Capital Radio, 1-22-24: Shangri-Las & Sam Cooke
The passing Friday of Mary Weiss, the lead singer and last surviving voice from the Shangri-Las, brought a wealth of the tough, influential group’s music to Capital Radio today, with…
Capital Radio, 1-15-24: King’s Dreams of Freedom
Martin Luther King Day has only been a national holiday for 38 years, and only five times has it fallen on the Civil Rights leader’s actual birthday. Today’s the first…
Capital Radio, 1-8-24: Elvis and Bowie Birthdays
Is there a more significant date for rock birthdays than Jan. 8? Not only do we celebrate the day Elvis Presley was born in Tupelo, Miss. in 1935, but also…
Capital Radio, 1-1-24: New Year’s Remembrance
A baker’s dozen of New Year’s songs, including three different “New Year’s Resolutions” and the Ramones’ unexpected salute to the new calendar (“2024 hours ago…”) began a holiday edition of…
Capital Radio 12-25-23: Today’s Holiday
Cutting into the annual 24 Hours of Christmas programming for my own holiday edition of Capital Radio, I tried o concentrate on somber, more solemn numbers appropriate for the day…
Capital Radio 12-18-23: Christmas Excess
The last show before Christmas warrants the annual avalanche of holiday songs, starting with the Bosstones, Aimee Mann and Nick Lowe, shifting to '60s oddities from Bobby Goldsboro and Brian…
Capital Radio 12-11-23: Fairytale of Shane
Things don't always go right when you pre-record a show. Sometimes, last week's show repeats by mistake, which it did today. And as happy as I was with that show,…
Capital Radio, 12-4-23: Counting It Up
Taping my show last week means the Shane MacGowan tribute will have to wait a week. Instead, today's Capital Radio had a couple songs about December, and 25 musical numbers…
Capital Radio 11-27-23: November Darkness
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…
Capital Radio, 11-20-23: Thanksgiving, Etc.
The impending holiday brings “Almost Thanksgiving Day” and a slew of songs spelling out gratitude, from Sam & Dave to Big Star, Talking Heads to Leonard Cohen. Birthdays were celebrated…