MORE Tom Schnabel’s first interview as MBE host in 1979 was with Ravi Shankar (middle), pictured here with former general manager Ruth Seymour (left) and Tom (right)
In my first book
Musicians (1988), the frontispiece included this quote by Nietzsche: “Without music, life would be a mistake.” It’s about as blunt and direct a truth about the power of music as any I can think of. As I shared last week, music has been a big part of my life ever since I was a child. I cannot begin to imagine what my life would have been like without music. So this week, I offer another extended playlist with more of the music I have loved over the years across all genres and geographical boundaries. I hope you enjoy it.
MORE Tom Schnabel in the KCRW library and studio circa mid-80 s
I count myself extremely fortunate to have made a living and a life in music. It was at times a precarious career, but I have been very very lucky. I worked at several record companies both before I joined KCRW in 1977 as well as after I left the Music Director and Morning Becomes Eclectic host position in 1990. Being a radio DJ has always been my favorite job though. The gestalt of putting on a record and sharing it with whomever was listening out there in the audience was simply wonderful. The station’s signal barely reached Robertson Blvd. when I first started in April 1977, but somebody told me at the time that if I had one person listening, that was enough. I called my first show, “View from the Bridge,” a title taken from a Sonny Rollins album.
Dec. 17, 2020
While the impulse is to banish this year to the history books immediately… It is worth taking a moment and remembering that good things happened in 2020. LA erupted into joy when the Lakers won the NBA Championship, and the Dodgers finally won The World Series! And speaking of the world, we can’t discount the fact that the biggest cheering section by far spanned nations as countless hearts poured out in admiration for the health care workers who are working so hard to ease our collective pain.
So, thank goodness for all the stellar music in a year in which we really needed it.
Monica Schipper / Getty Images for Panorama
Originally published on December 16, 2020 2:42 pm
It was a tough year for live music, but NPR s Member stations across the country managed to produce some great radio sessions before and during the pandemic. Here are the best of the bunch, featuring studio performances, home recordings and socially-distanced outdoor sets. For more live sessions from your favorite public radio stations, visit our Live Sessions section.
Alsarah & the Nubatones, Soukura
Alsarah & The Nubatones are a Brooklyn-based band with roots in East Africa. Lead singer Alsarah describes their style as East African retro-pop.
Adam Harris,
Anjimile, Baby No More
[It is with great sadness that we at WFUV share news that we have lost
Rita Houston, our much-loved program director and iconic DJ to generations of listeners listeners who regarded her as their radio friend. Rita left this world this morning, December 15, 2020, in the loving company of her wife and our colleague, Laura Fedele, and her family. Our hearts are with Laura, with Rita’s sister Deb, her brothers Rich and Rob, and their families, and the family of her late brother, Bill. Read the statement from Chuck Singleton, FUV s general manager, here.]
The Oxford dictionary’s definition of music “the art of combining vocal or instrumental sounds (or both) to produce beauty of form, harmony, and expression of emotion describes Rita Houston too. Over the 26 years that she redefined WFUV’s programming, she also influenced the national scope of public radio. She wasn’t just a tastemaker, but an apostle of artistry: Rita was driven by a singular love of songwriters. Sh