the celestial soundboard

I decided to revive this blog into a new Instagram account!  

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IG: (at)celestialsoundboard​ 

As usual, I was brushing my teeth one evening while listening to Piano Jazz, which is broadcast on KCSM (91.1 FM in the SF Bay Area) every Wednesday night from 9-10pm.  Mini-plug!  These are all old broadcasts because Ms. McPartland is sadly no longer in this physical realm.

I didn’t catch the name of the guest so I scrawled “MMP 5-3-17” on a sticky note for later looking-uppage.  Spoiler alert, this story is really not an exciting one.  For kicks though, here’s the exchange that brought me the information I wanted.

Me: 

Hi KCSM and Happy Saturday,

This past Wednesday, I caught part of Marian McPartland's Piano Jazz but I didn't find out the name of the guest.  Can you please let me know who it was so I can find and listen to the whole set?  This was from Wednesday, May 3, 2017. Thank you in advance, I really appreciate it! 

Also, keep up the good work over there.  I listen everyday, I'm a local donor, and I tell everyone to listen to you! 

Best regards, Kristal

KCSM:

Hello Ms. Kristal;

The May 3rd. guest on "Piano Jazz" was Carmen Cavallaro (1913-1989). Please keep in mind that all programs are "archived," since Marian McPartland is deceased. You may find some programs on the NPR web-site, YouTube or Piano Jazz.Thank you for your support and cheer leading.  

(name redacted) Dedicated Volunteer

Me:

Hi (redacted),

Fantastic, thank you so much for the tip and the fast response!  

I'd been listening to KCSM's broadcasts of Piano Jazz for a little while before finding out that Marian McPartland is no longer alive.  I was very sad to learn that.  To me, not only was she an incredibly talented musician, but she was also a very thoughtful, humorous, and passionate interviewer who connected well with her guests/peers.  In her program, I love in equal parts the music and the conversations. 

I found the original segment with Carmen Cavallaro (from 1989!) and I'm enjoying it right now. :-)

Thank you again, Kristal

I’m not a Mac user, but this bit of news caught my attention.  When Apple released its newest iPhone, the world freaked out about the lack of an 1/8″ audio jack.  Now the new MacBook has replaced its startup chime with silence.  Although the changes seem small, they feel big...

But hey, progress.  Stick the chime in an audio museum.  Bring it out to fuel a fast hit of nostalgia.  I’m sure Apple customers will just learn to accept the silence and enjoy the new bells and whistles (pun intended) on their new pretty laptops.  

There is a sense of loss, though, that happens when long treasured objects become different.  I’m not surprised that people felt an affinity toward a manufactured sound.  That sound meant something good.  It signaled that everything was alright.  It was reassuring.  People were in a way programmed to have some kind of reaction to it, and now they’ll have to be conditioned for something else.

Never judge a song by its first five seconds...?  I thought this track was a dud but it soon turned a corner and now I’ve listened to it four times in a row (yes that's a thing for me).  What?  Funny how music works in my melon.

Jonwayne is a California-based hip hop musician.  I’ll be following for surrre.

Here’s another song I really like (Anderson Paak -- I see you):

Award for best 80s dance video I’ve seen today goes to:

First things first, I have to say that not working on a Monday is a glorious and luxurious and overall wonderful feeling.  Sorry, suckers.  But on the flip side, working on a Saturday is frankly crap and that’s what I had to do to win my prize today.

Blah blah blah

Maybe I’ve said this before, but one of my favorite things about Spotify is the Discover Weekly playlist I get every Monday.  My theory is that it’s only good every other week, although I’m of course not being scientific about it.  Last week I found several songs I like, and this week I’ve already saved four out of the first seven selections.

One of them is an old New Order song I’ve never heard, called Age of Consent.  I’ve now listened to it 3x in a row, each time enjoying it more than the last.  Wtf is this album omg I need it now.  Admittedly I’m only familiar with New Order’s hits Bizarre Love Triangle, Blue Monday, and True Faith, which are awesome now-classic dance tracks.  Age of Consent is blissful 80s rock.  I guess it’s still dancey but not in the same way.  I’m in love with the synth and guitar and oh the vocals.  Bernard Sumner, where have you been all my life?

So cute!

...10 minutes after falling into a clickhole of old pictures...

“In his new book, Never a Dull Moment, Hepworth makes the case that the music from 1971 was the result of "a huge explosion of creativity in a very short period of time" and lives on in the present like most old music does not. He explained his theory to NPR's Kelly McEvers; hear the radio version at the audio link, and read an edited version...”

“Vincent had been making guitars by hand for close to 20 years. But unlike most luthiers, Vincent learned his craft while in prison, as part of the state’s Arts-In-Corrections program, a world-renowned initiative which brought arts programming to prisons for decades until it was cut due to budget shortfalls a few years ago. “The guitars that were coming out of that program were world-class,” says Vincent. ‘They were concert guitars.;”

Hmm.. I’m not super pleased that one of my most favorite bands ever is being accused of plagiarism!  Apparently it ain’t the first time either.  Sheesh, guys.  

That moment you find out a band you like has just played in your city the night before...  cue sad face.  Knowing me, I probably wouldn’t have gone anyway (got to watch basketball playoffs instead), but I would have at least wanted the choice!  Haha, oh well, that’s what youtube is for. :-)

Here’s one BBD song I really like, not least because he goes falsetto (I am a sucker for a little falsetto sometimes, dunno why).  And hey, a female drummer!  Bonus.

Nice lyrics too:

Sometimes I lie to get what I want Oh man, it's terrible I know They won't agonize And every time you betamax alone

Sometimes I fight to get what I want Closer can help your mind, i know Although, either time, it's hard to get inside alone

Miles 'til the very end of the sky Loving every hour Loving every minute Arms and fingers, miles apart Suddenly realize My love is infinite

Sometimes I lie to get what I want Oh no, it's tearing me apart This time I will drive For we've decided to see the long way home

I started listening to Bomba Estéreo 2? 3? weeks ago and I’m totally theirs now.  I thought maybe they just had a handful of awesome songs, but that turned out to be dumb.  Like just shamefully ignorant, because the truth is they’re SO DAMN GOOD.

Don’t ask me to name them, but I feel like Bomba combines a bunch of different styles to create a joyous, unique, and memorable sound of their own.  Their music is incredibly dancey and catchy, sometimes I feel lost in it (in the best way possible).  But they can also slow things down and get back down to earth.  Either way, listening to Bomba is a magical experience for me.  I seriously love their vibe and I would kill to see them live.  Time to visit Colombia??!  Time to learn Spanish, at least...

Here’s half an hour of them playing in the KEXP studio:

And here's the sexy fun music video for Somo Dos, a song off the latest album Amanecer:

More pages for the history books on 2016...  The saga of North Carolina’s HB2 (”bathroom bill”) goes on, with the State and the Feds entering a suing war with one another.  Thank you, Loretta Lynch, for this tremendous speech.  It gave me chills.  I really wish she didn't have to give it, though.   The Civil Rights Act was passed a little more than half a century ago, but discrimination is still very much alive today.  Goddammit.   

I don’t normally watch or listen to White House press conferences but the subject of this one is really important to me.  I’m quite frankly very frightened by the lengths some people will go to infringe on minority groups’ rights. 

Here is the video:

I’ve also copied and pasted the text of Loretta Lynch’s speech:

Side note: Man I really need to start posting again.  I’m considering suspending my Facebook account so I can spend more time here.  It’s really not a bad idea at all....

This past weekend I happened to catch the PBS American Masters episode on Janis freakin’ Joplin.  Admittedly I had not been very knowledgeable of her or her work.  I knew her two big songs (”Piece of My Heart” and “Me and Bobby McGee”) and that the show 30 Rock parodied a documentary of her life (Jackie Jormp-Jomp, ‘nuff said).  On Saturday night though, I was educated!  Wow, what an excellent documentary.  I loved that it didn’t have a narrator; it was instead full of interviews with people who knew Janis, plus her letters, her interviews, and footage of live shows and studio recordings.

Janis Joplin’s story completely captivated me and I haven’t been able to stop thinking about her.  She lived a wild life and made thrilling, touching music, but she also suffered tremendously from low self esteem and died of a heroin overdose at age 27 (coincidentally around the time that Jimi Hendrix died too, similar to our losing Bowie and Prince this year, so tragic).  

The documentary included a bunch of her personal letters to family and friends, showing a real vulnerable and honest side to what Janis was feeling.  She was very relatable, she was very human.  I’m also really intrigued by her life in San Francisco.  Where did she go?  Where did she eat?  What were her favorite places?  What was the city like in the free loving ‘60s?

I just bought a used copy of her biography online -- can’t wait to read it.

Several nights ago, a song on the radio caught my attention and I looked it up, learning that the artist was Bill Doggett.  He played piano and organ and was also an arranger.  Unfortunately I’ve now lost the name of the track that turned me onto him.  Boo.  It’s alright though...  I’ve found plenty to listen to, including this one song that I think was the most famous in his career.  I’m choosing a live version because it makes me feel happy watching it.

“Honky Tonk” came out in 1956 and hit the top of the R&B charts (and #2 for Pop).  Crazy that I’m listening to and loving it now, 60 years later, in 2016!  Thanks Bill!  I think it’s an awesome tune.

There are a couple other songs I found that I really dig, but they are not on the YouTube - too bad.  I picked out another one. :-)

A thing from NPR.  Great question.  Bookmarking it for later!