Tune into Hell's Kitchen Radio, with John Hell, every Monday night 8-10PM (Pacific), on Radio Valencia (https://radiovalencia.fm) in San Francisco. You can find my playlists and links to the podcasts right here.
The weather outside is frightful but the music is so delightful, so since you're stuck inside anyway, might as well tune in, tune in, tune in.
It's that time of year once again when I choose one year to focus two hour on. My Annual Annual is a great opportunity for me to go deeper into the music for a particular year, playing music for you that really deserves to be rediscovered. I started this show in 2011 when I wanted to go deeper into one of my favorite years for music: 1971. What a year, indeed! Following that I took one show every November to host this special. Below you can find the links for the previous 11 episodes.
Monday night, 8-10pm Pacific is all about 1968! I was considering hosting a Bay Area only 1991 show, but after chatting with a radio colleague about the greatness of 1968, I just knew that was the year for me! 1968 was a great year for Acid Rock and Psychedelic Rock. My fear is I'm not going to have nearly enough time to share with you everything I want to. This may take two weeks!
Don't expect this to be a Top 20 show. That's never been something I would do. I won't select the playlist until I'm on the air. I like to be listening to a song to direct me to my next track. I can share a few of the artists I'm bringing along for the ride: Jimi Hendrix, Moby Grape, Silver Apple, Jefferson Airplane, Grateful Dead, Blue Cheer, Iron Butterfly, Traffic, Pink Floyd, Os Mutantes, Soft Machine, Fifty Foot Hose, Mothers of Invention and so much more.
Spread the word, ingest some mushroom tea, kick back and enjoy the show.
Magnolia Caboose Babyfinger: Blue Cheer The Pusher: Steppenwolf Ain't Got No/I Got Life: Nina Simone
Yer Blues: The Dirty Mac Good To Me As I Am To You: Aretha Franklin The House at Pooneil Corners: Jefferson Airplane
It's A Man's Man's Man's World: James Brown and His Famous Flames Astral Sounds: 101 Strings Flower Punk: The Mothers of Invention Passing the Time: Cream
Cocaine Blues: Johnny Cash Waiting Around To Die: Townes Van Zandt Good Guys/Bad Guys Cheer: Country Joe and the Fish I Am A Pilgrim: The Byrds
I'm The Urban Spaceman: Bonzo Dog Doo Dah Band The Garden of Earthly Delights: The United States of America Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds: William Shatner
This Wheel's On Fire: The Band Not To Touch the Earth: The Doors White Light/White Heat: Velvet Underground You Don't Love Me: Kaleidoscope
Killing Floor: The Electric Flag Forty Thousand Headman: Traffic Jugband Blues: Pink Floyd
Born Cross-Eyed: Grateful Dead
If you're interested in the previous 11 editions of my Annual Annual, take a look below.
Listen into all my shows here! Subscribe to my show, via
I was about 12 or 13, laying in my bed on a weekend morning, listening to my clock radio, set to KFOG 104.5FM, when it was worth listening to. This song came on that hypnotized me; it's the only way to describe it, really. I was paralyzed. I could not move, and my ears did not want that song to release me from its spell. When the song ended, I knew I had stumbled across some kind of magic. I had to know what that was? Who that was? And what else awaited me?
The song, "Stuck Inside of Mobile (with the Memphis Blues Again) took me on a journey that keeps showing itself in greater and more dynamic ways over 35 years later. Bob Dylan showed me that there is more to music than what shows up on the music directors list of approved songs. It's possible this was the song that propelled me deeper into my love of the art of radio?
I think I had my dad take me to Rasputin Records in Pleasant Hill so I could buy whatever record that song is on. I couldn't locate Blond on Blond that day, but I did come home with the next best thing, Highway 61 Revisited. I swear I wore that copy out in a matter of months. I felt that I had discovered this deep secret: brilliant music can be longer than 2:50 long.
Mind. Blown.
Along my musical journey, discovering the joy of so many great artists across numerous genres, I have
always gravitated back to Dylan. How many people have said this? How many essays have been written about the man and his lyrics, not to mention the myth of BOB DYLAN? I like not being able to separate fact from fiction when it comes to his persona. I don't care to know the "real" Bob Dylan, when the shaman is much more interesting. And isn't that really what he's going for anyway?
Now, if I could just travel back to that innocent 12 year old version of me laying in bed being woken by the brilliance of Dylan, just for one moment.
I've been asked countless time what my favorite Dylan album is, and I have to go with "Blood on the Tracks". It's a summation of everything that came before, in terms of his prose. And it's filled with emotion regarding the end of his marriage. You can feel his heart in every beat. All of his albums come close, but this one really does it for me.
What's your favorite Dylan album? Leave a comment, and please share this with all of your Dylan-loving friends.
I merely scratched the surface with this show.
If you missed my 6-8PM live bootleg show, you can catch it by going here. I played the 90 minute "Judas" show from May 17, 1966, followed up with a few tracks from the 1975/1976 Rolling Thunder tour, and a track from the 1986 Dylan/Petty tour.
So much Bob Dylan for your earholes!!!
If you're looking for some reading material that'll fill up an afternoon, Rolling Stone has opened up their archives of many (all?) their Bob Dylan reviews and interviews.
Enjoy.
jh
Hell's Kitchen Radio with John Hell Mondays 8-10PM Pacific Radio Valencia in SF
Download the Phatastrophe, HERE! Listen into all my shows here. You can subscribe to my show through iTunes here.
Well damn, Chuck Berry died. Now what are we supposed to do? It's like when you lose a parent and now you just know that you're all on your own. You knew this day would eventually arrive, but you never put too much though into it, because well, you knew it would just bum you out. He wasn't the nicest guy in the world, but I learned pretty much everything I needed to learn about music, through him. He didn't write autobiographical songs. No. He wrote about life as a young, fresh-faced kid, not trying to get into trouble, but just realizing that life is for the living, and if you're not busy living, then you're busy dying. Chuck Berry most likely did not go quiet into his dark night.
When I was a little bitty boy, my father used to often sing "My Ding-a-Ling" to me, much to my mother's chagrin. I swear it's the first song I ever memorized so I could sing it on the playground. I knew at a young age what my father and Mr. Berry were singing about and it made me laugh out loud that a song that sounded so damn innocent, was indeed as lecherous as they come. HA!
I got to see Chuck Berry live, once, at the Circle Star Theater in San Carlos, California. It was a small theater half way between San Fransisco and San Jose. It's torn down now, and in its place tech companies that could care less for the old theater and its colorful history. The stage sat in the center of the room and rotated so the audience could see all sides of the performer. I saw a number of shows there, but it was Chuck Berry that absolutely stood out the most.
Chuck had a long history of showing up to a venue with only guitar and amp in hand. It was up to the promoter to hire the backing band, all of whom one would hope, were well-versed in Chuck Berry tuneage. And why wouldn't they? Chuck would take the stage only after he had counted the cash, handed to him in a briefcase by said promoter. Who knows if he had even met the band yet. I'm pretty certain there was no soundcheck; or perhaps only a brief one. He would call out the song and key, count it out, and away they flew. It would take a bar or three before the band would gel, but then they would really rock!
On this particular night, the crowd was calling out songs and Chuck was playing them! I could believe it, an all-request show! WOW! This was November 1987, and I had turned 17 at the end of September. I attended the show on my own, and sat in the third row. All around me were 40-somethings, all of whom looked ancient to me. I'm 46 now, so that's hilarious to even consider. I shouted out for him to play "Promised Land", a song the Grateful Dead had performed for many years, and perhaps my favorite cover of theirs. A very large, very gruff and very 40-something man, sitting directly in front of me turned around and barked "HE ALREADY PLAYED THAT SONG, KID!". Chuck was RIGHT THERE, and proclaimed in a very animated voice "No I didn't. Here it goes!". HA! I laughed my ass off, while flipping this guy off (in my mind), and rocked out. Thanks Chuck. Thanks for everything. I don't care about any of the stories about your personal life. It's the music I came for, and it's for the music that I'll forever stick around for. RIP Johnny B. Goode.
On this particular night I was also thrilled to have in the studio, all the way from Pittsburgh, PA, the one and only, vivacious vocalist who puts the Phat in PHATASTIC, Phat Man Dee! What an absolute delight she is. Her vocals will mesmerize you, who eyes will tantalize you. She's a lot or woman. Man Dee was here in support of a dear friend, Robert, who is suffering from the affects of MS. We had a great fundraiser for him the previous weekend, and she stuck around to hang with old friends and play some tunes on the radio. We play a bunch of her tunes throughout the show. I promise that you will be searching for her music once you hear it. And luckily for you I have the link right HERE to go find it. Lucky you.
There's a lot of CB covers thrown into the mix as well, as so many great artists performed the master's classics. Enjoy them all.
A few days post-Record Store Day and I'm still reeling with the fact that I was broke going into it and even more broke now. But that's how the 12" spins I wager. Anyhow, RSD was a complete success where the radio broadcast is concerned.
I got down to Vinyl Solution at 10:30, where the owner, Tommy, warned me NOT to go through the RSD bins until the store was open. He didn't want the line-up outside to get pissed at him. I abided by his "request", though I did sneak a peek or three. Hee hee.
The equipment for the broadcast showed up late, so by the time the store was open at 11 I had to set up. I did jump into a box of records right at 11 though, and grabbed some tasty treats, many of which I played tonight. See below for the playlist.
Jack Champion brought down the gear, and we got rolling on the radio at noon. I was thrilled to be co-hosting the opening with my radio hero, M. Dung. He's a serious influence on my being in radio in the first place. It's hard to put into words, but it was from listening to him host the morning show on KFOG back in the 80s that sold me on getting into the wild world of local radio. Unfortunately for me, by the time I got into it the heyday of commercial radio was passing. Luckily for me I found non-commercial radio. Ha!
Anyway, the broadcast was a ton of fun. Lots of people, and the Feral Moon Band played. I got to interview Tommy and he gave me a discount on records. You really can't ask for too much more than that.
The first hour tonight is a selection of the music I got at Record Store Day; all vinyl. The second hour is my third part of eight celebrating the 40th anniversary of the Grateful Dead's EPIC 1972 European tour. I'm playing selections from 04/17/72 & 04/21/72.
As always, you can stream the show here anytime.
Download the show here.
Download all of my shows here.
...or scroll down to see previous playlists and stream and/or download those.
So many options.
Enjoy.
jh
Do It: Henry Rollins
Super Heathen Child: Grinderman/Fripp
Kick out the Jams: Afrika Bambaata
Blue Suede Shoes: The Chris Robinson Brotherhood
Subgenius MTV Commercial
There It Is: James Brown
Tin Soldier: Small Faces
The Lung: Dinosaur Jr. (Electronic Anthology of...)
I Wanted to Tell Her: Holy Ghost!
Kod Hang Kam (The Circle of Karma): Kana TNT
Don't Do It: The Band
Jack Straw: Grateful Dead 04/17/72, Tivoli Concert Hall, Copenhagen, Denmark
He's Gone (First time played): Grateful Dead 04/17/72, Tivoli Concert Hall, Copenhagen, Denmark
Casey Jones: Grateful Dead 04/17/72, Tivoli Concert Hall, Copenhagen, Denmark
Sugaree: Grateful Dead 04/17/72, Tivoli Concert Hall, Copenhagen, Denmark
Big Railroad Blues: Grateful Dead 04/17/72, Tivoli Concert Hall, Copenhagen, Denmark
The Other One: Grateful Dead 04/21/72: Beat Club, Bremen, Germany
One More Saturday Night: Grateful Dead 04/17/72, Tivoli Concert Hall, Copenhagen, Denmark
Pamela Parker of the Pamela Parker Band stopped by tonight to premier a new song. She'll be playing this Friday at the Boom Boom Room in SF. Go check her out. She shreds. She's also going to be joining Eric McFadden at Cafe DuNord on December 10th. It's about time he got back in town. Two great shows that you really must go see.
It's Hard to be Humble: Mac Davis Mr. Plow Theme: The Simpson's I Love the Living You: Roky Erickson All You Fascists Bound To Lose: Woody Guthrie and Sonny Terry
Hell Broke Luce: Tom Waits Soul Rebel: Bob Marley & Lee Scratch Perry Down Home Girl: The Coasters
Fever: Fela Kuti Filling A Hole: Eric McFadden
Interview with Pamela Parker
Carnival: Pamela Parker Band
Interview with Pamela Parker
Devil Moon: Eric McFadden Big Sky->Baddest of the Bad: Reverend Horton Heat The Big Three Killed My Baby: White Stripes Victim of Changes: Judas Priest
Wild Horses: Old and in the Way (11-04-73) Real in Real Time: Giant Sand (03-19-94) Funky Crime: Red Hot Chili Peppers (04-28-89) Mississippi Queen: Mountain (12-28-71)
Sing Me Back Home: Keith Richards (03-13-77) Don't Do It: The Band (12-28-71) Do It Again: Steely Dan (04-30-74) Plow King: The Simpson's
