Threads and Tangents Music Hour

Threads and Tangents 11/7/23 - Sunsets

This week's musical thread is Sunsets. Another special thing about our little slice of paradise is the sunsets on Bellingham Bay. Thanks to Jeff, out in Virginia, for suggesting this musical thread.   We'll hear music about the sun going down from: Leonard Bernstein & the New York Philharmonic Orchestra, PJ Harvey, John Hiatt, The Kinks, Gordon Lightfoot, Laurie Lewis & The Right Hands, Hayes McMullen, Memphis Minnie, Charlie Musselwhite, The New Reso Gathering, Pink Floyd, The Tannahill Weavers, Little Stevie Wonder, and Neil Young. Anything on your mind? Email me at threadsandtangents@kmre.org

Threads and Tangents 10/31/23 - Halloween

This week's musical thread is Halloween, so I’ll be playing spooky songs for you.We'll hear music from: Rory Block, David Bromberg, Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds, Donovan, The Dream Syndicate, Danny Elfman, Roky Erickson and The Aliens, Johnny Fuller, The Fuzztones, Howlin' Wolf, Minus 5, The Pretty Things, The Red Stick Ramblers, and The Shaggs. Anything on your mind? Email me at threadsandtangents@kmre.org

Threads and Tangents 10/24/23 - The Moon

This week's musical thread is songs inspired by the moon.  Jeff, a listener in Charlottesville suggested it, pointing out that it’s been pretty popular with songwriters, especially in the first half of the last century. That, and the upcoming lunar eclipse makes this feel like the right time to take a deep dive into moon songs.We'll hear music from: Alison Brown, The Brothers Comatose with AJ Lee, Nick Drake, Robyn Hitchcock, Billie Holiday, The Lasses, The Neville Brothers, John Prine, Snooky Pryor & Johnny Shines, Tony Rice, Stillhouse Junkies, Molly Tuttle, and Keller & the Keels.Anything on your mind? Email me at threadsandtangents@kmre.org 

Threads and Tangents 10/17/23 - Musical Kings

This week's musical thread is Musical Kings - musicians with "king" in their name.  We'll hear music from: King Sunny Adé, Nat King Cole, King Curtis, Albert King, BB King, Ben E. King, Carole King, Chris Thomas King, Earl King, Eddie King, Freddie King, Kaki King, Pee Wee King, King Bennie Nawahi, and King Oliver.Anything on your mind? Email me at threadsandtangents@kmre.org

Threads and Tangents 10/10/23 - John Prine’s birthday

October 10th is John Prine’s birthday so this week's musical thread has got to be about John, though instead of hearing John play his own songs we’ll hear covers of his songs plus a couple written about John.    Before you start, you might want pour yourself a Handsome Johnny to enjoy during the show.  It was Prine’s signature cocktail and he gave us the ingredients in the When I Go to Heaven chorus.  The recipe’s simple enough: fill a cocktail glass with ice, add a couple of ounces of vodka and enough ginger ale to top off the glass.  John recommends diet ginger ale.  Then stir it and drop in a slice of lemon in the summer, or lime in the winter,We'll hear music from: Joan Baez & Kris Kristofferson, Califone, Drive-By Truckers, Jeffrey Foucault, Steve Goodman, Sierra Hull, Will Kimbrough, Bettye LaVette, Bonnie Raitt with John, Todd Snider, Justin Vernon, and Kurt Vile. Anything on your mind? Email me at threadsandtangents@kmre.org

Threads and Tangents 10/3/23 - Flying

This week's musical thread is Flying.  I'll play songs about being up in the air, in one way or another.We'll hear music from: Chuck Berry, The Box Tops, The Byrds, Eddie Floyd, Kinky Friedman, Arlo Guthrie, John Hartford, Joni Mitchell, Tom Paxton, Pink Floyd, William Shatner, Frank Sinatra, Todd Snider, and Townes van Zandt. 
Anything on your mind? Email me at threadsandtangents@kmre.org

Threads and Tangents 9/26/23 - Loose Threads

This week's musical thread is Loose Threads. Each week, I come across way more songs than I can fit in a one-hour program. So this is my chance to go back to a few of the episodes and play some songs that I wished I’d been able to play the first time around, and also to include some songs listeners thought I missed.We'll hear from episodes about:BUGS - Big Jay McNeely, George Crumb, Haley Heynderickx, and Dave Matthews BandWOODY GUTHRIE COVERED - Tony Furtado & Kristin Andreassen, Scott McCaughey/Peter Buck/Jon Neufeld, Pharis & Jason Romero, and Ben Hunter & Joe Seamons1973 - IF, Family, and Weather ReportRIVERS - Loggins & Messina, The Special Consensus, Bill Morrissey, and Fireside Collective.
Anything on your mind? Email me at threadsandtangents@kmre.org

Threads and Tangents 9/19/23 - Bellingham Celtic Festival

This week's musical thread is the Bellingham Celtic Festival on September 21 - 24.  You'll hear my conversation with the Festival Director Cayley Schmid, and music from: Biddy on the Bench, Baron Collins-Hill, Countercurrent, Timothy Cummings, Feddersen/Gourley/Miller, Kate Gregory, Lindsay Street, The Moving Hats, Ramblxr, Schmid & Guest, Scottish Fish, Alex Sturbaum, and Talisk.Anything on your mind? Email me at threadsandtangents@kmre.org Continued thanks to Mary for her way-cool graphic design work.

Threads and Tangents 9/12/23 - More music in Bellingham

This week I’ll play more music from performers that I’ve seen in and around Bellingham over the past twelve months.  I started this thread two weeks ago (with a break for the Kerouac episode) and I'll finish it up tonight. We'll hear music from: Robert Sarazin Blake, Devin Champlin, David Grisman Quintet featuring Matt Eakle, Steve Earle, Jerry Steinhilber Trio featuring George Garzone, Hamell on Trial, Thomas Harris and Miles Black, Cindy Cashdollar & Sonny Landreth, Los Lobos, Jonathan Richman, Three for Silver, and Cedric Watkins & Jourdan Thibodeaux.
Thanks to Mary for her way-cool graphic design work. 

Threads and Tangents 9/5/23 - Jack Kerouac: On The Road

September 5th is the 66th anniversary of the publication of On The Road, so I’m I'll take a deep dive into the music Jack Kerouac listened to, songs that were written about Jack (Neal and Stella too), and Jack reading from On The Road and other works.
We'll hear from: 10,000 Maniacs, Jay Farrar & Ben Gibbard, the Slim Gaillard Trio, Dizzy Gillespie featuring Charlie Parker, Billie Holiday, Gregory Alan Isakov, Jack Kerouac & Steve Allen, King Crimson, Bob Martin, Morphine, the George Shearing Quintet, and Tom Waits.
Hardcore Kerouac fans may recognize the image in the episode graphic. It's from a poster I got (41 years ago!) at the 25th anniversary conference held in Boulder. Thanks to Mary for her way-cool graphic design work.