This show will be available in the KPFA archive until January 12, 2011. Listen here.
My guest for the full two hours: musician and musicologist Jody Stecher.
From Wikipedia:
David Bromberg once said, “Jody Stecher was basically my teacher. He opened my ears to more beautiful music than anyone else ever did… more than I ever knew existed. He is also one of my favorite musicians on Earth to play with. I have never known anyone so intensely and completely enveloped in music. It’s my suspicion that if you drained all the music out of Jody, you could carry what was left around in an eye dropper.”
Jody is a member of the Peter Rowan Bluegrass Band, and he performs in many other configurations including a duo with his wife, Kate Brislin.
Jody has a stack of great music picked out for tonight’s show, including an alternate take of the Pindar Family singing “I Bid You Good Night” – a song Jody helped bring to America in the 1960s (on the album The Real Bahamas in Music and Song – read Jody’s essay on that web page!).
Playlist:
Madame Khan – The Caresser (1939)
Jim Steam Killed Lula – Fred McDowell
Art of an Ancient Age – Li Kong Yuan (qin solo)
Hustling Gamblers – Bill Cornett (1950s)
Yeoman’s Call – Olly Oakley (London 1913)
Eli Green’s Cakewalk – Vess Ossman (c 1896 cylinder recording)
Gypsy Davy – Jody Stecher (w/ Hank Bradley on fiddle)
Fine Horseman – Jody Stecher and Kate Brislin, Return
I Bid You Goodnight – The Spring of ’65: Joseph Spence and the Pinder Family (the better first take)
Come Down You Roses performer unknown (1930s Bahamas)
Grain Of Sand – unreleased Peter Rowan with Manose and Jody Stecher
Marigold/Woman – Cormack and Ross, Horse of Stone
Moonlight Jamboree – Willy Schwarz
Didaktiko Aptaliko – Hank Bradley w Balkan Kafe Orchestra
Creature From Black Lagoon – Lord Melody (calypso mid 1950s)
Keep Your Lamp Trimmed and Burning – Jody Stecher and Kate Brislin, Return
As deep and transcendent as radio gets. Thank you, and much metta to everyone who made this music and keeps it in the air.
Thank you for listening, Derk. That is quite a compliment coming from you!
This show was great. Caught the encore presentation of it this evening on WXPN Philadelphia. I didn’t know there was such a rich backstory to ‘Bid You Good Night.’ It was the first time I heard the Pinder family’s version but yet it played so familiar. I feel that I understand the song so much better. Thanks for your work David. The only good thing about Mondays!
Is there anyway to hear this program at this late date? (8-21-11)