How to live to be 100

Cleaning out the old Attic in anticipation of moving the new one we hope to occupy by mid-August, I found my notes from the 100th birthday party for Herbi Hardt, which I mentioned back in Episode 72.

He had some good answers to the inevitable question of how to live to be a century old, and before I toss the notes into the recycling bin, here they are – to be preserved for posterity! (These are the exact notes – in parentheses I fill out what I remember of what they mean.)

Don’t clutter up your life (with things like hatred, anger and rigid beliefs).

Live now (not in the past or overly worried about the future).

I’m not political.

(Live in ways that will leave) This world to be a better place.

Keep learning and moving on; keep on adding to your knowledge.

Uncle Warren's Attic #77

THIS IS YOUR DIRECT DOWNLOAD LINK FOR UNCLE WARREN'S ATTIC #77.

But seriously, why haven't you subscribed to the RSS feed yet?

Ernest Hare, Floppy the Rabbit, Sir Laurence Olivier and Wolfman Jack - Dare ya to find another podcast that will mix that mix!

In this corner:
"Hello Hello" - Tiny Tim on WABC, New York (1968)
"Dixie Highway" - Ernest Hare
"Floppy" - Mervyn Shiner
"Because" - Julian Lennon (from "Dave Clark's Time")
"Beauty, Truth, Love, Freedom, Peace" - Sir Laurence Olivier (from "Dave Clark's Time")
"Breaking Up is Hard to Do" - Lenny Welch
"I Ain't Never Seen a White Man" - Wolfman Jack

Thanks for spending a half-hour a week rifling through my shtuff with me!

Uncle Warren's Attic #76

Click on the pod icon or this link to download/listen to Uncle Warren's Attic #76.

What does a romantic ballad from the 1920s have in common with a gospel cover from 2006? You'd be surprised how well they fit together in the same pile of shtuff. At least they seemed to be part of the same flow as I cobbled together this visit to Uncle Warren's Attic.

Likewise, you wouldn't think Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Casablanca, Nick Fury Agent of SHIELD, The Prisoner and Firefly have that much in common (except that Joss Whedon produced the first and last), but they made for a pleasant enough opening montage.

That's just the way it is up here in the Attic. You got yer boxes of LPs, the 45s on the top shelf, the 78s down here by my feet, and miscellaneous CDs, DVDs, floppy disks, reel-to-reel and cassette tapes, books, comics, magazines and whatnot all over the place. I still haven't hooked up the 8-track machine, but I know there are a few of those in a box somewhere, too ...

And the result is a fun little mix like this one:

"Rocka My Soul" - Miss Behavin' (2006)
"Sail On Little Girl Sail On" - Leadbelly (1940)
"The Night Sky and A Telescope" - Tara Leigh Cobble (2006)
"Ramona" - Gene Austin (1928)
"Get Together" - Randy Stonehill (1986)
"Country and Western Songs" - Larry Lujack & Tommy Edwards (1982)
"Don't Let Your Sweet Love Die" - Reno & Smiley (1961)
"Orange Blossom Breakdown" - The Stonemans (1964)

Click on the pod icon or this link to download/listen to Uncle Warren's Attic #76.

Catch up to the last 10 visits

Coming up Monday, Uncle Warren's Attic #76 will take us back 90 years, 70 years, 25 years and five minutes ago. But there's a weekend ahead, and here's a fine way to pass at least five hours while you're waiting for the new show. Sure, you could spend that time by going to see The Avengers twice, but this is free! free! free!

If you didn't realize I had settled back in the Attic again, you can catch up with the rest of us by clicking on these links to listen to/download the last three months of excitement (not counting the two weeks of reruns) ...

Uncle Warren's Attic #66 - re-establishing the series with the likes of The Crows, Jimmy Davis, John Cale and Sunny Gale.

Uncle Warren's Attic #67 - Awesome old movie music with Beverly White, Louis Jordan and the King Cole Trio, plus a segment of the immortal "Flick's Tongue" narration by Jean Shepherd.

Uncle Warren's Attic #68 - The original Betty Boop and famous songs recorded by other artists before the big hit versions. Seriously, "Just Dropped In (To See What Condition My Condition Was In)" by Jerry Lee Lewis?!

Uncle Warren's Attic #69 - Excerpts from the 1912 presidential campaign, World War I music, and translating the dialogue from Star Wars I. To be honest, this one looked better on paper.

Uncle Warren's Attic #70 - St. Patrick's Day the way it may have sounded on the Victrola.

Uncle Warren's Attic #71 - The premieres of "This Terrifying Report" and "Poetry Corner," plus a lot of songs with food themes, like "Pumpernickel," "Hotta Chocolotta" and "Sweet Potato Piper."

Uncle Warren's Attic #72 - The Academy Awards for 1942-43, "Barney Google" and "16 Old Ladies Locked in the Lavatory." What's not to love? Here's looking at you, kid.

Uncle Warren's Attic #73 - An especially swingin' episode with Scat Man Crothers, Glenn Miller, Raymond Scott and some other happy stuff.

Uncle Warren's Attic #74 - A fun hodgepodge from the late 1950s and early '60s, including the immortal "Manhattan Spiritual" and a followup to "Hey Paula."

Uncle Warren's Attic #75 - The story of meeting Barry McGuire and how it inspired me to write and record an album and then write a book.

Uncle Warren's Attic 75 - The Barry McGuire Episode

Click on the pod icon or this link to download/listen to Uncle Warren's Attic #75.

This 75th episode of Uncle Warren's Attic tells the story of when I met Barry McGuire, the 1960s folksinger who morphed into a 1970s contemporary Christian music singer and now tours the world with a show called "Tripping the Sixties."

It's the story of my latest book, A Scream of Consciousness, and of my latest little homemade recording, Ten Thousand Days. You'll hear Barry sing a well-known sixties tune and a live solo rendition of "God Like the Wind." You'll hear me sing a song I wrote a long time ago called "Just Today" and a more recent one called "All That's Left You."

If you've hung around for 75 episodes, thanks! If you're new to this, welcome to my Attic!

And if you're ever in Green Bay, make sure you stop by the Cup O'Joy!

Uncle Warren's Attic #74 - Now on Mondays

 Download/listen to Uncle Warren's Attic #74 by clicking here.

Starting now the amazing adventures of Uncle Warren in the Attic will be coming your way first thing Monday instead of first thing Sunday - so you can start your work week with a taste of the eclectic!

This time around it's a hodgepodge of shtuff from the 1950s and early '60s, another edition of This Terrifying Report, and more ...

And next week, a very special event for UWA #75!

This week's lineup:
"Train Song" - w.p. bluhm
"Wake Up Little Susie" (78 rpm mix) - Everly Brothers
"Manhattan Spiritual" - Reg Owen and his Orchestra
"Marzy Doats" - The Innocence
"Flash Bazbo" - Leon Janney and Christopher Guest
"All the Love" - Paul and Paula
This Terrifying Report - Uncle Warren
"Jingle Jump" - Danny Peil and the Tigers
"Flip Side" - The Tigers
"Flash Bazbo" - Leon Janney and Christopher Guest
"Dear Paula" - Paul and Paula

Download/listen to Uncle Warren's Attic #74 by clicking here.

Or let's see if the Wizard Player embed works:

Don't wait up

Uncle Warren's Attic will be available first thing Monday morning starting this week. It'll be worth the wait! You'll see ...

Best of Uncle Warren's Attic - #9

As I explained last week, I am currently in the middle of a hazardous and technically unexplainable journey into the outer stratosphere, to confer, converse, and otherwise hob-nob with my brother uncles.  And I hereby decree that until what time -- if any -- that I return, you can feel free to browse through the old visits to the Attic at warren-bluhm-dot-com.

But I am a wise and benevolent uncle, and so I’ve also packaged up a prefab rerun for you. For the ides of April, here’s a visit that includes Jean Shepherd, John Kongos, Gammera and much more.

The next new Uncle Warren’s Attic is scheduled for Sunday, April 22 - in the meantime, Sherman, set the Wayback Machine for Uncle Warren’s Attic number 9 - number 9 - number 9 -

Click here to download/listen!

Best of Uncle Warren's Attic - #8

I am about to embark on a a hazardous and technically unexplainable journey into the outer stratosphere, to confer, converse, and otherwise hob-nob with my brother uncles.  And I hereby decree that until what time -- if any -- that I return, you can feel free to browse through the old visits to the Attic at www.warrenbluhm.com.

But I am a wise and benevolent uncle, and so I’ve also packaged up a prefab rerun for you. This week and next, I will upload a couple of early selections of my eclectic aural stash for you. On this lovely Easter Sunday, here’s a visit that includes Sgt. Pepper, Lonnie Donegan, Leadbelly, Connie Francis, Wilfred, and Glenn Miller - oh, and hey, hey, it's a radio ad from the Sixties, too.

The next new Uncle Warren’s Attic is scheduled for Sunday, April 22 - in the meantime, Sherman, set the Wayback Machine for Uncle Warren’s Attic number 8!

Download it/Listen here!

Uncle Warren's Attic #73 - Swinging into April

Click here to listen to/download Uncle Warren's Attic #73.

Sometimes you just have to let the music take over - and that's what this show is all about.

Get Happy - Raymond Scott
I'm Gonna Sit Right Down and Write Myself a Letter - "Scat Man" Crothers
At Last - Glenn Miller
Got a Date with An Angel - Hal Kemp
Frenesi - Artie Shaw
When You Dance - The Turbans
I Got Rhythm - "Scat Man" Crothers
Chattanooga Choo Choo - Glenn Miller

Click here to listen to/download Uncle Warren's Attic #73.

Elise Testone does "Whole Lotta Love" on American Idol

Talk about coming from out of nowhere – Wednesday night American Idol contestant Elise Testone went from being kind of interesting to blow-me-away great. One of my favorite all-time Idol moments.

'Free' - Haley Reinhart debut single

The best singer on last year's American Idol is out with her first single, "Free," and it's a tasty little treat. Even tastier is this live performance of the tune accompanied only by a pianist. Good stuff!