What Is 'American Hit Radio'?

WHAT IS AMERICAN HIT RADIO?
left click to play, right click to save

Good question! Judging by this show, it might be called a disastrous mess….
The idea was to create a program that defined the concept of ‘American Hit Radio’. Heidy would interview me and ask relevant questions about the show, which I would answer, followed by a representative selection of tunes. We prepped the show, and I felt confident that things would go reasonably well. With the hustle and bustle of our daily schedule, though, we never discussed a(or at least I don’t remember discussing) something as simple as how we would arrive at the studio….so as starting time rolled around at the radio station, I was in a semi-panicked state about Heidy’s absence. Ten minutes into the show, Heidy called to ask why I didn’t pick her up…..
SIGH. Maybe you can hear it in my voice, or in the strange number of technical gaffs. At the time, the show felt like hell, but listening to it afterward, it seems to have fared slightly better than I feared. Thank goodness. It might not have been the show I hoped for, but it is the show that I got, so here it is.
What do YOU think of this? Is it an unbearable mess, or is it good radio?? Please post your own comments here.

Here’s a list of songs that we play for this episode of ‘American Hit Radio’;

1) TUTTI FRUTTI- LITTLE RICHARD
2) PIPELINE – THE CHANTAYS
3) SATISFACTION – THE ROLLING STONES
4) BEANS IN MY EARS – THE SERENDIPITY SINGERS
5) THE LETTER – BOX TOPS
6) ALL ALONG THE WATCHTOWER – JIMI HENDRIX
7) TIRED OF BEING ALONE – AL GREEN
8) TAKE ME TO THE RIVER – TALKING HEADS
9) SHIP OF FOOLS – WORLD PARTY
10) VIVRANT THING – Q-TIP
11) HEY YA - OUTKAST

New Orleans - Survival and Recovery

New Orleans Survival and Recovery
Left Click to Play – Right Click to Save


This show marks the third (and presumably final) show in our trilogy on the disaster afflicting New Orleans. For this show, we’re joined by Jamie Dehlin, a New Orleans resident for over a decade, and a very close friend of Heidy.
It’s strange to notice how long it took us all to fully accept the extent of what had actually happened to this beloved city. For two weeks, Heidy and I have been so thoroughly immersed in contacting friends, absorbing the news and devising some means to help out, that we never really stopped to really think about it. My band, the Blaggards, played a benefit show on Saturday, and the preparation for this show probably added to our level of distraction. By Saturday evening, though, a strange feeling started to creep over us, and the emotional wave that eventually settled on us was cathartic and disturbing. It was as though we finally were forced to face the death of a best friend.
The purpose of this show was to convey some of that catharsis, and once again, to attempt to personalize the disaster for those who are fortunate enough to be distant from it, both physically and emotionally. Jamie and I swap personal stories from friends who stayed in New Orleans and survived the ordeal. Dealing with the situation emotionally was very difficult, and you can hear some tension in our voices as we discuss the destruction and tentative fate of America’s most interesting city. Gratefully, there are a few moments of hesitant levity, too, and Heidy finally joins us at the end for a wrap-up.
I’d imagine that fans of this show have a strong connection with music, which is why I urge all of my listeners to visit PRESERVATIONHALL.COM and contribute to their fund, which will support the indigenous musicians of a city whose very existence is dependant upon their return, and vice versa. Also, a few events in the NYC area are worth noting; Wynton Marsalis is hosting a gala star-studded event at Lincoln Center on September 17 that is expensive but not more than a typical political fundraiser. For those who cannot afford a $1000 ticket, there are other events, such as the New Orleans Benefit at the Rockstar Bar on Sunday, September 18, starting at 7:00 PM. There, you can hear multiple contemporary bands, plus an art auction. Stay tuned for further opportunities to help while being entertained…
Meanwhile, here’s a list of songs that we play during the course of this show;
1) No French No More – Zachary Richard
2) Walking to New Orleans - Fats Domino
3) Broke, Lovesick and Driftin' - Hank Williams III
4) Basin Street Blues - Louis Armstrong
5) Motor Dude Special - Boozoo Chavis

LONG LIVE NEW ORLEANS!!

LONG LIVE NEW ORLEANS!!
Left click to play, right click to download and save

In the face of so much incredibly depressing news, it is hard to find a bright side to any of this. However, as the majority of lifetime residents already know, there is no other place on earth that will ever take the place of this unique city. New Orleans is a one-of-a-kind kind of place, and I believe that the unique nature of the city is the very thing that will cause it to rise up like a soaked phoenix out of the floodwaters and (eventually) prosper. For nearly two decades, I have been visiting New Orleans with a continually growing group of friends. We come from all over the United States, and we descend on the city for almost every Jazz Fest. We don’t show up to gawk, hang out on Bourbon Street, or drink ourselves into oblivion (‘though it has been known to happen anyway). We come for the cul-cha, the food, the architecture, the food, the history, the food, and mostly, we come for the music (and the food).
There is no place else on the planet Earth where you can hear music the way you hear music in New Orleans. The mix of Cajun, zydeco, blues, jazz, brass bands, gospel, rhythm and blues, rock and roll and real country music provides a musical gumbo that is beyond measure, and beyond comparison. There is a culture of musicians living outside of the city who idolize the New Orleans musical culture, and there is a population of lifetime musician-residents who simply know no other way to live than that provided by their own city. As I type this, New Orleans is in some deep trouble, but mark my words; come hell (which has already come, in the form of Hurricane Katrina) or high water (which has also come), this city has too much to offer the rest of the world to fester and die. The people of New Orleans will return, and this city will once again thrive. I have faith in them, because it is the good people of New Orleans who made the city what it was, and these very same people will make it what it once again soon will be.
Heidy and I will visit the city as soon as we are allowed. We have plans to be married in New Orleans, on July 29, 2006, and those plans will NOT change. New Orleans is dead?? LONG LIVE NEW ORLEANS!!!!


This show is intended to celebrate those things that are unique to New Orleans that will never die; things that will reappear as soon as the emergency crews clear out and the mayor calls us all to come back home. Here are a few New Orleans-based songs to enliven your spirit while we all wait for the day when we can return to our beloved city;
1) TIPITINA – PROFESSOR LONGHAIR
2) IKO IKO – THE DIXIE CUPS
3) MAPLE LEAF RAG – JELLY ROLL MORTON
4) CAKE WALKING BABIES FROM HOME - THE RED ONION JAZZ BABIES
5) MARDI GRAS IN NEW ORLEANS – PROFESSOR LONGHAIR
6) MARDI GRAS IN NEW ORLEANS – THE DIRTY DOZEN BRASS BAND
7) BLUE MONDAY – FATS DOMINO
8) PARA DONDE VAS – THE IGUANAS
9) JOLIE LOUISE – DANIEL LANOIS
10) WEST END BLUES – LOUIS ARMSTRONG