The end of November brings the darkest days of the year, with sunset hereabouts approaching 4:45 p.m. Our show nearly stretched to that mark, starting with 13 tracks about the 11th month, from Tom Waits to The Avett Brothers. That gave way to songs about darkness — and there were a lot from Simon & Garfunkel to Tegan & Sara, Johnny Cash to Curtis Mayfield — and a double dose from Leonard Cohen (and Sandy Denny).
It was Jimi Hendrix’s birthday, born this day in 1942, so there were three songs from the Experience. Spun some Eddie Rabbit since it was his birthday too, born this day in 1941. And we blew out 64 candles for Charlie Burchill of Simple Minds, and sampled some early work from horn man Randy Brecker, turning 78 today.
Closed by marking the death of New Orleans music man Joe Jones, who died this day in 2005, and Marty Krofft, half of the brother team Sid & Marty Krofft that brought us “H.R. Pufnstuf” and “Lidsville,” who died Saturday at 86.
Here’s the link to the entire archived program; the setlist follows:
Capital Radio, November 27, 2023 1 – 4:35 p.m., www.cygnusradio.com
- “Capital Radio Two,” The Clash
- “November,” Tom Waits
- “November Has Come,” Gorillaz
- “November,” Real Estate
- “November Sun,” Susanna Hoffs
- “November,” Azure Ray
- “November Spawned a Monster,” Morrissey
- “Mr. November,” The National
- “Ms. November,” The Silver Seas
- “November 27 2002,” Jens Lekman
- “Late November,” Sandy Denny
- “November Tale,” The Waterboys
- “Denouncing November Blue (Uneasy Writer),” The Avett Brothers
- “Goodbye to November,” Heidi Talbot, Sophia Stinnerbom, Roger Tallroth & Magnus Stinnerbom
- “Dark Was the Night, Cold Was the Ground,” Blind Willie Johnson
- “By the Time It Gets Dark,” Yo La Tengo
- “Dark Come Soon,” Tegan & Sara
- “The Sound of Silence,” Simon & Garfunkel
- “Darkness, Darkness,” The Youngbloods
- “Dark Turn of Mind,” Gillian Welch
- “The Dark End of the Street,” James Carr
- “Beware of Darkness [demo],” George Harrison
- “Dark Christmas,” Freedom Fry
- “Slipping Into Darkness,” Ramsey Lewis
- “In the Dark,” The Creations
- “In Our Darkest Hour,” Phantom Planet
- “I Will Follow You Into the Dark,” Death Cab for Cutie
- “A Voice in the Dark,” Elvis Costello
- “December Dark,” Matthew Sweet
- “Let Her Go Into the Darkness,” Jonathan Richman
- “I See a Darkness,” Johnny Cash
- “Under Cover of Darkness,” The Strokes
- “Whistling in the Dark,” They Might Be Giants
- “Right on for the Darkness,” Curtis Mayfield
- “Darkness on the Edge of Town,” Bruce Springsteen
- “Not Dark Yet,” Bob Dylan
- “Darkness,” Leonard Cohen
- “You Want it Darker,” Iggy Pop
- “May This Be Love,” The Jimi Hendrix Experience
- “All Along the Watchtower,” The Jimi Hendrix Experience
- “The Wind Cries Mary,” The Jimi Hendrix Experience
- “Alive and Kicking,” Simple Minds
- “Driven’ My Life Away,” Eddie Rabbit
- “Kentucky Rain,” Elvis Presley
- “Morning Glory,” Blood, Sweat & Tears
- “Hello, It’s Me,” Todd Rundgren
- “Tenth Avenue Freeze Out,” Bruce Springsteen
- “You Talk Too Much,” Joe Jones
- “The Banana Splits (The Tra-La Song),” The Banana Splits
- “H.R. Pufnstuf,” The Murmurs
Capital Radio returns Dec. 4 at 1 p.m. ET at www.cygnusradio.com, where this and past shows are archived. Also available on the cygnusradio.com app, available free at iTunes or ApplePlay.