Category: Best of Reggae & Ska

On Monday It’s ‘The Best of Reggae & Ska,’ New Live Joni Mitchell, and a Gov’t Mule ‘Spotlight’ Feature, October 6, 2025

Welcome back to the work week, music lovers! We open it up today with some great island music, then it’s brand new live Joni Mitchell vintage 1966, and then Gov’t Mule.

Here’s your Monday, Monday lineup:

10:00 a.m. The Best of Reggae & Ska: Various Artists

This one’s coming up on a major update which could move it into EP status. We’ll have to see but, in the meantime, you’ll hear Bob Marley & The Wailers, Prince Buster, Desmond Dekker (with and without The Aces), Laurel Aitken, Judy Mowatt, Rita Marley, Derrick Morgan, Jimmy Cliff, The Rhythm Aces, Peter Tosh, Marcia Griffiths, The Jiving Juniors, and more!

4:00 p.m. Joni Mitchell Live at The Second Fret, Philadelphia, PA, November 17, 1966 NEW!

Time for a trip in the Wayback Machine for this one, all the way to 1966 before Joni burst onto the “scene.” It may not be new, but it’s new to our station.

8:00 p.m. In the Spotlight: The Music of Gov’t Mule

We close it out with Gov’t Mule, a Southern bluesy jam band started by former Allman Brothers guitarist Warren Haynes back in 1994.

It’s the beginning another work week, but not all is lost when you’ve got the best music on the planet to get you through. Just hit the button below and see for yourselves!

Best of Reggae & Ska!

On Friday, We Open With Reggae, Then It’s Hot Tuna Live at The Fillmore, and The Kinks ‘In The Spotlight’, July 18, 2025

Good morning, musicologists! We are opening the morning today with our ‘Best of Reggae & Ska’ playlist, then we move on to some blues-rock from Hot Tuna, and the battling Davies brothers and The Kinks.

Here’s your Friday lineup:

10:00 a.m. The Best of Reggae & Ska: Various Artists

We’re heading for an EP with this one, but we’re not there yet. You’ll hear Bob Marley & The Wailers, Peter Tosh, Prince Buster, Jimmy Cliff, Laurel Aitken, Desmond Dekker & The Aces (and some without the Aces), Judy Mowatt, Rita Marley, Marcia Griffiths, The Rhythm Aces, Derrick Morgan, and more!

4:00 p.m. Hot Tuna Live at The Fillmore, San Francisco, CA, March 4, 1988

Rising up out of the ashes of Jefferson Airplane came the great blues-rock band Hot Tuna, led by Jorma Kaukonen and Jack Casady. Today we have them live from The Fillmore.

8:00 p.m. In The Spotlight: The Music of The Kinks

One of the best bands of The British Invasion that has stood the test of time, despite the battling Davies brothers. This is a great playlist, and a great way to close the programming.

This is a pretty eclectic chunk of programming today, but that is what we are all about. If you’re listening during the day, you know our stream is all in the eclectic zone. See for yourselves. The button is below!

Best of Reggae & Ska!

Monday, Monday Brings ‘The Best of Reggae & Ska,’ a Sly & The Family Stone ‘Spotlight’ and Hendrix Live at a Volcano (No Lie), On May 19, 2025

Good morning, working class! We’re back to Monday and the journey begins with some great programming sprinkled in with our big, wide Open Stream!

Here’s your Monday, Monday lineup:

9:00 a.m. The Best of Reggae & Ska: Various Artists

We’ve been remiss in playing this, but here it is. You’ll her Bob Marley & The Wailers, Prince Buster, Desmond Dekker (with and without The Aces), Laurel Aitken, Derrick Morgan, Jimmy Cliff, Judy Mowatt, Rita Marley, The Rhythm Aces, Peter Tosh, Marcia Griffiths, The Jiving Juniors, Bunny Wailer and more!

4:00 p.m. In The Spotlight: The Music of Sly & The Family Stone

One of the greatest bands of the sixties and seventies (1963-1975) without a doubt. They had so many great songs and so many great messages for us all.

8:00 p.m. Jimi Hendrix Experience Live at Tha Haleakala Volcano, Maui, HI, July 30, 1970

A stage was built right there in a cow pasture near Olinda in front of the dormant Haleakala Volcano, and Hendrix and his mates gave a free concert for the filming of Michael Jeffery’s movie, Rainbow Bridge. The performance was called the “Rainbow Bridge Vibratory Color Sound Experiment,” and the band played two sets. The audience was organized via their astrological signs. No lie.

Another work week begins, but we’re here for you all week without interruption to help get you through and back to another weekend. The button, of course, is below.

Monday, Monday

We Keep It Simple On Monday With ‘The Best of Reggae & Ska’ and ‘The Original Sixties Rotation’ EP, July 22, 2024

Good morning, musicologists everywhere! We are back to Monday, Monday again and we’ve got some great stuff waiting in the wings!

Here’s your musical lineup:

10:00 a.m. The Best of Reggae & Ska: Various Artists

Time to bust this one out again! We’ll hear Bob Marley & The Wailers, Prince Buster, Desmond Dekker & The Aces, Peter Tosh, Jimmy Cliff, Judy Mowatt, Laurel Aitken, Marcia Griffiths, Rita Marley, The Jiving Juniors, Derrick Morgan, The I-Threes and many more!

3:00 p.m. The Original Sixties Rotation: Various Artists

One of our original playlists that morphed into a monster and split in two. In this volume you’ll hear The Beatles, The Monkees, Sonny & Cher, Joe Cocker, Simon & Garfunkel, Little Eva, The Everly Brothers, the Searchers, Dusty Springfield, The Drifters, The Dave Clark Five, Johnny Rivers, Bob Dylan, The Animals, Petula Clark, The Rolling Stones, Procol Harum, The Turtles, Del Shannon, The Temptations, James Brown, Fontella Bass, The Box Tops, Blues Image, Booker T & The MG’s, The Four Tops, The Lovin’ Spoonful, Them, The Left Banke, Fats Domino and many more!

Before, in between and all through the night it’s our big, wide Open Stream. And today is no exception. We’re totally free and we’re also totally free of commercial advertising. Use the button below.

Monday, Monday.

‘The Best of Reggae & Ska’, ‘Soulsville, USA’ and ‘Live’ Mudcrutch Are All On Tap For Monday, May 20, 2024

Good morning, workforce! We’re all back at it for another week and we aim to start it off on a great note with a pretty eclectic lineup!

Here’s your Monday, Monday lineup:

10:00 a.m. The Best of Reggae & Ska: Various Artists

We love this playlist, but it’s a first pass. We are poised for expansion and, perhaps, splitting it into two volumes, but I digress. You will hear Bob Marley & The Wailers, Prince Buster, Desmond Dekker (with and without The Aces), Peter Tosh, Jimmy Cliff, Judy Mowatt, Laurel Aitken, Marcia Griffiths, Rita Marley, The Jiving Juniors, Derrick Morgan and more!

4:00 p.m. Soulsville, USA: The Music of Stax Records

There’s Motown and then there’s Stax, where the ‘house’ band was the great Booker T & The MG’s. In addition to Booker T, you’ll hear Albert King, Otis Redding, Sam & Dave, The Staple Singers, Carla Thomas, Eddie Floyd, Isaac Hayes, The Dramatics and more. By the way, the Stax documentary produced by HBO begins streaming today!

7:00 p.m. Mudcrutch Live at The Fonda Theater, Hollywood, CA, June 26, 2016

We’ve got a Mudcrutch Monday on tap today as we give you their live performance from the band’s great 2016 tour. Still kicking myself for missing them at Boston’s House of Blues, but at least I have this!

Yes, it’s Monday and Mondays suck in general, but they don’t have to. Just join us here. We’ll make your life better. And we’re free.

Soulsville, USA!

We Begin Anew With Emmylou Harris, The Best of Reggae & SKA and Music From ‘The Queens’, Monday, April 1, 2024

Good morning, music lovers! It may be April Fool’s Day, but we’re not fooling around here in The Mermaid Lounge. After a day off from programming we’re back with some great programming selections!

Here’s your April Fools Day lineup:

10:00 a.m. Emmylou Harris With The Daniel Lanois Band Live at Shepherd’s Bush Empire, London, UK, November 23, 1995

On her eighteenth studio album, Wrecking Ball, Emmylou Harris moved away from her traditional acoustic sound to work with Daniel Lanois. I don’t need to write a trove of stuff here when you can read this great review from Pitchfork. We start the day with her live performance with The Daniel Lanois band in 1995. Hear it for yourself.

2:00 p.m. The Best of Reggae & Ska: Various Artists

We will be expanding this soon, but for now it’s a pretty damned good playlist. You’ll hear Bob Marley & The Wailers, Prince Buster, Desmond Dekker & The Aces, Laurel Aitken, Derrick Morgan, Jimmy Cliff, Peter Tosh, Judy Mowatt, Bunny Wailer, Rita Marley, The Rhythm Aces, Marcia Griffiths, the Jiving Juniors and more!

7:00 p.m. Long Live The Queens: Various Artists

Haven’t spun this one for a while, but we give you Koko Taylor (The Queen of The Blues), Aretha Franklin (The Queen of Soul), Irma Thomas (The Soul Queen of New Orleans), and Linda Ronstadt (The Queen of Rock) all in one very enjoyable playlist. Don’t miss it.

Time flies when you’re having fun, and we are having fun here in The Mermaid Lounge. It’s already April and we’re easing into a new approach here and we’ll be adding new artists that have been on the waiting list for a while. Keep us tuned in.

Spring Is In the Air

The Week’s End Brings ‘The Best of Reggae & Ska’, Dan Fogelberg and ‘Live’ Bob Dylan in ’63, Friday, February 2, 2024

Good morning, Dylan historians. We close out the week with some brand new Bob Dylan in a historic concert right here in my state! Read on!

Here’s your Friday musical lineup:

9:00 a.m.  The Best of Reggae & Ska: Various Artists

We start the day off with some great reggae, ska and rocksteady with Bob Marley & The Wailers, Prince Buster, Judy Mowatt, Jimmy Cliff, Basil Gabbidon, The Rhythm Aces, Derrick Morgan, Laurel Aitken, Toots & The Maytals, Count Lasher, The Jiving Juniors, Marcia Griffiths, Rita Marley, Desmond Decker & The Aces, The I-Threes, Bunny Wailer, Peter Tosh and more!

4:00 p.m.  Singer-Songwriter Series: The Music of Dan Fogelberg FINAL AIRING!

Dan Fogelberg gets his final airing as our featured singer-songwriter for the week, but his music is in our standard rotation and you’ll hear him frequently here. A new artist will be introduced on Monday!

8:00 p.m.  Bob Dylan Live at The First Brandeis Folk Festival, Brandeis University, Waltham, MA, May 10, 1963 NEW!

It is said that this was Bob Dylan’s final show before stardom; happening two weeks before the release of The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan. Dylan (21 years old at the time) performed two seven-song sets on that day, and they were recorded. The tapes sat for half a century in the basement of Rolling Stone co-founder Ralph Gleason. Yes, it’s just seven songs, but it’s musical history in the making.

Join us today. I don’t mind telling you that, not only are we missing our winters here, but this year it has been like moving to London. It’s yet another unseasonably warm, cloudy dreary day. But it seems like, on the horizon, we have some sun coming for an extended period. Just. No. Snow. And that ain’t right in these parts.

Dylan at Brandeis ’63

Friday Brings ‘The Best of Reggae & Ska’ Playlist, Hank Williams’ Final Spin and ‘Live’ Dr. John, December 29, 2023

Good morning and welcome to the end of the work week! We’ve got a great eclectic lineup ready to go today, so tune us in!

Here’s your musical landscape:

10:00 a.m. The Best of Reggae, Rocksteady & Ska: Various Artists

We’re back with our reggae, ska and rocksteady playlist featuring Bob Marley & The Wailers, Prince Buster, Judy Mowatt, Jimmy Cliff, Basil Gabbidon, The Rhythm Aces, Derrick Morgan, Laurel Aitken, Count Lasher, The Jiving Juniors, Marcia Griffiths, Rita Marley, Desmond Dekker & The Aces, The I-Threes, Bunny Wailer, Peter Tosh, Toots & The Maytals and more!

4:00 p.m.  Singer-Songwriter Series: The Music of Hank Williams FINAL AIRING!

We bid a fond farewell to Hank Williams as this week’s featured singer-songwriter, but rest assured he is a big part of our standard rotation. We’ll have a new artist on Saturday.

8:00 p.m.  Dr. John Live at The Lonestar, New York, NY, December 22 & 23, 1986 NEW!

We have a new-to-the-station live performance from The Nitetripper, vintage 1986 in New York City.

Every day is a good day here in The Mermaid Lounge. We don’t play any bad music. We don’t charge you to listen to our station, we don’t track you, ask you for personal info or a credit card. We’re all about the music.

The Best of Reggae & Ska!

The Best of Reggae & Ska, Singer-Songwriter John Fogerty, and New Heartbreakers are All on Tap for Friday, October 27, 2023

Good morning, musicologists! We’ve made it to Friday, and that is always a good thing because we are officially weekenders!

Here’s today’s musical lineup:

10:00 a.m. The Best of Reggae, Rocksteady and Ska: Various Artists

We’ve got all the greats you know, and some you may never have heard. You’ll hear Prince Buster, Bob Marley & The Wailers, Judy Mowatt, Jimmy Cliff, Basil Gabbidon, The Rhythm Aces, Derrick Morgan, Laurel Aitken, Count Lasher, The Jiving Juniors, Marcia Griffiths, Rita Marley, Desmond Dekker & The Aces, The I-Threes, Bunny Wailer, Peter Tosh, Toots & The Maytals and more!

4:00 p.m. Singer-Songwriter Series: The Music of John Fogerty FINAL AIRING!

We bid a fond farewell to John Fogerty today, the heart and soul of Creedence Clearwater Revival. Tomorrow we’ll introduce a brand new artist.

8:00 p.m. Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers: The Fillmore ’97 Covers NEW!

We’re pretty obsessed with The Heartbreakers as a cover band. No doubt about it, they’re the best. They respect the intentions of the composers and play them the way they were meant to be played. Their heralded 20-night residency at the famed Fillmore in 1997 was an amazing feat, changing the set list every night, allowing the fans to request songs and help build the show, and having special guests like Roger McGuinn and John Lee Hooker on stage with them. Tonight we give you a couple of hours of covers from the Fillmore ’97 residency. Not to be missed.

We’ve made it to the end of the week and that is, without a doubt, a good thing. Especially since I leave on vacation today. But hey, the beauty of running an Internet radio station is that you can do it from anywhere. And so we shall. Stay tuned…

Just Push Play.

Monday’s Back, But We’ve Got the Best of Reggae & Ska, America In the Spotlight, and New ‘Live’ George Harrison, September 18, 2023

Good morning, musicologists! We’re back to help ease you into Monday with our ‘Best of Reggae & Ska’ playlist, a Spotlight featuring America and George Harrison in Maryland on The Dark Horse Tour.

Here’s your Monday lineup:

10:00 a.m. The Best of Reggae, Ska and Rocksteady: Various Artists

We’ve got all the greats with Prince Buster, Bob Marley & The Wailers, Judy Mowatt, Jimmy Cliff, Basil Gabbidon, The Rhythm Aces, Derrick Morgan, Laurel Aitken, Count Lasher, The Jiving Juniors, Marcia Griffiths, Rita Marley, Desmond Dekker, The I-Threes, Bunny Wailer, Peter Tosh, Toots & The Maytals and more!

4:00 p.m. In the Spotlight: The Music of America

America is most remembered for their string of folk hits, like Sister Golden Hair, Tin Man, Sandman (a really great tune), and Don’t Cross the River. But America made some of the most alluring and creative music that was not released as singles. Albums like Hat Trick, Hideaway and Holiday had some incredible unreleased tunes on them. Give this playlist a listen and you can hear them.

7:00 p.m. George Harrison Live at The Capitol Centre, Landover, MD, December 13, 1974 NEW!

George Harrison on the Dark Horse Tour, which was somehow billed as a disaster. There was a lot of that going around after The Beatles broke up. Nevertheless, George Harrison went on to have a great solo career, proving himself an amazing songwriter and musician, and the founding genius behind The Traveling Wilburys.

Start your week off on the right foot but getting behind some great music. We’re on 24/7 without commercial interruption and we are free of charge. Join our international community now!

The Best of Reggae & Ska