WMM Playlist from February 28, 2018

Posted on March 1, 2018 by Mark Manning

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, February 28, 2018

More New & MidCoastal Releases + The Matchsellers
+ Jen Harris & Siobhan McLaughlin Lesley of “Collective: Our Stories of Cancer”

1. “Main Title Instrumental – It’s Showtime Folks”
from: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack to All That Jazz / 1980
[WMM’s theme song]

2. U.S. Girls – “Velvet 4 Sale”
from: In a Poem Unlimited / 4AD / February 16, 1979
[6th studio album from U.S. Girls, the recording moniker of American-Canadian musician Meghan Remy. Formed in the United States in 2007 as a noise-pop project, Remy later moved the band to Toronto after marrying Canadian musician Max “Slim Twig” Turnbull. She released music on a variety of independent labels in both the United States and Canada before signing to 4AD in 2015. Her first record for that label, Half Free, was released the same year. Half Free garnered a Juno Award nomination for Alternative Album of the Year at the Juno Awards of 2016, and was a shortlisted finalist for the 2016 Polaris Music Prize. In a Poem Unlimited is her follow up and second release on 4AD.]

3. Sunny War – “If It Wasn’t Broken”
from: With the Sun / Org Music – Hen House Studios / Feb. 2, 2018
[“Los Angeles-based singer, songwriter and guitarist Sunny War (née Sydney Lyndella Ward) was born to a single mom in Nashville. She had what’s she’s described as a nomadic childhood, moving around from Michigan, Colorado, and living on the streets of San Francisco. Now in her mid-20s, War settled down in Los Angeles as a teenager, and became known for her street playing in Venice Beach. War is a fantastic guitar player. She learned her plucking style by playing “Blackbird” by The Beatles, and by falling in love with the blues. “I feel like I am a blues guitarist, but I don’t think I’m a blues artist,” she says. “I only use the scales and techniques that I know, and the only time I was trained in music was on blues guitar. I really love Elizabeth Cotten and Mississippi John Hurt,” says War.” – from NPR Music]

4. Hembree – “Continents”
from: Kitsuné America 5, the NBA Edition / Kitsuné Musique / February 15. 2018
[Kitsuné is a French record label and clothing designer. Hembree formed in November of 2015, band members include: Isaac Flynn, Garrett Childers, and Eric Davis. Their single “Had It All” was released July 26, 2017. Hembree released their debut EP, Had It All on Ribbon Music on November 3. 2017, engineered by: Isaac Flynn and Hembree. Produced by: Eric Hillman and Hembree. Mixed by: Joe Visciano. Mastered by: TW Walsh. Hembree played several North American cities opening for JR JR.]

[Hembree plays The Granada Theatre in Lawrence on Sat, April 28, with Dream Girl, and Y God Y]

5. Car Seat Headrest – “My Boy (Twin Fantasy)”
from: Twin Fantasy/ Matador / February 16, 2018
[Twin Fantasy (Face to Face) is the eleventh studio album by indie rock band Car Seat Headrest, released on February 16, 2018. It is a complete re-recording and reworking of the band’s sixth studio album, Twin Fantasy, released in 2011. Originally a started as a solo recording project by 26 year old, Will Toledo, in Leesburg, Virginia. Toledo chose the name “Car Seat Headrest” after recording the vocals of his first albums in the back seat of his car, for privacy. Car Seat Headrest released 12 albums on Bandcamp. Toledo’s production has gradually grown less lo-fi, but he still remains an effective example of the DIY ethic. Toledo saw a large influx of new fans with his 2011 release Twin Fantasy, which has become the most popular of his self-released albums. In September 2015, Car Seat Headrest announced on his Facebook page that he had signed an album deal with Matador Records. In October 2015, Car Seat Headrest released the compilation album, Teens of Style under the label. This was his first album that was not self-released via Bandcamp. The new album, Teens of Denial, was created with traditional studio processes. Car Seat Headrest is currently on tour in the Northwest, and after a May 8 show in Brooklyn, the band travels to Europe for dates in May and then will be back touring the state through June and July.]

6. Joy Zimmerman – “Say My Name (For Camille Claudel)”
from: Say My Name / Joy Zimmerman / April 23, 2016
[KC based Joy Zimmerman is singer – songwriter who performs solo, and as a duo with Jimmy Dykes, and also with a full band. Joy began playing violin before walking to kindergarten. She played classical music and sang in choirs her whole life until deciding to try her hand at guitar. Playing a chordal instrument led to the thrill of songwriting and the discovery of her solo voice. Joy has five albums of original music–two recorded and co-produced with Jimmy Dykes in Kansas City at Weights and Measures Soundlab and three recorded and produced by Fett in Nashville at Azalea Studios. Her songwriting awards include American Songwriter Lyric Contest Honorable Mention and five Walnut Valley Festival New Song Showcase wins. ]

[Joy Zimmerman plays Saturday Storytellers at Ollies Local, 3044 Gillham Rd, March 3, at 5:00 PM with Erin Eades.]

7. The Roseline – “Hurry Up and Wait”
from: Blood / King Forward Revords / September 29, 2017
[From the 5th album of the Lawrence, Kansas, based alt-country, Americana, rock band, formed by Colin Halliburton with friends in 2005. The Roseline has been through dozens of lineup changes. The current lineup includes: Colin Halliburton on guitar & vocals; Heidi Gluck on bass & vocals, Ehren Starks on keyboards, Kris Losure on guitar, Jeff Jackson on pedal steel & guitar, and Jim Piller on drums. Roseline released their last album, Townie, on June 19, 2015. More info at: http://www.roselinemusic.com]

[The Roseline play Replay Lounge in Lawrence, Sat, March 3, at 10:00 PM w/ The Grisly Hand and Rachel Mallin & The Wild Type.]

8. Tom Petty – “Yer So Bad”
from: Full Moon Fever / MCA / April 24, 1989
[“Yer So Bad” is a song co-written and recorded by Tom Petty. It was released in 1990 as the fifth single from his first solo album Full Moon Fever, It features contributions from members of his band the Heartbreakers, notably Mike Campbell, as well as Jeff Lynne, Roy Orbison (who died prior to its release), and George Harrison, Petty’s bandmates in the Traveling Wilburys.The record shows Petty exploring his musical roots with nods to his influences. The songwriting is mainly collaborations between Petty and Lynne, who was also a producer on the album. The album became a commercial and critical success peaking at No. 3 on the U.S. Billboard 200 and being certified 5× platinum in the United States and 6× platinum in Canada. Thomas Earl Petty was born Oct 20, 1950 and tragically died on Oct 2, 2017. Tom Petty was a singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, record producer, and actor. He was the lead singer of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, formed in 1976. He previously led the band Mudcrutch. He was also a co-founder of the late 1980s supergroup the Traveling Wilburys. In his career, he sold more than 80 million records worldwide, making him one of the best-selling music artists of all time. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2001. Tom Petty release 3 solo records, 13 albums with The Heartbreakers, and two albums with The Traveling Wilburys.]

[Friday March 2, at 9:00 at recordBar, 1520 Grand Ave The Cody Wyoming Deal present Heartbroken: A Tribute to Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers. The Deal is a semi revolving lineup of some of the best KC musicians Kansas City who has served as a backing band for Alejandro Escovedo, and thrown an all star tribute to The Rolling Stones “Exile on Main Street.” This time out, The Deal consists of: Cody Wyoming on guitar & vocals, JB Moreland on guitar & Vocals, Erik Voeks on Bass & vocals, Matt Richey on drums, Lin Buck on keyboards, and Katie Gilchrist on percussion & vocals.]

10:30 – Underwriting

9. The Matchsellers – “BLUEGRASTRONAUTS”
from: BLUEGRASTRONAUTS / The Matchsellers / March 16, 2018
[3rd full length release from classically trained violinist Julie Bates from Kansas City, and a Chicago blues guitarist from Warsaw, Indiana, Andrew Morris. The Matchsellers have traveled the US and Europe developing their brand of off the wall bluegrass & old-time music. In 2017 they began collaborating with two of the Midwest’s finest musicians, Chad Graves a dobro player that has been featured in Rolling Stone and The Bluegrass Situation, and Betsey Beymer a much sought after bassist from Lakin, KS.]

[The Matchsellers play a special Bluegrastronauts Release Show on Thursday, March 15, at 7:00 PM at Westport Coffee House, 4010 Pennsylvania Ave, KCMO.]

10:36 – Interview with The Matchsellers

The Matchsellers

Julie Bates is a classically trained violinist from Kansas City. Andrew Morris is a Chicago blues guitarist from Warsaw, Indiana. They met in Leipzig, Germany. During their year of living in the former East Germany, the pair began reanalyzing the songs of their homeland, and developed a tight yet gritty bluegrass style. In the summer of 2013 they left their jobs to hit the road and haven’t looked back. In late 2014 they released their debut full length recording, and followed that up with their second release, “Songs We Made Up” in 2016. Tha Matchsellers are back in our 90.1 FM Studios to share music and information from their newest album, BLUEGRASTRONAUTS. The Matchsellers play a special Bluegrastronauts Release Show on Thursday, March 15, at 7:00 PM at Westport Coffee House, 4010 Pennsylvania Ave, KCMO.

Julie Bates and Andrew Morris thanks for being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley.

The Matchsellers & The Breakfast Sides present a new CD of Interstellar Old-time music entitled “Bluegrastronauts” Bluegrastronauts is old-time in outer space. It’s a far away galaxy as close as your first cousin. It’s a 100,000 mile an hour horse-and-buggy.

Since 2013 Andrew Morris and Julie Bates, better known as the Matchsellers, have traveled the US and Europe developing their brand of off the wall bluegrass & old-time music. In 2017 they began collaborating with two of the Midwest’s finest musicians, Chad Graves and Betsey Beymer. Graves is one of the country’s finest dobro players and has been featured in high-profile publications such as Rolling Stone, The Bluegrass Situation and many others. Beymer is a sought after bassist from Lakin, KS.

Together the 4-piece combines absurdity, authenticity and excellent musicianship to create a performance that is representative of the present age. They are pleasantly stuck between the best aspects of bygone years and the best of the future.

10:48

Julie Bates and Andrew Morris of The Matchsellers on the February 28, 2018 edition of Wednesday MidDay Medley on KKFI 90.1 FM.

10. The Matchsellers – “Until You Came To Mind” (Live)
Also available on: BLUEGRASTRONAUTS / The Matchsellers / March 16, 2018

The Matchsellers play a special Bluegrastronauts Release Show on Thursday, March 15, at 7:00 PM at Westport Coffee House, 4010 Pennsylvania Ave, KCMO.

10:57

Julie Bates and Andrew Morris of The Matchsellers on the February 28, 2018 edition of Wednesday MidDay Medley on KKFI 90.1 FM.

11. The Matchsellers – “Stars in Your Eyes” (Live)
Also available on: BLUEGRASTRONAUTS / The Matchsellers / March 16, 2018

11:00 – Station ID

12. Vigil and Thieves – “heroin & automobiles”
from: heroin & automobiles – Single / Independent / July 25, 2017
[Vigil and Thieves is a Kansas City indie alternative quartet formed in early 2014. Sarah Storm on vocals & guitar & keys, Steph Castor on guitar, Matthew Muckenthaler on bass , Andrew Flaherty on drums. Recorded at Vibe Studios in Bedford Heights, Ohio, engineered by John Burke. Lyrics by Sarah Storm and Music by Vigil and Thieves. Previously described as “grandiose” with a “heartbreaking heaviness,” the band has honed in on dynamic and lyrically-driven song structures that have been compared to live poetry. Neverland embodies every adventure the band has collectively taken part in.]

[Vigil and Thieves play The MidCoast Takeover Fundraiser #3, Saturday, March 3, at The Brick, with The Travel Guide, and The Almighty Trouble Brothers.]

13. Screaming Females – “I’ll Make You Sorry”
from: All At Once / Don Giovanni Records / February 23, 2018
[Screaming Females is an American indie rock band, from New Brunswick, New Jersey. They have released seven full-length albums. The band comprises Marissa Paternoster on guitar and vocals, Jarrett Dougherty on drums, and King Mike on bass. Mike and Marissa formed a band in high school under the name Surgery On TV. After several lineup changes they finally decided on the trio and a name change to Screaming Females. The Screaming Females got their start in the basement show scene of New Brunswick, NJ.[citation needed] Shows are held in the houses of various bands, students, and residents, so people under 21 can attend. The band has gone on to achieve success with a wider exposure, having been featured on NPR, Last Call with Carson Daly, and MTV. Screaming Females have played with bands such as Garbage, Throwing Muses, Dinosaur Jr., The Dead Weather, Arctic Monkeys, Ted Leo & The Pharmacists, JEFF the Brotherhood, Little Lungs, Cheeky, The Ergs, Shellshag, The Measure.In 2012 Marissa Paternoster was named the 77th greatest guitarist of all time by Spin magazine.]

11:10 – Underwriting

14. The People’s Liberation Big Band – “The Council of Mice”
from: The People’s Liberation Big Band / Tzigane / November 7, 2010 (play :45 of song)
[Recipient of the 2010 Charlotte Street Generative Performing Award, Brad Cox is founder of The People’s Liberation Big Band of Greater Kansas City.]

[The Brad Cox Octet plays The Ship, Thursday, March 1, at 9:30 PM]

[The People’s Liberation Big Band of Greater Kansas City play recordBar, 1520 Grand Ave. on Sunday, March 4, at 7:00 PM as part of Jeff Harshbarger’s Alternative Jazz Series.]

Julie Bates, Andrew Morris, Jen Harris, Siobhan McLaughlin Lesley, and Rachel Hills, on the February 28, 2018 edition of Wednesday MidDay Medley on KKFI 90.1 FM.

11:15 – Interview with Jen Harris and Siobhan McLaughlin Lesley

Our next guests include: Poet Jen Harris a professional public speaker, spoken word poet, activist, published author, founder and former host of Kansas City Poetry Slam. Nationally recognized Jen Harris works as an advocate to incorporate spoken word poetry as a form of peer-based mental health therapy.

Siobhan McLaughlin Lesley is the Executive Director for Gilda’s Club Kansas City, an organization providing education and support to anyone with a cancer impact. Siobhan has over two decades of experience in providing marketing communications and development leadership to some of Kansas City’s most successful and visible marketing communications companies, as well as civic and arts organizations. Prior to joining Gilda’s Club Kansas City, Siobhan served as vice president and director of client services at Walz Tetrick Advertising and as president and COO at Valentine Radford.

Jen Harris and Siobhan McLaughlin Lesley join us to share information about, Collective: Our Stories of Cancer, a multi-disciplinary production that provides an insightful experience into life with cancer. The performance features original choreography by Jennifer Owen, music by Stacy Busch, and poetry by Jen Harris, inspired by members of Gilda’s Club who shared their stories of cancer. Performances are Friday, and Saturday, March 2 and 3 at 7:30 PM, and Sunday, March 4 at 2:00 PM, at La Esquina Gallery, 1000 W. 25th St in KC’s historic Westside. For more info you can visit: http://www.owencoxdance.org.

Jen Harris and Siobhan McLaughlin Lesley thanks for being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley

Owen Cox Dance Group, Charlotte Street Foundation, and Gilda’s Club Kansas City present Collective: Our Stories of Cancer.

In 2018, Gilda’s Club Kansas City is hoping to raise awareness of the incidence of cancer in the local community and the positive benefits of education, support and self-advocacy. A new way of raising awareness has been brought to the fold through the multi-disciplinary production Collective: Our Stories of Cancer. Art connects people in a special and intimate way. Collective is a production that seeks to capitalize on that, celebrating those impacted by cancer, serving to unite those who have or are currently experiencing cancer, while embracing diversity and instilling hope.

The overview of Gilda’s Club… created in honor of Gilda Radner

Gilda’s Club is a community organization for people living with cancer, their families and friends. Local chapters provide meeting places where those living with cancer, their families, and friends can join with others to build emotional and social support as a supplement to medical care. Free of charge and nonprofit, Gilda’s Club chapters offer support and networking groups, lectures, workshops and social events in a nonresidential, homelike setting. The club was named in tribute to an original Saturday Night Live cast member Gilda Radner, who died of ovarian cancer in 1989. In 2009, Gilda’s Club merged with The Wellness Community to form the Cancer Support Community, although local branches generally opted to retain the name Gilda’s Club.

Gilda’s Club was founded by Joanna Bull, Radner’s cancer psychotherapist along with Radner’s widower, Gene Wilder (himself a cancer survivor) and broadcaster Joel Siegel (who died after a long battle with the disease). The first club opened in New York City in 1995, after a long fundraising campaign that included movie trailers featuring Wilder in theaters around the country. The organization took its former name from Radner’s comment that cancer gave her “membership to an elite club I’d rather not belong to.” Radner’s story can be read in her book, It’s Always Something.

In July 2009, Gilda’s Club Worldwide merged with The Wellness Community, another established cancer support organization to create the Cancer Support Community (CSC). As of 2012, there were over 20 active local affiliates of Gilda’s Club. Although some local affiliates of Gilda’s Club and The Wellness Community have retained their names, many affiliates have adopted the name Cancer Support Community following the merger. The proposed name change caused controversy in some communities. The national organization introduced a web-based diagnostic “distress screening” tool which led the Pittsburgh Gilda’s Club to change its name and sever its ties with the national organization because of a disagreement over requirements to offer the screening tool to all patients.

The performance will feature original choreography by Jennifer Owen, music by Stacy Busch, and poetry by Jen Harris, inspired by members of Gilda’s Club who shared their stories of cancer.

“The Intro/The Tale of Captain Bill Brockway”

Musical composer – Stacy Busch is a multimedia artist and performer. Stacy is the founder and president of No Divide KC, an arts and social justice non-profit that creates artistic events for various social causes. Stacy’s work has been performed throughout the country as well as in France and Iceland.

11:29

15. Jen Harris (Live) w/ Stacy Busch – “Intro/The Tale of Captain Bill Brockway”
from: Collaborations: Our Stories of Cancer / Charlotte Street – Owen Cox Dance / 2018

Jen Harris and Siobhan McLaughlin Lesley have joined us to share information about, Collective: Our Stories of Cancer, a multi-disciplinary production that provides an insightful experience into life with cancer.

The performance will feature original choreography by Jennifer Owen, music by Stacy Busch, and poetry by Jen Harris, inspired by members of Gilda’s Club who shared their stories of cancer.

The work will be performed by Jen Harris, Stacy Busch, soprano Liz Pearse, and five dancers of Owen/Cox Dance Group. Dancers include Megan Buckley, Felicia McBride, Emily Mushinski, Logan Pachciarz, and Christopher Page-Sanders.

Siobhan has served on a variety of non-profit boards in the arts and social services sectors. Currently, she serves on the Board of Directors of The Kansas City Ballet, Goodwill Industries of Western Missouri and Eastern Kansas, The Health Care Foundation’s Community Advisory Committee, the Mayor’s Task Force on Progress and Kansas City Friends of Alvin Ailey. She is also a trustee of Pembroke Hill School.
Siobhan has her master’s degree from the University of Kansas and a bachelor’s degree from Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee.

Jen Harris and Siobhan McLaughlin Lesley Thank you for being with us on WMM

Collective: Our Stories of Cancer, a multi-disciplinary production featuring original choreography by Jennifer Owen, music by Stacy Busch, and poetry by Jen Harris, inspired by members of Gilda’s Club is being publicly presented this Friday, and Saturday, March 2 and 3 at 7:30 PM, and Sunday, March 4 at 2:00 PM, at La Esquina Gallery, 1000 W. 25th St in Kansas City’s historic Westside. For info you can visit: http://www.owencoxdance.org.

11:40 – Best Original Song Nominations of the 90th Annual Oscar Awards

Next up we feature songs nominated for Best Original Song at the 90th Annual Oscar Awards, airing this Sunday Night, March 4. All five of this year’s nominees for Best Original Song will be performed on the Oscars. We’ll play 4 of the 5 nominated songs.

First up we’ll hear from Common, who duets with Andra Day on “Stand Up For Something” from the film “Marshall.” The three-time Grammy champ won an Oscar in 2014 for “Glory” from the film “Selma.” Common co-wrote this new song with nine-time Oscar nominee Diane Warren.

Second we’ll play Sufjan Stevens and his song “Mystery of Love” that he composed for “Call Me by Your Name.”

Third, we’ll hear from, Mary J. Blige, who made Oscar history as the first person to be nominated for both acting and composing in the same year. The nine-time Grammy winner will perform “Mighty River,” which she co-wrote with Raphael Saadiq and Taura Stinson for the film “Mudbound, for which she is nominated for Best Supporting Actress.

Our final Best Original Song nomination is “Remember Me” from the animated film “Coco.” sung by Grammy nominee Natalia LaFourcade and Grammy winner Miguel.

16. Andra Day – “Stand Up for Something (feat. Common)”
from: Marshall (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) / Marshal Films LLC / Sept 29, 2017
[Marshall is a 2017 American biographical legal drama film directed by Reginald Hudlin and written by Michael and Jacob Koskoff. It stars Chadwick Boseman as Thurgood Marshall, the first African-American Supreme Court Justice, and focuses on one of the first cases of his career. It also stars Josh Gad, Kate Hudson, Dan Stevens, Sterling K. Brown, and James Cromwell. Cassandra Monique “Andra” Batie known professionally as Andra Day, is an American singer and songwriter from San Diego, California. Her debut album, Cheers to the Fall, was released in 2015 and peaked at number 48 on the US Billboard 200 chart. The album was nominated for Best R&B Album and the album’s main single, “Rise Up”, was nominated for Best R&B Performance at the 2016 Grammy Awards. Lonnie Rashid Lynn, Jr. (born March 13, 1972), better known as Common, is an American hip hop recording artist, actor, poet, and film producer. Common debuted in 1992 with the album Can I Borrow a Dollar? and maintained a significant underground following into the late 1990s, after which he gained notable mainstream success through his work with the Soulquarians. In 2011, Common launched Think Common Entertainment, his own record label imprint, and, in the past, has released music under various other labels such as Relativity, Geffen and GOOD Music, among others. Common’s first major-label album, Like Water for Chocolate, received widespread critical acclaim and tremendous commercial success. His first Grammy Award was in 2003, winning Best R&B Song for “Love of My Life”, with Erykah Badu. Its popularity was matched by May 2005’s Be, which was nominated for Best Rap Album, at the 2006 Grammy Awards. Common was awarded his second Grammy for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group, for “Southside” (featuring Kanye West), from his July 2007 album Finding Forever. His best-of album, Thisisme Then: The Best of Common, was released on November 27, 2007. Common won the 2015 Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song and the 2015 Academy Award for Best Original Song, for his song “Glory” from the 2014 film Selma, in which he co-starred as Civil Rights Movement leader James Bevel. Common’s acting career also includes starring significant roles in the films Smokin’ Aces, Street Kings, American Gangster, Wanted, Terminator Salvation, Date Night, Just Wright, Happy Feet Two, New Year’s Eve, Run All Night, Being Charlie, and John Wick: Chapter 2.]

17. Sufjan Stevens – “Mystery of Love”
from: Call Me By Your Name (Orig. Motion Picture Soundtrack) / Madison Gate / Nov 3, ’17
[Call Me by Your Name is a 2017 coming-of-age drama film directed by Luca Guadagnino and written by James Ivory, based on the 2007 novel of the same name by André Aciman. It is the final installment in Guadagnino’s thematic Desire trilogy, following I Am Love (2009) and A Bigger Splash (2015). Set in Northern Italy in 1983, Call Me by Your Name chronicles the romantic relationship between Elio Perlman (Timothée Chalamet), a 17-year-old living in Italy, and his father’s American assistant, Oliver (Armie Hammer). The film also stars Michael Stuhlbarg, Amira Casar, Esther Garrel, and Victoire Du Bois. Sufjan Stevens (SOOF-yan) was born July 1, 1975, and is an American singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. His debut album A Sun Came was released in 2000 on the Asthmatic Kitty label which he cofounded with his stepfather. He is perhaps best known for his 2005 album Illinois, which hit number one on the Billboard Top Heatseekers chart, and for the single “Chicago” from that album. Stevens was born in Detroit, Michigan, and lived there until the age of nine, when his family moved to Petoskey, in the northern part of the Lower Peninsula of Michigan. He was raised by his father Rasjid and his stepmother Pat, only occasionally visiting his mother, Carrie, in Oregon after she married her second husband Lowell Brams. (Brams later became the head of Stevens’ record label Asthmatic Kitty).He attended the Detroit Waldorf School, Petoskey High School and Interlochen Arts Academy, and graduated from Harbor Light Christian School. He then attended Hope College in Holland, Michigan, and earned a Masters of Fine Arts from The New School in New York City. Sufjan is a Persian name meaning “comes with a sword”. It predates Islam and most famously belonged to Abu Sufyan, a figure from early Islamic history. The name was given to Stevens by the founder of Subud, an inter-faith spiritual community to which his parents belonged when he was born. A multi-instrumentalist, Stevens is known for his use of the banjo, but also plays guitar, piano, drums, xylophone, and several other instruments, often playing all of these on his albums through the use of multitrack recording. While in school, he studied the oboe and English horn, which he also plays on his albums. Stevens did not learn to play the guitar until his time at Hope College. Stevens lives in Kensington, Brooklyn, in New York City, where he makes up the Brooklyn staff of Asthmatic Kitty Records.]

18. Mary J. Blige – “Mighty River”
from: Mudbound (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) / Netflix Studios / Nov 17, 2017
[Mudbound is a 2017 American period drama film directed by Dee Rees and written by Rees and Virgil Williams, based on the novel of the same name by Hillary Jordan. It stars Carey Mulligan, Garrett Hedlund, Jason Clarke, Jason Mitchell, and Mary J. Blige. The film depicts two World War II veterans – one white, one black – who return to rural Mississippi each to address racism and PTSD in his own way. Mary Jane Blige was born January 11, 1971. She is an American singer, songwriter, rapper, record producer, and actress. She has been honored with numerous accolades and nominations, including winning nine Grammy Awards, and being the recipient of three Golden Globe nominations including one for Best Supporting Actress for her role as Florence Jackson in Mudbound (2017), for which she also became the first woman to receive multiple Academy Award nominations in the same year including for Best Supporting Actress and Best Original Song. She started her career as a backing singer on Uptown Records in 1989. In 1992, Blige released her first album, What’s the 411?. She has released 13 studio albums, eight of which have achieved multi-platinum worldwide sales. Her album My Life is among Rolling Stone’s 500 Greatest Albums of All Time, and Times All-Time 100 Albums. She received a Legends Award at the World Music Awards in 2006, and the Voice of Music Award from performance rights organization ASCAP in 2007. As of 2013, Blige has sold 75 million records worldwide. Billboard ranked Blige as the most successful female R&B/Hip-Hop artist of the past 25 years. In 2017, Billboard magazine also lists her 2006 song “Be Without You” as the most successful R&B/Hip-Hop song of all time, as it spent an unparalleled 15 weeks atop the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart and over 75 weeks on the chart. In 2011, VH1 ranked Blige as the 80th greatest artist of all time. Moreover, she is ranked number 100 on the list of “100 greatest singers of all time” by Rolling Stone magazine. In 2012, VH1 ranked Blige at number 9 in “The 100 Greatest Women in Music” list. Blige starred in the 2009 Tyler Perry box-office hit I Can Do Bad All By Myself and appeared in the film Rock of Ages (2012). She received a Golden Globe Award nomination for her musical contribution to the film The Help. In 2017, she appeared in the period-drama film Mudbound, directed by Dee Rees, for which she received nominations for the Academy Award and Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress, as well as Best Original Song nods in both award contests for the film’s song “Mighty River”.]

19. Miguel – “Remember Me (Dúo) [feat. Natalia Lafourcade]”
from: Coco (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) / Walt Disney Records / November 10, 2017
[Coco is a 2017 American 3D computer-animated musical fantasy adventure film produced by Pixar Animation Studios and released by Walt Disney Pictures. Based on an original idea by Lee Unkrich, it is directed by Unkrich and co-directed by Adrian Molina. The story follows a 12-year-old boy named Miguel Rivera who is accidentally transported to the land of the dead, where he seeks the help of his deceased musician great-great-grandfather to return him to his family among the living. The concept of the film is based on the Mexican holiday of the Day of the Dead. The film was scripted by Molina and Matthew Aldrich from a story by Unkrich, Jason Katz, Aldrich and Molina. Pixar began developing the animation in 2016; Unkrich and some of the film’s crew visited Mexico for inspiration. Composer Michael Giacchino, who had worked on prior Pixar animated features, composed the score. The film’s voice cast stars Anthony Gonzalez, Gael García Bernal, Benjamin Bratt, Alanna Ubach, Renée Victor, Ana Ofelia Murguía, and Edward James Olmos. It is the first-ever film with a nine-figure budget to feature an all-Latino cast, with a cost of $175–200 million. Miguel Jontel Pimentel (born October 23, 1985) is an American singer, songwriter, actor and record producer. Raised in Los Angeles, he began creating music at age thirteen. After signing to Jive Records in 2007, Miguel released his debut studio album, All I Want Is You, in November 2010. Although it was underpromoted upon its release, the album became a sleeper hit and helped Miguel garner commercial standing. After Jive’s dissolution in 2011, he moved to RCA Records and released his second studio album, Kaleidoscope Dream in 2012 to critical acclaim. On June 29, 2015, Miguel released his third studio album, Wildheart, which also received universal critical acclaim. Miguel incorporates R&B, funk, hip hop, rock and electronic styles into his music, and has been compared to vocalists Babyface and Prince. Miguel was born and raised in San Pedro, Los Angeles, California. He is one of two sons of a Mexican American father and an African American mother. María Natalia Lafourcade Silva was born February 26, 1984. She is a Mexican pop-rock singer and songwriter who since her debut in 2003 has been one of the most successful singers in the pop rock scene in Latin America. Her band’s name is Natalia y La Forquetina. Lafourcade’s voice has been categorized as a lyric soprano.]

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

Next week on March 7, Timmy Tilton joins us as Guest Producer for our second hour.

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:
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http://www.WednesdayMidDayMedley.org,
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STREAMING LIVE at: kkfi.org

Show #723

WMM presents The Matchsellers + Jen Harris & Siobhan McLaughlin Lesley of “Collective: Our Stories of Cancer”

Posted on February 25, 2018 by Mark Manning

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, February 28, 2018

More New & MidCoastal Releases + The Matchsellers
+ Jen Harris & Siobhan McLaughlin Lesley of “Collective: Our Stories of Cancer”

Mark plays more New & MidCoastal Releases from: Hembree, Vigil and Thieves, The Roseline, Joy Zimmerman, The People’s Liberation Big Band, Stacy Busch, U.S. Girls, Car Seat Headrest, Sunny War, Screaming Females, and Tom Petty. We will also play from 4 of the 5 songs nominated for Best Original Song at the 90th Annual Oscar Awards, we’ll play: Sufjan Stevens, Mary J. Blige, Andra Day & Common, and Miguel & Natalia Lafourcade.

The Matchsellers

At 10:30 Andrew Morris and Julie Bates, better known as The Matchsellers, join us to share music from their new album “Bluegrastronauts.” The Matchsellers have traveled the US and Europe developing their brand of off the wall bluegrass & old-time music. In 2017 they began collaborating with two of the Midwest’s finest musicians, Chad Graves a dobro player that has been featured in Rolling Stone and The Bluegrass Situation, and Betsey Beymer a much sought after bassist from Lakin, KS. The Matchsellers Bluegrastronauts Release Show is Thursday, March 15, at 7:00 PM at Westport Coffee House, 4010 Pennsylvania Ave, KCMO. $10 admission gets you a CD as well. You can make a reservation by emailing thematchsellers@gmail.com

Poet Jen Harris

At 11:15 Mark talks with Poet Jen Harris and Siobhan McLaughlin Lesley of Gilda’s Club KC who join us to share information about, Collective: Our Stories of Cancer, a multi-disciplinary production that will provide an insightful experience into life with cancer. The performance features original choreography by Jennifer Owen, music by Stacy Busch, and poetry by Jen Harris, inspired by members of Gilda’s Club who shared their stories of cancer. The work will be performed by Jen Harris, Stacy Busch, soprano Liz Pearse, and five dancers of Owen/Cox Dance Group including: Megan Buckley, Felicia McBride, Emily Mushinski, Logan Pachciarz, and Christopher Page-Sanders. Performances are Friday, March 2, and Saturday, March 3 at 7:30 PM, and Sunday, March 4 at 2:00 PM, at La Esquina Gallery, 1000 W. 25th St in Kansas City’s historic Westside. For more information you can visit: http://www.owencoxdance.org.

On your local radio dial 90.1 FM or
STREAMING LIVE at: kkfi.org

Show #723

WMM Playlist from January 17, 2018

Posted on January 20, 2018 by Mark Manning

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, January 17, 2018

Maria Vasquez Boyd, Tim J. Harte, Ryan Wilks, and Lesley Pories on the January 17, 2018 edition of Wednesday MidDay Medley

New & MidCoastal Releases + Lesley Pories
+ Ryan Wilks & Here Where You Wish

1. “Main Title Instrumental – It’s Showtime Folks”
from: Motion Picture Soundtrack to All That Jazz / Universal / Dec. 20, 1979
[WMM’s theme]

2. Destroyer – “Tinseltown Swimming in Blood”
from: Ken / Merge Records / October 20, 2017
[11th studio album from Destroyer from Vancouver, British Columbia fronted by singer-songwriter Dan Bejar and formed in 1995. Destroyer songs are characterized by abstract, poetic lyrics and idiosyncratic vocals. The band’s discography draws on a variety of musical influences, resulting in albums that can sound markedly distinct from one another; in Bejar’s words, “That’s kind of my goal: to start from scratch every time.” Daniel Bejar was born October 4, 1972. Bejar has gained widespread popularity through his musical collaborations with Vancouver indie-rock band The New Pornographers, but has released far more material as the frontman of his band Destroyer. He is renowned for his poetic and often cryptic lyrics as well as his unorthodox vocals. Bejar’s father was a Spanish physicist and his mother was a Spanish teacher. Growing up, Bejar moved frequently, and as an adult he has resided in Canada and Spain. Bejar attended University of British Columbia for three years: “To my credit, I eventually dropped out; to my discredit, I waited three years to do it. I was taking mostly English and Philosophy classes, fooling myself into thinking I might be an academic.”]

[Destroyer plays recordbar, 1520 Grand, TONIGHT, January 17, at 9:00 PM with Mega Bog]

3. Be/Non – “Freedom Palace” [2015 new version, John Huff on lead vocals]
from: Freedom Palace / Haymaker Records / February 17, 2018
[Brodie Rush is a songwriter, musician, singer, organizer, artist, film maker, music video creator. Over 20 years ago KC native, Brodie Rush formed the experimental, psychedelic, prog-pop band. In 1996, Be/Non recorded two sets of songs in a small home studio in Lawrence, Kansas, that would become their first two EPs released on cassette. Be/Non, The band has had more members than Spinal Tap, but Brodie has remained the only consistent member, songwriter and producer. Be/Non personnel: 2007, Brodie Rush – Vocals, Guitar, Keyboards, Bass, Percussion, Drums; Ben Ruth – Bass, Upright Bass, Vocals; Adam Stotts – Guitar, Vocals; John Huff – Keyboards, Synths, Vocals; Adam Phillips – Drums (although Ryan Shank – played Drums on this track.) All songs written by: Brodie Rush, except Freedom Palace with music: John Huff & lyrics: Brodie Rush. Produced by Brodie Rush. Recorded at Westend Recording (Kansas City, Kansas) 2007 (Basic tracks, some overdubs); The Gold Room (Kansas City, Missouri) 2007 (Overdubs); Studio G (Brooklyn New York) 2007 (Mixing, Overdubs); The Map Room (Lawrence, Kansas) 2003 (Overdubs). Engineeres: Paul Malinowski Recorded at Westend Recording (Kansas City, Kansas) 2007 ; Brodie Rush The Gold Room (Kansas City, Missouri) 2007; Joel Hamilton Studio G (Brooklyn New York) 2007 ; Peter Buxton The Map Room (Lawrence, Kansas) 2003, (Saxophone overdubs imported from “Do The Heat” off the record, “Esperanto At The Pantheon, Incognito”). Mixed by Joel Hamilton at Studio G (Brooklyn New York) 2007. Mastered by Brodie Rush. Thanks John Hulston, Anodyne Records, Brenton Cook, Haymaker Records, Paul Malinowski, Tony Maimone, Justin Warring, Adam Phillips, Brandon Phillips, Steve Neuenburg, Mike Miller, Shawna Sowersby-Booth, David Hanson, Billy Brimblecom, Steve Tulipana, Jason Cantu, David Gaume, Robert Moczydlowsky, Laurel Birdsong Sears, Kid Millions, Cypher Sound, The Record Bar. Dedicated to: Failed marriages throughout time and space. The troubled “Freedom Palace” LP was recorded over 10 years ago in the summer of 2007 by Paul Malinowski and Brodie Rush in Kansas City, Missouri. Anodyne Records had commissioned Be/Non to re-record songs from, “RAN” and “Esperanto At The Pantheon, Incognito” along with other unreleased material. The music from the title track “Freedom Palace” was written by John Huff and had the album been released, would have been the first Be/Non composition not penned by Brodie Rush. Be/Non was a 5 piece before recording negotiations began in 2007. Directly before preproduction, the band had lost its drummer of 3 years and Be/Non was actively searching for a replacement. Between Brodie filling in on drums for two songs and Billy Brimblecom playing drums on another track, Be/Non asked Adam Phillips of The Architects to drum on the album’s remaining songs. The album was mostly recorded at Westend Studios in Kansas City and at Brodie’s home studio The Gold Room. After tracking 97% of the album, the project was taken to Studio G in Brooklyn New York for mixing by Joel Hamilton. 10 days later, the album was mixed and ready for duplication. No formal album covers had been decided on. John Huff had an idea of a Unipegadong by a nebula in space, while Brodie was thinking a castle floating in mid air. The first cover idea was mostly just pointing arrows going in all directions. Emotionally that was probably the closest to the mindset of that recording. The album “Freedom Palace” was never pressed or released. Because a contractual arrangement could not be agreed upon between Anodyne Records and Be/Non, the band would not see an album released until 2009, “A Mountain Of Yeses”, 11 years after it’s last release in 1998. “Freedom Palace” is dismissed by the band as a complete failure. Ultimately not having rights to the recordings, the inability to reach a contractual agreement with Anodyne Records and unhappiness with the final mix led to the disbanding of the “Freedom Palace” line up in early 2008. Reclusive, secluded and freshly divorced, a depressed Brodie Rush stopped all live performances for the next two years. Spending time to construct the concept record “A Mountain Of Yeses” as a solo endeavor under the Be/Non band moniker. Then, six years later in 2014, John Hulston of Anodyne Records graciously gave Brodie Rush full rights to the “Freedom Palace” recordings and masters. Be/Non has since tried numerous times to re-record the material for a proper release, but never could fully accomplish this task. Finally, for the entire world, for better or for worse, Be/Non and Haymaker Records would like to present the final mix of “Freedom Palace” the way it was originally intended. Be/Non adamantly renounces the production, mix and performances on these recordings, with few exceptions. The album was mixed and recorded during a dizzying haze of drug and alcohol abuse. The lyrics, the tone and the feel of the record is very unfocused, angry and misguided. This record does not reflect the proper sonic soundscape or performances Brodie Rush and Be/Non had intended whatsoever. “Freedom Palace” was full of rehashed versions of songs better left to their previous incarnations. “Moi Ou Toi” from the 7″ is a remake from “Freedom Palace” but the “FP” version is a remake of the original “Ran” version. Complicated. In fact ALL of the recordings on “FP” are remakes from “Ran” and “Esperanto.” “Do the Heat” and “Lucy” are again remakes of the “Ran” and “Esperanto” versions. The version of “Ice Fight” on “FP” I think… is different than the B-Side to “Moi Ou Toi”. A different remix with other instruments. We had two different versions from 2015. The Kraftwerk reference was unintentional. John Huff started playing that back in 2006 but hadn’t heard the Kraftwerk song until I played it for him in 2015. He just did that and thought he was cool. I hadn’t heard that tune until 2010 or so. It was an accident. There is an unreleased, unfinished song called “No God Of Mine” I recorded in 2002 on my 8 track that when I tried to remake it in 2007 with Mike Cochran on drums, John heard it and played me a song from the band YWKMBT Trail Of Dead from 2005 that was almost identical even the timing on the changes. The vocal melody was different tho. I got so disturbed by it that I stop working on the song altogether. “Garlic”, “In The Nighttime” “More Than Enough” and “Current And The Rind” were all part of an unreleased collection called “Enhance The Smoky” from 2000. Same year “Tenderfoot” was written.]

4. Momma’s Boy – “Want Me Back”
from: Don’t Talk About It – Single / Dead Summer Single Series / November 3, 2017
[2nd release of Momma’s Boys’ Dead Summer Single Series. Written by Peter Beatty. Lead vocals by Jared Bajkowski. Momma’s Boy, an Indie Surf Pop 4-piece band from KCMO, formed December 2015, and made up of former members of Rev Gusto: Peter Beatty on guitar & vocals, Shaun Crowley on guitar & vocals, Quinn Hernandez on drums, and Jared Bajkowski on bass & vocals. Recorded at Element Recording Studios with Joel Nanos.Their debut EP Liquid Courage was released Feb. 25, 2017.]

[Momma’s Boy play Riot Room, 4048 Broadway, Friday, January 19, at 9:00 with Rachel Mallin & The wild Type, and Dreamgirl.]

5. Superorganism – “Everybody Wants To Be Famous”
from: Superorganism / Domino Records / Expected: March 2, 2018
[Superorganism is an indie pop band that formed in early 2017. The group is made up of 8 members, one of which is a 17-year-old Japanese girl only known as Orono. The 7 other members go by the names of Harry, Emily, Ruby, B, Tucan, Soul, and Robert. The group, started with members from all over the world including The United States, Japan, South Korea, London, Australia, and New Zealand, makes original internet-age electronically-tinged indie pop music. Bandmembers Harry, Emily, Ruby, B, Tucan, Soul, and Robert were all longtime friends who decided it was finally time to work together. Harry and Emily met Orono during one of their old band’s Japan shows (she attended as a fan), and they struck up a Facebook friendship with their future bandmate. After discovering she could sing, they invited her to add lyrics and vocals to a demo they’d been working on for a new project at the beginning of 2017.]

6. Dead Voices – “Trust A Fool”
from: Dead Voices / Independent / April 20, 2013
[Formed in Sept 2010, by David Regnier, Jason Beers, Matt Richey, Michael Stover, Marco Pascolini.]

[Dead Voices play recordBar, 1520 Grand, Sat., Jan. 20, at 9:00 with Slights, and The Old Chelsea]

7. Sara Morgan – “Never Been to Nashville”
from: Average Jane / River Delta Records / Expected January 26, 2018
[KC based Singer/Songwriter, originally from McGehee, Arkansas. Sara Morgan plays saxophone, guitar, banjo, ukulele, and piano. Sara has opened for BJ Thomas, John Michael Montgomery, John Corbett, Sean Rowe, Chuck Mead, Ben Taylor, and was the preshow before Loretta Lynn at The Uptown, November 2014. Ms. Lynn hosted Sara on her tour bus after Sara’s set and prior to Ms. Lynn’s performance.]

[Sara Morgan plays a CD Preview, Fri, Jan. 19, at 8:30 PM, at Gospel Lounge at Knuckleheads Saloon.]

10:30 – Underwriting

10:32 – Interview with Lesley Pories

MidCoast Radio Project Board Member and 90.1 FM Membership Committee Chair – Lesley Pories joins to talk about 90.1 FM KKFI, and how listeners can become more involved. Lesley moved to KC four years ago and has been volunteering at 90.1 FM for most of that time, and has served on the Board of Directors for two of those years. A DC native, Lesley has a Masters in Urban Planning from UNC Chapel Hill and a Masters in International Relations from the Fletcher School at Tufts University. Aside from the East Coast, she’s lived and worked in Uzbekistan, India and Guinea. Here in KC, she also serves on the Board of BikeWalkKC. During the day, Lesley works as a Senior Sector Analyst at water and sanitation non-profit, Water.org.

Lesley Pories, Thanks for being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley

Lesley grew up in Vienna (Virginia).

Two Masters Degrees

Lesley volunteered in Peace Corps for two years in Uzbekistan.

Lesley worked for The Carter Center and spent three months observing political elections in Guinea

Water.org – Kansas City – Senior Sector Analyst – traveling India

Volunteering at KKFI for more information: Volunteer@kkfi.org

10:44

8. Marideth Sisco & Accomplices – “Been Here Before”
from: Empty Doors / Juneapple Records / November 23, 2017
[Written by Marideth Sisco and songwriting partner Robin Frederick. Performed by Sisco with members of The Blackberry Winter Band: Linda Stoffel – Vocals, Dennis Crider – Guitar, Van Colbert – Banjo, Tedi May – Upright Bass, Bo Brown – Mandolin & Dobro. Marideth Sisco is a journalist, teacher, author, musician, student of folklore, and creator of Elder Mountain Press, a venue for publishing stories relevant to Ozarks culture and history. You can hear her essays “These Ozarks Hills” on public radio, ksmu.org. Discovered by producers of the independent film Winter’s Bone who asked her to be a part of the film and to serve as music consultant. “Winter’s Bone,” ended up winning best picture and best screenplay at Sundance Film Festival, it was honored at the Berlin Film Festival and was nominated for four Academy Awards. The band that created the music for the film is has made several tours, and recordings. More information at http://www.maridethsisco.com]

9. David Byrne – “Everybody’s Coming To My House”
from: American Utopia / Todomundo – Nonesuch / March 9, 2018
[Co written with Brian Eno. David Byrne’s first solo studio album since 2004’s Grown Backwards. Even though since then he has released albums with Brian Eno, Fat Boy Slim, and St. Vincent. The album is his 11th outside of his work with talking Heads. The new album is one part of a larger multimedia project entitled Reasons to Be Cheerful which aims to give reasons for being happy and optimistic in spite of political strife and environmental problems. The project was entitled after the Ian Dury song “Reasons to Be Cheerful (Part 3)”. David Byrne writes: “Is this meant ironically? Is it a joke? Do I mean this seriously? In what way? Am I referring to the past or the future? Is it personal or political? These songs don’t describe an imaginary or possibly impossible place but rather attempt to depict the world we live in now. Many of us, I suspect, are not satisfied with that world—the world we have made for ourselves. We look around and we ask ourselves—well, does it have to be like this? Is there another way? These songs are about that looking and that asking. This album is indirectly about those aspirational impulses. Sometimes to describe is to reveal, to see other possibilities. To ask a question is to begin the process of looking for an answer. To be descriptive is also to be prescriptive, in a way. The act of asking is a big step. The songs are sincere—the title is not ironic. The title refers not to a specific utopia, but rather to our longing, frustration, aspirations, fears, and hopes regarding what could be possible, what else is possible. The description, the discontent and the desire—I have a feeling that is what these songs touch on. I have no prescriptions or surefire answers, but I sense that I am not the only one looking and asking, wondering and still holding onto some tiny bit of hope, unwilling to succumb entirely to despair or cynicism.”]

[David Byrne plays the Muriel Kauffman Theatre at the Kauffman Center for he Performing Arts, Thursday, June 7, at 7:30 PM. Tickets go on sale Tuesday, Jan 23.]

10. Old Sound – “The Ocean”
from: Rain Follows The Plow / Independent / February 2014
[Greg Herrenbruck on bass & vocals; Grady Keller on mandolin, acoustic guitar & vocals; Chad Brothers on acoustic guitar & vocals. Recorded and produced by Phil Wade at his studio: Alluvial Fan Studios.]

[Old Sound plays The Phoenix, 302 West 8th St., Thursday, January 18, at 7:00 pm.]

11. Hipshot Killer – “They Will Try To Kill Us All”
from: They Will Try To Kill Us All / Throwing Things / January 16, 2016
[KC based 3-piece power punk band formed in the fall of 2008. The current line up consists of: Mike Alexander (Revolvers, Architects, John Velge and The Prodigal Sons, The Starhaven Rounders), on guitar & vocals, Chris Wagner (100 Years War, Jackie Carrol, John Velge and The Prodigal Sons) on bass & vocals, legendary drummer Jon “Buddy” Paul, who plays in (The Big Iron, The Revolvers.) For the recording: Mike Alexander on guitar & vocals, Chris Wagner on bass & vocals, Thomas Becker (Beautiful Bodies), on drums. The band released their debut record Hipshot Killer, April 29, 2011, and a single on Too Much Rock on October 21. Mike Alexander joined us live on WMM on October 19.]

[Hipshot Killer plays miniBar, 3810 Broadway, Saturday, January 20, with various Blonde, North By North, and Witch Jail.]

11:00 – Station ID

12. Sufjan Stevens – “Tonya Harding (In Eb major)”
from: Tonya Harding – Single / Asthmatic Kitty Records / December 8, 2017
[Sufjan Stevens (SOOF-yan) was born July 1, 1975, and is an American singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. His debut album A Sun Came was released in 2000 on the Asthmatic Kitty label which he cofounded with his stepfather. He is perhaps best known for his 2005 album Illinois, which hit number one on the Billboard Top Heatseekers chart, and for the single “Chicago” from that album. Stevens was born in Detroit, Michigan, and lived there until the age of nine, when his family moved to Petoskey, in the northern part of the Lower Peninsula of Michigan. He was raised by his father Rasjid and his stepmother Pat, only occasionally visiting his mother, Carrie, in Oregon after she married her second husband Lowell Brams. (Brams later became the head of Stevens’ record label Asthmatic Kitty).He attended the Detroit Waldorf School, Petoskey High School and Interlochen Arts Academy, and graduated from Harbor Light Christian School. He then attended Hope College in Holland, Michigan, and earned a Masters of Fine Arts from The New School in New York City. Sufjan is a Persian name meaning “comes with a sword”. It predates Islam and most famously belonged to Abu Sufyan, a figure from early Islamic history. The name was given to Stevens by the founder of Subud, an inter-faith spiritual community to which his parents belonged when he was born. A multi-instrumentalist, Stevens is known for his use of the banjo, but also plays guitar, piano, drums, xylophone, and several other instruments, often playing all of these on his albums through the use of multitrack recording. While in school, he studied the oboe and English horn, which he also plays on his albums. Stevens did not learn to play the guitar until his time at Hope College. Stevens lives in Kensington, Brooklyn, in New York City, where he makes up the Brooklyn staff of Asthmatic Kitty Records.]

13. Payge Turner – “Only One”
from: Only One – Single / Justin’s Place / September 1, 2017
[Second Single from Kansas City based singer songwriter originally born in the Caribbean. Payge moved to Colby, Kansas when she was in the 6th grade. she writes that, “Ever since I was able to talk, all I ever wanted to do was sing!”]

[Payge Turner plays “An Acoustic Evening” with Pink Royal and Instant Karma, Thursday, January 25, at 7:00 PM, at The Rino, 314 Armour Rd, North Kansas City.]

14. Jake Wells – “Circle of Life”
from: “Circle of Life” – Single / Beach Boy Music / February 21, 2017
[Kansas City based indie folk singer songwriter. Jake Wells was born in Florida grew up in Colorado. Jake studied Music Composition at University of Northern Colorado. “Jake’s sound evokes an emotionality and maturity much deeper than his age of 21 would imply.” He was named one of Spotify’s top 20. He has performed on stages since he was a teenager. His single releases are currently gaining radio play in the Midwest on several FM stations.]

[Jake Wells plays SoundMachine KC with Belle Game, and Spirit is The Spirit, Mlnday, January 29, at 7:00 PM, at recordBar, 1520 Grand Blvd.]

11:15 – Interview with Ryan Wilks & Tim J. Harte

Ryan Wilks is a Kansas City based artist who’s work has explored gender issues, queer erotica, femininity and sexuality. His new exhibit, Here Where You Wish, is an immersive public installation coming to the Kansas City Public Library, at 14 West 10th Street, First Friday, April 6, 2018. Wilks is constructing a large public altar in the Central Library with a transformative temple-like labyrinth entry-way being crafted by renowned artist Ari Fish. Tim J Harte is composing ritual based sounds/music for the event. The 40 square feet altar is being constructed by Sean Prudden and Ryan Wilks, to house the objects that people bring to the piece.

Ryan Wilks, thanks for being with us again on Wednesday MidDay Medley

Also with us is musician, composer, co-founder of the Kansas City record label, Mother Russia Industries, Tim J.Harte makes music using Sega Genesis, Dungeons and Dragons, math and several hard working laptop computers. Tim J. Harte is currently studying composition at UMKC’s Conservatory of Music. He just recently composed music and conducted a 7 piece ensemble for Trench Warfare, a theatrical performance presented last Saturday evening, January 13, at the National World War I Museum and Memorial J.C. Nichols Auditorium.

Tim J. Harte, thanks for being with us again on t90.1 FM.

To support this project you can visit: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1840510472/here-where-you-wish/description

Here Where You Wish is an immersive public installation coming to the Kansas City Public Library, Central Library location at 14 W. 10th St. on April 6, 2018.

From Ryan’s press materials: Kansas City-based visual artist Ryan Wilks is constructing a large public altar in the KCPL Central Library with a transformative temple-like labyrinth entry way that encourages the public to consciously and methodically enter. The elaborate and flowing entrance is meticulously crafted by renowned artist Ari Fish.

Tim J Harte akadungionmaster is composing ritual based sounds/music to softly play through the installation. The altar itself will be 40 square feet and constructed by Sean Prudden and Ryan Wilks, and will beautifully house the objects that people leave behind.

11:25

15. AKADungeonMaster – “B LUCE DELL-ALBA”
from: MOTHER RUSSIA INDUSTRIES DOT COM VOL. THREE / M. R. I. / June 24, 2016
[Mother Russia Industries is a Kansas City based music label formed in 2008 by Tim J Harte and Rita Brinkerhoff supporting the music of AKA DJ DUNGEONMASTER, Blondie Brunetti, and others.]

We are talking with Ryan Wilks & Tim J. Harte about the new exhibit, Here Where You Wish

From Ryan’s press materials: Altars are typically resurrected to pay homage to a historical event or to worship deities. This altar is intended to serve as a nondenominational safe-space for personal expression and reflection. Created for everyone, by everyone. People from all walks of life are encouraged to write down a wish and leave it on the altar. A wish, a non-religious prayer, opens us up to a child-like connection to the invisible and allows us to gently believe even if just for a second that what we most desire can and will come true if we are bold enough to speak its name.

2017 was a hard year for all of us. No matter what side of the protest lines we stand, we do so because we are uneasy, angry, afraid, and unwilling to compromise what we think is right. There is a need to create a safe and sacred space for all of us to feel hope in. To believe in the power of the individual and of a wish.

The altar will be up for 3 months and will grow substantially in its aesthetic as people leave behind a wish on paper and/or an object. Wilks will be rolling up the paper wishes and tying them to hundreds of feather sculptures rotating above the altar, stirring the energy of the wishes. Here Where You Wish will provide a space for internal dialogue and reflection. As the installation is in a heavily-trafficked public library, attending participants will contribute to the interactive aspects of the installation. Additionally, Wilks has plans to utilize and honor the objects others leave in the space by publishing a book, which will be a literary and visual documentation of what Kansas City is wishing for in 2018.

Risks and challenges

Every project comes with its own unique risks and challenges:

Foreseeably people will want to know where their objects that they have left at the altar will end up. We are open to suggestions! Obviously since Here Where You Wish is in a public space, leaving behind your grandmothers broach is not encouraged if your heart is intent on getting it back once the installation is complete. People may feel connected to certain objects and take them with them. This is not necessarily the goal here, but it may happen, and the Library nor anyone involved in the project can be held responsible for missing objects. Items left should hold some emotional weight with the individual but not to the degree that letting it go with a wish would cause regret.

The objects at the end of the project will be repurposed respectfully, and possibly a part of a more permanent installation in a public space.

There is also the vulnerability of writing down a wish, and people may not want their wish shared in a book; there will be verbiage at the installation that lets people know these are anonymous wishes and to not add information that you would not feel comfortable being published, such as a name. There is something beautiful though, in letting such a vulnerable thing as a wish, be shared with the world, because for every wish there are thousands of people wishing the same wish.

There will be verbiage explaining that objects such as weapons, alcohol, drugs, and food are not welcomed to be placed upon the altar.
Ryan Wilks will be coming in twice weekly to ensure that these requests are fulfilled as will library staff.

Ryan Wilks and Tim J. Harte, thanks for being with us again on WMM

His new exhibit, Here Where You Wish, is an immersive public installation coming to the Kansas City Public Library, at 14 West 10th Street, First Friday, April 6, 2018.

More info at: http://www.wilkspainting.com
http://www.motherrussiaindustries.bandcamp.com

11:37

16. Superchunk – “Erasure (feat. Waxahatchee & Stephin Merritt)”
from: What a Time to Be Alive / Merge / Expected: February 16, 2018
[11th album release from band formed in 1989 in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, Superchunk is Mac McCaughan (guitar, vocals), Jim Wilbur (guitar, backing vocals), Jon Wurster (drums, backing vocals), and Laura Ballance (bass, backing vocals). Since releasing their first 7-inch in 1989, Superchunk has run the gamut of milestone albums: early punk rock stompers, polished mid-career masterpieces, and lush, adventurous curveballs. Recorded by Beau Sorenson at Manifold Recording, Pittsboro, NC., except “Break the Glass” and “I Got Cut” at Overdub Lane. Mastered by Matthew Barnhart at Chicago Mastering .]

11:41 – Underwriting

17. Minnie Riperton – “Lovin’ You (Single Version With Countdown)”
from: Perfect Angel (Deluxe Edition) / Capitol / orig. Aug. 9, 1974 -Reissued Dec. 5, 2017
[Produced by Stevie Wonder under the name “El Toro Negro” to circumvent Motown’s refusal to allow him to produce the record for Epic. Minnie Julia Riperton-Rudolph (November 8, 1947 – July 12, 1979), known professionally as Minnie Riperton, was an American singer-songwriter best known for her 1975 single “Lovin’ You” and her five-octave coloratura soprano. She is also widely known for her use of the whistle register and has been referred to by the media as the “Queen of the whistle register”. Born in 1947, Riperton grew up in Chicago’s Bronzeville neighborhood on the South Side. As a child, she studied music, drama, and dance at Chicago’s Lincoln Center. In her teen years, she sang lead vocals for the Chicago-based girl group, The Gems. Her early affiliation with the legendary Chicago-based Chess Records afforded her the opportunity to sing backup for various established artists such as Etta James, Fontella Bass, Ramsey Lewis, Bo Diddley, Chuck Berry, and Muddy Waters. While at Chess, Riperton also sang lead for the experimental rock/soul group Rotary Connection, from 1967 to 1971. On April 5, 1975, Riperton reached the apex of her career with her no. 1 single, “Lovin’ You”. The single was the last release from her 1974 gold album entitled Perfect Angel. In January 1976, Riperton was diagnosed with breast cancer and underwent a radical mastectomy. By the time of diagnosis, the cancer had metastasized and she was given about six months to live. Despite the grim prognosis, she continued recording and touring. She was one of the first celebrities to go public with her breast cancer diagnosis, but did not disclose she was terminally ill. In 1977, she became a spokesperson for the American Cancer Society. In 1978, she received the American Cancer Society’s Courage Award which was presented to her at the White House by President Jimmy Carter. Riperton died of cancer on July 12, 1979 at age 31.]

18. The Hillary Watts Riot – “Killer Kind”
from: A/S/L / Money Wolf Music / April 20, 2012
[Debut album. THWR include: Hillary Watts Bird, Christian Hankel, Tommy Donoho, Sergio Moreno, Justin Penney. They describe their music as “freak pop.” This band is so fun to see live.]

[The Hillary Watts Riot play Bottleneck, LFK Sat, Jan 20 w/Alice Sweet Alice, Benevox, People Watching]

19. Westerners – “Tetris”
from: Reoccurring Dream Theme / The Record Machine / July 14, 2017
[Debut full length album from Lawrence / Kansas City based band formed in August of 2013. The band includes: Mitch Hewlett, Josh Hartranft, Matthew Pesma and Gerardo Rojas. Westerners signed to Kansas City independent label The Record Machine in 2015.] [Westerners played an album release at Mills Record Co, Fri, July 7, w/ Shortsweather and at Love Garden Records, Lawrence, July 8, w/ No Magic, and CS Luxem.]

[The Westerners play recordBar, 1520 Grand, Sun, Jan 21, ay 8:00 PM, with Motherfolk and Toughies.]

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

Next Week on Wednesday, January 24 we’ll talk with company members of Spinning Tree Theatre about FULL GALLOP their newest show running January 26 through February 11 at Just Off Broadway Theatre, 3051 Central in KCMO. Tickets available at Central Ticket Office at (816) 235-6222. More information at http://www.spinningtreetheatre.com. Cheryl Weaver stars as fashion doyenne Diana Vreeland in this one-woman play. The Kansas City premiere is directed by Doug Weaver.

Also next week we’ll talk with Ryan Lee Toms about his newest musical collaboration, FaceFace and their latest release MMMMM.

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 #717

WMM talks with Ryan Wilks of Here Where You Wish + Lesley Pories

Posted on January 13, 2018 by Mark Manning

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, January 17, 2018

New & MidCoastal Releases + Lesley Pories +
+ Ryan Wilks & Here Where You Wish

Mark plays New & MidCoastal Releases from: Momma’s Boy, Sara Morgan, Nathan Corsi, Be/Non, Payge Turner, Dead Voices, Marideth Sisco & Accomplices, Westerners, Jake Wells, Mother Russia Industries, The Hillary Watts Riot, Hipshot Killer, Old Sound, Destroyer, Superorganism, Minnie Riperton, Sufjan Stevens, and Superchunk with Waxahatchee & Stephin Merritt.

At 10:30, MidCoast Radio Project Board Member and 90.1 FM Membership Committee Chair – Lesley Pories joins us to talk about 90.1 FM KKFI, and how listeners can become more involved. Lesley has been volunteering at 90.1 FM for nearly three years, and has served on the Board of Directors for two of those years. She is originally from Vienna, Virgina has worked in Washington DC, and Atlanta. Lesley spent two years teaching English as a Peace Corp Volunteer in Uzbekistan, worked on small water conservation in Hubli, India, observed presidential elections in Guinea, and obtained two Masters Degrees from the University of North Carolina and the Fletcher School (Tufts). Lesley currently works as a Senior Sector Analyst at Water.org based here in Kansas City.

At 11:15, Mark talks with artist Ryan Wilks about his new exhibit, Here Where You Wish, an immersive public installation coming to the Kansas City Public Library, at 14 West 10th Street, First Friday, April 6, 2018. Wilks is constructing a large public altar in the Central Library with a transformative temple-like labyrinth entry-way being crafted by renowned artist Ari Fish. Tim J Harte is composing ritual based sounds/music for the event. The 40 square feet altar is being constructed by Sean Prudden and Ryan Wilks, to house the objects that people bring to the piece. To support this project you can visit: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1840510472/here-where-you-wish/description

On your local radio dial 90.1 FM or
STREAMING LIVE at: kkfi.org

Show #717

WMM Playlist from September 20, 2017

Posted on September 25, 2017 by Mark Manning

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, September 20, 2017

Our 700th Show! with Madisen Ward and the Mama Bear, Krystle Warren, Calvin Arsenia, Ron Megee, Marion Merritt, Maria Vasquez Boyd, Necia Gamby, Scott Hobart, and Nico Gray.

1. “Main Title Instrumental – It’s Showtime Folks”
from: Motion Picture Soundtrack to All That Jazz / Universal / Dec. 20, 1979
[WMM’s theme]

2. Dimitri From Paris – “Prologue”
from: Sacreblu / Atlantic Records / June 11, 1996

3. Sufjan Stevens – “Inaugural Pop Music For Jane Margaret Byrne”
from: The Avalanche: Outtakes And Extras From The Illinois Album / Asthmatic Kitty / July 11, 2006
[A press release on the Asthmatic Kitty website reported that the Illinois album was supposed to be a double record (with somewhere near 50 songs), but the idea was eventually scrapped. After the success of the album, Stevens returned to his analog 8-track recorder in late 2005 and began the process of finishing 21 of the previously abandoned songs, which would eventually become The Avalanche. Stevens has stated during interviews that although he doesn’t like The Avalanche as much as Illinois, he felt it was important to release the songs in light of the success of his most recent album. He has also said that he decided to release the album in order to buy time until his next “The 50 States” project,” release.]

Thanks for tuning into Wednesday MidDay Medley. I’m Mark Manning. Today’s show is a celebration of 700 weeks, 1400 hours of radio, 10,000 hours of preparation, nearly 2000 guests, and over 15,000 songs, from thousands of musical artists. We have made it our mission to mix musical genres, playing with themes, diversity, equality, free speech, connecting artists and venues and listeners and communities. Wednesday MidDay Medley has proudly endeavored to help tell the story of our growing Kansas City area music scene, “The Midcoast Sound,” as we like to call it. We have dedicated a majority of our programming to New & MidCoastal Releases.

We’ve happily presented new formats in radio, with our popular, “A Story In A Song” series, and our special shows featuring: Apocalypse Meow, The MidCoast Takeover, Middle of The Map, The Crossroads Music Fest, The Outer Reaches Festival, The Lawrence Field Day Fest, and our annual tribute shows to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., David Bowie, Iris Dement, Pioneers of Punk, Visual Art, The Spoken Word, Gay Pride, Civil Rights, and our interviews with Tommy Ramone, Iris Dement, Laurie Anderson, Lily Tomlin. Plus, our annual 4-week special: the 100+ Best Recordings of the Year.

To say I’ve been inspired by the KC music scene, is an understatement. In just this last year, we’ve played from over 100 local releases of 2017. The KC music community is fueled by a collaborative and generous heart that is beating in so many of the artists I’ve met while doing this show. I am inspired by the women who created radio on 90.1 FM long before me: my friend April Fletcher who know plays bass professionally in Los Angeles, and my friend Anne Winter, who left us in 2009, and reminded us how we’re all connected. I’m inspired by the diverse , intelligent, motivated, listeners, looking for place on the dial, where they can connect to the amazing stories and music and voice of our community.

Ruth Ward, Maria Vasquez Boyd, Marion Merritt, Ron Megee, Necia Gamby, Krystle Warren, and Madisen Ward

Today we celebrate the pure idea of community radio, free form radio, radio that tells the story of the people who live here, the artists, the writers, the teachers, the performers, the lovers. Today we celebrate 700 weeks of Wednesday MidDay Medley, the show that has brought us together, at this time, on this frequency, in these community airwaves. Thanks for listening.

10:05 – Marion Merritt Interview/Story

Marion Merritt

Marion Merritt is our most frequent contributor to WMM, She grew up in Los Angeles, and St. Louis. She went to college in Columbia, Missouri. She studied art and musical engineering, and is a avid lover of classic films and punk rock music. She saw Talking Heads on their first U.S. tour when they played One Block West, in 1978. For 13 years she has been sharing her musical discoveries and information from her musically-encyclopedic brain on Wednesday MidDay Medley. Marion has joined us for every on-air fund drive to help raise funds for the MidCoast Radio Project. Marion is also the proprietor of Records With Merritt, at 1614 Westport Rd. in Kansas City, Missouri. That features new vinyl releases, weekly in-store performances from young and upcoming bands, and most recenty was the location for a wedding.

Marion Merritt thank you for being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley.

We always wanted someone from a record store to have a regular presence on WMM.

When I first met Marion, she walked up to me with a recording in hand and suggested I might like the Philip Glass recordings of the Low Symphony with David Bowie and Brian Eno.

Marion and I really didn’t know each other in the beginning, but throughout these 700 shows we’ve become very close friends, I’ve watched her life transition from corporate retail to owning her own record store in the neighborhood where I live.

For 13 years Marion Merritt haa had a huge influence on our playlists. It was during our first year that she interviewed Regina Spektor.

10:10

4. Regina Spektor – “Braile”
from: 11:11 / Regina Spektor / 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 February 18, 1980, in Moscow (former Soviet Union, now Russia), and began classical training on the piano at the age of six. When she was nine years old, her family left the Soviet Union in 1989, during the period of Perestroika, when Soviet citizens were permitted to emigrate. Regina had to leave her piano behind. The seriousness of her piano studies led her parents to consider not leaving the Soviet Union, but they finally decided to emigrate, due to the racial, ethnic, and political discrimination that Jews faced. Traveling first to Austria and then Italy, the Spektor family was admitted to the United States as refugees with the assistance of HIAS (the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society). They settled in the Bronx, where Spektor graduated from the SAR Academy, a Jewish day middle school in the Riverdale section of the Bronx. Since the family had been unable to bring their piano from Moscow, Spektor practiced on tabletops and other hard surfaces until she found a piano on which to play in the basement of her synagogue. She began to write original songs shortly thereafter. Spektor gradually achieved recognition through performances in the anti-folk scene in downtown New York City, most prominently at the East Village’s SideWalk Cafe. She also performed at local colleges (such as Sarah Lawrence College) with other musicians, including the Trachtenburg Family Slideshow Players. She sold self-published CDs at her performances during this period: 11:11 (2001) and Songs (2002). After self-releasing her first three records and gaining popularity in New York City’s anti-folk scene, Spektor signed with Sire Records in 2004 and began achieving greater mainstream recognition. After giving her third album, Soviet Kitsch a major label re-release, Sire released her fourth album, Begin to Hope, which would go on to achieve a Gold certification by the RIAA. Her following two albums, Far and What We Saw from the Cheap Seats, each debuted at number 3 on the Billboard 200. Spektor married singer-songwriter Jack Dishel in 2011. Formerly a guitarist with the band the Moldy Peaches, Dishel is a member of the band Only Son and duets with Spektor in the song “Call Them Brothers”. On January 23, 2014, Spektor announced her pregnancy on Facebook. The couple announced the birth of a son in March 2014.]

[Regina Spektor plays A Special Solo Performance, Sun, Oct.28, at 8:00 PM, at The Uptown Theatre]

10:15 – Interview with Calvin Arsenia live from Paris!

Calvin Arsenia (Photo by Jenny Wheat)

Since 2014 we have been celebrating the music of Calvin Arsenia who came home to KC after living in Edinburgh, Scotland, and has released his EPs, Moments, Prose, and this year his full length debut, Catastrophe. He has played Folk Alliance International, Kansas City Fringe Fest, The Nelson Atkins Museum of Art, The Kauffman Center For The Performing Arts, The Middle of the Map Fest., The Folly Theatre. Calvin is currently in the third month of his Outlyre Tour where he has played San Francisco, Portland, Vancouver, NYC, Boston, Edinburgh, Sweden, Denmark, Holland, Switzerland, Lyon and is currently in Paris where he joins us on the phone.

Calvin Arsenia thanks for being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley

Krystle Warren joined us in our brief phone conversation with Calvin in Paris.

Calvin has already played over 30 shows so far on this tour.

Calvin is on tour with musician and friend Simon Huntley who plays with Quixotic

Calvin wrote on Facebook:
“If you’ve been touring over a month you’ll probably want…
1) fingernail clippers
2) extra airplane sized toothpastes
3) back up phone case
4) hair brush (for I rarely brush this mop but when I do I use)
5) single use deep conditioner packets
6) black skinny jeans
7) better shoes
8) ear plugs (I’m sorry for snoring so much, Simon)
9) (to be continued….)”

Calvin is coming homing home to Kansas City on October 18.

Calvin is working to release new music from his June 11th, live recording at Kansas City’s newly restored Greenwood Social Hall, at 1750 Bellevue Ave. in Kansas City.

He shared with us one of the tracks to play as a radio premiere.

11:20

5. Calvin Arsenia – “Nature Boy”
from: Live at Greenwood Social Hall / Calvin Arsenia / Unreleased, 2017
[from Calvin’s June 11, 2017 live performance at Greenwood Social Hall, 1760 Bellevue. Written by Eden Ahbez, first recorded by Nat King Cole in 1948, and 2001 by David Bowie for Moulin Rouge Soundtrack]

11:24 – Interview/Story with Maria Vasquez Boyd

Maria Vasquez Boyd

Maria Vasquez Boyd is an artist, poet, educator, and radio show host & producer. She has been a regular contributor to Wednesday MidDay Medley where she has produced shows about Ukuleles, Teachers, The Day of The Dead, and The Artist’s Studio. She has been a regular cast member in our “He Touched Me Gospel Hour” programs, and has contributed original material for almost all of our “A Story In A Song” shows, including our live show at recordBar, and this past Spring, for Big Bang Buffet Black Sheep Rising at The Buffalo Room. Maria is graduate of the Kansas City Art Institute, where she has taught in the Design/Illustration Department, as well as, the Nelson Atkins Museum. Maria is also a founding member of the Latino Writers Collective. Maria is also the host and producer of 90.1 FM’s ARTSPEAK Radio which airs Wednesdays at Noon, following Wednesday Midday Medley. ARTSPEAK Radio will be celebrating 5 years on the air!

Maria Vasquez Boyd, thanks for being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley

Congratulations on ARTSPEAK Radio!

When did Maria start calling Mark her “Radio Husband”?

We met at The Writer’s Place. I was serving on the Board of KKFI’s MidCoast Radio Project, you were serving on the board of the Latino Writer’s Collective. We would both go in early to set up for our meetings. You were a guest on the show and we welcomed you back to produce and host the show and eventually it became clear that you should host you own show. Through radio we became friends.

11:27 – Maria’s Story 10:32

6. Les Petits Minous – “À la claire fontaine”
from: À la claire fontaine – Single / Musicreche / September 25, 2008

10:34 – Underwriting

11:36 – Interview/Story Ron Megee

Ron Megee

Originally from Anaheim, California, Ron Megee has worked at every theater in Kansas City including The Kansas City Rep, The Coterie Theatre, New Theatre, The Unicorn Theatre, The Folly Theatre. I first met Ron Megee through The Unicorn Theatre. He was running the spotlight for The Rocky Horror Show. We became friends while working together with Lou Jane Temple at Cafe Lulu. This summer Ron starred in the Unicorn Theatre’s production of Priscilla Queen of the Dessert The Musical. Laughter is healing and Ron Megee is a comic genius. He has created one of Kansas City’s most enduring and successful theatre companies, Late Night Theatre that began in 1997, and after a hiatus, was reborn several years ago at Missie B’s, on West 39th Street. In the last 20 years Late Night Theatre has produced over 100 shows, including their most recent one-night-only performance of Valley of The Dolls at the Folly Theatre.

Ron Megee, Thanks for being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley.

Will & Grace Watch Party Benefit for AIDS Walk Memorial Team, Thursday, September 28 at 6 PM at Missie B’s, 805 W 39th St, Kansas City. All money raised stays right here in Kansas City to help those living with HIV/AIDS.

Missie B’s presents “Hocus! Poke Us!: The Staged Reading” October 5 – October 19, Missie B’s, 805 W 39th St, Kansas City, ONLY 6 SHOWS! Featuring Daisy Buckët, Genewa Stanwyck, Chadwick Brooks, Matt Anderson, Brian Cross, Dirty Dorothy, & Ron Megee, Written & adapted for the stage by Daisy Buckët

11:39 – Ron Megee’s story

11:44

7. Portugal.The Man – “Feel It Still”
from: Woodstock / Atlantic Recording / June 16, 2017
[8th studio album release from the Portland Oregon based band that was originally formed in Wasilla, Alaska in 2004. The new album was produced by Mike D of The Beasty Boys. The group consists of John Gourley, Zach Carothers, Kyle O’Quin, Jason Sechrist and Eric Howk. Gourley and Carothers met and began playing music together at Wasilla High School.]

10:47 – Interview with Krystle Warren

Krystle Warren

Krystle Warren is originally from Kansas City, Missouri, although she now lives outside of Paris. She learned to play the guitar by listening to The Beatles albums: Rubber Soul and Revolver. Krystle Warren graduated from Paseo Arts Academy in 2001 and began her musical career performing to Kansas City audiences and collaborating with local jazz and pop musicians. After living in San Francisco and New York City, Krystle was signed to a French recording label, Because Music, and moved to Paris and released her album “Circles” in 2009. Krystle played numerous French and British television programs, including Later with Jools Holland, garnering critical acclaim and traveling all over the world, touring with Rufus Wainwright, Nick Cave, Norah Jones, and Joan As Police Woman. Krystle created her own record label, Parlour Door Music, to release her, 2012 record: “Love Songs: A Time you May Embrace” a recording from a 13 day session in Brooklyn, where she recorded 24 songs live with 28 musicians including her band, The Faculty, alongside choirs, horn and string sections. For her most recent release, Krystle decided to go in a new direction, playing every instrument and singing all vocals & back up vocals herself, “playing bass, drums, lap steel, piano, guitar, and vocals directly to analog tape. Three the Hard Way was Produced by Krystle Warren and Ben Kane (D’Angelo, Emily King, PJ Morton).

Krystle Warren, thanks for being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley

We’ve been playing various tracks from the album on the radio show, and Krystle shared music from the album last year on the show.

Some of the reviews:

OKAY Player wrote:
It was only a few months back that Krystle Warren, a midwestern musician with a taste for brawny, soul-rattling blues and gospel, graced us with gratitude on the singer’s first single off today’s offering, Three The Hard Way.

On “Thanks and Praise,” Warren’s sound is indebted to (and a lush extension of) spirited, slow-churn church grooves that have spent the last century empowering and emboldening protest and activism. Her new album, out today with production and engineering from Ben Kane (D’Angelo’s Black Messiah, Emily King’s The Switch) and Warren herself, cuts with encouraging wit against a sparse backdrop of country twang and handclap punctuation, a big, boisterous voice doing the heavy-lifting and heart-swelling.”

Impose Magazine wrote:
The devastating & mournful “Red Clay” recalls the horrific 1921 massacre of African Americans in Tulsa by the hands of the KKK that is painful reminder of an evil that persists in America, as evident by the last week’s tragic events at a neo-Nazi/KKK rally in Charlottesville, VA. Warren’s reiterations of “in the wet red clay” & pondering how evil can kill innocence are underlined with rhythm strums of sorrow that reiterates the concept that there is no place for hate in the world.

And through the entire album cycle, Krystle’s harmonies are a constant that keeps everything fluttering between the lessons of earth’s humble ground & inspirations & mythologies brought about by skies’ heavens. The art & act of waking up to the world & beyond is heard in the steps that follow “Get a Load”, to the psych-swimming “Learn to Bend”, right before you are taken to the tambourine shaking chapel of “Move” that closes out Three the Hard Way with something to wake up anyone may have fallen asleep in the back pews. Krystle leaves the audience with a message to get pro-active in your communities, to take a stand socially, politically, in any way you can make a difference to make our world a more loving place.

Krystle’s own notes on Three the Hard Way:

Three the Hard Way wasn’t supposed to be a political album. It was never my intention to delve into religion, socio-economics, depression…In fact, when Kane first suggested we work together, after I answered defensively that, yes, I had been writing new stuff, long story, and that the songs were all in my head, I said, Let’s make a happy record. And yet, and yet. Heading into the studio a year and a half ago, driving over an hour from my home in Yvelines to Villetaneuse in the early thaw of winter, our recording began as the world’s papers with any common sense at all published a steady stream of, What the FUCK Has The U.S. Done NOW! We couldn’t help but be affected by the uncertainty. It was all around us—still is.

I believe the first session started with “Get a Load”, or at least, attempted to. I had just completed “So We Say” the night before/that very morning, and was eager to lay it. “So We Say” took shape after everyone else went to bed, and I sat alone in the kitchen, plucking away at my guitar, swigging off a bottle of red, thinking about the The Challenger explosion. It was all over the news that day. I was a youngster when it happened, but I remember the image well. The thirtieth anniversary’s coverage provided deeper insight into the whys and hows. I felt disgusted by it all. People rise and fall in pieces, but that’s the price for being free… So began the first tune of the album.

It’s an odd feeling being of the time, artistically—that is to say, one who is reflecting the world around them, by accident, with purpose. Countless quotes exist attributed to various famous folk saying things to the effect of, If you’re not doing this, then you’re doing that, and that’s shitty. I don’t agree with that sentiment as it pertains to artistic expression. Not everyone should hold a megaphone. Pete Seeger, early Dylan, Woody Guthrie, Neil Young—hey, that’s all well and good. The general message is also extremely self-righteous. I don’t like being told what to do, do you?

Likewise, I feel that it’s best to be informed before throwing in your two cents, otherwise, you’re just feeding into the cacophony of yells and screams that currently passes for debate. The world has always been an awful place. Some of us are waking up to that reality now. I couldn’t have written Three the Hard Way five years ago, because I wouldn’t have known what to say, let alone how to say it. I’m here now, taking it all in, and weeping, and writing, and singing, listening, learning, getting through.

10:57

8. Krystle Warren – “Learn To Bend”
from: Three The Hard Way / Parlour Door Music / August 18, 2017
[Produced by Krystle Warren and Ben Kane (D’Angelo, Emily King, PJ Morton). Recorded, engineered, and mixed by Ben Kane. Written & performed by Krystle Warre. Mixed at The Garden, Brooklyn. Mastered & cut by Alex DeTurk at Masterdisk. Last year in Krystle Warren premiered this song and her other new songs from this album at the Middle of the Map Fest in a packed room at Californos in Westport and later at The Polsky Theatre for the Performing Arts Series of Johnson County Community College. For this record Krystle decided to play every instrument and vocals & back up vocals, “playing bass, drums, lap steel, piano, guitar, and vocals directly to analog tape. She and Ben Kane recorded in Villetaneuse, France, a small town on the outskirts of Paris in a vintage 70s era studio that offered just the right, rich sound to suggest the musical foundation for the record, and to do justice to the duo’s carefully balanced arrangements.” On the radio show last year Krystle shared inspirations for this record, early gospel recordings, that crossed over into Jazz from Pharoah Sanders, Edwin Hawkins, and The Swan Silvertones. Originally from KC, Krystle learned to play the guitar by listening to Rubber Soul & Revolver from The Beatles. Krystle graduated from Paseo Arts Academy in 2001 and began her musical career in collaborating with area jazz and pop musicians. After living in San Francisco and NYC, Krystle was signed to a French label, Because Music, and moved to Paris to release “Circles” in 2009. Krystle played French and British television programs, including Later with Jools Holland, garnering critical acclaim and traveling all over the world with Rufus Wainwright, Nick Cave, Norah Jones, and Joan As Police Woman. Krystle created, Parlour Door Music, to release “Love Songs: A Time You May Embrace” a recording from a 13-day session in Brooklyn, where she recorded 24 songs live with 28 musicians including her band, The Faculty, alongside choirs, horn and string sections.]

11:00 – Krystle Warren – “Station I.D.”

11:00 – Interview with Madisen Ward and the Mama Bear

Madisen Ward and the Mama Bear

We’re thrilled to welcome back to the show, for their 6th appearance on Wednesday MidDay Medley, Madisen Ward and the Mama Bear. Madisen Ward and Ruth Ward were with us for our 500th show, so we feel incredibly blessed to have them back for our 700th show. Between these two shows, they have skyrocketed out of Kansas City, garnering international acclaim, and new fans from all over the world. They signed with Glassnote Records and recorded their debut full length album in Nashville with acclaimed producer Jim Abiss. They performed their debut single “Silent Movies” on The Late Show with David Letterman, they’ve toured across the United States, and Europe, more than once. They were featured on CBS Sunday Morning, NBC’s The Today Show, and “Later With Jools Holland and played Bonnaroo, Pilgramage, and the Newport Folk Festival, and the Ryman Theatre, in Nashville. Ruth Ward has continually performed throughout her life, mostly in coffee shops and open mics, for over 30 years, even recording a solo record. In the midst of this she got married and became a mom, and was busy raising a family. Madisen Ward was born in Oklahoma, and grew up in the outskirts of Kansas City, Missouri. He graduated from William Chrisman High School in 2007. Madisen’s journey to become a musician, was “melodically passed down” through the songs of his mother, where Madisen grew up watching his mom perform at local coffee shops. Eventually he began to learn to play the guitar, and poured his talent for writing into the music to create original songs. They began playing shows together, playing Madisen’s original songs along with the occasional cover of a classic track, reinterpreted in their own incredibly beautiful performance of two voices and two guitars in harmony and orchestration. Their debut album, The Skeleton Crew, was released by Glassnote Records, May 9, 2015 and was our most played record that year and was #1 on our 115 Best Recordings of 2015. Madisen Ward and the Mama Bear are currently working on their 2nd album.

Madisen Ward and the Mama Bear, will play Yardley Hall, 12345 College Blvd, Overland Park, Kansas, on Saturday, December 2 at 8:00 PM.

Madisen Ward and the Mama Bear thanks for being with us on WMM.

We first played music from Madisen Ward and the Mama Bear on this radio show in early May of 2013 after our mutual friend Joel Nanos of Element Recording sent us a copy of their independent EP, “We Burned The Cane Field” where they first recorded Madisen’s original songs.

When Madisen Ward and the Mama Bear opened for BB King at The Midland, 96.5’s The Buzz’s Lazlo Geiger saw them and he was blown away. He contacted his friend, Daniel Glass, founder of Glassnote Records who traveled to Kansas City to meet the band.

11:08

9. Madisen Ward and the Mama Bear – “Cannibal” (Live)

11:20

10. Madisen Ward and the Mama Bear – “How It Goes” (Live)

Madisen Ward and the Mama Bear, will play Yardley Hall, 12345 College Blvd, Overland Park, Kansas, on Saturday, December 2 at 8:00 PM.

11:25

11. Be / Non – “Journey”
from: A Mountain of Yeses / Unipegadong / 2009

12. The Magnetic Fields – BBC Radiophonic Workshop
from: Holiday / Merge / 1994

11:26 – Interview/Story – Scott Hobart

Scott Hobart

Singer-songwriter and guitarist Scott Hobart is a multi-talented artist. Known for his acclaimed honky-tonk country band, Rex Hobart & The Misery Boys (Bloodshot Records). Scott also works as the Coterie Theatre’s Resident Technical Director. He has also composed music and performed in the Coterie’s “Night of The Living Dead.” Scott met his friend Byron Collum at the Kansas City Art Institute in 1989. Eventually, they moved to Collum’s hometown of Green Bay, WI and formed the ‘post-hardcore power-trio’ GIANTS CHAIR in 1993. The band moved back to Kansas City became part of the burgeoning, mid-90’s KC rock scene – sharing bills with Germbox, Season To Risk, Molly McGuire and Shiner. After being signed to Caulfield Records out of Lincoln NE. on the strength of their debut 7″ single, GIANTS CHAIR recorded 2 critically-acclaimed full-length albums and toured the U.S. twice. GIANTS CHAIR sorted ended things in 1997 but have gotten back together here and there.

Recently the band released two new songs and are working on material for their 3rd studio album. Giants Chair play miniBar, Thursday, Sept. 21,at 8:00 PM with ExAcrobat and SWEATS from Lincoln.

Scott Hobart thanks for being with us on Wednesday MidDay Medley

13. Giants Chair – “Featureless Horizon”
from: The Streets – Single / Giants Chair / June 15, 2017
[Recorded May 2017 at Weights & Measures Soundlab, Kansas City, Missouri. Engineered and produced by Duane Trower. Kansas City based. Giant’s Chair was a band from fall of 1993 to the summer of 1997.]

[Giants Chair play miniBar, Thursday, Sept. 21, at 8:00 PM with ExAcrobat and SWEATS from Lincoln.]

11:36 – Underwriting

11:38 – Interview/Story – Necia Gamby

Necia Gamby

Necia Gamby is Licensed Massage Practitioner at own practice, NRGinMOTION. Shoe also serves as a licensed Massage Therapist at Alpha Chiropractic Center Inc. and at at Spa On Penn. She has been in practice 36 years. She uses Swedish (classical) massage technique. Over the years she has studied and practiced Hatha Yoga and is currently studying TaiChi. She founded and directed the Heartland School of Massage from 1988-1996. She has studied and incorporated Shiatsu, trigger point technique, lomi-lomi and a host of other philosophies and techniques into her massage style. She was an instructor for Johnson County Community College’s Certified Massage Program for 6 years. She taught Basic Swedish technique and Business Practices. She is an avid reader and especially loves science fiction and Korean dramas. Necia is the daughter of a KC Jazz pianist, and the mother of a graphic artist and MC for the acclaimed KC based hiphop duo SoundsGood and engineer with the 64111 Clinic.

Necia Gamby, thanks for being us on Wednesday MidDay Medley

11:39 – Necia’s Story

11:44

14. SoundsGood – “Best Song Ever (featuring iD)”
from: Goodbye / Innate Sounds / March 1, 2012
[The 3rd SoundsGood and final album. A collection of tracks that finalize the SoundsGood sound. Vocals – Joe Good, Beats – Miles Bonny.]

11:49 – Interview/story – Nico Gray

Nico Gray (Photo by Mark Manning)

We welcome back to the show, our friend Nico Gray, who joins us as “Guest Producer” for our second hour. Nico has worked as a writer, performance artistm and as an actor with The Kansas City Rep, Gorilla Theatre, the 8th Street Cafe Thetre, Actor’s Craft, and was recently a featured performer in Big Bang Buffet’s Black Sheep Rising. Nico has also worked for Theatre League, The Midland Theatre and is currently a marketing and advertising consultant who does work with Union Station. Rooted in KC, Nico grew up with radio. Nico writes that, “Music has always served as the ‘passport’ through spiritual journeys that have transplanted him to the brownstones of Chicago, the rooftops of Paris, the sea-side of Marseille and the balconies of NYC. ”

Nico Gray welcome back to Wednesday MidDay Medley.

11:50 – Nico’s Story

11:52

15. The Velvet Underground – “Heroin”
from: The Velvet Underground & Nico / Verve / March 12, 1967
[The Velvet Underground & Nico is the debut album by The Velvet Underground, with the first professional line-up of the Velvet Underground: Lou Reed, John Cale, Sterling Morrison and Maureen Tucker. German singer Nico was also featured, having occasionally performed lead vocals for the band. This resulted of the instigation of their mentor and manager, Andy Warhol, and his collaborator, Paul Morrissey. Nico sang lead on three of the album’s tracks—”Femme Fatale”, “All Tomorrow’s Parties” and “I’ll Be Your Mirror”—and back-up on “Sunday Morning”. In 1966, as the album was being recorded, this was also the line-up for their live performances as a part of Warhol’s Exploding Plastic Inevitable. Though the record was a commercial failure upon release and was almost entirely ignored by contemporary critics, The Velvet Underground & Nico is now widely recognized as one of the greatest and most influential albums in the history of popular music. In 1982, musician Brian Eno famously stated that while the album initially only sold approximately 30,000 copies, “everyone who bought one of those 30,000 copies started a band.” In 2003, it ranked 13th on Rolling Stone magazine’s list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time. It was added to the 2006 National Recording Registry by the Library of Congress. Many sub-genres of rock music and forms of alternative music were significantly informed by the album.]

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

Next week on Wednesday, September 27, Brenton Cook, Dedric Moore and Steve Tulipana join us to share music and information about the Outer Reaches Festival, Friday and Saturday, September 29th and 30th, at recordBar, 1520 Grand Blvd.

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 #700

Wednesday MidDay Medley

Wednesdays, 10 – Noon, on 90.1 FM KKFI – Kansas City Community Radio

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