On the Radio

Finally, did my first radio show. Been workin' on it all summer. classes, labs, tests, demo's, mentoring... It all leads up to gettin' on the air. WHUS 91.7 FM from Storrs CT, home of University of CT; Radio for the People. Did a fill-in at the ungodly time slot of 2-5 AM. The show went well, and I get to do another fill-in Monday Sep 6 at a primo time slot of 8-10 PM. Of course I am doing a Jazz Show... 'In the Groove, Jazz and Beyond'. Will find out in a couple of week if I get my very own weekly show.

The Swift Boat Veterans for Truth?

I suspect that many people actually believe that the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth are just a bunch of Vietnam Vets that feel betrayed by Jim Kerry's anti-war activities. It takes millions of dollars to produce and air these ads, and this group is backed by a cast of wealthy Washington (and Texas) insiders deeply entrenched in the George Bush inner circle. This graphic from the NY Times shows some of those connections, as well as debunks the Vets that appear in these ads. Just more lies and deceptions designed to deflect the public from the real issues that this administration would rather not see debated in this campaign.

It don't mean a thing...

if it ain't got that swing. Caught the Count Basie Orchestra last night at the Summerwind concert series. Man, they did swing. This music is timeless. These arrangements could have been penned yesterday. Great musicianship, flawless execution, incredible timing makes for good music in any era. These cats played with power, sensitivity, swing, improvisation. Drummer Butch Miles kicked the whole thing ahead with a Buddy Rich-like performance. The band played extremely tight as they belted out the old Count Basie Orchestra arrangements. Soloists marched one by one from their positions on the grandstand to front-stage to blow some incredible solos. Just great music.

Sadly, the concert was very poorly attended, partly due to the severe weather forcasts (actually the rain held off, and it was a nice cool evening), and mostly because of a lack of popularity for this genre. Too bad. This music deserves to be heard.

Summer Vacation Blues!

One week vacation in the summer is just not enough. Did a lot this week, though. Went to a minor league baseball game, picked up Dave in NYC, fulfilled a couple of requirements towards getting my radio gig at WHUS. Went to Rockport MA for 3 days and stayed at a really nice B&B. As a bonus, at the Inn, I was able to hijack one of their neighbors wireless Internet access! Good for keepin' up on the geek news and fantasy baseball.

But... DAMN, now its back to work. The summer has just slipped away. I gotta start taking more vacation time.

Democratic National Convention free audio

Want to listen again to those great speeches from the DNC? Now you can give another listen to Barak Obama, Jimmy Carter, Howard Dean, John and Theresa Kerry and more. They are all available as Audible.com content, on this page from the iTunes Music Store for free! Listen to them on your computer or take them with you on your iPod. cool.