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RADIO RPB – Guest Hosting on Dead Air Radio Dec. 6, 2017

Great fun with Peter at The Dear Air Radio show.  Peter started off with a tribute set to Tommy Keene, then we traded sets and ended up sticking to 7″ 45rpm for the rest of the evening. Great fun, and three hours of great songs. Link to show below the playlist.

The Good ,The Bad, the Ugly Ennio Morricone

Peter’s set

Where Are They Now The Kinks
Places That Are gone Tommy Keene
Love Is A Dangerous Thing Tommy Keene
Back To Zero Tommy Keene
Already Made Up Your Mind Tommy Keene
Baby Face Tommy keene

Peter Speaks

Love Is Love The Razz
Down Payment Blues ACDC

Peter & Richard Chat

Richard’s Set ALL 7” 45RPM!

Yes Sirree Earl Grant
The Trains Nashville Ramblers
Twine Time Alvin Cash 7 The Crawlers
Cara-Lin The Strangeloves
My Baby Likes To Boogaloo Don Gardner
No Good To Cry Tobie Legend
Again And Again The Van Dykes

Peter’s Set ALL 7” 45RPM!
Let’s Shake Teenage Head
I Can Feel The Fire Ron Wood
Have I The Right The Honeycombs
Tell That Girl To Shut Up Holly & The Italians
Party Weekend Joe King Corrasco
123 The Professionals
Noel Ford HEAP
Staring At The Rude Boys The Ruts
I’m Not Like Everybody Else The Kinks

Richard’s Set ALL 7” 45RPM!
Love Is What You Need Danny Gatton
I Wanna Be The Only One Kip Anderson
Wake Me Shake Me The Wrongh Black Bag
Birds Bill Durso
I Just Dropped In to See What Condition My Condition Was In Sharon Jones & The Dap Kings

Richard Speaks

Picture Sleeve The dB’s
Different For Girls Joe Jackson
Step Inside Love Cilla Black

Peter’s Set ALL 7” 45RPM!

See My Baby Jive Wizzard
Brickfield Nights
What Keeps Your Heart Beatin’? Rattlers
Money Changes Everything The Brains
I Can’t Stand My Baby Rezillos
Ride A White Swan TRex

Peter Talks

Kicks Paul Revere and The Raiders
I’ll Be You The Replacements
Hippy Hippy Shake The Swingin’ Blue Jeans

Peter Talks

Richard’s Set ALL 7” 45RPM!
Stop And Go Roger C. Reale & Rue Morgue
Go Away Hound Dog Nick Lowe
Glad All Over Carl Perkins
Howard Johnson NRBQ
I Like To Be Clean The Mumps
Shattered Todd Snider

Peter Talks

1+1<2 Classic Ruins
Faith In Love (Acoustic Version) Tommy Keene

https://www.mixcloud.com/RPBCreative/wcni-dead-air-radio-dec-6-2017/

 

Radioactive!

Mixes and masters.
Mixes and masters.

Friends, some of you may be familiar with Radioactive, an LP released on the Big Sound label in 1978 by Roger C. Reale and Rue Morgue. Think Power Pop with an emphasis on the Power. Roger on bass/vocals and the fierce alchemy of Hilly Michaels on drums and G.E. Smith on guitar. The LP got ace reviews, releases in the UK and Japan, and that momentum brought Roger back to the studio to start in on a second second LP. Roger’s next batch of songs were stronger than his first, and the songs were matched with equally impressive guitar work by Mick Ronson (yep, THAT Mick Ronson) and the great Jimmy McAllister (Sparks, The Beckies, re-formed Left Banke). Momentum is a funny business though, and the album was never released.
Some years ago (does 2004 count as some years?) I started trying to make a CD reissue of Radioactive happen, not even realizing that there was an unreleased LP in the can. More than some years later I’m pretty excited to say that the tapes of Radioactive and the unreleased LP have been retrieved, baked and backed up. There’s a lot of work left to make it happen, but we’re hoping to find the right label to release and re-release to the world, perhaps by next year to coincide with the 40th anniversary of Radioactive’s original release.
Those of you already familiar with Radioactive know it’s a stone cold killer, and I guarantee that your jaws will drop when you hear what was left in the can. For those of you unfamiliar with Roger’s music, you’ve got a good thing coming.

Aircheck – Oct 10, 2016 WCNI-FM

They let me back on the air. Here’s the air check for the hour. Lots of good stuff, still a little scattered but getting a little better after a few decades off the air.

Playlist

Pete “Guitar” Lewis • Louisiana Hop
Allen Toussaint • Up The Creek
Shades Of Blue • Oh How Happy
The Equals • I Get So Excited
Brinsley Schwarz • Give Me Back My Love
Clefs Of Lavender Hill • Stop! Get A Ticket
1910 Fruitgum Company • Bubble Gum World
James Taylor • Carolina in My Mind (Apple Records Version)
Teenage Fanclub • I Need Direction (alt. version)
Aimee Mann • That’s Just What You Are (Acoustic)
Cilla Black • I’ve Been Wrong Before
Warren Zanes • Scrapbook (Let’s Put It All In There)
Jay Bennett & Edward BurchvVenus Stopped The Train
Evie SandsvI Can’t Let Go
NRBQ • Talk To Me
Lovin’Spoonful • Six O’Clock
The Windsor High School Marching BandvRidin’ In My Car

https://www.mixcloud.com/RPBCreative/rpb-dead-air-radio-wcni-october-10-2016-aircheck/

 

Syd Straw – Pink Velour

The great Syd Straw is going on tour next week with the great Don Piper, and if they’re near your town you really owe it to yourself to see the show. About a year ago I was honored to record a nearly three hour set by Syd and Don. Here’s a taste of what went down that night – a truly moving performance of Syd’s Pink Velour. Posted with permission (thanks Syd!).

Radio RPB – RPB on The Dead Air Radio Show

2481_66739418800_3830453_nThe Dead Air Radio has been a staple of the WCNI-FM airwaves as long as I can remember, and as long as I can remember goes way back to the Fall of 1983 when I first encountered this amazing rock and roll radio show . Why amazing? Well, really it’s about good taste. Peter Detmold, Hugh Birdsall and Paul Sweeney (the show’s current hosts) all possess an uncanny sense of good musical taste, history and a dry sense of humor – put them all together and you’ve got a recipe for a radio show that’s managed to stay on the air for more than 30 years.

I have my own history with WCNI (which perhaps I’ll tell another time) but it’s been a long, long time since I pulled songs together for a radio show. Still,  I was asked by Peter to take the helm of the Dead Air Radio Show for an hour on September, 8 and here’s how it went. Not so bad! I’m a bit rusty and I think I over-did it on the “sounds like The Beatles, but not The Beatles” set but there’s some good stuff in there. Have a listen.

https://www.mixcloud.com/RPBCreative/rpb-dead-air-radio-september-8-2016-aircheck/

Set List
Big Kids Wanna Rock • Myracle Brah

Nothing • Jay Sherman-Godfrey
A Question Mark • Elliott Smith
She Goes To Bed • Jason Falkner
Ruin My Day • Jon Brion
Get The Message • Sagittarius

The Magic Touch • The Bobby Fuller Four
Soul Deep • The Box Tops
It’s Looking Good • The Rutles
You Don’t Know Her • The Rubinoos
Thought You’d Never Go • Kenney Howes
So Far From My Heart • Frank Lee Sprague
Sexy Rickenbacker • Charlie Chesterman

Inside Looking Out • The Animals
For Your Love • Larry Williams Show
Listen, Listen • The Merry-Go-Round
The Trouble With Boys • Little Eva
That’s How It Goes • The Breakaways(UK)

Taking Pictures • Sam Phillips

Dave Davies says, “It sounds great!”

Last May, I recorded the tribute to The Lovin’ Spoonful at 2A , a really special night of musical celebration (and perhaps the sweatiest in recent memory – the AC couldn’t handle the packed house). Tom Clark mentioned that Dave Davies was in the audience but I missed spotting Dave or the chance to say hello. A day or two after the show I was going over the recording and heard this little snippet in the background – Dave’s unmistakable voice offering a little encouragement between a couple of songs. Just a snippet of sound, but a genuine, unexpected moment from a music hero. This band deserved it.

 

https://soundcloud.com/brukner/dave-davies-says-it-sounds-great/s-ey4y2

The band: Andy Riedel Dennis Diken Tom Clark Sal Maida Craig Chesler Charles Roth

Jack Rabid’s Best of 2015

I’m pleased, chuffed, pumped, delighted, tickled and downright honored to have The Reducers’ Last Tracks and Lost Songs included in Jack Rabid’s Best of 2015.

Jack is one of The Big Takeover, the world’s greatest (and thriving) rock magazine. I’ve been reading TBT for years and years so it’s a thrill to have such an emotionally charged project included in a list with some pretty impressive artists. (The Reducers are nestled in somewhere between The MC5 and The Heartbreakers).

 

 

 

 

 

Live at Fi – Maplewood

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Congratulations to Mike Stuto and everyone at The  HiFi Bar!

Today’s the day the podcast we’ve been working on goes live.

This first podcast episode features the incredible Maplewood, incredible because they blew my top with a truly inspiring set of music on the night the tapes rolled, and incredible because they were somehow off my radar until the night of the recording. Really fine songwriting, singing and musicianship from top to bottom.

Maplewood, Live at The HiFi Bar
Maplewood, Live at The HiFi Bar

Maybe that shouldn’t be a surprise since Maplewood is kind of a supergroup (with members of Nada Surf, Champale, Bambi Kino and Two Dark Birds) but I just didn’t expect to be so moved by the music and live set. It’s a great example of what we’re trying to do with the podcast – turn folks on to the great great music, comedy and spoken word events at HiFi, and ultimately encourage them to be a part of these nights in person.

RPB Creative is producing the podcast and the team has been busy recording live music, comedy and spoken word events at HiFi. All microphones carefully placed, all cables carefully coiled, and all faders gently nudged for your listening pleasure. We’re also keeping episodes bite-sized for those of you loathe to commit to another three hour download of chit-chat. Subscribe to the podcast at iTunes link below or stream over at Soundcloud.

Special thanks and kudos to the folks who’ve endured my presence while recording some of these nights – Colin Poellot, Ward White and especially the great Don Piper (who’s so good he’s getting a podcast episode dedicated to his music). And extra special thanks to the guys in Maplewood (Mark Rozzo, Steve Koester, Jude Webre and Don Piper) for allowing us to share their music.

Things We Did Last Summer

Late October seems an odd time to reflect upon a busy summer, but the pending debut of the Live at Fi podcast makes me take a look back. I pretty much spent the summer recording music, comedy and spoken word events at The HiFi Bar and it’s finally coming together in the imminent release to the world of the Live at Fi Podcast.

For much of the 90’s through the early 00’s I lived on East 11th Street, between Avenues A and B, one of the dingier blocks in the East Village.

My crappy East 11th Street apartment!
My crappy East 11th Street apartment!

My apartment was tiny, cheap and not the kind of place that attracted visitors, but it was perfectly situated for my main pleasure in life – the live local music scene.

Going out at night to see music and friends was the way it was done pretty much every night of the week. There were small music venues and bars all over The East Village, but if you wanted to know what was coming next, or see the next big thing before it got big, you went to Brownies. As one of the prime movers of the venue, Mike Stuto’s excellent taste and intuition fueled the ascending careers of a who’s-who of alternative rockers – Spoon, Death Cab For Cutie, The National, Ben Fold’s Five, The New Pornographers, The Strokes, The Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Interpol – they all owe a debt to Brownies and Stuto.

In 2002, neighborhood rents were rising, bands started moving to Brooklyn and Mike Stuto pulled the plug on Brownies. A month later, Mike reinvented and reopened the venue as The HiFi Bar.

Fast forward to 2015 – Mike, along with friends and collaborators is booking music again, along with comedy,  readings and much more. Each night has its own flavor, and each night brings people back to the excitement and community that live performance breeds. So Mike Stuto is going back to what he’s always relied on, what we’ve always looked to him for – his good taste.

In June 2015 I was looking to take on a new project and was taken with the idea of podcasting, and how it was changing and influencing the traditional radio landscape. I didn’t want to create another all “talking heads” show because the internet was already overpopulated with yapping,  and then I looked at the upcoming events listings for HiFi and it clicked – music, comedy, conversation – all the things I loved and wanted to share. A few phone calls and meetings later I started recording as many HiFi events as my schedule would allow. Mike and I went through dozens of ideas for show concept and presentation. A magazine format, a variety show, a reality show… an endless stream of characters and ideas.

Simplicity won out, and each episode of Live at Fi will feature selections from a night’s performance. A night out at HiFi – a keepsake for those who were lucky enough to be there, and a lure for folks to come out and enjoy the venue in person.

Live at Fi is available for download on iTunes and streaming on Soundcloud.

I’ll fill you in on episodes as they premiere – it’s great stuff!

 

 

The Reducers Last Tracks

Reducers -Last Tracks_TEMPVoila, my latest production credit. This has been a bittersweet project to complete, but I’m very proud of the end result. The Reducers allowed me into their world in 1987 when they first asked me to mix a track for a compilation LP. Soon after we recorded demos in their rehearsal space, then moved on to proper studios and numerous releases. Most of the best tracks saw the light of day, but somewhere along the line songs got put aside or forgotten. Last Tracks & Lost Songs compiles previously unreleased tracks from 1988 – 2011  along with a few numbers tracks that extremely limited release.  Our last sessions in 2010 and 2011 yielded a number of promising basic tracks, but we were devastated by the news of Steve Kaika’s cancer diagnosis and his death in June 2012.  A year seemed like enough time to regroup and try to finish up the last recordings  and after a few false starts, Hugh Birdsall and Peter Detmold finished up their vocal and guitar parts. We thought about releasing those six tracks as an EP, but knew there were some winners lurking in the archives that would round out the collection. “Getaway”, sung by Steve, needed  a new harmony vocal (beautifully sung by Steve’s nephew and very talented musician Jes Farnsworth) . Back To Normal, sung by Peter required extensive tape restoration and remixing, and we lucked out with the discovery of  two tracks from a well preserved 1988 demo reel. The CD is rounded out by tracks from the “Guitars, Bass & Drums” session, all mastered directly from the 1/2″ analog mixes at Sterling Sound. Those tracks in particular sound incredibly good, but the whole thing makes me happy. Once Steve was gone we were all unsure what the next move would be. Peter, Hugh, and Tom Trombley decided that The Reducers as a live act were through, but with great songs in the can, it just made sense for The Reducers to make one last musical statement. It’s something of a jolt to realize that we’ve been recording tracks for over 25 years, and now that it’s done it fun to go back. Lots of live stuff and new discoveries will get posted to SoundCloud as the years roll on, but I’m proud to say that Last Tracks is worthy addition and grace note to The Reducers’ catalog.

Can I sell you a copy? Buy it direct at the Rave On Records Store or iTunes.