LIC Radio

There are two things that I love about searching for records in thrift shops. Firstly, there is always that hope that I will find something that is a hidden gem, that classic album in pristine condition that would cost much more in a proper record store where the employees know what they have and what it’s worth. The second thing is, I suppose, just another version of the hidden gem, that oddball item, that record that is such an odd concept or document that it seems like it shouldn’t exist. I popped by my local “creative reuse center” (that’s what they call it) the other day and found a few records from each category. Should I be buying records now, given my employment situation? Probably not, but twenty bucks for six records is hardly a reckless splurge. I found records from all over the spectrum from the bombastic to the soulful, from the kitschy to the holy. So listen in. We discuss such hot topics as:           Why did Horace Silver sue Steely Dan? ...

Neil Innes, 1981 Photo by Michael Putland Whenever Brett comes on the show with his bag of tunes, I always find some kind of common thread, or an overarching theme, even when he didn’t intend to. I proposed that he run with this idea and see if I am able to figure out that small factor is that links the songs. I will say this: He really stumped me this time. He eventually revealed to me that he had in mind an actual narrative of a person from small, quieter town visiting New York City and slowly going insane. Looking at the entire list (of which he throws fifteen to twenty songs, of which, during the show, we pick five or so to actually play), I supposed I can see where the songs fit into that theme. Still, I have no idea how he expected to guess that. In any event, it was a good show and a fun hang. We got some cool Neil Innes songs in there, rare B-sides by The Who (including a notorious imposter track). With Brett you can generally count on something Beatles or Harry Nilsson related...

Fare thee well, Marty DiBergi I expected to be doing a show with Brett today, so I didn’t have as much planned. However, since the plague is going around, and Brett was bogged down at his job, I had to pull out a bunch of stuff on the fly. And that I did. Same old formula: Pay tribute to some dead folks (perhaps “Big Bottom” wasn’t the most dignified choice to acknowledge the passing of Rob Reiner, but I think he would have found it funny), some newly obtained vinyl, historical tracks, some love for the birthday boys, and by talking real fast, I was even able to make time for a few cuts from my leftovers folder. I even wedged in an old Bill Hicks routine (it was about drugs and rock music, so I think that it was pertinent). One correction: The recording of Joe Jackson performing his song, “Beat Crazy,” was not from the Apollo Theatre in Manchester, UK, on October 15 th , 1980, but in fact was recorded at the Muziekcentrum Vredenburg in Utrecht, Netherlands on December 15 th of that ye...

One more for Steve Cropper 1941-2025 Even though yesterday was the anniversary of Pearl Harbor, I will assert that today is truly the day that will live in infamy. I don’t want to get morbid, but it cannot go unobserved that today is the 45 th anniversary of the murder of John Lennon. Furthermore, it is the 21 st anniversary of the day that Darrell Abbott, better known as Dimebag Darrell, was gunned down onstage during a performance. I paid tribute in my own little way. “Melt the Guns,” I say. Define yourself as an America by exercising your First Amendment rights, not the Second. On another sad note, we lost Steve Cropper last Wednesday. That was a big one. We also lost former Free/Faces bassist Tetsu Yamauchi the following day, and I think that one got glossed over by most rock fans. All of these things distracted me a bit. I should have given birthday boy Gregg Allman a bit more love. Maybe next week we’ll celebrate life a little more.   Click here to check it out: LIC Radio 1...

Jimmy Cliff, 1982 Photo by John van Hasselt  “It’s between that and exercise, and drugs win hand [sic] down.” -A little wisdom from John Lennon   So let’s see... Tribute was paid to Jimmy Cliff, I found the B-side of that weird Peter Sellers Beatles cover from last week, and I dug out a recording of Sellers and The Beatles talking about Acapulco Gold. Musically, the most pleasant surprises for me this week were finding out that Frankie Goes to Hollywood’s music is far more adventurous than their big hit had led me to believe, and Metallica doing an absolutely brilliant job covering Bob Seger. Sent a lot of love out into the universe for legendary bass player Donald “Duck” Dunn in honor of his birthday, playing some classic Stax cuts that he played on, oh and another surprise, his work on a classic Stevie Nicks/Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers tune. I also had a little time left over to pull a few things out of the backburners/leftovers folder, and tell (for the umpteenth time) ...

Featured on four tunes, Jon Hiseman is the the most featured player of the episode. Photo by Alan Messer Another good time with Brett. I know that we probably talk too much, and there may be too many in-jokes and references that only we get, but I like to think that when we are enjoying ourselves that the listeners (all two of them today) do as well. Brett always brings the stuff that comes out of left field, and I love him for that. From his list, I picked out some interesting cover tunes; reimaginings of songs by the likes of the Beatles and Procol Harum, and even some musical theatre. There was a track by Colosseum that was left over from our last episode together, and I really wanted to delve into that. I mean, at least as far as what I know about his taste, Brett’s not a big prog-rock, jazz-fusion guy. Thus, I wanted to discuss how that band, not very well known in America, particularly these days, entered his orbit. Sadly, once again, we ran out of time, and so I’ll have to wait ...