This is not only a wonderful song by the equally wonderful Elvis Costello (as they used to say on XRT “if your Elvis is dead, try ours”) it’s also an appropriate title for today. I’ll be reading a couple brief excerpts from my scrawlings this evening in front of a small (50 or so people) group at a taping for a segment on one of the local country music stations.
That might sound like a bigger deal than it really is. I mean, I think it’s pretty cool I was asked and all, but the reality is they’re taping eight 15 minute segments and will air four. So, to me, the chances of my stuff getting any air time tilt toward remote. Not saying I’m not pleased with what I chose for this evening, I went back and forth countless times until I found the right combination of drama and humor while making sure it was “safe” for the radio. In my mind I accomplished that. It was no easy task either, going back through trying to find something with no profanity for instance. Or at least a small enough amount that I could edit it out and not lose context completely. I’m just saying I don’t know how realistic actually getting air time will be.
You may be asking “Geez, how did this come to be? You getting your stuff on the radio? Why you of all people? Have they never read any of your writing?” These are all valid, if possibly harsh, questions. Allow me to give you some background.
A couple months ago I got a text from B2 asking if I would be interested in sharing some of my writing on a radio show taping June 8th. You might say I was intrigued. Go ahead, say it, I was intrigued. So the deal is this. The local theatrical production company is aiming at putting on a regular or semi-regular radio drama. They needed to find a way to work out any kinks in the system prior to attempting that type of undertaking and thought a Prairie Home Companion esque radio show might accomplish that goal. The first taping was last month at the local microbrewery and B2 and I went to see what it was all about. Let me tell you, it was all about a lot of fun. Local musicians, storytellers, and authors got 15 minutes each to do their thing in front of an audience. After the show, the audio was taken back to the studio for editing, cutting the performances into radio friendly time bits. The show that was taped last month airs this month, every Monday at 6:15 PM local time. Of course I forgot to tune in to the first segment to check that out, but that’s what I mean when I say my bits might not even see the airwaves. As far as the artists taped tonight, they’ll air next month.
I’ll keep you all in the loop if and when it airs, although tbh, I’m not even sure if the station has any kind of streaming ability. I’d like to make a crack about how they play both kinds of music (s/o to Jake and Elwood) but I have never tuned in to them, so I should probably keep the snark to a minimum. Kinder, gentler me in action right there.
I knew I wanted to throw in a link to a video related to radio, I never stopped to think how many there were to choose from. Holy crap. REM has a couple, including the aptly named Radio Song but I liked the Costello title better. Side note; damn, REM had some great music videos. Second side note; damn, I wish I had seen them live at some point. Maybe just prior to the height of their powers, while they were still playing smaller venues. Must have been pretty wild. I thought about The Buggles happy little pop hit, made famous by MTV or Queen’s song Radio Gaga but again, probably a misleading title. I’m not actively looking for any more radio-related videos/songs, but if anyone would like to fire off a suggestion for the followup post when and if my stuff airs, well feel free to launch them at me.
Lastly, in addition to the aforementioned videos bouncing between my ears, I’ve also been listening to a playlist I put together a while ago and add to on occasion, called Speeding Ticket. Various songs from Nirvana, Tom Petty, blink-182, The Clash, DBT, among others over the last 40 minutes or so, and it’s been thoroughly delightful. I think I’m going to pack this up now though. I’ve got to go bring out my stuff for tonight (yup, going old school) and read through it a handful of times in an attempt at not looking like a boob tonight. Fingers crossed…
Peace