Coming Up Tomorrow On The Dickenbock Report: International Cello Day

(image from the Wikipedia)

December 29 is International Cello Day. Dick Dickenbock, being a big fan of music, loves to showcase musical instruments on his show. Especially big musical instruments. He sometimes dreams of having big musical instruments fight each other on the show! Cello vs. Tuba! But he'll settle for a show talking about & playing musical reports about the cello.

That's tomorrow, Sunday, from noon to 1pm, on 91.1+107.1fm in Portland, & online everywhere at xray dot fm. Hydraulophone vs Double Contrabass! Now that would be a match-up!

This Week In Self Help (December 22 + 24)

(found somewhere on Tumblr)

This was a week when I only did two radio shows but three of my shows aired. & two of those shows are back-to-back so it's almost like I only did one show & that was my Christmas gift to Portland this week.

XRAY superfan & former deejay Mark sat if for The Dickenbock Report on Sunday. He did a kind of holiday show but his spin was clever & a little subversive. You can listen to that show on the XRAY website & also on the Self Help Radio website (where the username is SHR & the password is selfhelp).

Self Help Radio featured my year-end collection of some of my favorite music of 2024. You can listen to that show on the KBOO website & also on the Self Help Radio website (where the username is SHR & the password is selfhelp).

This week's episode of Corporate Standardized Programming continued my vain attempt to celebrate those we lost in 2024. I have just finished September! That show is at the end of the KBOO file above or you can listen to it as a one-hour show on the Self Help Radio website (where the username is SHR & the password is selfhelp).

Only a few more shows in 2024! I'll probably screw them up.

Self Help Radio 122424: Gary's Favorite Music 2024

(images from Discogs & Bandcamp)

Here it is! A collection of two hours of some - but not all - of my favorite music of the year. I know I missed something. I always miss something. I tell myself I'll keep better records, find ways to remind myself, but then a year passes & I do my best to gather what I liked most. Here it is! Oh. I already said that.

It's not in any order except in the order that I thought would sound best. I don't really make top ten lists. I am not as rigid as that. What I like depends on my mood & my place in life. There are bands I thought I'd love forever that - even though I still love them in a way - I don't listen to at all anymore. I think I just like listening to new music a lot & it has changed my relationship to the old music in my life. I need to think more on this.

You should go listen to the show! It's available both on the KBOO web page & on the Self Help Radio web page. On the Self Help Radio page use the username SHR & password selfhelp to access. It was all music plus me talking. The playlist is below.

Happy holidays to all!

Gary's Favorite Music 2024

"DIY SOS" Crumbs _You're Just Jealous_

"JAMCOD" The Jesus & Mary Chain _Glasgow Eyes_

"Company Culture" Lambrini Girls _Company Culture_

"Stepping Across" Close Lobsters _Stepping Across_

"California Highway 99" The Softies _The Bed I Made_

"Where Are You?" The Chameleons _Where Are You?_

"Coast" Kim Deal _Nobody Loves You More_

"Alone" The Cure _Songs Of A Lost World_

"Woke Up & No Feet" Anastasia Coope _Darning Woman_

"You Will Always Be Alone In Your Mind" 36? _Finding Love/Having Autism_

"Lamplighter" Memorials _Memorial Waterslides_

"Pop Single" The Bug Club _On The Intricate Inner Workings Of The System_

"Stella The Begonia" Rubblebucket _Year Of The Banana_

"Gramme Friday (Live)" The Fall _Grotesque (After The Gramme) (Live)_

"A Taste Of Money" House Of All _Continuum_

"Sark E Myth" Momus _Yikes!_

"Techno Blank" Neon Kittens _RadioSickMusic_

"R&D" Dom Sensitive _Leather Trim_

"Toxic Energy" Swansea Sound _Toxic Energy_

"The World Was Round" BMX Bandits _Dreamers On The Run_

"Look Alive!" Jetstream Pony _Under The Bridge 2_

"You & Me & The Sea" The Proctors _Snowdrops & Hot Air Balloons_

"Different Tune" Lunchbox _Pop & Circumstance_

"The Order Of The Seasons" Los Campesinos! _All Hell_

"Bo's New Haircut" The Cords _Bo's New Haircut_

"Not Look Down" The Big However _Static Caravan_

"Dreamboat" Itchy & The Nits _The Worst Of Itchy & The Nits_

"My White Bicycle" Robyn Hitchcock _1967: Vacations In The Past_

"La Rockette" Organi _Babylonia_

Whither Gary's Favorite Music 2024

(original logo here)

It's that time of year when you see "best of" lists everywhere. I've expressed my dislikes for such lists before, usually around this time of year, on the blog & on the radio. No need to go over that again. I did have a curious thought just now - when I was a teenager it was considered extremely cool to like music that most people didn't even know about. It was common to think that was the "best" music out there. What might've happened if the world suddenly flipped upside down & those bands became big sellers, Grammy winners, household names? Was it just the thrill of being the only person who liked the music that made it the "best"? I hope someone has written something about this. It would be fun to know what psychological issues are at play.

Anyway, at this time of year I forego a "best of" list because I don't believe there's such a thing as "best." I find it weird that people need to represent their opinions that way. I find it extremely odd that media outlets will have groups of people vote on what's "best" & then present them under that term - so everyone involved didn't agree unanimously on the list? Does no one know what the word "best" means?

Me, I just present the stuff I've listened to most during the year. But I will admit that I have had to come to the hard conclusion that I don't really listen to music the way I used to. Part of it is that I make so many radio shows & listen to music for those shows. I don't often take the time to just listen to something as I might have when I was younger. Discovering music has become its own particular pleasure. But it & listening to music competes with other pleasures - reading, spending time with my wife, walking the dogs, consuming other media, cooking, eating, even sleeping. That's been another revelation - I seem to have slowed down somewhat. It takes longer to do the things I love which of course eats into that time. Perhaps it's part of growing old. I am grateful that I don't just listen to the same things over & over like many people my age - but there's no judgement if that's the case for you. I completely understand.

With that said - I'm on the radio tonight on KBOO from 12 midnight to 2am playing a lot of - but not all of - my favorite music of the year. I don't keep a running list & I listen to a lot of music so I'm sure to have forgotten something. But I'll do my best to represent the stuff I returned to in my listening. That's on 90.7fm in Portland & online everywhere at kboo dot fm.

Preface To Gary's Favorite Music 2024: Criticism

(Norman Rockwell, The Art Critic {1955} found here)

Critics in general have terrible reputation. In my opinion (which by the way is not a phrase most critics use) probably half of them desire no more than to turn a witty phrase or deliver a withering observation. Critics in general seem to me (another little qualification that critics hardly ever add) a joyless bunch whose self-satisfaction masks some issues they have tried to cover up with positioning themselves as arbiters of taste. Some critics are in fact clever. Some are insightful. But I have found most of them to be no better or worse than your friend who doesn't like something because "it sucks."

It took me some time to realize that there's no objective best or worst when it comes to matters of opinion. I had a friend - who really, really wished he could have been a critic that people would listen to - who got mad at certain critics because he didn't feel the way they did but also they were in newspapers so more people heard their opinion instead of his. People are strangely threatened by someone not liking the things they hold dear. The cure for that is to not think of the things you like as "the best" but to understand that there are many reasons for people to like things & it's fine if they don't like what you like. Honestly, more people than not don't like much of the music I like, & it affects me not at all. I would assume the fact that I mostly don't like what they like has never troubled them, either.

One of the things I often say - & I am sorry because I have discussed this many times before, most recently on the blog here - is that the only thing that can be said about an opinion is how informed it is. If I ask you about an artist & you tell me, "That guy sucks" but I ask another person & they know much more about the artist, I am probably going to take that person's opinion more seriously. Both opinions are equally valid - you like what you like - but an informed opinion has always been more helpful to me than an uninformed one. I myself have been surprised when people have taken an uninformed opinion by me as seriously as they have. One good friend of mine I discovered never listened to Talking Heads' last album because I told him I didn't like it much. I wish I had said "But I fucking love the song Blind!" Ooops.

The role of critics in my life - the ones I like to read - has not been to either justify my opinion or to influence my opinion but to give me context for their opinion. We may end up disagreeing - I enjoy this one fellow online who does videos about Star Trek but we disagree about a lot - it also helps that he's funny - but I feel more confident learning about someone's opinion if they can tell me more about that opinion.

Which is a long-winded way of saying I don't do year-end best-of lists on Self Help Radio, just spend a couple of hours playing some of the music I listened to a lot this year. I call them my favorites & that seems to me to be to be the fairest way to describe that - after all, if there truly were an objective "best of," then by definition wouldn't everyone's list be the same?

Think on that. More tomorrow.

Coming Up Tomorrow On The Dickenbock Report: Mark's Show

(photo of Mark unavailable at press time)

Tonight is the Dickenbock Report staff & crew's holiday party. If it's like our other holiday parties, no one will be be sober &/or dressed enough to do the show tomorrow. We've called in professional radio show sub Mark to helm the program. He has promised some holidays tunes & more.

Listen to Mark's show noon to 1pm on 91.1+107.1fm in Portland & online at xray dot fm everywhere. Standard restrictions apply. Void where prohibited by law.

This Week In Self Help (December 15 17 + 19)

(image from here)

It was a regular ol' week for me as I just did my three shows. One of my three shows immediately follows another of my three shows so it's like I just do two shows. The smaller number of shows I do, the more palatable it is for Portland listeners. Hopefully eventually I'll make it down to no shows & everyone will be relieved.

Oh no I forgot! I did a show yesterday! Now the city hates me even more!

The Dickenbock Report celebrated the anniversary of the Venera 7 landing on the planet Venus. So I played lots of songs about Venus & talked to an astronaut who plans to go to Venus. Listen to that show in two places: on the XRAY website or on the Self Help Radio website (username: SHR, password: selfhelp).

Self Help Radio shared many more improvised bits with my dear friend Russell as my spiritual mentor the Rev Dr Howard Gently. I don't think I've laughed & cried simultaneously as much in my life as when I do these shows. Listen to that show in two places: on the KBOO website or on the Self Help Radio website (username: SHR, password: selfhelp).

The show after Self Help Radio is called Corporate Standardized Programming & this month I am trying to play music by artists we lost in 2024. I'm doing it chronologically (by their death) & have made it (sigh) to mid-September. That show is appended to the KBOO link above or you can listen to it by itself on the Self Help Radio website (username: SHR, password: selfhelp).

Finally! Yesterday I played some ska, rocksteady, & reggae for a couple of hours in the afternoon on KBOO. KBOO doesn't archive its sub shows so you can't listen there but you can see the playlist on Spinitron (I haven't updated that on the show's website yet) & you can listen to it on the Self Help Radio website (username: SHR, password: selfhelp).

That was all.

Self Help Radio 121724: Howard Gently Year Three, Concluded

Maybe not entirely concluded. We made it to January 2017.

The show contained lots of Howard Gently bits - improvised with my late friend Russell playing the Reverend Doctor - paired with songs from the shows the interviews were on. In a few airbreaks I contextualized things if needed. I tried not to get too sad. It's so very strange to have recordings of a familiar & beloved voice that you know you'll never hear again in real life. & I am so grateful I have those recordings.

& yeah, I understand this is a very personal project & may not appeal to everyone. But perhaps you'll enjoy two old friends trying their best to crack each other up. If only I had saved the whole sessions!

You can listen to this show in two places: on the KBOO website, & on the Self Help Radio website. Should you choose the latter, you will probably need a username & password to download. Those are SHR & selfhelp. The playlist is below. Please enjoy.

Or as Dr Gently would say, "Blessed be."

Howard Gently Year Three Concluded

"My Wandering Days Are Over" Belle & Sebastian _Tigermilk_

Howard Gently on the theme "Wandering"

"Say Boss Man" Bo Diddley _Bo Diddley_

Howard Gently on the theme "Bosses"

"Elephant Talk" King Crimson _Discipline_

Howard Gently on the theme "Elephants"

"The Past" Screamin' Jay Hawkins _The Best Of Red Top Records Volume 2_

Howard Gently on the theme "Past Lives"

"We Got To Meet Death One Day (Take 1)" Blind Willie McTell _Complete Recorded Works, Vol.3 (1933-35)_

Howard Gently on the theme "Death"

"Try A Little Tenderness" Otis Redding _The Otis Redding Story_

Howard Gently on the theme "Tenderness"

"Black & White World" Elvis Costello _Taking Liberties_

Howard Gently on the theme "Black & White"

"The Great San Bernardino Birthday Party" John Fahey _Guitar Vol. 4 / The Great San Bernardino Birthday Party & Other Excursions_

Howard Gently on the theme "Birthdays 2016"

"Travel Agent" Monty Python _Monty Python's Previous Record_

Howard Gently on the theme "Travel"

Howard Gently on the theme "Christmas 2016"

"Electric Cafe" Kraftwerk _Electric Cafe_ 

Howard Gently on the theme "New Year 2017"

Howard Gently on the theme "Dust"

Whither Howard Gently Year Three, Concluded?

That image up there is the one my friend Russell chose as the "press photo" of his "alter ego" Brother Russell. It appeared on his prank CDs & on his old website (now defunct) but surprisingly not on his Bandcamp page where you can listen to & purchase his old prank calls. I have no idea where he found it.

Russell died last year but for the longest time he appeared on Self Help Radio as my spiritual mentor The Rev Dr Howard Gently, a charlatan & con man in the grand tradition. Our interviews were improvised around the show's theme. Russell was also my oldest & dearest friend & I have been playing his appearances on the show in chronological order since his passing. I'll do that every three months until that sad day when I have exhausted them. Or who knows I'll start all over again. It's a sad comfort to hear his voice. I feel profoundly grateful to have these recordings.

We collaborated a lot in 2016 & it's taken three shows to present all the interviews we did. Heck, we actually might not conclude the year! We will begin with his sixty-seventh appearance on the show - from September 28, 2016, when the show aired in Lexington, Kentucky - & we'll go from there. Listening through the bits, he continued to make me laugh out loud. Like he did in life.

That will happen tonight, from midnight to 2am, on 90.7fm in Portland, on kboo dot fm everywhere. If you enjoy the bits only half as much as I do, you will love them.

Preface To Howard Gently Year Three, Concluded: It All Has To Start Somewhere

(image from here)

This is a story I may have told before. But since, this week, I'll be playing more improvised bits by dear friend Russell, I wanted to share with you something he did that, I think, changed my life: he made me a mix tape.

Russell & I bonded over our love of the Beatles but by the time I entered ninth grade I was still listening to the radio to find new music. He suggested to me that he might make me a mix of David Bowie. I knew Bowie from his hits but otherwise didn't know much about him. So I gave Russell a blank tape & oh boy. It was a very cheap tape - not much like the one above. It was one of those cassette tapes you could buy in packs of three in a drug store. When I gave it to him, he looked a little disappointed - like, you want me to use this? I didn't know there was such a thing as "good quality cassette tapes." The tapes I had were the tapes my mother used to send recordings to her family in Germany. I don't what to say that he begrudgingly took the tape, but perhaps he did.

He made me a magnificent David Bowie mix which I still have today. Unfortunately I don't have it with me right now - it's in a box somewhere - but I remember that while it had some of the hits - Space Oddity, Ziggy Stardust - it had some songs that have never made it onto the greatest hits. For example, as a samples from Young Americans, Russ chose not the title song nor Fame, but Somebody Up There Likes Me.

People talk about gateway drugs - that Bowie tape was gateway music. I suddenly had a sense that the music being played on commercial radio was not all that there was. There was more. For whatever reason, the radio stations were choosing to play the same thing over & over where there was a vast music library out there they ignored.

However one might map the winding path that led to the music I love & listen to now, the Bowie mix tape Russell made for me in 1983 was a revelation. & it was the beginning. That's where it all started. Gosh! I hope he knew that.

Coming Up Tomorrow On The Dickenbock Report: The Anniversary Of Venera 7 Landing On Venus

(image from here)

On December 15, 1970 - nearly 54 years ago - the Soviet Union landed a probe on the planet Venus. It was the first time human beings did such a thing - landing a probe on another planet. & the first time we got a sense of what our sister planet was really like.

Tomorrow on the Dickenbock Report on XRAY FM, we'll talk about that mission as well as talk to an astronaut who wants to be the first human on Venus. Plus we'll listen to many musical reports about the planet Venus.

That's Sunday, December 15, from noon to 1pm, on 91.1+107.1fm in town, & xray dot fm everywhere. Venus is currently around 300 millions kilometers from earth, so if you're listening there, it'll take a few minutes for the radio waves to get to you. We apologize for the delay.

This Week In Self Help (December 6 8 + 10)

(image from here)

Kind of a busy week? This summary of the stuffs I did on air starts a week ago - since I last wrote this before I did that show. Don't judge me!

There's an excellent show on KBOO called The Songcircle which I sometimes sub & which I subbed a Friday ago. You can listen on the KBOO website or you can listen on the Self Help Radio website. If you do listen at selfhelpradio.net, please remember the username SHR & the password selfhelp.

On Sunday I paid tribute to John Lennon on the anniversary of his death by playing lots of artists covering his songs. That was for the Dickenbock Report, & you can listen on the XRAY website or you can listen on the Self Help Radio website.

This week's Self Help Radio was a show about hobos (which is why I chose the picture above). You can listen to it on the KBOO website or you can listen to it on the Self Help Radio website.

This week's Corporate Standardized Programming featured music by artists we lost in early September of this year. I am paying tribute in the manner on every episode of this show this month. It's the last hour of the KBOO link above, but you can listen to the show on its own on the Self Help Radio website.

Wait did I mention if you listen on the Self Help Radio website you may need to use the username SHR & the password selfhelp? I think I mentioned that. I hope I mentioned that.

Hobos In Movies

(image from the IMDb)

Our resident cinephile Chuck came to the show this week to talk about films tagged with "hobo" on the IMDb. You can listen to that show at selfhelpradio dot net or at kboo.fm but you should've already done that. Anyway, once you've heard Chuck's segment, check out these handy links which will enhance the experience:

YouTube playlists of films, shorts, & trailers.

Here is Chuck's Letterboxd list. Chuck sez, "I put the links to available YouTube videos in the notes for the films plus where they are available to stream for free on some."

Here are his Letterboxd reviews.

Here is the IMDb keyword search list.

Chuck has a Bluesky account where he has posted about some of the films. If you like what you see, follow him! He usually follows you back.

& be careful out there - bulls are everywhere!

121024: Hobos

(Original image here.*)

Nope, didn't see any hobos on the way to the show this morning. Nor did any come by - despite the show being like a siren song for any hobos nearby. But it was a chilly night. & foggy. & some hobo songs are sad!

But golly there are lots. & I also talked to some folks about hobos. But mainly there were lots of songs about hobos. Now there are probably more of them than there are hobos.

Hobo or nobo, you can listen now at the KBOO website or at the Self Help Radio website. For the latter you will need the username SHR & the password selfhelp. Lots of stuff happened on the show - most of what happened is noted below.

Be safe out there!

Self Help Radio Hobo Show

"Hobo Blues" Peg Leg Howell _Atlanta Blues (Big City Blues From The Heartland)_

"Georgia Hobo" The Cofer Brothers _Hard Times Come Again No More Vol. 1 (Early American Rural Songs Of Hard Times & Hardships)_

"Big Rock Candy Mountain" Harry McClintock _Folk Song America: A 20th Century Revival_

introduction & history

"Hobo, You Can't Ride This Train" Louis Armstrong & His Orchestra _1931-1932_

"Hobo's Meditation" Jimmie Rodgers _The Singing Brakeman_

"The Hobo's Dream Of Heaven" Wilf Carter _Cowboy Songs_

"Hobo Blues" Yank Rachell _When The Sun Goes Down: The Secret History Of Rock & Roll_

"Hobo Blues" John Lee Hooker _The Ultimate Collection: 1948-1990_

interview with sociologist Dr. Bert Hendrix

"King Of The Road" Roger Miller _King Of The Road: The Genius Of Roger Miller_

"My Heart Is A Hobo" Lena Horne _Songs By Burke & Van Heusen_

"Millionaire Hobo" The Fantastics _Fabulous Memories_

"Hobo" The Catalinas _Doo-Bop-Jivers Vol. II_

"Two Hoboes" The Journeymen _New Directions In Folk Music_

"Only A Hobo" Bob Dylan _The Bootleg Series Volumes 1-3 (Rare & Unreleased 1961-1991)_

interview with local business owner Henry Beard

"The Dying Hobo (American)" Ewan MacColl & Peggy Seeger _The Long Harvest (Record Seven)_

"Hobo Bill's Last Ride" Merle Haggard _Same Train, Different Time_

"The Hobo Song" John Prine _Bruised Orange_

"Hobo Girl" Quartette _Quartette_

"I Am A Lonesome Hobo" Thea Gilmore _John Wesley Harding_

our resident cinephile Chuck stops by

"Hobo Blues" Seasick Steve _Dog House Music_

"Last Of The Hobo Kings" Mary Gauthier _Between Daylight & Dark_

"Hobos In The Roundhouse" Bill Isles _Early Risers_

"Hobo's Lullaby" Billy Bragg & Joe Henry _Shine A Light: Field Recordings From The Great American Railroad_

"The Last Hobo" Tom Paxton _Boat In The Water_

conclusion & goodbye

"King Of The Hobos" Country Dick Montana _The Devil Lied To Me_

"Hobo's Dream" The Dead Sailor Girls _Rolling Sea_

"The Hobo Girl" Fruit Bats _The Ruminant Band_

* "Bakersfield, California. On The Freights. Helping A Newcomer Hop A Freight" is licensed under Public Domain Mark 1.0 Universal.

Whither Hobos?

(image from this article)

Do hobos still exist? The National Hobo Museum in Iowa says they don't. But articles like this one - The Life Of A Modern Hobo - would beg to differ. & asking the question online leads to lots of personal anecdotes - one person even said they recently met one at a party! I've always known I don't get invited to the best parties but now there's proof.

When did I decide to make a show about hobos, tho? It might have been while listening to a stand-up comedian using the word "hobo" as a punchline. (If only I could remember the comedian or the joke.) Or it could have been seeing a hobo in a movie or a television show. (If only I could pinpoint which movie or which television show.) Or it could've been listening to Jimmie Rodgers last summer when I went down a rabbit hole full of songs featuring yodeling. It was one of those. It was all of those. Something or many things hinted to me that it might be fun doing a radio show about hobos. & so I shall.

Tonight! From midnight to 2am! On KBOO! 90.7fm + kboo.fm. I'll be leaving hobo glyphs all over the city so you can find it!

Preface To Hobos: God Rides With The Hobos

(image by Alyssa Schukar from here)

This is my confession: I've never been terribly obsessed with hobos. When I was somewhat young, I was familiar with the song "Big Rock Candy Mountain." Not being aware the song was something of a joke - not quite a parody, but maybe a little of a satire - it seemed very odd to me that in the perfect world of the hobo, there would be jails & railroad bulls & mean dogs, etc. Again - I wasn't a terribly perceptive kid.

Mostly though I never dreamed of running away, hitchhiking, riding the rails, etc. I found all that incredibly terrifying. & I felt that way because my mother was terrified of the world so she warned me & all my siblings about every possible danger all the time, & every disaster was a "told you so" moment. In fact, she would make things up just to terrify us. Listen:

When my little brother & I were kids, she refused to let us go to the men's room alone in places like movie theaters. She said, "There's a man in there waiting to cut your go-go off!" (My mother called penises "go-gos." I don't know why. It's something my sister & I laugh about all the time.) Despite being unable to understand not just why someone would want to do that, but also why that would be allowed, I dutifully followed my mother into the ladies' room with her. Deeply embarrassing for everyone except my mom.

The best thing about this week has been listening to lots of songs & reading about hobos. Am I more into them now? A little. Would I consider riding the rails one day? No way. My mother still lives in my head. & I suspect her voice will get even more insistent the older I get.

Coming Up Tomorrow On The Dickenbock Report: John Lennon Tribute

(image from the Wikipedia)

On December 8, 1980, John Lennon was murdered in New York City. On the forty-fourth anniversary of that awful day, the Dickenbock Report will play an hour of John Lennon songs are interpreted by musicians he inspired & influenced.

Sunday, December 8, noon to 1pm on 91.1+107.1fm in Portland, xray dot fm everywhere.

This Week In Self Help (December 1 2 + 3)

Life can be a blur. Not that it goes by so fast, altho it does - it's just that the eyes of my life are failing with age. I need some kind of corrective lenses to look back through time. But I do try to keep up & here are the dumb radio shows I happened to make this week. (When you listen on the Self Help Radio website, you may need the username SHR & password selfhelp. FYI.)

The Dickenbock Report reported on Wear A Dress Day. Listen: XRAY website. Self Help Radio website.

True story: I got a nice text for a listener after that show that was good for my self-esteem.

Before Self Help Radio on Monday night, I played two hours of jazz/electronica/experimental music. It's not archived on the KBOO website, alas, but you can listen on the Self Help Radio website.

True story: that show was prerecorded, but as I came in do Self Help Radio, the phone was flashing, & I answered it, & a gruff voice said, "I am a longtime supporter & I want you to get that fake-ass deejay off the air!" Then they hung up. That was bad for my self-esteem.

Self Help Radio was "a steady show." Listen: KBOO website. Self Help Radio website.

Included with the KBOO link is this week's Corporate Standardized Programming. It was a show in which I played artists we lost this year, from August. You can listen above or at the Self Help Radio website as a stand-alone one hour show.

& that was it for the week. Yep, a blur.

Self Help Radio 120324: A Steady Show

(Original image here*)

Yeah, it's kind of a dumb theme. Someone did text me during the second hour & told me it was a "Very Steady 2nd Hour!" Which is a contrast to the first call I got, which said, "I'm a longtime supporter & I want you to get this fake-ass deejay off the air!" The person then hung up, & I took it quite personally.

Steadiness is really the best one can hope for at this point.

Listen to this show at the KBOO website. Or at the Self Help Radio website - where you may need the username SHR & the password selfhelp. Lots of stuff happened on the show. Most of it is noted below.

Steady as she goes!

A Steady Self Help Radio Show

"I'm A Steady Rollin' Man" Robert Johnson _The Complete Recordings_

"I'm Steady Holding On" Rufus Thomas _Tiger Man: Earliest Recordings 1950-1957_

"A Steady Hand" Big Harp _White Hat_

introduction & definitions

"Ready Steady Go" Generation X _Generation X_

"Steady As She Goes" CJ Ramone _American Beauty_

"Steady As She Goes" Shellac _Excellent Italian Greyhound_

"A Steady Mind" Loma _How Will I Live Without A Body?_

"Steady State" Teenage Fanclub _Here_

interview with author Gloria Stubing

"Let's Go Steady" The Davis Sisters _Memories_

"Steady Johnny" Noeleen Batley _Little Treasure_

"Going Steady" Jilted John _True Love Stories_

"Go Steady" The Lambrettas _The Best Of The Lambrettas: The Singles Collection_

"Goin' Steady" The Producers _The Producers_

"Going Steady" Bearsuit _Cat Spectacular!_

interview with weapons master Stuart Glower

"My Daddy Rocks Me (With One Steady Roll) (vocals Frankie Jaxon)" Tampa Red's Hokum Jug Band _The Copulatin' Blues Compact Disc_

"Rock Steady" Alton Ellis & The Flames _First Class Rock Steady_

"Rock Steady Gone" Dandy _Dawning Of A New Era: The Roots Of Skinhead Reggae_

"Rock Steady" Ruby Delicious _Golden State Funk: Impossibly Rare Funk From The Bay Area_

"(Hey You) The Rock Steady Crew" The Rock Steady Crew _Electro Breakdance (The Real Old School Revival)_

idioms!

"Easy There, Steady Now" Richard Thompson _Mirror Blue_

"The Steady Slowing Down Of The Heart" Lloyd Cole _Cleaning Out The Ashtrays (Collected B-Sides & Rarities 1989-2006)_

"Keep Some Steady Friends Around" Smog _Rain On Lens_

"The Steady Pace" Cats On Fire _Our Temperance Movement_

"Steady" Cold Specks _I Predict A Graceful Expulsion_

conclusion & goodbye

"Let's Keep Steady Company" Billy Worth _M-G-M Hillbilly Vol. 3_

"My Steady Dream" Tommy Wood _The Complete D Singles Collection, Volume 1_

*This image, which has been manipulated by me, is licensed under the Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported license.

Whither A Steady Show?

The image above is from the Wikipedia. Its description says, "Space-time diagram in the steady state theory. Though stars (white) expand exponentially & quickly disappear over the event horizon (green), the theory assumes that new matter would be continuously created. The observer would see infinite red-shifted ancient stars on the light cone (yellow). This view failed to explain almost homogeneous microwave background radiation."

Imagine how cool it would have been if the inspiration for this show was something cosmological! Like, whoa, Gary was ready lots of books about theories of the universe & thought yeah "steady" would be a cool theme as it relates to brilliant minds trying to figure things out!

But no, I just noticed lots of songs using the word "steady." So you know. I put a show together with lots of songs prominently featuring the word "steady." I'm a pretty unsteady fellow who steadily puts out dumb radio shows so it kinda reflects on me too. Ah well.

Tonight! On KBOO! A steady Self Help Radio show. Midnight to 2am. 90.7fm in town. kboo dot fm everywhere.