Thursday, November 02, 2017

Self Help Radio 171101: One Day

(Original image found here.)

Contrary to popular anxiety, this show is not actually "one day of Self Help Radio."  Nor is it technically "one day with Self Help Radio" - the show is merely two hours long.  It's simply a collection of songs which may express either the hope or fear that something may happen one day in the future or are simply descriptions of events that transpire during the course of a single day.  Nothing as awful as twenty-four hours of the show!

Is it an interesting idea for a radio show?  You be the judge of that.  Certainly there are many marvelous songs, as detailed below.  As well, there are discussions about one-day enlightenment, & things one can do in one day, & even a panel of talking heads discussing what they hope for one day.  There are elements here that may please the radio show listener, but also elements that may irk.  Who's to say?  You are to say!

It is at this point I must simply suggest you listen to the show at the Self Help Radio website.  You will be asked for a username & a password.  The username is SHR.  The password is selfhelp.  The show is two hours long, split into two parts.  What's in the two parts is listed below.

Enjoy!

(part one)

"One Day" Tages _Contrast_
"One Day" Tabby Thomas _Southern Funkin': Louisiana Funk & Soul 1967-1970_
"One Day" Baaba Maal _The Traveller_

"One Day" The Church _Seance_
"One Day (Peel Session)" The June Brides _Every Conversation: The Story Of The June Brides & Phil Wilson_
"One Day" Cannanes _Witchetty Pole_
"One Day" Pearly Gatecrashers _Spectacular_
"One Day" Postal Blue _Of Love & Other Affections_

interview with the Rev Dr Howard Gently

"One Day At A Time" Polly Cutter _Television's Greatest Hits: 70s & 80s_
"One Day At A Time" John Lennon _The John Lennon Anthology_
"One Day At A Time" Porter Wagoner & Dolly Parton _Once More_
"We Got To Meet Death One Day (Take 1)" Blind Willie McTell _Complete Recorded Works, Vol. 3 (1933-35)_

"One Fine Day" The Chiffons _The Best Of The Girl Groups, Vol. 1_
"One Fine Day" Bazooka Cain _Here Come The Days Of Bazooka Cain_

(part two)

"One Fine Day" Shel Naylor _The Freakbeat Scene_
"One More Day" The Humbugs _On The Up Side_
"One More Day" Descendents _Cool To Be You_

panel discussion

"One Small Day" Ultravox _Lament_
"One Better Day" Madness _Total Madness_
"He's Gonna Break Your Heart One Day" The School _Wasting Away & Wondering_
"What A Change One Day Can Make" The Louvin Brothers _Encore_

interview with writer Allen Shariaty

"One September Day" Nina Simone _Four Women: The Nina Simone Philips Recordings_
"One Day Forever" Those Dancing Days _Daydreams & Nightmares_
"One Day Goodbye Will Be Farewell" Morrissey _Years Of Refusal_
"One Day We Say" Tania & Juan _One Day We Say_

"Heroes" David Bowie _"Heroes"_

Wednesday, November 01, 2017

Whither One Day?

(Image from here.)

Now that all the Halloween stuff is over - did you notice there's a new Self Help Radio this week?  That I haven't been talking about at all?  Because it was Halloween week?  Well, there is!

When I started this particular recurring segment of the blog, "Whither [the week's theme]?", I envisioned a deep discussion about what that week's particular topic was.  Very quickly I realized that sometimes the reason for a show is dumb & banal.  In fact, there are probably only a small range of reasons, from someone suggesting the theme to something topical related to the date (as the next month will show - I'll be doing my favorites of the year & my Christmas show in December).

A very common reason for the show is just that I might be listening to a lot of songs & wow, I realize that there are similarities.  This happened for the "one day" show.  It's a coincidence, of course - I'm sure there are always similarities & I just never notice them.  But when I do notice them, I have to decide whether it'd made a good show or not.  "One Day" did that one day a few months ago.  & now it's a radio show.

Not terribly interesting, I know, but I kinda like these "Whither...?" posts.  One day maybe I'll have a fascinating story, possibly related to an adventure, where something extraordinary birthed a radio program.  For now, though, the reasons are mostly boring.

It might still be a good show though!  You can listen tonight from 9-11pm eastern on 93.9 fm WLXU in Lexington & online at Lexington Community Radio's website.  Lots of music (including a song written for the show!), silly interviews, & me struggling to say something about the theme.  In other words: the regular thing.

Tuesday, October 31, 2017

Halloween Week 2017: Werewolves!

(Original image here.)

Here's an oddity: a recording from the show's brief sojourn in West Virginia.  I was at WMUL, the student radio station in Huntington, from around August 2009 till June 2010.  Soon we would decamp to Kentucky, & WRFL.  But I continued my Halloween tradition with one of the hardest shows I've ever done.  There are not a lot of werewolf songs, my friend.

It turns out, actually, that there are lots of werewolf songs in the heavy metal idiom.  This is true!  I listened to more metal around that time than before or since.  & since it's not a genre I like, none of the truly metal songs made the cut.  But there's probably a great metal werewolf Halloween show out there.

Should you decide to listen, pay attention to the cool spots that WMUL made for itself.  Those spots were already years old when I got there - there was no real production department to speak of.  & those spots were not many, so after a few months, I had them all memorized.

Anyway, the show is now available & that complete all of Self Help Radio's Halloween shows from 2005 on, all available for your Halloween night listening - or beyond.  They're collected on the Self Help Radio Halloween page, with the werewolf show on top, & the password information above that.  The songs I played in both parts of the show are below.

Happy Halloween!

(part one)

"Were-Wolf" Kact-Ties _Altar Of Dreams: Classic East Coast Doo Wop & Girl Groups_
"Were Wolf" Carl Bonafede _Monster Bop_
"Wolfbane" Bobby "Boris" Pickett & The Crypt-Kickers _The Original Monster Mash_
"Tiptoe Thru The Wolfbane" Robbie The Werewolf _At The Waleback_

"Werewolf" Michael Hurley _Armchair Boogie_
"Werewolves" Deadman _Our Eternal Ghosts_
"Werewolf" Jad & David Fair _26 Monster Songs For Children A - Z_
"Werewolf" Five Man Electrical Band _Absolutely Right: The Best Of Five Man Electrical Band_

"Werewolf" The Rockin' Barracudas _Cool Town Bop_
"Werewolf" Southern Culture On The Skids _Halloween Hootenanny_

(part two)

"I'm The Wolfman" Fuzztones _Monster A-Go-Go_
"I Was A Teenage Werewolf" Cramps _Songs The Lord Taught Us_
"She Said" Jon Spencer Blues Explosion _Plastic Fang_

"We Bite" Misfits _Earth A.D._
"My Tribute To The Misfits (aka: Your Sister Is A Werewolf Tonight)" Sicko _You Are Not The Boss Of Me!_
"Werewolf From Outer Space" The Neanderthals _The Latest Menace To The Human Race_
"Teenage Werewolf" Barbarellas _Queen Of The Galaxy_
"She's A Werewolf" Mike Hoffman _Monster University_

"The Howl Of The Werewolf (Dickenbock Edit)" Ah Cama Sotz _Music For Dark Nights & Full Moons_
"Animal In The Mirror" Luxuria _Beast Box_

Monday, October 30, 2017

Halloween Week 2017: Witches!

(Original image here.)

Welcome to my 2008 Halloween show!  This show never aired.  It didn't air because I skipped the week, or because I got sick, or because of technical issues.  It didn't air because I wasn't at a radio station at the time.

In the spring of 2008, my wife got offered a post-doc in North Carolina, at Duke.  For complicated reasons, she decided not to take it.  I had left KOOP in anticipation of leaving Austin, & when she didn't take the job, I simply decided not to go back.  Why?  Well, one is, that I couldn't have just resumed the show if I decided to go back (see below).  The other is that I knew my wife would be looking for jobs elsewhere, & we probably wouldn't stay in Austin.  That turned out to be true - in a year, we would be gone.

But did I let that stop Self Help Radio?  Nope!  For one, I had continued with the show into the summer despite leaving KOOP.  I left the station at the end of the "season" (at the time, KOOP has six-month "seasons" coinciding with the station's training schedule) because I didn't want to leave in the middle of the summer & punch an unexpected hole in the schedule.  & anyway, I intended to keep doing the show elsewhere (which of course I have done).  Why let a little thing like not being on the radio stop a radio show called Self Help Radio?

So you may be the first person to actually listen to this show!  It is now of course on the Halloween on Self Help Radio page.  Pay attention to password info.  The show is around ninety minutes long, give or take, & it's in two parts, & what's in those parts is below.

(part one)

"Witches & Wizards" Louise Huebner _Seduction Through Witchcraft_
"The Three Witches" Sonic World Orchestra _Shakespeare & Love_
"Witches! Witches! Rest Now In The Fire" Get Well Soon _Rest Now, Weary Head! You Will Get Well Soon_

"Seduce Your Lover (Seduction Spells From Around The World)" Louise Huebner _Seduction Through Witchcraft_
"The Witch" Sonics _Nuggets: Original Artyfacts From The First Psychedelic Era, Vol. 4_
"The Wicked Old Witch" The Bells Of Rhymny _USA Garage Greats 1965-1967 - I Want My Woman_
"Witch Girl" Mystrys _Before Birdmen Flew - Australian Beat, R&B & Punk 1965-1967_
"Mad Witch" Dave Gardner _Horror Hop_
"Swamp Witch" Deadbolt _Haight Street Hippie Massacre_
"Big Black Witchcraft Rock" Cramps _Fiends Of Dope Island_

"Love Spell (Seduction Spells From Around The World)" Louise Huebner _Seduction Through Witchcraft_
"I Put A Spell On You" Screamin' Jay Hawkins _Voodoo Jive: The Best Of Screamin' Jay Hawkins_
"Witchcraft (For Your Love)" Temptations _Emperors Of Soul_
"Castin' My Spell" Johnny Otis _The Capitol Years_
"Witchcraft" Elvis Presley _Today, Tomorrow, & Forever_

(part two)

"My Girlfriend Is A Witch" Cattanooga Cats _Cattanooga Cats_

"Astral Sex (Seduction Spells From Around The World)" Louise Huebner _Seduction Through Witchcraft_
"The Sad Witch" Hefner _Breaking God's Heart_
"She's Got A New Spell" Billy Bragg _Workers Playtime_
"Season Of The Witch" Donovan _The Very Best Of Donovan_
"Soft Power" Ladytron _Witching Hour_

"Zap The World" Wild, Hayes & Raye _H R Punfnstuf TV & Movie Soundtrack_
"Witches Brew" Janie Jones _We're In Love With The World Of Janie Jones_
"Old Witch, Old Witch" Burl Ives _A Twinkle In Your Eye_
"Free Guitar Lessons For Animals" Flossie & The Unicorns _L.M.N.O.P._
"Ding Dong! The Witch Is Dead" Klaus Nomi _Simple Man_

Sunday, October 29, 2017

Halloween Week 2017: Zombies!

(Original image here.)

This is the last Halloween show I did on KOOP.  It's also one of my favorites - music-wise, that is.  I love zombies & I love songs about zombies*.  It's also fun because around the time I did this show, I discovered that a pair of kids from KVRX were doing a similar, theme-based show, & I invited them up to hang out.  & they were great!

If you're wondering if I knew that this would be the last Self Help Radio Halloween show on KOOP - I don't know.  I don't think so.  My wife had gotten her PhD that summer & was looking for a job, but she wouldn't find one until 2009 - but I left KOOP before that, for reasons I might explain tomorrow or I might not, nyah.

Like the others, this show is on the Halloween on Self Help Radio page.  Same rules apply for password & stuff.  It's ninety minutes long, the show is in two parts, & what's in each part is below.

Enjoy!  Try not to be too frightened!

(part one)

"Zombie" CJ Buchanan _Brains!_
"The Living Dead" Mrhamburger _Sounds For The Active Dead_
"I Walked With A Zombie" Roky Erickson & The Aliens _The Evil One_
"Do The Zombie" Symbols _Laff Blasts From The Past_

"If You Shoot The Head You Kill The Ghoul" Jeffrey Lewis _It's The Ones Who've Cracked That The Light Shines Through_
"Zombie Song" Sudden Infant Dance Syndrome _2 Many Babes_
"Zombie Jamboree (Live)" Kingston Trio _The Guard Years Vol. 7_
"Love Zombies" Monochrome Set _Volume, Contrast, Brilliance...: Sessions & Singles, Volume 1_
"Zombies, Unite!" Unbearables _Just One Bite_

"Re: Your Brains" Jonathan Coulton _Thing A Week Two_
"Zombie Medley" Patton Oswalt _Feelin' Kinda Patton_

(part two)

"George Romero" Sprites _Modern Gameplay_
"Zombie Song" Besties _Singer_
"Astro Zombies" Doleful Lions _Song Cyclops, Vol. 2_

"She's A Zombie" Fall-Outs _Zombie 7"_
"Zombie Hop" Zombina & The Skeletones _Monsters On 45_
"Zombie Dance" Cramps _Songs The Lord Taught Us_
"My Girl Wants To Be A Zombie" Briefs _Steal Yer Heart_
"Pro-Zombie" Die ¨A;rzte _Ger¨usch_

"Zombie" gfire _Zombie_
"Waiting For The Zombies" Square Root Of Margaret _Teragram Photeur_

* I liked this show so much I kinda re-did it later (in 2010) as a sub show for WRFL.  Which you can listen to here, if you don't want to listen to the 2007 version.  It has more zombie songs, though!