Coming Up Tomorrow On The Dickenbock Report: Farm Day

(found on Reddit)

October 12 is Farmer's Day. We'll report on farms & farmers. That's simple enough.

It's also XRAY's Fall Fund Drive. We'd love for you to donate! Do that here. Or, if you'd like to specifically support The Dickenbock Report, you can do that here. Of course all the money raised goes to help XRAY - the station foolish enough to air the Report in the first place.

See you on the farm Sunday, October 12, from noon to 1pm, on 91.1+107.1fm in Portland, & online at xray dot fm.

This Week In Self Help: October 5 6 + 7

Silver balloons floating in a room. Silver for Self Help Radio's 23rd anniversary. Don't overthink it. It's an image for a blog post. Taken I think at the Andy Warhol Museum many moons ago. Here's what happened this week.

The Dickenbock Report on XRAY. Sunday October 5th.

The anniversary of the first appearance of The Honeymooners leads to a show about honeymoons.
Listen at XRAY dot fm. Listen at Self Help Radio dot net.

A KBOO Sub Show on KBOO. Monday October 6th.
I played a bunch of interesting sounds I recently come across. KBOO does not archive sub shows but.

Look at the playlist on Spinitron. Listen at Self Help Radio dot net.

Self Help Radio on KBOO. Tuesday October 7th.

For my 23rd anniversary show, I revisited a theme from 2007 - Molly.

Listen at KBOO dot fm. Listen at Self Help Radio dot net.

Corporate Standardized Programming on KBOO. Tuesday October 7th.

In honor of SHR's 23rd Anniversary, I played the songs original played on the 2007 Molly show.

Listen at KBOO dot fm (after Self Help Radio). Listen at Self Help Radio dot net.

That seems a lot, it really wasn't. Remember, at the Self Help Radio page, you might need the username SHR & the password selfhelp. Happy anniversary!

Self Help Radio 100725: Molly Revisited - The 23rd Anniversary Show

(original image here*)

Twenty-three years of this nonsense! I guess the most hopeful thing is that there's no chance I have twenty-three more years in me!

The silver plate is the 23rd anniversary gift. I gave myself one. The show features lots of Molly songs I didn't play in the original 2007 show. Plus I talked to all the Mollys I know. I only know three Mollys.

Listen to the show with a Molly you know - or on the 23rd anniversary of something - or whyever you listen to radio shows - at either the KBOO website or at the Self Help Radio website. You might need the username SHR & password selfhelp at the latter. Everything that happens on the show is below.

Seriously I wish I knew more Mollys.

Self Help Radio Molly Revisited (23rd Anniversary Show)

"Run, Mollie, Run" Henry Thomas _Texas Worried Blues (Complete Recorded Works 1927-1929)_

"I'm In Love With Molly (with Red Foley)" Ernest Tubb _Let's Say Goodbye Like We Said Hello_

"Three Girls Named Molly, Doin' The Hully Gully" The Johnny Otis Show _The Greatest Johnny Otis Show_

introduction + old airbreak

"Molly Malone" Joni Mitchell _Archives – Volume 1: The Early Years 1963-1967_

"Good Golly Miss Molly" The Swinging Blue Jeans _Really!! They Sing It In German Vol. III_

"Mami Molly's Makkaroni Band (feat Gunter Gabriel)" Trude Herr _Ich Will Keine Schokolade_

"Molly" The Motifs _Storm In The Garage_

"Molly Bloom" Tom Paxton _6_

interview with my friend Molly in Virginia

"1952 Vincent Black Lightning" Richard Thompson _Rumor & Sigh_

"Old Molly Metcalfe" Jake Thackray _Bantam Cock_

"Molly Says" The dB's _The Sound Of Music_

"Molly" Fossil _Fossil_

"Handsome Molly" Bill Morrissey _Standing Eight_

interview with my friend Molly in Kentucky

"Sam & Molly Are In Love" Little Name _How To Swim & Live_

"Molly" Eux Autres _Cold City_

"Molly Dodd" Six Cents & Natalie _When Punk Fell To Earth_

"Molly" Pins _Wild Nights_

"Molly" Ratboys _GN_

interview with my friend Molly in Portland

"Molly's Lips" Eugenius _It Ain't Rocket Science, It's Eugenius_

"Through The Eyes Of Molly" Damien Youth _Sunfield_

"No Title (Molly)" John Maus _A Collection Of Rarities & Previously Unreleased Material_

"Molly Bond" Peggy Seeger _Bring Me Home_

"Molly" Entrance _Book Of Changes_

conclusion & goodbye

"Suddenly Molly" Heart-Sick Groans _Gentlemen, If You Ain't Right, Get Right!_

"Molly" Palehound _Dry Food_

"Melancholy Molly" Seablite _Lemon Lights_

*This file is made available under the Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication. 

Whither Molly Revisited (The 23rd Anniversary Show)?

(Molly Pitcher, from Wikipedia)

On October 9, 2002, Self Help Radio premiered on KOOP in Austin. This week will be its 23rd anniversary. It has appeared on radio stations in four states, including on three (!) different stations in Portland. It has been places in its over-two-decades on the air.

In March of 2007, there was an episode of Self Help Radio dedicated to the late Molly Ivins, who had died that year of cancer. She was a force in Texas journalism for years, a smart, funny, insightful writer. To pay tribute, I played a bunch of songs to & about women named Molly.

For my anniversary shows, I revisit a theme. I chose this one because there are so many songs about people named Molly. In addition, I will talk to all the Mollys I know. I know three Mollys.

That's happened tonight on KBOO - 90.7fm & kboo dot fm - from 12-3am. Tell all the Mollys you know! You probably know more than I do.

Preface To Molly Revisited (The 23rd Anniversary Show): 23 Years

This is undoubtedly something I say every year: I would never have thought I'd be doing this radio show twenty-three years after its first episode, which was on October 9, 2002. I don't really think much about the future. If you had asked me in 2002 how long I thought I'd be doing the show, I might have said, "I dunno, however long they let me do it." I would also have said I'd be living in Austin until I retired. Again - the future is not something I think about or have ever thought about.

When I started this show in 2003, I had not been on the radio for long. I had done a show from 1994 to 1999 on KVRX & had subbed some shows on KOOP, but I hadn't had a show for three years. I waited quite a long time for a show on KOOP. I had imagined I'd never get one.

When I did, I tried to make sure I recorded it - I did not record the vast majority of my KVRX shows. I saved as much as I could. I feel like I thought I might get to do it for a little while then things would change.

Since then lots of folks who did radio shows have stopped doing them. People who I would've thought would have had more longevity than I. The big difference is, they talked a lot about ending their time on the air. I don't really do that. I seriously can't imagine my life without a radio show. I suspect I'll be doing it for as long as there's a radio station that will air it - or who knows, maybe not. I continued Self Help Radio many times without a radio station. No one listened to it but that's never stopped me before.

So as I prepare to celebrate 23 years with a theme I first covered in 2007, I just have to say, gosh. It honestly wasn't something I thought I'd be doing for 23 years. But only because I don't really think about anything going off into the future. I waste far more time in my past, regretting many things I've done.

Not this radio show tho!

Coming Up Tomorrow On The Dickenbock Report: The Honeymooners

(image from here)

On October 5, 1951, on a television show called Cavalcade Of Stars, hosted by Jackie Gleason, a six-minute sketch introduced the world to the Honeymooners. Gleason later made thirty-nine episodes with the characters as a television series, ranked in 2013 by TV Guide as the thirteenth greatest TV show of all time.

Perhaps because of his rivalry with Jackie Gleason, or because he's had so many memorable honeymoons, Dick Dickenbock has asked us to report on that show & on honeymoons in general on this week's show.

Which happens Sunday, October 5, from noon to 1pm on XRAY FM - 91.1+107.1fm in Portland, online everywhere at xray dot fm.

Dick Dickenbock adds, "Homina homina homina."

This Week In Self Help: September 26 28 + 30

Though I am not in Portland - I'm visiting San Francisco - in fact the picture of that gate above was taken in the city - my wife said, "I like ornate gates, take a picture of it" so I did - I have a moment for my weekly rundown of the radio I've done. It'll be short & sweet.

September 26. I subbed a show on XRAY. Just playing music & saying dumb stuff.
Listen at XRAY. Listen at Self Help Radio.

September 28. The Dickenbock Report on XRAY reports on National Chewing Gum Day.

Listen at XRAY. Listen at Self Help Radio.

September 30. Self Help Radio on KBOO has a show about deadbeats.

Listen at KBOO. Listen at Self Help Radio.

September 30. Corporate Standardized Programming on KBOO plays all new releases.

Listen at KBOO (after Self Help Radio). Listen at Self Help Radio.

At the Self Help Radio website you may need the username SHR & password selfhelp to listen.

That was all. Back to my regularly scheduled vacation.

Self Help Radio 093025: Deadbeats

A show that neither condemns nor condones the deadbeat. It's just a lot of songs, you know.

There are also conversation & some information imparted. But mainly lots of songs. One person called in & wondered if he were a deadbeat. As we were discussing it, he told me, "You know a lot about deadbeats!" I said, "Well, I'm doing a show about them."

Listen to that show now or anytime at either the KBOO website or at the Self Help Radio website. At the latter you may need a username & password - user SHR & selfhelp respectively. Lots of stuff happened on the show - most of it is listed below.

The rest of this day I will play the deadbeat.

Self Help Radio Deadbeats Show

"Deadbeat" Wyldlife _Out On Your Block_

"Deadbeat" Lightning Love _Blonde Album_

"Deadbeat" Cato Salsa Experience _A Good Tip For A Good Time_

introduction & definitions

"Deadbeat Club" The B-52's _Cosmic Thing_

"Dead Beat Descendent" The Fall _Seminal Live_

"From A Deadbeat To An Old Greaser" Jethro Tull _Too Old To Rock & Roll: Too Young To Die!_

"Deadbeat Daddy" Gungadin _Introducing_

"Deadbeat" Pardoner _Peace Loving People_

interview with deadbeat mom Nancy Dean

"Dead Beat Dance" The Damned _The Return Of The Living Dead (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)_

"The Deadbeat" That Petrol Emotion _Manic Pop Thrill_

"Deadbeat" The Ocean Party _The Sun Rolled Off The Hills_

"Deadbeat Girl" Day Wave _Hard To Read_

"Deadbeat" Mint Royale _On The Ropes_

interview with my deadbeat friend Jarvis

"Deadbeat" Charts _Love You To Death_

"Deadbeat" Prismatic Shapes _Deadbeat_

"Deadbeat Boy" Avalon Lurks _Deadbeat Boy_

"Deadbeat Shiver" Generationals _Reader As Detective_

"Deadbeat Summer" Neon Indian _Psychic Chasms_

a discussion about deadbeat parents

"Deadbeat Heart" The Graves Brothers Deluxe _Gonna Happen To You_

"Playin' In Time With The Deadbeat" Slug Guts _Playin' In Time With The Deadbeat_

"Deadbeat" A Place To Bury Strangers _Exploding Head_

"Deadbeat Party" Soho _Thug_

"Deadbeat" Revenge _Gun World Porn_

conclusion & goodbye

"Deadbeat" Lizzie No _Halfsies_

"Deadbeat Hits" Futurebirds _Hotel Parties_

Whither Deadbeats?

(image from here)

After confessing yesterday that my own father was a deadbeat, you might think I myself might be on the verge of an admission that I too am a deadbeat. But far from it! I am mostly responsible & honor my commitments - I do three radio shows a week & sometimes more. I am a bit lazy, true, but if I promise to do something, I do it. & I have financially supported myself & others - some of whom were probably deadbeats. No, this show is neither a celebration nor indictment of the deadbeat in me. Or really of any deadbeats.

It came into my head earlier this year when I was putting together my 1989 show. Two records released that year - the Fall's Seminal Live & the B-52's Cosmic Thing - featured songs with deadbeat in the title. I wondered if that might be something that would be a good theme for the show. It wasn't something I thought about until just recently when a remastered version of Seminal Live was released. I was like, Oh yeah, didn't I want to do a radio show about deadbeats? & now I shall.

Tonight from midnight to 2am on 90.7fm in town & kboo dot fm everywhere. I wonder - with the show on so late - how many people who might be listening are deadbeats?

Preface To Deadbeats: Deadbeat Dad

That's an old picture of my father. I don't recognize that person. It was taken probably over a decade before I was born. When I show this picture to people who know me, they say, "You got his ears."

My father was a deadbeat dad. The Wikipedia dictionary defines a deadbeat dad as "A man, especially one who is divorced or estranged from his partner, who fails to provide monetary child support when he is legally required to do so." My father got a head start on being a deadbeat dad before his marriage ended. He proved unable to provide for his family.

Why was that? Because he was a drunk. An alcoholic. Drink began to control him long before I came along, & drink caused my mother to leave him around the time I was four years old. After the divorce he was ordered to pay child support for me, my sister, & my brothers, but he never did. My mother complained about it, but she knew he didn't have the money so didn't fight it - she despised him but didn't want him to end up in jail.

One of my greatest regrets is that I never really talked to him about his life. Not that he would've been terribly forthcoming but who knows. What I know about him I know mainly from conversations I have had with my sisters. My mother was something of an unreliable narrator - he hurt her quite deeply. The stories my sisters have told me have some degree of unreliability too - he preferred them to his sons & they returned his adoration - but neither of them - my late sister Pat or my sister Karin - had any illusions about his disease. So while I take their stories with a grain of salt, I understand they're told with a modicum of love my mother or brothers couldn't muster.

For myself, I didn't feel any resentment about the lack of child support because I don't think I knew I was owed it. My sister Pat in around 1986 or 1987 - or maybe later - negotiated a deal with my father that he would loan me some money I needed for college. I think we understood he was giving it to me, not loaning it. I certainly did not worry about repaying it. I simply had to go to his tiny apartment - he had been sober for some years at this point - to get it myself. It was a weird & uncomfortable moment.

My father died in 1991. He was 64. Years of alcohol abuse took their toll. My fundamental feeling about him is one of regret. I simply never knew him. & I feel a little guilty calling him a deadbeat dad but. You know. By definition, he was.

Coming Up Tomorrow On The Dickenbock Report: National Chewing Gum Day

(image from here)

September 28 is National Chewing Gum Day. Why is that? Is bubblegum celebrated as well? You do have to chew it to get it to the consistency where you can blow bubbles, don't you? Or this just about gum that though flavorful is specifically for chewing?

These are the sorts of questions our reporters will be asking to the powers-that-be in our investigative manner. We will get to the bottom of it. In sixty minutes or less.

Tomorrow. Sunday, September 28. From noon to 1pm. On 91.1+107.1fm in war-torn Portland. Online in war-town everywhere at xray dot fm.

This Week In Self Help: September 19 21 + 23

Here's a picture of a lonely beach off the Oregon coast. Yep, that's the Pacific Ocean out there. It's a propos nothing, I just don't have a lot of time to write this - I'm on the radio on XRAY this afternoon (I'll note that next week). This was my past week in radio.

On Friday the 19th on KBOO I played some new releases on The Songcircle.
Listen on the KBOO website. Listen on the Self Help Radio website.

On Sunday the 21st on XRAY I celebrated Leonard Cohen's birthday on The Dickenbock Report.

Listen on the XRAY website. Listen on the Self Help Radio website.

On Tuesday the 23rd on KBOO I made a show about whips on Self Help Radio.

Listen on the KBOO website. Listen on the Self Help Radio website.

On Tuesday the 23rd on KBOO I played music by artists we lost in March 2025 on Corporate Standardized Programming,

Listen on the KBOO website (after Self Help Radio). Listen on the Self Help Radio website.

Remember! If you listen on the Self Help Radio website, you might need the username SHR & the password selfhelp!

Now - off to do another radio show.

Self Help Radio 092325: Whips

Sorry for the crude drawing of the whip up there. I couldn't find any decent pics of a whip that were in the public domain or had decent Creative Commons licenses. It really only proves I didn't design the Self Help Radio logo.

Also: I have a confession to make. I was a little tired last night & I was on the phone & I accidentally played a song twice. Not in a row. But I corrected it for the file on my website. So my last airbreak has me apologizing for playing the song twice but on the file on the Self Help Radio website it doesn't happen. Luckily no one really ever listens to my shows or else I'd be deeply embarrassed! As it is, I am only shallowly embarrassed.

Otherwise you know the same old thing. Find the show at the KBOO website or at the Self Help Radio website. For the latter, you might need the username SHR & the password selfhelp. Most everything that happens on the show is below.

Careful with that whip!

Self Help Radio Whip Show

"The Whip" Frantics _Las Vegas Grind Part 1_

"Do The Whip" Kitty & Sheeny Lanier_ Do The Whip_

"The Whip" Flame 'N' King _Whip! Wobble! & Grind!_

introduction & definitions

"Whip It" Devo _Freedom Of Choice_

"Whip In My Valise" Adam & The Ants _Dirk Wears White Sox_

"Worship The Whip" Be Your Own Pet _Mommy_

"Pussywhipped Satan" Bill Hicks _Arizona Bay_

"Kool Whip" Austin Lounge Lizards _Creatures From The Black Saloon_

interview with whip manufacturer Jerry Townsend

"Leathery Whip" Aldous Harding _Warm Chris_

"Whipping Boy (Remix)" Ben Harper _The Rebirth Of Cool Phive_

"Whip It Out" Neal Brennan _Women & Black Dudes_

"Black Whip" Chapter & The Verse _Go Blue: The Life & Soul Of Manchester_

"Whip Cracker" Genesis Owusu _Smiling With No Teeth_

interview with BDSM researcher Dr Peter Aspen

"Whips Of Holly" The Black Lips _Apocalypse Love_

"Whipping Continues" Thee Oh Sees _Castlemania_

"Whip My Valet" The Intelligence _Vintage Future_

"The Whip" Deaf Wish _Pain_

"Let It Whip" Dazz Band _Keep It Live_

interview with Whip Smarts founder Andrew Project

"Meat Whiplash" Fire Engines _Fond_

"Whiplash" Thigh Master _Early Times_

"Psychedelic Whiplash" The Weisstronauts _Featuring 'Jaunty'_

"Kitten With A Whip" Kitten _Sunday School EP_

"Kitten With A Whip" The Flytraps _Wild Card_

conclusion & goodbye

"Whip It On Me" Jessie Hill _Crescent City Soul: The Sound Of New Orleans 1947-1974_

"Whiplash" The Shells _Whiplash_

"Whip It" Treacherous Three _The Sugar Hill Records Story_

Whither Whips?

(image from here)

"Whither whips" is really fun to say. But if you say it too many times too fast you start to sound like you're drunk, or your brain is malfunctioning, or you're trying too hard to pretend to be a snake.

The truth is, I don't really know what made me think about doing a radio show about whips. Perhaps there are too many things going on & my brain decided it wasn't worth remembering. All I can tell you is, I wrote it on a list at some point this summer & then I had enough songs to make a show. It's like whatever inspired me disappeared with the crack of a whip.

Maybe the show will whip me into shape. It's happening tonight midnight to 2am on KBOO, which is 90.7 fm in town, & online at kboo dot fm. Unlike the whip, this show won't draw blood nor leave a mark. I hope!

Preface To Whips: A Handy Flowchart

Found a billion years ago on Reddit. Thought it might be handy in regards to this week's show.

Coming Up Tomorrow On The Dickenbock Report: Leonard Cohen's Birthday

(image from Wikipedia)

Had he lived, Leonard Norman Cohen would turn 91 years old tomorrow. The singer, songwriter, poet was born on September 21, 1934, & the staff & crew of the Dickenbock Report - superfans all - will celebrate his birthday in that annoying way we have of playing lots of his songs as performed by artists who admired & were inspired by him.

That's Sunday from 12 to 1pm on 91.1+107.1fm in Portland & online everywhere at xray dot fm.

This Week In Self Help: September 14 + 16

Don't know why that image is up there. Don't know why people leave things like that up when no self-respecting bird's going to use a birdhouse in such ill-repair.

This was my mostly simple week in radio.

On The Dickenbock Report on XRAY, I celebrated Mae Boren Axton's birthday with many songs she wrote & co-wrote. Listen at XRAY. Listen at Self Help Radio.

On Self Help Radio on KBOO, I played many more bits my friend Russell improvised for the show back in 2017 as "The Rev. Dr. Howard Gently." Listen at KBOO. Listen at Self Help Radio.

On Corporate Standardized Programming, I played lots of new releases. Listen at KBOO (after Self Help Radio). Listen at Self Help Radio.

That was it! Not a lot of cluttering up the airwaves with my nonsense!

Self Help Radio 091625: Howard Gently Year Four Continued Continued

2017 was a good year for Howard Gently. It was a weird year for Self Help Radio. My family (wife & pets) had moved back to Texas but I couldn't find a place for Self Help Radio there but kind folks in Kentucky continued to air it on a station called WLXU. Though my friend Russell lived in the Metroplex, we communicated most commonly on the computer, usually talking all Saturday afternoon long, ending by improvising a bit for the show. It seems Howard Gently showed up on nearly every episode of Self Help Radio that year. Now that Russell is gone, I am profoundly grateful that I have these recordings. & I hope that in sharing them I make you a fraction of the fan I am of him.

These are the 103rd to 114th appearances of Howard Gently on the show, airing starting on September 6 to ending on November 29, 2017. That's an awkward way to write that. Anyway, it's twelve bits plus music from shows that aired between early September & late November 2017. Russell would have tuned 59 years old yesterday. I wish I had done some kind of Howard Gently retrospective in his lifetime.

Listen to the show now either at the KBOO web page or at the Self Help Radio web page. You might need the username SHR & the password selfhelp at the ladder. I started with one of Russell's songs, then played a song from the show & the bit from that show. Details are below.

As Dr Gently would say, "Delighted."

Self Help Radio Howard Gently Year Four Continued Continued Show

"Real Life" Russell Miles _Real Life_

"River Guard" Smog _Knock Knock_

Howard Gently on the theme "Guards"<br>

"John, I'm Only Dancing" David Bowie _The Rise & Fall Of Ziggy Stardust & The Spiders From Mars_

Howard Gently on the theme "Dancing"<br>

"Lightning Strikes" Klaus Nomi _Klaus Nomi_

Howard Gently on the theme "Lightning"

"Draygo's Guilt" The Fall _The Wonderful & Frightening World Of The Fall_

Howard Gently on the theme "Guilt"<br>

"The Fox In The Snow" Belle & Sebastian _If You're Feeling Sinister_

Howard Gently on the theme "Foxes"<br>

"Memories (Can't Wait)" Talking Heads _The Name Of This Band Is Talking Heads_

Howard Gently on the theme "Memories"

"Sad Voice & Mock Face" George Carlin _When Will Jesus Bring The Pork Chops?_

Howard Gently on the theme "Faces"<br>

"Catblack (The Wizard's Hat)" Tyrannosaurus Rex _Unicorn_

Howard Gently on the theme "Black Cats"<br>

"One Day (At A Time)" John Lennon _Mind Games_

Howard Gently on the theme "One Day"

"President Gas" The Psychedelic Furs _Forever Now_

Howard Gently on the theme "Gas"<br>

"Cosmic Thing" The B-52's _Cosmic Thing_

Howard Gently on the theme "Cosmic Things"

Howard Gently on the theme "Birthdays"

Whither Howard Gently Year Four Continued Continued?

My friend Russell put a few of his favorite Howard Gently bits on a Bandcamp page once upon a time. We had such fun doing this. Tonight's show continues to play all his appearances as that oily fellow in chronological order - all from late 2017. 2017 was a fun year for us - we talked almost every week & Dr. Gently appeared on almost every show. It's why this is the third installment of his bits from 2017. I am glad to celebrate my friend in this way.

That's what's happening on Self Help Radio tonight on KBOO from midnight to 2am - 90.7fm in Portland, kboo dot fm everywhere. Possibly even in the spirit realm!

Preface To Howard Gently Year Four Continued Continued: Here's A Picture Of My Dogs

This week I'm paying tribute to my dear friend Russell once more by playing lots of his appearances as the Rev Dr Howard Gently on my show. I think this is the tenth episode of Howard Gently bits. We're over a hundred of them. I have been listening to them today & they make me laugh out loud still.

One thing I keep meaning to do is to go through my old yearbooks (wherever they might be) & scan some pictures of young Russell. But since I haven't gotten around to doing that - I'll just share a picture of my dogs. I hope that's cool.