“Crescent City Blues” will be broadcast in Akron, Ohio, on Jan. 2 at 9 a.m. If you’re anywhere nearby, tune to WZIP 88.1 FM, the student-run station at the University of Akron. Or listen online at wzip88.com.
WZIP aired “Still Singing the Blues” last Sunday morning at 9 a.m.
Today’s mail brought a bunch of postcards from radio stations around the country that have broadcast our documentaries this month.
“Still Singing the Blues” was aired by the 12 radio stations that come under the umbrella of WVIA. These stations blanket Northeastern Pennsylvania, from Bethlehem to Wellsboro (200 miles away). They include both smaller towns and larger industrial cities like Scranton and Allentown.
Both “Still Singing the Blues” and “Crescent City Blues” were broadcast by WJSK, a traditional jazz station in New Hampshire’s Mount Washington Valley; WOJB, which serves both Native American and non-Native listeners in Hayward, Wisconsin (and was playing some really delightful ’80s music when we tuned in); WRLR, an all-volunteer community station in Round Lake, Illinois (and the only non-religious low-power station in the state); and WUTK, a student-run station operated by the University of Tennessee’s Department of Journalism and Electronic Media in Knoxville.
These stations are in addition to the ones already mentioned in our blog. For a listing of dates and times, see our carriage reports at https://stillsingingtheblues.org/?page_id=14.
This time, our documentaries are coming to the Canadian border.
On Dec. 31, station WRZC-LP 92.3 FM in Red Cliff, Wisconsin, will broadcast both halves of the series. Hour 1, “Still Singing the Blues,” will air at 1 p.m. Hour 2, “Crescent City Blues,” will air at 3 p.m.
This will be the second airing of the series on WRZC, which is located in the administrative center of the Red Cliff Band of Lake Superior Chippewa. (We just learned the series was aired over the course of this past week.) The low-power station is operated by the First American Prevention Center, which has as its goal “to promote the cultural, emotional and social growth of Native American children, families and communities to prevent the development of alcohol and drug abuse” and promote overall wellness. Red Cliff is three miles from Bayfield, which is considered the gateway to the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore.
If you live in the Rio Grande Valley, please be sure to spend New Year’s Eve with us. KMBH 88.9 FM in Harlingen, Texas, along with its sister station KHID 88.1 FM in McAllen, Texas, will broadcast both halves of our series on Dec. 31 from 10 p.m. until midnight. The two stations combined cover a huge swath along the Texas-Mexico border: the entire Rio Grande Valley, where 1.2 million people live.
Like many of the stations that have broadcast our documentaries, KMBH and KHID have a commitment to the blues. Every Saturday at 6 p.m., programming manager Chris Maley hosts the two-hour program On the Roadside, as he has done for 15 years. We notice, to our delight, that Louisiana figures prominently in Maley’s tastes: His “Hot Blues Picks” CDs include “Louisiana Swamp Stomp,” which includes tracks by Carol Fran and Little Freddie King, both featured in “Still Singing the Blues,” along with CDs by Baton Rouge bluesman Larry Garner and Baton Rouge native Buddy Guy.
KMBH and KHID have other great local programming, too, including the Nuevo Tejano Conjunto Show every Saturday morning. But you’ll need to listen locally; the stations don’t broadcast online.
WCOM, the low-power FM station in Carrboro, N.C., will air “Crescent City Blues,” the second hour of our Louisiana blues documentary, on Dec. 26 at 5 p.m. We wrote about WCOM and its history here.
The broadcast will have a special format: Host and jazz aficionado Melva Fager Okun will interview Richard and Barry in between segments. Listen at 103.5 FM (if you’re very close to downtown Carrboro) or http://wcomfm.org.
The date of the KRVS broadcast of “Crescent City Blues” has been changed to December 17 at 12 noon Central Time. If you’re in southwest Louisiana, tune your dial to 88.7 FM. Otherwise listen online at krvs.org!
We’ve just received news of two more upcoming broadcasts of the series:
On Dec. 27, Chattanooga’s WAWL will air Part 1 at 8 p.m., followed by Part 2 at 9 p.m. The series will then be repeated at 2 a.m. WAWL is a web-only radio station and is the only alternative station in town. It serves as a learning lab for students at Chattanooga State University and places a lot of emphasis on local musical talent. It covers a musical range that runs from R&B to metal to Native America. You can listen online at wawl.org.
Then, on Jan. 21, WVPE, the NPR station in Elkhart and South Bend, Indiana, will broadcast Part 1 at 7 p.m., followed by Part 2 at 8 p.m. WVPE’s range extends across the region called Michiana, which consists of southwestern Michigan and north-central Indiana. Part of its diverse programming includes six hours of the blues each weekend, hosted for the past 27 years by blues vocalist Harvey Stauffer. Tune in locally at 88.1 or online at wvpe.org.
As we noted here, the Ernie K-Doe’s Mother-in-Law Lounge will be closing its doors this month after a 16-year run as one of New Orleans’ most beloved small music clubs. We featured the Mother-in-Law and its owner, Betty Fox, in “Crescent City Blues.” And we wrote about some of the club’s history here.
John T. Lewis, Mother-in-Law Lounge, July 2010. Photo by Barry Yeoman
Before it closes, there will be one more concert, December 12 from 8 p.m. till midnight. Producer Patty Lee calls it “A Last Hoorah.” It will feature boogie-rock keyboardist Armand St. Martin and R&B guitarists John T. Lewis and Guitar Lightnin’ Lee (plus “special guests and other musical surprises,” says Lee’s announcement). The $20 entrance fee includes music, drinks, red beans and rice, and posters while they last, and there will be a final auction of Mother-in-Law memorabilia. Proceeds will help defray Fox’s moving expenses.
It will be a bittersweet night, no doubt. Ernie and Antoinette K-Doe provided a home for New Orleans’ blues and R&B musicians, and Antoinette’s daughter Betty Fox tried to keep it afloat after her mother and stepfather died. But it’s been rough going for one of the city’s great institutions.
Note: The date of this broadcast has changed to Dec. 17 at 12 noon Central Time.
KRVS, the public radio station in Lafayette, Louisiana, will broadcast “Crescent City Blues” on Friday, December 10, at 12 noon Central Time. The broadcast will wrap up Raoul Breaux’s popular show “Blues Box.”
When I was a young journalist, fresh out of college in 1982 my first job was in at a weekly newspaper Lafayette. For three years my radio was tuned constantly to KRVS, which introduced me to the world of Cajun and zydeco music. The programming has expanded since then and now includes Louisiana genres like jazz and swamp pop, along with more international music. Loyalty to KRVS is fierce in the Cajun-Creole country of South Louisiana, and for good reason.
Richard and I are particularly grateful to KRVS for writing our first letter of support to the Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities, which helped us secure the grant for this project.
If you live nearby, you can listen at 88.7 FM. Otherwise, tune in at krvs.org.
If you’re anywhere near Durham, North Carolina on Christmas night, turn your radio to WNCU (90.7 FM) at 8 p.m. for both hours of our documentary series. At 8 p.m., the station will air “Still Singing the Blues,” followed by “Crescent City Blues” at 9 p.m. Not around? Listen at wncu.org (click on “Listen Now” in the righthand column).
We’re grateful to have WNCU, which is based at North Carolina Central University, as our hometown station. It’s the best source of jazz, blues, R&B, gospel, funk, reggae, and African music in town. In particular, the weekend programming is exceptional. On Saturdays, check out Jim Davis’ 8 Track Flashback, as well as Dave Tripp’s Bull City Blues show on Saturday nights—that’s where our docs will be aired. Sunday mornings belong to Carolyn Pettiford Ryals and Walter “Country Boy†Hatcher’s Hallelujah Praise, while Bouna Ndiaye presents Bonjour Africa on Sunday afternoons.
