Monday, 11 May 2020

KSHE KLASSICS SHOW, Mother's Day, 2020

[As you may or may not know, i live in Canada, and for some reason KSHE doesn't stream their audio to here; i have to connect via a VPN, to spoof a non-Canadian address. This week, according to https://whatismyipaddress.com/ i was listening from Norfolk, Virginia, for the second week in a row.]

Quotation Of The Week ~ Robert Frost: In three words I can sum up everything I've learned about life: it goes on.

As my regular reader will appreciate, this week's blog post is unprecedented. This may well be only the third time in forty years i haven't had to work on Mother's Day: and it's certainly the first time i've had it off since i discovered The Klassics Show, whenever that was – twelve or so years ago. Mother's Day is the busiest day of the year at my other job, but this year, thanks to the global pandemic, they're not expecting the usual insanity. The others should be able to handle it.

(Normally, in order to get Mother's Day off, i need special permission from the Archbishop Of Canterbury. It's a simple procedure, though – virtually a rubber stamp. His Grace Justin Welby [the current A. Of C.] flies over in his private jet and we meet at Bentley's [pub] for dinner and a few beers, play a few games of darts [he's darned good, too!] and have a few more drinks. Then, while he's still capable of holding a pen, i give him the papers to sign and pour him into a cab to take him back to his hotel. Easy-peasy. And i go back to the bar. Of course, this year, the bars are all closed anyway, so getting the necessary permission would have been impossible.)

Well, dammit, this week's instalment almost received a grade of “A+” but i can tell you in one word why it didn't: REO Speedwagon and their pathetic excuse for a vocalist, Kevin Cronin. (OK, that was more than one word.) I've tried to like the band, i really have, and i know how very popular they are in St Louis, but i'd rather listen to Yoko One screeching .... Er, maybe not. Bad example. You get the idea, though.

When any radio show begins with one of my favourite songs of all time, from one of my favourite albums, you know it's grabbed my attention. Then, after a couple of pretty good selections, wop-bam-boom, a track from what may be my favourite Genesis album! Then Horslips, Steely Dan, Wings, The Beatles, Loggins & Messina, The Kinks, Yes, Warren Zevon and a track from ELO's first – and best IMO -- album. My week was made.

John Ulett, the host, said, as he was introducing the first song today, that although he'd never actually seen Northern Lights, he'd love to some day but as no one is travelling anywhere these days, here's a picture for you, brother, and the playlist (he may read this, you never know!):



Renaissance – Northern Lights
Bob Weir – Bombs Away
Neil Young – My My Hey Hey (Out Of The Blue)
Genesis – The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway
Horslips – The Man Who Built America
Deep Purple – Might Just Take Your Life
Starz – Cherry Baby
Foghat – Take Me To The River
Bruce Springsteen – Streets Of Fire
Angel – Rock And Rollers
Santana – Over And Over
Flame – Beg Me
Steely Dan – Doctor Wu
Michael Franks – Born With The Moon In Virgo
Heartsfield – House Of Living
The Marshall Tucker Band – Desert Skies
Dave Mason – Lonely One
Paul McCartney & Wings – Let 'Em In
The Beatles – I'm Looking Through You
Head East – Love Me Tonight
Loggins & Messina – My Music
The Kinks – All Day And All Of The Night
Joe Walsh – At The Station
Grand Funk Railroad – Some Kind Of Wonderful
Breathless – Takin' It Back
Yes – Perpetual Change
Warren Zevon – Poor, Poor Pitiful Me
Ten Years After – Choo Choo Mamma
Montrose – Rock The Nation
REO Speedwagon – Being Kind (Can Hurt Someone Sometimes)
U.K. -- Nothing To Lose (live)
Jars Of Clay – Flood
The Rolling Stones – As Tears Go By
Steppenwolf – Sookie Sookie
Jefferson Starship – Count On Me
The Grateful Dead – Tennesse Jed
Heart – Rockin' Down Heaven
The Climax Blues Band – Couldn't Get It Right
The Electric Light Orchestra – 10538 Overture
George Harrison – Dark Horse
Styx – Snowblind
The Doors -- Gloria

Here at home, we played an abnormally large number of “best of” collections this week. (Not that there is any “normal” any more.) This may be significant, on the other hand it may not be, who knows nowadays. Anyway, here's what troubled the optical drive chez nous in the past seven days:

Yes – Keys To Ascension
Sweet – The Best Of Sweet
Chicago – Chicago II
Warren Zevon – Genius: The Best Of Warren Zevon
UB40 – The Best Of UB40, 1980 – 2000
The All-American Rejects – The All-American Rejects
Ute Lemper – Illusions
Carbon Leaf – Love, Loss, Hope, Repeat
Loggins & Messina – Sittin' In Again
The Beatles – Rubber Soul
George Harrison – Best Of Dark Horse 1976-1989
Steve Winwood – The Finer Things
Jack Lancaster et al. -- Peter And The Wolf
The Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band – Gorilla
Emerson, Lake & Palmer – Trilogy
Focus – Hamburger Concerto
Manfred Mann's Earthband – Chance
Lisa Gerrard & Patrick Cassidy – Immortal Memory
Sparks – Lil' Beethoven
The Cure – Greatest Hits
London Grammar – If You Want
Max Webster – Max Webster
Paul Simon – In The Blue Light
The Pretenders – Greatest Hits
Wizzard – Wizzard Brew
French, Frith, Kaiser, Thompson – Live, Love, Larf & Loaf
ABBA – Gold: Greatest Hits
Rita Coolidge – The Best Of Rita Coolidge
Sheryl Crow – Threads
Steeleye Span – Est'd 1969
Allan Holdsworth – Metal Fatigue
Great Big Sea – Fortune's Favour
Jefferson Airplane -- Volunteers

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