UWA 39: Webby Wanderings

It’s long past time I gave you a little more taste of Maria Daines with her partner and guitarist guitarist Paul Killington. After launching the show with Carne Cruda’s “Amazing Artichoke of World Peace,” we dive into Maria’s “Tear Down the Walls” and “Alright When The Morning Comes.”

After we sing the praises of the 1960 Studebaker Lark, it’s time for Aileen Stanley and Billy Murray and the 1924 classic “You’ll Never Get to Heaven With Those Eyes.” Then, from the Internet Archive, Warren Zevon sings “Veracruz” - thanks Kirsten for the heads-up on this terrific recording.

We extol the wisdom of saving Top Value Stamps, and then it’s time for a little Boo Boo Davis. The tasty blues tunes “Tell Me What to Do” and “Boo’s Boogie Woogie” close out our 39th adventure together. By the way, Maria and Boo Boo were last heard back in the legendary Episode #20.

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UWA 38: I Like Ike - Jan. 17, 1961

We start out the show with an authentic recording of the Uncle Warren's Attic show from Jan. 17, 1961, as President Dwight D. Eisenhower presents his farewell speech to the nation. It's a historic address, and it provides a lot of room for thought about what's happened in the past 46 years or so.

Also on the show are a 1966 ad for the film "Lady L" from the Jean Shepherd show ... "Liar Liar" by singer-songwriter Julie Harris ... "Grow" by singer-songwriter April Start ... and "I'm Beginning to Remember" by Jimmy Lee and Johnny Mathis - no, not that Johnny Mathis.

It comes with a promise to be back in a week - what am I thinking?!?

Click the podcast icon or here to download - or just push "play" on the player to your right.

UW's Attic #36: Pretensions of immortality

I'll give you eclectic, my pretty -- and your little dog, too!

The lineup:

"Immortality," William Jennings Bryan (1908)
"Welfare Blues," Josh White (1934)
"Address to American Indians," President Woodrow Wilson (1913)
"Asleep in the Deep," William F. Hooley (1911)
Live PSA for safe driving (1953)
"Minor Swing," The WhizBang Shufflers (2004)
"The Radio Guy," Warren Bluhm (1996; recorded 2007)
"Destination Unknown," The Rebel Soul Band

Click Pod icon or here to download; or just play the player.

UWA 34: Give me liberty or give me 'Wildflower Man'

For this Independence Day edition of Uncle Warren's Attic, and to make up for the long silence, this show features two dramatic readings - one many of you have heard before is my short story "Wildflower Man," and the other is a reading of a speech you may have heard some of, but may not have ever heard in its entirety - Patrick Henry's address to the Virginia House of Burgesses on March 23, 1775. It's still pretty electric.

Musical friends include the WhizBang Shufflers, who present the opening and closing tracks of their absolutely free album "Baffle the Bird of Death" - the irrepressible "It's All New" and the bonus track "bonus track."

We also hear from Five Star Fall and The Kokoon, whose work you can find at Magnatune, where the slogan is "We Are Not Evil." And we also have a reprise of Giles' rousing version of "Freedom." Oh, and thanks to Kirsten of Enjoy Every Sandwich for her kind words and actions.

I tried to make it worth the wait - let me know how I did!

Direct download here.

UW Attic 33: The Sealed Weasels etc.

What has happened here is something which, up until a few days ago, was entirely beyond the scope of man's imagination ...

You have heavy doses of a sixties-style band called The Sealed Weasels (Remember "Zen Hot Dog" in UWA 20?), along with seasonings from movies and TV, a little Andy Partridge, Anna Burck, Eisenhowers, Carl T. Sprague and John Charles Thomas ... but not a great deal of Uncle Warren ... at least not Uncle Warren's voice, just Uncle Warren the sound editor.

What does this episode mean? Philosophers will be debating that question for centuries. I wonder why the wonder falls ...

PROMISED UPDATE: So what all was in there? Well, the Sealed Weasels sang "Cold Turkey Sandwiches," "The Illuminati and Me" and "Bionic"; That was the first verse of Carl T. Sprague's "Oh Bury Me Not On the Lone Prairie"; Andy Partridge sang the theme from my second-favorite TV show of all time, "Wonderfalls"; Sonny Rhodes sang the theme from my all-time favorite, "Firefly"; and the Eisenhowers sang "Everything is Not Enough"; John Charles Thomas wanted to be "Home On The Range"; and a Marvel-style no-prize goes to anyone who can tell me where the "Alice, will you marry me?" clip comes from. There's other stuff in this show, but I hate to give away all my secrets ...

Oh! One last acknowledgement: Anna Burck's Music iQuiz is one of the funnest podcasts out there!!

To download, click on the Pod icon or here.

Uncle Warren's Attic #32: Claim the Moon

Goodies I unearthed this week in Uncle Warren's Attic:

"The Mining Ship the Red Dwarf," by Marc Gunn & The Dubliners
"Excelsior," Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, dramatic reading by moi
"Get Happy," Raymond Scott and his Orchestra
"Let's Claim the Moon for the U.S. - Now!" by Pierre J. Huss, Mechanix Illustrated, February 1957. Sharp-eared listeners will note that your humble host, who performs the dramatic reading, managed to throw in a sci-fi element by reading the headline as "Let's Claim the U.S. for the Moon." Not sure why moon beings would want to annex a piece of earthly real estate, but there you have it.
"We'll Be Dancing On The Moon," Trade Martin
"Ingrian Polka - Kuppari Eeva," Off to California. Yes, the reason the title isn't mentioned on the show is I wasn't sure how to pronounce it!
"Jasper Tabby Kitty Cat-y," Marc Gunn & The Dubliners

Uncle Warren's Attic #31: Name that voice

Can you identify the voice in the Peter Pan commercials? No big prize awarded, just the satisfaction of knowing his name before I tell you at the end.

Speaking of peanut butter, much tasty stuff in this edition, along with a semi-promise to drop by more often again!

The musical numbers: "Glow Worm" by Homer and Jethro ... "Ghost Riders in the Sky" by the Sons of the Pioneers and by Scat Man Crothers ... "Listening House" by Lazarus and the announcement of Ikthuscast ... "It's a Bloody War" by Homer & Jethro and "28th of January" by the Piney Creek Weasels ... "Pull the String" by Jonathan Coulton ... and "Bye Bye Blackbird" by Gene Austin.

Click on the POD icon or here to download, or hit the "Play" button to stream.

UW Attic #29: About that day job

Your Uncle Warren and Dave Slusher have thoughts (separately) about the value to the creative process of having a day job. Dave, of course, is the guy behind the Evil Genius Chronicles and other important endeavors, and in this particular episode he refers to Hugh MacLeod's "Sex and Cash Theory."

Along the way we bring you music from the Podsafe Music Network and myself: "Write About Me" by Jeff Coffey ... "The Future," an aural collage by w.p. bluhm ... "Slugbug" by The Egerton Boyz ... "The Maid on the Shore" by Ceili Moss ... "She's Wild" by People Coyote ... and finishing with "Sweet Sarah Wilde" by w.p. bluhm.

UW's Attic #28: Parallelograms

Linda Perhacs made one of the great "lost" albums that has recently been found and re-released to great acclaim. This week's UWA gives you a mini-tour of Parallelograms. Then it's off to the late 1930s and Pretty Kitty Kelly. A little Ames Brothers ... a little Zax ... another taste of "The Dog Song" ... a Piney Creek Weasels encore ... and before you can say "Bing Crosby and the Andrews Sisters," we're outta there again. Have fun!

Click the podcast icon or download here.

Uncle O'Warren's Attic #26

After a montage of great movie moments, Dennis Day sets the stage with his celebration of a jolly Irish hooligan, "Clancy Lowered the Boom."

In a track the Internet archive labels "Edison machine rehearsal (1914)," Harry Houdini offers a $1,000 reward to anyone who can reveal a certain one of his secrets.

I had a very odd dream the other day, and the only memory that lingers is the haunting melody in the background, which I recognized at once as "The Prisoner's Song," the 1924 Vernon Dalhart recording that (I'm told) was a huge hit in its day.

Another nod to March 17 is the Podsafe recording of "Leis A Lurrighan" by Ceili Moss, which oddly enough is a Belgian band. Then it's off to the instant classic "Green Eggs and Ham" by, um, Bob Dylan. I first heard this incredible recording on Jawbone Radio. Thanks, Len and Nora.

From there it's off to "Summertime" by Peach Stealing Monkeys - very compelling, says I - and all of a sudden we're out of time and all that's left to do is dance a "Night Dance" with Green Druid.

Click the "pod" icon or direct download here.

UW's Attic 25: Free The People

Freedom's on my mind a lot, and I got to thinking about freedom after reading about the Copyright Royalty Board and its ridiculous new fees for Webcasters. So this show includes a lot on that subject, including a huge tip of the hat to everyone participating in ventures like the Podsafe Music Network.

I have become an instant fan after hearing the Rebel Soul Band, and UWA 25 has two great tunes from this "groovin' rock 'n' roll band" devoted to "creating music with a message." I kick off the show with "Where You Going?" and move into a celebration of freedom with their song "Big Brother."

After a quick reminder about a certain important document of freedom, if you've listened before, you already know "Free the People" by Los Gallos, one of the best songs I've heard on this theme in a very long time.

Giles then wraps up the cycle by reinventing Richie Havens' classic tune "Freedom."

After I rave about the new TV show "Heroes," time has already run out, but not before we close with a cover by podsafe guru Jonathan Coulton. This edition also includes a small pile of goodies culled from old Mets broadcasts ... enjoy!

Download by clicking on the podcast icon or here.

Uncle Warren's Attic #24

This week ... odds and ends ...

"I Found a Million Dollar Baby" by w.p. bluhm (1991)

"How'd You Like To Spoon With Me" by Franklyn Wallace (1905)

An interesting report from the early days of radio (1937)

"The Touchables," a seldom-heard novelty record by Dickie Goodman (1950-something)

"To Be An Angel," an often-played podcast hit by Uncle Seth (2006)

And Elmer Davis with news and commentary circa 1939.

UW's Attic #20: The Top 40 Show

Fair warning: This one is different from everything that came before.

Everyone who has ever been on the radio has a dark place in their soul. Maybe it comes out on the full moon, maybe it comes out when they realize how silly life in general is ... but every so often they sneak off to that dark place and become ... a Top 40 DJ.

Recently, listening to tunes I'd downloaded from the Podsafe Music Network and Sub Pop Records, I found myself falling into that dark place, and before I realized what was happening ...

It was too late.

UNCLE WARREN'S ATTIC TOP 7
1. Rollin' - Maria Daines
2. Sin City - The Legendary Hucklebucks
3. Zen Hot Dog - The Sealed Weasels
[tie] The Dog Song - Piney Creek Weasels
5. Say I Love You - Ruby James
6. Atlantica - Speed Limit 35
7. The Ghost of an Unkissed Kisses - Trembling Blue Stars

UPDATE: I can't believe I forgot to acknowledge the contributions of my partner, Red, who makes her podcast debut in the roles of news reader Red Roberts (not her real name!) and Jeanie, Caller #15. Thanks, hon! It wouldn't be the same without you.

Click on the Pod symbol or here.

Uncle Warren's Attic #18: Fond memories

... of working in radio, covering the news and Studebakers are interspersed with some tasty music by Los Gallos, the Young Iroquois Drummers, Paul Whiteman and Melanie Lewis (pictured). The exact set list goes like this:

"Amor Prohibido," Los Gallos (from the Podsafe Music Network)

"Honor Song," Young Iroquois Drummers of the Oneida Nation, from UW's personal stash of tapes from his radio news career

Thoughts about radio and podcasting from Dave Slusher of the Evil Genius Chronicles, via the Podcast & Portable Music Expo

"Anything Goes," Paul Whiteman & his Orchestra, from the Internet Archive

"Satisfy Me," Melanie Lewis (from PMN)

"Golden Hawk," w.p. bluhm (from the forthcoming album "Songs From The Attic")

Enjoy! Download by clicking the podcast icon or this link.

UW's Attic #17: Hurry Up

New music, live music, old music and a peek inside Spider-Man comics. What more could you ask for? It's UWA 17!

The musical features: The opening salvo of "Rama Lama Ding Dong" by The Edsels ... a brand-new version of "Hanky Panky" by The Vultures ... a smidgen of "Smile" by The Beach Boys ... the old chestnut "Gee" by The Crows ... the enigmatic "Double-Double: A Waltz for Voice" by Uncle Seth ... the psychedelic pop nugget "Sunday Girl"* by The Telling Eye ... and Springsteen's "Dancing in the Dark" by Greensky Bluegrass. And a couple of other surprises.

* On the show I identify it as "Sunday's Girl," but there is no apostrophe-s in the song title. I also didn't realize until later it's a cover of a Blondie song - a very good song, I might add.

Sources include the Podsafe Music Network and the Internet Archive.

Download UWA 17 here!

UW's Attic #16: New Year's Rockin' Attic

Celebrating 2007 and the spirit of freedom with nifty stuff from 1922 to the present day! The show is peppered with moments from the classic James Stewart vehicle Shenandoah, which should be mandatory viewing for kids of all ages.

The picture of Hemi the cat in the sink has nothing to do with this show; I just think it's cute. Hemi occasionally drapes his body over my left arm and falls asleep while I'm typing, so he's kind of a silent partner to the podcast.

Courtesy of the Podsafe Music Network comes Rockosaurus Rex with "Auld Lang Syne," the only way to start the new year, says I.

After a Marines recruiting ad from Lefty Frizzell, we welcome back Billy Murray and Aileen Stanley, who spiced up UWA #3 with their rendition of "Keep Your Skirts Down, Mary Ann." This time around they perform a piece I found at the Internet Archive called "I'll Stand Beneath Your Window Tonight and Whistle." All that whistling inspired me to follow it up with a vintage excerpt from Lux Radio Theater; I bet you can guess what it is!

"I Wonder How You're Doing" is a song I wrote and recorded at home in 1985; it becomes the latest Uncle Warren project to be hauled out of the attic and shared with the world.

Then it's back to the present day for Jonathan Coulton's wonderful a cappella tune, "When You Go," and a brand-new piece by Los Gallos called "Free the People" - a terrific sentiment to start the new year with, says I.

After an ad for the new Sunday edition of Newsday, we close out with Huddie "Leadbelly" Ledbetter doing his song "Where Did You Sleep Last Night," perhaps best known as the piece that Kurt Cobain made his own when Nirvana played MTV's "Unplugged."

All this and 22 seconds of Firefly, too - what are you waiting for? Download the darn thing!

Uncle Warren's Attic #15: Podsafe heaven

My little attic studio is still under reconstruction, so nothing from my collection this time, but lots from the Podsafe Music Network!

"The Awful Green Things from Outer Space," Clouseaux

"Joy," Michael Lucklow

"Married a Magician," Dust Poets

"Betty," The Lascivious Biddies

"Loopy" (GarageBand experiment), w.p. bluhm

"Rocking Harder," Lee Rocker

"WNBC," Gentlemen's Gun Club

Back to something resembling normal next time - in the meantime, Happy New Year and see ya soon!

To download, click on the little "pod" icon above or here. To just listen, press the "play" button on the player.

Uncle Warren's Attic #14: The Christmas Show

A new era begins in Uncle Warren's life as he produces his first GarageBand podcast. Bert, what do you know about that? Merrrrry Christmas!!!!

This is an odd one, because the musical selections are either from 78 rpm records or .mp3s - there's no in-between. Among the gems here:

"Joy to the World," Robert Shaw Chorale

"March" from "The Nutcracker Suite," Philadelphia Orchestra conducted by Eugene Ormandy.

"Chiron Beta Prime," Jonathan Coulton

"The Cherry Tree Carol," Robert Shaw Chorale

"Twelve Days of Christmas," Robert Shaw Chorale

UW's Christmas memories, music "The First Noel," Mario Ajero
a nifty piece I found at the Podsafe Music Network

"Podsafe Christmas Song," Jonathan Coulton

UPDATE: Whoops! I forgot to mention Orson Welles and Lionel Barrymore from the 1939 radio performance of "A Christmas Carol"

"Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy," Philly Orchestra

As I say in the podcast, this show is to celebrate the holiday season. If you�re celebrating something besides Christmas, Happy Hannukah, or Merry Solstice, Awesome Kwanzaa - whatever greeting you prefer, consider yourself greeted. Pour out a glass of milk, grab some cookies, and settle in!

Download UWA 14 here.