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

Wednesday, May 7, 2014

Wednesday MidDay Medley Celebrates 10 Years

1. Dimitri From Paris – “Prologue”

2. SoundsGood – “Money”
from: Biscuits & Gravy / Innate Sounds / August 15, 2005
[2nd full length album from critically acclaimed, Kansas City based band made up of. Joe Good on vocals and lyrics and Miles Bonny on beats and music. Recorded by JAZ at 64111 Clinic Studios. SoundsGood played together for: A Night For Joc Max, Sat, March 29 at 10:00pm, at the recordBar, with Reach, Sounds Good, DJ Ataxic, DJ Skeme, DJ Maxx, and Smooth C.]

Wednesday MidDay Medley went on the air, 10 years ago, during the first week of May. During this period of 90.1 FM’s history, Program Director John Jessup tapped me on my shoulder and asked me to host and produce the Wednesday mid-day time slot. I had been producing and hosting a public affairs program called The Tenth Voice, since 2001. There was a lot of music we wanted to play. Very quickly Wednesday MidDay Medley established itself as a place to hear new and local releases.

Marion Merritt joined us for the entire show, as our special guest co-host. Marion made her first appearance on WMM on July 29, 2004. Marion has been a regular contributor, sharing her musical discoveries and info from her encyclopedic brain. For 18 years Marion was the manager of the music department at Barnes & Noble on The Plaza, until she left in January to start her own independent record store, specializing in vinyl. Records With Merritt, is now open at 1614 Westport Rd. http://www.recordswithmerritt.com

Barry Lee, 90.1 FM KKFI – Station Manager also said a few words.
Thank you Barry!

10:06

3. Tampa Red – “What Is It That Tastes Like Gravy?”
from: Bottleneck Guitar 1928-1937 / Shanachie / 1974
[Tampa Red (January 8, 1904 – March 19, 1981), born Hudson Woodbridge but known from childhood as Hudson Whittaker, was an American Chicago blues musician. Tampa Red is best known as an accomplished and influential blues guitarist who had a unique single-string slide style. His songwriting and his silky, polished “bottleneck” technique influenced other leading Chicago blues guitarists, such as Big Bill Broonzy and Robert Nighthawk, as well as Muddy Waters, Elmore James, Mose Allison and many others. In a career spanning over 30 years he also recorded pop, R&B and hokum records. His best known recordings include the “classic compositions ‘Anna Lou Blues’, ‘Black Angel Blues’, ‘Crying Won’t Help You’, ‘It Hurts Me Too’, and ‘Love Her with a Feeling.”]

4. Iris DeMent – “Hotter Than Mohave In My Heart”
from: Infamous Angel / Warner Brothers / 1992 / 1993
[DeMent’s first 3 releases on Warner Brothers Records, were all critically acclaimed. She received two Grammy nominations, in the “Folk Music” category. Meanwhile country radio completely overlooked her original songs, and amazing voice, that has been compared to Loretta Lynn and Tammy Wynette. Iris was our guest on our 100th show Tribute to Recycled Sounds & Anne Winter. We also talked with her before her concert at The Folly Theatre to benefit St. Mark Child and Family Development Center in November 2011. Iris DeMent was our special guest on October 10, 2012 to discuss her release Sing The Delta which was #1 on our list of 112 Best Recordings of 2012.]

5. Roman Numerals – “My Life After Death Pt. II”
from: Roman Numerals / Anodyne Records / 2006
[#1 on our list of The 60 Best Recordings of 2006. William Smith on vocals, guitar, stylophone; Seven Tulipana on vocals, bass, guitars, synth; Shawn Sherrill on synth, bass; Pete LaPorte on drums, electronics]

10:25

6. Regina Spektor – “Love Affair”
from: 11:11 / Independent / July 9, 2001
[Debut album by singer-songwriter Regina Spektor. It was self-released on CD and sold at Spektor’s early shows. The album is now out of print on CD and much sought-after by collectors; it is available as a download from online music outlets. Regina Spektor was born in Moscow, USSR in 1980 to a musical family. Her father, Ilya Spektor, is a photographer and amateur violinist. Her mother, Bella Spektor, was a music professor in a Russian college of music and now teaches at a public elementary school in Mount Vernon, New York.]

7. PedalJets – “Burgandy”
from: What’s In Between / Oxblood Records / November 2007
[When asked to contribute a track for the Oxblood Records compilation “First Blood,” members of the band began tinkering with tracks from their their 1989 second release, a CD that came out just before the band broke up. Inspired by the results of the re-working of “Burgandy” the band started looking at the entire record. With parts re-recorded, the entire recording was redone, remastered, remixed, the band re-released their second record again, as a do-over. Original members Mike Allmayer, Mat Kesler, Rob Morrow, and Phil Wade reunited to perform together for the first time in 17 years at The Brick, December 21, 2007, to perform the songs. On June 25, 2013 Pedaljets released “What’s In Between” on Electric Moth Records, their first album of new material in 23 years. Paul Malinowski (Vocals, Guitar), Rob Morrow (Drums, Vocals), Mike Allmayer (Guitar, Vocals), Matt Kesler (Bass, Vocals). Produced by The Pedaljets & Paul Malinoski. The albums photos & design are from artist Archer Prewitt of The Sea and Cake and The Cocktails. More info: thepedaljets.] [Original lead guitarist Phil Wade left the band and eventually became part of The Wilders. Mat Kesler of Pedaljets was at one point the very first bass player for The Wilders.]

8. The Whittlers – “Another Night Gone”
from: Nobody’s Happy / Independent / Summer 2004
[Tom Livesay & Phil Wade recorded 4 albums, as The Whittlers, from 2000-2004, while working together at the Art Institute. Phil and Tom and Ike Sheldon had played together in Day Sleeper, Ike and Tom had played together in many bands including Foolish Sad Robot, The Young Johnny Carson Story, and The William Jewel Band. This song was written by Betse Ellis. Tom on Vocals, Ike on Piano, Phil on Guitar. Recorded as a surprise for Betse. Betse included her own recording of this song on her solo debut.]

10:35 – Interview with Maria Vasquez Boyd

Maria Vasquez Boyd is the host and producer of ARTSPEAK RADIO, airing Wednesday nights at 6:00 pm on 90.1 FM. Maria made her first appearance on Wednesday MidDay Medley on October 10, 2007. Since then, Maria has been a constant contributor to the show, hosting and producing a series of shows about Day of The Dead, The music artists listen to in their studios, Teachers, The Ukulele, Mojo, and many others. Maria is a founding member of The Latino Writers Collective, a graduate of the Kansas City Art Institute, a published writer, a visual artist, and a teacher who has taught at the Nelson Atkins Museum of Art, KCAI, Mattie Rhodes Art Gallery, The Writer’s Place, and Guadalupe Center.

We talked with Maria Vasquez Boyd, about our “A Story in A Song” shows and our “He Touched Me Gospel Hour” shows, and ARTSPEAK RADIO.

Maria Vasquez Boyd is my radio wife.

Maria performed two original pieces live in-studio.

10:50

9. The Brian Jonestown Massacre – “Who?”
from: Tepid Peppermint Wonderland: A Retrospective / a Records / November 2, 2004
[The band began as a shoe gazing group in San Francisco in 1988. After their debut and sophomore albums, the group quickly turned to a broader style of psychedelic rock incorporating folk, blues, raga, and later, electronica influences. The name “Brian Jonestown Massacre” is a portmanteau of The Rolling Stones’ founder and guitarist Brian Jones and the infamous mass cult suicide in Jonestown, Guyana. They have gained media notoriety for their tumultuous working relationships and the drug addiction of their leader, Anton Newcombe. Originally released on “Take It from the Man!” from 1996 their third album. It was the first of three critically acclaimed albums, preceding Their Satanic Majesties’ Second Request and Thank God for Mental Illness. It was another change of style for the band, with a large influence being 1960s garage rock, particularly the early work of The Rolling Stones.]

10. Bjork – “Kata Rokkar”
from: Gling-Glo / One Little Indian / March 9, 2010
[Born Nov. 21, 1965 as Björk Guðmundsdóttir, She is an Icelandic singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and producer. Her musical style is eclectic and she has achieved recognition in alternative rock, jazz, electronic dance music, classical, and avant-garde. Her record label, One Little Indian, reported that by 2003, she had sold more than 15 million albums worldwide. She has won four BRIT Awards, four MTV Video Music Awards, one MOJO Award, three UK Music Video Awards, and, in 2010, the Polar Music Prize from the Royal Swedish Academy of Music in recognition of her “deeply personal music and lyrics, her precise arrangements and her unique voice.” Björk has also been nominated for 14 Grammy Awards (plus two for art direction on her album sleeves, done by others), one Academy Award, and two Golden Globe Awards. She won the Best Actress Award at the 2000 Cannes Film Festival for her performance in Dancer in the Dark. She was ranked 29th in VH1’s “The 100 Greatest Women in Music”, eighth in MTV’s “22 Greatest Voices in Music”,and 60th in Rolling Stone’s “100 Greatest Singers of All Time”.]

11:00 – Station ID

11. Barclay Martin Ensemble – “Please”
from: Dawn / Independent / June 5, 2008
[Barclay Martin on guitar and vocals, Mark Lowrey on piano, Giuliano Mingucci on drums, and Rick Willoughby on bass, Erin McGrane on backing vocals and percussion. This was #1 on our list of the 100 Best Recordings of 2008. The band joined us live in the studio on June 4, just one day before their release. Barclay Martin Ensemble has was released 2010’s Pools That Swell In The Rain. For more info: http://www.BarclayMartin.com.]

[Barclay Martin plays the recordBar, May 27, with Vik G Trio, Eliza Neals, and Sonia Rao.]

12. Sara Swenson – “All Things Big and Small”
from: All Things Big and Small / Independent / 2010
[2nd full-length release from KC based singer songwriter who is also a teacher, who recently moved back into the Kanss City area after getting married and living in London. Sara’s self titled debut was released in 2008. Sara is currently getting ready to release her 3rd full length recording. Sara’s debut was #1 on our list of The 100 Best Recordings of 2009. Her second full length was #3 on our list of The 110 Best Recordings of 2010.]

11:10

13. Hearts of Darkness – “Come Forward”
from: Hearts of Darkness / Shipshape Music / July 10, 2010
[KC’s very own: funk/soul/rock/hip-hop ensemble featuring: Les Izmore: Vox & Perc, Brandy Gordon, Rachel Robinson & Erica Townsend: Voices / Sean P Branagan: Drum Kit, Mikael Spears: Congas, Perc, Phil Keegan: Shakere, Aux Perc, Brad “Bad Brad” Williams: Percussion, Kit / Pete Leibert: Bass Guitar, Josh Mobley: Rhodes, Hammond, Clavinet, Mark Vick: Guitar 1, Jeff Harshbarger: Guitar 2 / Jolan Smith: Tenor Sax, Vox, Perc, Shawn Hansen: Alto Sax, Vox, Perc, Alex Smith: Alto Sax, Vox, Perc, Sam Hughes: Baritone Sax, Vox, Perc / Andrew Ford: Slide Trombone, Vox, Perc, Ken Walker: Valve Trombone, Vox, Perc, Bob Asher: Trumpet, Vox, Claves, High Kicks. This was #1 on our list of The 110 Best Recordings of 2010]

14. Fela Ransome Kuti –“Open & Close”
from: Open & Close / Independent / Originally released January 1, 1971
[Review by John Dougan: Another long-thought-lost gem from the Fela Anikulapo Kuti archives, Open & Close was originally released in 1971 and, in the manner of He Miss Road and Fela’s London Scene, is a total groove-fest loaded to the gills with raucous horn blowing, ferocious percussion (once again, Tony Allen take a bow), and song lengths over ten minutes. By this point, Fela could do no wrong when it came to recording; Afro-beat dissenters will claim that there is a trance-inducing similarity to much of Fela’s ’70s recorded output, that the grooves aren’t enough to make the songs distinctive enough on their own. That’s true of some of his later recordings (like in the mid- to late ’80s), but at this point he was still breathing fire and the band was in top form. Perhaps the distinguishing factors of records like Open & Close and some of Fela’s other ’70s releases are that as much as he liked to ride a groove, he also liked to disrupt it, twist it and turn it, reshape it, only to bring it back to its original shape. There was less of that later in his career.]

11:15 – Interview with Kasey Rausch

Kasey Rausch gave us one of the very first live musical performances on Wednesday MidDay Medley She is a frequent guest and contributor. She was on our 100th show as a co-host when we celebrated Recycled Sounds and Anne Winter. Kasey and her sister Kim produced a special show in January, 2013, about their musical Rausch Family. Kasey was with us on our 500th show. Kasey Rausch performs as a solo artist and with a band, she is also a member of The Naughty Pines, The Buttermilk Boys, and Partners in Glory. With Mikal Shapiro, Kasey is host and producer of River Trade Radio, broadcasting Sundays, 9:00 am to 11:00 am on 90.1 FM KKFI.

We talked with Kasey about, Anne Winter, The Naughty Pines, River Trade Radio, Artists Inc., Mikal Shapiro, her grandfather, Pete Seeger, KKFI, playing on the radio.

15. Kasey Rausch – “Dr. King” (Live-in-studio)
Written by Pete Seeger. Recorded by Woody Guthrie’s granddaughter, Sarah Lee Guthrie & her husband, Johnny Irion, on their 2004, New West release, “Exploration.” Kasey turned us on to this recording when she worked at Recycled Sounds. We’ve included this song in our MLK Tribute show ever since. Kasey performed this song May 2, at Unity Temple on the Plaza for 90.1 FM’s celebration of Pete Seeger, hosted by Betse Ellis.]

16. Kasey Rausch – “Something Good Will Come” (Live-in-studio)
New song written by Kasey Rausch. Kasey is currently working on her new record.

11:30 – Underwriting

11:31

17. Howard Iceberg & The Titanics –”In This Lonesome Town”
from: Welcome Aboard! Vol 1. The Kansas City Sessions / Independent / June 26, 2011
[Features Abigail Henderson and Christopher Meck] [7-CD set, includes over 100 new songs, feat. The Titanics: Gary Paredes on lead guitar, Dan Mesh on rhythm guitar, Scott Easterday on bass, Pat Tomek on drums. W/ contributions from over 70 local artists participating in Howard’s “never-ending recording project” conducted in Pat Tomek’s home studio. Howard Iceberg, Pat Tomek, Scott Easterday, Elaine McMilian & Danny Alexander joined us on June 22, 2011 before the tribute to Howard at Crosstown Station on June 26. This was #1 on our list of The 111 Best Recordings of 2011.]

11:35

18. Sister Gertrude Morgan – “Let Us Make A Record”
from: Lets Make A Record / Ropeadope / June 27, 2004
[Sister Gertrude Morgan (1900-1980) was a preacher, missionary, artist, musician, and poet who worked in New Orleans in the 1960s and ’70s, notable primarily for her folk art. She was born in 1900 in Lafayette, Alabama, and moved to Columbus, Georgia at the age of eighteen. She was married to Will Morgan in 1928, but at the age of 38 thought she heard a voice from God telling her to become a street evangelist. She left her family and husband to move to New Orleans, where she organized an orphanage with two other missionaries. She believed God told her to begin painting in 1956, and in 1957 thought she heard a voice telling her that she was the Bride of Christ. Thus she adopted a white habit and moved out of the orphanage to establish “The Everlasting Gospel Mission” in the French Quarter of New Orleans. Music was one of the tools of her ministry, and in the early 1970s, Let’s Make A Record was recorded in order to capture Morgan singing and playing her tambourine. She painted in order to create visual aids for her preaching, and her paintings use a colorful religious iconography. Some of her favorite subjects are the Book of Revelation and her and Jesus flying in an airplane, this last accompanied by the poem “Jesus is my air Plane.” She painted on whatever was at hand, including styrofoam trays, window shades and even toilet paper rolls. Her art brought her fame and notoriety, and in 1974 she announced that the Lord had ordered her to cease painting in order to concentrate on her preaching and poetry. She died in 1980. In 2005, the New Orleans Museum of Art presented the first comprehensive collection of her art. Also in 2005, the Ropeadope label released King Britt presents Sister Gertrude Morgan, which took the a cappella/tambourine recordings of Let’s Make A Record and added contemporary beat programming and instrumentation. The album received rave reviews and created a new, young audience for Sister Gertrude Morgan. The album artwork featured her paintings.]

19. Krystle Warren & The Faculty – “Forever Is A Long Time”
from: Love Songs: A Time You May Embrace / Parlour Door Music / April 9, 2012 UK]
[Paseo Arts Academy Graduate was signed to a French label, Because Music and then created her own label: Parlour Door Music. Krystle has been touring Europe opening for Rufus Wainwright, Nick Cave, Norah Jones, and Joan As Police Woman. Krystle Warren’s new album came from a 13 day recording session in Brooklyn, where she recorded the songs live with 28 musicians including her band, The Faculty, alongside choirs, horn and string sections. Krystle wrote the songs, and is releasing the music in 2 separate releases. Krystle recently played KC on Sun, Oct 6. We talked with Krystle on the radio on October 23, 2013.]

20. Nina Simone -“I Can’t See Nobody (Daniel Y. Remix)”
from: Remixed & Reimagined / BMG / October 31, 2006
[The first album in the Legacy Remixed series released by Sony BMG. This is a collection of songs by Nina Simone, remixed by several club DJ’s. All original songs come from her albums released by RCA records. Born Eunice Kathleen Waymon; February 21, 1933 – April 21, 2003) was an American singer, songwriter, pianist, arranger, and civil rights activist widely associated with jazz music. Simone aspired to become a classical pianist while working in a broad range of styles including classical, jazz, blues, folk, R&B, gospel, and pop. Born the sixth child of a preacher’s family in North Carolina, Simone aspired to be a concert pianist. Her musical path changed direction after she was denied a scholarship to the prestigious Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia, despite a well-received audition. Simone was later told by someone working at Curtis that she was rejected because she was black. When she began playing in a small club in Philadelphia to fund her continuing musical education and become a classical pianist she was required to sing as well. She was approached for a recording by Bethlehem Records, and her rendering of “I Loves You, Porgy” was a hit in the United States in 1958. Over the length of her career Simone recorded more than 40 albums, mostly between 1958—when she made her debut with Little Girl Blue—and 1974. Her musical style arose from a fusion of gospel and pop songs with classical music, in particular with influences from her first inspiration, Johann Sebastian Bach, and accompanied with her expressive jazz-like singing in her characteristic contralto. She injected as much of her classical background into her music as possible to give it more depth and quality, as she felt that pop music was inferior to classical. Her intuitive grasp on the audience–performer relationship was gained from a unique background of playing piano accompaniment for church revivals and sermons regularly from the early age of six years old. In the early 1960s, she became involved in the civil rights movement and the direction of her life shifted once again. Simone’s music was highly influential in the fight for equal rights in the United States. In later years, she lived abroad, finally settling in France in 1992. She received a Grammy Hall of Fame Award in 2000 and was a fifteen-time Grammy Award nominee over the course of her career.]

11:50

21. The ACB’s – “Boy Like Me”
from: Stona Rosa / Independent / 2010
[Konnor Ervin (lead vocals, guitar); Bryan McGuire (bass); Andrew Connor (guitar); Kyle Rausch (drums). Their songs have been featured on MTV’s The Inbetweeners, and Daytrotter. Popmatters declared the ACBs as one of its “Best Hopes to Break Out in 2013.”]

22. Ghosty – “This Wolf”
from: GHOSTY / High Dive Records / April 17, 2012
[3rd full length release from Lawrence and KC area band. Ghosty is Andrew Connor, Mike Nolte an Bill Belzer who recorded their new album themselves over the last couple of years with help from David Wetzel, Josh Adams, Jake Blanton, Konnor Ervin, Ryan Connor, Kirsten Paludan, and Dan Talmadge. The new release was pressed on vinyl and available on LP and digital download. More info at http://www.ghostysounds.com]

Next week on Wednesday, May 14, we’ll talk with Roxanne Larcher about “Confessions of a Belly Dancer,” the show she is bringing to Kansas City, Saturday, May 17, 2014, at 8:00 pm, at the H&R Block City Stage, Union Station, 30 W Pershing Road, Kansas City, MO. We’ll also talk with Spinning Tree Theatre about their upcoming production “A Little Night Music” May 8 through the 24, at The Off Center Theatre in Crown Center. More info at http://www.spinningtreetheatre.com. And in our second hour Judy Mills and Chris LaBeau of Mills Record Company join us as guest producers.

For Wednesday MidDay Medley I’m Mark Manning. Thanks for listening!

11:59:30

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

Sources for notes on tracks and interview segments come from: artist’s websites and wikipedia.org and where noted.

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

Show #524