Category: ROCK

Welcome To Sunday With Bobbie Gentry Owning Our Album of The Week and Our ‘Ode To Morning’ EP, February 6, 2022

Good Morning, Musicologists! We’ve got a great line-up for you today as we finally focus a bit on Bobbie Gentry, a musical pioneer who is often overlooked. No more. Today is just the beginning.

Remembered for her hit “Ode To Billie Joe,” Bobbie Gentry was so much more than that. But we start there today.

Here’s today’s line-up:

11:00 a.m. Album of The Week: Ode To Billie Joe by Bobbie Gentry NEW!

This is another artist who has been high on our list, but when you’re a one-woman band here it takes time. Bobbie Gentry really just wanted to write songs to sell to others. She never really wanted to perform her own work. But singing Ode To Billie Joe was cheaper than hiring someone else to do it, so she went into the studio. The rest is history, and the album garnered several Grammy Awards. The problem is that people only remember her for Ode to Billie Joe, and she was so much more. We will begin to reveal the many facets of Bobbie Gentry today.

3:00 p.m. Ode To Morning: Various Artists

This is the second airing of our newest EP. Last week we gave you our ‘Here Comes The Night’ EP, so this week we give you our songs that focus on the morning. You’ll hear Nanci Griffith, The Beatles, Bob Dylan, Dusty Springfield, Linda Ronstadt, Alison Krauss & Union Station, Electric Light Orchestra, Harry Nilsson, Emmylou Harris, The Wallflowers, Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers, Norah Jones, Todd Rundgren, Gordon Lightfoot, Willie Nelson, Jefferson Airplane, Harry Chapin, Three Dog Night, Neil Young, Joni Mitchell, Foreigner, Gram Parsons, Taj Mahal, James Taylor, Cat Stevens, B.B. King, Hoyt Axton, Townes Van Zandt, Badfinger, Chris Hillman, Hot Tuna, Fairport Convention, Stevie Ray Vaughan, The Association.

This would be a most excellent day to join the rest of the listeners from around the world. I must say, I believe we are also catching on here in the U.S. these days. Hell, we’re so much better than Spotify. We don’t charge you to be misinformed. And we don’t charge you for the music either. All you need to do is push the button below.

Put It Right Here.

The Original Sixties EP, The Final Airing of “Sticky Fingers” and LIVE DEAD! All On Tap For Saturday, February 5, 2022

Good Morning, Weekenders! Some of us have to work in retail for a living, but many of you can start to enjoy our weekend offering today!

It’s baaaaaack!

Here’s your Saturday line-up:

10:00 a.m. The Original Sixties Rotation: Various Artists

Ah, yes. The music that is the lynchpin of this radio station. One of our very first playlists ever created here. You will hear from The Monkees, Sonny & Cher, Mary Wells, Dusty Springfield, The Drifters, The Beatles, Gerry & The Pacemakers, The Hollies, Petula Clark, Buddy Holly, The Kinks, Neil Diamond, The Band, The Yardbirds, The Searchers, The Rolling Stones, Donovan, Bob Dylan, Fats Domino, Simon & Garfunkel, The Supremes, Aretha Franklin, and many more. More than five hours of uninterrupted sixties music.

7:00 p.m. Album of The Week: Sticky Fingers by The Rolling Stones FINAL AIRING!

Today we have the final airing of Sticky Fingers, our current Album of The Week. Tomorrow, we’ll have a brand new selection for you.

10:00 p.m. LIVE DEAD! The Grateful Dead Live at Hampton Coliseum, Hampton, Virginia, March 27, 1988 NEW!

Another great soundboard recording of the world’s ultimate road and jam band for your listening pleasure. This one is from the Hampton Coliseum.

In addition to all this great Saturday programming, you’ll get our usual wide Open Stream courtesy of The Music Mermaid. She has impeccable musical taste, as you well know if you tune us in every day. We won’t cost you a cent. This isn’t Spotify. We don’t air medical misinformation, nor are we seeking to turn our little station into a repository of talking heads. Join us (figuratively, that is). There are no subscription fees and no joining fees.

Put the Cursor Here.

It’s Pouring Rain Here and We’ve Got Our ‘Water, Water Everywhere’ EP On Tap Along With Buddy Holly In The Spotlight, Friday, February 4, 2022

Good Morning, Music Lovers! We’ve got a great line-up on tap today including, appropriately, our ‘Water, Water Everywhere’ EP on a day that is pouring rain (last week at this time, it was a blizzard). But that’s not all. Read on for details!

Today, we finally put Buddy Holly, a true founding father of rock n’ roll, In the Spotlight!

Here’s your Friday line-up:

11:00 a.m. Water, Water Everywhere: Various Artists

I promise I didn’t plan this to be aired on a day when it’s pouring out. It kind of just happens that way, but we do have it on tap, as we say. You’ll hear from Valerie Carter, Bob Dylan, The Band, Linda Ronstadt, Neil Young, Bruce Springsteen, Deep Purple, Alison Krauss & Union Station, Bruce Hornsby, The Grass Roots, Creedence Clearwater Revival, Steely Dan, Tom Rush, Lindesfarne, Electric Light Orchestra, Gordon Lightfoot, Bonnie Raitt, Carole King, Mudcrutch, Tedeschi Trucks Band, Tracy Nelson, B.J. Thomas, Al Green, Foo Fighters, and more!

7:00 p.m. In The Spotlight: The Music of Buddy Holly NEW!

It was 63 years ago yesterday, on February 3, 1959, that the plane carrying Buddy Holly, Richie Valens, and J.P. Richardson (also known as The Big Bopper) went down in Clear Lake, Iowa. It was “the day the music died” for Don McLean, as he relayed so eloquently in his song American Pie. We are not focusing on all three here, but we are putting Buddy Holly In the Spotlight. He and his band, The Crickets, had a profound effect on many who came after him. Although The Beatles only recorded one of his songs for an album, they used to fill their early live shows with several of his songs. His songs have also been covered by Linda Ronstadt, Eva Cassidy, The Rolling Stones, Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers, Elvis Costello, Bruce Springsteen and many others. Today, we give you Buddy Holly & The Crickets singing his own songs, but we close out the playlist with a few of our favorite covers as well as Don McLean’s opus, American Pie as the final tribute.

Great day to tune us in. Actually, I know I say that every day, but it is the truth, after all. We run totally free 24/7 with no commercial advertising. We’re all about the music, and nothing but the music. So help me, Buddha.

Just Push Play.

Heading Toward The Weekend, We’ve Got Songs About Luck and Chance, America In The Spotlight, and Our AOW, On Thursday, February 3, 2022

Good Morning, Early Risers! We’ve got some great stuff on tap today as we slide on down toward the weekend, including songs about good luck, bad luck, and just pure dumb luck.

Today’s musical line-up. In a nutshell.

Here are all the details on today’s line-up:

11:00 a.m. Good Luck, Bad Luck, Dumb Luck: Various Artists UPDATED!

We were on a roll here last night and added a few more songs to the list of songs about good luck, bad luck, and just pure dumb luck. You’ll hear Alison Krauss & Union Station, Bonnie Raitt, Linda Ronstadt, The Rolling Stones, Joe Walsh, Emerson, Lake & Palmer, Bruce Springsteen, Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers, Bob Dylan, Sheryl Crow, Paul McCartney (with and without Wings), Cream, The Byrds, Mary Chapin Carpenter, and more!

3:00 p.m. Album of The Week: Sticky Fingers by The Rolling Stones

Time for my Thursday mantra: Time’s getting short on this one. The final airing will be on Saturday, so get it in while you can! On Sunday, we’ve got a brand new selection to unveil.

7:00 p.m. In the Spotlight: The Music of America

Like all bands, the story of America doesn’t just lie in their “hits.” Those are the songs that the record company knows will certainly sell. The success of those songs also gives bands the creative license they need to produce great work. America is no exception. People refer to their stuff as soft rock, and I guess that’s one term. This band was so much more. For me, they are more along the folk-rock line, with unbelievable melodies and harmonies, and pretty fair songwriting. They’re up In The Spotlight tonight.

Come on, folks. Tune us in. We don’t even charge you. We’re in this for the music, and the music alone. And frankly, if nobody listened, I’d still be doing this. It’s my personal project. I’m sharing my music collection. Just push play. Okay?

PUSH HERE.

We’re at Midweek With Our ‘Here Comes The Night’ EP and The Beatles Album Openers Later, Wednesday, February 2, 2022

Good Morning, Musicologists! We’ve hit our midweek stride with a great EP about night time, and a brand new playlist of songs that open the Beatles US and UK album releases.

The Beatles album openers are on tap for later!

Here’s today’s musical landscape:

10:00 a.m. Here Comes The Night: Various Artists

We’ve got an EP dedicated to the morning, and we’ve got one for the night. Songs with the word “night” in the title, lyrics, or both is on tap for this morning. You’ll hear Warren Zevon, the J. Geils Band, Poco, Cat Stevens, Neil Diamond, Bonnie Raitt, The Traveling Wilburys, The Beatles, Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers, Joe Walsh, the Ronettes, Linda Ronstadt, Joni Mitchell, Emmylou Harris, Dr. John, Bob Dylan, Wilson Pickett, Steelers Wheel, Gregg Allman, Sam Cooke, Phoebe Snow, The Electric Prunes, Jimmy Cliff, and more!

7:00 p.m. The Beatles: The LP Opening Songs NEW!

Some playlists are long; others short. By our standards, this one is pretty short but oh, so sweet. We give you the opening songs from both the US and UK Beatle album releases. As you know, some were different country-to-country and, in some cases, albums were released in one country and not in another. We do not focus on compilations or post-career releases…just the studio albums released on the Beatles labels over the years (Capitol, Parlophone, Apple, and so on).

A couple of more comments on this playlist, there is a complete list (with notes) on the blog under the Playlist tab should you wish to take a look. And while some sources do not include “With A Little Help From My Friends” as part of the opening to Sgt. Pepper, we here in The Mermaid Lounge do.

Come on, people. It’s midweek and we’re going strong around the planet this morning. It’s time to tune us in. We’re free 24/7. No credit card or subscription required. No personal information requested. We’re all about the music.

Just Push Play.

We Open The Month With Tuesday Bluesday and John Mayall Live in the UK, While The Heartbreakers Sing the Blues, February 1, 2022

Good Morning, Bluesologists! We open the month of February with a Tuesday Bluesday, and we’ve got some new live John Mayall coming your way for starters.

John Mayall, the Godfather of The British Blues, has been wailing the blues for more than 50 years!

Here’s today’s blues programming:

11:00 a.m. John Mayall Live at The Leicester Square Theatre, London, November 1, 2010 NEW!

The Godfather of The British Blues has recently announced his retirement from the road in his 80th year, but today we’ve got a new live performance to give you from 2010 in the UK. The good news is that Mayall also just released a new album, The Sun is Shining Down, which will soon be our Album of The Week.

3:00 p.m. Album of The Week: Sticky Fingers by The Rolling Stones

Today is the second airing of our latest Album of The Week, and it’s undoubtedly one of our favorites here in The Mermaid Lounge.

7:00 p.m. Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers Sing The Blues

Tom Petty used to say he envisioned The Heartbreakers sitting around in chairs when they grew old and singing the blues. Unfortunately, they didn’t quite get there, but they sure did love and respect ‘da blues’ and made some great bluesy tunes along the way. We’ve got them here for you today to close out our blues programming.

If you’re a blues lover, Tuesdays here are a great day to tune us in. Although, frankly, we don’t mind telling you that every day is a great day to tune us in. And unlike Spotify, we don’t charge you to listen, require a subscription, or ask for your personal information…and we certainly don’t offer medical misinformation on our platform. What’s not to love?

Tuesday Bluesday!

Today It’s CSNY In the Spotlight, The Magnolia Sisters ‘Live’ in Simi Valley, and ‘Paint It Black’ Later, Monday, January 31, 2022

Good Morning, Musicologists! It’s another Monday morning here in The Mermaid Lounge, and we’ve got a great line-up for you to start the week off with.

Today we’ve got some Cajun music from the Magnolia Sisters!

Here’s today’s line-up:

11:00 a.m. In the Spotlight: The Music of Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young

Our number one supergroup here in these parts is for sure The Traveling Wilburys, but these guys are right behind them at number two. Crosby, Stills & Nash were the original configuration, but Neil Young added a dimension that cannot be denied, giving them the Canadian portion of this Canadian-American supergroup. They made some great music together, and we’ve got them In the Spotlight to start off the day.

3:00 p.m. The Magnolia Sisters: Live at the Simi Valley Cajun & Blues Festival, Rancho Santa Susanna Community Park, Simi Valley, California, May 23, 2015

We love Cajun-Zydeco here in the Lounge as you know, and we’ve got a short but sweet performance here by the only all-girl Cajun band on the planet. Ann Savoy is the impetus behind the Magnolia Sisters. For those who may not know her, she teamed up with Linda Ronstadt (as the Zozo Sisters) for the brilliant Grammy-nominated album Adieu False Heart, and their remake release of Walk Away Renee. Their music is part of our standard rotation, but we hope to bolster this genre of music in 2022, starting today. We remain on the hunt for more live music from The Magnolia Sisters.

7:00 p.m. Paint It Black: Various Artists

Nope. It’s not quite an EP, but that’s okay because we do need some short players as well. This is all about the color black in song…in the title or lyrics, or both. You’ll hear from The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin, The Doobie Brothers, The Wallflowers, The Move, Steely Dan, Curtis Mayfield, The Flying Burrito Brothers, Linda Ronstadt, Johnny Cash, Amy Winehouse, The Hollies, Stephen Stills, Warren Zevon, The Band, Nina Simone, Tom Rush, k.d. lang, the Grateful Dead, Fairport Convention, Dr. John, The Kinks, Guy Clark, J.D. Souther, and more!

Look. It’s Moan-Day. We all need a bit of a lift to start the week off. We’ve got it for you here all day long. Best of all, it’s free. No subscription required. No credit card need come out of your wallet. No commercials will blight the airwaves. And best of all, we think Joe Rogan is a public menace. He doesn’t have a home here. Tune us in.

Cursor Here, Please.

It’s Digging Out Day Here and We’ve Got Our New Album of The Week Plus a Brand New Motown EP, Sunday, January 30, 2022

Good Morning, Musicologists! We’ve not only got our brand new Album of The Week for you today but we’ve got a brand new All-Motown EP to get you through the afternoon!

Yes, folks. M is indeed for Motown.

Here’s your Sunday Funday line-up:

11:00 a.m. Album of The Week: Sticky Fingers by The Rolling Stones NEW!

Without a doubt, one of my favorite Rolling Stones albums of all time. It was their 9th British and 11th American studio release. It was released on April 23, 1971, and was the first released on their new (and their own) Rolling Stones Records. It was also their first album without Brian Jones, who had died two years earlier.

3:00 p.m. M is For Motown: Various Artists NEW!

This is a companion EP to our ‘Little Bit O’ Soul’ EP. It gives you strictly Motown artists (but not all Motown artists because there is some music we simply do not play), including The Temptations, The Spinners, The Jackson Five, Diana Ross & The Supremes, Jimmy Ruffin, Smokey Robinson & The Miracles, The Isley Brothers, Martha & The Vandellas, Marvin Gaye, Al Green, Stevie Wonder, Kim Weston, Tammi Terrell, The Marvelettes, Billy Preston, Mary Wells, Gladys Knight & The Pips, Eddie Kendricks, Rare Earth, Junior Walker & The All Stars, Edwin Starr, and many more!

This is a day of rest (yeah, as long as you weren’t in the snow belt yesterday), so you might as well take advantage of it and join your friends from around the globe. We’ve got a bunch on here this morning from Canada to Lithuania. Programming is only part of our day. The rest of it is filled with wide Open Stream courtesy of The Music Mermaid. Try it. You’ll see.

M is For Motown!

Under a Blizzard Warning in Beantown, and We’re Spinning Our House Playlist EP, Giving You The Final Airing of Our AOW, and LIVE DEAD! Later, Saturday, January 29, 2022

Good Morning, Music Lovers! The snow’s flying. The wind’s blowing. And the music’s flowing. We’ve got a great line-up for you today, no matter what your weather is.

Our very own EP starts at 11:00 a.m. today and runs uninterrupted for just about five hours

Here’s today’s line-up:

11:00 a.m. #BecomeUngovernable House Playlist: Various Artists

It’s that magic time again. Our House Playlist calls, and we give you Barry McGuire, the Temptations, CSNY, Pink Floyd, Peter Tosh, Edwin Starr, The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, The Animals, The Chambers Brothers, Buffalo Springfield, Stevie Wonder, Bob Dylan, Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers, The Byrds, Donovan, Jimmy Cliff, Cat Stevens, The Association, Marvin Gaye, The Band, Arlo Guthrie, George Harrison, Joni Mitchell, Nina Simone, and more!

7:00 p.m. Album of The Week: Blood On The Tracks by Bob Dylan FINAL AIRING!

Today is the final airing of this week’s Album of The Week, Blood On The Tracks by Bob Dylan. Get it while you can. Tomorrow, there will be a brand new featured album when you roll out of bed.

10:00 p.m. LIVE DEAD! The Grateful Dead Live at Boston Garden, Boston, MA, May 7, 1977 NEW!

The Dead bring their Wall of Sound to the fabled Boston Garden for this one, vintage 1977. Another great soundboard recording for your listening pleasure from the world’s premier road and jam band.

Well, gang, we’re rolling here in The Mermaid Lounge. The good news is that we will keep on keeping on through this New England blizzard. Be sure to join your friends from around the globe today!

Tap Here!

Friday Brings ‘The British Are Coming’ EP and Puts Neil Young In the Spotlight As We Prepare For The Snow, January 28, 2022

Welcome to Friday as we all prepare to be bombed by a potentially historic nor’easter here in the Beantown area. As we all know in these parts, we can get anywhere from 10 inches to 2 feet. Stay tuned. But one thing is certain, the music is always outstanding here in The Mermaid Lounge, rain, snow or shine.

Yeah. They’ll be here promptly at 11:00 a.m. EST for an extended visit.

Here’s Friday’s musical landscape:

11:00 a.m. The British Are Coming: Various Artists

We all know how the story goes. The American musicians were influenced by the Brits, and vice versa. That’s how we got here. With this extended playlist, you’ll hear The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin, Them, The Hollies, The Who, The Animals, Yes, Queen, The Kinks, The Dave Clark Five, Rod Stewart, The Bee Gees (before they caught night fever; not after), The Yardbirds, The Pretenders, Lulu, Herman’s Hermits, Blind Faith, The Spencer Davis Group, Cream, Traffic, Donovan, Peter Green’s Fleetwood Mac, and more! That’s five hours of uninterrupted music from across the pond!

7:00 p.m. In The Spotlight: The Music of Neil Young

While we remove Eric Clapton from the limelight, we put Neil Young in the limelight. This isn’t a question of politics which, as you know, we keep out of this radio station’s airing. The public health is not a political issue, and medical misinformation is not in the public interest. We will neither participate in it nor will we give voice to those who do. Like Eric Clapton. Aside from Neil Young’s stand on the issue, consider that the man is the Energizer Bunny of rock n’ roll, recently releasing his 41st album and his 14th with Crazy Horse. His career has spanned more than a half century, and he is deserving of the spotlight.

All of our friends are here this morning, including our new listeners from Pakistan, Lithuania, and Turkey. Why don’t you join them? It’s easy, as they’ve found out. No information required. No subscription required. No credit card required. All you need is a computer, a new tab, and your mouse. Eek.

Music Nirvana Awaits!