Visit them...often....
American Airspace
Pharyngula
World O'Crap
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
Cool Radio Guys
Way back when, AM radio was king. Rock 'n roll and AM radio were made with each other. When long-form radio content started dissapearing from the dial, rock and roll helped fill the woid.
I may be a little retrograde, but I honestly beleive that rock 'n roll's first full decade was it's finest. Soul, garage, and other cool sounds came wafting through the airways free of charge, while the jocks were the maitre d's in this world, serving up the sounds. AM radio needed content, and so, occasionally played local bands and numerous local scenes were nurtured by the local radio station. Pop radio hadn't completely been formulaized, yet.
Two radio shows typify this era for me. One is on John Caroll University's college radio station. Jumpin' Joe Madigan supplies the sounds by following the playlists of Celveland's finest rockers, like WIXY 1260. He plays the local bands, the big hits, and some obscurities. I don't know he knows the era as well as he does. He's only in his 20s. His show is very-well-produced and has authentic jingles and sounders placed between the songs. His show can be accessed on the web.
Dick Bartley first got into radio when he was 16 in 1970. He's been jock and a programmer and produces one of my favorite synidciated shows American Gold. I don't have a statio nto listen to him on, so I illegally buy his old shows on ebay. Dick spins the hits and highlight various artists and years in music. After listening to several shows, I am amazed at how he frshly repackages the same material. For the die hard, he almost puts a couple of lost gold songs, tacked on the ends of his shows, these are for the radio stations who get his show.
I do something like they do on KTIM, environmentally-friendly radio in St. George, Utah. My show, the Gold Standard isn't as well-produced but it has the same spirit, and I used these guys for inspiration.
I may be a little retrograde, but I honestly beleive that rock 'n roll's first full decade was it's finest. Soul, garage, and other cool sounds came wafting through the airways free of charge, while the jocks were the maitre d's in this world, serving up the sounds. AM radio needed content, and so, occasionally played local bands and numerous local scenes were nurtured by the local radio station. Pop radio hadn't completely been formulaized, yet.
Two radio shows typify this era for me. One is on John Caroll University's college radio station. Jumpin' Joe Madigan supplies the sounds by following the playlists of Celveland's finest rockers, like WIXY 1260. He plays the local bands, the big hits, and some obscurities. I don't know he knows the era as well as he does. He's only in his 20s. His show is very-well-produced and has authentic jingles and sounders placed between the songs. His show can be accessed on the web.
Dick Bartley first got into radio when he was 16 in 1970. He's been jock and a programmer and produces one of my favorite synidciated shows American Gold. I don't have a statio nto listen to him on, so I illegally buy his old shows on ebay. Dick spins the hits and highlight various artists and years in music. After listening to several shows, I am amazed at how he frshly repackages the same material. For the die hard, he almost puts a couple of lost gold songs, tacked on the ends of his shows, these are for the radio stations who get his show.
I do something like they do on KTIM, environmentally-friendly radio in St. George, Utah. My show, the Gold Standard isn't as well-produced but it has the same spirit, and I used these guys for inspiration.
Sunday, November 16, 2008
Appreciating Ross Hagen
Well....maybe "appreciate" is a strong term.....
If you, however, find yourself in front of a television that happens to be showing a Ross Hagen flick at the time, you could do worse.
Ross Hagen was one of the original action hero auteurs. He was born with the improbable name, Leland Lilly, but probably realized he wasn't going to go very far in the action/adventure realm with that name.
He did almost everything he could do to get on a motorcycle in a movie. Think Steve McQueen without the talent.
Hagen brought a deadly earnestness to roles in which the plot almost at times make sense, between all the motorcycle shots.
Well...again, "makes sense" may be too strong a term. At times, the shots between motorcycle sequences occasionally don't make your head hurt.
If you like snark, and like bad movies, and...well...you wouldn't be reading this if you didn't....go to youtube and look up the MST3K takes on the following two films, "Sidehackers" and "The Hellcats."
"Sidehackers" introduces America to the newest extreme sport ca. 1969, dudes hangin' off the side of motorcycles on what would now be known as motocross tracks, but in 1969, was known as "dudes hangin' off the side off..." er..."Sidehacking."
There's a near Jacobean murder and revenge plot weaving its way through this drama, but that really shouldn't get in the way of watching dudes hangin' off the side of motorcycles while scrambling on dirt tracks.
Some of these movies got released under different names and "Sidehacking" is seen under the d.b.a name of "Five the Hard Way."
"Hellcats" is one of those movies in which the poster was apparently conceived first, before the movie was shot. If you went by the poster, you would think that it somehow involves a grim-looking red-haired woman looking all piratey in a leather vest and eye patch and her female gang.
In reality, the movie is about a cop infiltrating a motorcycle gang that has found a way to really inefficiently smuggle small amounts of marijuana by hiding it in their headlights and speeding through the California hills just north of a housing development in Tarzana.
Ross is the cop, and the other folks on motorcycles are the bad guys.
As far as Ross' oeuvre goes, my nod goes to "Hellcats" on the basis of the soundtrack which consists groovy psychedelic bands composed of studio musicians and a couple of bar bands that regularly performed in dives just north of a housing development in Tarzana. I'm not certain about this, but I think "Davy Jones and the Dolphins" are a psychedelic vocal offshoot of one of the greatest instrumental rock groups of all time, Davie Allan and the Arrows. Mr. Allen's work generously graces some of the best biker films of the day.
I also enjoy the scenes in the bar that serves as the communal squat for the motorcycle gang. It actually makes some of the bars in my hometown seem like upscale boites. Insert your own joke about Buffy's Lampoon here.
Both of these films feature the earnest grimacing of Mr. Hagen at its best.
If you watch 70s cop shows, you'll see Hagen regularly featured as a guest star.
Like I said, the snark-filled views of the MST3K gangs view of these films are readily available on youtube.
Hagen's work, like many a junk movie is now available via the magic of home video.
If you, however, find yourself in front of a television that happens to be showing a Ross Hagen flick at the time, you could do worse.
Ross Hagen was one of the original action hero auteurs. He was born with the improbable name, Leland Lilly, but probably realized he wasn't going to go very far in the action/adventure realm with that name.
He did almost everything he could do to get on a motorcycle in a movie. Think Steve McQueen without the talent.
Hagen brought a deadly earnestness to roles in which the plot almost at times make sense, between all the motorcycle shots.
Well...again, "makes sense" may be too strong a term. At times, the shots between motorcycle sequences occasionally don't make your head hurt.
If you like snark, and like bad movies, and...well...you wouldn't be reading this if you didn't....go to youtube and look up the MST3K takes on the following two films, "Sidehackers" and "The Hellcats."
"Sidehackers" introduces America to the newest extreme sport ca. 1969, dudes hangin' off the side of motorcycles on what would now be known as motocross tracks, but in 1969, was known as "dudes hangin' off the side off..." er..."Sidehacking."
There's a near Jacobean murder and revenge plot weaving its way through this drama, but that really shouldn't get in the way of watching dudes hangin' off the side of motorcycles while scrambling on dirt tracks.
Some of these movies got released under different names and "Sidehacking" is seen under the d.b.a name of "Five the Hard Way."
"Hellcats" is one of those movies in which the poster was apparently conceived first, before the movie was shot. If you went by the poster, you would think that it somehow involves a grim-looking red-haired woman looking all piratey in a leather vest and eye patch and her female gang.
In reality, the movie is about a cop infiltrating a motorcycle gang that has found a way to really inefficiently smuggle small amounts of marijuana by hiding it in their headlights and speeding through the California hills just north of a housing development in Tarzana.
Ross is the cop, and the other folks on motorcycles are the bad guys.
As far as Ross' oeuvre goes, my nod goes to "Hellcats" on the basis of the soundtrack which consists groovy psychedelic bands composed of studio musicians and a couple of bar bands that regularly performed in dives just north of a housing development in Tarzana. I'm not certain about this, but I think "Davy Jones and the Dolphins" are a psychedelic vocal offshoot of one of the greatest instrumental rock groups of all time, Davie Allan and the Arrows. Mr. Allen's work generously graces some of the best biker films of the day.
I also enjoy the scenes in the bar that serves as the communal squat for the motorcycle gang. It actually makes some of the bars in my hometown seem like upscale boites. Insert your own joke about Buffy's Lampoon here.
Both of these films feature the earnest grimacing of Mr. Hagen at its best.
If you watch 70s cop shows, you'll see Hagen regularly featured as a guest star.
Like I said, the snark-filled views of the MST3K gangs view of these films are readily available on youtube.
Hagen's work, like many a junk movie is now available via the magic of home video.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
