More 5/23/10

OK, I've got a little more information now, thanks to a call from Greg Cotterill last night while I was doing the show.

First off, regarding the scheduling on WITH: It seems there are two reasons that Stuck in the Psychedelic Era is running on Sunday night rather than Saturday night, as it is on WEOS. In fact, I just stated the first reason: Stuck in the Psychedelic Era runs on Saturday night on WEOS. Apparently, once the WITH signal is up to full strength (tomorrow), there will be some signal overlap between the two stations, mostly in northern Tompkins and southern Seneca counties. That means in places like Trumansburg you will be able to hear Stuck in the Psychedelic Era both nights if you want, although it will be the same exact show.

The second reason can be found on the new WITH website: http://www.withradio.org/
If you hit the schedule button, you will see that the Saturday night lineup consists of the House of Blues Radio Hour, Beale Street Caravan and Blacks and Blues. Obviously there is a theme to the night and speaking as a former program director I have to say it is a solid, consistent lineup with a lot of synergy between shows. Speaking of synergy, you'll also note that the Grateful Dead hour is running just before Stuck in the Psychedelic Era on Sunday nights. I have no idea what "rejuventations" is just yet (I Googled it and got a "did you mean rejuvenations?" message), so I guess we'll all have to wait for the interactive version of the schedule to become active.

Finally, I've posted a copy of last night's playlist if anyone's interested. I plan to continue doing this every week, so get used to it.

P.S.: Don't forget to use the "contact" link at http://www.hermitradio.com/contact.php to make requests and give me feedback.

Playlist 1001

Name	BLOOD, SWEAT AND TEARS
Song Title	SOMETHIN' GOIN' ON
Name of CD	CHILD IS FATHER TO THE MAN
Release Year	1968
Name	LED ZEPPELIN
Song Title	HOW MANY MORE TIMES
Name of CD	LED ZEPPELIN
Release Year	1969
Name	THE JIMI HENDRIX EXPERIENCE
Song Title	STILL RAINING, STILL DREAMING
Name of CD	ELECTRIC LADYLAND
Release Year	1968
Name	THE BYRDS
Song Title	CHANGE IS NOW
Name of CD	THE NOTORIOUS BYRD BROS.
Release Year	1968
Name	NEIL YOUNG
Song Title	THERE'S A WORLD
Name of CD	HARVEST
Release Year	1972
Name	NEIL YOUNG
Song Title	ALABAMA
Name of CD	HARVEST
Release Year	1972
Name	DOORS
Song Title	I CAN'T SEE YOUR FACE IN MY MIND
Name of CD	STRANGE DAYS
Release Year	1967
Name	Status Quo
Song Title	Pictures Of Matchstick Men
Name of CD	N/A
Release Year	1968
Name	CREAM
Song Title	CROSSROADS
Name of CD	WHEELS OF FIRE
Release Year	1968
Name	TRAFFIC
Song Title	COLOURED RAIN
Name of CD	MR. FANTASY
Release Year	1967
Name	THE WHO
Song Title	PINBALL WIZARD
Name of CD	TOMMY
Release Year	1968
Name	SAM AND DAVE
Song Title	HOLD ON! I'M A COMIN'
Name of CD
Release Year	1966
Name	WEST COAST POP ART EXPERIMENTAL BAND
Song Title	i WON'T HURT YOU
Name of CD	PART ONE
Release Year	1967
Name	CHER
Song Title	COME AND STAY WITH ME
Name of CD	ALL I REALLY WANT TO DO
Release Year	1965
Name	GRATEFUL DEAD
Song Title	ST. STEPHEN
Name of CD	AOXOMOXOA
Release Year	1969
Name	JEFFERSON AIRPLANE
Song Title	WATCH HER RIDE/SPARE CHAYNGE
Name of CD	AFTER BATHING AT BAXTER'S
Release Year	1967
Name	JANIS JOPLIN
Song Title	HALF MOON
Name of CD	PEARL
Release Year	1971
Name	THEM
Song Title	HERE COMES THE NIGHT
Name of CD	THEM (aka ANGRY YOUNG THEM)
Release Year	1965
Name	THE ROLLING STONES
Song Title	MERCY MERCY
Name of CD	OUT OF OUR HEADS
Release Year	1965
Name	THE KNICKERBOCKERS
Song Title	ONE TRACK MIND
Name of CD
Release Year	1966
Name	THE MUSIC MACHINE
Song Title	TALK TALK
Name of CD	TURN ON
Release Year	1966
Name	THE LIGHT
Song Title	BACK UP
Name of CD	WHERE THE ACTION IS-LA NUGGETS
Release Year	1966
Name	MOURNING REIGN
Song Title	SATISFACTION GUARANTEED
Name of CD
Release Year
Name	RAY CHARLES
Song Title	HIT THE ROAD JACK
Name of CD
Release Year

Saturday, May 22

First off, I want to apologize to my friends in Ithaca that were not able to get Stuck in the Psychedelic Era last week. Apparently, the folks at Ithaca Community Radio, which owns the 88.1 transmitter, decided to no longer carry WEOS on that frequency. I only found out about it myself six days after the fact, and thus carried on obliviously last week. What made it worse is that due to some weird stuff happening (a Saturday night Lacrosse game one week, severe weather the next), the same recorded show had just run for three weeks in a row, giving some people the impression that Stuck in the Psychedelic Era was being cancelled.

Let me say right now that is not the case. Stuck in the Psychedelic Era is still running every Saturday night at 9 on WEOS 89.7 , covering Ontario, Seneca and parts of Cayuga, Wayne and northern Tompkins Counties. In fact, I am doing the last live show tonight. (The show will be pre-recorded from now on for reasons I'll get into in the next paragraph.) If you can't pick it up on 89.7, try going to www.weos.org and clicking the "listen live" box. The streamed signal is mono only, but it is virtually lag free because of that, even on dialup.

That still leaves the problem of how to get Stuck in the Psychedelic Era in Ithaca. Well, I just learned that the show will be running on the new WITH 90.1 Sunday nights from 10-Midnight, starting May 30th. Granted, it will be a little weird getting used to tuning in on a different day, time and station, but at least it will be there. This, by the way, will be the exact same show heard Saturday night at 9 on WEOS. The only way to do this is for me to pre-record the show every week, which is why tonight is the last live show on WEOS. Feel free to call me tonight between 9-11 at 315 781-3897 or 1-800-213-WEOS if you want. I'll be there.

Now I know some of you in Ithaca have to get up for a day job Monday morning and may not be able to listen to the entire show Sunday night and I apologize for that. Truth to tell, I have no control over the scheduling of the show; that is done by the WXXI management team up in Rochester, which programs WITH. If you have any feedback regarding the scheduling of Stuck in the Psychedelic Era on WITH, you can probably contact them through the wxxi website (www.wxxi.org). At this moment they don't have a WITH website, although I imagine that will change in the near future.

Anyway, tell your friends that don't do the internet about the new day, time and station (WITH 90.1 Sunday nights from 10-Midnight) for Stuck in the Psychedelic Era in Ithaca. For the rest of you, I'll talk to you tonight and every Saturday night on WEOS. And in the future, if you want to contact me, go to the "contact" page at www.hermitradio.com or just leave a comment here on the blog.

Thanks for sticking with Stuck in the Psychedelic Era through all the craziness lately. Remember, the music is really all that matters and that's not about to change.

Stuck in the Psychedelic Era

Playlist-5/15/10

OK. For those of you who are like me and can’t figure out how to use the weos playlist lookup without explicit instructions, I’ve got the entire song list from the show that aired on May 15^th. This show was done live. The plan is to do it live again next week, then go into syndication mode starting May 29th, so if you want to call during the show, May 22^nd will probably be the last opportunity.

The List

FIFTY FOOT HOSE---If Not This Time

Cauldron (1968 promo vinyl)

SPIRIT---Veruska

Spirit (1968-song is bonus track recorded at same time as album but unreleased until 1990s)

WEST COAST POP ART EXPERIMENTAL BAND---I Won't Hurt You

West Coast Pop Art Experimental Band, Vol. 1 (1967-included on late 1980s vinyl Nuggets series)

PEANUT BUTTER CONSPIRACY---Eventually

Where the Action Is - LA Nuggets 1965-68

PENNY ARKADE---Swim

Where the Action Is - LA Nuggets 1965-68

DOORS---My Eyes Have Seen You

Strange Days (1967)

MUSIC MACHINE ---Astrologically Incompatible

Bonniwell Music Machine (1967)

YARDBIRDS –Steeled Blues

45 RPM B-side (1965-Jeff Beck, guitar)

TRAFFIC---Glad/Freedom Rider

John Barleycorn Must Die (1970-LP started off as Steve Winwood’s first solo album, but ended up being Traffic reunion album instead)

VANILLA FUDGE---The Sky Cried/When I Was a Boy

Renaissance (1968-first VF album to feature primarily original material)

TOMMY JAMES AND THE SHONDELLS---Hanky Panky

45 RPM A-side (1966-original band broke up before song became a hit)

WISHBONE ASH---Time Was

Argus (1972-3^rd WA album)

SLY AND THE FAMILY STONE---Medley: Dance To The Music/Music Lover/I Want To Take You Higher

Woodstock: 40^th Anniversary Edition (1969/1999-recording restored to original condition, flaws and all)

BIG BROTHER AND THE HOLDING COMPANY---Ball and Chain

Cheap Thrills (1968-recorded live at the Fillmore)

JOHNNY WINTER---Rollin’ and Tumblin’

The Progressive Blues Experiment (1968)

SEEDS---Mr. Farmer

A Web of Sound (1966-2^nd LP by the Seeds)

MOTHERS OF INVENTION---Trouble Comin' Every Day

Freak Out (1966-Frank Zappa’s debut)

EVERPRESENT FULLNESS---Darlin' You Can Count On Me

The Everpresent Fullness (1967-featured on Where the Action Is-LA Nuggets 1965-68)

LEMON PIPERS---Green Tambourine

A-side (1968)

MYSTERY TREND---Johnny Was A Good Boy

A-side (1966)

Will Stone

The most enjoyable gig I ever had in commercial radio was working for WEVA Emporia, a small daytime-only AM station in southern Virginia, in the 1990s. It wasn’t the music that made it enjoyable. As a matter of fact, I quickly grew bored with its bland mix of Michael Bolton, Whitney Houston, Celine Dion, Lionel Richie and the like, and would often try to sneak in songs by people like Toad the Wet Sprocket or the Rembrandts whenever possible. It wasn’t even the fact that I was given total creative control over the popular Sunday Afternoon Oldies show, although I did enjoy the opportunity to implement some programming theories that I had been kicking around in my head for years.

No, what made working at WEVA special was its owner, Willis Stone. Will, as everyone knew him, had spent his entire life at WEVA. His father Maxey had founded the station on November 2, 1952, just in time to cover the presidential election that saw Eisenhower become the first Republican president since the beginning of the Great Depression.

Will began working at WEVA while still a high school student in the mid-50s, covering airshifts after school. Back in those days, small-town stations were not dedicated to a particular format. I remember Will telling me about running back-to-back 15 minute shows of local news, country and western music, black gospel, farm news, big band music, and even a nightly rock and roll show. After the station signed off at sunset, he would occasionally take his high school sweetheart Eleanor to a rock and roll show up in Richmond.

When Will was 22 his father died suddenly, and Will the newlywed became Will the President and General Manager of WEVA, a position he held for the rest of the century. Much like the fictional George Bailey, Will never left Emporia, but his influence extended well beyond Southside Virginia through the numerous newscasters, engineers and disc jockeys that either started out at or passed through the WEVA studios on the way to successful careers in the industry. He was on the board of directors of the Virginia Association of Broadcasters and even served as President of that organization during the 1970s. Locally, he served terms as president of a variety of organizations, including the Rotary Club, the Jaycees, the Emporia Chamber of Commerce and the local Industrial Development Corporation.

Will Stone was not a greedy man. In fact, he had to occasionally ask us to hold off on cashing paychecks for a day or two because a client was behind on payments. Nor was he an arrogant man. Despite being sole owner of the primary media outlet in the community (the only other one being a weekly newspaper), he was always accessible to anyone that cared to approach him. By all accounts Will was the best-known and best-liked person in town.

The aspect of Will Stone that most impressed me, though, was this: from the very beginning Will put serving the community ahead of making a profit, and never wavered from that commitment. Even into the 90s, when most AM stations were converting to news/talk or sports programming, Will kept WEVA a full-service station, taking on multiple roles as station manager, news director, and program director, and handling a good number of sales accounts as well in order to keep the station afloat. He did the morning drive himself, signing on the station at sunrise seven days a week and staying on the air until 10 every morning. He wrote and read his own newscasts, most of which he gathered himself, tirelessly attending every city council meeting for years on end, and stopping by the local police station on the way to work every morning to check the blotter. Whenever there was a major traffic accident on I-95, he’d go out there himself to get a firsthand view of the scene, interviewing witnesses and taking notes, then heading back to the station to write the story.

Will Stone outlasted virtually all of his contemporaries, whose stations were gobbled up by corporate buyers in the wake of the deregulation binge of the early 90s. Sadly, the new owners were, by and large, more interested in the bottom line than any mandate to serve the community. As more and more commercial radio stations came under corporate ownership, the concept of a full-service radio station became obsolete, replaced by niche stations catering to carefully targeted segments of the listening audience.

Shortly after I left Emporia in 1999, Eleanor Stone was diagnosed with Lou Gehrig’s Disease. As Eleanor’s condition worsened, Will Stone, always the family man first and foremost, sold WEVA in order to be able to spend as much time with her as possible. After her death in November 2000, Will spent the next few years indulging his own hobbies of collecting arrowheads and participating in E-bay auctions.

Last year I got word that Will himself had passed away at the age of 71. I think it’s safe to say that we won’t see another one like him again.

Goodbye Will Stone. You will be missed.

Another Rerun???

Due to the high wind warnings issued around here, I won't be able to get to the studios to do a live show tonight. I guess that's one of the drawbacks to living out in the country. Besides, from what I've heard tonight, it's entirely possible that the WEOS transmitter will get knocked off the air by the high winds anyway.

Stuck in the 21st Century

Big news this time around.

Thanks to the folks at fingerlakes1.com, the official Stuck in the Psychedelic Era web page (www.hermitradio.com) is up and running. My contact in the 21st century tells me the correct term is “published,” which sounds a little weird to me, since I can’t take it to work with me in my backpack, but what do I know? I’m just a hermit stuck in the psychedelic era (hey that sounds like a good name for a radio show).

Anyway, the thing is available for viewing, assuming you have a computer (and if you don’t, just how are you reading this?).

So what is there to see at www.hermitradio.com you ask? Well, for one thing, you get to see the spiffy new Stuck in the Psychedelic Era logo (in full color), along with a brief description of the show itself. There is also a link back to this blog (just in case you get lost in cyberspace), a link to the ubiquitous Temporary Democratization of American Popular Music in the mid to late 1960s article (really. Look up the word “ubiquitous” and you’ll see what I mean), a download page (exclusively for affiliate stations’ use, although I’m trying to get a link to the most recent week’s playlist for anyone to look at added to it), and a contact page so you can send me an e-mail.

That last item is an important one, since it is the primary way we’ll have to stay in touch once the show goes into syndication (which could be as early as next week, although I do plan on doing at least one more live show exclusively on WEOS in early May). The contact page will function mainly as a feedback page, although if you have a request and don’t mind waiting a couple weeks to hear it you can use if for that as well. The main thing though is that I really do want feedback from you. As I’ve said before, the only drawback to syndication is that I won’t have the opportunity to talk to you on the phone during the show (although to be honest the quality of the show has sometimes suffered from my being on the phone instead of paying attention to what was going on over the air).

So, that’s the big news from me. What’s new with you? I guess you’ll just have to go to the above-mentioned contact page and let me know, won’t you?

The Hermit