June 29, 2009 - No Show!

I was all set to go tonight. I had the second edition of "girl songs" all cued up and ready to go, but I'll just have to wait until next week. John (see photo) was forced to cancel tonight's show, so everything is put on hold until next week. To save myself some work, I will probably use the same songs next week, so check back in a week to see what gets played.

And finally, I wanted to say Happy Birthday Russ. I would have said it on the air, but this will have to do. Hope you enjoyed it!

June 22, 2009 - Heading back up north

On Saturday night, June 20th, I finally got to see the BB's play live. I spent the evening with my friends Kirsten and Kevin hanging out, watching the band and generally having a good time. All the pictures for this entry and for last week's entry were taken at that show. Lou, Ron and Dave did a great job. The reggae version of Sweet Home Alabama was definitely a crowd pleaser, as was Folsom Prison Blues and Enter Sandman. Fortunately, they played several originals, including Happy Guy, Save Myself, Take it, Time and Point of View(or was that fish?). Hearing the originals made me VERY happy.


On Monday it was back to the studio on my way back home. Since I was there, that meant technical problems, which culminated in John conducting his interview with Richard X. Heyman without going through the board. He called RXH on his cell phone and then held the phone up to his microphone. High Quality stuff! During the interview, John played 5 songs from Richard X. Heyman. Those songs were:

Pauline
Kenyon Walls
Oh Johnny Oh!
Civil War Buff
12 Bars And I Still Have The Blues


For my segment, I didn't really have anything prepared. When I got to John's place, about 2 hours before showtime, I went through the cd's that I had with me for the trip and picked out a bunch of songs to play. Since I didn't have any cd booklets with me, most of the songs were chosen because the cd had the songs listed on the disc. I played some new stuff, some old stuff, some stuff from my regular bands and a couple obscure tracks from big time acts. Here is the playlist for the show.


The Bears - Life In A Nutshell
The BB's with Adrian Belew - Happy Guy
The Van DeLeckie's - ...it's I'm About You Now
Hedwig And The Angry Inch Original Cast - The Origin Of Love
The Knack - Africa
Ruth Ruth - Turning To Eva
All - Dot
The Tubes - Sushi Girl
Todd Rundgren - Bread
Jamie Hoover - Forgive And Forget
Beat Farmers - Texas
Gutterball - One By One

Next week I finally get to do the show from the comfort of my own home again. It's been awhile since that has happened. I know Evil Demented Bunny will be happy to have me back online next week during the show. I think I may revisit the "girls" theme from last month, since I have plenty of leftovers.


I'd also like to thank Lou Luca for putting me up (and putting up with me) for a week at his house. I had a great time! I also want to thank Kevin and Kirsten Tapee for staying out late with me on Saturday night watching the BB's. I know you enjoyed the band as much as I did. And finally to Lou, Ron and Dave, for putting on a great show. You guys ROCKED! Hopefully I'll get back down to Florida to see you guys play again.

June 15, 2009 - Passing through Fairfax

It was back to the studio for me again this week. Since I was heading back down to Florida for the week, I decided to stop in Virginia on the way down. I’ll also be in studio next Monday on my way back home. By then, I figure John will be as sick of me as I am of him…….just kidding…..


Anyway, on to the show! John’s original guest for this week was to be Richard X. Heyman, but he had to postpone for a week. Instead of RXH, John booked the local band HeLO, but unfortunately, they also had to cancel. That meant that there would be no guest at all. We had our usual “banter” throughout the show but music-wise, John played his stuff and then I played mine.


At one point, I was complaining about John choice of songs putting me to sleep. I told him that we needed to WAKE UP, which gave me the idea to start my segment with the XTC song Wake Up, which I hadn’t planned on playing. Around 8:20 or so, John threw me a bone and played three songs that he wouldn’t have known about if not for me. Those songs were:

The BB’s – Save Myself
Richard X. Heyman – Kenyon Walls
Richard X. Heyman – Everywhere She Goes


The last song John played was I Want You (That Thing You Do) by The Wonders, from the soundtrack to the film, That Thing You Do. Then at 9:10pm, he played the “Donohue Theme Song” (which was done by playing it from his laptop through headphones, and then holding the headphones up to the microphone) and turned the music over to me. My original goal was to only play music that I had picked up in the last couple weeks, but that changed slightly by the time the show started. Here is what I played:

XTC – Wake Up
Tinted Windows – Messing With My Head
The Solarflares – Girl In A Briefcase
The Sherbs – We Ride Tonight
The A’s – A Woman’s Got The Power
Marshall Crenshaw – Gasoline Baby
Peter Holsapple & Chris Stamey – Here And Now
Beatnik Beatch – Beatnik Beatch
The Fire Marshals Of Bethlehem – State Fair
The Smithereens – It’s A Boy
The Smithereens – You Can’t Do That


When I started playing We Ride Tonight, by The Sherbs, John’s jaw dropped and he said “Is this that song that goes…Because The Ride Has Just Begun”. I told him yes, that was the song. He then said that he had been looking for this song for about 20 years and can’t believe that I was playing it on the show. Needless to say, that cd was left for the week in Virginia, so John would have a week to listen to it over and over and over.


I am spending this week in Jacksonville. On Saturday night I’m finally going to get a chance to see The BB’s play live (it’s about time!). By next Monday, my vacation will be just about over and I will be back in the studio with John again. The guest will be Richard X. Heyman. It should be a very interesting interview and I’m definitely looking forward to it.

June 8, 2009- Don Dixon.....This is your life!

On this show, John interviewed one of my favorite musicians, Don Dixon. Don was a member of the band Arrogance for 13 years then went solo, had an "MTV hit" with Praying Mantis in the mid-80's, and is a well known producer, having produced REM, The Smithereens, Guadalcanal Diary, Moxy Fruvous, Tommy Keene, Matthew Sweet, The Reivers and many many more!

I've seen Dixon perform several times, most recently with Arrogance back in March. Last year I saw him with his band The Jump Rabbits (Jamie Hoover and Jim Brock) and I saw him a couple times at the Bottom Line back in the 90's (along with his wife Marti Jones). His album Romeo At Julliard is one of my all-time favorite albums and several of the albums he's produced are right up there on my best-of lists. I've been looking forward to this interview ever since John told me about it, which was right after I basically forced him to go see Don and The Jump Rabbits at Jammin Java back in April. I'm pretty sure John does not regret going to that show.


Unfortunately, I missed most of the interview because I had a softball game in NYC (we won). I got home in time to hear the very end of the interview. Fortunately John was able to send me a link so I could listen to the interview this morning. If you missed it, it was a very good interview. Great insights, great stories and a very interesting guy.

Because I was late getting home, and the Dixon interview was so good it ran over, I didn't go on until almost 9:30, but John didn't feel like leaving the station. So we ended up going until 11pm, which gave me an hour and a half to play 18 songs!

These are the songs John played before and during the Dixon interview:
Guadalcanal Diary - Lips Of Steel
The Smithereens - Elaine
The Reivers - In Your Eyes
Don Dixon - Praying Mantis
Marti Jones & Don Dixon - Love Is An Ocean
Don Dixon - 300 Pounds Of Joy
Don Dixon - Kitchen

And this is what we played after the interview
Guadalcanal Diary - Litany (Life Goes On)
The Smithereens - Crazy Mixed-Up Kid
The Smithereens - Hand Of Glory
Dumptruck - Alone
The Spongetones - Where-Ever Land
Moxy Fruvous - Splatter, Splatter
The Hang Ups - Blue Sky
The Connells - Dial It
The Reivers - Saturday
Marti Jones - Any Kind Of Lie
Richard Barone - Something Happens
R.E.M. - Letter Never Sent
Tommy Keene - Faith In Love
Marshall Crenshaw - Calling Out For Love (At Crying Time)
Don Dixon - Heart In A Box
Let's Active - Co-Star
Marti Jones - Songs To Aging Children Come
The Smithereens - White Castle Blues


That's a total of 25 songs, all produced by Don Dixon. Not bad at all! Richard X. Heyman was supposed to be the guest next week but he had to postpone until June 22nd. So instead of RXH, local DC area band HeLO will be John's guest next Monday. It's still too early for me to know what I'll be playing next week but I'll figure it out.

June 1st - The First Anniversary Show

I can't believe it's been a year already. On May 19, 2008, the very first Donohue's Music Den segment aired on Independents Uncovered. When it started, I was supposed to play three songs per week, say a little bit about the songs and then get off the air. Somehow it has mutated into what it has become today. The three songs I played on that very first show were Point Of View by The BB's, Concubine by Julia Greenberg and Hope It Works Out by Psychodots. Each of those acts are still a big part of this show. In fact, Ron and Lou from the BB's and Chris Arduser from Psychodots have been on the show and we hope to get Bob and Rob from Psychodots on the show in the near future.


For my first anniversary, John was kind enough to give me the whole show (well, the whole show except for one song that he wanted to play). I made the journey down to Fairfax, Va on Monday afternoon. I got to John's place, had a bite to eat and a couple drinks and we were off to the station. I had decided to split the two and a half hours into 3 different segments. The first, from 7:30-8:00 would be nothing but cover songs. From 8-9pm I would be playing music from my past. The mid-90's NYC music scene that I was involved in (aka the Paul & Amy years). Then from 9-10pm I had a special surprise followed by music from bands that I tend to play a lot on the show.


In addition to everything else, Lou Luca and Ron Cianciaruso each recorded a special little anniversary song for me. John went a little overboard and played Lou's song FIVE times during the night, but it means so much to me to have such great friends who have now immortalized me in song several times. Thanks Lou! Thanks Ron! You have no idea how touched I am by that. Anyway, here is what I ended up playing on Monday:


Cover Songs
The Connells - I Got You (Split Enz)
Material Issue - Bus Stop (The Hollies)
The Knack - That Thing You Do (The Wonders)
Adrian Belew - If I Fell (The Beatles)
Richard Thompson - Oop! I Did It Again (Britney Spears)
Bill Lloyd - Picture Book (The Kinks)
Material Issue - I'd Wait A Million Years (The Grass Roots)


My Misspent Youth
Grummer - Ah, Maria
Cheater - The Long Grift (live)
Valentine Smith - Back On Earth
Bloodsugar - Dream In Blue
Joan Osborne - His Eyes Are A Blue Million Miles
Julia Greenberg - Stars
Hedwig And The Angry Inch - Random Number Generation (Miriam Shor on vocals)
Valentine Smith - Ahead Of Her Time
Grummer - The Motivator
Trusty - Serendipity
Cheater - The Hours And Times


The Rest
The BB's - Save Myself
The Bears - Veneer
Psychodots - Terminal Blvd.
Steve Wynn & The Dragon Bridge Orchestra - That's What You Always Say
Morphine - Candy
The Strike Nineteens - Screams For Denver (John's selection)
Hoodoo Gurus - I Want You Back
Moxy Fruvous - Johnny Saucep'n
The Red Button - Hopes Up
Bob Mould - See A Little Light
Jamie Hoover & Bill Lloyd - Show And Tell The World
Treat Her Right - I Think She Likes Me


I sat next to Paul Rosselli at work from 1992-1995 and he exposed me to so much good music in that period that I can't do enough to thank him. In addition to his day job, he managed Joan Osborne and Cheater and also worked with Valentine Smith and Bloodsugar along with Amy Siegel. From May 1993 to February 1999 I saw Cheater play close to 50 times and they were a big part of my life at the time. I was there when they played to 4 people. I was there when they decided to change their name to Manwich (and quickly changed back to Cheater). I was there when they played Origin Of Love for the first time. I was there for the beginnings of Hedwig and The Angry Inch. They were they guys that made me realize that I NEED live music in my life and that I need to have a band that I can always go see when I need that fix. Right now that band is Frantic!, but back then it was Cheater.


I want to thank everyone who made my anniversary show such a success. The evening started with Dave McKinley calling the station because he was having trouble getting the feed to load. It was GREAT talking to you, Dave. Later on, we tricked Lou Luca into going on the air and talking about the BB's song Save Myself. He had absolutely NO IDEA that he was going on the air. Sorry for blindsiding you Lou, but it was the only way to actually get you on the air.


I also want to thank all the musicians from my past, present and future: Scott Bilbrey, Dave McKinley, Stephen Trask, Chris Weilding (and Jack Slack-may he rest in peace), Bill McGarvey, Stephen Dima, Brad Finkel, Wilbur Jones, Lorenza Ponce, Claudia Chopek, Ann Klein, Laura McDonald, KB Breitenfeld, Julia Greenberg, Miriam Shor, Joan Osborne, Ron Cianciaruso and Lou Luca. And I can't forget Paul Rosselli and Amy Siegel. This couldn't have happened without you.


I also want to thank all the regular listeners and followers, Lizzie Bratko, Evil Demented Bunny, Peter Coia, Barbara Damon, Rudy Garcia, Tam Barlow, my parents, my siblings and all my other friends out there. And one final HUGE Thank you to Rich Tully for digging up all the Cheater (and Bloodsugar) pictures that are used here. These photos were taken between 1993 and 1997 and seeing them again brought back so many memories.


I'm looking forward to year two and the surprises and great guests that it will bring. Don Dixon will be John's guest next week so my playlist for the week will include artists that he has produced through the years. I hope you can tune in!