Self Help Radio 052314: Walls

Walls went up today on Self Help Radio!  Walls were breached!  Walls were erected & walls came tumbling down!  It was a whole lot of work for some rightly pissed-off bricklayers.  I'm surprised I didn't get a mouthful of mortar!

You can now feel cooped up between four walls by listening to the show at Self Help Radio web central.  There are direct links, too, if you can't be bothered to click a couple more times: part I | part II.  The songs I played are below.

Have a happy Memorial Day weekend!

(part one)

"Walls" Flowers _Icehouse_
"Walls" Red Letter Day _Table & Chairs_
"Walls" Shout Out Louds _Work_

"At Home With The Walls" The Passmore Sisters _Violent Blue_
"Tear Down The Walls" Fred Neil & Vince Martin _Tear Down The Walls_
"Break Down The Walls" Mikey Dread _Beyond World War III_
"Green Walls" Toy Love _Cuts_

"Yellow Walls" Jackson C. Frank _Blues Run The Game_
"I'm In Love With My Walls" Birdland With Lester Bangs _Birdland With Lester Bangs_
"Ideas For Walls" Men Without Hats _Rhythm Of Youth_
"Round These Walls" The Tokey Tones (& Friends) _Stroke: Songs For Chris Knox_

"Hello Walls" Faron Young _Essential Hits_
"(Empty Walls) A Lonely Room" Bob Luman _Livin', Lovin' Sounds_

(part two)

"Four Walls" Jim Reeves _He'll Have To Go & Other Hits_
"Hello Walls # 2" Ben Colder _The Best Of Ben Colder_
"I'm Gonna Paper All My Walls With Your Love Letters" Dean Martin _The Capitol Years_

"Singing Rule Brittania (While The Walls Close In)" The Chameleons _What Does Anything Mean? Basically_
"Walls Come Tumbling Down!" The Style Council _Our Favourite Shop_
"Breakin' Down The Walls Of Heartache" The Bandwagon _The Northern Soul Story, Vol. 2_
"Poison In The Walls" The Go-Betweens _Bright Orange Bright Yellow_

"Walking Into Walls" Honeybunch _Time Trials: 1987-1995_
"Cathedral Walls" Big Red Bus _The Sound Of Leamington Spa, Vol. 1_
"White Walls, Quiet Halls" The Mabels _The Closest People_
"The Concrete & The Walls" Elf Power _Elf Power_

"TVs & Walls" Moped _The Horrible Truth About Moped_
"Tear Down These Walls" 1919 _The Complete Collection_

Whither Walls?

How many walls must I have about me, that I think to do a radio show about walls?  Walls from my awful adolescence, walls to protect & walls to defend, walls to obscure & walls to confuse.  What walls have been built that I haven't even been aware of, but exist nonetheless.  My therapist's children's children will go to college thanks to me!

Well, I'm not sure how we'll examine walls on tomorrow's show, just sure of there being fine music like you expect from Self Help Radio, plus wackiness mixed with tedium.  Equals same old thing.

What?  I'm not good at selling my show!  My therapist tells me it's a defense mechanism.

Tomorrow morning from 7 to 9am on 88.1 fm in Lexington, & online everywhere at wrfl dot fm.  I'll put the show online afterwards.

Oh, & remember!  A new episode of Woke Up Early One Morning Blues at 6am!

Preface To Walls: Ceilings & Floors

I googled this: "How is a wall different than a floor or a ceiling?"  All the responses involved doing similar things (like soundproofing) to all three parts, rather than even venturing a guess at the differences between the three.

This is intolerable.

Imagine, if you will, a world in which everything is turned on its side.  In such a world, two of our walls would become the floor & the ceiling, while the floor & the ceiling would unceremoniously become walls.

How would each part adjust to its new circumstance?  I can think of a few troubling scenarios.

First of all, doors, which are commonly found mostly in walls, would be a little useless if now on the floor (unless there's a basement).  Were doors to end up on the ceiling, well, it would make answering the door even more of a chore than it currently is.

Furthermore, cellar doors or trap doors, or even skylights, will probably make poor door choices for the new world which is on its side.

Here's another thing: plumbing.  I don't know much about plumbing but it does seem to me that the pipes that I assume are what people talk about when they talk about plumbing would not increase one's property value should they be sticking boldly out of the side of the house rather than into the ground where they (again, I am assuming this) connect in a fascinating way to the sewer.

& I bet you've thought of this one: in larger buildings, which is to say those with many floors, or "stories," the walls when the building is on its side will be much, much larger than the ceiling & floor.  This would cause places where building grew up instead of out because of space restrictions to become completely clogged, with no room for bike lanes or promenades or any of the things that make city life worth tackling.

I am no architect nor private detective so I can't begin to truly understand the severe differences between floors, ceilings, & walls, & it bothers me like bug bite that someone with more know-how hasn't tackled this issue before.

It's your time, young genius!  Do it quickly, though - one never knows when the world will be turned on its side!

Woke Up Early One Morning Blues, Episode One

Bessie Smith, Empress Of The Blues

As I keep mentioning because I don't really believe anyone listens to me (thanks Mom!), I am doing a show this summer called Woke Up Early One Morning Blues.  It's a pre-war blues show, focusing on the country blues but, because the genre hadn't really been defined yet, it's something of a free-for-all genre wise.  Or it can be.

This past week's show is available for listening if you're interested at SHR web central.  I hope it's nice to hear.  Here's what was heard to those who were there to hear:

"Crazy Blues" Mamie Smith _Mamie Smith Vol. 1 (1920-1921)_
"Arkansas Blues" Lucille Hegamin _Lucille Hegamin Vol. 1 (1920-1922)_
"Give Me That Old Slow Drag" Trixie Smith _Trixie Smith Vol. 1 (1922-1924)_

"'Tain't Nobody's Bizness If I Do" Bessie Smith _The Complete Recordings, Vol. 1_
"Bo-Weavil Blues" Ma Rainey _Mother Of The Blues_
"Shake That Thing" Papa Charlie Jackson _Papa Charlie Jackson Vol. 1 (1924 - 1926)_
"Black Snake Blues" Victoria Spivey _Fattenin' Frogs For Snakes: The Essential Recordings Of The Blues Ladies_
"Black Snake Moan" Blind Lemon Jefferson _The Rough Guide To Blind Lemon Jefferson_

"Singin' The Blues" Frankie Trumbauer & His Orchestra _Ken Burns Jazz_
"Georgia On My Mind" Mildred Bailey _The Early Years_
"Stack O'Lee" Mississippi John Hurt _Avalon Blues: The 1928 Sessions_
"I'm So Glad" Skip James _Complete Early Recordings Of 1930_
"Last Kind Words Blues" Geeshie Wiley _American Primitive: Pre-War Revenants 1897-1939, Vol. 2_

"Bull Cow Blues" Big Bill Broonzy _Essential Blues Friends_
"Milk Cow Blues" Kokomo Arnold _Milk Cow Blues_
"Strut That Thing" Cripple Clarence Lofton _Broke, Black & Blue, Vol. 3: Good Whiskey Blues

Sorry, Another Wasted Day

I don't know how I lose days like today.  Today was all about the pets - a sick pup & a sick kitten.  I didn't even shower today, that's how disgusting I am.

Tomorrow, tomorrow I'll try to be more on the ball.  Here's something I found on the internets to amuse you:

Self Help Radio 051614: Push

Don't push the panic button!  No one got hurt as Self Help Radio returned to RFL Mornings!  Or are you trying to push my buttons?  A show in which I interview not only the "push button king of the American Southwest" but also spiritual guru Howard Gently can't be all bad.  Plus, our old friend Pushy stops by!

You can listen now at Self Help Radio Web Site Place.  Or, should you not want to wait for the one graphic on that page to load (who has the time?), you can listen directly, I've made it easy for you: part one is here, part two is here.  What songs did I play?  They're listed below.

As always, thanks for listening!

(part one)

"The Push" Silhouettes _Complete Package_
"Push (live)" The Woggles _Flaming Burn Out! An Estrus Benefit Comp_
"Push" The Chills _Brave Words_
"Push" The Cure _The Head On The Door_

"Push" Liquid Liquid _Liquid Liquid_
"Push" Black Ice _I Judge The Funk_
"Push" One Way _Love Is... One Way_
"Push" Red Lorry Yellow Lorry _Talk About The Weather_

"Push De Button" Lena Horne _The Lady & Her Music: Live On Broadway_
"Push A Little Button" Ninette Hartley _Push A Little Button_
"Push Button Geoff" Miss Ludella Black & The Masonics _From This Witness Stand_
"Pushing Buttons" The Mendoza Line _I Like You When You're Not Around_

"Push Push" Austin Taylor _Teenage Crush, Vol. 5_

(part two)

"Push Push" Rumbles Ltd. _Push Push_
"Push Push" Lloyd & Devon _Studio One Disco Mix_
"Push Push" Brick _Waiting On You_

"Push It" Salt-N-Pepa _Hot, Cool & Vicious_
"Do The Push & Pull (Part 1)" Rufus Thomas _The Very Best Of Rufus Thomas_
"Keep On Pushing" The Impressions _The Very Best Of The Impressions_
"Pushin' Too Hard (Rehearsal)" Seeds _Travel With Your Mind_

"Push A Little Harder" The Avons _Push A Little Harder_
"You Gotta Push" Jody Gayles _Soul Diva Sessions_
"You Just Can't Push Me (demo)" The Cars _The Cars_
"Push & Shove" Cud _When In Rome Kill Me_

"Pushover" Bearsuit _Pushover_
"Pushover" Etta James _Queen Of Soul_

Whither Push?

I can't often trace the inception of a show idea - I create a folder on my desktop with a theme, & start sticking songs & ideas into it.  But I know where this show idea came from.

It happened a while back - when I was subbing a show on WRFL, probably last year.  Now, I know you're thinking, "Hey, didn't you say you knew where this show idea came from?  It was in the previous sentence!"

Well, all right, I know where it came from, just not when.  All right?  Sheesh.

So - where was I?  Oh yeah.  Late night sub.  Someone called.  They said, "Can you play 'Push It' by Salt-N-Pepa?"  I said what I always say - oh, & I mean it seriously - I say, "I'll play it if I can find it!"

I didn't find it.  Luckily, most people don't call back & yell at me when I can't find their requests.  But when I got home, I was looking through my CDs & there it was - not at the radio station - "Hot, Cool & Vicious."  So I said to myself, "Hey, I should do a show where I can plat 'Push It'!"

It languished, the idea, until I decided to return to RFL.  So, for my first show, I'll be fulfilling a request that was made over six months ago.

I hope the person who made the request is listening!  (Though I know he won't be.)

Tomorrow!  From 7 to 9 am on 88.1 fm on 88.1 fm WRFL in Lexington, & online at wrfl.fm.  (Plus, remember, the premiere of Woke Up One Early Morning Blues at 6am!)

Preface To Push: Self-Promotion Is Hard

I once mentioned to a fellow programmer at KOOP in Austin that I hated to have to "promote" my show.  She said, deadpan, "Is it because you believe you have an inferior product?"

Well, yeah, that too.

This is how I pitched my new show, "Woke Up One Early Morning Blues," to the Programming Director at WRFL:

"The show will explore the many facets of pre-war blues, from proto-blues like work songs, call & response, & shouts, to popular female blues vocalists of the 1920s, to country blues from Mississippi, Texas, Louisiana, Georgia, St. Louis, Kansas City, & Chicago (all over, really).  Included will be lots of crossover material, since proto-country music, ragtime, & early jazz intersected with early blues."

It's happening from six to seven am, right before Self Help Radio, this coming Friday.

I come by my love of this music mostly accidentally.  I wanted, many years ago, to "educate" myself in early jazz, & liked schmaltzy jazzy pop from the 1920s as well as Dixieland, & was totally schooled by the brilliance that is Louis Armstrong's Hot Fives & Sevens.  As I was digging around, though, I saw those early jazz performers not only called many of their numbers "blues," but they played with blues artists - most notably the female performers who were the face of the blues for most of the 1920s.  It didn't take much of a leap to find out that the fellow who's playing guitar on that Bessie Smith track also makes his own blues music, & suddenly I'm tumbling into the Delta by way of New Orleans & New York City.

I love an art form - a musical genre - finding itself.  It seemed like, in those days, anything was possible.  & that's what I hope to explore on the show.

But man, I'd hate to have to try to promote it.  I'll keep it quiet on Friday mornings for the time being.

New Intro Time Again Again!

Since the new season at WRFL has begun, I needed to make a new intro - & so I have.

I try to make a new intro every year - but it turns out I let one intro last for two years back in the day.

But!  My obsessive-compulsiveness overtakes me more & more as I get older.  So there'll be a new intro every year I'm doing this show.  & may I present:

The Self Help Radio 2014-2015 Intro!

This will debut on Friday's show!

If you would like to hear the intros I've previously made, here they are:

You can listen to the 2002 intro (my first!) here.

You can listen to the 2003 intro here.

You can listen to the 2005 intro here.

You can listen to the 2006 intro here.

You can listen to the 2007 intro here.

You can listen to the 2008 intro here.

You can listen to the 2009 intro here.

You can listen to the 2010 intro here.

You can listen to the 2011 intro here.

You can listen to the 2012 intro here.

& this is the newly retired intro from the past year.

What do you think of the new one?

Lost Day

I had so much planned for this blog today.  This week starts a new year for Self Help Radio, & that means a new intro!  But I am tired now.  So.  Wait till tomorrow.  If you can.

Okay, I know you can.

Self Help Radio 050814: Damage

Self Help Radio can inflict a lot of damage over a couple of hours.  Is there such a thing as "radio insurance"?  If so, look into it.

Here's the show: the show on the website.  Or here's the direct links: part one & part two.  The song list is below - it may or may not damage you to look at it.

Be safe & thanks for listening!

(part one)

"Damage" David Sylvian & Robert Fripp _Damage_
"The Damage" Ivy Green _The Damage_
"Damage" The Attractions _Mad About The Wrong Boy_

"Damage" Yo La Tengo _I Can Hear The Heart Beating As One_
"Damage" Handsome Furs _Sound Kapital_
"Damage (feat. GZA) (Radio Edit)" Ol' Dirty Bastard _Return To The 36 Chambers: The Dirty Version_

"The Needle & Damage Done" Neil Young _Neil Young Archives, Vol. 1: 1963-1972_
"The Damage Done" Sisters Of Mercy _Some Girls Wander By Mistake_
"Damage Is Done" One The Juggler _Nearly A Sin_
"The Damage Has Been Done" Ann Clark _Shake A Leg!_

"Damaged Goods" Gang Of Four _Entertainment!_
"Mr. Damage" Angels _Out Of The Blue_

(part two)

"Damaged" Primal Scream _Screamadelica_
"Damaged" Vivian Girls _Vivian Girls_
"For The Damaged" Blonde Redhead _Melody Of Certain Damaged Lemons_

"Brain Damage" Austin Lounge Lizards _Lizard Vision_
"Brain Damage" Shakes _I Think We Should Stay Away From Each Other_
"Brain Damage" Bill Cosby _Himself_
"Doin' Damage" JVC F.O.R.C.E. _The Best Of B-Boy Records_

"The Voice Of America/Damage Is Done" Cabaret Voltaire _The Voice Of America_
"Where Damage Isn't Already Done" The Radio Dept. _Lesser Matters_
"Too Damaged" Subsonics _In The Black Spot_
"Damaged I" Black Flag _Damaged_

"Damage Done" Moderat _II_

Whither Damage?

The evolution of a thought to a radio show is a trivial one, fraught with too much conceit & of course not  bit of self-importance.  Its unimportance in the grand piano scheme of things is unrivaled in the history of human indulgence.  Yet here we are, at least I'm here, wondering aloud or in the corners of our minds, why do a radio show about such-&-such?  Oh!  To be a warrior in some oppressed land fighting for one's freedom rather than making a boring radio show!

Well.  Self Help Radio airs today from 10am to noon on WRFL - 88.1 in Lexington,  Maybe listen?  Who cares?

Preface To Damage: No One Is Safe

I am something of a comics nerd but I confess I hadn't heard of (or forgot about) this DC comics character

It makes sense why I might not know who he is - the son of the original Atom, Al Pratt - because even though I tried to keep up with Roy Thomas' obsessive desire to tie all the old comics together - a task of which I approve, as it's something I would try to do - reading both All-Star Squadron & Infinity, Inc., in the 1980s - I had all but given up reading comics in the 1990s, & this character was created in 1994, according to Wikipedia.  I've read a couple of the more recent JSA comics since then, but the character didn't stand out to me - or I just didn't remember him, which is sort of the same thing.

I do feel a little weird, though, because there was a time when I loved the fact that I knew pretty much every hero & villain & supporting character in the DC Universe.  I loved the idea of parallel worlds, & was one of those happy kids who waited for the JLA/JSA crossovers in the summer.  When Crisis On Infinite Earths happened, I was pretty bummed - I loved the fact that I was one of those loyal readers who knew that the Marvel Family lived on a different earth than the Freedom Fighters (whose world was conquered by Nazis!).

& I have no idea what's going on with the most recent "reboot."  I have an idea: don't restart, just tell the tales & let the characters die & others replace them.  Oh, I'm sorry, you couldn't hear me above the noise of all that money to be made.  My apologies.

Also, sorry to Damage - I'm sure you're a fine character.  Hey!  I knew your dad when he lived on Earth-2!

What I Hate: Stinkbugs

These guys:

They've infested our sun room.  This is a bad thing, says this page.  I am none too fond of bugs, even ones called "stinkbug," & I am especially not fond of bugs that emit an odor when smashed.

For the longest time, I just let them be.  Occasionally, one would fly at me in a particularly hateful way, but mostly we avoided each other's space.

No more.  I have started to kill them.

I am a vegan, & I get asked often about whether I eat honey or wear silk.  The answer is, not really, but I don't have the same attitude about bugs that other vegans do.  Silk is a no-brainer - it's not my style.  But if I'm going to eat honey, it'll be local honey, since I know those folks care about the bees.  Bees are important, & if there's going to be an insect I have to care about, it'll be bees, although they'll probably be extinct in my lifetime.

I grew up poor, in apartments that had cockroaches.  I killed them.  In the summer, flies would get in.  We had a fly swatter.  If I find something crawling on me, I may scream like a child, but I also will fling it off &, if I am not shivering too much, stomp on it until it's dead.

I'd be a terrible Jain, in other words.  Not as bad as someone who salivates when people talk about bacon or who'd wait in line for a KFC Double Down, but still not someone other Jains would hang around with.

Let this be a warning to the stinkbugs in my vicinity: I am no longer guardedly indifferent to you.  I am your enemy.

But please don't fly into my mouth when I'm asleep.

Mowing The Lawn: Seven Thoughts

1.

There used to be an old KVRX promo spot in which a bored teenager was being badgered by his mother to mow the lawn, & he says he doesn't want to, he'd rather listen to KVRX.  The humorous tag was, "KVRX - it's better than mowing the lawn."  Meanwhile, you could hear the lawnmower revving up in the background.

2.

I tried to find it in old recordings but had no luck.  Sorry!

3.

I didn't have a yard growing up.  We lived in apartments.  Occasionally, my sister would give me five bucks to mow their lawn.  It wasn't any fun.  She used to mow her own lawn but doesn't anymore.  She pays someone now.

4.

We have a lot of lawn where I now live.  When the wife was getting a fence put around the backyard - essential when you have beagles - the guy from whatever company suggested to her that she might want to install a larger gate for a riding mower to pass through.  She said no, she expected her husband to mow the lawn with a mower.

5.

Which is fine with me.  I think mowing the yawn should be a chore that feels like a chore.

6.

We have a large yard & an electric mower, which is quite heavy, because of its giant battery.  We had to buy an extra battery because of the length of time it takes to mow both the front & back of the house.  It stopped working last week so we borrowed the neighbor's gas mower to mow the lawn today.  Two observations:  a, the electric is quieter, & b, it cuts better.

7.

Oh yeah, I spent the day mowing the lawn.  That's why I'm going on about it.

Self Help Radio 050114: Disappear

I promise I didn't plan it this way, but it seems funny that the show in which Self Help Radio reappears on the Lexington airwaves is a show about disappearing.  Sometimes that's just how things happen.

The show disappeared yesterday but it's reappeared now at Self Help Radio on the web.  You can also take advantage of two links to listen to either hour of the show (or both, in succession, or out of order): part one + part two.  The songs I played are below.

Don't disappear any more!

(part one)

"Disappear" Gilbert _Real Life Permanent Dreams: Happydaystoytown_
"Disappear" Madness _Absolutely_
"Disappear?" The Church _Seance_

"Disappear" Cockeyed Ghost _Keep Yourself Amused_
"Disappear" Jumprope _Holiday In Brazil_
"Disappear" The Crayon Fields _All The Pleasures Of The World_
"Disappear" Eternal Summers _Correct Behavior_

"Disappearing" Peter Murphy _Cascade_
"Disappearer" Sonic Youth _Goo_
"Everything's Disappeared" Steinski _What Does It All Mean?_

"You Disappear From View" The Teardrop Explodes _Wilder_

(part two)

"I Disappear" The Faint _Wet From Birth_
"Everything Disappears When You Come Around" Of Montreal _Cherry Peel_
"I Can't Pay You To Disappear" Thee Oh Sees _Dog Poison_
"Watch Her Disappear" Tom Waits _Alice_

"Disappear Always" Wild Nothing _Nocturne_
"Disappearing Act" U2 _The Unforgettable Fire_
"Disappearing Lessons" Courtney Love _Highlights_
"Disappearing Act" Jonny Cola & The A Grades _The Yellow Mini_

"Disappearing Act" The Mantles _The Mantles_
"Never Disappear" Majestic 12 _Searching For The Elvis Knob_
"When Will Your Friends All Disappear" East River Pipe _Goodbye California_
"Love Will Always Disappear" Chemistry Set _Chemistry Set_
"Disappear WIthout A Trace" Scrawl _Velvet Hammer_

Whither Disappear?

It turns out that the Random House dictionary disagrees with my musings from yesterday about the difference between "disappear" & "vanish."  It says:

Disappear is used of whatever suddenly or gradually goes out of sight: vanish suggests complete, generally rapid, & often mysterious disappearance.

So - let me get this straight - vanish is complete & rapid, but disappear can be suddenly or gradually?

I guess "vanish" does have mysterious connotations.  I would be more spooked by a ghost vanishing than one simply disappearing.

I am writing this Thursday morning, as I am going to be doing my first Self Help Radio on WRFL in about five months.  I am a little nervous but I have prepared a fine show & I hope someone enjoys it who isn't my mother.

That reminds me - I need to call my mother.

It's on from 10 am to noon & it's available on the link above.  However, if you miss it, & people would think you had good taste if you did, I'll put it up tomorrow like every Friday this year.  & it won't disappear for a long, long time.

Preface To Disappear: Disappearing Act

You know how, when you're a kid, you're really dumb & you think things that happen on television & cartoons are real?  Do you remember the Looney Tunes or Merrie Melodies or whatever cartoons in which someone - my brain is telling me it's a cartoon mouse - but I found a picture where it's Tom the cat - puts on "vanishing cream" & disappears?

Do you remember those?  OH MY GOD I wanted so badly to find some vanishing cream in the bathroom!  (My mother didn't use that stuff, though.)

It turns out that vanishing creams, as the internet tells me, "get their name from the fact that they seemed to disappear when spread onto the skin."  Here's a link all about them.  I initially thought they made wrinkles or unwanted facial blemishes "vanish," but that's not it.  The cream vanished.  It disappeared into the skin.

It didn't make you disappear.  How disappointing was that when I found out!  Worse than the truth about Santa, the Tooth Fairy, or the Easter Bunny.

By the way - online thesauruses don't seem to think that "vanish" & "disappear" are synonyms.  Is it because disappearing appears to be instantaneous & vanishing takes time?  What do you think?

Boone

I had a whole ridiculous thing written for today & was almost going to put it up but we needed to walk the dogs after dinner.  We walked close to the house because the radar keeps looking like this:

It wasn't our usual walk, & at one point a sweet little orange cat - a kitten, really - approached us, not really afraid of the three beagles.  We didn't want it to follow us, but during the walk - & knowing about the coming storm - we worried that it was not safe, so we went to find it when we got the dogs home.

He was nowhere to be found, & we walked up & down the street.  As we were about to leave, my wife Magda said, "Oh here he is."  He let us put him in the carrier without incident & didn't meow at all on the short ride home.

He's in our guest room.  He has a scabbed-over sore on his foot, & his ears look to be nicked a bit, & he's very small & scrawny & dirty.  He's had something to eat & now he's chilling out:

He's been no trouble at all - I don't even think he feels trapped or otherwise inconvenienced.  We'll see after the vet visit tomorrow!

I don't know if he's adopted us yet - but for now, I'm calling him Boone.

Big News! (Reprise)

For my entire life pretty much I pronounced the word "reprise" like this: re-prize.  The first time I heard it pronounced the proper way - which is ruh-preez - was in a live performance of Marc Bolan on a T Rex boxed set when he was promoting his new record, "Out on Warner-Reprise Records."

I just check & the Merriam-Webster dictionary online says both pronunciations are allowed, but probably because of people like me who mispronounced them their entire lives.

That's neither here nor there - I'm just writing to confirm (as much as I can confirm) that Self Help Radio will be on WRFL this Thursday & next (May 1 & 8) from 10am to noon, & then, the next week will begin its summer home on the station from 7 to 9am on Fridays.  It's pretty exciting.  Of course, once I go on the air, everyone leaves town for the summer.  Rats!

Also: since I have an extra hour (6-7am), I've asked not to resurrect my freeform show Sugar Substitute (which I will do again one day!) but instead I told them I'd like to do a country blues show, which I am calling Woke Up One Early Morning Blues, because why not make a radio show title long & unwieldy?  It'll let me play my favorite country blues all summer long.

So, hooray!  Listen to me this Thursday & next, & then, on Friday the 16th, start listening at that time all summer long!