Today is the day that supporters of college radio at Vanderbilt University have been dreading. After yesterday’s news leak that the call letters to beloved college radio station WRVU had been changed to WFCL, official word came today that the station is in the process of being sold to Nashville Public Radio for $3.35 million […]
In a variation on a familiar theme, student radio station WJMF at Bryant University in Smithfield, Rhode Island just announced that they will be leaving their terrestrial radio home in light of a deal that the university made with Boston public radio station WGBH. WGBH’s all-classical service will begin airing over WJMF’s FM frequency in […]
This past Saturday I celebrated Record Store Day by dropping in to the Numero Group’s pop-up store in Chicago’s Wicker Park neighborhood. Numero is a record label specializing on archival re-releases of forgotten treasures, especially regional records from small labels from Cleveland to Belize. They hosted a one-day record store inside Stop Smiling press’ storefront […]
I’m already starting to map out my list of record stores to hit this Saturday, April 16, 2011 for the 4th annual Record Store Day. Some people will be lining up for limited edition releases (particularly vinyl), others will be heading to stores to check out live performances, and many (like me) will just be […]
Record Store Day, now in its fifth year, is an annual celebration of the independent record store. This year it goes down next Saturday, April 16. Participating stores hold special events, like in-store concerts, while selling limited-edition singles and albums. I’ve been attending since 2008 and enjoy the recognition of the threatened species of the […]
Back in 1983 college radio station KFJC (where I currently DJ) embarked on an ambitious project to do a radio marathon featuring hundreds of different versions of the song “Louie Louie.” Soliciting help from both musicians and listeners (one of my close friends fondly recalls heading up to KFJC to drop off the cassette tape […]
Lawyers and wordsmiths on both sides of the fight over KUSF 90.3 FM have put pen to paper, filing lengthy documents supporting their positions to either defend the purchase of KUSF by Classical Public Radio Network (CPRN), or to cast doubt on the propriety of a formerly commercial service being broadcast over a non-commercial educational […]
He’s produced albums that inspired The Rolling Stones. The 50th anniversary of his Arhoolie Records label was noted by The New York Times. His voice has regaled public radio listeners about “down home” music for decades, especially at KPFA in Berkeley. Generations of Blues, Cajun, Tejano, Gospel, Polka, and Bluegrass legends have graced his studios. […]
In a familiar-sounding tale, University of Alabama is in talks to purchase public radio station WHIL from Spring Hill College in Mobile, Alabama for $1.1 million. WHIL currently airs a public radio format, mainly comprised of classical music programming and syndicated NPR shows like “Weekend Edition” and “All Things Considered.” It is expected that the […]
Susie Rotolo, Bob Dylan’s lover in the early sixties, died last month, and NPR recently played an excerpt from a 2008 interview with her. I was very moved by the interview, and felt that it gave me a startling and fresh perspective on an important part of Dylan’s early work—his love (and hate) songs, and […]
