Context? CXXXII

Heard recently: Before a break, an announcer said, "In a moment, music from a precocious teenager."

"Thanks for the chance to switch stations," I thought.

FM dial scan highlights CLXX

Five recommended tunes heard today:

KDHX 88.1 FM

• Live Life Free (Live)-The New Mastersounds (Good lyrics about being true to oneself set to an infectious dance rhythm.  This would segue well with "El Nino" by The Sound Stylistics.)
• Baby Face (Live)-The Arcadia Dance Orchestra (Credit to this ensemble for replicating a brassy sound and vocal style from 95 years ago.)

WSIE 88.7 FM

• If I Could-Seal & Joni Mitchell (A strong vocal harmony pairing; this must sound breathtaking in surround sound.)
• Pleased To Meet You-Vincent Varvel (This is a great way to straddle the line between folk guitar and jazz guitar.)

KCLC 89.1 FM

• Amoeba-Clairo (Compellingly written, sung, and produced; an effective combination of lyrics about questioning one's priorities and a dance beat.)

Online radio sampler highlights CXLVIII

Seven noteworthy tunes heard this morning:

KHEN (Salida, CO)

• Searching-Skadi (Rhythmically, Seamus Egan's "Along The Way" or Hem's "Gently Down The Stream" would sound right before this.  Powerful guitar and piano augment the vocals.)
• Anniversary-Roger Green (A celestial odyssey for guitar.)

KXRW (Vancouver, WA)

• Ready To Go-Republica (I imagine a lot of drivers fight the urge to drive too fast when this song comes on; zooming down a road as though you're invincible is one ill-advised way to keep up with the tune's energy.)

WCLK (Atlanta, GA)

• I Didn't Know What Time It Was-Cyrus Chestnut (This Rodgers & Hart standard works well as a expansive piano solo.)
• Sun's Out-Carol Albert (This piano instrumental pulls off the interesting feat of sounding guardedly optimistic and simultaneously foreboding.)

WMNH (Manchester, NH)

• I Dreamed Last Night-Justin Hayward & John Lodge (I was pleasantly surprised to hear any station play a track from the "Blue Jays" album; this side project by two Moody Blues members is generally overlooked.  If you like the plaintive, thoughtful lyrics of various Moody Blues tracks, you'll likely enjoy this, as well.  Also recommended: "Blue Guitar.")

WXCS (Cambridge Springs, PA)

• Play By Your Own Rules-Sam Bush (Good lyrics about being strong and skeptical, when necessary, while still remaining compassionate.)

Best to watch the levels

Twice in recent weeks, I've heard two radio stations whose music was turned up too high on the sound board. The vocals were muddy and distorted, as a result.  I wondered if the DJs would have taken the hint if I'd called those stations and said, "Modulate!"

That would have been impolite, however, so I didn't make those calls.  I wonder how long the music stayed distorted.

KCOU (Demo tape) playlist flashback: 5-6 a.m., 10/3/91

On this morning 30 years ago, I recorded my on-air demo tape for KCOU.  I programmed the last hour of music and was the DJ for the last hour of a 2-6 a.m. shift.  The DJ during that shift had played a lot of rap music, which contained lyrics such as, "F&*$ the mother#&*$ers in the house, oh yeah!"  I didn't continue that trend.  I attempted to balance my sensibilities with those of the listeners, while making sure to play the requisite number of current tracks.  This was my playlist:

  1.  Pain & Pleasure-The Snapdragons  (I thought I should start with something uptempo, although I thought the rhyme scheme of the chorus was somewhat forced.  For the first two tracks, I was programming with the listener in mind instead of myself.  I'm pretty sure this was only time I ever played this song...)

  2.  Dis---land (Was Made For You & Me)-Timbuk 3 (...or this one.)

  3.  I Need Someone-The Sneetches ("Let's end this set with a tune I like," I thought.  This is still some of the catchiest power pop I've ever heard.  The opening guitar hook is still one of my favorites and the vocals practically command the listener to join in.  Also recommended: "Only For A Moment," "Stranger Things," and the band's cover with Shoes of the Raspberries tune, "I Wanna Be With You.")

  4.  Life Ain't Nothing But A Party-B.B. King (Another objective for my demo tape was not to just play an hour's worth of thrashing alt rock guitar and vocals.  I knew this blues tune from having checked it out years earlier from the library back home, so I knew what to expect...)

  5.  Bye Bye Blackbird-Miles Davis (I was definitely going to play KCOU's featured artist of the week during my hour.  It hadn't been a full week since one of the most influential jazz trumpeters in history had passed away, so I was definitely going to honor his memory with one of his classiest renditions.)

  6.  School Days (Live)-Stanley Clarke (I was also determined to play this memorable jazz bass riff on the air, even if I had to shoehorn it in.)

  7.  Girl In Room 12-The Smithereens (The Smithereens are a reliable choice for any rock-heavy, guitar-heavy station.)

  8.  The Silence Of The Sirens-The Cakekitchen (Distinctive lead vocals and quiet instrumentation bring the volume down and make this an appropriate but not obvious segue with "Girl In Room 12.")

  9.  Hypnotized-Fleetwood Mac (This was another case of being determined to play I song I like.  The drums, bass, and guitar set an effectively spooky mood right from the first beat.  This was one of Bob Welch's best songs.)

10.  One Toke Over The Line-Brewer & Shipley (Since I played Fleetwood Mac, I reasoned, "Why not play a sing-along album rock track that most listeners know?"  The 6-9 a.m. DJ arrived while I was playing this.  I knew I'd made the right song choice when she started singing along, "Sittin' downtown in a railway station...")

11.  Lowdown Man-Havana Black (I'm drawing a blank here.  Of the 12 songs I played, I don't really remember this one.)

12.  Out That Door-Hoodoo Gurus (A logical choice for the end of a radio shift...)

Apparently, I'd made the right song choices and sounded confident enough as a DJ.  The chief announcer rode by on his bicycle while I was standing in front of the music building a few days later and said, "You're ready to go on the air."  I did a weekly 6-9 a.m. shift for the rest of that semester.  Thus began a great two years at an enjoyable radio station with many interesting people.  At 6 a.m. on this day 30 years ago, I thought, "Few people heard it, I'm sure, but I made it through an hour on-air at a real radio station.  I love choosing the music I play and being on the air.  This is definitely for me."  I'm sure many other college and noncommercial DJs have had that same feeling of elation, as well.

Context? CXXXI

I heard one of the most effective radio public service announcements recently.  Its tag line: "If they can find their presents, they can find a gun."  If that doesn't convince parents of the danger in having guns where kids can find them, I'm not sure what would.

Online radio sampler highlights CXLVII

Friday morning standouts:

KQAL (Winona, MN)

• Prime Time-The Tubes (This firmly lodged in 1979 track reminds me somewhat of Blondie.  This is one of the better examples of female/male call and response vocals.  I'm surprised this wasn't a hit and wish I'd thought to play it on KCOU.)

WARR (Warrenton, NC)

• Send Me, I'll Go-The Canton Spirituals (An illustration of unwavering faith and strong vocals.)

WBGO (Newark, NJ)

• Quicksilver-Horace Silver (Energetic piano, bass, and drums.)

WIIT (Chicago, IL)

• Talk About It-Jungle (This propulsive 2021 dance groove demands the listener's attention; presumably, it's a staple track at clubs.  This is how you blend multiple eras while still sounding contemporary.)

WKSU (Kent, OH)

• Agustin Barrios: Madrigal (Berta Rojas, guitar) (A tenderly played, immediately accessible melody.)

WTMD (Towson, MD)

• Sunshine-Grant Swift (The rhythm of this catchy June indie rock release drew me right in.  Lyrically, it's a good reminder that just because you might fail at something, you can still approach it with a positive attitude.)

WUMB (Boston, MA)

• Perch-less Bird-Heather Maloney (A new vocally and instrumentally well-crafted singer-songwriter release with a bit of a Classical touch.  This is a lyrically direct way of recognizing that a relationship has reached its end.)
• Where I'll Find You-Joan Shelley (A classy, low-key folk/country charmer; lyrically, it's a heartwarming way to say, "I want to be with you.")