Radio Show Friday, March 7 8-10AM

Radar Brothers - Happy Spirits
Shout Out Louds - Impossible
Sarah Vaughan - East of the Sun (West of the Moon)
Hope Sandoval & the Warm Inventions - Suzanne
Dolly Parton - Here You Come Again
Ronnie Lane - Kuschty Rye
Super Furry Animals - Carbon Dating
Steve Miller Band - True Fine Love
Butterglory - Waiting on the Guns
Sandro Perri - Everybody's Talkin'
Golden Smog and Roseanne Cash - Seven Year Ache
Speedy West and Jimmy Bryant - Stratosphere Boogie

Do you love Dolly Parton like I love her? I recently watched 9 to 5 which ignited my desire to hear late 70s - early 80s era Dolly. I love her yodel "Muleskinner Blues." But even more than her yodel, I love "Here You Come Again." I have probably played that song 50 times in the car over the past couple weeks. And I cannot wait to get back to the station to play some off the 9 to 5 soundtrack which WXYC just acquired.


2008 has not been kind to me so far. One of the saddest things to happen is that the High Dollar Hot Dogs broke up. Well, I guess we have broken up. I never got officially dumped. But they've stopped returning my calls and emails. I was told that breaking up is what bands do. It hurts a little, but I knew that it wasn't going to work out. In memory of our little band, I played my favorite song that we covered, "Seven Year Ache."

But there is still hope for me and the uke. I told a few folks about my dream to start up the Steve Miller Band Ukulele Cover Band. Several people are interested! But I need to find a good lead uke player, because that surely isn't me. Last weekend I stayed up until 4am playing uke with Mark. We learned the Everly Brothers' "When Will I Be Loved." I also want to play Steve Miller's "True Fine Love" with the new band. Do you? Come join! Bring songs! Unfortunately, this band is still very much a dream, but maybe once things slow down a bit, I can bring this band to life.


Last week, I played Sandro Perri's cover of Fred Neil's "Everybody's Talkin.'" Because of this song, I rented the film Midnight Cowboy. I knew nothing about the film when I put it at the top of my Netflix list. I didn't know that John Voight (who is hot) and Dustin Hoffman were in it. I didn't know that it was the only movie rated X that ever won an Academy Award. I didn't know that it was about a hustler in NYC. I finally got around to watching it last night and it blew me away. I loved it! The little experimental film bits were incredible. I also have a new appreciation for Dustin Hoffman. I highly recommend it.


I am still very much obsessed with Ronnie Lane. Last week it was "Kuschty Rye." This week, it's "The Poacher." I would be playing "The Poacher" tomorrow on the radio, but since it's spring break, I am taking a week off. But tune in from 9am to noon to hear Tim's show which is really wonderful.

The rest of my playlist from last week's show can be found here.

My New Boyfriend!

Last Friday, I went to dinner with some friends. And this was no ordinary dinner. I had been looking forward to this since September when Ross and Maggie first told me about their amazing experience at Bryan Zupon's Z Kitchen. If you don't know about Bryan, you can read about him in this NY Times article. Read it. After some rescheduling and more rescheduling, we were finally able to get over to his dorm room for dinner on Friday night.

Our courses included:

Scallop, avocado mosaic, olive oil-poached grapefruit, tomato-cumin chutney, mustard, Sichuan peppercorn, Old Bay



Red snapper, fennel, raisins, candied olive, pomegranate


And then there was the course that changed my life. The course that made me feel like I had died and gone to heaven. It was BACON-WRAPPED BACON!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (Bacon-wrapped pork belly) Oh. My. God. I fell in love. See that picture below? That is my boyfriend. My boyfriend is BACON!

Seattle Meets New York – Bacon Wrapped Bacon Buns: Pork belly, Nueske’s bacon, miso-butterscotch, snow peas

Bryan said that this dish might be his "greatest achievement and contribution to humanity at large." I agree. It was so delicious.

To see some of our other dishes, go here. I even licked my dessert plate!!!

After the meal, I went home and cried. Never has a meal moved me to tears before. But this one did. I love bacon. Bacon loves me. Maybe I should write a song for my new boyfriend on the ukulele. Woot!

More Ricky Nelson

Writer, Jody Rosen explains Hawley like I am unable to. Rosen really gets it. All I know is that Richard Hawley has rekindled my obsession with Ricky Nelson now.

Ricky Nelson makes me swoon.

Everything Is Better With Roller Skates

It was a real soul-sucking day at work. I haven't been this stressed out at work in a long time.

But this video made it all better. I have watched it at least 5 times since I've been home tonight. The last two minutes are absolutely mind-blowing, so don't miss it. Put Gene Kelly in a suit and on roller skates and you'll get my vote for the hottest man that ever lived. Sigh.



I've always thought about what kind of postcard would send to Post Secret. I think that my anonymous secret would be that every now and then I look on Ebay for autographed photos of the young Gene Kelly because I want to own something that he touched.

Lady's Bridge Released Today

Richard Hawley's Lady's Bridge is now available stateside. Run. Don't walk. Get it today.

Hey, look! There's Renee Weaver!!!



And this acoustic version of "Tonight The Streets Are Ours" just makes me weak in the knees:



My obsession with Richard Hawley just won't go away. WXYC got a copy of Lady's Bridge. So, be sure to call and request it on the radio. I doubt that it will make rotation, but it should. It's my number one record of 2007.

I'm In Live Television and Anything Can Happen

I have been busy and not posting. Maybe tonight, I post something about my trip to Danville last Saturday.

Today, I ran across the following video clip. (Thank you, Apostropher!) I cannot stop laughing. WARNING: DO NOT WATCH IF YOU HAVE A WEAK STOMACH.

Busby Berkeley and Eddie Cantor

I showed Denise the amazing dance sequences from Kid From Spain last night. It is so very embarrassingly and painfully socially incorrect. But the dance sequences are jaw-droppingly amazing. I love what Busby can do with alot of ladies in a pool and Eddie Cantor. There are no YouTube clips from this film. But I did find this beautiful shot.

With the resurgence in popularity of musicals these days, how come no musical film producer is doing anything like this? Wouldn't High School Musical or Hairspray or Chicago be so much better with some Busby Berkelian Matrix-style dance numbers thrown in? Berkeley did it all with simple tricks like mirrors, reverse film direction, funky camera angles, etc. I want to see a Busby Berkeley number with some Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon 3-D effects!

Damn, Now That's Sexy

I've had the song, "I Only Have Eyes for You" on the brain lately. For one, some of Richard Hawley's songs remind me of the Flamingos' take on "I Only Have Eyes for You." And second, I've been watching Busby Berkeley clips and my absolute favorite is the "I Only Have Eyes for You" scene that he choreographed for the film, Dames. In fact, the song was written for that film.

I searched YouTube to see what I could find and I found this version featuring Peggy Lee and Dave Barbour. I am becoming more and more of a Peggy Lee fan these days. This just makes me melt.

I'm A Very Stylish Girl

Well, I am not really a stylish girl, but I do love that song from Dimitri From Paris.

In the next month, I have three weddings, two rehearsal dinners, and a baby shower. You know what that means? I need dresses. I haven't bought a dress since last spring and I bought it only because it was the first one I tried on. It's not that great. In fact, it kinda sucks.

But for the first time in my entire life I purchased three new dresses in two weeks. So here are my purchases.

This little red dress is so cute. And I found the perfect necklace for it at Cameron's. The dress is cotton with a tulle underskirt that makes the skirt poofy. It has hidden pockets perfect for fidgeting in. It looks very 1950s. It is for wedding #1 and possibly wedding #2:



This next dress is silk and fits me like a glove. I look super hot in this dress, especially with my new black patent leather heels. It's for at least one of the rehearsal dinners, possibly both.



I am a bridesmaid in wedding #3, so this green dress was chosen for me. I'm instructed to wear a sash with it.



All these weddings and social occasions kinda stress me out. But there is a light at the end of all this.... in ITALY!!! Two weeks after I return from wedding #3, I leave for Italy. I won't need to wear dresses there. But I was told to wear super tight jeans. Apparently the women in Italy wear their jeans skintight. Hmmm.

Now That I Am On A Busby Kick

The first Bubsy Berkeley film I ever saw was Golddiggers of 1933. I rented it from VisArt Video over by the Harris Teeter. It was on VHS. They had three films choreographed by Berkeley in their collection: Dames, Golddiggers of 1935 and Golddiggers of 1933. I remember watching them with Craven and we were both absolutely in awe. I have no idea how we learned of Busby Berkeley... I think that maybe we saw a documentary on PBS or something? The last time I was in VisArt which was YEARS and YEARS ago, I checked and they no longer carried any Busby Berkeley musicals... probably because I was the only one who ever rented them.

I received the Busby Berkeley DVD box set as a Christmas gift this year. It was my favorite Christmas present. There is one entire DVD that is just of various money shots from his films. Oh yeah!!! Busby Berkeley spent over $1 million for a spinning circular stage. In the 1930s!!! Gotta love that.

Here is a great clip from Golddiggers of 1933. Unless you are a fan of Dick Powell, I would skip the first 2:30 seconds. In other words, begin it with 3:23 left and watch from there. But if you're like me, you are a Dick Powell fan, too. He's is so weird. But I could live without Ruby Keeler. Why is she in so many of the Berkeley films? Why her? She bugs me. And she looks like a clod when she tap dances.



And if that isn't enough for you, here's another one from YouTube. It's cut up and I hate that... because to get the full effect of the "I Only Have Eyes For You" dance, you need to see it uninterrupted without breaks or cuts. Oh well. At least you'll be able to see why Ruby Keeler creeps me out.

Speaking Of Busby Berkeley and Dream Jobs

I want to be Carmen Miranda when I grow up. In Busby Berkeley musicals. With bananas. And monkeys.

It's Not Just A Summer Fling

It's for real. I thought that my love affair with Richard Hawley would only last a few weeks, like so many of my obsessive musical crushes.

Last summer, my musical affair was with Camera Obscura. I listened to their record, Let's Get Out of This Country, over and over and over on the way to the beach and back. When I hear a track off that record today, I get pangs in my heart for my old flame. I loved that band so much. My dream job is to one day play tambourine in Camera Obscura. Seriously. I'm not kidding. But I betcha they don't offer health insurance and a 401K package which is mandatory for me. But I'll always dream.

Anyway, this summer, I fell in love with Richard Hawley... first it was just a few tracks that folks sent me. Then I got his record Lowedges. Then it was Cole's Corner and then Lady's Bridge. Oh, and then there were the live recordings. Ahh.

This summer, I was doing alot of driving around the triangle... more than my usual two-minute commute to work. It seemed that I spent most of this time driving in a love-induced haze obsessively listening to Richard Hawley. I'd be headed off to a particular destination and I would find myself lost or headed to Raleigh when I should've been driving to Chapel Hill. It didn't matter. I just loved to be alone silently listening. Alone in the car with Richard Hawley on repeat. I was cuckoo for cocoa puffs. And I still am.

I've been good lately listening to other music... the Rosebuds, Josh Ritter, the Shout Out Louds, and the Sea & Cake. And I've been listening to my Ipod on shuffle, instead of on Hawley. I took the afternoon off today and was rushing all over town for appointments, cocktail dress accessories and shoes, post office, etc. As I pulled into the post office parking lot, Richard Hawley's "Darlin'" came on. I sat in my car and cranked that song. (Supposedly, the Prius is sealed so that sound doesn't penetrate easily, but I know that everyone around could hear it.) I was sitting there in this blissful state practically in tears... wishing that I could play "Darlin'" on my ukulele, but there are no chords on Chordie. I am kinda glad that there aren't chords as there is no way I could ever play that song like he does.

After that, I switched the Ipod back from shuffle to Hawley again. When I was driving back from the maul with my new cocktail dress shoes (some hot patent leather heels with a peep toe) listening to Hawley's "Valentine", I was thinking... if this is what "love" feels like, I sure haven't felt like this about anybody in years. But then I felt weird... is it normal for someone to fall in love with someone's music? Is it pathetic for someone to fall in love with someone's music? I gotta get out more.

So, I am feeling much better than I did on Saturday. I no longer want to kick people in the shins. I want to spread the Richard Hawley love bug to everyone I know.

Watching a new-to-me Busby Berkeley musical made my weekend too. Oh, and chocolate chip muffins. Wootie woot woot!

I'm In Love

Over the past couple months, two friends separately have been trying to introduce me to Richard Hawley. Upon first listen, I thought to myself, "Uh, Okay. Whatever." But I kept finding myself coming back and listening to the few tracks that they sent me. And last week, something happened. I fell in love. I feel hard for Richard Hawley's music. I am 100% obsessed.

Over the weekend, I've kept my listening to myself. I was scared to share my new obsession with anyone except with Tim and Robert, the two who kept insisting that I give Hawley a try. I mean, Richard Hawley's music isn't cool. You won't ever find it in rotation at WXYC or WXDU. But it is absolutely beautiful music. I am no musician, but the guitar sounds ethereal... what kind of guitar makes sounds that sweet? Oh, and his voice is deep and dreamy. For the past half hour, I've been playing "Hotel Room" over and over so loud that it rattles the windows in my house and makes my green chair vibrate. [Thank you, Rossi, for my super-duper stereo speakers.]

To me, Richard Hawley sounds like a combination of the best of Morrissey and the best of Lambchop with a dash of Roy Orbison. It is just perfect. And there's so much yearning in his music that I just cannot help but be obsessed. I haven't fallen in love like this since that Vetiver show back in February. I really want to listen to other music, but I can't right now. I've got mix tapes to make. I've gotten music in the mail that I haven't opened. I just cannot get Richard Hawley out of my mind.

I haven't been able to sleep at night lately... not because of Richard Hawley, but just because I having difficulty sleeping. So I find myself staying up late listening to the few tracks of his that I have on my computer. I just got his album Coles Corner in the mail on Friday, which I quickly devoured. I'm waiting for two more of his CDs to arrive later this week. He has a new album coming out at the end of August, that I am dying to hear. I've also been watching his videos on YouTube here and this one from his new album. That second one I play over and over just so that I can listen to the song. You can listen to some of his tracks on his MySpace page.

I accidentally fell asleep in front of the NewsHour with Jim Lehrer tonight and my poison ivy is driving me nuts, so it looks like it might be another late night with Richard Hawley... but I am not complaining.

He is so dreamy. Sigh.

Oh How I Love That Potato Salad Song

I have never seen "Solid Potato Salad" performed by anyone ever. But now I can say that I can (and you, too). Minty sent me this amazing video.

Watch the whole thing. Don't give up after a minute. Just watch the whole thing. Yowza!

John Schneider Is Lost

On Saturday night at Christa's going away party, I was telling Chris and Elizabeth about my prized John Schneider album. I said, "I'll go get it." I left to look for it and never never returned. I didn't mean to leave them hanging but I couldn' find it and then I probably got dragged away by someone else at the party.

I'll never forget that John Schneider record. That was the first record that I ever bought with my own money when I was nine. I was so proud of myself. I bought it from Zayre in Burlington (even though my family and our neighbors called it Zayre's for some reason). I loved that store... the records were right there when you first walked in. At that same time, I also bought a K-Tel collection of soft rock hits called Songbird. What an monumental event that was. I mean, who would I have become if my first album purchases in Zayre's were REO Speedwagon or Pat Benetar or Hall & Oates?!?! (I didn't become a Hall & Oates fanatic until I started djing at WXYC.)

Tonight, I searched through all the rock albums in my house and I couldn't find it. But as I was searching, I ran across Bonnie Tyler's Faster Than the Speed of Night album. I almost mistook Ms. Tyler for Mr. Schneider.

A Fine Romance

I just cannot get enough of the Ella and Louis duets. They make me swoon. Ummmmmmmmmm.....

RIP Betty Hutton

What sad news for so early on Tuesday. I am in shock. We will always love you, Betty. Always.

Pesto With Gene and Maria

Wow. Wow. Wow. This evening was so amazing. First, I decided to continue on my cooking spree and I made pesto! It was really tasty... I mixed it in with some pasta. This whole weekend was a cooking extravaganza! In addition to the pesto today, over the weekend, I made: vegetarian chili, meat chili, baconfat salad, and fig & anchovy paste. I was definitely inspired being with Lee and Ewald in Brooklyn. And Mark Bittman's How to Cook Everything is a huge help, too. I love to cook!

Anyway, after I finished my pesto, I decided to see what the DVR had picked up. I watched a Colbert Report and then I remembered that IT IS GENE KELLY MONDAY!!! So, I turned to TCM and watched some of Singin' In the Rain. Debbie Reynolds is hot. Donald O'Conner is hot. Gene Kelly is EXTREMELY hot. And when they sing "Good Morning" all together, it is sheer bliss. I have this movie on DVD, but it is always exciting to stumble upon one of your favorites airing on TV... it is a special treat.

After that, I ventured out to Local 506 to catch Erie Choir and Maria Taylor. Ms. Taylor blew me away again. She played all my favorites from her album 11:11 but then she did the best cover ever. Just imagine hearing one of your all-time favorite songs sung by one of your all-time favorite voices. Maria Taylor covered "At Last" which was popularized by the great Etta James. This version was stripped down to just Taylor's whispery, delicate voice and her brother playing bass. It was dreamy and chilling and beautiful. It was so moving that I got tears on my shirt. I get chills just thinking about it. Holy cow.

I hope the rest of my evenings this week go as well as tonight. I have some other Gene Kelly movies on the DVR and I have this recipe for sesame noodles with peanut sauce and tofu that I want to try...

Hunk of a Man

I was emailing Skip today asking him what the big deal with cable was. It seems like the 400 channels that are in the Durham Time Warner Cable area kinda suck. I don't see anything that I would ever want to watch. He suggested that I try the Turner Classic Movies Channel. So, I looked up their website to see what was coming on in the next week or so. And as it turns out, Gene Kelly is the Star of the Month and they are having Gene Kelly Mondays on TCM. Swoon!!!

I first fell in love with movie musicals in the summer of 1995, during a Ginger Rogers film series at the NC Museum of Art. When I saw the charming and dapper Fred Astaire swing Ginger Rogers effortlessly around the dance floor in her flowing gowns, I thought I had died and gone to heaven. I thought Astaire was the dreamiest guy I had ever seen. I fell more in love with Fred Astaire than I did with Simon Le Bon when I was in the seventh grade or so it seemed at the time.

This film series included Swing Time, Top Hat, Shall We Dance and others. I don't think I had ever seen a musical before and certainly not one on the big screen. And the best part for me was viewing these movies outside (before the museum constructed that big outdoor setup that they have now which makes outdoor moving-watching there a huge pain in the ass). In his love scenes, Astaire's characters are always a little bit shy and awkward and his dancing is flawless, delicate and graceful. I remember telling Craven at the time"Fred Astaire is the kind of boyfriend I want." And this was true... until I saw Gene Kelly.

I think the first musical that I saw featuring Gene Kelly was The Ziegfield Follies. Or maybe it was An American In Paris. I don't remember. However, I do remember my jaw dropping the first time I saw him dance. Gene Kelly is HOT. Move over Simon Le Bon, Fred Astaire, Brad Pitt and hello Gene Kelly. Holy cow. He is an absolute hunk on the dance floor who dances with athleticism and masculinity (in contrast to Fred Astaire who dances more gentlemanly). And don't get me started on Gene Kelly's ass. Oooh! Christa and I have spent several evenings viewing Gene Kelly films and watching particular dance sequences over and over while squealing at the screen. She introduced me to his film Anchors Aweigh in which he has the most sexy telephone conversation I have ever heard.

I highly recommend that you catch some Gene Kelly films this month. Ooo-wee. I know I am.

I Love Another Kay

During the 90’s when everyone was embracing grunge and “alternative” music, I hated it. Rock was everywhere and it just turned me off. In 1991, I began working at Cameron’s that, at the time, was owned by a guy who loved 40’s, 50’s and 60’s pop and jazz singers like Bobby Darin, Ella Fitzgerald, Dinah Washington, and Ray Charles. There were hundreds of CDs at the store of all this stuff. I was so excited to hear all this “new” music. There was more to life than rock!

One of the CDs that was in heavy rotation in Cameron’s was a Capital Records compilation of Irving Berlin songs featuring this crazy song called “You’re Just In Love.” It starts out soft with just a string bass and then the voice of Kay Starr drifts in. “I hear music and there’s no one there. I smell blossoms and the trees are bare. All day long, I seem to walk on air. I wonder why.” The song continues to build adding more instrumetation until Kay starts singing a duet with herself. “You don’t need analyzing. It’s not so surprising that you feel strange but nice. Your heart goes pitter patter. I know what’s the matter because I’ve been there once or twice.” I remember standing behind the jewelry counter in the center of the store back during my days of Levi jeans and birkenstocks and thinking that I had died and gone to heaven when I heard Kay Starr singing this song. It ends with her bellowing over a full orchestra with lots of horns: “There is nothing you can take to relieve that pleasant ache. You’re not sick. You’re just in love!”

A few years ago, I complained to Bill that we didn’t have enough Kay Starr records at WXYC. That quickly changed, but we still don’t have Kay’s version of “You’re Just In Love.” Otherwise, I’d probably play it every week. Last Friday, I read one the record reviews that I had written for one of the half dozen Kay Starr albums we have at WXYC. I had forgotten that she developed her vocal talent by singing to the family chickens when she was little. Her mother entered her in a local radio station talent contest, which led to a fifteen-minute radio show on which she sang hillbilly tunes and pop songs. At the age of fifteen, she started singing with Joe Venuti’s orchestra. She sang for Glenn Miller’s orchestra after Marion Hutton was out sick. She even ended up replacing Lena Horne in Charlie Barnett’s orchestra. She was considered a great “white” influence in the early R&B genre. In the 50s, she signed with Capitol Records where she continued to crank out pop hits and even some hillbilly hits. (Her songs with Tennessee Ernie Ford RAWK!) In 1950, she fell in love with Roy Acuff’s “Bonaparte’s Retreat.” She convinced him to write lyrics for the fiddle tune and it became one of her biggest hits.

Last week, I played “It’s A Good Day” by Kay Starr. This week, I won’t be playing any Kay Starr as I will be out of town. But Tim (who covered my show a couple weeks ago) will be covering my shift. He’s really good.