Self Help Radio 120723: Victims

(original image here)

As far as I can tell, there were no victims of this week's Self Help Radio show about victims. Though of course the program wasn't victimless. All the songs were, in some sense, victims. Or about victims. Or has this metaphor been too hopelessly stretched & mangled to the point that it no longer retains even a small amount of the original attempt to say something mildly amusing about a radio show about victims?

Though it is admittedly a weird theme for a radio show, I felt like it came together all right. Though the glue of the show is the oddball interviews. I hope you enjoy them as much as I did!

Listen to the show at the Self Help Radio website. Use this username/password combo to access: SHR/selfhelp. Check out the playlist below because it says also what happens in-between the songs.

Okay then.

Self Help Radio Victims Show

"Victim Of Circumstance" Mike & The Censations _East Side Story Vol. 2_

"Victim Of Circumstances" Roy Junior _Back From The Grave Volume Two_

"Victim Of Circumstance" Joan Jett & The Blackhearts _I Love Rock & Roll_

introduction & definitions

"Victims Of Chance" Tandyn Almer _Along Comes Tandyn_

"Victims Of The Night (feat. Ann-Margret)" Lee Hazlewood _The LHI Years: Singles, Nudes, & Backsides (1968-71)_

"Victims Of The Darkness" Allen Toussaint _Life, Love, & Faith_

"Victims Of The Dance" Tuxedomoon _Desire_

interview with "burn victim" Jeff Simmons

"Burn Victims Suck" Love, Calvin _Mr. Joy_

"Victim One" Foxx Bodies _Vixen_

"Amnesia Victim" Bob & Ray _The New! Improved! Bob & Ray Book_

"Everyone's Victim" Lisa Germano _Happiness_

interview with lawyer Josie Sutton

"Victim Of Circumstance" The City _Now That Everything's Been Said_

"Victim Of Me" Descendents _Hypercaffium Spazzinate_

"Rock-N-Roll Victim" Death _...For The Whole World To See_

"Victim Of Mass Production" The Cribs _Ignore The Ignorant_

interview with actor Joe Sawyer

"Victim Of Love" Freddie May & The Power Plant _Victim Of Love_

"Victim Of Love" The Cars _Shake It Up_

"Victim Of Love" Charles Bradley _Victim Of Love_

"Victim Of A Foolish Heart" Bettye Swann _The Complete Atlantic Recordings_

our resident cinephile Chuck stops by to talk about victims in movies

"Victim Of Environment" The Improper Bostonians _Gee, I'm Gonna Miss You_

"I Fell In Love With A Fashion Victim" The Rosehips _The Rosehips_

"Special Victims & Ice-T" John Mulaney _New In Town_

"A Victim Of Gravity" The Tokens _Schoolhouse Rock: Science Rock_

interview with writer Jim Street
+

conclusion & goodbye

"When The Victim Takes The Tyrants Place" Frank Tovey _Grand Union_

"Deep House Victims Minibus Appeal" Half Man Half Biscuit _Voyage To The Bottom Of The Road_

Whither Victims?

(image from here)

"Victims" is a pretty dark theme for a show during the holiday season, it's true. Why on earth would I do a show with the theme "victims"? I have four possible ideas:

1) For whatever reason, our cable box has been set on I think the USA Network as a default for months. The show "Law & Order Special Victims Unit" is always on. & while I do enjoy looking at the elfin beauty of Kelli Giddish (I never have the sound on, so I have no idea what she sounds like), I am mostly unfamiliar with the show & don't want to watch it. But I see the word "victims" all the time.

2) This is something I occasionally worry about. I look at the list of themes on the Self Help Radio web page & I get to the letter V & I despair that - except for all the Valentine's Days shows - there are so few themes I've covered that begin with the letter V. Maybe I thought I might do one before the year's end.

3) This is something that's been happening recently: I am mishearing familiar lyrics. It's like my brain is preparing me for dementia. So I was listening to the first Tin Machine record a few weeks ago & the song "Prisoner Of Love" has been stuck in my head but I keep singing "Victim Of Love." Why? Who the hell knows?

4) That's also number four - who the hell knows why I picked this theme?

What I do know is that the show about victims - which will have a lot of interviews - will air today from noon to 2pm on Freeform Portland, which is on the air at 90.3+98.3fm in town & online everywhere at Freeform Portland dot org. & do not despair - listening to the show won't make you a victim - it'll make you a survivor.

Preface To Victims: Peanuts Victimization

Here are three different Peanuts strips that mention different kinds of victims. I of course do not own these. I scanned them from the excellent Fantagraphics Peanuts collections. They are also from different times & I am too lazy right now to identify just when. Let's just enjoy them, shall we?

Shane MacGowan RIP

(image from Wikipedia)

This morning on my KBOO show I played three hours of music by Shane McGowan, from the Nips to the Pogues to the Popes. You can listen to it now at the KBOO web site. It wasn't meant to be comprehensive, I didn't try to tell his story, I just wanted to play his music. I hope that I did him justice. & if you listen, I hope you like.

Jury Duty

(no idea where I found this, sorry)

In lieu of having anything interesting to say today, I share with you a poem I wrote twenty-five years ago, called "Jury Duty." It really was inspired by my first experience with jury duty. My second experience happened earlier this year. Anyway. You will be relieved to note I don't write poetry anymore.

flea dip, someone strangle me with wire from a murdered

folksinger's guitar. your honor, one lawyer is funnier

than the other, i fear that will influence my decision as

a juror. lonely downtown morning, pretty girl on a bike,

crossing against the light. i am not long for this world.

every song i like leads me around & around, like i am

chasing my tail, eating my tail, finding a strange broken

heart to consume, finding it's mine. your honor, i don't

deserve the six bucks you're gonna pay me for this, &

you're prettier from farther away. contempt of courtship.

your handclap's out of time, i won't listen to dr. israel

with you no mo, mon. the only light in the room is green

light from a fleakiller contraption, & i find myself a

blinking, flirting with it. like with the space between 

notes in a song, between heartbeats, where i want to stop.

the day doesn't feel wasted, surrounded by bitter & sad

fat men, really, really fat, thinking of ways to get out

of serving, why so cooperative, then, why not lie? why do

i get funny looks when i can't imagine a life sentence for

such a young man? just for robbing someone at gunpoint?

amusing lawyer, petulant prosecutor, pock-marked judge man,

austin turns cold & gray, i like it when the rastafari rap.