Popsurfing Radio Show Playlist: Thanks (11-27-09)

Here's the playlist for my latest Popsurfing radio show. It airs weekly on WEFT Champaign 90.1 fm on Thursday night/Friday morning from 1 am to 3 am. You can stream it live online at weft.org.

You can download the episode on iTunes. Enjoy!

Wanna make a request? Here are some potential themes for upcoming shows. Feel free to email me with a request for one of your favorite songs that fits the theme and I'll try to fit it in.

POPSURFING -- THEMES FOR UPCOMING SHOWS

December 3 -- hard times
December 10 -- family (parents, kids, brothers and sisters, in-laws)
December 17 -- sleep, the night (because we'll be putting the year to rest soon)
December 24 -- holiday music
December 31 -- drinking

PLAYLIST FOR THANKS (airdate: 11-27-2009)

HOUR ONE

1. Solomon Burke “Thank You” from Like A Fire

2. Monologue -- Is it too late to say thanks? Quote from Edward Sandford Martin

3. Marion Williams “Lord I Thank You” from The Gospel Soul Of Marion Williams

4. Audio clip -- Car rental phone chat from Planes, Trains & Automobiles

5. The Beatles “Thank You Girl” from Mono Masters, Volume One

6. The Flatlanders “Thank God For The Road” from Hills and Valleys

7. Monologue -- How to say thanks in various languages

8. Peanut “Thank Goodness For The Rain” from One Kiss Can Lead To Another: Girl Group Sounds Lost & Found

9. Neil Diamond “Thank The Lord For The Night Time” from In My Lifetime

10. Angie Stone “I Wanna Thank Ya” from Stone Hits: The Very Best Of Angie Stone

11. Cadillac Sky “Thank You Esteban” from Gravity's Our Enemy

12. Monologue -- Public Service Announcement for Women In Transition

13. Alanis Morissette “Thank You” from Alanis Morissette -- The Collection

14. Buddy Jewell “I Wanna Thank Everyone” from Buddy Jewell

15. Janis Ian “Thankyous” from Best Of Janis Ian -- The Autobiography Collection

16. William DeVaughn “Be Thankful For What You Got” from Can You Dig It? The 70s Soul Experience

17. Monologue -- Buddy Jewel is one lucky son of a gun

18. Maysa “Grateful” from Metamorphosis

19. Teddy Thompson “Thanks A Lot” from Teddy Thompson

20. Audio clip -- picky eater at Thanksgiving dinner from Home For The Holidays

21. George Winston “Thanksgiving” from December

HOUR TWO

22. Bing Crosby “Thanks” from The Aviator Soundtrack

23. Monologue -- How to say thanks in more languages

24. Ray Davies “Thanksgiving Day” from Thanksgiving Day

25. John Denver “Thank God I'm A Country Boy” from Country Roads Collection

26. Audio clip -- Steve Martin says goodbye to John Candy in Planes, Trains & Automobiles

27. Maria McKee “Why Wasn't I More Grateful (When Life Was Sweet)” from You Gotta Sin To Be Saved

28. Ricky Nelson “Thank You Lord” from Ricky Nelson -- Legacy

29. John Hiatt “Thank You Girl” from Bring The Family

30. Audio clip -- Charles Durning gives Thanksgiving blessing in Home For The Holidays


31. Fairport Convention “Now Be Thankful” from Watching The Dark: The History Of Richard Thompson

32. Monologue -- Public Service Announcement for Homeless Shelter

33. Sinéad O'Connor “Thank You For Hearing Me” from Universal Mother

34. My Morning Jacket “Thank You Too!” from Evil Urges

35. Tommy Boyce & Bobby Hart “Thanks For Sunday” from I Wonder What She's Doing Tonite: The Best Of Boyce & Hart

36. Monologue -- the brush off; reading of "No, Thank You John" by Christina Rossetti

37. Lizz Wright “Thank You” from The Orchard

38. Tito Puente “Lucky Dog” from The Best Of Tito Puente: El Rey de Timbal!

39. Sly & The Family Stone “Thankful N Thoughtful” from Fresh

40. Merle Haggard "Thanks To Uncle John" from If I Could Only Fly

HOUR THREE

41. Barbara Lewis “Thankful For What I Got” from Atlantic Unearthed: Soul Sisters

42. Monologue --

43. World Party “Thank You World” from Goodbye Jumbo\

44. Audio clip -- Gary Cooper as Lou Gehrig saying goodbye in Pride Of The Yankees

45. Mandy Patinkin “Sorry -- Grateful” from Dress Casual

46. Duke Ellington “I'm Just A Lucky So-And-So” from Black, Brown & Beige

47. Monologue -- have you thanked an animal yet? Plot description of scene from Lohengrin

48. Richard Wagner “Num Sei bedankt, mein lieber schwann” from Lohengrin

49. Monologue -- how to say thanks in still more languages

50. Jacqui Naylor “Thank You, Baby” from Smashed For The Holidays

51. Talking Heads “Thank You For Sending Me An Angel” from More Songs About Buildings And Food

52. Me'Shell Ndegeocello “Thankful” from Comfort Woman

53. Audio clip -- Charles Mingus calling himself lucky and blessed from Joni Mitchell's CD Mingus

54. Bob Hope & Shirley Ross “Thanks For The Memory” from Academy Award Winning Songs 1934-1993

55. Monologue -- what am I thankful for? A list

56. Candi Staton “The Thanks I Get For Loving You” from Candi Staton

57. The Swan Silvertones “Thank You Jesus And I Have A Friend” from When Gospel Was Gospel

58. The Hollow Men “Thanks To The Rolling Sea” from The Last Temptation Of Elvis

59. ABBA “Thank You For The Music” from ABBA Gold

60. Monologue -- show thanks by having fun; a reading of Ogden Nash's "No Doctors Today, Thank You"

61. John Mellencamp “Thank You” from Words & Music: John Mellencamp's Greatest Hits

62. Audio clip -- Nancy Lamott saying thanks at the end of her concert from the CD Live At Tavern On The Green

63. Kaiser Chiefs “Thank You Very Much” from Yours Truly, Angry Mob

North South East WEFT Playlist 11-27-09

Here is the playlist for the world music show I hosted for John on WEFT.

Buffy Saint-Marie -- “No No Keshagesh” from Running For The Drum

Cyril Pahinui -- “Hawaiian Cowboy” from Night Moon

Growling Tiger -- “Senorita Panchita” from Alan Lomax Collection Sampler

Cyprus Smith -- “Sambo Caesar (Caribbean)” from Alan Lomax Collection Sampler

Growling Tiger -- “War (Caribbean)” from Alan Lomax Collection Sampler

Augustus Pablo -- “Stop There Jah” from King Tubby Meets Rockers Uptown

The Gaylads -- “Africa” from Studio One Selector

Jackie Mittoo -- “Champion In The Arena” from Champion In The Arena 1976-1977

Forro In the Dark -- “Anao de Jardim” from Light a Candle

Bebel Gilberto -- “Ela (On My Way)” from All In One

Manu Chao -- “Me Gustas Tu” from Proxima Estacion: Esperanza

Caetano Veloso -- “Terra” from Beleza Tropical: Brazil Classics 1

Jorge Ben -- “Ponta De Lanca Africano” from Beleza Tropical: Brazil Classics 1

Nahini Doumbia & Les Espoirs du Mali -- “Djembeka” from Percussion and Songs From Mali

Baaba Maal -- “Dakar Moon” from Television

Bassekou Kouyate & Ngoni Ba -- “I Speak Fula” from I Speak Fula

Udokotela Shange Namajaha -- “Awungilobolele” from Indestructible Beat Of Soweto Vol 1

Nelcy Sedibe -- “Holotelani” from The Indestructible Beat Of Soweto Volume One

Maitre Gazonga -- “Les Jaloux Saboteurs” from Golden Afrique Vol 1

Amadou & Mariam -- “M'bife (Balafon)” from Dimanche A Bamako

The Nigerian Police Force Band -- “Asiko Mi Ni” from Nigeria Special: 1970-1976

Bembeya Jazz National -- “Republique Guinee” from The Syliphone Years

Ragheb Alama -- “Ya Bo Ye” from Camelspotting

Amr Diab -- “Nour El Ain” from Camelspotting

Buffy Saint-Marie -- “America The Beautiful” from Running For The Drum

Popsurfing Radio Show Playlist: Rain (11-20-09)

Here's the playlist for my latest Popsurfing radio show. It airs weekly on WEFT Champaign 90.1 fm on Thursday night/Friday morning from 1 am to 3 am. You can stream it live online at weft.org.

You can download the episode on iTunes. Enjoy!

Wanna make a request? Here are some potential themes for upcoming shows. Feel free to email me with a request for one of your favorite songs that fits the theme and I'll try to fit it in.

POPSURFING -- THEMES FOR UPCOMING SHOWS

November 26 -- songs about giving thanks (or songs that refuse to)
December 3 -- hard times
December 10 -- family (parents, kids, brothers and sisters, in-laws)
December 17 -- sleep, the night (because we'll be putting the year to rest soon)
December 24 -- holiday music
December 31 -- drinking

PLAYLIST FOR RAIN (airdate: 11-20-2009)


1. 12:00AM Ink Spots & Ella Fitzgerald “Into Each Life Some Rain Must Fall” from The Singing Detective

2. 12:04AM Mayer Hawthorne “I Wish It Would Rain” from A Strange Arrangement

3. Monologue -- record rainfall in Champaign; wettest spot in the world

4. 12:07AM The Mavericks “Here Comes The Rain” from Music For All Occasions

5. audio clip from film "Rain Man" -- Tom Cruise discusses imaginary friend

6. 12:11AM Somi “If The Rains Come First” from If the Rains Come First

7. 12:14AM B.J. Thomas “Raindrops Keep Fallin' On My Head” from Burt Bacharach & Friends -- Gold

8. Monologue -- technical difficulties, ringing phone, origin of "raining cats and dogs"

9. 12:17AM Ron Sexsmith “Raindrops In My Coffee” from Sexsmith & Kerr: Destination Unknown

10. 12:20AM Alison Krauss & Union Station “Rain Please Go Away” from Lonely Runs Both Ways

11. audio clip from "Young Frenkenstein" - grave robbing is a dirty job

12. 12:24AM Big Maybelle “Rain Down Rain” from Big Maybelle The Complete OKeh Sessions

13. Monologue -- song cut off short so an MP3 must have been an MP2; upcoming shows

14. 12:28AM Brook Benton “Rainy Night In Georgia” from Can You Dig It? The 70s Soul Experience

13. Monologue naming cities all over the world where it's raining right now with music in background -- 12:31AM Peter, Paul and Mary “It's Raining” from Around The Campfire

13. 12:34AM Missy Elliott “The Rain (Supa Dupa Fly)” from Supa Dupa Fly

14. 12:38AM Al Green “Standing In The Rain” from Lay It Down

15. 12:41AM Amy Lou Barnes, Sally Mueller “Little April Shower” from Bambi

16. 12:45AM Dinah Washington “Pennies From Heaven” from After Hours With Miss D

17. Monologue -- CCR songs about the rain, "Who'll Stop The Rain" -- PSA for local meetings for vets of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars

18. 12:50AM Ladysmith Black Mambazo “Rain, Rain, Beautiful Rain” from Shaka Zulu

19. 12:55AM Sondre Lerche “I Guess It's Gonna Rain Today” from Heartbeat Radio

20. Monologue -- pledge drive

21. 01:00AM Vashti Bunyan “Come Wind Come Rain” from Just Another Diamond Day

22. audio clip from "My Fair Lady"

23. 01:04AM Richard Robbins “The Storm” from A Room With A View

24. 01:07AM Mahalia Jackson “Didn't It Rain” from The World's Greatest Gospel Singer

25. 01:10AM The Beatles “Rain” from Abbey Road

26. Monologue -- story about my insisting George Harrison wrote "Rain" when in fact it was John Lennon

27. 01:12AM George Buck, Red-jacket & Group "Rain Dance (Canada)" from Alan Lomax Collection Sampler

28. 01:13AM Audra McDonald, Steve Kazee “The Rain Song” from 110 In The Shade

29. 01:17AM Duke Ellington “Raincheck” from Never No Lament: The Blanton-Webster Band

30. audio clip from "Rain Man"

31. 01:20AM Jeffrey Foskett “Laughter in The Rain” from Stars In The Sand

32. Monologue -- drive more carefully when it's rainingl PSA about car repairs, insurance and your rights

33. 01:23AM Justin Currie “In The Rain” from What Is Love For

34. 01:26AM Sonny Terry, Brownie ^McGhee “Rainy Day” from Backwater Blues

35. 01:29AM Jimi Hendrix “Rainy Day, Dream Away” from Electric Ladyland

36. audio clip from "Hannah and Her Sisters" of ee cumming poem

37. 01:33AM Melody Gardot “The Rain” from My One And Only Thrill

38. Monologue -- leaky roof in my house; PSA about home improvement loans for Urbana residents; pledge drive

39. 01:37AM John Mellencamp “Rain On The Scarecrow” from Words & Music: John Mellencamp's Greatest Hits

40. 01:40AM The Flatlanders “After The Storm” from Hills and Valleys

41. 01:43AM Sterling Holloway “Little Black Rain Cloud” from The Many Adventures Of Winnie The Pooh

42. 01:47AM Freddy Cole “Rain Is Such A Lonesome Sound” from Waiter, Ask The Man To Play The Blues

43. 01:51AM Tom Waits “Rain Dogs” from Rain Dogs

44. 01:54AM Alan Lomax “Ain't Gonna Rain No More” from Deep River Of Song: Alabama

45. 01:56AM Bing Crosby “Let A Smile Be Your Umbrella” from Bing With A Beat

46. 02:00AM The Serendipity Singers “Don't Let The Rain Come Down” from The Folk Years: Blowin' In The Wind

47. Monologue about leaky roof; PSA about help for homeless men

48. 02:03AM Gary Allan “Songs About Rain” from See If I Care

49. audio clip from "My Fair Lady"

50. 02:08AM Adele “Right As Rain” from 19

51. 02:12AM Kaiser Chiefs “Tomato In The Rain” from Off With Their Heads

52. Monologue -- a reading of Richard Brautigan's "It's Raining In Love"

53. 02:16AM Karen Dalton “Little Bit Of Rain” from It's So Hard To Tell Who's Going To Love You The Best

54. 02:19AM Delois Barrett Campbell “The Storm Is Passing Over” from Say Amen Somebody

55. 02:24AM The Jayhawks “Save It For A Rainy Day” from Rainy Day Music

56. audio clip from "Psycho"

57. 02:27AM Eva Cassidy “Blues Eyes Crying In The Rain” from Somewhere

58. Monologue -- pledge drive

58. 02:30AM The Beta Band “Dry The Rain” from The Three E.P.s

59. 02:37AM Catherine Deneuve “Chez Tante Elise” from The Umbrellas Of Cherbourg

60. 02:40AM Paul Weller “Early Morning Rain” from Studio 150

61. 02:44AM Robert Wyatt “Raining In My Heart” from Cuckooland

62. Monologue -- a reading of "Souls and Rain Drops" by Sidney Lanier; PSA for downloading audio books from library

63. 02:49AM Everything But The Girl “My Head Is Only House Unless It Rains” from Like The Deserts Miss The Rain

64. audio clip from "Taxi Driver"

65. 02:55AM Randy Newman “I Think It's Going To Rain Today” from Guilty: 30 Years Of Randy Newman

Get Your Redhot Podcasts!

Two new episodes are up for your perusal for free at iTunes. Showbiz Sandbox is my weekly rundown of pop culture that I co-host with Sperling Reich and Karen Woodward. And Popsurfing, my weekly radio show on WEFT Champaign 90.1 (which airs live Thursday night/Friday morning from 1 am to 3 am+) is built around a new topic every episode. This week's theme: rain. Enjoy. And if you get a chance, we're making a push to get people to rate and review Showbiz Sandbox. Take a moment and click on that five star rating if you've ever downloaded it (and even if you haven't)! Thanks.

Popsurfing Radio Show Playlist: Colors (11-12-09)

Here's the playlist for my latest Popsurfing radio show. It airs weekly on WEFT Champaign 90.1 fm on Thursday night/Friday morning from 1 am to 3 am. You can stream it live online at weft.org.

You can download the episode on iTunes. Enjoy!

PLAYLIST FOR COLORS (airdate: 11-12-2009)

01. The Wellingtons -- "Wonderful World Of Color"
02. Opener -- fall leaves; lipstick color monologue
03. 7 Worlds Collide -- "Too Blue"
04. Joni Mitchell -- "Big Yellow Taxi"
05. Madness -- "Rainbows"
06. Mayer Hawthorne -- "Green Eyed Love"
07. Monologue -- Paint Chips
08. Ray Davies -- "Village Green Medley"
09. Rosanne Cash -- "Long Black Veil"
10. audio clip from "Monty Python and the Holy Grail"
11. Monsters Of Folk -- "Magic Marker"
12. Monologue -- cream; Ol Dirty Bastard
13. Wu Tang Clan -- "C.R.E.A.M."
14. Grandmaster Flash -- "White Lines"
15. Ann Sexton -- "Color My World Blue"
16. Mildred Bailey -- "I Used To Be Color Blind"
17. Monologue -- color blindness; John Dalton and his pickled eyeball
18. Dolly Parton -- "God's Coloring Book"
19. audio clip from "Casablanca"
20. Nat King Cole -- "Orange Colored Sky"
21. Monologue -- donate now
17. 7 Worlds Collide -- "Hazel Black"
18. Loretta Lynn -- "Mrs. Leroy Brown"
19. Monologue -- Why is Johnny Cash the Man In Black?
20. Linda Lewis -- "Red Light Ladies"
21. Maxwell -- "Love You"
22. Leonard Cohen -- "Famous Blue Raincoat"
23. Jamey Johnson -- "In Color"
24. Monologue -- white; Goethe's Theory Of Color
25. Black Hollies -- "Run With Me Run"
26. audio clip from "Monty Python and the Holy Grail"
27. Arctic Monkeys -- "Old Yellow Bricks"
28. Gene Autry -- "Yellow Rose Of Texas"
29. Monologue -- red gold and green
30. Brian Eno -- "Another Green World"
31. Eric Dolphy -- "On Green Dolphin Street"
32. Tom Waits -- "All The World Is Green"
33. Monologue -- Isaac Newton, prisms, Marvel comics villain Prism
34. Charles Mingus -- "Self Portrait In 3 Colors"
35. Kermit The Frog -- "Being Green"
36. Monologue -- color montage
37. Sun Ra -- "Pink Elephants On Parade"/Harry Nilsson -- "Zip A Dee Doo Dah"
38. Suzanne Vega -- "Song In Red And Gray"
39. Monologue -- black and white
40. The Flatlanders -- "Wishing For A Rainbow"
41. Kings Of Leon -- "Red Morning Light"
42. Monologue -- "The Jumblies" by Edward Lear
43. The Soul Of John Black -- "Black John"
44. Monologue -- color montage fade out

An Interview With Padgett Powell

My latest HuffPo feature is an interview with author Padgett Powell, whose new book is composed entirely of a series of questions.

Also the latest episode of Showbiz Sandbox -- my weekly pop culture podcast with Sperling Reich and Karen Woodward -- is up now.