Dec. 15 – Annual Holiday Show

Saxophone on the radio
Recorded forty years ago
All I get for Christmas is blue

White lights on the Christmas tree
Thank God you are here with me
All I ever get for Christmas is blue
(Over The Rhine)

So many of the feelings we have during the holiday season seem to revolve around memories.  Our childhood experiences come back to us stripped of any frustrations or anxieties, now just warm and lovely recollections of snow, decorated trees and the anticipation of gifts and the many foods that seemed to be enjoyed only in December. Among the memories many of us cherish are the songs and music of the season – whether it is Bing Crosby or Handel or the Ronettes.

For others, Christmas music can be incredibly annoying.  As you stand in the cold pumping gas into your car you hear someone singing over the tinny outdoor PA – “it’s the most wonderful time of the year…” and you spill gas on your cold hands and wonder how you are going to pay the bills.  Or your holiday memories just make you a little blue and you find yourself wishing  for a different kind of music.

Great River Radio today offers our fifth annual holiday music program for your enjoyment and we hope that we’ll cover the bases for our listeners.  We’ve found some old tunes and some obscure tunes (since it seems virtually every musician has made a holiday record) and some brand new stuff.  We’ve got music from Artie Shaw, Coconut Records, Ella Fitzgerald, Smokey Robinson, Best Coast, Shelby Lynne, The Civil Wars, Little Jackie, Rufus Wainwright and Haley Bonar.  You’ll hear some songs that are familiar and, we hope, several that are new to you.  Every year, it seems, there is a new song that becomes a classic – we hope that one is on today’s playlist.

Join us this afternoon for some great music that just might get you into the spirit of the season.

Details:

Great River Radio – Wednesdays 4:15-5:45 p.m.
Catch the live stream
Web/Listen Later
Facebook
iChat/AIM: kustradio

Peace, Brian and Dan

Playlist
River-Haley Bonar
There’s Frost on The Moon-Artie Shaw
I Love The Winter Weather-Jo Stafford
It’s Christmas-Coconut Records
The Christmas Song-Catherine Feeny
Got Something For You-Best Coast
Time of the Season-Isobel Campbell and Mark Lanegan
All I Ever Get For Christmas Is Blue-Over The Rhine
Ain’t Nothing Like Christmas-Shelby Lynne
Presents for Christmas-Solomon Burke
Mrs. Claus Ain’t Got Nothing On Me-Little Jackie
I’ll Be Your Santa, Baby-Rufus Thomas
Back Door Santa-Clarence Carter
Good Morning Blues-Ella Fitzgerald
Christmas Every Day-Smokey Robinson
Tracks In The Snow-The Civil Wars
Angels We Have Heard On High-The Brian Setzer Orchestra
Angels We Have Heard On High-Sara Jackson-Holman
Baby It’s Cold Outside-Glee Cast
Last Christmas-Glee Cast
It’s The Most Wonderful Time of the Year (Shrift remix)-Andy Williams
God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen-Annie Lennox
Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing-Sufjan Stevens
Spotlight on Christmas-Rufus Wainwright
I Was Thinking I Could Clean Up For Christmas-Aimee Mann
Merry Christmas-The Ramones

Sept. 15 – Season Five

(NOTE: the audio quality of this show wasn’t up to our standards, so we’ll not be providing it this week.   We’ll spare you the explanation, but promise that it will be better next week.  Pity, because it was a good show! Check out the playlist below.)

Sunshine, sunshine, it’s fine
I feel it in my skin
Warming up my mind
Sometimes you gotta give in to win
I love the days when it shines
Whoa, let it shine
– Atmosphere

Welcome back, Great River Radio listeners!

It’s been an eventful summer (to put it kindly), and it’s hard to believe fall is sneaking up on us. Students have arrived on campus, signaling the start of new things – new faces, new music and the beginning of Great River Radio’s fifth season. Can you believe it?!

We have a few exciting changes to announce:
1) Great River Radio is moving to Wednesdays. (That’s TODAY!)
2) The show will now run 90 minutes. We’ll begin at 4:15 p.m. and end at 5:45 p.m. This is will give us a little more time to transition into and out of the studio
3) We’re going to try to keep a Facebook page updated with show info and reminders. You can “Like” us at the Great River Radio Facebook page.
4) We’re working on a podcast or download option for those of you requesting a more mobile Great River Radio show

Fortunately, most things won’t change. A special thanks to the dozens of listeners who participated in our survey last month. Your support and kind comments are greatly appreciated. You made it clear that you love the weekly “Confluence” segment, and we now have dozens of your theme suggestions to use for inspiration. We also share your desire to hear Minnesota music, so we’ll be making our usual rounds to local clubs and digging into the vast KUST MP3 library to find up-and-coming artists you can support in your own backyard (this is literally the case for Dan & Lisa!). We’ll also try to maintain our delicate – and apparently effective – balance of music and discussion.

Most important? Great River Radio starts today!

We couldn’t be more excited to kick off season five of Great River Radio. We’ve been pulling songs from our summer playlists – selections you may have missed, tunes we can’t resist, and songs that defined long summer drives or helped us endure long summer recoveries. You’ll hear tracks from Broken Bells, The National, Black Keys, Blue Rodeo, Ane Brun, and Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros. We’ll have great new music from Arcade Fire, Cee Lo and Sufjan Stevens. And there will be plenty of new, local music from the likes of Jeremy Messersmith, Cloud Cult, Peter Wolf Crier, Twilight Hours and Young Man.

In case you need reminding, here are the details:
Great River Radio – Wednesdays 4:15-5:45 p.m.
Catch the live stream: http://www.stthomas.edu/ustclubs/kust/KUSTLive.html
Web/Listen Later: https://greatriverradio.wordpress.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Great-River-Radio/112553225462710
iChat/AIM: kustradio

Peace,

Brian & Dan

Playlist
Patchwork River-Jim Lauderdale
The Suburbs-Arcade Fire
Hard As Nails-Peter Wolf Crier
40 Day Dream-Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros
Running With the Wolves-Cloud Cult
The High Road-Broken Bells
Breakable-Ingrid Michaelson
In My Bones-Blue Rodeo
All Delighted People (Classic Rock Version)-Sufjan Stevens
Just a Growin’-Young Man
No One’s Gonna Love You-Cee Lo
Everybody’s Crying Mercy-Bonnie Raitt
Dillinger Eyes-Jeremy Messersmith
Fake Empire-The National
Shadows-Au Revoir Simone
Howlin’ For You-The Black Keys
Rubber and Soul-Ane Brun
Bushwick Blues-Delta Spirit
Queen of Tomorrow-Twilight Hours