Sweetwater- Crystal Spider
Look. I like trippy 60's bands with chick singers. I just do. OK? Sheesh...

The Pretty Things - October 26
If I wanted to/could I depend on you/...my friend?
And the guitar sadly shakes it's head and walks away.

Loreena McKennitt- Caravanserai
I want to be a Druid. Really, that's how good this is.

Tom Waits- Shake
If you bastards don't behave, Tom is gonna show up at your door with a gun totin' preacher, a pair of knife-wielding hookers and a wagon-full of hot tubes. Enough!

Eleanor McCovey- Whisper and Prayer
Haven't I heard this somewhere before? It all sounds familiar.

The Wipers- No One Wants an Alien
Yeah. I know that. I really do.

Jade Warrior- Three Horned Dragon King
This record has an op-art pinwheel on the label instead of a song list. When it spins, you get dizzy if you look at it. Groovy.

The Alan Parsons Project- The Raven
I feel a strong affinity with E. Allan Poe and I love Alan Parsons' production.
I should do an 'all-Allan' show one day...oh, nevermind. I did that last year.

The Stranglers- The Raven
I LOVE the Stranglers. A lot. Angry keypunk! And that bass has serious growls, like a hungry Tyrannosaurus, y'hear that?

King Crimson- Model Man
Look for the signs/ look for the symptoms...
Not a model man/not a saviour or a saint/imperfect in a word/make no mistake
but I/give you everything I have/ take me as I am ...

Dude.That and two bucks will get you a cup of coffee.

The Who - Faith in Something Bigger
Inside ourselves.

Motorhead- I Don't Believe a Word
Neither do I. I want to believe, but I don't. Sorry.

Robyn Hitchcock- Midnight Fish
This album is on opaque white vinyl. That makes it very difficult to see the groovy decay between the songs...it's a good thing that I'm an expert, otherwise playing this could be dangerous.

Television- Prove It
Or not. I already knew that.

Cop Shoot Cop - Two at a Time
Using up your lucky days two at a time...

Neil Young- Welfare Mothers
I really wanted to play this on Mother's Day- my mom had a wicked sense of humour and would have approved- she gave me this album!- but I decided to wait until today.
Neil shoulda got an award for bein' so gentle and extra-sensitive...dee- vorrrr-ceeee...

Be Bop Deluxe- Panic in the World
The more things change, the more they don't.

Capt. Beefheart- Crazy Little Thing
How'd ya get a name like Crazy Little Thing? Maybe it was the name that drove you crazy all along

Pere Ubu- Nobody Knows
Sure they do. They just don't care.

Jethro Tull- Teacher
Ah, there's slight problem with your term paper. You see, I Googled your subject- Franco's rebellion- and it appears that you just printed an entire article from Wikipedia.
Leaving the URL at the bottom of the printed page was a dead giveaway.
Still, I'm giving you a C-minus just so I don't have to look at your stupid face next year.

In Search of

Saturday becomes Sunday and I know it's going to be one of those nights.

There will be no sleeping. I have taken as many pills as I feel safe with and they haven't done anything.
I get out of bed at 3:30 AM and make coffee- not so strange considering that I usually get up at 5:30 on Sundays to do my show- when I turn on the radio I hear the same goddamned Mix Loop that was playing last week- it's what plays when the 3am-6am DJ doesn't show up. Drums n' Bass 180 BPM headache, I can't even shave with it playing, much less think.

Well, if I don't like what's on the radio, why don't I change it?
Good question!

I get dressed, grab some extra records and head to the station to do exactly that.


PART ONE- 5am - 6am:

Gong -Vive Gong, Gong est Mort - Sides A and D
I have some wiring to work on and it's much easier to work when there's no one else in the building- I put a record on each turntable and attempt to 'un-spaghetti' the cables behind the console. This is probably the best Gong record ever released, it's gets me into my zone.

Atomic Rooster W/ David Gilmour- Hold Your Fire
This isn't as good as I was hoping- I have a Pretty Things CD from around the same period (2001?) that also features Gilmour and he's not especially good on either one.
Oh well, it's 5:45 am and it sounds OK to me.

Cop Shoot Cop- Last Legs
I love this band. This is not a very nice song. Too bad.

Hawkwind -Master of the Universe
I think this is the first song that I ever learned how to play on bass. One of my bands used to do a cover of this and I was always too stoned to recall the lyrics, which was OK - "the winds of time are blowing through me/It's all a figment of my mind", it always worked out somehow. We used to play at parties in Park City,Utah - mushroom tea was served at the door, so we could be a little sloppy, if you know what I mean.

Billie Holiday- Lady Sings the Blues/Come Rain or Come Shine
I love Billie, but have a hard time working her into my regular show. There's a Gospel DJ coming in at 6AM, so I start toning it down with that it mind.

Anuna - Invocation
This Celtic choral ensemble are the second-closest thing to Gospel that I ever play...Hawkwind's Live- Space Ritual being the closest. (That and Aretha Franklin)

The 6 o'clock guy is here now:

"Dude! What are you doing here? Was that you playing all that space-warp music?"

"Well, I took a couple Ambien, went to sleep and when I woke up , I was here, playing records."

This is true- except for the sleeping part. I drive to a 24 hour pancake joint and have breakfast during my one-hour intermission. Mmmmaple syrup...mmmmaple syrup...
I'm tired.
Can I get two large coffees to go?

What, you don't have large cups?

Make that four coffees to go then.


PART TWO:
Spoon- Believing is Art
If there is Spoon that I don't like, I haven't heard it yet. The title of this track says it all.

Thin Lizzy -Johnny
This is what happens when I have too much time on my hands...there is exactly ONE person that knows why I'm playing this song. I'm hoping that they are in the audience, thinking: " He is playing it just for me!", because in this case, it's true. Plus I like Phil Lynott, he's seriously under-rated. Irish rockers rule!

10 CC- Worst Band in the World
Godley and Creme make me laugh...but they weren't even close to being the worst band in the world.

Uriah Heep- Roller
This is as close to the worst band in the world as I feel like getting. They aren't the worst, but 10CC was better.

Funkadelic- Cosmic Slop
Oh man, I was watching an interview with Bootsy Collins, he was talking about playing with James Brown and how you gotta get it on the 'one'- ONE 2,3,4 -ONE, 2,3,4...this, for me, is a very suitable Mother's Day song.
"I can hear my mama call, I can hear my mama call"

Ray Manzarek- Bicentennial Blues (Love it or Laeve it)
This is starting to become my favorite album of all-time. I bought it thirty years ago and it just keeps getting better. At the end of this song, Ray slips the organ riff from "Light My Fire" into the vamping...did he used to play in some famous band?
(You may gaze upon the fish-eyed majesty of Ray Manzarek's superlative sideburns here)
"Guess I'd better get out"

King Crimson- Heartbeat
I saw this tour. It was awesome...the contrast in style between Fripp and Belew was a joy to behold- Fripp sitting on a stool, staring at his floor pedals; Belew up front , whanging his twanger...ahhh, you shoulda been there.

Fiona Joyce- Cry Over You
I wrote about this song last week. Today, it reminds me of someone that I used to know.
No more tears, but I wonder: where are you?
People are looking for you.

Led Zeppelin- Ten Years Gone
Ten Years After-Once There Was a Time
For Mom.


The Wipers- Window Shop For Love
"I feel like a piece of cold ice forming inside a chamber of lost illusions...maybe the ground below will ease the pain- a perfect landing might just ease the pain, ease the pain, ease the pain...loneliness is such a drag"
Next Valentine's Day, I'm putting this song on a loop and playing it for 24 hours. Actually, I probably won't do that, but there was a time when I would have.

Hey, I left my Gmail chat open and one of my favorite bloggers (semi-retired) has tuned in!

"Play Misty for me", she asks, a request that I cheerfuly deny. I don't have the Kinks song she wants either- I usually do, but not today dammit!- but I must admit being called 'Mr. Fantasy' is kinda sweet.
I'll find something for ya...doing dishes, are we?
Gotta find something bouncy...

Joe Jackson- Sunday Papers
Oh yeah! Bouncy, subversive and it mentions Sunday. This could be my show's theme song!

XTC- My Weapon
I have no idea what this song is about.

Bill Nelson's Red Noise- Substitute Flesh
Does this relate to the preceding song or the one following? I don't know what it's about either. The word 'penetration' is used a lot.

The Kinks- Artificial Man
Need Kinks? I got Kinks.

Jethro Tull- Too Old To Rock& Roll, Too Young To Die
Yeah, I used to think that too.

Frank Zappa/Capt. Beefheart- Carolina Hardcore Ecstasy
This song makes me think about The Liberator.
"She put a Doobie Brothers tape on/ I had a Roger Daltrey cape on"

Flaming Groovies- Teenage Head
One of the best rock and roll records of all time.

Eleni Mandell- Dreamboat
If Tom Waits was a female punk rock caberet torch singer, he might sound like Eleni Mandell.

Eleanor Shanley- Road To Glory
Did you know Dublin was founded by Vikings? It was.

Nina Hagen - White Punks On Dope
Pure guilty pleasure- a Teutonic Tubes Tantrum! I love this! I think I'm the only one who does, but it's my show. Suffer! Love that guitar at the end...

Gary Numan- Film
Gary was singing about YouTube before it existed. Gary was way ahead of his time.

Wire- Ambitous
Wire were way ahead of their time.

Damien Dempsey- Celtic Tiger
Damien, where are my CD's? I wrote such a nice letter...well, if he won't send them to me for free, I'll buy them. New and at the 'import' price. I like the guy's work that much.

Paw- Seasoned Glove
I finish my Mother's Day show with a song about the world's worst father. Mom would be proud.

Saved By The Bell

The robots have taken control of the station. In the movies there's always a kid genius who hacks into the network and saves the day at the last minute. Where is that kid now? I ain't him.

Band De Soleil- Woman on the Floor
This song is twelve minutes long, which makes it a great one for playing when things are breaking down.
Michelle Malone makes her guitar weep in the language of wah and I wish I could play this song louder but I'm busy troubleshooting...I'm forced to call outside help and that is not something I am used to doing or enjoy much. A phone call is made and order is restored during D. Bigay's drum solo. Anyway, I'm listening to it now because I missed it on Sunday.

Replacements - Kick Your Door Down
Having to deal with misbehaving computers at 6:30 am pisses me off and makes me wanna play my punk rock records. "Your radio is playing way too loud and it don't sound like me!"
Goddammit, it should sound like me! Turn that shit UP.

The Kinks- This is Where I Belong
I need this song to help get me back in the here. It's not long enough. Close.

Pretty Things- Passion of Love
This isn't even the song I wanted to play. I wanted to play Not Givin' In...fuck, this new song sounds like the Pretties circa 1965- not 2000ish. I liked them best in 1968-1971.

Jefferson Airplane- Feel So Good
This is from an Airplane LP but it's really just Hot Tuna in disguise. Go, Jorma, go!

Television- Friction
Many years ago, the bar I worked at had enough musicians employed to form a cover band for the X-mas party. One of the other guitarists chose this song- I was just a beginner and the guy gave me a copy of the LP Marquee Moon. I was advised to listen. I did. I still have that LP. Just played it...
"I start to spin the tale/ you complain of my dick -shun/
You give me friction/F-R-I-C-T-I-O-N"
(thank you Billy- wherever you are)

Lou Reed - Nowhere at All
I'm still in a sour mood and need this sort of song to settle me down by pumping me up- I goddamn love Lou Reed..."somebody's got to help me".

Damien Dempsey- Marching Season
Am I the only American who knows who this guy is? He's fookin' great and if you have an 8am mad-on at the world, then this is the perfect song for you. Honk!

Jethro Tull- Acres Wild
Today I skipped work and got a copy of my birth certificate, which is required to obtain a passport, which I will need if I ever want to see what Ian Anderson is singing about. And I do.

Clannad- Struggle
Isn't it a struggle? Of course it is. So what? Play on.

Fairport Convention- Walk Awhile
Tomorrow my car goes into the garage for inspection and a (hopefully) minor repair.

The Stranglers- Who Wants the World?
Fuck, I don't know. I live inside my head.

Manzanera/Eno/801 Live- Miss Shapiro/ You Really Got Me
One of the best unknown live albums ever.Brian Eno singing the Kinks...this came out before that Van Halen silliness.

Gentle Giant- As Old As You're Young
Are you as old as you seem? You are? Excellent.

Genesis- Lilywhite Lilith
"The chamber was in confusion.." are the first words to this song- it's what I thought of when I walked into the studio this morning- took me a while to get it cued, but the fade segued perfectly into the chanting at the beginning of the next song, an accident of fortune, or something more?

Loreena McKinnett- The Mystic's Dream
Gorgeous. Calms me down, gotta make some announcements...let's pick up the pace.

Chris Spedding- Breakout
"When the music breakout..." Doin' the slow-pogo (slogo) around the booth, don't wanna make the record skip..."we've been psychedelicized/ we've had our booties re-fried"

Joe Strummer- Get Down Moses
This is on CD so I can jump up and down as much as I want to, which is a lot.

Hawkwind- D Rider
Whoa...I can still feel the acid I took back in 1984...this album was old then. Being able to play this on the air is a truly sublime thrill for me.

Can - Dizzy Dizzy
Yeah, back to my theme of spontaneous disorientation...man, I just can't quite click. My clever ad libs turn to gibberish- luckily, it all makes sense in the context of Can.

Steve Hillage- Unidentified Flying Being
Gong- I Never Glid Before
Steve's a saucer nut and Gong have an entire mythology of their own, complete with Pot-Head Pixies and Teapot Taxis so pretty much anything I say about them sounds crazy...in a very good way. Steve Hillage was THE Gong guitarist...Alan Holdsworth might've been the better player, but Hillage had the sound. I'll take the sound.

Klaatu- Calling Occupants...
What the hell made me play this? I remember someone telling me this band was the Beatles in disguise...turns out it was some studio hacks from Canada. I think that Captain and Tennille or maybe the Carpenters (or both?) covered this song. No matter who played it, it's annoying the shit out of me.

Blue Oyster Cult- Kick Out The Jams
Dammit, this is more like it! Sure wish I still had my MC5 vinyl.

Be-Bop Deluxe- No Train to Heaven
Bill Nelson is so, like, totally underrated...he's tried all sorts of styles- even wearing makeup like Bowie- but nothing hides the fact that he's a guitar nut at heart. Dude likes to solo- as well he should.

Bob Dylan- Long Distance Operator
PJ Harvey- Send His Love To me
You either get this or you don't. I'm hoping that you do.

Talking Heads- Paper
I think this song is about my friend X's new dog and his attempts at house-breaking it.
"don't think I can get it- on the paper/ don't think I can fit it - on the paper"
Dude. Some things they pass right through.

Anyway, my show was a mess and I left feeling all scrambled,it was only 9AM, but it set my tone, so to speak...I was in a jumbled funk all day. I played guitar, tried to blog, took a long walk...nothing helped. It was just one of those long, useless days.

This feeling carried over into this morning. I just couldn't function at all.

I could barely manage to call in sick.

When I hung up, I felt better. I really do think my (paying) job is very bad for my mental health...hanging in for now...anyway, I didn't want to waste today. Yesterday was bad enough.

One of the good/bad things about being a (unpaid) DJ/Programmer is having to review CD's. We get a LOT of CDs at the station and someone has to listen to them, evaluate the songs and make suggestions (if any) on what to play. Sometimes this is great fun and sometimes it is sheer torture, but it needs doing.

I think I'm the only DJ we have that delves into Celtic music, so I wound up with a stack of "Celtic Journeys" CD's in my box. Hmmm...stock photography on the covers, looks like it's being marketed to New Age Soccer Moms, this doesn't look like it's going to make my goat float, if you know what I mean.

Surprisingly, I was able to find at least one decent song on each CD- except the one called "An Instrumental Journey" , which, were it a screenplay, would likely be written by Alan Smithee. In the UK, an elevator is referred to as a "lift". That CD is "lift" music. Ugh.

One CD featured a song called Cry Over You by Fiona Joyce, whom I had never heard of
before. It's the last track on the last CD I reviewed and it made the whole ordeal worthwhile.
Ms. Joyce is a beautiful singer and this song is a heart-breaker for sure, but what really turned me on- what made me save the song as a .wav file and not as an mp3- was the sound of the cymbals, the uncredited drummer's touch on the bell of the cymbal is captured perfectly, changing just so , following the words...a drum machine can't do that.

Beautiful.

It was worth listening to four hours of Druid Muzak to get to that bell. That bell was ringing for me.
I needed it and there it was.

Magic.