Tag: Live at the BBC

On Tuesday Bluesday It’s Music From the Windy City, a Buddy Guy Spotlight and Mayall’s Bluesbreakers, August 13, 2024

Good morning, bluesologists! We’ve got quite the lineup today as we pay homage to one of the greatest bluesmen of all time who just announced his retirement at the age of 88.

Here’s your Tuesday Bluesday lineup:

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

This morning we head to the Windy City to hear Otis Rush, Willie Dixon, Albert King, Muddy Waters, Little Walter, Bo Diddly, Koko Taylor, Lowell Fulson, Howlin’ Wolf, Buddy Guy, Magic Slim Sonny Boy Williamson, Son Seals, James Cotton, Paul Butterfield, Elmore James, Jimmy Reed, Otis Spann and more!

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

Buddy Guy has announced his “retirement” at the age of 88. Now, it doesn’t mean he’ll never play music again. Depends on how he feels. It just means he can’t guarantee it. Old bluesmen never really go away.

8:00 p.m. John Mayall & The Bluesbreakers Live at The BBC, London, UK, 1965-1967

We close out the programming today with some John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers recorded live at BBC Studios in London between 1965 and 1967.

Yeah, it’s another Tuesday Bluesday and we’re cooking here in The Mermaid Lounge. Join us. Before, in between and after we’ve got our big, wide Open Stream and we play the best music on the planet. For free. The button’s below.

Celebrate Buddy Guy!

It’s Saturday and We’ve Got ‘A Little Bit O’ Soul’, a Dylan Spotlight for His 83rd, and ‘Live’ Bobbie Gentry, May 25, 2024

Good morning and welcome to Memorial Day Weekend! We’re not going anywhere; we’re sitting tight here in The Mermaid Lounge playing music all weekend and we’ve got some great stuff lined up!

Here’s your Saturday lineup:

9:00 a.m. A Little Bit O’ Soul: Various Artists

Yes, we kick it all off with our big, bad soul and R&B extended playlist where you’ll hear Aretha Franklin, The Temptations, The Four Tops, The Ronettes, Marvin Gaye, Ray Charles, Otis Redding, Jimmy Ruffin, The Drifters, Chuck Berry, Stevie Wonder, Carla Thomas, James Brown, The Shirelles, Etta James, Curtis Mayfield, Sam & Dave, The Staple Singers, Nina Simone, LaVern Baker, The Supremes, Sam Cooke, Edwin Starr, Fontella Bass, Smokey Robinson & The Miracles, Irma Thomas, The Box Tops, Jr. Walker & The All Stars, Joe Tex, Ann Peebles, Al Green and more!

4:00 p.m. In The Spotlight: The Music of Bob Dylan

The poet laureate of music turned 83 years young yesterday and we are putting him In The Spotlight where he belongs as one of the best songwriters in the history of any kind of music, among other things.

8:00 p.m. Bobbie Gentry Live at The BBC, 1968-1969

Speaking of great songwriters, we’ve got Bobbie Gentry recorded live at the BBC over year’s period. She brings along special guests Donovan and James Taylor as well.

Get in on it. We’re rolling here all day and night with absolutely no interruption and no commercial advertising. We don’t need your credit card. We’re all about the music.

Special Holiday Weekend Programming Coming!

Friday It’s ‘The Original Sixties Rotation,’ The Band, and The Beatles As We Keep It Rooted in The Sixties, April 19, 2024

Good morning, music lovers, especially those who like to get in the Wayback Machine and head to the sixties. That’s our theme for today!

Here’s your musical lineup:

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

We start it off with the (mostly) early portion of the generation, although I am imperfect and often let some others slip in there. Because I can. 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, The Four Tops, The Lovin’ Spoonful and more!

4:00 p.m. In The Spotlight: The Music of The Band

From Dylan’s back-up band to one of the most prolific, influential bands of its generation. The Band is in a class all by itself.

8:00 p.m. The Beatles Live at The BBC, June 1963

We close out the programming with The Fab Four. Recorded for broadcast as Pop Go The Beatles in June 1963 at BBC Studios in London.

I’m on the run for an unexpected morning shift. But hey, The Music Mermaid is on the ready and is here to serve. Catch you in the morning.

All Sixties Programming!

Back to the Working World With Bobbie Gentry, Karla Bonoff and Our Petty Month Finale, Monday, October 30, 2023

Good morning, working folks! It’s back to the real world, and we’re here to see that your transition is a more pleasant one with some great programming.

Here’s your musical lineup:

10:00 a.m. Bobbie Gentry Live at BBC Studios, London, UK 1968-1969

The reclusive Bobbie Gentry brought along two friends in James Taylor and Donovan when she graced the studios at the BBC. Gentry was a brilliant songwriter who only ever wanted to write for others, so she was a reluctant star. She eventually just walked away, but left some great music behind.

3:00 p.m. In the Spotlight: The Music of Karla Bonoff

Here we have another brilliant female songwriter who has helped to put other singers on the map, like Linda Ronstadt. In turn, Linda Ronstadt has shone a light on Karla Bonoff. And that’s how this works. As it turns out, and as Ronstadt will tell you, Karla Bonoff can sing. She’s in our Spotlight today.

7:00 p.m. Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers Live at The Piazza Napoleone, Lucca, Italy, June 9, 2012

We close out Tom Petty’s birthday month with a great live performace from Lucca, Italy.

Hey, it’s Monday. It happens once a week and there’s not a damned thing we can do about it. But there is something we can do to make it less bleak, and that is to play great music. We’re here 24/7 with no commercial interruption and at no charge to you!

Just Push Play.

We’ve Got Mudcrutch to Celebrate Tom Petty Week, Followed By the J. Geils Band and The Yardbirds, Monday, October 23, 2023

Good morning, working world! It’s back to Monday today, but we’re also back celebrating Tom Petty’s birthday week with a great Mudcrutch playlist. We’ve also got some J.Geils Band and Yardbirds to round things out.

Here’s your Monday lineup:

11:00 a.m. Mudcrutch: The Best of the 2016 U.S. Tour

From Mudcrutch, to the Heartbreakers to the Traveling Wilburys, Tom Petty’s musical quest never slept. I skipped this 2016 tour and I’ve been kicking myself in the ass ever since because on this playlist is the best damned live version of Hungry No More, and it was recorded at Boston’s House of Blues on this very tour. This is a great playlist. Not to be missed as we continue on with Petty week.

3:00 p.m. In the Spotlight: The Music of the J. Geils Band

The original bad boys from Boston right here (actually Worcester if you want to get technical about it, but it’s close enough). J. Geils was a badass Boston band and I saw them more than once. Today we put them In the Spotlight.

7:00 p.m. The Yardbirds: The BBC Sessions 1965-1968

We close out the programming with some Yardbirds recorded live at the fabled BBC Studios between 1965 and 1968.

Monday’s here and so are we! We’ll get you through the day, and then we’ll roll along and get you through the week! Before you know it, we’ll all be weekenders!

Monday, Monday

It’s Friday in The Mermaid Lounge With the ‘Everybody But Bob’ Playlist, Aretha’s Final Turn as Our Singer-Songwriter, and The Beatles Live at The BBC, Vintage 1963, May 19, 2023

Good morning, musicologists! We’ve once again made it to Friday and we’ve got some great music on tap for today as you can see.

Here’s your Friday lineup:

11:00 a.m. Everybody But Bob: Various Artists

There’s no denying Mr. Dylan’s songwriting chops. The man has won a Pulitzer Prize for that talent, and he is one of the most recorded artists of all time. That’s the point of today’s playlist: To showcase Dylan’s talents through the interpretations of others, including Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers, Maria Muldaur, The Byrds, Them, Hot Tuna, Linda Ronstadt, Leon Russell, The Turtles, Emmylou Harris,The Neville Brothers, Joan Baez and more!

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

Today is the final airing of Aretha Franklin as this week’s singer-songwriter. Tomorrow we’ll introduce our next artist.

8:00 p.m. The Beatles Live at The BBC, London, UK, June 1963

The freewheeling fab four in their infancy is truly a treat for all Beatlemaniacs, of which I am but one. They are our House Band for a reason.

We’re one step away from the weekend. We’ll help you get there in style today. If you’re lucky enough to have an office, shut your door, pull up a tab and push the button below. You’ll see we’re all we say we are. Totally free, totally commercial free, and with no chatty DJ’s to interrupt the flow.

Friday in The Lounge!

Happy Tuesday Bluesday! We’ve Got Trifectas to Start Each Hour, Our AOW, and ‘Live’ John Mayall & The Bluesbreakers Later On, April 25, 2023

Good morning, bluesologists! Today we’ve got an Open Stream day with blues trifectas to kick off each hour from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. and The Bluesbreakers live from the BBC this evening. In between, it’s our AOW.

Here’s your bluesday lineup:

9:00 a.m. Blues Trifectas on The Hour!

Until 3:00 p.m. this afternoon. You’ll hear from Koko Taylor, B.B. King, Slim Harpo, Caned Heat, John Lee Hooker, Stevie Ray Vaughn and Janis Joplin, in that order. We’ll repeat later to take you into the wee hours of the morning.

4:00 p.m. Album of The Week: Karla Bonoff by Karla Bonoff

This is the second airing of our Album of The Week by singer-songwriter Karla Bonoff.

7:00 p.m. John Mayall & The Bluesbreakers Live at the BBC, London (1965-1967)

This evening we’ve got a collection of live recordings from 1965 through 1967 of John Mayall and The Bluesbreakers performing live at BBC studios. Mayall has rightfully earned the title of “Godfather of the British Blues” and has been influential for six decades. He has retired from the road now, but is still alive and kicking at 89.

Tuesday Bluesday is always a great day to tune us in, but we want you to know that we don’t play the blues only on Tuesdays. It’s part of our standard rotation and is part of our DNA. We’re on 24/7, we’re totally free, and uninterrupted by commercial advertising. Every day.

Tuesday Bluesday!

Thursday Brings Our #BecomeUngovernable House EP, Linda Ronstadt With Our AOW, and Bobbie Gentry Live at the BBC With Donovan & James Taylor, February 23, 2023

Good morning, music lovers! We’ve got a full slate of great programming today, including the music that inspired the radio station with our #BecomeUngovernable House EP!

Here’s today’s musical landscape:

10:00 a.m. The #BecomeUngovernable House EP: Various Artists

Today we bring you the music that helped inspire this radio station with our House EP. You ‘ll hear Barry McGuire, Edwin Starr, The Temptations, Peter Tosh, The Beatles, Genesis, 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, The Plastic Ono Band, Billy Joel, George Harrison, Sam Cooke, The Rolling Stones, Joni Mitchell, Jimi Hendrix, Three Dog Night, Jimmy Cliff, Richie Havens, Marvin Gaye, The Association, Phil Ochs, Tom Rush, Pete Seeger, The Band, Nina Simone and more!

4:00 p.m. Album of The Week: Canciones di Mi Padre by Linda Ronstadt

We’re winding down on this one. The final airing will be sometime Saturday. This is the biggest-selling non-English album in record history. Don’t miss it.

7:00 p.m. Bobbie Gentry Live at The BBC, London with Donovan & James Taylor (1968-1969)

The reluctant star did spend some time performing live at the BBC with a little help from her friends. This is a collection from the 1968-1969 musical time period.

We’re getting closer to the weekend, folks. This is a great day to tune us in. We’re here 24/7, and when we don’t have programming we’ve got our wide Open Stream! Best of all, we’re totally free. No lie. No strings. We’re all about sharing music.

The #BecomeUngovernable House EP!

It’s Our Official ‘Summertime’ Kick-off With a Brand New Playlist, Badfinger at the BBC, and Joni In The Spotlight, Monday, June 27, 2022

Good Morning, Music Lovers! We hope we can brighten your work-week start today with some great music. It’s summertime, and we’ve got some brand new music for you.

We officially kick off summer with a brand new playlist today!

Here’s your Monday programming:

11:00 a.m. Summertime: Various Artists NEW!

This is the beginning of a week where we feature some new music. We start here with our new ‘Summertime’ playlist. We’ve got songs with the word summer, summertime, and variations thereof in the title but, if you listen closely, you’ll hear some surf music in there as well. You’ll hear from Paul McCartney, Electric Light Orchestra, Eddie Cochran, Joni Mitchell, Sly & The Family Stone, Poco, The Blue Stingrays, The Doors, The Beach Boys, Jimmy Cliff, Joan Baez, Foo Fighters, Donovan, Paul Simon, Van Morrison, Nina Simone, John Prine, Johnny Rivers, Gary Hoey, The Desert Rose Band, Dick Dale & His Del-Tones, The Stone Poneys, Chrissie Hynde, Bob Dylan, The Surfaris, Nanci Griffith, and more!

4:00 p.m. Badfinger: Live at The BBC Studios, 1972-1973

Today’s live music offering is Badfinger, a true power pop band that made some great music in its time. Today we’ve got them live at BBC Studios in London recorded in 1972 and 1973. Undoubtedly the best signing ever by Apple Records.

7:00 p.m. In The Spotlight: The Music of Joni Mitchell

It’s been a spell since we featured Joni Mitchell In the Spotlight, so we’re remedying that little miscue today. She’s kind of the sound of summer in a way. We’ve always loved Joni’s music here in The Mermaid Lounge. She is one of the most brilliant singer-songwriters on the planet.

Come on. It’s Monday. And we all know Monday’s suck. I’ve been sick with COVID for a second time here and I return to retail hell myself tomorrow, so why not join me today in kicking back and enjoying some great tunes.

Happy Monday!

We’re Sliding Toward The Weekend With Bobbie Gentry & Some Friends at BBC Studios, Our ‘Rock, Blues & Ballads’ Playlist, and our AOW, Thursday, June 16, 2022

Good Morning, Musicologists. We’ve got some great new stuff to start off the day today as we’ve discovered a Bobbie Gentry BBC Studios performance with a couple of friends along for support.

A couple of friends dropped by to help Bobbie Gentry out with her BBC Studios show

Here’s Thursday’s lineup:

11:00 a.m. Bobbie Gentry Live at The BBC Studios, London, 1968-1969 NEW!

This was a great find, given the fact that Bobbie Gentry was always a bit reclusive and shunned the limelight. She just wanted to write songs for other people. But she did perform live music, and she did so at BBC Studios in 1968 and 1969. Maybe she brought Donovan and James Taylor along for moral support! We’re glad she did!

3:00 p.m. Album of The Week: American Tune by Eva Cassidy

We’re winding down on this week’s album selection as we’ve reached our next-to-last airing here. The final will be sometime on Saturday. Don’t wait too long!

7:00 p.m. Rock, Blues and Ballads, Volume One: Various Artists

I know. It’s about time I got volume two together. And I totally agree, so it’s on my weekend list. But this one’s pretty damned good and we haven’t heard it in a while. You’ll hear Bruce Springsteen, Jackson Browne, Warren Zevon, Van Morrison, James Taylor, Aretha Franklin, Tom Petty, Delbert McClinton, Bonnie Raitt, J.J. Cale, Dusty Springfield, Neil Young, Paul McCartney & Wings, Long John Baldry, Randy Newman, Maria Muldaur, Ry Cooder, Gregg Allman, Linda Ronstadt, and more!

We’re sliding steadily toward the weekend here in The Mermaid Lounge, although I’ll grant you it’s not getting here fast enough this week. But good music goes a long way toward making the work week easier, so give us a shot. Because we play some seriously good shit with absolutely no commercial interruption, no chatty disc jockeys who’d rather talk than play music, or cost to you. Not one penny. And we’re open 24/7. What more do you want?

Open 24/7!