Self Help Radio 031125: Telepathy

No, Self Help Radio wasn't reading your mind this morning. It's a radio show! Which has been described as "mindless"! & I couldn't read your mind because I am not a telepath because - spoiler alert - telepaths aren't real.

Nevertheless the show today was all about telepathy & telepaths & telepathic things. One song was even called "Telepathetic" & it's embarrassing how much I relate to that term. Nonetheless - lots of songs, some silly interviews, even - if you listen long enough - a story about a telepath named Henri.

You can listen to this show - if you have to use ears like non-telepaths - at either the KBOO website or the Self Help Radio website. If you choose the latter, use the username SHR & the password selfhelp to access. Most of what happened on the show is listed below.

Psi shields up!

Self Help Radio Telepathy Show

"Telepathy" Lene Lovich _Stateless_

"Telepathy" Sonic Tonix _Don't Go Away_

"Telepathy" A-Heads _Discography 1982-2009_

introduction & definitions

"Telepathy" Dave Davies _Glamour_

"Telepathy" Snips _La Rocca!_

"Telepathy" Eddy Grant _Going For Broke_

"Telepathy" The Drowning Room _Telepathy_

"Telepathy" New Bethel _Homemade Hits Vol. 1_

interview with telepath Zed Miller - the amazing Zed

"Mental Telepathy" B.T. Express _Give Up The Funk (The B.T. Express Anthology: 1974-1982)_

"Telepathy" Miles Kane _Colour Of The Trap_

"Telepathy" Whisper Hiss _Everything Must Go_

"Broken Telepathy" Soft Gang _Soft Gang_

"Telepathy" Swans _The Great Annihilator_

interview with telepathic defense trainer Julius Clark

"Telepathic Love" The Wipers _Alien Boy_

"Telepathic Traffic" Archers Of Loaf _Vee Vee_

"Telepathic World" Shalini _We Want Jelly Donuts_

"Telepathic" White Mystery _Telepathic_

"Telepathic Lover" Crocodiles _Dreamless_

interview with victim of telepaths Rosalie Jean

"Telepathetic" Sløtface _Sorry For The Late Reply_

"Telepathic Girls" Tochigi _A Crow So Large It Blocked Out The Sun_

"Telepathic Love" The Diableros _Aren't Ready For The Country_

"Telepathy Burns" Terminal Girls _Weird Lights_

"I Talk With Telepathy Baby" Outer Spacist _The Mind Is As Outer Space_

conclusion & goodbye

"Telepathic" The Bloodthirsty Lovers _The Bloodthirsty Lovers_

"Telepath" Boards Of Canada _Tomorrow's Harvest_

"Sexual Telepathy" Disappear Fear _Deep Soul Diver_

Whither Telepathy?

(image from Wikipedia)

One thing is true is that I wish I read more. I try to read more. I know people who read way more than I do. One of the things I do read a lot is science-fiction. Some fantasy, but a decent amount of sci-fi. I like the hard stuff but I'm okay with anything really if the story is engaging. & when taking inventory about the most recent books I read, I noticed something - they all seemed to feature either characters or entire group who had psychic abilities. Mostly telepathy - people taking with their minds. I thought that would be a nice theme for a show.

There's no guarantee of course but that's what tonight's Self Help Radio is about: all the recent sci-fi books I've read. No, I'm sorry. I misunderstood where I was going. I got a little confused. Is someone fucking with my thoughts? Tonight's show is about telepathy. If you already knew that, maybe you already know how the show is going to go. Or it that precognition?

Midnight to 2am on 90.7fm in Portland & online at kboo dot fm, Also, I know what number you're thinking of. It's 7.435.

Preface To Telepathy: A Warning About Pedanticism

Just a note - I found that picture above on Tumblr a million years ago & don't know where it's actually from, I apologize don't sue me.

The theme of this week's show is "telepathy" & the definition of telepathy is "the ability to know what is in someone else's mind, or to communicate with someone mentally, without using words or other physical signals." In other words, reading someone's mind.

When I mentioned to my wife that that was the theme she said, "Wow! There's got to be a lot of songs where people talk about reading other people's minds."

She's probably right. But I can get so weird about my show & its themes, I had to say, "Maybe, but if I can find two hours worth of songs that specifically mention telepathy or being a telepath or hell even things that are telepathic, I'll play those songs before songs that mention mind-reading."

She said, "What is wrong with you?"

But it's true! I've been spending time looking for songs about telepathy, not just mind-reading. The way I look at it, mind-reading might be a whole other theme.

Yeah, I guess something is wrong with me.

Coming Up Tomorrow On The Dickenbock Report: Check Your Batteries Day

March 9 is Check Your Batteries Day. We think it has something to do with ending daylight savings time but to be honest we haven't done a lot of research yet. Don't tell Dick Dickenbock! He thinks we've been working on this all week.

Lots of musical reports about batteries plus news & commentary. That's tomorrow from noon to 1pm on 91.1+107.1fm here in Portland & online at xray dot fm.

This Week In Self Help Radio (February 28 + March 2 3 4 + 6)

For some reason - maybe because they're more ubiquitous? - I have taken more pictures of slugs than snails. But I had a show this week about snails! Too bad. Here's a picture of a slug.

It was a busy week. There's a lot to cover. Remember: if you are listening to a show on the Self Help Radio website, you may need a username & password. Use SHR & selfhelp for those.

A week ago, on the last day of February, I subbed the Songcircle on KBOO. I played lots of new releases. How to listen? On the KBOO web page. On the Self Help Radio web page.

Sunday on the Dickenbock Report on XRAY, I celebrated Lou Reed's birthday with lots of his songs. How to listen? On the XRAY web page. On the Self Help Radio web page.

The last two hours of Monday - right before Self Help Radio on KBOO - I played a couple more hours of my favorite music from 1989. Sadly, KBOO doesn't archive sub shows but you can listen! How? On the Self Help Radio web page.

Like I said, this week's Self Help Radio was about snails. How to listen? On the KBOO web page. On the Self Help Radio web page.

Right after Self Help Radio, I had an episode of Corporate Standardized Programming in which I played music from artists we lost in November of 2024. How to listen? At the end of the Self Help Radio episode on the KBOO web page linked above. All by itself on the Self Help Radio web page.

Finally. I helped out a deejay - DJ Lance Armstrong (Not That Armstrong) - with his show Pardon This Interruption. How to listen? On the Spinitron web page (for a couple of weeks). On the Self Help Radio web page.

Sincerely I hope this was enough for you you insatiable radio monster!

Self Help Radio 030435: Snails

Behold! A radio show for the humble snail! Not that any snail will have time to listen to it. When I snapped the picture above, the snail took seven hours to cross the sidewalk. It was mesmerizing.

Will a show about snails be as hypnotic? That's not for me to say. It is for snails to say, & once they get here, I assume they will have a lot to say. But we may have to wait a bit. They have decided to detour to get some froyo.

Listen to the show for yourself. You can do so on the KBOO website click here! Or you can do so on the Self Help Radio website click here! (You may need to use the username SHR & password selfhelp to access.) Almost everything that happened on the show is listed below.

Behold! A radio show for the humble snail!

Self Help Radio Snail Show

"The Snail Song" The Town Criers _The Snail Song_

"(Get Off My Tail You) Sneaky Snail" The Gimicks _Buzzsaw Joint - Cuts 1 & 2_

"Snakes, Snails, & Puppydogs' Tails" Alma Cogan _Alma Cogan_

introduction & definitions

"Lament Of The Gastropod" Chris Knox _Songs Of You & Me_

"Snail Trail" Heavenly _Operation Heavenly_

"My Snails Have Not Yet Arrived" Les Barker _Up The Creek Without A Poodle_

"Mister Snail" Margo, Margo, Medress, & Siegel _Mister Snail_

"Snail" Grapple _The Psychedelic Experience Vol 4 (Ultra Rare Acid Punk Fuzz Monsters From The 60s!)_

interview with musician Charles Spangle

"Snail Head" Throwing Muses _Chains Changed_

"Snail Shell" They Might Be Giants _John Henry_

"Silver Snail" Pixies _Indie Cindy_

"Save The Snail" Camille West _Mother Tongue: Maternal Madness Month By Month_

"Migration Of The Snails" Melodic Energy Commission _Migration Of The Snails_

interview with snail ceramics artist Camille Morris

"Snails" Shantih Shantih _Winter In September_

"Slick As Snails" Robert Pollard & Doug Gillard _Speak Kindly Of Your Volunteer Fire Department_

"I Collect Snails" The Lovely Eggs _Have You Ever Heard The Lovely Eggs?_

"Snails" Weird Al Yankovic & Wendy Carlos _Peter & The Wolf/Carnival Of The Animals Part II_

"The Snail Trek, Parts 1 & 2" The Esplanade Orchestra _The Snail Trek_

interview with snail specialist Dr. Todd Hester

"Samba Snails" Sexton Ming _Marshan Love Secrets_

"Snail" Mink Lungs _The Better Button_

"Scared Of A Snail" Wolf Colonel _Vikings Of Mint_

"The Prince & The Enchanted Snail" Joan Gerber _The Story Lady_

"Snail Shells" Dana Falconberry & Medicine Bow _From The Forest Came The Fire_

conclusion & goodbye

"Snail" Benjamin B. _An Excelsior Recordings Compilation_

"Snails" Babybird _Outtakes_

"Snails" The Format _Dog Problems_

"Snails In The Creek" Alfredo Rodríguez _The Invasion Parade_

Whither Snails?

That picture up there - which I called "snails" - was taken in October 2018, in Fort Worth, Texas. It seems we came across some snails. Some of the shells appeared to be empty - or maybe the snails were hiding inside. I cannot remember if I ever asked or knew why a small group of snails were on some concrete in an area that I think was a neighborhood park.

(According to this site, "Groups of snails are called escargatoire, walk of snails, the rout of snails, or route of snails. Some other collective nouns used for snail gatherings are the trail, the hood, or the nursery of snails." If they asked me, I'd calling it a sliming of snails.)

Why though is tonight's show about snails? you ask.

It has been months since my last show about animals - I did a show about pandas last October - & I'm not counting the show about parasites I did in November - so I thought it was time for another show about animals. In my modest brainstorming (my brain works so modestly these days) I came up with snails. I wondered if there were lots of songs about snails. & I planned it for this week.

Tonight! Midnight to 2am on 90.7fm in Portland, kboo dot fm everywhere. Prepare for a sliming of snail songs!

Preface To Snails: A Personal Connection

(image from here)

Most of the things I write here are somewhat personal & kinda dumb but this may be too much of both.

When the time came - in 1994 - for me to pick an email address, I chose this one: slug@mail.utexas.edu

That address doesn't exist anymore - I haven't worked at UT in a decade & a half & they retired that mail server. Why that address? I wasn't thinking, & I remembered at the time I had a D&D character in the 1980s I called Slug. That was it. Nothing personally about me. I regretted it - I wish I had been more clever - but that email was mine until I left UT in 2009.

In the 1990s tho I spent time on Usenet. If you don't know what that is, it's not important. It actually still exists, mainly for porn. Like everything else. But I was on what were called newsgroups & I wrote dumb stuff & made some friends, a few of whom I still talk to, mainly on Facebook. Because of my email, I identified myself with names related to slugs. For a while, my username was "Agriolimax reticulatus," the Linnean name for a common slug. It did not satisfy me tho so I looked for another one.

When I discovered the German name for a slug, I was charmed: nacktschnecke. It literally means "naked snail." So for the rest of my time on the Usenet, I was "Die Nacktschnecke." Some folks mistook the "nackt" for "nacht" but otherwise it was uncontroversial.

So you see - for a time I was a slug - a naked snail - which is why I feel a kind of personal connection to this week's theme. Not that I would be comfortable among slugs or snails - I am horrified by them. But in some let's say spiritual way oh yeah. We're a lot alike.

Coming Up Tomorrow On The Dickenbock Report: Lou Reed's Birthday

(image from here)

Lou Reed was born March 2, 1942. On what would have been his 83rd birthday, The Dickenbock Report on XRAY celebrates his life with artists who admired him & were influenced by him playing his songs. Also we'll have a couple of songs kinda about him. We recognize that so much of the music we love might not have existed if he did not.

Tomorrow, March 2, from 12-1pm on 91.1+107.1fm in Portland & online everywhere at xray dot fm.

This Week In Self Help (February 23 + 25)

Okay, okay, I was on the radio today, but I'll cover that next week. I haven' had a chance to put it on my website yet jeez!

Sunday the 23rd was National Play Tennis Day. We explored that topic on The Dickenbock Report on XRAY. You can listen to that show:
on the XRAY website
on the Self Help Radio website (you may need username SHR password selfhelp)

Tuesday the 25th Self Help Radio on KBOO had the theme "get better." You can listen that show:
on the KBOO website

on the Self Help Radio website (you may need username SHR password selfhelp)

Also Tuesday the 25th Corporate Standardized Programming on KBOO played lots of new releases. It's the last hour of the file on the KBOO website above or you can listen to that show:

on the Self Help Radio website (you may need username SHR password selfhelp)

That's all. If you need me, I'll be preparing more radio shows while looking at grey clouds through the silhouettes of douglas firs. Oh who am I kidding it was a lovely day today!

Self Help Radio 022525: Get Better

Just a quick glance at the online news after doing a show with the hope that maybe just maybe it might help the world get a little better... Let's see... Okay. Yes. Hm. Well. Now, it seems actually a lot worse. Well great fucking job Gary.

Look, I knew nothing I could do would help make anything better in this utterly awful time in which we live but I nevertheless hold out hope. It's one of my most disappointing qualities, & I am someone who has mostly disappointing qualities. Nonetheless, if you need people singing the phrase "get better" a lot, if that might work as a kind of meditation for you, then perhaps this show will help your day get better.

Listen to it now either at the KBOO website or at the Self Help Radio website. At the latter use the username SHR & the password selfhelp to access. Most of the stuff that happened on the show is listed below.

Let's hope it does get better soon.

Self Help Radio Get Better Show

"You Might Get Better, But You'll Never Get Well" Henry Allen & His New York Orchestra _Henry 'Red' Allen & His Orchestra 1929-1933_

"My Dreams Are Getting Better All The Time" Doris Day _Daydreaming: The Very Best Of Doris Day_

"I'm Getting Better All The Time" Barbara Pittman _The Legendary Sun Records Story_

introduction & explanation

"Things Are Getting Better" The Kinks _Kinks_

"Things Are Going To Get Better" Small Faces _Small Faces_

"You're Getting Better" Ken Nordine _Word Jazz Vol. II_

"Love (It's Getting Better)" The Groove _The Magic Touch_

"Things Get Better" Sharon Tandy _You Gotta Believe It's... Sharon Tandy_

"It's Getting Better" Mama Cass Elliot _Make Your Own Kind Of Music - It's Getting Better_

interview with entrepreneur Dean Dearborn

"Things Got To Get Better (Get Together)" Marva Whitney _It's My Thing_

"I'm Getting Better" Rufus Thomas _The Funkiest Man (The Stax Funk Sessions 1967-1975)_

"The Deeper I Go (The Better It Gets)" Denise LaSalle _Trapped By A Thing Called Love_

"Things Are Going To Get Better" Crown Heights Affair _Dream World_

"Get Better" Dan Le Sac Vs Scroobius Pip _The Logic Of Chance_

interview with writer Drake Slade

"Getting Better" The Wedding Present _Sgt. Pepper Knew My Father_

"Getting Better" The Popinjays _Flying Down To Mono Valley_

"Things Will Get Better" Brighter _Disney & Other Singles_

"Get Better" New Fast Automatic Daffodills _Pigeonhole_

"World Is Getting Better" Patrik Fitzgerald _Gifts & Telegrams_

interview with writer Dolores Marx

"It Will Only Get Better" Thee Ahs _Sonic Theories: Live Sessions From CJSW 90.9 FM // 2012_

"Get Better" Mates Of State _Re-Arrange Us_

"Do You Really Want To Not Get Better" Joyce Manor _Cody_

"I'm Going To Get Better Lately" David Kilgour _The Far Now_

"I'm Getting Better At Falling In Love" Alex Lilly _Repetiton Is A Sin_

"Getting Better" Sports Team _Gulp!_

conclusion & goodbye

"Getting Better" Circus Devils _Squeeze The Needle_

"Life Gets Better" Bleach Lab _Lost In A Rush Of Emptiness_

Whither Get Better?

Before I tell you how this theme came about, I should tell you - or remind you, if I've told you before - that I don't have any supernatural beliefs. I certainly don't believe that there are acts, like magic spells, that one can do to help bring about favorable changes one might want. But I should also tell you - or remind you, if I've told you before -  that I grew up with comics & books & movies & television shows that were full of all kinds of supernatural sci-fi fantasy things that I longed to believe in. Occasionally I get the desire to hope for those things. The abject condition of my country has led me back to my childhood wishing.

The idea is, if I do a shown with a theme like "get better," might it throw something into the ether to help things get better? Political action & other kinds of resistance are doubtless more important & more helpful, but what can a dumb person who spends a lot of dumb time on a dumb radio show do but something kinda dumb? & that's how this week's theme came about. & hey I'm told that one's attitude can be helpful - hoping to make things better might encourage me to actually act to help make things better. One hopes.

One thing's for sure - Self Help Radio ain't getting any better!

Listen tonight from midnight to 2am on 90.7fm in Portland & online everywhere at kboo dot fm. Everywhere like the United States where things are getting much, much worse.

Preface To Get Better: It'll Get Worse

A pessimist is: a person who habitually sees or anticipates the worst or is disposed to be gloomy (1).
A cynic is: a person whose outlook is scornfully & habitually negative (2).

A defeatist is: someone who is resigned to defeat without offering positive suggestions (3).

Is that me? Would I describe myself by any of those terms?

In the last twenty years of her life, from around age 70 to age 90, my mother received a call from me about once a week. She had great ambivalence in her. She felt life had not treated her fairly. But she recognized that she had had mostly good health, had a large family that loved her, & despite everything had lived a mostly good life.

When asked about her religious beliefs, she spoke a lot about "God" but never really about Jesus or about Christianity. One conversation I had with her - a random Sunday in which she related to me all her recent goings-on & lots of gossip about my siblings - we got to talking about religion. She knew I didn't believe in anything supernatural, & it bothered her, & somehow she felt a desire to tell me why I was wrong.

"I know God is there protecting me," she said, "because otherwise how could I have made it this far in my life without him looking out for me?"

She didn't like it when I said that she was perhaps downplaying her own strength & fortitude, & the conversation shifted like conversations do.

We got onto a topic which involved some terrible news for her - I'm not sure if it was about her health or her finances or some squabble she was having with someone. Needless to say, it caused her a great deal of worry. She said, just minutes after she said the statement above, "I'm not sure what I've done wrong to make God punish me in this way."

When I think about the sort of person I am - not discounting my own experiences, especially the fact that I spent a great deal of time alone as a child - I think of this conversation, & it makes me think, "I have 50% of her genes in me."

& that's how I answer those questions above.

Coming Up Tomorrow On The Dickenbock Report: National Play Tennis Day

It comes as no surprise to the avid tennis player & fan that, in the last month of winter, when everyone decides to play tennis, we celebrate National Play Tennis Day. So of course Dick Dickenbock, who regularly gets kicked out of tennis clubs, wants us to explore tennis in our hourlong newsmagazine.

The first serve happens at noon tomorrow. The Dickenbock Report 12-1pm on 91.1+107.1fm at tennis courts all over Portland, xray dot fm everywhere.

This Week In Self Help (February 14 16 + 21)

It was a mostly quiet week for me, I just did the shows I was supposed to do, except for one I did for Valentine's Day a week ago. I decided not to overachieve this week. I wanted to spend some time listening to music instead of making radio shows. But here's what I did do.

Reminder: all the links to shows on the Self Help Radio website may need a username & a password. Those are SHR & selfhelp respectively.

That Valentine's Day show I mentioned - in which every song was named "Love" - is available at the Self Help Radio website - click here. It's not available at the KBOO website because it was a sub show, but you can see the playlist on Spinitron - click here. Or at the Self Help Radio website - click here.

For the Dickenbock Report I played lots of Otis Blackwell's songs because it was his birthday. To listen on the XRAY website - click here. To listen on the Self Help Radio website - click here.

On Self Help Radio, the theme was "vacancy" - like the vacant motel pictured above. To listen on the KBOO website - click here. To listen on the Self Help Radio website - click here.

Finally, for this week's episode of Corporate Standardized Programming, I played songs by artists who died in November of 2024. It's part of the KBOO file linked above, but you can also listen on the Self Help Radio website as a stand-alone show - click here.

That was the week that was that week.

Self Help Radio 021825: Vacancy

"Vacancy" is a word most associated with hotels but did you know if wasn't until the third decade of the 20th century that it was used to mean that? That's the sort of useless fact you'll hear on this week's episode of Self Help Radio, which had the theme "vacancy."

But those aren't the only vacancies you'll hear about - heck, there's an entire set devoted to vacant lots. Plus the regular interviews & occasional interstitial nonsense. If you have a "vacancy" in your listening schedule, a show about vacancy might fit right in. Okay, I'll let myself out.

Listen now at either the KBOO website or at the Self Help Radio website. If you listen at the latter, you may need this: username SHR, password selfhelp. Most everything that happens on the show - except the interstitial nonsense - is noted below.

Well dang I can't think of a punny "vacancy" way to end this.

Self Help Radio Vacancy Show

"Vacancy" Harry Chapin _Verities & Balderdash_

"Vacancy" Joseph Arthur _Vacancy_

"Vacancy" Anthony Jay Sanders _I Will Be The One Who Goes_

introduction & definitions

"No Vacancy" Merle Travis _The History Of Country & Western Music_

"No Vacancy" Pinky Bluel _Take Me As I Am - Single_

"No Vacancy" Neil Sedaka _Oh Carol: The Complete Recordings 1956-1966_

"Vacancy - No Vacancy" The Firesign Theatre _How Can You Be In Two Places At Once When You're Not Anywhere At All_

"No Vacancy" The Disciplines _Smoking Kills_

"No Vacancy" The Ar-Kaics _In This Time_

interview with philosopher Chaykin

"Vacant Lot" The Auteurs _Lenny Valentino_

"Vacant Lot" The Growlers _City Club_

"Vacant Lot" The Last Names _Wilderness_

"Saddest Vacant Lot In All The World" Grandaddy _Sumday_

"Vacant Lot" Dengue Fever _The Deepest Lake_

interview with theater director Natalie Jacobs

"Pretty Vacant (feat. Rosie Flores)" Solal _The Moonshine Sessions_

"Heaven Has No Vacancy" Lindi Ortega _Cigarettes & Truckstops_

"The Vacated Pool" Edwin Torres _Holy Kid_

"Vacate My Space" The Soup Dragons _This Is Our Art_

"Vacant Stare" Emma Pollock _In Search Of Harperfield_

interview with realtor Jeffrey Thomas

"Situation Vacant" The Kinks _Something Else By The Kinks_

"Situations Vacant" The Cravats _Messthetics # 7: UK '78-81 'D.I.Y.' From The Letter 'C'_

"Situation's Vacant" Jimmy Pursey _Imagination Camouflage_

"Vacant Night Sky" Mecca Normal _Sitting On Snaps_

"Vacant" Artsick _Fingers Crossed_

conclusion & goodbye

"The Vacant Chair" Tennessee Ernie Ford _Sings Songs Of The Civil War_

"Vacant Moan" O'Death _Broken Hymns Limbs & Skin_

"Vacancy" Farewood _Wings Of Gold_

Whither Vacancy?

(photo by b d from here)

Honestly, I am such a fan of empty spaces, vacant lots, & abandoned buildings that I am surprised it has taken me this long to explore this topic on the show. Currently there are two buildings in our neighborhood that have either recently been demolished or are in the process of being demolished. One is now a vacant lot, but will soon have a few townhouses crammed into it.

But there are long-term vacant lots in my neighborhood too on which properties are continually promised/threatened to be built. There are also home which I am certain have been vacant for a very long time - walking by them on dogwalks, I look for holes in the ceiling, broken glass, signs of the world - or humans - finding their way in. During the pandemic we got to witness the porch of one of those homes crumble over the course of several days. That's thrilling to me - like being involved in something usually geological.

It's not just lots & buildings that are vacant that we'll hear songs & talk about tonight - there are always vacant stares too! & the mind can be quite vacant. & sometimes a place is happy to tell you it has a vacancy - hoping you'll fill it.

Self Help Radio's show about vacancy happens tonight on KBOO from midnight to 2am on 90.7fm in Portland & online everywhere at kboo dot fm. & KBOO always has a vacancy for you!

Preface To Vacancy: Pretty Vacant

(image from Discogs)

Sadly I don't have a cool story about discovering the Sex Pistols. I was younger than ten when punk happened & even American punk bands like the Ramones weren't played on American radio, so my first impressions of punks were from the representations one might have seen in that Quincy episode.

Indeed, I imagined punk rock was more like the hardcore punk happening in the United States than what it actually was: just a raw reimagining or reassertion of rock & roll. & that was made clear to me in the fall of 1986, when I first saw Sid & Nancy.

As is often the case with me & music, I was very easily able to distance myself from the events portrayed (correctly or not) in the movie & the music itself. Once I got a copy of the only Sex Pistols record, I absorbed the music & lyrics separate from the movie. It's how I relate to music - pretty personally.

The point is, though, it wasn't a very cool way to be introduced to the Sex Pistols. The movie didn't contextualize the punk movement very well - I would learn more actually listening to the music, which I began exploring immediately afterward.

An interesting observation - I discovered postpunk before punk. I suppose it's much more confusing these days. Especially with sampling! But I just wanted to confess that the first time I heard "Pretty Vacant" wasn't on the radio or because I was somehow involved in the punk movie. It was in a biopic that is of dubious historicity. That's all. 

Coming Up Tomorrow On The Dickenbock Report: Otis Blackwell's Birthday

(image from the Wikipedia)

One of the architects of what we now call rock & roll, Otis Blackwell, was born on February 16, 1931. According to the Wikipedia, "Blackwell composed more than a thousand songs, garnering worldwide sales of close to 200 million records." On his birthday, therefore, we'll listen to the songs he wrote as performed by musicians inspired not just by him, but also the original artists who first recorded his songs.

That's tomorrow, February 16, from noon to 1pm, on 91.1+107.1fm in Portland, & online everywhere at xray dot fm. Don't be cruel, please tune in. Or else the Dickenbock Report staff will be all shook up.

This Week In Self Help (February 9 10 11 + 13)

My cats are very affectionate with one another.

My wife told me this week I am dealing with the anxiety & trauma of how fucked-up our country is by making lots of radio shows. If that is true, I am sorry. But this week I was on the radio a lot & I'll understand if you can't forgive me for that.

Sunday - the 9th - the Dickenbock Report reported on National Pizza Day.

Listen at XRAY dot fm. Or listen at Self Help Radio dot net.*

Monday - the 10th - I subbed for an hour on KBOO before Self Help Radio.
KBOO doesn't archive sub shows. But you can listen at Self Help Radio dot net.*
You can see the playlist for that show here.

Tuesday - the 11th - Self Help Radio's Valentine Show for 2025 was about affection.

Listen at KBOO dot fm. Or listen at Self Help Radio dot net.*

Also Tuesday - the 11th - Corporate Standardized Programming played lots of new releases.

It's included on the Self Help Radio KBOO recording.
But you can listen to the show on its own at Self Help Radio dot net.

Finally Thursday - the 13th - I played a lot of reggae on KBOO for a sub show.

KBOO doesn't archive sub shows as I've said. But you can listen at Self Help Radio dot net.*

You can see the playlist for that show here.

Is that it? Oh I hope so. Happy Valentine's Day!

* If needed, use the username SHR & password selfhelp to access.

Self Help Radio 021125: Valentine's Day 2025 - Affection

Just in time for Valentine's Day! Or - a little early for Valentine's Day! It's Self Help Radio's Valentine's Day show for the year 2025. There were many songs called "Love & Affection" - lots of them covers of either the jazz standard or the Joan Armatrading song - that it occurs to me that the two are separate - you can love someone without being affectionate toward them, & you can have affection for someone without really loving them. But it seems the consensus that the two together make the best combination, & I hope you have a lot of both this Valentine's Day.

In any event - you can listen to this anytime, not just some arbitrary holiday. You can listen to it on the KBOO website. Or you can listen to it on the Self Help Radio website. If you choose the latter, you may need this info: username SHR password selfhelp. Lots of stuff happens on the show, most of it is noted below.

Happy Valentine's Day you affectionate fool!

Self Help Radio Valentine's Day Affection Show

"Sweet Affection" Sarah Vaughan _The Magic Of Sarah Vaughan_

"True Affection" Byron Johnson _The Fifties: Rockabilly Fever_

"Affection" Jonathan Richman & The Modern Lovers _Back In Your Life_

introduction & definitions

"Object Of My Affection" The Boswell Sisters _Shout, Sister, Shout!_

"Just A Little Fond Affection (Buddy Stewart, vocal)" Gene Krupa & His Orchestra _1945_

"Girls Need Love & Affection" The Marvelettes _Love & Affection (More Motown Girls)_

"Soul Affection" The Interpretations _All Night Soul Stomp! Dancefloor Boogaloo Romp!_

"Love & Affection" Joan Armatrading _Joan Armatrading_

Kim & Katy call in.

"Fond Affections" This Mortal Coil _It'll End In Tears_

"Love & Affection" The Triffids _In The Pines_

"Public Displays Of Affection" Morcheeba _Charango_

"True Affection" Father John Misty _I Love You Honeybear_

"Losing Your Affection" Future Bible Heroes _Eternal Youth_

Emory & Charlton call in

"Affection Rejected" The Records _Smashes, Crashes, & Near Misses_

"Schoolgirl Affection" Toothpaste 2000 _Va Va Voom!_

"If You Want Affection" Red Sleeping Beauty _Kristina_

"A Crumb Of Your Affection" Linda Smith _Till Another Time: 1988-1996_

"New Affections" The Silly Pillows _New Affections_

Our resident cinephile Chuck stops by.

"Affection" Zap Mama _Supermoon_

"Stolen Affection" Etta James _Stickin' To My Guns_

"Seasonal Affection Disorder" The Receptionists _The Last Letter_

"Pure Affection" Eternal Summers _Prisoner EP_

"The Object Of Your Affections" The Harvest Ministers _Orbit_

conclusion & goodbye

"I Want Love & Affection (Not The House Of Correction)" Nathaniel Mayer _Village Of Love_

"Savage Affection" The Holocaust _Tutti Frutti_

"Crumbs Of Affection" Pitchblende _Gygax!_

"True Affection" The Blow _Paper Television_

Whither Affection? (It's A Valentine's Day Show!)

(image by Seebangnow from here)

Oh gosh I guess I answered the question above. Why is this week's show about affection? Because it's a Valentine's Day show & it has to be about something.

Previous Valentine's Day show topics include Boyfriends, Crushes, Dating, Falling In Love, Famous Lovers, Flirting, Girlfriends, Hate, The Heart, Heartbreak, Jealousy, Love, Love Is..., Love Songs, Lovesick, Make You Mine, Roses, Sweethearts, True Love, & Valentines. Like with my Halloween show, I have a new theme for each Valentine's Day. This year it will be affection.

The world does seem to lack affection these days. Chances are I thought of this theme some time last while listening to Jonathan Richman, whose song "Affection" I'll play tonight. It does seem like a particularly Valentine's Day theme.

That's right, tonight! From midnight to 2am! On 90.7fm & kboo dot fm. & you still have time to plan stuff for Valentine's Day!

Preface To Affection: How Important Is Affection?

(it says copyright Matt Groening dude)

How the hell should I know? I thought I'd look at the answers from the people who answer questions like this at Quora.

Cupid's Queen sez:

Affection is important in a relationship because it helps to create a strong bond between two people. It is a way to show love, care, and respect for one another. Affection can also help to reduce stress, build trust, and strengthen communication. It is an important part of any healthy relationship.

Ahana Ghosh sez:

You can say it is the backbone of a relationship without love or affection a relationship can't work out. Love or affection is something that a girl or a boy wants from his/her lover. That's the only thing that give them the power to fight against each and every evil eyes.

Lyne Bergeron sez:

If u love someone , u have a relationship. If u don't there is NO relationship. Love makes a relationship. That is what keeps us in a couple. Bcz we love each other for a tons of reasons . We trust that person, we share everything , we support each other, we compromise, we are a team . Love grows with time and the amount of time we spend together. We communicate good and understand each other. Etc etc this love and u have a relationship . That's it.

Finally, Melissa Kaye sez:

Love is important for relationships for various reasons, in the theory of evolution love was an aid for reproduction, which of course prepetuated the species. In more modern terms love makes living with another person easier, makes communication better, gives you more empathy for your partner, and it makes sex better and hopefully helps a person feel safe and secure while feeling vulnerable.

Love is a powerful emotion and necessary for not just romantic relationships. It's also important for friendship and family bonds.

To be fair, I don't really understand how Quora works so some of these might have been answers to other questions. But I do know people who really, really love to answer questions like these. They like to be an authority. & I confess I like using other people's thoughts on this blog. Every once in a while I get a weird unsolicited email from someone offering to write articles "for my website." Which doesn't feature articles. But maybe I can get them to answer questions like this for my blog. If I remember the next time I get one of those letters.

Do I think affection is important? Sure. But I think that's why I have pets.

Coming Up Tomorrow On The Dickenbock Report: National Pizza Day

It's actually surprising that there's a National Pizza Day because quite frankly every day is Pizza Day in my world. However, The Dickenbock Report will report on pizzas on their official national day & what the hell we'll throw in some musical reports about pizza as well.

Happening Sunday noon to 1pm on 91.1+107.1fm in Portland & online everywhere at xray dot fm.

Sending pizza to the XRAY studios while the show is airing is strongly encouraged.

This Week In Self Help (January 31 & February 2, 3, + 4)

(image from the Wikipedia)

Whew that was a busy week. I am still writing apology letters! Can I mention at the outset that if you listen to a show on the Self Help Radio website, you might have to - at least once - enter the username SHR & the password selfhelp to access the file? So I don't have to mention it again? Cool. Thank you.

Friday January 31st I subbed the Songcircle on KBOO. Played lots of new releases.
Listen at the KBOO website. Or! Listen at the Self Help Radio website.

Sunday February 2 on the Dickenbock Report I played lots of songs about sneezing because it was The Record Of A Sneeze Day for reals.
Listen at the XRAY website. Or! Listen at the Self Help Radio website.

Monday February 3 on KBOO I subbed a show & played lots of electronica from 2005.
KBOO doesn't archive some subbed shows but you can listen at the Self Help Radio website.

The playlist is here.

Tuesday February 4 on KBOO there was an episode of Self Help Radio with the theme Nickels.
Listen at the KBOO website. Or! Listen at the Self Help Radio website.

Finally! After Self Help Radio, there was an episode of Corporate Standardized Programming in which I played music by artists we lost in October & November of last year.

It's on the KBOO file with Self Help Radio above. Or! Listen to the show alone at the Self Help Radio website.

That's that. It was too much I know. But that is that.

Self Help Radio 020425: Nickels

Just to let you know: there were very few nickels harmed in the making of this radio show. Just the one above, marred by the Self Help Radio logo. The show has the utmost respect for nickels. Nothing like the scorn the world has for pennies.

At this point, I have nothing else to say about nickels. Two hours of music & talk did it. You can listen & find out. The show is currently at the KBOO website. It's also at the Self Help Radio website. Remember you need to use SHR as a username & selfhelp as a password to access that latter file. Anyway, everything that happened on the show (more or less) is noted below.

Nickel nickel nickel!

Self Help Radio Nickel Show

"Nickel Wine" Dave Bartholomew _Gettin' Funky: The Birth Of New Orleans R & B_

"Once Upon A Nickel (with Ray Bolger)" Ethel Merman _The World Is Your Balloon_

"(Put Another Nickel In) Music! Music! Music!" Teresa Brewer _The Best Of Teresa Brewer_

introductions & definitions - featuring the Definition-O-Tron 3000

"Nickel Song" Melanie _The Good Book_

"A Nickel For The Fiddler" Guy Clark _Old No. 1_

"Buffalo Nickel" Shovels & Rope _Little Seeds_

"The Seven-Cent Nickel" Groucho Marx _Horse Feathers/Animal Crackers_

"A Nickel & A Nail" O.V. Wright _A Nickel & A Nail & Ace Of Spades_

interview with animator Xenia Fillmore

"Nickel's Worth Of Liver Blues: No. 2" Edith North Johnson _Charley Patton: Complete Recordings 1929-1934_

"No Woman No Nickel" Bumble Bee Slim _1931-1937_

"Jimmy Had A Nickel (vocal, Dick Robertson)" Clarence Williams & His Orchestra _1933-1934_

"'Taint That Good (Like A Nickel Made Of Wood)" Fats Waller _The Cream Of Fats Waller II_

"Drop A Nickel In The Slot" Three Bits Of Rhythm _Even More Mellow Cats 'N' Kittens (Hot R&B & Cool Blues 1945-1951)_ 

"Nickel Plated Baby" Amos Milburn _The Complete Aladdin Recordings Of Amos Milburn_

interview with activist Tyler Polk

"Nickels & Dimes" Scott Fagan _South Atlantic Blues_

"Nickel-Dime Mind" The People's Victory Orchestra & Chorus _Victory Gardens_

"(I Love) Nickels & Dimes" Robbie Fulks _Country Love Songs_

"Nickels & Dimes" The Wedding Present _Search For Paradise: Singles 2004-2005_

"Nickels & Dimes" Dougie Poole _The Rainbow Wheel Of Death_

interview with musician James Pierce

"I Wish I Had A Nickel" Red Foley _Old Shep (The Red Foley Recordings 1933-1950)_

"A Nickel Piece Of Candy" Jim Reeves _The Jim Reeves Way_

"Give Me Another Roll Of Nickels" Rod Creagh _Give Me Another Roll Of Nickels_

"If I Had A Nose Full Of Nickels" Lou Carter _Louie's Love Songs_

"On The Nickel" Tom Waits _Heartattack & Vine_

conclusion & goodbye

"Nickel Bags" Digable Planets _Reachin' (A New Refutation Of Time & Space)_

"Tape A Nickel To The Tonearm" The Ben Vaughn Quintet _Pièce De Résistance_

"Nickel Romeo" Bangles _Doll Revolution_

"Wooden Nickels" Eels _Daisies Of The Galaxy_

"Nickel Bag Of Blue" Blue Sandelwood Soap _Loring Park Love-Ins_

Whither Nickels?

(image from here)

Hm, a radio show about nickels. I'm certain there's been a Self Help Radio episode about pennies. & I've done a radio show about dollars. No quarters? No dimes? I suppose then it's fair to have a show about nickels.

The truth is, I have no idea why I am doing a show about nickels. Money shows are usually saved for pledge drives. But maybe nickels are too small a number? Thought to be too trifling? When you're asking for the big bucks? In any event, I think tonight's show is about nickels.

You heard me! Midnight to 2am on 90.7fm here in Portland, kboo dot fm everywhere.

Preface To Nickel: Nickel Factz

(image from the Wikipedia)

Fuck yeah the Nickel Institute tells us:

Nickel is a metallic element with a silvery-white, shiny appearance. It is the fifth-most common element on earth & occurs extensively in the earth's crust & core. Nickel, along with iron, is also a common element in meteorites. Nickel occurs naturally in soil & water. It is also an essential nutrient for plants. 

It continues:

While the concentration of nickel in the earth's crust is 80 parts per million, the earth's core consists mainly of a nickel-iron alloy.
Then it adds in all caps:

NICKEL IS THE FIFTH-MOST COMMON ELEMENT ON EARTH

Holy shit. Okay, I'll do a radio show about it all right?

Damn.

Coming Up Tomorrow On The Dickenbock Report: The Record Of A Sneeze Day

(an early Winsor McCay comic strip - found here)

February 2 is The Record Of A Sneeze day. It has something to do with the first time a sneeze was filmed. We haven't finished our research yet. We haven't really started, really. Ironically, while we were looking into sneezes, we got a cold. It's been pretty sneezy around here.

Please tune in to XRAY tomorrow, Sunday, February 2, from 12-1pm for reporting on sneezes. That's on 91.1+107.1fm in town, & online at xray dot fm. We prefer "gesundheit" to "bless you" thanx.

This Week In Self Help (January 26 + 28)

("Evolution Of A Tornado" from the Wikipedia)

Now, I did sub a show today but I will count that towards next week. This week I just did my regular programs. Nothing extra. They were:

The Dickenbock Report. A report on World Leprosy Day. Really. It's on the XRAY website. It's on the Self Help Radio website.

Self Help Radio. A show about tornados. It's on the KBOO website. It's on the Self Help Radio website.

Corporate Standardized Programming. An hour of new electronica & jazz. It's part of the KBOO show linked above or a stand-alone program on the Self Help Radio website.

Oh! I forgot to mention! If you can't access the files on the Self Help Radio website - if it asks you for a username & password - the username is SHR & the password is selfhelp.

& that was the week where I did shows about leprosy & tornados.

A Tornado In The Movies

(image from the IMDb)

This past week, Self Help Radio had a show about tornados. Our resident cinephile Chuck stopped by to talk about films featuring tornados, like the one above. You can listen to the show at the KBOO website or at the Self Help Radio website & once you've done that, please check out the helpful links Chuck has shared:

YouTube playlists of films & trailers

(Chuck notes: Some of the animated shorts that were available are not on the list because they are designated as YouTube for Kids. Their links can be found on the Letterboxd list & are denoted with YTK.)

Letterboxd list

(Chuck says: I put the links to available videos in the notes for the films plus where they are available to stream for free.)

Letterboxd reviews

IMDb 'keyword' search list

Chuck's Bluesky Account

Chuck tells us his did not make his usual IMDb list of films available to stream for free elsewhere. But, he says, check the drop down list above under 'Service' for the various free & pay streaming services. (You need to set up your favorite services first.)

Be safe out there!

Self Help Radio 012825: Tornados

One would think a show about tornados would be scary. But this one is not. One might think a show about tornados could be educational. Maybe this one is. There sure were lots of songs about tornados. Some learning might have sneaked by.

Listen to this show if you'd like at either the KBOO website or at the Self Help Radio website. If you choose the latter, remember you might need the username SHR & the password selfhelp. Everything that happened on the show - well, okay, most of what happened on the show - is listed below.

Unlike with a tornado, it is perfectly safe to listen to this show under a bridge.

Self Help Radio Tornados Show

"T.O.R.N.A.D.O." The Go! Team _Rolling Blackouts_

"My Tornado" The Raveonettes _Whip It On_

"Tornado Love" Blacktop _Up All Night_

introduction & definitions

"Dancing With The Tornado" The Veils _Time Stays, We Go_

"This Tornado Loves You" Neko Case _Middle Cyclone_

"Tornado" Dale Hawkins _The Chess Story 1957-1964_

"That Mean Old Twister (Backwater Blues)" Lightnin' Hopkins _The Acoustic Years 1959-1960_

"Tornadoes" Seana Carmody _Struts & Shocks_

interview with storm chaser Martin Andrews

"Tornado Time In Texas" Guy Clark _Workbench Songs_

"Tornadoes" Drive-By Truckers _It's Great To Be Alive!_

"Texas Tornado" Buck Owens _The Warner Brothers Recordings_

"Tornadoland" Regina Spektor _Remember Us To Life_

"Tornado" Sharon Van Etten _Because I Was In Love_

interview with meteorologist Terrence Harrison

"Tornado Alley" Graham Parker _Your Country_

"Tornado Alley" Carrie Newcomer _The Age Of Possibility_

"Fearing A Tornado" The Jags _No Tie Like A Present_

"Tornado" Thomas Jefferson Slave Apartments _Career Interruption Code_

"Tornado" Faire Osciller _Drifting_

our resident cinephile Chuck stops by!

"Black Tornado" Dan Bern _New American Language_

"Tornado Head" Sean Rowe _The Darkness Dressed In Colored Lights_

"Tornado '87" The Rural Alberta Advantage _Departing_

"Gov. Bill Williams Tornado Preserve" The Firesign Theatre _Boom Dot Bust_

"Baby Tornado" Melys _Kamikaze_

conclusion & goodbye

"The Human Tornado (45 Version)" Rudy Ray Moore _The Human Tornado (Original Soundtrack)_

"Twister" James Keelaghan _House Of Cards_

"Tornado Longing For Freedom" The Music Tapes _Music Tapes For Clouds & Tornadoes_

Whither Tornados?

(Gertrude Abercrombie, "Owl & Tornado" {1956} from here)

One might imagine that growing up in Tornado Alley as I did, that might have been the inspiration for the show. Or perhaps the recent remake or sequel to the 1990s film Twister could have been a catalyst - but I never saw it. Maybe that recurring dream I have about The Wizard Of Oz? Nope.

The truth is, I have no idea what inspired me to make a show about tornados. We don't have a lot of tornados in Oregon. Wait. Is there a Newhart episode about a tornado? There is! It's the one where Tom Poston's character wants to fix the bell tower but he's afraid of wind. Bob Newhart's character shows him The Wizard Of Oz. Holy shit I think because we were watching Newhart late last year & earlier this year that episode may have inspired me to do a show about tornados. Altho I apparently have never done a show about wind.

Howsoever it began, it turns into a radio show at last tonight from midnight to 2am on 90.7fm here in Portland & online everywhere at kboo dot fm.

It was indirectly about The Wizard Of Oz then. Maybe.

Preface To Tornados: Living In A Place With Very Few Tornados

("Tornado crossing Interstate 30 in Garland, Texas illuminated by a power flash" from here)

Where I grew up, in Garland, Texas, tornados were a pretty common threat. This website says that historically, Garland averages three tornados a year, altho I'm sure there are more these days thanks to climate change. I can attest that they felt like a very real threat in my childhood & adolescence.

In school, in elementary school, in the 1970s - I guess I was in first through fifth grade from 1974 to 1979 - we didn't have atomic bomb drills but we did have tornado drills. We'd sit in the hallways. I seem to remember leaning against lockers so perhaps there were similar drills in middle school. & when I moved back to Texas, to Fort Worth, in 2016, there were regular reports of tornados to the west.

But there's not a personal tornado encounter I can share. Except. A vague memory. It would've been before I even started school. On a road like Northwest Highway, which now is very developed, but which, in the early 1970s was not, nor were there lots of business lining its every mile. I seem to recall me & some members of my family - mother? brothers? sisters? - pulling over to the side of the road because of the threat of a tornado, getting out of the car, & going down into some kind of ditch, maybe even getting underneath something. That's all - a fragment of a recollection of something scary. I didn't see a funnel cloud. I didn't experience the horrors of being trapped in the path of a tornado.

Which isn't to say I don't find tornados terrifying. Or that I'm not grateful to be living in a place where tornados are rare. Not counting the one tornado that showed up about two months after we moved here...

Coming Up Tomorrow On The Dickenbock Report: World Leprosy Day

(image from here)

Oh, so we're really going to do this? A radio show about leprosy? Holy smokes. Okay.

Tomorrow, January 26, is World Leprosy Day. It may sound unbelievable but what the hell the Dickenbock Report will report on leprosy, including musical reports because... I mean, that's what we do. Are there even musical reports about leprosy?

So yeah. Sunday. Noon to 1pm. On 91.1+107.1fm in town, xray dot fm everywhere. It's just. Really?

This Week In Self Help (January 19 21 + 23)

(from the city's Facebook page)

This week was set to be pretty quiet but I ended up doing an extra show because I can't help myself & no one is trying to stop me, the fools.

The Dickenbock Report reported on National Popcorn Day. That show is here on the XRAY website. You can also listen here on the Self Help Radio website (where you might need the username SHR & password selfhelp). Warning: that show has five versions of the song "Popcorn."

Self Help Radio was a show about talent (not, alas, Talent, Oregon). That show is here on the KBOO website. You can also listen here on the Self Help Radio website (where you might need the username SHR & password selfhelp).

The last hour of that show on the KBOO website is my program Corporate Standardized Programming which consisted of lots of new releases. If you'd like to listen to that show on its own, you can do that here on the Self Help Radio website (where you might need the username SHR & password selfhelp).

Finally, I played much more of my favorite music on KBOO on Thursday morning. KBOO doesn't archive its sub shows, but you can see the playlist here & listen to the show here on the Self Help Radio website.

Gosh I wish I coulda driven down to Talent, Oregon, to get a picture of the sign myself. Sadly, it's 320 miles away. But I have driven past it!

Self Help Radio 012125: Talent

(Original image here*)

Self Help Radio this week was a show about talent. Not a talent show! Though there were lots of songs about talent shows. For the record I've never been in a talent show. Nor have I performed at an open mic. But that's neither here nor there. The talent involved in this show is not its host. But you knew that.

The show can be listened to either at the KBOO website or at the Self Help Radio website. If you choose the latter, please use the username SHR & password selfhelp to access. All the stuff that happened on the show is below.

You talented listener you.

Self Help Radio Talent Show

"A Little Brains, A Little Talent" Gwen Verdon _Damn Yankees (An Original Cast Recording)_

"Talent For Lovin'" Yellow Hair _Somewhere_

"The Downtown Talent Scout" Frank Zappa _You Can't Do That On Stage Anymore Vol. 5_

introduction & definitions

"Talent Is An Asset" Sparks _Kimono My House_

"New Talent Needed All The Time" R. Stevie Moore _Swing & A Miss/R. Stevie Moore '77_

"Talent Night At The Nashville Inn" Commander Cody _Flying Dreams_

"Your Wasted Is A Talent Here" The Capstan Shafts _Revelation Skirts_

"The Talent Contest" The Legendary Pink Dots _The Golden Age_

interview with George Adams, who claims he's talentless

"Tale Of A Talentless Boy" Oliver Marson _Why Did I Choose This?_

"Talent" Pixies _Head Carrier_

"International Bulletproof Talent" Bauhaus _Go Away White_

"Talent" Heavenly Beat _Talent_

"Tyranny Of The Talentless" David Holmes & Raven Violet _Blind On A Galloping Horse_

interview with Teaching Talent author Tom James

"Talent Show" The Replacements _Don't Tell A Soul_

"Talent To Follow" Vic Godard _The End Of The Surrey People_

"She's Got Talent" Martin Newell _Martin Newell's Jumble Sale_

"Molly's Got A Talent" Sasha Bell _Love Is Alright_

"You Have Ugly Talents, Martha" Jessamine _Jessamine_

interview with talent show planner Quincy Monroe

"Impatient Talent Show" Jonathan Fire*Eater _Wolf Songs For Lambs_

"Talent" Echobelly _Insomniac_

"Tickets For The Talent Search" Smattering _Fig. 428 Racket To Stardom_

"Talent Is A Crime" The No-Talents _Talent Is A Crime_

"Aliens With Extraordinary Talent" Tuomo & Markus _Game Changing_ 

conclusion & goodbye

"Drum Solo" Various Artists _The Talent Show_

"Have A Talent" Inna Vision _Music On My Mind_

"Talento En Television" The University Of Texas Afro-Caribbean Ensemble _KVRX Local Live 3rd Edition, Revised: Educational Programming_

* This image, which has been changed by adding the Self Help Radio logo, is "The Talent In Neon" by Maryalena Salman. The original is here. It is used under the Attribution-Sharealike 2.0 Generic license.