Wednesday MidDay Medley
Produced and Hosted by Mark Manning
90.1 FM KKFI – Kansas City Community Radio
TEN to NOON Wednesdays – Streaming at KKFI.org

Wednesday, January 31, 2024

Spinning Records With Marion Merritt + Jennifer Roe of Folk Alliance International

Today, we welcome back to the show, Marion Merritt as our special “Guest Producer.” Marion Merritt is our most frequent contributor to WMM. For nearly 20 years, Marion has been sharing her sonic discoveries and information from her musically encyclopedic brain, spinning music that is just not played on other radio stations. Marion grew up in Los Angeles & St. Louis. She went to college in Columbia, Missouri. She studied art and musical engineering. After nearly two decades of managing KC’s largest music department store, Marion left the corporate world and went Independent. Now nearly 10 years later, with her partner Ann Stewart, Marion is the proprietor of Records With Merritt, a small, independent, minority owned business, at 1614 Westport Rd. in Kansas City, Missouri.

At 11:30 we will talk with Jennifer Roe, the Interim Executive Director of Folk Alliance International.

1. “Main Title Instrumental – It’s Showtime Folks”
   from: Orig. Motion Picture Soundtrack All That Jazz / Casablanca / December 20, 1979
   [WMM’s Adopted Theme Song]

2. Dimitri From Paris – “Prologue”
   from: Sacrebleu / Yellow Productions – Atlantic / June 11, 1996
   [Debut studio album. Dimitri from Paris was born Dimitrios Yerasimos, on Oct. 27, 1963. He is a French music producer and DJ of Greek descent. His musical influences are rooted in 1970s funk & disco sounds that spawned contemporary house music, as well as original soundtracks from 1950s & 1960s movies such as Breakfast at Tiffany’s, La Dolce Vita and The Party, which were sampled in his album Sacrebleu. Dimitri fused these sounds with electro and block party hip hop he discovered in the 1980s. // Contrary to his musical pseudonym, Dimitri was born not in Paris but born in Peckham, South London, to Rûm parents (Greeks of Turkey), Dimitri grew up in France where he discovered DJing at home, using whatever he could find to “cut and paste” samples from disco hits or in to montages heard on the radio, blending them together to make tapes. This early experimentation helped him launch his DJ career. // He started out by DJing at the French station Radio 7, before moving on to Skyrock and finally to Radio NRJ, Europe’s largest FM radio network, in 1986. There, he introduced the first ever house music show to be broadcast in France, while simultaneously producing under the direction of sound designer Michel Gaubert, runway soundtracks for fashion houses such as Chanel, Jean-Paul Gaultier, Hermès and Yves Saint-Laurent. He also released two solo EPs from 1993 to 1994 and contributed to the Yellow Productions compilation La Yellow 357. // In 1996, Dimitri gained worldwide recognition with the release of his first full album, Sacrebleu, released on Yellow Productions. A blend of diverse influences including jazz, original film soundtracks, samba, and organic house, Sacrebleu sold 300,000 copies worldwide and was named Album of the Year by UK’s Mixmag magazine. // In 2000, Dimitri followed Sacrebleu up with A Night at the Playboy Mansion (Virgin) and Disco Forever (BBE), followed by My Salsoul in 2001, After the Playboy Mansion in 2002. In 2003, Cruising Attitude was released, to be closely followed by his first outing on UK’s premier dance music label Defected: Dimitri from Paris In the House. // He has followed a somewhat glamorous musical path by recording soundtracks and advertising campaigns for fashion houses Chanel, Jean-Paul Gautier & Yves Saint Laurent and remixing hundreds of artists as diverse as Björk, The Cardigans, James Brown, Michael Jackson, New Order and Quincy Jones. He also did the music for the anime Tsukuyomi: Moon Phase and mixed the soundtrack for the French luxury dessin animé Jet Groove produced by Method Films. // 2005 saw Dimitri go back to his Funk & Disco roots, with Japanese hip hop producer & über collector DJ Muro for Super Disco Friends a double CD mixdown. In 2006 he offered his House of Love outing to Valentine’s Day’s lovers. Later on Dimitri produced Los Amigos Invisibles “Super Pop Venezuela” album which grabbed a nomination for a Grammy Award. // 2007 saw the release of the Cocktail Disco project w/ longtime partner BBE, a handful of disco classics remixes & other surprises down the line. // 2009 saw the release of the Night Dubbin’, a post-disco R&B comp. remix album.]

3. André 3000 – “Ants To You, Gods To Who?” (CD #3) (4:56)
   from: New Blue Sun / Epic Records / November 17, 2023 (3-LP Vinyl Release Mar. 22, 2024) 
   Debut solo album by American musician André 3000. It features instrumental contributions by an ensemble including Benjamin on various flutes, percussionist and producer Carlos Niño, keyboardist Surya Botofasina, guitarist Nate Mercereau, and keyboardist Diego Gaeta; as well as Leaving Records musicians V.C.R and Matthewdavid. The album represents an end to the musicians’s 17-year hiatus of new material. // In the years leading up to the release of New Blue Sun, Benjamin made media appearances playing flute in public settings; this was especially amplified online by his appearance as a flautist on the score for the Daniels’ 2022 film Everything Everywhere All at Once. He would later meet with jazz musician Carlos Niño in Los Angeles, where the two agreed to create a studio album. Ahead of its announcement, fellow rapper Killer Mike teased an impending release by André 3000. // As his first solo studio release, and the first studio material of his in a significant period of time, the 87-minute album largely consists of “experimental flute music” with both acoustic and electronic instrumentation, influenced by spiritual jazz musicians and minimalist composers. It features “a myriad” of different flutes performed by Benjamin in various styles across eight instrumental pieces. // When announcing the album on November 14, 2023, Benjamin emphasized that the project is not “a rap record”, with the packaging displaying a lighthearted disclaimer that it contains “no bars”;[6] he has additionally dismissed rumors that he was “sitting around on rap albums” that he has been characterized as refusing to release, saying instead that he felt more comfortable with the direction indicated by New Blue Sun. //The album was originally titled Everything Is Too Loud, but was renamed because André 3000 felt that it put out negative energy. // André Lauren Benjamin was born May 27, 1975, and better known as André 3000, is an American rapper, singer, musician, songwriter, record producer, and actor. Born and raised in Atlanta, Georgia, he is best known for being one-half of the Southern hip hop duo Outkast, alongside fellow Atlanta-based rapper Big Boi. Benjamin is widely regarded as one of the greatest rappers of all time. // As part of Outkast, the duo released six successful studio albums which contained hit singles including “Ms. Jackson”, “Roses”, “So Fresh, So Clean” and “Elevators (Me & You)”, among others. The duo’s fifth release, a double album titled Speakerboxxx/The Love Below (2003), contained a solo single performed by Benjamin: “Hey Ya!”, which peaked the Billboard Hot 100 and received a Grammy Award for Best Urban/Alternative Performance. After the duo split in 2007, Benjamin became less active as a solo act compared to Big Boi, although he had a number of highly-acclaimed guest appearances on songs and albums by numerous artists. Such activity earned him an additional Grammy Award among seven nominations as a solo artist. In 2023, Benjamin released his debut studio album New Blue Sun, an instrumental recording showcasing his performances on flute. // Outside of music, Benjamin has acted in films and television series such as Families, The Shield, Be Cool, Revolver, Semi-Pro, High Life, Four Brothers, and in the lead role of Jimi Hendrix in All Is by My Side. He further played Fredwynn on the AMC series Dispatches from Elsewhere, and was featured in the 2022 adaptation of the Don DeLillo novel of White Noise.]

[Mark note: I saw OutKast when they opened for Lauryn Hill on her Miseducation Tour at The Midland Theatre in Kansas City on February 26, 1999. 30 feet above the main floor seating area of The Midland was a giant cloud that remained thoughout OutKast’s set that featured new songs that would end up on Stankonia, OutKast’s 4th studio album, including the song “Ms. Jackson.” ]

4. Hermanos Gutiérrez – “El Bueno Y El Malo”
   from: El Bueno Y El Malo / Easy Eye Sound / October 28, 2022
   [Hermanos Gutiérrez (Spanish for “Gutiérrez Brothers”) is a Latin instrumental band formed in 2015 in Zürich by Ecuadorian-Swiss brothers Alejandro Gutiérrez (guitar and lap steel) and Estevan Gutiérrez (guitar and percussion). In 2022, the US label Easy Eye Sound released the band’s fifth album, El Bueno y el Malo. // Alejandro and Estevan Gutiérrez, two of four siblings, were raised by an Ecuadorian mother and a Swiss father in Switzerland, and often visited family in Playas, Ecuador. Around age nine, Estevan learned to play classical guitar in Latin styles such as milonga and salsa, and as a surfer was later inspired by surf rocker Jack Johnson. Alejandro, who is eight years younger, taught himself guitar by watching tutorial videos on YouTube. The Hermanos Gutiérrez band traces its origins to a jam session in Alejandro’s apartment in Zürich during a visit from Estevan in 2015. // The band’s first three albums (8 Años, El Camino de mi Alma, and Hoy Como Ayer) drew broadly from the world of Latin music. A visit to Mexico and the Southwest US in February 2020 inspired their fourth album, Hijos del Sol, which incorporated more Western sounds. An eight-minute music video for the title track came out in advance of the album’s release on 25 September 2020. // El Bueno y el Malo, the band’s first non-indie project, was recorded in Nashville in collaboration with Dan Auerbach of the Black Keys and released by his label Easy Eye Sound on October 28, 2022. The album (and its title) were inspired by Ennio Morricone’s The Good, the Bad and the Ugly soundtrack. The album was critically acclaimed and has been described as mentally transporting listeners to Spaghetti Western landscapes. Songs from El Bueno y el Malo comprised Hermanos Gutiérrez’s set list in an NPR Tiny Desk Concert in January 2023. That year, Auerbach was nominated for the Grammy Award for Non-Classical Producer of the Year in part for his work with Hermanos Gutiérrez.]
5. Hermanos Gutiérrez – “Tres Hermanos (feat. Dan Auerbach)”
   from: El Bueno Y El Malo / Easy Eye Sound / October 28, 2022

6. Danielle Nicole – “Make Love”
   from: The Love You Bleed / Forty Below Records / January 26, 2024  
   [Danielle Nicole is one of the finest singers and bassists in roots music today. Hailing from Kansas City, Missouri, she has spent her life making music and pleasing fans, both domestically and abroad. Her stunning new album, The Love You Bleed, includes twelve heartfelt tracks exploring themes of love, loss, and perseverance. It will be released this Friday, January 26 on Forty Below Records. // The Love You Bleed was co-produced by Tony Braunagel (Taj Mahal, Eric Burdon, Robert Cray) and Nicole, with John Porter (B.B. King, Buddy Guy, Bryan Ferry) mixing. The tight-knit group on the album features Danielle on bass guitar and vocals; Brandon Miller (electric, acoustic, pedal steel, mandolin, and 12-string guitar), Damon Parker (keyboards); Go-Go Ray (drums), and Stevie Blacke (violin and cello). // Nicole was inducted into the Kansas City Hall of Fame and has been the recipient of seven Blues Music Awards.  Her last release Cry No More was nominated for a Grammy in the Contemporary Blues category, debuted at number one on the Billboard Blues Charts and boasts over 10 million streams on Spotify. // Danielle Nicole’s last release, CRY NO MORE, released February 23, 2018, was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Blues Album.. Her self-titled solo debut EP was released March 10, 2015 on Concord Records. The self-titled EP features Grammy Award-winning producer-guitarist Anders Osborne, Galactic’s co-founding drummer Stanton Moore and keyboardist Mike Sedovic. On February 25, 2015, American Blues Scene premiered the track “Didn’t Do You No Good” off the new EP. Danielle Nicole was previously in the band Trampled Under Foot with her brothers Kris and Nick Schnebelen. At the 2014 Blues Music Awards, Trampled Under Foot’s album, Badlands, won the ‘Contemporary Blues Album of the Year’ category. At the same ceremony, Danielle Nicole, under the name of Danielle Schnebelen, triumphed in the ‘Best Instrumentalist – Bass’ category. The band was also nominated in the ‘Band of the Year’ category. In September 2015, her debut album, Wolf Den, was released on Concord Records. It reached number 2 in the Billboard Top Blues Albums chart in October that year. Danielle Nicole’s second solo album, Cry No More, peaked at # 1 in the Billboard Top Blues Albums chart. Bill Withers wrote one of the tracks on the new album.]

[Danielle Nicole plays Records With Merritt, at 1614 Westport Rd. in Kansas City, Missouri, on Saturday, March 2, 2024.]

7. Danielle Nicole – “How Did We Get To Goodbye”
   from: The Love You Bleed / Forty Below Records / January 26, 2024  

10:33 – Underwriting

8. Fantasy 15 – “Blast Off!!!”
   from: Zoltandia / Eraserhood Sound / September 22, 2023     
   [Eraserhood Sound’s mysterious, intergalactic house band Fantasy 15 are finally ready to unleash their debut LP, Zoltandia. After years of rising anticipation which saw the group release a handful of now-sold out, highly sought-after 45s, Fantasy 15 have delivered a modern synth-funk opus. The album, named after the group’s remote home planet, is a dazzling display, and features an audacious blend of soul, funk, disco, boogie, house, hip hop, New Wave, and much more. Zoltandia is a true sonic journey, a concept album that tells the fantastical tale of the beloved freedom fighters Fantasy 15. The group, whose true identity has always been a mystery, push the limits of their musical experimentation further than ever. // Leading single “Interplanetary Lover” features the show-stopping Kendra Morris on lead vocals, and serves as the group’s first proper love song. Elsewhere, the title track “Zoltandia” features chanting group vocals and a disco-boogie groove that nods to legends like William Onyeabor and Kiki Gyan. As always, the group’s material was recorded and produced at Eraserhood Sound’s in-house analog recording studio in Philadelphia. Words can only do so much, however, to fully describe the scale and beauty of Fantasy 15’s story. Pick up a copy of their debut LP today, and prepare to enjoy the journey of a lifetime. // Maxwell Perla – Drums, Synthesizer, Vocals, Percussion, Conga; Vincent John – Drums, Bass, Synthesizer, Pianos, Guitar, Vocals; Christopher Alrutz – Synthesizer, Piano; Kendra Morris – Lead Vocals, Interplanetary Lover; Turquoise Cobb – Vocals
   Widow Winslow – Vocals; Ky – Vocals; Shernorva – Spoken Word (A.I.); Mike Buckley – Flute
   Andrew Torre – Conga; All songs written by Fantasy 15. Recorded and Produced by Eraserhood Sound. Mixed by Andrew Torre. Mastered by Ryan Schwabe. Artwork Illustration by Anthony Carranza. Album Layout by SWIVS. Art Direction by Eraserhood Sound. An Eraserhood Sound Production.]
9. Fantasy 15 – “Journey Back to Earth”
   from: Zoltandia / Eraserhood Sound / September 22, 2023 

10. Roy Hargrove Presents The RH Factor
    from: Hard Groove / Verve Records / 2003
    [Hard Groove is an album by the American musician Roy Hargrove, released in 2003. It was credited to his group, the RH Factor. // The album peaked at No. 185 on the Billboard 200. “I’ll Stay” was nominated for a Grammy Award, in the “Best R&B Performance By a Duo or Group with Vocals” category. // Produced by Hargrove, the album was recorded at Electric Lady Studios. Hargrove used a 10-piece band on the album. He considered it to be a tribute to his childhood love of hip hop; he also wanted to impart a gospel or spiritual element to the music. Reggie Washington and Pino Palladino were among the musicians on the album. // D’Angelo appears on the cover of Funkadelic’s “I’ll Stay”. Renee Neufville sang on “Juicy”. Q-Tip rapped on “Poetry”; Meshell Ndegeocello and Erykah Badu also appeared on the track. Anthony Hamilton sang on “Kwah/Home”. // The album cover was designed by Rudy Gutierrez, who was inspired by the art for Abraxas. // Roy Anthony Hargrove (October 16, 1969 – November 2, 2018) was an American jazz musician and composer whose principal instruments were the trumpet and flugelhorn. He achieved worldwide acclaim after winning two Grammy Awards for differing styles of jazz in 1998 and 2002. Hargrove primarily played in the hard bop style for the majority of his albums, but also had a penchant for genre-crossing exploration and collaboration with a variety of hip hop, soul, R&B and alternative rock artists. As Hargrove told one reporter, “I’ve been around all kinds of musicians, and if a cat can play, a cat can play. If it’s gospel, funk, R&B, jazz or hip-hop, if it’s something that gets in your ear and it’s good, that’s what matters.” // Hargrove was born in Waco, Texas, to Roy Allan Hargrove and Jacklyn Hargrove. When he was 9, his family moved to Dallas, Texas. He took lessons at school initially on cornet before turning to trumpet. One of Hargrove’s most profound early influences was a visit to his junior high school by saxophonist David “Fathead” Newman, who performed as a sideman in Ray Charles’s Band. Hargrove’s junior high music teacher, Dean Hill, whom Hargrove called his “musical father,” taught him to improvise and solo. He was discovered by Wynton Marsalis when Marsalis visited the Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts in Dallas. Hargrove credited trumpeter Freddie Hubbard as having the greatest influence on his sound. // Hargrove spent a year (1988–1989) studying at Boston’s Berklee College of Music but could more often be found playing in New York City jam sessions; he eventually transferred to the New School in New York. His first studio recording there was with saxophonist Bobby Watson for Watson’s album No Question About It. Shortly thereafter, Hargrove recorded with the band Superblue featuring Watson, Mulgrew Miller, Frank Lacy, Don Sickler and Kenny Washington. // In 1990, Hargrove released his debut solo album, Diamond in the Rough, on the Novus/RCA label. This album, and the three succeeding recordings Hargrove made for Novus with his quintet, were among the most commercially successful jazz recordings of the early 1990s and made him one of jazz’s in-demand players. // As a side project to his solo and quintet recordings, Hargrove also was the leader of The Jazz Networks, an ensemble of American and Japanese musicians which released 5 albums between 1992 and 1996 and featured other notable jazz artists, including Antonio Hart, Rodney Whitaker and Joshua Redman. (These albums were originally released only in Japan and Europe, but after Hargrove’s death, his estate arranged for release on streaming platforms in the U.S.) // Hargrove topped the category “Rising Star–Trumpet” in the DownBeat Critics Poll in 1991, 1992 and 1993. During this time in his early career, Hargrove was known as one of the “Young Lions,” a group of rising jazz musicians — including, among others, Marcus Roberts, Mark Whitfield and Christian McBride — who, embracing the foundations of jazz, played principally bebop, hard bop and the Great American Songbook standards. Hargrove, along with other of the “Young Lions,” formed an all-star band in 1991 called The Jazz Futures, which released one critically acclaimed album Live in Concert before going their separate ways. // In 1993, Jazz at Lincoln Center commissioned Hargrove to compose an original jazz suite, and he premiered The Love Suite: In Mahogany at Lincoln Center with his sextet that year. // In 1994, Hargrove signed with Verve and recorded With the Tenors of Our Time featuring Joe Henderson, Stanley Turrentine, Johnny Griffin, Joshua Redman, and Branford Marsalis. Also that year, Hargrove appeared on the eponymous debut album of Buckshot LeFonque, a jazz-funk band led by Branford Marsalis. // In 1995, Hargrove released his next album, Family, and experimented with a trio format that same year on Parker’s Mood, an album recorded with bassist Christian McBride and pianist Stephen Scott. The Penguin Jazz Guide identifies Parker’s Mood as one of the “1001 Best Albums” in the history of the genre. // Also in 1995, Hargrove formed the Roy Hargrove Big Band to perform at the Panasonic Jazz Festival in New York. The band would go on to perform worldwide and feature big band arrangements of Hargrove’s own compositions as well as his favorite songs by respected contemporaries. // In 1998, Hargrove won the Grammy Award for Best Latin Jazz Album for Habana with Roy Hargrove’s Crisol, an ensemble of Cuban and American musicians which included Chucho Valdés, Russell Malone, Frank Lacy and Miguel “Anga” Diaz, among others. He won his second Grammy for Best Jazz Instrumental Album in 2002 for Directions in Music: Live at Massey Hall with co-leaders Herbie Hancock and Michael Brecker. Hargrove was nominated for four other Grammy Awards during his career. // During the late 1990s and early 2000s, Hargrove was also a member of the Soulquarians, a collective of experimental jazz, hip hop and soul artists that included Questlove, D’Angelo, Common and others. // In 2000, Hargrove added jazz and funk-influenced horns in support of D’Angelo on his Grammy-winning album Voodoo. He also supported D’Angelo on tour that year as a member of the Soultronics, a backing “supergroup” featuring Questlove and Pino Palladino, among others. // Also in 2000, Hargrove performed the music of Louis Armstrong in Roz Nixon’s musical production “Dedicated To Louis Armstrong” as part of the Verizon Jazz Festival. // In 2002, Hargrove collaborated with D’Angelo, Macy Gray, the Soultronics, and Nile Rodgers, on two tracks for Red Hot & Riot, a compilation album in tribute to the music of afrobeat pioneer Fela Kuti. He also acted as sideman for jazz pianist Shirley Horn and spoken-word artist Common on the album Like Water for Chocolate and with singer Erykah Badu on Worldwide Underground. // From 2003 to 2006, he released three albums as the leader of Roy Hargrove’s The RH Factor, a group that blended jazz, soul, hip hop and funk idioms. The band’s debut album, Hard Groove, was hailed as “genre-busting” by critics and ushered in a new era of hip hop-accented jazz. The band’s second album, “Strength,” was nominated for a Grammy Award for “Best Contemporary Jazz Album.” // After signing with Universal/EmArcy in 2008, Hargrove released “Earfood,” a quintet recording “steeped in tradition and sophistication,” which Jazziz selected as one of the 5 “essential albums” of that year. He followed in 2009 with “Emergence,” an album recorded with the Roy Hargrove Big Band; he received a Grammy nomination for “Best Improvised Jazz Solo” for his performance on the track “Ms. Garvey, Ms. Garvey” on that record. In 2010, Hargrove released “Live at the New Morning,” a DVD of an intimate club performance with his quintet in Paris. Thereafter, until his death in 2018, Hargrove toured extensively and appeared as a sideman on recordings by Jimmy Cobb, Roy Haynes, Cyrille Aimée, The 1975, D’Angelo, Kandace Springs and others. // Hargrove topped the trumpet category in the 2019 DownBeat Readers’ Poll. // In addition to the accolades he garnered on trumpet, music critics also praised Hargrove’s tone on flugelhorn and gifted ways with a ballad. As the Chicago Tribune observed in 2010, “it’s Hargrove’s ballad playing that tends to win hearts, which is what happened every time he picked up his flugelhorn. We’ve been hearing Hargrove spin silk on this instrument for a couple of decades now, yet one still marvels at the poetry of his tone, the incredible slowness of his vibrato and the arching lyricism of his phrases.” // Over his 30-year career, Hargrove composed and recorded several original compositions, one of which, “Strasbourg-St. Denis”, has been characterized as reaching the status of a jazz standard. // In July 2021, Hargrove’s estate released posthumously via Resonance Records the double-album In Harmony, a live duet recording made in 2006 and 2007 with pianist Mulgrew Miller that returned Hargrove to the Top 5 of the Billboard jazz chart. Slate selected In Harmony as one of the best jazz albums of 2021. The Académie du Jazz awarded In Harmony its prize for “Best Reissue or Best Unpublished” album of 2021. // Hargrove was posthumously elected to the DownBeat Magazine “Jazz Hall of Fame” in November 2021. // In June 2022, the documentary Hargrove, filmed during the final year of his life, debuted at the Tribeca Festival. Hargrove’s estate issued a statement objecting to the film as not what he had envisioned when agreeing to participate. // Celebrating the 30th anniversary of its performance, in October 2023, Jazz at Lincoln Center released a live recording of Hargrove’s original composition “The Love Suite: In Mahogany,” a five-movement piece which he did not play again live after that debut performance. Jazziz Magazine called the album an “unearthed gem” that “showcases the much-missed trumpeter’s virtuosity and soulful songwriting ….” Jazz critic Nate Chinen of NPR applauded the album as “a flat-out marvel — maybe the most vivid example we have of Roy’s ability to marshal hard-bop fire in a new form, steeped in swinging tradition but sparking and crackling right now.” // A quiet and retiring person in life, Hargrove struggled with kidney failure. He died at the age of 49 of cardiac arrest brought on by kidney disease on November 2, 2018, while hospitalized in New Jersey. According to his long-time manager, Larry Clothier, Hargrove had been on dialysis for the last 14 years of his life. He is survived by his wife, Aida Brandes-Hargrove, and daughter, Kamala Hargrove, who in 2020 launched the company Roy Hargrove Legacy LLC to preserve and extend his legacy. In 2022, Roy Hargrove Legacy re-launched the Roy Hargrove Big Band, which gives live performances featuring original band members and other musicians who supported Hargrove in his various ensembles.]

11. Jalen Ngonda – “Come Around and Love Me”
    from: Come Around and Love Me / Daptone Records / September 8, 2023
    [Anyone who has had the pleasure of seeing Jalen perform live
    knows that he is one of the most captivating performers on today’s soul scene. His voice, equal parts raw feeling and elegance, exudes confidence and charm—disarming packed rooms of rowdy concert goers, leaving them silent as they hold fast to every syllable sung. Plans for the album were struck just months before the COVID 19 pandemic shut the world down. Notwithstanding, Jalen eventually made it to Hive Mind Studios in Brooklyn, NY where he began writing and recording with the help of producer/arrangers Mike Buckley and Vincent Chiarito (both members of Charles Bradley’s Extraordinaires) and a crack team of a-list musicians from the Daptone family. The team skillfully blends heavy arrangements and introspective lyrics with motown sophistication, leaving the listener in a blissful wash of wonderment.]

10:59 – Station ID

12. Mary Halvorson – “The Gate”
    from: Cloudward / Nonesuch Records / 2024
    Mary Halvorson (born October 16, 1980) is an American avant-garde jazz composer and guitarist from Brookline, Massachusetts. // Among her many collaborations, she has: led a trio with John Hébert [de] and Ches Smith, and a quintet with the addition of Jon Irabagon and Jonathan Finlayson; recorded duo albums with violist Jessica Pavone; and recorded several albums with bassist Michael Formanek and drummer Tomas Fujiwara [de] under the band name Thumbscrew. // In 2017, 2018, and 2019 Halvorson won Best Guitar in DownBeat’s International Critics Poll. In 2019, she was awarded a MacArthur “Genius” Grant for music. // Halvorson is on faculty at the School of Jazz (The New School). // Halvorson began her musical education on violin but was enthralled with the idea of playing guitar after discovering Jimi Hendrix. She first picked up electric guitar at the age of 11 in seventh grade. Her first guitar teacher was Issi Rozen. // She initially enrolled in Wesleyan University to study biology, but dropped her prospective major after sitting in on one of saxophonist Anthony Braxton’s music classes. She quickly connected with him and he heavily encouraged her to find her own expression on guitar. // Halvorson’s 2008 recording Dragon’s Head was as the leader of a trio containing bassist John Hébert and drummer Ches Smith Her later album, Saturn Sings, added saxophonist Jon Irabagon and trumpeter Jonathan Finlayson. In 2012, she played with trumpeter Peter Evans and drummer Weasel Walter on the trio album Mechanical Malfunction. // In 2013, the trio of Halvorson, bassist Michael Formanek, and drummer Tomas Fujiwara [de] recorded the first of several albums as the band Thumbscrew. NPR called Halvorson’s 2015 solo album Meltframe “category-exploding”, and its 2015 Jazz Critics Poll named the record 7th-best of the year. // Her album Away With You features pedal steel player Susan Alcorn (later described in Something Else! as “the Mary Halvorson of the pedal steel guitar”), cellist Tomeka Reid and saxophonist Ingrid Laubrock. The album Code Girl was Halvorson’s first attempt at writing lyrics for her original works, which are sung by Amirtha Kidambi and inspired by the songwriting of Robert Wyatt and Elliot Smith. The album also features drummer Tomas Fujiwara, bassist Michael Formanek and trumpeter Ambrose Akinmusire. The album received an 8.1 rating from a Pitchfork review, explaining, “The pleasure of this kind of text comes from the way it invites active listening as a means of interpretation.” Code Girl is named after an offhand remark by Braxton, who used the phrase in conversation while on a European tour with Halvorson. Later, she settled on the phrase as an album title, because “at that point I’d written a lot of the lyrics… and they seemed a little bit coded and strange.” Halvorson has also worked with John Dieterich of Deerhoof. Halvorson had previously performed some of her lyrics in collaboration with violinist Jessica Pavone, with whom she also recorded duo albums. As of 2018, Halvorson was an instructor at The New School’s College of Performing Arts. // Halvorson won Best Guitar in DownBeat’s International Critics Poll between 2017 and 2019. In 2019, she was awarded a MacArthur “Genius” Grant for music. // Although Halvorson is often categorized as a jazz guitarist, her music includes elements of many other genres, such as flamenco, rock, noise, and psychedelia. In speaking with PostGenre, Halvorson noted that she’s “never really felt like I had to stick with a particular style or idea… From [Anthony Braxton], I learned that it was normal to take such a broad approach. You would respect traditions but at the same time, you would push the boundaries of those traditions. You would break the traditions apart and do whatever you wanted. That approach has always come naturally to me…”. In a 2018 interview with Jazz Times, Halvorson described the guitar as a “neutral vessel”, saying “The cool thing about the guitar is it’s not associated as much with a particular genre… it could be classical, it could be rock and roll, it could be jazz, it could be folk.”. // In 2012, Troy Collins of All About Jazz called Halvorson “the most impressive guitarist of her generation”, and wrote, “The future of jazz guitar starts here.” Jon Garelick of The Phoenix identified Halvorson’s search for her own sound as a key component of her success as a musician and composer

13. The Comet is Coming – “Birth of Creation”
    from: Trust In The Lifeforce of the Deep Mystery / Impulse! Records / Afrodisia / Sept. 23, 2022
    [London-based band who incorporate elements of jazz, electronica, funk and psychedelic rock. // The band originally recorded for The Leaf Label, on which their debut EP Prophecy was released, on limited edition 12″ vinyl, on November 13, 2015, with the full-length album Channel the Spirits following on April 1, 2016. The album was nominated for the 2016 Mercury Prize, and in 2018 the band signed with Impulse!. // The members of the band use the pseudonyms “King Shabaka”, “Danalogue”, and “Betamax” to respectively refer to saxophonist Shabaka Hutchings, keyboardist Dan Leavers, and drummer Max Hallett. // In a 2013 interview, Hutchings explained the name of the band thus: “The name of the group comes from a BBC Radiophonic Workshop piece of the same name. Once we heard this piece, with its allusions to sci-fi, cosmic remembrances and general space, it instantly struck a chord. We’re exploring new sound worlds and aiming to destroy all musical ideals which are unfit for our purposes so the name stuck.” // In an interview with M magazine, Betamax spoke of the band’s genesis: Me and Danalogue the Conqueror play as a psychedelic electro synths and live drums duo called Soccer96. We began to notice a tall shadowy figure present at some of our gigs. At some point he appeared at the side of the stage with his sax in hand. When he got up on stage to play with us it created an explosive shockwave of energy that stunned us all. A couple of weeks later King Shabaka rang me up and said ‘hey let’s make a record’ so we booked three days in Total Refreshment Centre studios. It all came together at an incredible speed. We played and recorded to 1/4 tape with no pre-written material. By the end of three days we had recorded hours of music. // The imagery associated with the band is based around outer space, science fiction and B-movies, as can be seen in the music videos for their singles “Neon Baby” and “Do the Milky Way”, as well as in song titles and artwork. “Do the Milky Way” premiered on The Quietus. In a feature in The Guardian in April 2016, the group were described as the “true heirs” of cosmic jazz pioneer Sun Ra, and praised for their “fusion of jazz, Afrobeat and electronica in an improvisational, intergalactic mash-up”. The Quietus wrote that although the band is “intrinsically linked to funk…and spiritually linked to all manner of cosmic music via their imagery (and love of space-creating echo and reverb effects), The Comet Is Coming has the feel of an utterly fresh sort of project”. // King Shabaka elaborates on the cosmic side of the band and the connection to Sun Ra in the same article, when describing the crystal that dominates the cover of their Prophecy EP. He says, “The other thing about the crystal, metaphorically speaking, is the whole Sun Ra thing of creating your own myths. The thing I like that Sun Ra says a lot is the fact that societies that can create their own mythological structures are the ones that have their own agency. To the point at which you can dictate the terms of what’s real and what’s not real. The crystal in the hand forces you to create your own myth”. // In August 2016, the band was nominated for the Mercury Prize for their debut album, Channel the Spirits. // In January 2017 the band was one of the recipients of the Momentum Music Fund through PRS for Music and in April 2017 the band released the Death to the Planet EP through The Leaf Label as part of Record Store Day. // Their second full-length album, Trust in the Lifeforce of the Deep Mystery, was released in March 2019 and received critical acclaim, with The Quietus noting the importance of Sun Ra and Alice Coltrane on their sound while acknowledging that “rather than being weighed down by those legacies, The Comet Is Coming have turned them into fuel, accelerating their sound, and with it, the sound of jazz today.” Pitchfork gave the album a score of 7.8 out of 10 and wrote, “Mostly low- to mid-tempo, the band skillfully integrates bleak and radiant tones, leading to an impressive nine-track suite of ambient, spoken-word and grime-infused compositions.” The album currently holds a score of 83 on review aggregator Metacritic, indicating “Universal acclaim.” // They played the 22nd Coachella Valley Music & Arts Fest in April 2023.]

14. Irakere – “Chequere Son”
    from: Groupo Irakere / 1976 Areito Records / 1976 [Reissued on Mr Bongo / 2024]
    [Irakere (faux-Yoruba for ‘forest’) is a Cuban band founded by pianist Chucho Valdés (son of Bebo Valdés) in 1973. They won the Grammy Award for Best Latin Recording in 1980 with their album Irakere. Irakere was a seminal musical laboratory, where historic innovations in both Afro-Cuban jazz and Cuban popular dance music were created. The group used a wide array of percussion instruments like batá, abakuá and arará drums, chequerés, erikundis, maracas, claves, cencerros, bongó, tumbadoras (congas), and güiro. // “Jazz bands” began forming in Cuba as early as the 1920s. These bands often included both Cuban popular music and popular North American jazz, and show tunes in their repertoires. Despite this musical versatility, the movement of blending Afro-Cuban rhythms with jazz was not strong in Cuba itself for decades. As Leonardo Acosta observes: “Afro-Cuban jazz developed simultaneously in New York and Havana, with the difference that in Cuba it was a silent and almost natural process, practically imperceptible” (2003: 59). Cuba’s significant contribution to the genre came relatively late. However, when it did come, the Cubans exhibited a level of Cuban-jazz integration that went far beyond most of what had come before. The first Cuban band of this new wave was Irakere. // With Irakere, a new era in Cuban jazz begins in 1973, one that will extend all the way to the present. At the same time, this period represents the culmination of a series of individual and collective efforts from our so-called transition period, which will end with the Orquesta Cubana de Música Moderna. Irakere was in part a product of the Moderna, as its founding members completed their musical training in that orchestra and also played jazz in the different quartets and quintets that were created with the OCMM. Among the founders of Irakere were pianist Chucho Valdés, its director since the beginning; saxophonist Paquito D’Rivera, who acted as assistant director; trumpet player Jorge Varona; guitarist Carlos Emilio Morales; bassist Carlos del Puerto; drummer Bernardo García; and percussionist Oscar Valdés II, also a singer—Acosta (2003: 211). // That was a time where jazz music was a four-letter word in Cuba – literally! After many years of that thought, in 1967, they decided to create the Orquesta [Cubana de Música Moderna]. There were a lot of left wing people going to Cuba, attending congresses and visiting. So the government decided to create an image that jazz was not forbidden and that nothing was forbidden there. So they created the Orquesta to play American music – that is incredible. It was to create a different image than what they had created all those years. So they created the Orquesta. I directed the band for two years. . . . When I decided that I wanted to play only jazz in the Orquesta, then I got fired . . . . and after a while, the Orquesta ceased to achieve the function that it was created for and it disappeared—D’Rivera (2011: web). // Irakere, which was founded by members of the Orquesta Cubana de Música Moderna, has always been an eclectic band. From the beginning, the group showcased the scope of their uniquely Cuban music education: Afro-Cuban folkloric music, Cuban popular dance music, funk, jazz, and even classical music. The early years saw a lot of experimenting, with the mixing these different genres in original ways. From the vantage point of today, some of Irakere’s early experiments sound awkward and don’t mesh. On the other hand, some early experiments by the group were musical landmarks, that began entirely new traditions. // “Chékere-son” (1976) for example, introduced a style of “Cubanized” bebop-flavored lines, that departed from the more “angular” guajeo-based lines typical of Cuban popular music. // “Chékere-son” is an extremely interesting one. It’s based on a 1945 Charlie Parker bebop composition called “Billie’s Bounce.” Almost every phrase of the Parker song can be found in “Chékere-son” but it’s all jumbled together in a very clever and compelling way. David Peñalosa sees the track as a pivotal one – perhaps the first really satisfying fusion of clave and bebop horn lines—Moore (2011: web). // The horn line style introduced in “Chékere-son” is heard today in Afro-Cuban jazz, and the contemporary popular dance genre known as timba. // Another important Irakere contribution is their use of batá and other Afro-Cuban folkloric drums. “Bacalao con pan” is the first song recorded by Irakere to use batá. The tune combines the folkloric drums, jazzy dance music, and distorted electric guitar with wah-wah pedal. According to UC Irvine musicologist and Irakere expert Raúl A. Fernández, the Orquesta Cubana de Música Moderna members would not have been allowed by the orquesta to record the unconventional song. The musicians travelled to Santiago to record it. “somehow the tune made it from Santiago to radio stations in Havana where it became a hit; Irakere was formally organized a little bit later” (2011: web). // Ironically, several of the founding members did not always appreciate Irakere’s fusion of jazz and Afro-Cuban elements. They saw the Cuban folk elements as a type of nationalistic “fig leaf,” cover for their true love—jazz. They were obsessed with jazz. The fusing of Afro-Cuban elements with jazz in Irakere is a direct consequence of the poor relations between the Cuban and United States governments. Cuba’s Ministry of Culture is said to have viewed jazz as the music of “imperialist America.” Trumpeter Arturo Sandoval states: “We wanted to play bebop, but we were told that our drummer couldn’t even use cymbals, because they sounded ‘too jazzy.’ We eventually used congas and cowbells instead, and in the end, it helped us to come up with something new and creative” (2007: web). Pablo Menéndez, founder of Mezcla, recalls: “Irakere were jazz musicians who played stuff like ‘Bacalao con pan’ with a bit of a tongue in cheek attitude—’for the masses.’ I remember Paquito d’Rivera thought it was pretty funny stuff (as opposed to ‘serious’ stuff)” (2011: web). In spite of the ambivalence by some members towards Irakere’s Afro-Cuban folkloric/jazz fusion, their experiments forever changed Cuban popular music, Latin jazz, and salsa. As D’Rivera states: “We didn’t know that we were going to have such an impact in jazz & Latin music around the world. We were just working to do something good”

15. Ty Segall – “Void” 
    from: Three Bells / Drag City Records / January 26, 2024
    [A fifteen song cycle that takes a journey to the center of the self. Ty’s been on this kind of trip before, so he’s souped up a vehicle that’s all his own – a sophisticated machine – to take us there this time. The conception of Three Bells arcs, rainbow-like, into a land nearly beyond songs – but inside of them, Ty relentlessly pushes the walls further and further in his writing and playing to cast light into the most opaque depths.Produced by Ty Segall and Cooper Crain.]

16. The Smile – “Wall of Eyes”
    from: Wall of Eyes / XL Recordings / September 1, 2023
    [The Smile are an English rock band comprising the Radiohead members Thom Yorke (vocals, guitar, bass, keys) and Jonny Greenwood (guitar, bass, keys) with Tom Skinner (drums). They incorporate elements of post-punk, progressive rock, Afrobeat and electronic music. // The Smile worked during the COVID-19 lockdowns and made their surprise debut in a performance streamed by Glastonbury Festival in May 2021. In early 2022, they released six singles and performed to an audience for the first time at three shows in London, which were livestreamed. In May, the Smile released their debut album, A Light for Attracting Attention, to acclaim. It was produced by Nigel Godrich, Radiohead’s longtime producer. / /The Smile toured Europe and North America in 2022 and 2023. They have released two live EPs: The Smile (Live at Montreux Jazz Festival, July 2022) and Europe: Live Recordings 2022. Their second album, Wall of Eyes, was released in January 2024. // The Smile are composed of the Radiohead members Jonny Greenwood and Thom Yorke with the drummer Tom Skinner. Skinner, who had played with acts including the jazz band Sons of Kemet, first worked with Greenwood when he played on his soundtrack to the 2012 film The Master. The Smile members agreed not to give interviews about the project. They take their name from the title of a poem by Ted Hughes. Yorke said it was “not the smile as in ‘ahh’, more the smile as in the guy who lies to you every day”. // The Smile’s first record was produced by Nigel Godrich, Radiohead’s longtime producer. Godrich said the project emerged from Greenwood “writing all these riffs, waiting for something to happen” during the COVID-19 lockdown. He cited the pandemic and the unavailability of the Radiohead guitarist Ed O’Brien, who was busy with his debut solo album, Earth (2020), as motivating factors. Greenwood said: “We didn’t have much time, but we just wanted to finish some songs together. It’s been very stop-start, but it’s felt a happy way to make music.” Radiohead’s drummer, Philip Selway, said it was healthy for the members to explore different projects and “see what these other musical voices can do with your ideas”]

Marion Merritt is founder of Records With Merritt, a small, independent, minority owned business, at 1614 Westport Rd., in KCMO. More info at: http://www.recordswithmerritt.com

Marion Merritt thank you for being out Guest Producer on WMM

11:30 – Underwriting

17. Lilli Lewis – “If You Really Mattered”
    from: All Is Forgiven / Lilli Lewis / December 1, 2023
    [As the story goes, Lilli Lewis should never have been. Before she was born, Lewis’ mother was told her baby probably wouldn’t survive due to lung trouble, so the fact that Lewis now makes a living singing with those same lungs is a gift she never takes for granted. Lewis uses her voice to bring what she calls sacred songs into profane spaces, and though she’s abandoned trying to define her sound, she hopes her audiences leave shows knowing two things: that they are brilliant as they are, and that they have the ability to use that brilliance to make a better world. // Trained as an opera singer and classical pianist, Georgia native Lewis has been a composer, producer and performer for over two decades. After carving out space as an African American queer woman of size, Lewis’ career has culminated in her album Americana being a top pick everywhere from NPR’s All Songs Considered to Rolling Stone. // The FolkRockDiva is a musical polyglot who glides easily between folk, roots, country soul, gospel, and jazz, and has integrated New Orleans traditions by singing lead for Dirty Dozen Brass Band founding member Kirk Joseph’s Backyard Groove. Lewis’ Louisiana Red Hot Records releases include The Henderson Sessions, We Belong, and Americana. // For her 2022 tour, Lilli Lewis iplayed the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, Folk Alliance International Conference, and The Kennedy Center which has called her: “A powerhouse performer adding her unique voice and talent to the national discussion of the state of social justice in America.”.]

[Lilli Lewis is the creator of The Black American Music Summit – Grounded and Growing: Deepening Roots and Reaching Higher. The Black American Music Summit (BAMS) is the second annual gathering of Black artists in the music industry, especially in folk, Americana, blues, bluegrass, roots, and rap/hip-hop (though all genres are welcome)! The summit takes place February 21 – 24 at the 2024 Folk Alliance International Conference in Kansas City, Missouri, USA. // This year’s theme, Grounded and Growing: Deepening Roots and Reaching Higher, will guide conversations around challenging narratives, emphasizing inclusion, breaking out of narrow definitions, and sharing best practices for growth and success. Each day will focus on a different topic, starting with an expert-led panel, followed by a community discussion. // Conceived by Lilli Lewis, a dedicated folk artist, BAMS emerged from a passion for inclusivity, empowerment, and transformative dialogue. With a mission to amplify Black voices, challenge industry norms, and prioritize the well-being of Black artists, it stands as a testament to the resilience, creativity, uniqueness, and cultural richness of Black artists in the global music landscape. // To attend the Black American Music Summit, please fill out the interest form below. This event, similar to Folk Alliance International Affinity Groups, is a gathering exclusively for those who identify as Black, African American, a part of the African Diaspora, or of African ancestry. More information at: https://folk.org/programs/conference/blackamericanmusicsummit/%5D

11:35 – Interview with Jennifer Roe

Jennifer Roe is the Interim Executive Director of Folk Alliance International (FAI), a nonprofit organization established in 1989 to connect leaders in folk music and sustain the community and genre.

Jennifer joined the FAI team in 2013 igniting a passion for folk music. With over a decade of private sector experience, she assumed a pivotal role in leading FAI’s staff and contractors and overseeing the day-to-day operations. She plays a key role in orchestrating the international conference, a hallmark event attracting over 2,000 attendees annually.

Jennifer’s journey began in Washington, DC, where she worked on Capitol Hill for the Majority Leader of the Senate before transitioning to serve on a Presidential campaign. Jennifer channels her political background to advocate for arts and culture at both federal and state levels through her position at FAI.

Folk Alliance International, the foremost global nonprofit for folk music, will present its 36th Annual Conference Feb. 21-25, 2024 at The Westin Kansas City Hotel at Crown Center 1 East Pershing Road, Kansas City, MO. http://www.folk.org

Jennifer Roe Thank you for being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley

Nine Stages of Music Every Night at FAI 2024! – Folk Alliance International is proud to partner with Mammoth Promotions to provide special access to the Official Showcases featuring 163 acts from across the globe on nine stages. Come listen to the finest talents in the folk genre and more! // This ticket gives entry to the Official Showcases between 6 pm – 10:45 pm in the ballrooms of the Westin Kansas City Crown Center Hotel but does not give access to keynotes, panels, or private showcases.

Folk Alliance International’s 2024 Conference theme is Alchemy: A Transformative Force explores how changes in culture alter the ways we make and share music, which, in turn, transforms lives and changes the world. The power of alchemy can manifest, for example, when an artist processes their individual pain into words and vibrations that connect and comfort listeners. The alchemy theme invites us to lean into processes of discovery and experimentation and to think about how we nurture the sparks of creativity that light fires of change. The conference will explore the idea of alchemy and transformation as it relates to:

• the power and transformative force of the creative process, and its cultural influence, to alter the world and effectuate meaningful change
• new frontiers in technology to provide a path to transformation
• resilience and innovation in business
• the important chemistry between artist and audience

FAI has confirmed keynote presenters at its 2024 annual conference: Five-time GRAMMY Award-winner Noel Paul Stookey of Peter, Paul and Mary; Two-time GRAMMY Award-winner and Latin Grammy nominee, Lucy Kalantari; and President and CEO of the National Music Publishers Association (NMPA), David Israelite.

FAI will present three full days of thought leadership, interactive discussion, and best practices related to the alchemic power and transformative force of music to create meaningful change in the world, connecting artists with worldwide listenership. Among Folk Alliance International Conference firsts this year are a Wellness Summit, and a Legal Summit. The Black American Music Summit (BAMS) and a summit with partner International Indigenous Music Summit is also set.

Other confirmed speakers include:

Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award recipient, Tom Paxton

Two-time Grammy Award nominee, Country Music Association Award winner, and Nashville Songwriters Hall of Famer, Beth Nielsen Chapman

Anna Canoni, granddaughter of Woody Guthrie and Vice President, Woody Guthrie Publications, Inc.

Multi-Juno Award nominee, Shakura S’Adia

Tony Award Winner John Gallagher, Jr.

Richard James Burgess, President & CEO, American Association of Independent Music (A2IM)

Stephen Parker, Executive Director, National Independent Venue Association (NIVA) and named to Billboard Magazine 40 Under 40 in 2023

Brandi Waller Pace, Founder/Executive Director, Decolonizing the Music Room

Entertainment attorney powerhouses Peter Strand, Matthew Wilson, Brian Rosenblatt, and Janine Small

Clinical Associate Professor at New York University Judy Tint

Ashley Shabankareh, Director of Operations and Programs, Trombone Shorty Foundation

Elizabeth Stookey Sunde, Founder and Executive Director, Music to Life

Marah Czap, of Yep Roc Records

The Tennessean’s Marcus K. Dowling

Michelle Solomon of Pandora

Songwriter Livingston Taylor

Professor of Environmental Justice at the Yale School of the Environment, Gerald Torres

For complete conference programming, click here: https://folk.org/programs/conference/2024-schedule/

Jennifer Roe Thank you for being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley

Folk Alliance International, the foremost global nonprofit for folk music, will present its 36th Annual Conference Feb. 21-25, 2024 at The Westin Kansas City Hotel at Crown Center 1 East Pershing Road, Kansas City, MO. http://www.folk.org

11:54

18. Rainbow Girls – “City Slickers”
    from: Welcome To Whatever / Rainbow Girls / December 4, 2023
    [6th album from the Rainbow Girls a three-piece singing group made up of Erin Chapin, Caitlin Gowdey, and Vanessa Wilbourn from the North Bay area of California. // Rainbow Girls formed in the fall of 2010, when a group of friends began performing together at an underground open mic in UC Santa Barbara’s neighboring college town, Isla Vista. Though other musicians would frequently perform alongside them, the original core members of Rainbow Girls consisted of Erin Chapin, Caitlin Gowdey, Vanessa Wilbourn, and Cheyenne Methmann. // The Rainbow Girls spent the following summer (2011) busking and couch-surfing around Europe, while also putting out self-recorded demos. When they returned to California in the fall, they began playing with drummer Savannah Hughes. The band busked at Farmers Markets in the Santa Barbara area, playing venues like SoHo and Cold Spring Tavern and performing at local festivals like Earth Day and Summer Solstice. // In April 2013, the band left Santa Barbara and moved to the countryside north of San Francisco’s Bay Area. That same year, Rainbow Girls released their crowdfunded debut album, The Sound of Light. Rainbow Girls continued to tour the West Coast incessantly during the year, as well as Europe and the UK every summer. // At the end of 2014, Cheyenne Methmann parted ways with the band. The remaining four members – Chapin, Gowdey, Wilbourn, and Hughes – recorded their sophomore album, Perceptronium, that winter and released it the following summer (June 2015). // In the spring of 2016, Hughes announced she could no longer tour with the band full-time, so the remaining three members of the band – Chapin, Gowdey, and Wilbourn – began performing as a trio. They then landed on opening spots for artists like John Craigie and The Brothers Comatose. // On November 8, 2017, Rainbow Girls released their third album, American Dream, with their more acoustic sound. // In the fall of 2018, one of their Facebook cover videos meant to promote a local show garnered nearly 7 million views. They immediately went into the studio to record a cover album, Give the People What They Want, which was released on February 22, 2019. Their viral video for the song “Down Home Girl” (originally performed by Alvin Robinson; other notable versions by The Rolling Stones, The Coasters, and Old Crow Medicine Show) also led them to be discovered by Madison House booking agency, as well as by manager Hannah Spero.]

[Rainbow Girls play an Official Showcase the 2024 Folk Alliance International Conference on Friday, February 23, at 7:15pm in Century C BallRoom at The Westin Kansas City Hotel at Crown Center 1 East Pershing Road, Kansas City, MO. http://www.folk.org]

19. Noel Coward – “The Party’s Over Now”
    from: Noel Coward in New York / drg / 2003 [orig. 1957]

Next week on Wednesday, Next week on February 7, Rod Parks of Retro Inferno returns to Wednesday MidDay Medley to be our Guest Producer.

THANK YOU to our incredible KKFI Staff; Director of Development & Communications – J Kelly Dougherty, Volunteer Coordinator – Darryl Oliver, Chief Operator – Chad Brothers.

This radio station is more than the individual hosts of each individual radio show. Instead it is about a collective spirit of hundreds of hardworking people, unselfishly setting aside ego, to work for the greater good of community building and the gigantic goal of keeping our airwaves free, non-commercial, and open to all! Congratulations and thank you to all programmers & volunteers who went the extra effort to keep our station alive.

Our Script/Playlist is a “cut and paste” of information.
Sources for notes: artist’s websites, bios, wikipedia.org

Wednesday MidDay Medley in on the web:
http://www.kkfi.org,
http://www.WednesdayMidDayMedley.org,
http://www.facebook.com/WednesdayMidDayMedleyon90.1FM

Show #1031