Sorry to disappoint, but this Sunday is New Year's Eve and Jazz90.1 has "holiday programming" scheduled for the whole day...so no 2 On The Aisle!
However, the following Sunday (Jan. 7th), I'll be back with a co-host, my daughter Bellisant. So do tune in for that. We'll be up to our usual falderol (however you spell it), and much fun will no doubt ensue. :)
Meanwhile HAPPY 2024, which sounds quite Star Trek date-ish to me, and I'll keep saving that seat for ya!
Now! Now! Now...it's TIME. The Holidaze have descended. Das Tannenbaum ist UP. The poinsettias are pointing. Chestnuts are roasting (check the oven timer!), nog is getting more and more nogged, and the bank account has been shrink/shrank/shrunk to adequately provide for much gifting. Ready, set, go!
And that's what we're doing this Sunday. It's the Chocked-Full-of-Christmas Edition of 2 On The Aisle, and it's live, baby! I haven't had a Christmas Eve on a Sunday show EVER before. Seems like I'm often traveling to hinterlands afar on this holiday OR it falls on a Tuesday or something. But the stars have aligned (if not my bite) to allow for some Holiday Broadway (plus Holiday Hollywood and pop and Dr. Demento) to go LIVE on 2 On The Aisle.
I cannot wait.
What do YOU do on Christmas Eve afternoon? Prep those 7 Fishes? Furiously wrap? String popcorn (man, am I old school)? Defrost? Truss a tur-duck-en? Well, any and all of those chores can be done to the tune of Jazz90.1. It might just make the toughest tur-duck-en truss easier. Lots of White Christmas tunes, Plaid Tidings, a bit of Babs, Leslie, The Dukes Of Hazzard (WT...???), Eartha, Pearl, Allan...they'll all show up.
All this to say, Happy and Merry and Cheers for a fantastic holiday, whatever you celebrate, and HOWEVER you celebrate. Thanks so much for a year of listening (and donating) to Jazz90.1...and may 2024 be all merry and bright (with Broadway lights) for YOU! :)
Happy Holidays (Brian D'arcy James, Jeffry Denman, Irving Berlin's White Christmas)
Holiday Season (Tom Wopat, John Schneider, Home For Christmas)
We Need A Little Christmas (Angela Lansbury, Frankie Michaels, Jane Connell, Sab Shimono, Mame)
Five Pound Box Of Money (Pearl Bailey)
Hey Santa! (Straight No Chaser, Christmas Cheers)
Christmas Island (Leon Redbone, Christmas Island)
(I'm Spending) Hanukkah In Santa Monica (Tom Lehrer, The Conducted Tom Lehrer)
Blue Xmas (Bob Dorough, The Miles Davis Sextet)
Nothin' For Christmas (Eartha Kitt)
Sisters (Rosemary Clooney, Trudy Erwin, Christmas)
The Best Things (Happen When You're Dancing)(Danny Kaye, White Christmas)
Snow (Danny Kaye, Bing Crosby, Peggy Lee, Trudy Erwin, White Christmas)
Count Your Blessings (Bing Crosby, Rosemary Clooney, White Christmas)
Love, You Didn't Do Right By Me (Rosemary Clooney, White Christmas)
White Christmas (Company, White Christmas)
Christmas Is My Favorite Time Of Year (Norbert Leo Butz, Aaron Tveit, Catch Me If You Can)
Hard Candy Christmas (Ensemble, The Best Little Whorehouse In Texas)
Lovers On Christmas Eve (James Naughton, Joanna Gleason, I Love My Wife)
Santa Claus Is Back In Town (Elvis Presley)
Santa Claus Is Back In Town (Straight No Chaser, Christmas Cheers)
Christmas Eve (Nathan Lane, Ensemble, Sherry!)
Happy Holiday (Bing Crosby, Holiday Inn)
Pine Cones And Holly Berries (Laurence Naismith, Here's Love)
Let It Snow (Ensemble, Holiday In Plaid)
Twelve Days to Christmas (Ensemble, She Loves Me)
The Twelve Gifts Of Christmas (Allan Sherman, For Swingin' Livers Only)
The 12 Days Of Christmas (Straight No Chaser, Christmas Cheers)
Baby, It's Cold Outside (John Schneider, Tom Wopat, Home For Christmas)
Who Spiked The Eggnog? (Straight No Chaser, Christmas Cheers)
Talk Christmas/Cool Yule (Ensemble, Holiday In Plaid)
Christmas Dragnet (Stan Freberg, Daws Butler, Dr. Demento Presents The Greatest Christmas Novelty CD Of All Time)
I'll Be Home For Christmas (Leslie Odom, Jr., Simply Christmas)
Christmas Mem'ries (Barbra Streisand, Christmas Memories)
Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas (Judy Garland, Meet Me In St. Louis)
Okay, so...I brought out the Santa and Mrs. Claus salt & pepper set. And okay, I brought out the Lowe's (on discount) wreath that's been marking time under my Memory Foam. And okay, I bought that $7 holly-berry candy dish, found my Santa hat, and have successfully sent out 17 holiday cards. Baby steps, maybe, but I feel rather proud of myself.
 | ||||
Oh, and 1 more quart of vegan eggnog scored.
This week, we'll bide our time...one more program til that Christmas extravaganza on Dec. 24th. THIS edition is all about those musical animals: Tigers, Lions, Dogs, Elephants, Squid, even Worms! They will all have their turn in the spotlight this Sunday. I drew the line at Doctor Doolittle, even though it DOES fit pretty perfectly. I just can't tolerate that one. But with that exception, we'll have our full of Disney and Snoopy and "Oz" and SpongeBob. It's fun, it's fierce (note Lions!), it's a little icky (note Worms!), but overall quite the Musical Menagerie. Hey, I think we just found the title for this fauna-esque edition. :)
Also, perhaps it'll stop raining (and glooming) and you'll want to make your way down to the ROC Holiday Village, where you can grab a mug of cocoa from the likes of Jazz90.1. I'll be there (at our very own booth) prior to 2 On The Aisle on the morning of the 17th, as I am "Volunteer #2", slinging hot chocolate and (hopefully) marshmallows. I've never been to this "Village", but it's supposed to be fun, especially if we can program nice Snow Globey weather, with White Christmas playing in the background. Shake your snow sticks at the sky (but gently, cuz we don't need a blizzard)!
And remember to tune in to that Christmas Edition on the 24th! We'll be simply chock-full (and I do love chocks!) of holiday music and musicals, so put that on your calendar and smoke it. Til then! :)
Tiger Rag (Ensemble, Bullets Over Broadway)
If I Were King Of The Forest (Bert Lahr, The Wizard Of Oz)
The Lion Sleeps Tonight (Lebo M., The Lion King)
Mean Ole Lion (Ted Ross, The Wiz)
Hakuna Matata (Max Casella, Tom Alan Robbins, The Lion King)
Ev'rybody Wants To Be A Cat (Scatman Crothers, Phil Harris, The Aristocats)
The Siamese Cat Song (Peggy Lee, Lady And The Tramp)
Alley Cat (Instrumental, Bent Fabric)
Pet Me Poppa (Vivian Blaine, Hot Box Girls, Guys And Dolls)
Snoopy (Bill Hinnant, You're A Good Man, Charlie Brown)
He's A Tramp (Peggy Lee, Lady And The Tramp)
Where Did That Little Dog Go? (Terry Kerwin, Snoopy! The Musical)
Be Like The Bluebird (Mickey Deems, Anything Goes)
Feed The Birds (Julie Andrews, Mary Poppins)
Oh, Sing Sweet Nightingale (Ilene Woods, Rhoda Williams, Cinderella)
I've Gotta Crow (Mary Martin, Peter Pan)
When I See An Elephant Fly (Cliff Edwards and the Hall Johnson Choir, Dumbo)
Pink Elephants On Parade (Instrumental, Dumbo)
The Pink Panther Theme (The Sportsmen, The Pink Panther)
Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer (Straight No Chaser, Christmas Cheers)
Don't Monkey With Broadway (Fred Astaire, George Murphy, Broadway Melody Of 1940)
I Wanna Be Like You (Louie Prima, Phil Harris, Bruce Reitherman, The Jungle Book)
Monkeys And Playbills (Susan Blackwell, Heidi Blickenstaff, [title of show])
Catfish (Jim Wann, Mark Hardwick, Ensemble, Pump Boys And Dinettes)
Les Poisson (Rene Auberjonois, The Little Mermaid)
Whale Of A Tale (Kirk Douglas, 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea)
(The Legend Of) Miss Baltimore Crabs (Linda Hart, Hairspray)
Be My Little Baby Bumblebee (Doris Day)
Inchworm (Danny Kaye, Hans Christian Andersen)
Don't Be The Bunny (John Cullum, Urinetown)
The Work Song (Jimmy McDonald, Cinderella)
I'm Coming Out Of My Shell (Frank Vlastnik, A Year With Frog And Toad)
I'm Not A Loser (Gavin Lee, SpongeBob Square Pants)
Little Green Snake (Jackie Gleason, Take Me Along)
The Frogs (The Frogs, The Frogs)
When You Wish Upon A Star (Cliff Edwards, Pinocchio)
Animal Crackers In My Soup (Shirley Temple, Curly Top)
The Holiday To Do List is growing. Menus to concoct, gifts to (sustainably?) wrap, decorations to find (hey, I only have 2 closets in this house, how deep can they be buried?), and that TREE that is only 2 feet taller than my ceiling!?! What was I thinking? It'll take up half of my living room. Either the tree gets trimmed or I chuck my couch. (Who needs a couch. Elves can sit anywhere.)
Multiply the height and girth of this specimen by 10 and you have MY tree.
So I'm finally getting into a bit of the Christmas-y mood around here (and the spiked eggnog doesn't hurt). Snow would help, too, as opposed to this "dank tarn of Auber" weather, but NYS-ers can't be choosers. Maybe it'll be a Brown Christmas, Bing.
Meanwhile, amidst all the fah and the lah, there are a bevy of Broadway Birthdays to salute around here. I always feel a bit sorry for those Sagittarians who most likely end up squelching their special days into the holi-days..."Oh, here's a slightly larger present, for BOTH your birthday annnnnnd Kwanzaa!" That kind of squelch. Overshadowed. Short-changed.
Sammy's birthday (above with Paula Wayne) is Dec. 8th...
and Frank's (below with Betty Garrett) is Dec. 12th.
So we'll make amends. Sammy Davis, Jr. (who did 2 Broadway shows, BTW) and Frank Sinatra (who did 0 Broadway shows, BTW) both have birthdays this coming week. As do the lyricists Ira Gershwin and Lew Brown. Annnnd it's the opening anniversary of City Of Angels, My Favorite Year, and Swing! That means a heckuva lot of confetti and cake and huzzahs. Maybe we can think of it as a warm up session pre- all those holiday parties.
And Swing! premiered on Dec. 9, 1999.
And remember: The Christmas Edition of 2 On The Aisle premiers on the 24th, okay? Annnnnd on January 7th, Bellisant (demon child from Philly) will return to join me for another co-hosting edition. Hot damn. They always soup up the show, right? So just always tune in, because you don't want to miss anything Broadway. :)))
You're A Builder Upper (Christopher Fitzgerald, Jessica Stone, Life Begins At 8:40)
Welcome To Brooklyn (Evan Pappas, Lainie Kazan, Tim Curry, Ensemble, My Favorite Year)
Manhattan (Tim Curry, My Favorite Year)
My Favorite Year (Evan Pappas, Company, My Favorite Year)
I'll Be Glad When You're Dead (You Rascal, You)(Sammy Davis, Jr., Rufus T Jones For President)
Too Close For Comfort (Sammy Davis, Jr., Mr. Wonderful)
Night Song (Sammy Davis, Jr., Golden Boy)
Don't Forget About 127th Street (Sammy Davis, Jr., Johnny Brown, Golden Boy)
Subway Directions/Ride Through The Night (Sydney Chaplain, Carol Lawrence, Subways Are For Sleeping)
Strange Duet (Orson Bean, Phyllis Newman, Subways Are For Sleeping)
Be A Santa (Sydney Chaplin, Ensemble, Subways Are For Sleeping)
Button Up Your Overcoat (Helen Kane)
Life Is Just A Bowl Of Cherries (Walter Harrah & Friends)
Birth Of The Blues (Keely Smith, Louie Prima)
You're Awful (Frank Sinatra, Betty Garrett, On The Town)
Time After Time (Frank Sinatra, Jimmy Durante, It Happened In Brooklyn)
If You Knew Susie (Gene Kelly, Frank Sinatra, Anchors Aweigh)
You'll Get Yours (Frank Sinatra)
Seesaw (Company, Seesaw)
We've Got It (Ken Howard, Seesaw)
Chapter 54, Number 1909 (Tommy Tune, Ken Howard, Michele Lee, Seesaw)
They Can't Take That Away From Me (Harry Groener, Crazy For You)
The Man That Got Away (Judy Garland, A Star Is Born)
Long Ago (And Far Away) (Ann Hampton Callaway, Jazz Goes To The Movies)
Prologue - Theme From City Of Angels (James Naughton, Ensemble, City Of Angels)
Lost And Found (Rachel York, City Of Angels)
Double Talk Walk (Gregg Edelman, City Of Angels)
With Every Breath I Take (Kay McClelland, City Of Angels)
Blues In The Night (Ann Hampton Callaway, Swing!)
In The Mood/Don't Sit Under The Apple Tree (Company, Swing!)
Well, we've made it into Limbo Land...poised as we are between one holiday and another. Awww hell, let's just take the entire 6 weeks and call it Thanksmas or Chrisgiving. One huge Holidaze of buying, feasting, deco-ing, and White Christmas watching. I saw my first Scotch Pine lashed to a Subaru Outback this morning, vegan-ly replacing a six-point buck, I guess...but how do these folks make a real tree last til New Years? Feed it a secret concoction of Pinesol and Gordon's? I wait, wait, wait (my motto: Procrastinate, then Panic) til like the 20th of December, and then call on Christmas Magic to descend and decorate. Quickly.
So in the same (open) vein, we'll be putting off the holiday tunes (and festooning) for awhile. December 24th's 2 On The Aisle will be chocked full of 'em, but not one Sunday sooner. I'm sure you'll have plenty of carols and Bings and Mariah Careys on those "other stations", plus Jazz90.1's Jingle Jazz Radio has started up (that's our sister internet station), with its jazzy take on those perennials. So just sit in wild anticipation for the Broadway versions, okay?
Lesley cries at her own party...
Meanwhile:
Smile, Laugh, Cry, Weep...yes, that's our next theme on Broadway (and Beyond) at its Best. I have so many falls "off" that Broadway Bandwagon that I really mean the "Beyond" part this week. Plus there seem to be a lot more CRYING songs than SMILING songs (we love to cry in our cornflakes, I guess), so it's a bit tear-heavy. Ahhh well, them's the breaks. It's a sentimental time of year anyway, so get your CRY on with Patti, Frank, Lesley, Laura, and Ann. Denizens like you need no last names, right?
So grin, so bear! The panettone and cucidati will be arriving MUSICALLY on apace, no worries. Meanwhile, Smile Girls, Make 'Em Laugh, and Hey Look, No Crying. (Who's crying? I'm not crying. YOU'RE crying.) :)
When You're Smiling (Judy Garland, Judy At Carnegie Hall)
Smile, Girls (Patti LuPone, Gypsy)
You're Never Fully Dressed Without A Smile (Donald Craig, Laurie Beechman, Ensemble, Annie)
Smile, Smile (Leslie Uggams, Lillian Hayman, Robert Hooks, Hallelujah, Baby!)
Make 'Em Laugh (Donald O'Connor, Singin' In The Rain)
I Wanna Make The World Laugh (Robert Preston, Mack & Mabel)
Laugh, You Son Of A Gun (Shirley Temple, Little Miss Marker)
Laughin' All The Way To The Bank (Bernard Dotson, Sweet Smell Of Success)
When Irish Eyes Are Smiling (John McCormick)
When You're Smiling (Billie Holiday)
Promises, Promises (Jerry Orbach, Promises, Promises)
Knowing When To Leave (Jill O'Hara, Promises, Promises)
Turkey Lurkey Time (Ensemble, Promises, Promises)
Big Girls Don't Cry (John Lloyd Young, Ensemble, Jersey Boys)
It's My Party (Lesley Gore)
Cry (Stan Chandler, Jason Graae, Guy Stroman, David Engel, Forever Plaid)
Cry Me A River (Laura Benanti, Swing!)
Me And My Shadow (Nat Shilkret and his Orchestra, with Johnny Marvin)
The Shadow Knows (Theme to The Shadow Radio Show)
We Kiss In A Shadow (Doretta Morrow, Larry Douglas, The King And I)
I'm Shadowing You (Blossom Dearie)
Me And My Shadow (Peggy Lee, Is That All There Is?)
They All Laughed (Fred Astaire, Shall We Dance?)
Don't Laugh (Victoria Clark, Sondheim! The Birthday Concert)
Live, Laugh, Love (George Hearn, Follies)
I Love To Cry At Weddings (John Wheeler, Company, Sweet Charity)
Crying (Jay And The Americans)
Hey Look, No Crying (Frank Sinatra, She Shot Me Down)
Don't Cry For Me, Argentina (Patti LuPone, Evita)
Willow Weep For Me (Ann Hampton Callaway, Blues In The Night)
Glad To Be Unhappy (Jessica Molaskey, Make Believe)
Make Someone Happy (Audra McDonald, Go Back Home)
Smile (Natalie Cole)
Recent insights:
1.) Vegan Eggnog ain't bad. Half the calories of the real kind. There's no eggs, and (at least this early in the season) no "nog". Then what am I actually drinking, you ask? No clue. But it's warm and cuddly and good to carve playlists with.
2.) Naps ain't bad either. Today I took 2. :)
5.) I have squirrels. Between my roof and my...well, maybe my ceilings? They seem to be staging bowling tournaments up there, with all of the black (tho green to me) walnuts I neglected to "harvest" from my backyard. I must have a "Vacancy" sign (in neon) flashing up there somewhere.
17.) I definitely need hardier party-er muscles. This season of Mirth, Merriment, and Merlot is just getting started and I need to rev up (see Insight #2). It seems entirely possible for me to bike 4,000 miles in a season (and I did), and yet need naps to get thru a tri-plex of social dos in the course of a weekend. Flex those felicitous muscles!
And likewise, after a plethora of 2 on the Aisle themed editions (from Body Parts to Home Sweet Home, and back again, the long way), my brain hurts. I am momentarily "out" of themes. Not to say inspiration won't spark again, BUT this will be a simple Mish Mash edition. Mini themes, only! Like Sailing. And Girling. But other wise, it's the Kitchen Sink. Everything from Guys and their Dolls to some Girl from the North Country. From Once to Roz. From Lonesome Polecats to Mimi Paragon. From Salome to Pass That Football.
Musical whiplash may ensue.
and these 7...wait, we're missing a polecat.
Oh, and I should mention that The Christmas Edition of 2 On The Aisle will be on Christmas EVE! Yes, the EVE is on a Sunday this year. Hot damn. I'll bring vegan (spiked by then) eggnog and wear a Santa Hat while broadcasting, of course. You bring the fruitcake. PLEASE bring the fruitcake! I love fruitcake.
Meanwhile, enjoy your Thanksgiving weekend, a relaxing holiday with family and/or friends, and we can rendezvous, post-feast, at the Kitchen Sink. I'll wash, you dry. :)
The North Strand (Instrumental, Once)
Abandoned In Bandon (Andy Taylor, Once)
Gold (Steve Kazee, Once)
Pass The Football (Jordan Bentley, Wonderful Town)
Wrong Note Rag (Rosalind Russell, Edie Adams, Wonderful Town)
Some Other Time (Betty Comden, Adolph Green, Nancy Walker, On The Town)
You Got Me (Nancy Walker, Betty Comden, Ensemble, On The Town)
Havana (Peter Gallagher, Josie de Guzman, Guys And Dolls)
If I Were A Bell (Josie de Guzman, Guys And Dolls)
Sue Me (Nathan Lane, Faith Prince, Guys And Dolls)
Has Anybody Seen Our Ship? (Julie Andrews, Daniel Massey, Star!)
When Our Ship Comes Sailing In (Ensemble, Oh, Kay!)
The Sailor Of My Dreams (Bernadette Peters, Dames At Sea)
We Sail The Seas (Ensemble, Ben Franklin In Paris)
Beatnik Love Affair (Grover Dale, Sail Away)
Why Do The Wrong People Travel? (Elaine Stritch, Sail Away)
Sail Away (James Hurst, Sail Away)
Bless Your Beautiful Hide (Howard Keel, Seven Brides From Seven Brothers)
Goin' Co'tin' (Jane Powell, Ensemble, Seven Brides From Seven Brothers)
Lament (Lonesome Polecat)(Russ Tamblyn, Ensemble, Seven Brides From Seven Brothers)
Barn Dance (Instrumental, Seven Brides From Seven Brothers)
Books (Faith Prince, Charles Keating, A Man Of No Importance)
Love Who You Love (Roger Rees, A Man Of No Importance)
Art (Roger Rees, Ensemble, A Man Of No Importance)
How D'Ya Talk To A Girl (Gordon Dilworth, Norman Wisdom, Walking Happy)
Real Live Girl (Sid Caesar, Little Me)
A Certain Girl (Robert Goulet, David Wayne, Michael Rupert, The Happy Time)
Slow Train (Sheila Atim, Ensemble, Girl From The North Country)
Hurricane/All Along The Watchtower/Idiot Wind (Sheila Atim, Ensemble, Girl From The North Country)
Falling Slowly (Steve Kazee, Cristin Milioti, Once)
Just back from a short, if shivery, bike ride...ride-able weather due to Sun! No Wind! And my Usual Obsessive Behavior! Which will be known henceforth as UOB. New Mantra. I've also been made aware of EOG, Early Onset Grumpy-ness. Both appropriate labels pour moi.
So here we are, pre-Thanksgiving, readying for The Holiday Season to descend, exponentially invading our social lives, in (mostly) a good way. It sorta began this week, with 4 social outings (1 of which I cancelled in favor of a PJ night at home with cocoa and That GBBO) (Great British Bake Off), appointments, gift shopping, and planning (Hope Less, Plan More)(shall we call it HLPM??). I really have to up my Holiday Game. Is more caffeine the answer? I mean, I should be able to handle galas and dinners and liquid lunches and shopaholic sprees on a daily basis, right? This may require training wheels.
But Dancing! There's always energy for dancing. Well, in this case, no there wasn't. The event I cancelled last week was attendance at a Silent Disco. Could not seem to froth up the required FOAM to disco the night away. Sad face. So to perhaps amend that no-show, this week's 2 On The Aisle Does Dance. Conga, Tango, Waltz, Swing... I just hope our energy (and our dance cards) can handle it all.
Hopefully, this edition will waltz you right into Turkey Day, keep you moving thru all 17 courses, and onward into Fa La La Land. We must muster and steel and vanquish (we dance at dawn!) and finish 2023 with aplomb. Huzzah. :)
Overture (Ensemble, Jerome Robbins' Broadway)
Shall We Dance (Harry Groener, Crazy For You)
Shall We Dance (Gertrude Lawrence, Yul Brynner, The King And I)
Come Dance With Me (Jay And The Americans)
Do I Hear A Waltz? (Elizabeth Allen, Do I Hear A Waltz?)
Shadow Waltz (Tammy Grimes, 42nd Street)
The Wiener Schnitzel Waltz (Tom Lehrer, Tom Lehrer Revisited)
The Echo Waltz (Tamara Long, Sally Stark, Bernadette Peters, Dames At Sea)
A Bushel And A Peck (Vivian Blaine, Ensemble, Guys And Dolls)
Adelaide's Lament (Vivian Blaine, Guys And Dolls)
I Won't Dance (Kaye Ballard, Jack Cassidy)
Maybe This Time (Kaye Ballard)
Hook's Tango (Cyril Ritchard, Peter Pan)
The Great Lover Tango (Monte Markham, Carmen Alvarez, Janie Sel, Irene)
Pick-Pocket Tango (Instrumental, Redhead)
The Gypsy In Me (Adam Godley, Anything Goes)
I Got Rhythm (Ethel Merman, Girl Crazy)
Crazy Rhythm (Doris Day, Tea For Two)
Spreadin' Rhythm Around (Nell Carter, Ensemble, Ain't Misbehavin')
The Rhythm Of Life (Arnold Soboloff, Sweet Charity)
The Continental (Fred Astaire, Ginger Rogers, The Gay Divorcee)
Temptation (Instrumental, Singin' In The Rain)
Conga! (Rosalind Russell, Wonderful Town)
Wunderbar (Brian Stokes Mitchell, Marin Mazzie, Kiss Me, Kate)
Fever (Ann Hampton Callaway, Fever: A Peggy Lee Celebration!)
From This Moment On (Ann Hampton Callaway, Jazz Goes To The Movies)
Rhythm In My Nursery Rhymes (Ann Hampton Callaway, Liz Callaway, Sibling Revelry)
Mu-Cha-Cha (Judy Holiday, Peter Gennaro, Bells Are Ringing)
Mambo Java (Carol Channing, Les Quat' Jeudis, Show Girl)
Gopher Mambo (Yma Sumac)
The Beguine (Tamara Long, Steve Elmore, Dames At Sea)
Tango De Amor (Instrumental, The Addams Family)
Swing! Brother, Swing! (Ensemble, Swing!)
Dance At The Gym (Instrumental, West Side Story)
Well, I think I had at least 2 trick or treaters this Halloween, down from 3 last year. One family that I actually "greeted" (a very small witch with light-up sneakers, and some sort of large rabbit..."Harvey"?), and then I decided to just leave the bowl of candy outside on the steps. Twenty minutes later and it was all gone. I mean, I did have Reeses this year, so I guess I asked for that to happen. :)
Me rocking my tacky self at Zumbaween 2023.
I went as a retired Lawn Chair Lady.
And yes, I brought my lawn chair. :)
I have 1 more Halloween-esque event to attend this week, before I finagle that costume trunk back into my closet (Zumbaween? Yeah, it's a thing. Supposed to go in glow-in-the-dark gear, but I'll just sparkle, or try). Then it's onward into turkey land (or tofurky land), tree trims, and eggnog (what's the vegan equivalent of that? They MUST have invented one). Oy vey.
This doesn't look too bad: Tofurky with mushrooms?
And below, a Cherpumple...
a cherry, pumpkin, and apple pie, surrounded by 3 cake flavors.
Always something, right?
All that to say, this edition probably should have been scheduled BEFORE November launched. Body Parts. Yup, that's our theme. But in my defense, these won't be gory-zombie-Day-of-the-Dead body parts. It's Broadway, okay? Funny Faces, Happy Feet, On Your Toes, and Heart's Desire(s)...THOSE sorts of body parts. I did this theme a few years back, and it was surprisingly popular, so we're reviving it with new organs, I mean new songs and shows and performers. So Dick Van Dyke, Mr. Astaire, Patti, Jessica, Brian...and Hair! :)
Hearts...
Faces...
...and Hair!
And before I sign off, I want to thank all of you who donated to our recent station fund raiser. Maybe it's tough to listen to us cajole and persuade and beg you mercilessly to give, but thanks for putting up with it and rising to the task. Begging is done and dusted for another 6 months, so all my chatting can now be focused on musicals and dumb themes!
Tune in. It's Body Parts A Go Go.
That Face (Matthew Broderick, Cady Huffman, The Producers)
Put On A Happy Face (Dick Van Dyke, Bye Bye Birdie)
Funny Face (Fred Astaire, Funny Face)
Were Thine That Special Face (Brian Stokes Mitchell, Kiss Me Kate)
Lose That Long Face (Judy Garland, A Star Is Born)
Heart (Russ Brown, Nathaniel Frey, Jimmy Komack, Ed Phillips, Damn Yankees)
Once You Lose Your Heart (Emma Thompson, Me & My Girl)
Heart's Desire (Jessica Molaskey, At The Algonquin)
Out Of Your Head (Bobby Conte Thornton, Ariana DeBose, A Bronx Tale)
Two Heads (Andrew Durand, Evan Harrington, The Robber Bridegroom)
Hair (Company, Hair)
God Bless The Perfect Elbow (Robert Preston, Ben Franklin In Paris)
Cheek To Cheek (Fred Astaire, Top Hat)
The Right Finger Of My Left Hand (Gwen Verdon, Redhead)
If I Only Had A Brain (Ray Bolger, The Wizard Of Oz)
Fidgety Feet (Allan Case, Ensemble, Oh, Kay!)
Ooh! My Feet! (Susan Johnson, The Most Happy Fella)
Happy Feet (The Manhattan Rhythm Kings)
On Your Toes (Bobby Van, Kay Coulter, Joshua Shelley, On Your Toes)
Your Feet's Too Big (Ken Page, Ain't Misbehavin')
Heart And Soul (Jason Graae, Ensemble, Forever Plaid)
There's A Broken Heart For Every Light On Broadway (Marin Mazzie, Zach Braff, Bullets Over Broadway)
My Crazy Heart (Patti LuPone, Sherie Rene Scott, Women On The Verge Of A Nervous Breakdown)
Listen To Your Heart (Sutton Foster, Young Frankenstein)
Your Eyes Are Blue (Craig Lucas, Suzanne Henry, Marry Me A Little)
In Buddy's Eyes (Barbara Cook, Follies)
Can't Take My Eyes Off You (John Lloyd Young, Ensemble, Jersey Boys)
Take It On The Chin (Emma Thompson, Me & My Girl)
Shake Hands With Your Uncle Max (Allan Sherman)
Clap Yo' Hands (Kay Kendall, Fred Astaire, Funny Face)
Dance: Ten; Looks: Three (Pamela Blair, A Chorus Line)
The Beat Of Your Heart (Andrew Polk, Ensemble, The Band's Visit)
Heart Of Stone (Natalie Paris, Six)
Facetime With My Mom (Bo Burnham)
This should be a pajama day. A ghoul-haunted, dank tarn (Edgar Allan's creativity, not mine) has settled in, weather-wise and brain-wise. Like that amontillado bricked-up cavern (which this old stone house of mine sometimes reminds me of), the mitre is growing (good for brandy, rotten for the psyche). Ugh. Can't we have a few more Honey Crisp days, with cider donuts and blue skies and pretty foliage ON the trees??? Guess not. Another Ugh.
Maybe if he'd actually tried cider donuts,
things would have gone differently for him.
BUT we can have sun in the studio! So I've chosen a Sunny Side of Broadway theme for this coming SUNday. A Sun's Gonna Shine edition. A Spread A Little Sunshine ode. Because I'm in favor of total denial (on many fronts) and we can always make believe sunglasses, sandals sans socks, and SPF 40 are still required. The sun's at my window (and love's at my door) and all that sort of thing.
Sunglasses in the rain...
and sunglasses that come with their OWN rain.
So that means sunbeams from Good News, Pippin, The Fantasticks, Big River, In The Heights, Radio Gals...I mean, we'll toss a few rainy selections in the mix, just for a reality check, but they'll be the light showery versions. No downpours. Gentle drips only. :)
Carmen Cusack, sun worshiper, in Bright Star.
Oh and shameless plug: Jazz90.1's 50th Birthday happens on Wednesday (11/1/23)! A school project of like 10 watts has bloomed into a 15,000 watt 24/7 radio station, thanks to mucho financial support from yous guys, and a morass/myriad roster of volunteers. Incredible! So if you haven't dropped a few pennies in the "old man's hat" yet, please consider a donation. That way you'll continue to hear this wacky Broadway show, and all the other jazzy programs (of many techni-colors) that only an independent radio station can bring you. Just go to Jazz901.org to do that...or call the station at 585 966 5299, and tell 'em Broadway sent ya!
Sun's Gonna Shine (Carmen Cusack, Dee Hoty, Ensemble, Bright Star)
Sunrise Melody (Carole Cook, Ensemble, Radio Gals)
Sunny Side Of Every Situation (Karen Prunczik, Ensemble, 42nd Street)
I Got The Sun In The Morning (Bernadette Peters, Annie Get Your Gun)
Little Mary Sunshine (Eileen Brennan, Little Mary Sunshine)
Keep Your Sunny Side Up (Steve Frazier, Good News)
Spread A Little Sunshine (Charlotte D'Amboise, Pippin)
Sunday In The Park With George (Bernadette Peters, Mandy Patinkin, Sunday In The Park With George)
I'm Sailing On A Sunbeam (Fred Coughlin and His Orchestra, Des Tooley on vocals)
Ev'ry Sunday Afternoon (Dawn Upshaw, A Connecticut Yankee)
'Livin' In The Sunshine (Maurice Chevalier, The Big Pond)
Little April Shower (Instrumental, Bambi)
Little Drops Of Rain (Judy Garland, Gay Purr-ee)
Rain On The Roof (Adolph Green, Phyllis Newman, Follies)
Soon It's Gonna Rain (Rita Gardner, Matt Nelson, The Fantasticks)
There Will Be Sun (Ensemble, Groundhog Day)
Let The Sunshine In (Company, Hair)
Sun On My Face (Robert Morse, Tony Roberts, Sugar)
Sun In My Window (Ricardo Montalban, Seventh Heaven)
The Sun Has Got His Hat On (Nick Ullett, Jane Summerhays, Me & My Girl)
When The Sun Goes Down In The South (Rene Auberjonois, Bob Gunton, Ron Richardson, Daniel Jenkins, Big River)
Sunrise (Mandy Gonzalez, Christopher Jackson, In The Heights)
Don't Let The Sun Catch You Crying (Ensemble, Five Guys Named Moe)
Pleasant Valley Sunday (Sara King, Jake Epstein, Beautiful - The Carol King Musical)
Out Of The Sun (Tony Danza, Honeymoon In Vegas)
Singin' In The Rain (Gene Kelly, Singin' In The Rain)
Walking In The Rain (Anika Larsen, Jarrod Spector, Beautiful - The Carol King Musical)
Raining (Margo Seibert, Rocky)
Don't Rain On My Parade (Barbra Streisand, Funny Girl)
The Clouds Will Soon Roll By (Elsie Carlisle)
The Sunny Side Of The Street (Judy Garland)
Sunrise, Sunset (Zero Mostel, Maria Karnilova, Bert Convy, Julia Migenes, Fiddler On The Roof)
Okay, we're into our last full week of October, folks, but I'm here to tell you: This will not be a Halloween playlist/blog/edition. There just isn't enough Halloween Broadway, though there ARE plenty of scary musicals out there, if you know what I mean. I know October 31st is a favorite holiday for some, but it's just a so so one for me. To me, it just means the end of my birthday month (damn!), and one month closer to snow and cold and sunsets at 4:45pm. I'm fine with Thanksgiving, fine with Christmas, but then...I need Aruba.
But not to get ahead of ourselves! Those trees are still sporting some
rather technicolor foliage, cider vibes and PSLs are rampant, and my
gulag wear remains closeted. My favorite time of the year, so let's not
rev up the snow blowers yet!
Only somewhat photo-shopped.
And on tap for 2 On The Aisle is a Home Sweet Home edition: Broadway
songs of Home and Hearth, from Promises Promises, Hairspray, Once Upon A
Mattress, The Wiz...plus mini odes to Doors and Windows (who'd want a
home without those?), which means ditties from Shoe String Revue, Dear Evan, A Class Act, and Joseph and that amazing TECHNICOLOR dreamcoat of his (what a great Halloween costume that would make!).
Well, this is a little TOO sweet. Don't expect this.
My teeth are gonna fall out.
This will also be the LAST Sunday of Jazz90.1's
Fall Pledge Drive, so if you haven't had a chance to donate to our
coffers yet, this will be your chance to donate to our coffers! :)
THANKS to all who've done so already...YOU ROCK!
My Ol' Kentucky Rock And Roll Home (Mark Hardwick, Mike Craver, Debra Monk, Mary Murfitt, Oil City Symphony)
The House We Live In (Christine Ebersole, Grey Gardens)
Come On-A My House (Rosemary Clooney)
The Big Dollhouse (Harvey Fierstein, Ensemble, Hairspray)
We're In The Money (Karen Prunczik, Ginny King, Jeri Kansas, 42nd Street)
Can You Use Any Money Today? (Tyne Daly, Call Me Madam)
Money, Money (The Money Song) (Liza Minnelli, Joel Grey, Cabaret)
My House (Lauren Ward, Matilda)
A House Is Not A Home (Kristin Chenoweth, Promises, Promises)
Just A Housewife (Susan Bigelow, Working)
The Boy Next Door (Judy Garland, Meet Me In St. Louis)
Doors (Sally Mayes, Richard Muenz, Lynne Wintersteller, Brent Barrett, Closer Than Ever)
Close Every Door (Ensemble, Joseph And The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat)
Paris Through A Window (Lonny Price, Randy Graff, Ensemble, A Class Act)
A Million Windows And I (Ann Hampton Callaway, Shoe String Revue)
Waving Through A Window (Ben Platt, Dear Evan Hansen)
Open A New Window (Angela Lansbury, Mame)
The Swamps Of Home (Carol Burnett, Once Upon A Mattress)
My Home Town (Tom Lehrer, Tom Lehrer Revisited)
I Want To Go Home (Daniel H. Jenkins, Big)
I'll Go Home With Bonnie Jean (Jimmy Thompson, Gene Kelly, Van Johnson, Brigadoon)
I Feel At Home With You (Chester Stratton, Vera Ellen, A Connecticut Yankee)
Any Place I Hang My Hat Is Home (Vanessa Williams, St. Louis Woman)
Home Sweet Home (Dogs!, Lady And The Tramp)
Home Before You Know It (Daniel H. Jenkins, The Bridges Of Madison County)
Everybody's Got A Home But Me (Laura Osnes, Pipe Dream)
Home (Stephanie Mills, The Wiz)
When My Ship Comes Home (Christine Ebersole, Christine Ebersole Sings Noel Coward))
Go Back Home (Audra McDonald, Go Back Home)
Anatevka (Zero Mostel, Company, Fiddler On The Roof)
Home On The Range (Roy Rogers and The Sons Of The Pioneers)
My demon child, Bellisant, is still here, under-foot, so this will be pithy and damn short, because I'm socializing, celebrating many birthdays, baking cakes (eating cakes), and enjoying general foo-fah-rah. Yay, October!
We had a great time co-hosting last Sunday, larkin' about with Broadway on Jazz90.1... and taking your calls of donation (THANK YOU so much to all who donated!). It's much more fun to drive that pledge car when you have the energy of a co-host to banter with AND appreciative listeners who connect (and contribute).
So that puts us mid-month, and mid-Pledge Drive...and we're gettin' there, folks! I've picked out some goodies for this week, hopefully to please the likes of you Broadwayphiles, like an Uptown/Downtown (but no Downton!) set, some Henry Mancini themes, a Sondheim "flight" or two, especially a hefty bit of Forum. In fact, our opener will be the same one I used to launch the very first 2 On The Aisle 11 years ago, Forum's Overture. The exact date of that new born 2OTA, I believe, was Oct. 28th, 2012, but hey, close enough. I pushed a button, the CD managed to start, I took several deep breaths (into a paper bag), and the rest is sorta "radio history." (DO note the quotes.)
If you haven't dropped anything into the Jazz90.1 coffers yet, please consider it. We promise to put whatever the amount you give to good use: No croissants for me and Otto on Sundays, no earring bonus at the end of the year, no cruises to Timbuktoo (sp?) or Atlantis. We'll behave.
And we'll just keeping playing! :)
Overture (Instrumental, A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To The Forum)
Downtown (Skidrow)(Ensemble, Little Shop Of Horrors)
Uptown (Alysha Deslorieux, Beautiful The Carol King Musical)
Uptown, Downtown (Craig Lucas, Marry Me A Little)
Downtown (Petula Clark)
Love Betsy (Rob McClure, Honeymoon In Vegas)
Stars And The Moon (Jessica Molaskey, Songs For A New World)
Shiksa Goddess (Norbert Leo Butz, The Last Five Years)
But Alive (Lauren Bacall, Applause)
Gooch's Song (Jane Connell, Mame)
I Wanna Live Each Day (Christine Baranski, Miss Spectacular)
The Pink Panther (Instrumental, The Pink Panther)
Meglio Stasera (Fran Jeffries, The Pink Panther)
Moon River (Audrey Hepburn, Breakfast At Tiffany's)
Theme From Peter Gunn (Instrumental, Peter Gunn)
Big Spender (Ensemble, Fosse)
Hey, Bob Fosse (Company, Forbidden Broadway)
Comedy Tonight (Zero Mostel, Company, A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To The Forum)
Impossible (David Burns, Brian Davies, A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To The Forum)
Bring Me My Bride (Ron Holgate, Zero Mostel, A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To The Forum)
I Remember (Charmian Carr, Evening Primrose)
Anyone Can Whistle (Tom Wopat, Barbara Cook, Ensemble, Sondheim On Sondheim)
Johanna (Bernadette Peters)
Show Off (Sutton Foster, The Drowsy Chaperone)
You Deserve It (Corey Cott, Laura Osnes, Bandstand)
Bottom's Gonna Be On Top (Bryan d'Arcy James, Christian Borle, Something Rotten!)
Mame (Company, Mame)
