‘Are You Ready for The Country’, a Guy Clark Spotlight and ‘Live’ Lukas Nelson & POTR on Saturday, May 11, 2024

Good morning, musicologists! We keep it on the country side today with our programming, both old school and country-rock, that great sound out of Laurel Canyon.

Here’s your musical lineup:

9:00 a.m. Are You Ready for The Country: Various Artists

Another EP out of mothballs this morning as we pay homage to the old standards and the country rockers with The Eagles, Asleep at The Wheel, The Byrds, Emmylou Harris, Neil Young, Guy Clark, Steve Earle, Dolly Parton, Poco, Linda Ronstadt, Alison Krauss & Union Station, The Marshall Tucker Band, The Ozark Mountain Daredevils, Jerry Jeff Walker, New Riders of The Purple Sage, Carlene Carter, Rosanne Cash, The Desert Rose Band, Kris Kristofferson, Gram Parsons, John Prine, Tom Rush, Willie Nelson, Johnny Cash, Townes Van Zandt and more!

4:00 p.m. In The Spotlight: The Music of Guy Clark

Surely one of the absolute best country singer-songwriters ever. I know I’ve told this story before, but one dreadfully snowy night my friend George and I were walking around Harvard Square freezing when we decided to go into a place called Passim’s Coffee House to warm up. We had no idea who Guy Clark was, but we paid the cover charge and went inside. It was undoubtedly one of the best things I ever did in my life. I was totally hooked. And he played a mean fiddle to boot.

8:00 p.m. Lukas Nelson & Promise of The Real Live at The Boathouse, Newport News, VA, June 14, 2018

We close out the country programming with Lukas Nelson and his great little band. Lukas comes from great country outlaw pedigree, so it’s no wonder we love him here in The Mermaid Lounge.

We’re here 24/7 for your listening pleasure, at absolutely no charge to you and with absolutely no commercial interruption. Ever. Just an occasional station I.D. bit courtesy of yours truly. That’s it. The button’s below.

Thursday Brings The ‘Trio’ Sessions, ‘Repeat After Me,’ and Traffic Live at The Fillmore, April 2, 2024

Good morning, music lovers! We’re back at it as we continue Fillmore Week with Traffic, but first it’s The ‘Trio’ Sessions with Dolly, Linda and Emmylou and ‘Repeat After Me’.

Here’s your musical lineup:

9:00 a.m. The Complete Trio Sessions: Dolly Parton, Linda Ronstadt & Emmylou Harris

We kick off the morning with a bona fide supergroup but, of course, all these years later there’s still plenty of misogyny in the music business. So, nobody talks about these three living legends as a “supergroup.” But that’s exactly what Trio is. Today we give you the outtakes, remakes, remixes, alternate versions and final product all rolled into one.

3:00 p.m. Repeat After Me: Various Artists

They say that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery and we’ve got the proof right here. You’ll hear CSNY cover Joni Mitchell, Gregg Allman cover Jackson Browne, Linda Ronstadt cover Little Feat, and Three Dog Night cover Laura Nyro. And that’s just for starters.

We’ve had this one hanging around but haven’t aired it until this evening. It’s about time, don’t you think? Yeah.

We’re Hitting Our Midweek Stride With The #BU House EP, a Dolly Parton ‘Spotlight’ and The Heartbreakers at The Fillmore, Wednesday, May 1, 2024

Good morning, global music lovers! We blast into another month with our House long player, Dolly In The Spotlight and The Heartbreakers continue Fillmore Week!

Here’s your midweek music:

9:00 a.m. The #BecomeUngovernable House EP: Various Artists

We start it off with an uninterrupted love fest of the music and artists that inspired this station, including Barry McGuire, The Temptations, Edwin Starr, Peter Tosh, The Beatles, T. Rex, The Who, Creedence Clearwater Revival, Bob Dylan, Country Joe & The Fish, Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers, Bob Marley & The Wailers, Joan Baez, CSNY, Pink Floyd, The Animals, Ten Years After, Plastic Ono Band, Sam Cooke, The Rolling Stones, Joni Mitchell, Jimi Hendrix Experience, Three Dog Night, Jimmy Cliff, Richie Havens, Marvin Gaye, The Association, Phil Ochs, Tom Rush, Pete Seeger, The Band, Linda Ronstadt, Nina Simone, Janis Joplin and more!

4:00 p.m. In The Spotlight: The Music of Dolly Parton

The country music legend gets her own Spotlight. You’d better believe it. In a career that has spanned half a century, she remains the brightest of lights.

8:00 p.m. FILLMORE WEEK! Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers Live at The Fillmore West, San Francisco, March 15, 1999

This is not the incredible 1997 twenty-night residency, but it is nevertheless another great Fillmore experience from one of our House Bands and one of the finest live bands ever to grace a stage. By the way, the incredible 1997 Fillmore event will come at the end of this Fillmore Fest.

Great day to be here in The Lounge while I toil in hardware hell’s Truck Day. The Music Mermaid has it all under her fin. You’re good to go. So, join us.

Friday It’s ‘The Complete Trio Sessions,’ Randy Newman, and Our New ‘Unbroken Circle’ Playlist, December 8, 2023

Good morning, musicologists! We have officially made it to Friday and we’re whooping it up with some fine female country singers today. The only break in the programming is our final airing of Randy Newman as our featured singer-songwriter.

Here’s your end-of-the-work-week lineup:

10:00 a.m. The Complete Trio Sessions: Dolly Parton, Linda Ronstadt, Emmylou Harris

We open the programming with the only female supergroup I know of in music history. But, of course, the music world media is like the mainstream media: They never actually call Linda Ronstadt, Emmylou Harris and Dolly Parton (otherwise known as ‘Trio’) a supergroup even thought they fit every criteria for the term. So we will call them a supergroup, and moreover, they are right up there with The Traveling Wilburys. Today, you’ll get the full magilla: Remixes, outtakes, alternative versions, remasters and more!

3:00 p.m. Singer-Songwriter Series: The Music of Randy Newman FINAL AIRING!

Randy Newman takes his final turn as our featured singer-songwriter for the week. Tomorrow we’ll have a new selection.

Here we have stepsisters with an incredible country music pedigree in Johnny Cash and June Carter, and they have continued their family legacy admirably. We are definitely fans here in The Mermaid Lounge and we’re happy to share this great new playlist with you today.

Today It’s ‘The Original 60’s Rotation’ EP, Dolly’s Rock Opus and We Head to NOLA for Our New Singer-Songwriters, Saturday, November 25, 2023

Welcome, Weekenders! It’s Saturday in The Lounge and we’ve got some early-to-mid sixties music, Dolly’s AOW grand finale, and Fats Domino & Dave Bartholomew as our featured singer-songwriters.

Here’s your Saturday lineup:

9:00 a.m. The Original Sixties Rotation, Volume One: Various Artists

This was our very first EP and it was built from two shorter playlists. You’ll hear Del Shannon, Little Eva, The Drifters, The Beatles, Gerry & The Pacemakers, The Hollies, The Walker Brothers, Mary Wells, Dusty Springfield, The Searchers, The Monkees, Sonny & Cher, Petula Clark, Glen Campbell, Johnny Rivers, The Dave Clark Five, The Supremes, Harry Nilsson, The Band, The Yardbirds, The Kinks, Simon & Garfunkel, Blind Faith, Janis Joplin, Chuck Berry, The Temptations, Elvis Presley, Marvin Gaye, The Who, Bob Dylan, Tony Joe White, Barry McGuire, Fats Domino, Procol Harum and more!

4:00 p.m. Album of The Week: Rockstar by Dolly Parton FINAL AIRING!

This is the final airing of Dolly’s great rock opus, in response to her induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. However, don’t fret. It is party of our standard rotation now.

Every time we play Fats, I ask the same question: Was anybody singing rock n’ roll before Fats? I’m not sure. For absolute sure, Fats Domino was a true pioneer of the genre…one of the forefathers who made it happen. Today, along with his long-time collaborator, Dave Bartholomew, Fats is our featured singer-songwriter.

Today We Give Thanks For Arlo & Alice, Dolly, Linda and Tom, Thursday, November 23, 2023

Good morning, music lovers! It’s Turkey Day and we are NOT celebrating the colonization of the free world. No sir. We are celebrating our musical artists of the day (as well as our families and friends, of course).

Here’s your Turkey Day lineup:

9:00 a.m. Album of The Week: Rockstar by Dolly Parton

Some of us thought we’d never see the day when Dolly Parton would make a rock album, but it has arrived and it is a treat. We’re winding down on this one, so get in on it. The final airing will be sometime on Saturday.

12:00 p.m. Arlo Guthrie: Alice’s Restaurant

Our Thanksgiving tradition continues at high noon with Arlo Guthrie’s ode to Alice. There will be no intro. No fanfare. It shall simply begin on cue and last for just under 20 minutes.

3:00 p.m. Linda Ronstadt Live at The Troubadour, W. Hollywood, CA, March 17, 1976

Linda live at the iconic Troubadour on St. Patty’s day in 1976. This was two years after Heart Like A Wheel, still one of the absolute best albums ever made by anyone, and the release of another gem, Hasten Down The Wind (which would be released in August of 1976).

8:00 p.m. Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers Live at The Grand Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles, CA, October 16, 2002

The Heartbreakers on The Last DJ tour at The Olympic. I actually really love this album because it’s simply an album of great songs. The song The Last DJ laments the fall of radio into the abyss of utter capitalism: ‘As we celebrate mediocrity all the boys upstairs want to see/How much you’ll pay for what you used to get for free.’

The Music Mermaid is all keyed up and ready in The Lounge for an early start. Making a bird today? Hey, turn us on in the background. We’ll keep you entertained before the mob arrives.

It’s Tuesday Bluesday With the Louisiana Blues EP and ‘Live’ Tedeschi Trucks Later. In Between, It’s Dolly! November 21, 2023

Good morning, blues lovers! We’ve got our multi-artist Louisiana blues EP and the Tedeschi Trucks Band up later. In between, Dolly’s Rockstar airs.

Here’s your Tuesday Bluesday lineup:

9:00 a.m. The Best of Louisiana Blues: Various Artists

We kick off the blues programming with blues on the bayou! You’ll hear from Ray Charles, Lillian Glinn, Slim Harpo, Ray Brown, Fats Domino, Clarence “Gatemouth” Brown, Rodney Harris, Roosevelt Sykes, Shirley & Lee, Papa Lightfoot, Guitar Slim, Annie Laurie, Fats Matthews, Big Joe Turner, Big Boy Myles, Little Walter, Mary Butler, Erline Harris, Dave Bartholomew, Marcia Ball, Allen Toussaint, Dr. John, Professor Longhair, Irma Thomas, The Neville Brothers and more!

4:00 p.m. Album of The Week: Rockstar by Dolly Parton

Dolly drops by for a second airing of her rock release, Rockstar, our Album of The Week.

8:00 p.m. The Tedeschi Trucks Band Live at The Orpheum, Madison, WI, March 18, 2015

Let’s fast-forward to one of the greatest blues-rock bands on the planet today. Led by Susan Tedeschi and Derek Trucks, this is one of the most amazing blues bands on the planet.

Join us. It’s Tuesday Bluesday, always a big draw in The Mermaid Lounge. We’re on a short work week, and we have great music to be thankful for. Screw the pilgrims; they were a nasty lot.

It’s a Simple Sunday With Dolly and Our AOW and the ‘Are You Ready for The Country’ EP Later, November 19, 2023

Good morning, musicologists! We’ve got a real treat for you today with our Album of The Week as Dolly Parton’s Rockstar makes its debut on our station. Read on for details!

Here’s your Sunday Funday lineup:

When Dolly Parton learned she was being inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, she turned it down because she felt she was not a rock star. She’d never made an album of rock music. The people at the Hall disagreed with her and wanted to induct her anyway. She returned the favor by releasing Rockstar, a 30-song album of classic rock and rock n’ roll songs given the Dolly treatment. And it’s a treat. Dolly had a lot of supporters on this one, including Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr on her version of The Beatles’ Let It Be, Ann Wilson on her version of Magic Man, and Emmylou Harris and Sheryl Crow on You’re No Good.

3:00 p.m. Are You Ready for The Country: Various Artists

While Dolly goes rock, you’ll also find her in our big, bad country EP. Along with Dolly, you’ll hear Guy Clark, Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings, Johnny Cash, Emmylou Harris, Linda Ronstadt, Neil Young, The Byrds, Gram Parsons, Pure Prairie League, Asleep at The Wheel, The Ozark Mountain Daredevils, Bob Dylan, The Eagles, Townes Van Zandt, Steve Earle, the Marshall Tucker Band, Jerry Jeff Walker, Mudcrutch, The Band, Alison Krauss & Union Station, Glen Campbell, Rosanne Cash, Dan Fogelberg, New Riders of The Purple Sage, John Prine, The Desert Rose Band, Hank Williams, Patsy Cline and more!

Friday Has Arrived and We’ve Open Up With Some Seedy People, Then Roy Orbison and New ‘Live’ Little Feat, November 3, 2023

Good morning, budding weekenders! We are almost there, kids, and today we’ve open up with our multi-artist ‘Villains, Scumbags and Lowlives’ Playlist, then it’s on to Roy Orbison and Little Feat.

Here’s your work week-ending lineup:

11:00 a.m. Villains, Scumbags and Lowlives: Various Artists

There are a lot of seedy people on the planet. Some of them are in full view in Washington right now. And they are a popular subject in music as well. You’ll hear The Beatles, The Crazy World of Arthur Brown, Shawn Colvin, Jimi Hendrix Experience, Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers,The Rolling Stones, Electric Light Orchestra, The Who, Warren Zevon, Supertramp, Linda Ronstadt, Foreigner, John Lee Hooker, Elton John, Dolly Parton, Neil Young and more!

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

We bid a fond farewell to Roy Orbison today, this week’s featured singer-songwriter. Tomorrow, we’ll have a brand new artist featured here.

We’ve got a new-to-the-station live performance by Little Feat during the Lowell George period (the best period, I might add) live from the Uptown Theatre.

We’re at Midweek With the ‘Are You Ready for The Country’ EP, Garcia/Hunter, and Songs About Shoes, Wednesday, September 20, 2023

Good morning, music lovers! We’re at midweek and we’re loaded with good music today with two multi-artist playlists, one extended, one not. Jerry Garcia and Robert Hunter are back as our singer-songwriters for the week.

Here’s your midweek musical lineup:

9:00 a.m. Are You Ready For The Country: Various Artists

We don’t play bad pop bands with fiddles. We play real country along with the musicians who helped to establish the country-rock genre. You’ll hear Guy Clark, Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings, Dolly Parton, Johnny Cash, Emmylou Harris, Linda Ronstadt, Neil Young, The Byrds, Gram Parsons, Pure Prairie League, Asleep at The Wheel, The Ozark Mountain Daredevils, Bob Dylan, The Eagles, Townes Van Zandt, Steve Earle, Marshall Tucker Band, Jerry Jeff Walker, Mudcrutch, The Band, Alison Krauss & Union Station, Glen Campbell, Rosanne Cash, Dan Fogelberg, New Riders of The Purple Sage, John Prine, The Desert Rose Band, Hank Williams, Patsy Cline and more!

4:00 p.m. Singer-Songwriter Series: The Music of Jerry Garcia & Robert Hunter

The duo is back for their second spin as this week’s featured singer-songwriters.

8:00 p.m. Those Shoes: Various Artists

Shoes. Essential to our existence, unless we are lucky enough to live on a deserted island where we can walk barefoot without worry. You’ll hear Elvis Presley, Paul Simon, Steve Winwood, John Lee Hooker, The Everly Brothers, Gladys Knight & The Pips, Traffic, Gram Parsons, Betty Everett, Leon Russell, The Beatles, Elmore James, Little Feat, The Eagles and more!

We’re over the hump today and on the downslide to the weekend once again. No better way to get through this day and closer to the dream than with some great music. And that’s what we’ve got. See for yourself. And we won’t cost you a penny. Ever.