Playlist For Sunday, May 5, 2024: Star Stuff and Moon Matter

Do you get your tarot reading every morning? I have this one person I follow on YouTube who reads tarot cards from an astrological "bent" on a daily basis. Towers here, 5 of cups there...specifically for Libras or Capricorns or the Aries in your life.  For May, for instance, I have Stability on top of Stability. My house is not made of sticks or straw, I am told; it's reinforced steel. Who knew? A 200 year old cobblestone? Hey, she's saying "You got ground" this month. Yet...she flips another card and sees that it's a time to rest and recharge...and then a STAR card! (Okay, I'll take a frickin' nap and be a STAR!)...yadda yadda yadda. Do I believe all this star "dust"? Do I trust a handful of medieval Swords and Queens and Hanging Men? Yes! And No. 

 

 

But I do enjoy these "seers'" positivity. They can take the Death Card and swivel it, swerve it, and twerk it, to mean Hope and Opportunity and the death of bad crap. THAT I like! Plus she talks nice and calm. Brings down my cortisol levels. My BP. My shoulders come down from their home in my ears. Sort of like a Joe Pera smoothy.

 

Don't know Joe Pera? 

Check out his sleepy-time vids (YouTube, et.al.)

Hence, the kernel of a theme/idea grew in my pre-frontal, and the result is this week's edition: Stars And The Moon. I don't know of any musical that features tarot cards, so that idea had to be jettisoned. (A fortune teller "machine" does appear in Big, but I don't think she had a solo.) But there are plenty, nay a plethora, of star-studded songs and moon melodies...one from Hair, another from Mame, Funny Girl, Goldilocks, plus errant ballads from Doris and Audra and Babs and Bernadette.

A little Starshine here,

a little Moonlight there...

And a little Angela (and Bea) as the "lady" in the Mame Moon!

Star Tars, The Man In The Moon, Lady Day, Jiminy Cricket...we're all made out of Star Dust, right? So even if it's no longer the Age Of Aquarius (I'll say), we can still float out there for a while, fly to the moon, and wish on a star. :) See ya "Sun"day!

 

Stars And The Moon (Sutton Foster, Take Me To The World)

The Man In The Moon Is A Lady (Bea Arthur, Angela Lansbury, Mame)

Lazy Moon (Ensemble, Sail Away)

Once In A Blue Moon (John McMartin, Elmarie Wendel, Little Mary Sunshine)

Ridin' On The Moon (Stanley Wayne Mathis, St. Louis Woman)

What A Little Moonlight Can Do (Audra McDonald, Lady Day At Emerson's Bar And Grill)

Fly Me To The Moon (Max Von Essen, Call Me Old Fashioned)

Moon In My Window (Elizabeth Allen, Carol Bruce, Julienne Marie, Do I Hear A Waltz?)

Good Morning Starshine (Cassie Levy, Hair)

Bright Star (A.J. Shively, Bright Star)

We're All Made Of Stars (Aiden Demme, Ensemble, Finding Neverland)

I See Stars (Erika Henningsen, Mean Girls)

Dancing In The Moonlight (Ruth Etting)

It's Only A Paper Moon (Cliff Edwards)

Moon Song (Annette Hanshaw)

Oh, To Be A Movie Star (Barbara Harris, The Apple Tree)

Poor Little Hollywood Star (Virginia Martin, Little Me)

Star! (Julie Andrews, Star!)

I'm The Greatest Star (Barbra Streisand, Funny Girl)

Star Tar (Bernadette Peters, Dames At Sea)

Swinging On A Star (Bing Crosby)

I'll Buy You A Star (Johnny Johnston, A Tree Grows In Brooklyn)

You Are My Lucky Star (Gene Kelly, Debbie Reynolds, Singin' In The Rain)

Many Moons Ago (Harry Snow, Once Upon A Mattress)

When You're Driving Through The Moonlight (Julie Andrews, Alice Ghostley, Kaye Ballard, Ilka Chase, Cinderella)

There's A Rising Moon (Doris Day, Young At Heart)

The Moon And I (Kevin Chamberlain, The Addams Family)

Blue Moon (Ann Hampton Calloway, Blues In The Night)

Moon River (Audra McDonald)

The Greatest Star (Patti LuPone, Daniel Benzali, Sunset Boulevard)

Friendly Star (Judy Garland, Summer Stock)

When You Wish Upon A Star (Cliff Edwards, Pinocchio) 

When You Get Lost Between The Moon And New York City (Chris Cross, Arthur) 

Playlist For Sunday, April 28, 2024: Only Venn I'm On The Street (where you live)!

As a handful of you may know, I used to be a math tutor. This was long ago and far away, on another planet about 450 miles away. I did it for about 25 years, and given the number of private schools and well-heeled parents (think Mama Rose, aiming Louise at Harvard instead of The Palace), I was able to support a family of four on what that employment provided. 

Growing up, I wasn't such a confident math student...not the one whose hand would immediately pop up with  "47! The answer is 47!" Nope. I might well have had "47" in my mind and on paper, but I had no firm belief in "47" and would NEVER want to embarrass myself if "47" was wrong. That made me a perfect math tutor, actually. Especially with girls. Been there, embarrassed by that...so I propped up those gals' confidence levels, boosted that 13 year old's math-ego, and in general had a swell time doing it.

And I still feel a bit math-y now, even though I retired from it all when I left NYC. Hence my love of all things Venn. :)

 

 

 

I also like diagrams. And charts.

For the best view, click on. Zoom in.

 

I think I need to invent a few Venns of my own. Like a Sondheim vs Schwartz take. I mean they share first names, birthdays, and timely successes...and don't share ME liking both of them. Etc. I can visualize it now...

All that to say, there are no Sondheims or Schwartzes or MATH in this edition. In fact it's all about Streets. Boulevards. Roads. One Highway. And no expressways. Streets of Dreams, Roads to Hell, Avenues of Fifth, Park, and Q: Yes, another wacky (if desperate) theme. Plus birthday salutes to Sheldon (Harnick) and Carol (Burnett). (She'll be 92? Huzzah!)

But tune in...and heads up for a new Broadway Venn (or 7). Guess I've got some charting to do!

Every Street's A Boulevard In Old New York (Jack Whiting, Hazel Flagg)

Wall Street (Tamara Long, Dames At Sea)

Christopher Street (Warren Galjour, Ensemble, Wonderful Town)

Henry Street (Ensemble, Funny Girl)

On The Street Where I Live (Jordan Donica, My Fair Lady)

Street Of Dreams (Peggy Lee, Dream Street)

Easy Street (Elaine Stritch, Stritch)

Easy Street (Dorothy Loudon, Robert Fitch, Barbara Erwin, Annie)

It's Good To Be Back Home (Carol Burnett, Fade Out - Fade In)

Little Girls (Carol Burnett, Annie)

Shy (Carol Burnett, Once Upon A Mattress)

Fifth Avenue (Shirley Temple, Young People)

Confession To A Park Avenue Mother (Charles Nelson Reilly, Parade)

Grant Avenue (Pat Suzuki, Flower Drum Song)

So Long, 174th Street (Robert Morse, So Long, 174th Street)

Don't Forget About 127th Street (Sammy Davis, Jr., Johnny Brown, Golden Boy)

The Streets Of Miami (Allan Sherman, My Son The Folk Singer)

The Avenue Q Theme (Company, Avenue Q)

If You Were Gay (John Tartaglia, Rick Lyon, Avenue Q)

There's A Fine, Fine Line (Stephanie D'Abruzzo, Avenue Q)

Walking Happy (Louise Troy, Norman Wisdom, Walking Happy)

Let's Take An Old Fashioned Walk (Eddie Albert, Allyn McLerie, Miss Liberty

Elegance (Charles Nelson Reilly, Eileen Brennan, Jerry Dodge, Sondra Lee, Hello, Dolly!)

Let's Take A Walk Around The Park (Ella Fitzgerald)

To Life (Zero Mostel, Michael Granger, Fiddler On The Roof)

Ice Cream (Barbara Cook, She Loves Me)

Little Tin Box (Howard DaSilva, Ensemble, Fiorello!)

Highway 57 (Jim Wann, Ensemble, Pump Boys And Dinettes)

Ease On Down The Road (Stephanie Mills, The Wiz)

Road To Hell II (Chris Sullivan, Hadestown)

42nd Street (Wanda Richert, Company, 42nd Street)

Playlist for Sunday, April 21, 2024: Save the Oomph!

I've always loved the opening number of Paint Your Wagon. "Where am I going? I don't know...When will I get there? I ain't certain...All I know is I am on my way." Doesn't that just say it all? We're all careening about, like bumper cars, not a straight line in our progress to be seen, but in this song, those dopey miners seem to feel pretty positive about it. "I'm on my way." Confidence, in the face of Confusion. It'll work out. I'll still get to "the gold".

Clint, Jean, and Lee...this is their hopeful (bathed) look.

Maybe that's why I love Julian Marsh in 42nd Street..."you're going out a youngster, but you're gonna come back a star!" And Ethel/Mamma Rose (the definitive stage mom/monster) with "Everything's Comin' Up Roses". Okay, so you're playing Paducah (on a pole) this week, but next week??? The Palace. Why not?

 

"And you say Allentown?"

Jerry Orbach and Karen Ziemba in 42nd Street

 

 

Mamma Rose sees roses in Sandra Church's future.

I guess Broadway is the ultimate paint on your wagon. Emblazoned in red, hope and passions running high. It's all gonna work out. Stand by and watch. That's the hook. Just wait and watch what happens!

As you can tell, I'm waxing a tad philosophic because it's Jazz90.1's pledge drive, and we have to "make the donuts" (and enough donuts) to last another 6 months. Some folks don't believe we'd fade out and off the airways without a financial injection twice a year, but we would. You are our only support! No big brothers with nasty cigars out there, holding us up. So if you want more Broadway Oomph in your life on a weekly basis (or jazzy drives to work, or bluesy all-nighters, or big band memories to swing with in your kitchen), show us some love. Jump on Jazz901.org...and throw us some moola. 

We only need enough to keep the wagon painted (and hopes high). :) 

 

Lullaby Of Broadway (Jerry Orbach, Wanda Richert, Company, 42nd Street)

Bells Are Ringing (Ensemble, Bells Are Ringing)

On My Own (Syd Chaplin, Bells Are Ringing)

I'm Going Back (Judy Holliday, Bells Are Ringing)

Watch What Happens (Kara Lindsay, Newsies)

Carrying The Banner (The Newsboys, Newsies)

Consider Yourself (Bruce Prochnik, Davy Jones, Ensemble, Oliver!)

As Long As He Needs Me (Georgia Brown, Oliver!)

You've Got To Pick A Pocket Or Two (Clive Revill, Ensemble, Oliver!)

I'm On My Way (Ensemble, Paint Your Wagon)

They Call The Wind Mariah (Rufus Smith, Ensemble, Paint Your Wagon)

Wandrin' Star (Lee Marvin, Ensemble, Paint Your Wagon)

The Yodel Blues (They Talk A Different Language)(Mary Hatcher, Kenny Delmar, Texas, Lil' Darlin')

By The Mississinewah (Ethel Merman, Paula Lawrence, Something For The Boys)

Way Out West (Judy Kaye, Babes In Arms) 

Back On Top (Patti LuPone, War Paint)

Fire And Ice (Eric Liberman, Ensemble, War Paint)

Pink (Christine Ebersole, War Paint)

I Got Rhythm (Ethel Merman, Girl Crazy)

Eadie Was A Lady (Ethel Merman, Girl Crazy)

Everything's Comin' Up Roses (Ethel Merman, Gypsy)

Deep Beneath The City/Not There Yet (Company, In Transit)

Saturday Night Obsession (Erin Mackey, In Transit)

A Little Friendly Advice (Moya Angela, In Transit)

Shuffle Off To Buffalo (Carol Cooke, Joseph Bova, 42nd Street)

A Quarter To Nine (Tammy Grimes, Wanda Richert, 42nd Street)

We're In The Money (Karen Pruczik, Jeri Kansas, Ginny King, Ensemble, 42nd Street)

Playlist For Sunday, April 14, 2024: Spend a little dime on ...Jazz90.1!

So how was it for YOU? 

In my neck of the woods: Clouds, mosquitos, not half the people invasion that was predicted...and then dark, followed by darker dark. I had no idea how DARK it was going to get, until the street lights popped on and the bugs came out (and one goose seemed horribly confused, by the sound of it), but now I understand why those pagan dudes cowered, freaked out, and/or sacrificed to the gods. Impressive event. So even with typical upstate weather, I say Huzzahs to the Cosmo and...Encore! 

 

Meanwhile, our SPRING PLEDGE DRIVE rolls on. Last Sunday I had help with co-host Mary Ziarniak fielding calls (and ringing bells). THIS Sunday I'll be on my own, playing Broadway Blockbusters that love making an appearance this time of the year. Dollys, Seymours, Mormons, Lost Boys, and Charity. And all of them hoping that you'll be a charitable "Big Spender" and donate. See what I did there? Of course you did. 

 

 

 

Old-timey radio shots...our studio is edgy and buzzin' in comparison

(I do love the blue accents, tho. They go with my hair.)

 Below...a ship-to-shore radio on show at the Sun Studio in Memphis.

When in Memphis, eat ribs and fried chicken and get thee to the 

Sun and Staxx!

 

Now this is more like it!

Not fancy, but practical...just enough buttons (on the console, not me)!

 

And of course to help grease the GIVING gears, we offer oodles of Thank You Gifts. To see all of those goodies, plus the levels of giving, "pay" our website a visit. Want a mug? We got mugs. Want a fleece jacket to sport about town? We got fleece jackets. Want to give monthly? We got monthly options. What's not to like? :)

And please don't take "Mr. Rochester" for granted. He's got a Jazz Fest, an RPO, an Eastman, a Geva...and a Jazz Radio Station. Support your music of choice, whatever the genre, and keep them AND US alive and playing.

 

Hello, Dolly! (Carol Channing, Ensemble, Hello, Dolly!) 

Friendship (Sutton Foster, Joel Grey, Anything Goes)

Friend (David Garrison, Company, Snoopy The Musical)

Old Friends (Lindsay Mendez, Merrily We Roll Along)

Skid Row (Downtown) (Company, Little Shop Of Horrors)

Da-Doo (Hunter Foster, Little Shop Of Horrors)

Suddenly Seymour (Kerry Butler, Hunter Foster, Little Shop Of Horrors)

Two By Two (Andrew Rannells, Josh Gad, Company, The Book Of Mormon)

I Am Here For You (Andrew Rannells, Josh Gad, Company, The Book Of Mormon) 

Morning In New York (Instrumental, New York, New York)

A Major Chord (Colton Ryan, Clyde Alves, New York, New York)

A Quiet Thing (Colton Ryan, New York, New York)

If My Friends Could See Me Now (Gwen Verdon, Sweet Charity)

Rich Man's Frug (Instrumental, Sweet Charity)

The Rhythm Of Life (Arnold Soboloff, Ensemble, Sweet Charity)

Big Spender (Helen Gallagher, Thelma Oliver, Ensemble, Sweet Charity)

Out Of Your Head (Bobby Thornton, Ariana DeBose, A Bronx Tale)

Lady In The Long Black Dress (Joey Treacy Egan, Caesar Samayoa, Demond Green, Sister Act)

Still Hurting (Sherie Rene Scott, The Last Five Years)

Someone To Fall Back On (Jason Robert Brown, Wearing Someone Else's Clothes) 

What Kind Of Man (Debra Monk, Edward Hibbert, Jill Paice, Ensemble, Curtains)

Thataway! (Karen Ziemba, Ensemble, Curtains)

I've Gotta Crow (Mary Martin, Peter Pan)

Never Never Land (Mary Martin, Peter Pan)

So Long Dearie (Carol Channing, Hello, Dolly!) 

Put On Your Sunday Clothes (Charles Nelson Reilly, Carol Channing, Company, Hello, Dolly!) 

Playlist For Sunday, April 7th, 2024: I think I hear a turtle?

What's that turtle quote? I typed that exact question into a Google Search box and I got Solomon talking about "the voice of the turtle is heard in our land." My daughter makes fun of me when I do that, phrase a search in terms of a question. (Back in the day, I "Asked Jeeves". I'm still asking!) Like when is the #42 bus coming to a stop near me? Why isn't my nail polish dry yet? How do you sync your Libby with your phone with your car with...the #42 bus? Stuff like that. But you know, it often works. :)

 

Anyway, the VOICE of the TURTLE is HEARD, says Solomon! Or maybe that's the sound of my irksome generator as it goes thru its weekly (weakly?) test. Whatever. But it IS here. I have seen 5 robins so far (or it's the same robin 5 times) and that proves it. Tis Spring. Well... at least once we get past this last predicted snowstorm/rain event/eclipse fever?

Maybe The Turtle is like The Groundhog. Both of 'em Oracles of Climate. Weather Harbingers. Yet why do we ask seasonal reports of these bossy, unscientific creatures? Isn't Science enough (I ask of Google/Jeeves/The Cosmos)? 

 

Must be Science (cuz jelly don't shake like that).

But along with amphibians and Spring comes our Jazz 90.1 pledge drive. That, at least, is a certainty. And this coming Sunday (April 7th) starts my part of it, driving that pledge car first with Otto (from noon to 2pm that day), and second with Mary Ziarniak, avid Jazz 90.1 listener and a pal o' mine. (Not a palomino, which is very close, but no cigar.) She'll be bringing in a bevy of Broadway favorites, and will basically take over the show with all of her "requests". That's OK. It's the least I can do for her, as she'll be taking over the phone answering and donation duties of the day. She's only a bit bossy. :)

 

Mary, just before she pushed her plethora of requests upon me.

 

So as you can see by the playlist, The Music Man, Bye Bye Birdie (her hubby's name is Conrad), West Side Story, and Kinky Boots will dot our landscape. 

 

I actually took this photo of Billy Porter's Kinky pair,

at the Museum of Broadway. Impressive! 

But please give us a call during the show! We'd love to chat with you, as opposed to you donating online. And worry not re the size of your contribution...$5, $50, $500...we judge not the size! It all adds up to another season of Jazz, Blues, Fusion, Big Band, Computer help, annnnnd Broadway, for you and yours. Because without that support, there will be no Another Op'nin'. No Another Show. Just country music and talk radio. Ughsters on that.

 So keep me spinning the MUSICALS! Like I wanna be. Drown out that damn turtle. He has no Broadway belt at all.

 

 

Another Opnin', Another Show (Ensemble, Kiss Me Kate)

A Healthy, Normal American Boy (Dick Van Dyke, Chita Rivera, Bye Bye Birdie)

Kids (Paul Lynde, Bye Bye Birdie)

Wells Fargo Wagon (Ensemble, The Music Man)

Ya Got Trouble (Robert Preston, The Music Man)

Pick-A-Little, Talk-A-Little (Ensemble, The Music Man)

All The Things You Are (Ella Fitzgerald)

The I'm Too White To Sing The Blues Blues (Ann Hampton Callaway, Jazz Goes To The Movies)

Cool (Tucker Smith, Ensemble, West Side Story)

Dance At The Gym (Instrumental, West Side Story)

Eskimo Dog (The Smothers Brothers)

Sarah Jackman (Allan Sherman, Christine Nelson, My Son The Folk Singer)

I'm Gonna Wash That Man Right Outta My Hair (Kelli O'Hara, South Pacific)

A Musical (Brian d'Arcy James, Brad Oscar, Something Rotten!)

You'll Be Back (Jonathan Groff, Hamilton)

Dear Theodosia (Leslie Odom, Jr., Lin-Manuel Miranda, Hamilton)

Wait Till We're 65 (William Daniels, On A Clear Day You Can See Forever)

70, Girls, 70 (Company, 70, Girls, 70)

When I'm Sixty Four (The Beatles)

A Beat Behind (Bernadette Peters, The Goodbye Girl)

Dance: Ten; Looks: Three (Pamela Blair, A Chorus Line)

Sex Is In The Heel (Billy Porter, Stark Sands, Kinky Boots)

Puttin' On The Ritz (Clark Gable, Idiot's Delight)

Puttin' On The Ritz (Fred Astaire, Blue Skies)

Puttin' On The Ritz (Roger Bart, Shuler Hensley, Young Frankenstein)