April 26, 2010 - A weekend spent with John!

I was not in the studio for Monday night's show but I could have been. John and I had a "music weekend" and if I could have taken another night on the uncomfortable futon, I would have stayed for the show. Instead I opted for my own bed and doing the show from the comfort of my own house. So, how was the weekend?


I drove down to Virginia on Thursday afternoon. That night we went to see Adrian Belew at Jammin' Java. It was a solo electric show and the 1st night of the mini tour. He was using a new rig for the first time and had many problems with it. I found the "experimental" feeling of the evening refreshing. I enjoyed myself and loved that he was surrounded on the stage by a bunch of his painting. John, on the other hand, didn't really enjoy himself. But that is the main difference between the two of us. After the show, we spoke to Adrian, who is always a great guy to talk to. John asked him to be on the show and he agreed. I showed him the wallpaper on my phone which is the Adidas In Heat painting and explained to him why I have it. He told me that he's very happy that painting found a good home because it was always one of his favorites. Very cool and Lou was thrilled to hear that!


The next day we drove down to Charlotte, NC to meet up with Jamie Hoover and Steve Stoeckel of The Spongetones (and Jamie & Steve). There were a couple mixups about what time we were meeting and where we were meeting, but in the end it all worked out. We met them at Jamie's house and recorded them there. The interview lasted a little over an hour and they played seven songs. It was AMAZING to be sitting there watching Jamie & Steve perform just for us and to be sitting 5 feet from them. Definitely a musical highlight for me. Thanks guys! You were awesome!


As we were leaving, we asked them where to go to see some good live music. They said they were going to see Chad & Jeremy at a theater in Shelby, NC on Saturday and we should join them. That was enough for John. We were definitely going. I don't think John had any idea who Chad & Jeremy were, but since he was born after they broke up, I guess that is understandable. As a music junkie and someone with 6 older siblings, I of course remember them. I also remember them from Their appearnaces on The Dick Van Dyke Show, The Patty Duke Show and Batman! The concert was a lot of fun and it was nice hanging out with Jamie, Steve and Steve's wife. I just wish we'd gotten a picture of the 1974 Pete Rose Clone that was in the audience.


On Sunday it was back to Virginia and nothing but relaxing. My good friends from the band Frantic! had a webcast on Sunday night from Bardi's in Pequannock, NJ. Since I had nothing else to do (and John was already asleep because he had to work Monday), I got to watch their webcest. They are a classic rock cover band and very good at what they do. They played six songs and it was a nice way to end the evening.


By Monday, I'd had enough, so I went back home and prepared for the show. John's guests were Soren & John from the band HELO. They went on after me and Soren embarassed himself when he used the "s" word. They were just there to talk. No live music this time. But HELo is a good band. Check em out www.helotheband.com.
Anyway, it's finally time to list what I played on this week's show. Here goes:


Crenshaw, Dixon, Hoover & Lloyd - Show And Tell The World
The Spongetones - Pick That Up For A Song
The Dukes Of Stratosphear - Vanishing Girl
Rick Springfield - Jessie's Girl
Richard & Linda Thompson - Don't Renege On Our Love
Love Sculpture - In The Land Of The Few
The Dead Weather - I Cut Like A Buffalo
Black Rebel Motorcycle Club - Ain't No Easy Way
Robert Pollard - Newly Selected Dirt Spots
Sloan - I'm Not A Kid Anymore

Jessie's Girl and Don't Renege On Our Love were played because both songs came up during the Jamie & Steve interview. To hear what they have to say, you'll have to wait until the Independent's Uncovered website is up and running. When it is, the interview will be posted there. I originally had plans for next Monday and was going to miss the show. But those plans were changed to Tuesday, so I'll be there on Monday. See you then!

April 19, 2010 - Some of This......Some of That

I had a few songs left over from the "best of 2009" shows, but I decided to leave those for a couple weeks and do something else. Instead, I turned on my laptop and grabbed some music that I had on there but wasn't on my other pc. There was a lot more to choose from than I thought there would be.


John's guest was Cindy Wheeler of The Caulfield Sisters. In the 90's she was in the band Pee Shy. I saw The Caulfield Sisters with John last October and they were great! The interview aired after my segment. My segment included these songs:


The Red Button - Cruel Girl
The Spongetones - Don't Bother Me
Eddie Money - When I Come Around
Petra Haden - Odorono
Squeeze - Heartbreak
The Sherbs - I Have The Skill
The Good Rats - Victory In Space
Jeff Beck - Beck's Bolero
Steve Morse & Dave LaRue - Point Counterpoint
Fatima Mansions - A Pack Of Lies


Eddie Money covering Green Day was something that I had to play. He recently recorded two ep's of covers, where he covers Green Day, The Beatles, The Doors, AC/DC, The Four Tops, The Spencer Davis Group and Train. Petra Haden has been played on the show before. Several years ago. she recorded an a capella version of The Who Sell Out.


John really liked the a8coustic Steve Morse instrumental. That version came from a show I saw at The Bottom Line back in 1992. It was a great show. Barbara Ryan enjoyed hearing Beck's Bolero, which is something John would never have played on his own. And Lou Luca thanked me for playing I Have The Skill, a song he hadn't heard since he was a teeenager.


John and I are going to North Carolina this weekend to meet and record Jamie Hoover and Steve Stoeckel. I may or may not be in the studio for next week's show. It all depends on whether or not I've had enough of John by the end of the weekend. We'll have to wait and see...

April 12, 2010 - The Best of 2009......Part THREE

There's still some great music left from 2009, so the best of continues for the third week! Last week John had Celeste Starchild in the studio, so I was moved back to the 9:00 hour. This week, John had the band Memphis 59 live in the studio, but they didn't go on until 9pm, so I went on at 8pm.


WGMU just installed a new webcam, so in addition to streaming the audio, you can now watch a live feed of the studio. John said he wasn't looking forward to having the webcam, but he definitely embraced it (literally, a couple times). Because of the camera, John was acting goofier than usual.


New technology and John usually mean problems, and this was no exception. Some people were watching the video stream and not running the audio stream. While I was on the air with him, I couldn't be heard on the video feed because I wasn't in the studio. When the members of Memphis 59 got there, you could hear their conversations instead of the music. At some point the bugs may be worked out and the novelty of the video will probably get boring. I still think the audio stream is the way to go!


Anyway, moving on, I had eleven songs left over from the previous weeks and I sent John four additional songs. Then, on top of that, I had a request to hear Big Star's In The Street, which gave me 16 songs to choose from. We got to play 10 of the songs, so that means there are still six songs left to be played. I'm sure I'll fit them in somewhere in the next couple weeks. Here are the 10 that were played:


Timber Timber - Magic Arrow from Timber Timbre
Big Star - In The Street from Keep Your Eye On The Sky
Green Day - Peacemaker from 21st Century Breakdown
Wilco - You Never Know from Wilco (The Album)
Them Crooked Vultures - New Fang from Them Crooked Vultures
Tickled Pink - A Man Like Me from Tickled Pink
Jason Falkner - Princessa from All Quiet On The Noise Floor
The Soundtrack Of Our Lives - Mensa's Marauders from Communion
Grand Duchy - Seeing Stars from Petit Fours
The New Fidelity - Best Time To Say Goodbye from All Here Now


Magic Arrow, from Timber Timbre is a song that I just heard a couple weeks ago. It was used on the tv show Breaking Bad and I found the song so hypnotic and interesting that I had to go out and buy it. Cool Stuff. I have no idea what I'll be playing next week. Anyone have any suggestions?

April 5, 2010 - The Best of 2009......Part TWO

The best of 2009 continues. When putting together music for my best of 2009 show, I gave John at least three weeks worth of music. Last week was part one and this week is part two. I still have plenty left for part three and I may even add a few to make it four straight weeks.


This week John had live music in the studio so I was pushed back to the 2nd hour of the show. Celeste Starchild was the musical guest and was quite good (and the interview was pretty good too!). In my opinion, there's nothing better than live music in the studio. When they were done, I called in, John played the "Donohue Theme" and we were off. Here is what we played:


Cracker - Show Me How This Thing Works from Sunrise In The Land Of Milk & Honey
The Disciplines - Yours For The Taking from Smoking Kills
John Lefler - Dream Your Life Away from Better By Design
The Dead Weather - Hang You From The Heavens from Horehound
Bob Mould - Life And Times from Life And Times
Matthew Swet & Susanna Hoffs - Here Comes My Girl from Under The Covers Vol. 2
Michael Carpenter - I'm Not Done With You from Redemption #39
Michael Behm - If I Could Learn To Fly from Saving America
Dennis Diken With Bell Sound - Standing In That Line from Late Music
Jamie & Steve - Emily's Ghost from English Afterthoughts
The Offbeat - She Can Make The Sun Shine from To The Rescue


Show Me How This Thing Works was for John because every week he has trouble connecting my phone call to the board. This week I had to call in three times before he got it right. She Can Make The Sun Shine was dedicated to Tam and Sammy, who were the only two women that we knew were listening last night. Thank you ladies!


I was tired and a little off my game, but in the end, it ended up being a decent show. Next week will be part THREE of the best of 2009. Will it be the last installment of the best of series? I guess it depends on whether or not I get through what I have left. Tune in next week to see what part three has in store.