Coming Up This Week...

We recorded School for the Dead today for this Saturday's show. Man, they were good. They did four songs you can hear on the show Saturday morning, two of them new and maybe not hearable anywhere else. They'll be playing the (family-friendly! fun! for-a-good-cause!) Raise the Roof benefit at the Calvin, raising money for fixing the roof at First Churches. They're doing a grown-up show at The Elevens on April 4 with Aloha Steamtrain and the previously-mentioned Fiesta Brava; go see it.

Also, new Barenaked Ladies' kids music...! And some other surprises.

We did an interview with Flans from They Might Be Giants at the (awesome) shows in New Hampshire on Saturday, but, grr, our mini-disc is mysteriously blank, even though I saw levels and counters moving. Hoping to set up a make-up date. Today we did a phone interview with Hannah Levine, the charming and talented twelve-year-old girl who sings "One Dozen Monkeys" on TMBG's newest record, and we'll play that back soon, probably a week from Saturday if I had to guess. Just have to edit it.

Finally, I'm super happy to announce that for our broadcast on The River, we have a great sponsor, The Toy Box in Amherst. The Toy Box already carries (in addition to wonderful toys, games, musical instruments, etc.) some terrific kids' music, and they're going to be getting more, including a lot that you hear on the show. We're really excited to be working with them.

Playlist for 3-29-08

Fun, fun, fun show this week. New Dan Zanes, Astrograss, Justin Roberts, Gunnar Madsen, Lews Franco & the Missing Cats, Big Bang Boom etc. -- plus a kids' song from Old 97's! Yes, Old 97's. (Thanks to Maria for the pointer on that.) And book time with Ella returns.

Stream it here:



Segment 1
TMBG - It's Spare the Rock
-Ella ID
TMBG -No! (No!)
Deedle Deedle Dees - Major Deegan (Freedom in a Box!)
Gunnar Madsen - I'm Growing (I'm Growing)
ID
Dan Zanes - Colas (Nueva York)
Old 97's - The Bug Song (demo)
ID

Segment 2
Lunch Money - Miniature Things (Silly Reflection)
Thaddeus Rex - Running in the Sun Again (Shaking in Chicago)
Astrograss - There Their They're (Let Me Stay Up All Night)
ID/prep to rock
Justin Roberts - Pop Fly (Pop Fly)
White Stripes - Rag and Bone (Icky Thump)
ID

Segment 3
War - Low Rider
Ellen & Matt - Bounce (Best Friends)
Ralph's World - Happy Lemons (Happy Lemons)
ID
Asylum Street Spankers - Mommy Says No! (Mommy Says No!)
Princess Katie & Racer Steve - Hot Shot! (Fast & Feisty)
Mr. Richard - Butterfly Day (Polka Dot Puzzle)
ID

Segment 4
ScribbleMonster - Spare the Rock, Spoil the Child
ID
Rebecca Frezza - Come on Out (Special Kind of Day)
AudraRox - Moms & Dads (Park Slope Parents Vol. 1)
Loretta Lynn - High on a Mountain Top (Van Lear Rose)
Lewis Franco & the Missing Cats - Swingin' in Daddyland (Swingin' in Daddyland)
ID

Segment 5
Robbi K & Friends - Favorite Things (Music Makes Me Happy)
Big Bang Boom - Happy Town (Big Bang Boom)
ID
Ben Folds Five - Video Killed the Radio Star (Whatever and Ever Amen bonus track)
Barney Saltzburg w/ Richard Thompson - Song for Pete (Crazy Hair Day)
ID/Book time with Ella

Segment 6
Brian Eno - I'll Come Running (Another Green World)
Mr. David - I'm a Fish (Great Adventures)
Purple Stripes - Aba Daba Honeymoon (EP)
Asheba - Sapodilla (Children are the Sunshine)
Parker Bent - Lucky Day (Charlie Davidson's Tricycle Club)
ID
TMBG - Particle Man (Flood)

Mark your calendars, folks, the Sippy Cups are coming

The Sippy Cups, July 12, 3:00 pm, at the Pearl Street Nightclub in beautiful downtown Northampton.

If you haven't seen the Sippy Cups, words cannot describe what you're in for. The pictures on the front page of their in-progress website give you a hint, but, well, let's just say you need to go.

More info to come.

Fiesta Brava

One of my former students, and an occasional attendee with his son at shows we put together, is in a band called Fiesta Brava. They're good. And you can go see their very first gig, along with friends of the show School for the Dead (who you'll be able to hear on the show the very next morning!):

Fiesta Brava

April, 4 2008 at The Elevens
140 Pleasant Street, Northampton, Massachusetts 01060
Cost : $5

Fiesta Brava’s first show ever. We’re on at 10, come see us play! Aloha Steamtrain (Annual St. Patriot’s Day Party), School For the Dead, Fiesta Brava. www.elevensmusic.com

Talking With Tim Talks With Me

Long-time listener Tim O'Shea has a nifty new blog, Talking with Tim. He just posted an interview with me.

If you're in Kentucky...

...in particular in Lexington, you should listen to Ages 3 and Up on Radio Free Lexington (which does stream). Cool playlists, and the host is putting together a pretty cool-looking online magazine.

Schedule Change at VFR; HFVS Expanding

Starting in May, our Valley Free Radio broadcast will shift to be from 7 to 9, just like our broadcast on the River. Following us on VFR will be the Hilltown Family Variety Show, which will now be a full hour.

Rock!

My radio debut

My dad came across this clipping recently:



The station was presumably KWON in Bartlesville, Oklahoma, which now appears to be part of a bigger set of stations. Jon Boone (front right) was one of my best friends through elementary school.

KWON is also the station from which I won a long-lost (sadly) copy of the records (actual records) of Kasey Kasem's American Top 40 for a week. I listened to that set of records over and over and over. I think Stars on 45's Beatles medley (which is, for the record, execrable) was number 1; I also remember that Billy Squier's "Stroke" was on the chart, and the Stones' "Paint it Black" was one of the older songs they played. I can't find archives of those charts, but it must have been around 1981 or 1982 or so. Let's see...yep, 1981.

How, you ask, did I win that? Well, my mom was heavily involved in the Bartlesville Women's Network and various other feminist groups. The meetings were frequently at the Bonanza (go ahead and do the theme song, you know you want to). While tagging along, I would often fill out entry form after entry form for the giveaway of the AT40 records that KWON had set up there. And I won. It was great; I went from the kid who had nothing but classical records (and one lonely Electric Light Orchestra record) for the Friday music listening time at school to the kid who had the best stuff ever.

Okay, so now I'm rambling a bit.

Heh. She said "butt."

Kimya Dawson has a kids' record coming out.

It's called Alphabutt. (Also the name of one of her songs.)

That'll be fun.

2008-03-22 Playlist

Thanks a ton to Maria Sangiolo for coming in and playing some songs. Good stuff!

You can stream it here:



Segment 1
TMBG - It's Spare the Rock
-Ella ID
TMBG - Istanbul (Not Constantinople)
Gwendolyn & the Good Time Gang - Anatomy (live at Spare the Rock)
Randy Kaplan - No Nothing (Loquat Rooftop)
Michael Franti - Firefly (Songs from the Front Porch)
Keith Munslow - Dressed Up for the Party
ID

Segment 2
Beatles - Octopus's Garden (Abbey Road)
Brady Rymer - Keep Up With You (Every Day is a Birthday)
Hank Hooper - Hey! Batter! (Playground Fortune Teller)
ID
Hold Steady - Take Me Out to the Ball Game
Visqueen - Centerfield (Play)
Mr. Leebot - Ants in the Pants (Activate!)

Segment 3
Sippy Cups - Springtime Fantastic
Jellydots - Sunshine
Seth Decker - Open the Door
Ben Kweller - Sha Sha
Meredith Brooks - Drive the Car
ID

Segment 4
ScribbleMonster - Spare the Rock, Spoil the Child
ID
Maria Sangiolo - in-studio
- Power Shower
- Rock Penguin Hop
Mermaid Molly (Under the Mystic Sea)

Segment 5
Miz B - I'm In Love with Learning (Raise the Brain)
ID
Us 3- Cantaloop (Flip Fantasia)
Father Goose - Jig Jog Gee
Pointer Sisters - Yes We Can Can
Papa Grows Funk - Yellow Submarine (Funky Kidz)
ID

Segment 6
Dar Williams - The Babysitter's Here (For the Kids 3)
ID
Milkshake - School (Bottle of Sunshine)
Sinatra - Too Marvelous for Words
SteveSongs - Marvelous Day
ID
TMBG - Alphabet Lost and Found
TMBG - Spare the Rock

Googling Your Show's Name Comes Up With Interesting Things

Like this story in the Austin Chronicle. Interesting stuff about kids' stuff in that area, and a subhead called, yes, "Spare the Rock, Spoil the Child."

Doh!

Just got back from recording next week's show -- which is, I promise, excellent, including some great in-studio songs from Maria Sangiolo -- and waiting in our mailbox was new music from Astrograss and Dan Zanes. So, two weeks from today, you'll hear it.

But the show for March 22 has some great stuff too, in addition to Maria's songs -- new music from Randy Kaplan and Hank Hooper, plus a new track from that Funky Kidz CD. And the Pointer Sisters and Frank Sinatra! (Not together. That would be odd.)

Hey, so, any good shows in Portland, Oregon, next week?

2008-03-15 Playlist

We were all mighty tired when we recorded this, so forgive any lower-key-than-usual-ness, won't you?

You can stream it here:



Here's what we played:

Segment 1
TMBG - It's Spare the Rock
-Ella ID
TMBG - Zeros (Here Come the 123s)
Josephine Cameron - Unclouded Day (American Songs Vol II)
Frances England - Blueberry Pancakes (Fascinating Creatures)
Timmy Abell - I'm My Own Grandpa (Little Red Wagon)
Asylum Street Spankers - Be Like You (Mommy Said No!)
Sweet Honey in the Rock - Dog Dog (Experience 101)
ID

Segment 2
Dog on Fleas - Give It Away (When I Get Little)
Suzi Shelton - No Ordinary Day (No Ordinary Day)
ID/prep to rock
REM - Stand (Green)
Pop Rockets - New Sneaker Jive (Blast Off)
Replacements - Cruella de Ville (Stay Awake)

Segment 3
Rolling Stones - She's a Rainbow
Deedle Deedle Dees - Obedience School (Freedom in a Box)
XTC - Do What You Do
Peter Himmelman - My Green Kite (My Green Kite)
Soul Coughing - Super Bon Bon (Irresistable Bliss)

Segment 4
ScribbleMonster - Spare the Rock, Spoil the Child
ID
Justice - DANCE
Dino-5 - Tell Me More (Baby Loves Hip Hop)
ID
Manu Chao - Bongo Bong
Cake - Mahna Mahna (For the Kids)
ID

Segment 5
Bari Koral Family Rock Band - Jump (s/t)
Shins - They'll Soon Remember
Jim Noir - Eenie Meany
ID
Shinyribs - Birthday is Over (Ditties for Kiddies)
Trout Fishing in America - Happy That You're Here (inFINity)
Wee Hairy Beasties - Animal Crackers
ID

Segment 6
Courtney Kaiser & Benjamin Cartel - The Season Song (Park Slope Parents Vol. 1)
Ladysmith Black Mambazo & Kermit the Frog - African Alphabet (Songs from the Street)
ID
Sara Hickman - Radiation Man (Big Kid)
Jambo - It's a Good Day (Lucy's Parade)
ID
They Might Be Giants - Working Undercover for the Man
TMBG - Spare the Rock

Hey look, there we are.

The River has put up a page for us and I think we'll be listed on their schedule soon too. Cool.

We'll be keeping everything here, at least so far as I know.

Mark Your Calendar, Choose A Recipe, Here Comes Brady Rymer

Friday, April 25 at Lyman Hall at First Churches, we'll be having a Family Music Potluck* with none other than Brady Rymer and a subset of the Little Band that Could!

Doors will be at 5:00, with food sharing starting then and music at 5:30. Admission is a mere $7 (infants free). We're presenting it with our friends at Hilltown Families.

We'll let you in even if you don't bring a dish to share, but sure hope you'll bring something yummy. Even if you don't bring food, we'll find something for you to eat.


*Catchy and/or clever event name hopefully yet to come - any suggestions? Rock 'n' Casserole?

It's not Halloween

...but there still were a ton of great costumes in Northampton yesterday:


(Photo courtesy of Sienna Wildfield.)

We had well over 100 people come out to Lyman Hall for a great concert and costume party with Princess Katie & Racer Steve yesterday. The band was as high-energy and rocking as ever, and had both kids and their grown-ups cracking up.

John Powers did a fun show at Cup & Top in the morning, too (and it was great to see him and his family at the PK&RS show later on), with probably at least 40 people there.

Whoo-hoo!

The rest of Sienna's pictures are here. (I did bring our camera but cleverly failed to notice that it didn't have a battery in it.)

And me? I dressed as a lumbering Midwesterner.

Playlist for 2008-03-08

Whee! Thanks to John Powers for coming by the studio. And remember to go see him at Cup & Top at 10:30 and, most importantly, Princess Katie & Racer Steve at Lyman Hall at First Churches at 1:00 (music at 1:30)! First Churches is at 129 Main Street right in the center of Northampton (it's the one with the big ol' steeple); enter the side door (on Center Street) opposite the Iron Horse.

You can stream the show here:



Segment 1
TMBG - It's Spare the Rock
-Ella ID
TMBG - Whirlpool (Why Does the Sun Shine EP)
Hollow Trees - Skoodle Um Skoo (Welcome to Nelsonville)
Kimya Dawson & Antsy Pants - Tree Hugger (Juno OST)
Elizabeth Mitchell - When Spring Comes (High Mountain Songs)
Brian Wilson - Barnyard (Smile)
Nields - Anna Kick a Hole in the Sky (All Together Singing in the Kitchen)
ID

Segment 2
Deadwood Revival - Daisy (Ditties for Kiddies)
Bonerama - You've got a Friend (Funky Kidz)
ID/Prep to Rock
Pencilhead and the Playground Punks - Birthday Song
Justin Roberts - Birthday Song
Princess Katie & Racer Steve - Jeans! (Songs for the Coolest Kids)
ID

Segment 3
Hipwaders - Twitchy (s/t)
Mr. Ray - Uh-Oh, Wha' Happened? (Family Ride)
Recess Monkey - Backpack (Wonderstuff)
Yosi - Hole in the Ground (Under a Big Bright Yellow Umbrella)
Deedle Deedle Dees - Little Red Airplane (Live at Spare the Rock)
ID

Segment 4
ScribbleMonster - Spare the Rock Spoil the Child
Billy Bragg & Wilco - My Flying Saucer
Brady Rymer & the Little Band that Could - Pie (Here Comes...)
Golden Smog - Pecan Pie (Down by the Old Mainstream)
ID
Dr. Strangeblood & the New Zombies - Be Good Johnny
Madness - One Step Beyond

Segment 5
Rodrigo y Gabriela - Diablo Rojo
John Powers in-studio

Segment 6
Anne Hathaway - Great Big World (Hoodwinked OST)
Botafogo - El Reino del Reves
ID
Flaming Lips - Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots Vol I
Telephone Company - I Don't Want to Shop (The King's Surprise?)
-ID
They Might Be Giants - The Guitar (Apollo 18)
They Might Be Giants - Spare the Rock

Write us an interview.

We've got some cool guests coming up this month (Maria Sangiolo, School for the Dead), but let me point out two particularly fun ones -- first, we'll be interviewing the Johns of They Might Be Giants again at their show in New Hampshire. Second, and I think potentially even cooler, we'll be talking with Hannah Levine, the eleven-year-old who sings on three songs on Here Come the 123s.

Suggest some questions, won't you?

2008-03-01 Playlist

Thanks a ton to Chris Wood of Medeski Martin & Wood for his wonderful guest DJ set! The full playlist is below. Remember that Princess Katie & Racer Steve will be playing Lyman Hall at First Churches (entrance across from the Iron Horse) on Saturday, March 8, doors at 1.

Stream it here:




Segment 1
TMBG - It's Spare the Rock
-Ella ID
TMBG - Alphabet of Nations (Here Come the ABCs)
Elizabeth Mitchell - Alphabet Dub (You Are My Sunshine)
Melissa Errico - Wildflowers (Lullabies & Wildflowers) (covering Tom Petty)
White Stripes - We Are Going to be Friends (White Blood Cells)
Michael Jackson - Rockin' Robin
Richard Julian - Spring is Just Around the Corner (Sunday Morning...)
-ID

Segment 2
Gustafer Yellowgold - Punching Cheese (Have You Never Been Yellow?)
Donovan - I Love My Shirt (Barabajagal)
ID/prep to rock
Folk Implosion - Just a Bill
Paper Moon - Your Attitude About Cuttlefish
ID (plug PKRS show)

Segment 3
Princess Katie & Racer Steve - Go Go Go! (Fast & Feisty)
ID
Uncle Rock - Rock and Roll Babysitter (Plays Well With Others)
Jonathan Richman - Road Runner
Skankin' Pickle - I Missed the Bus (Skankin' Pickle Fever)
Dick Dale - Miserlou
ID

Segment 4
ScribbleMonster - Spare the Rock, Spoil the Child
Chris Wood guest DJ set:
Arsenio Rodriguez- Canto Abacoa
Ray Charles - What'd I Say IPart 1)
Be Good Tanyas - Littlest Birds (Blue Horse)
Bill Evans - Oleo

Segment 5
Guest DJ set continues:
Taj Mahal - Cluck Old Hen
Eddie Bo - Hook & Sling
Norah Jones - Sunrise
Baby Gramps - Worm song
Beatles - Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da

Segment 6:
Hermeto Pascoal - Spock Na Escada
ID
Dan Zanes - Wonder Wheel (Family Dance)
Vampire Weekend - Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa (Vampire Weekend)
ID
TMBG - One Everything (Here Come the 123s)
TMBG - Spare the Rock