Self Help Radio 022818: Towers

(Original image here.)

Hoo boy.  Now we've gone & done it.  Tower purists everywhere are up in arms.  They're quoting the Wikipedia at me, saying, "Although not correctly called towers many modern skyscraper are often called towers (whereas they are classified as 'buildings')."  They point out that "towers are specifically distinguished from 'buildings' in that they are not built to be habitable but to serve other functions."

Why then, they ask, do you have songs about "high rise towers"?  You can't live in a tower! they scream.  & I can only plead ignorance.  It wasn't until I sat down & did some research on the show (i.e., when I read the same Wikipedia article they were quoting to me) that I realized that things I had called towers, like tall apartment buildings in big cities, weren't actually towers.  The World Trade Center, the "Twin Towers"?  Not towers at all!

Now I have to do forty-three hours of community service for tower purists which means standing outside large buildings which may be called towers & explaining to passers-by that they're not towers at all, just buildings, & also do you want to buy some Girl Scout Cookies?  You might not know this, but most tower purists are also Girl Scouts.

Luckily most of the towers on this week's show fit the definition & I won't have to spend too much time in the Girl Scout Tower, which is a kind of prison.  You can see the songs I played (plus the interviews I conducted) below, & you can listen to the show at Self Help Radio's website.  Two hours, two segments, use "SHR" as a username & "selfhelp" as a password & you'll be fine.

& check out the view!

(part one)

"Manhattan Tower Part 1: Magical Tower" Gordon Jenkins & His Orchestra & Chorus _New York, New York: A Vintage Portrait_
"You Don't Have To Be A Tower Of Strength" Gloria Lynne _Birth Of Soul, Volume 1_
"The Tower" Austin Lounge Lizards _The Drugs I Need_

"All Along The Watchtower" Bob Dylan _John Wesley Harding_
"Ivory Tower" The Rosaries _Forever_
"Broadcasting Waves" Math & Physics Club _Lived Here Before_
"High Rise Towers In Medium Size Towns" Darren Hayman & The Secondary Modern _Pram Town_

interview with tower salesperson Lorenzo Schwab

"Ivory Tower" Otis Williams & The Charms _Doo Wop: The R&B Vocal Group Sound (1950-1960)_
"Alton Towers" The Fall _Imperial Wax Solvent_
"The Clock Tower" The Caribbean _Discontinued Perfume_
"Firestation Towers" The Close Lobsters _Forever, Until Victory! The Singles Collection_
"Towers Of London" XTC _Black Sea_

"Tower Of Song" Leonard Cohen _I'm Your Man_

(part two)

"The Clown On The Eiffel Tower" Les Baxter _Ultra-Lounge Volume Ten: A Bachelor In Paris_
"Sexy Eiffel Towers" Bow Wow Wow _Girl Bites Dog - Your Compact Disc Pet_
"Eiffel Tower High" Hüsker Dü _Candy Apple Grey_

interview with the Rev Dr Howard Gently

"New World Towers" Blur _The Magic Whip_
"Ghosts Of Princes In Towers" Rich Kids _No Thanks! The 1970s Punk Rebellion_
"Kilburn Towers" Another Sunny Day _Genetic Engineering_
"The Tower (Afternoon Delight)" Yak Brigade _What You've Missed So Far_

interview with anti-tower activist David Fruchter

"Tower Song" Townes Van Zandt _Anthology 1968-1979_
"Towers" Amy Millan _Masters Of The Burial_
"Tower Of Thought" Devon Williams _Euphoria_
"To The Tower" The Lemon Drops _Crystal Pure!_

"Tower Of Fools" The Anyways _Older Than Yesterday_
"Towers" Headlights _Some Racing, Some Stopping_