Summer Music Mix!

That's right- NeverEndingWonder Radio is now featuring its SUMMER MUSIC MIX- the most unique assemblage of Summer related music you'll find on the Internet! We're featuring Summer hits like Summertime Blues, Summer Breeze, Summer Wind, Summer of 69, In the Good Old Summertime, Summer Rain and on and on- including over 40 versions of one of the greatest songs ever written- the Gershwin's Summertime.

But of course we don't stop there. You'll hear songs about bbqing, hot dogs, ice cream, watermelon, vacation, the ocean, islands, gardens, flowers, fishing, fish, dolphins, heat, the Sun, swimming, the circus, calliope music, marching bands, and that's just the beginning

You'll also hear steel drum bands, marimba bands, Soca music, Hawaiian music (including historic ukulele recordings, Keola Beamer and Don Ho!), the Beach Boys, surf music, Calypso music, Exotica, and mixed in with it all are vintage drive-in theatre intermission and snack bar announcements.

New to the Summer Mix this year:


Jesus Christ Surferstar.
How could we top last year's anthology of Frank Zappa songs done surf style? How about an entire two disc collection of the songs from Jesus Christ, Superstar, done surf style?





Hawaiian Mud Bombers - Mondo Primo
The Surf Zombies
Urban Surf Kings - Surf Vs. the Flying Saucers
A trio of modern surf bands showing that the surf idiom is far from dead!


Guitar Sounds of Hawaii - Moon Over Maui
I have no idea who is behind "Guitar Sounds of Hawaii" but they play some dynamite slack key guitar!


Waitiki - Charred Mammal Flesh - Exotic Music for BBQ
A kind of neo-surf/garage/exotica hybrid, Waitiki make some great music!


Rick Wakeman - Sea Airs
That's right- the progressive keyboard genius from Yes plays contemplative piano tunes based on the sea!

That's not all- I'll be adding plenty of other Summer themed music as the weeks go by. All scheduled shows are still playing, as are sets of great indies, electronic, blasts from the past, comedy music and experimental weirdness, but the Summer Mix is predominant.

Tune in, sit back and enjoy the Summer!
NeverEndingWonder Radio
Or with iTunes, go to the radio section>Eclectic and find NeverEndingWonder Radio!

Lots of Obscure Psychedelia, Some Classic Rock & Some New Indies

I've recently added four volumes of the "Love, Peace & Poetry" series- a very cool series of anthologies collecting psychedelic music from various countries. I've added the volumes collecting Brazilian, Mexican, Latin American and Japanese music from the 1960s and 1970s. Really cool stuff that shows United States and Europe were not the only places to feel the psychedelic influence.



Also added three volumes of the Girls in the Garage series showcasing early rock n roll by women.

Stone the Crows - Teenage Licks
Great bluesy/hard rocking band from the 60s with vocals by Maggie Bell.

Frank Zappa - Cruising With Ruben and The Jets
When this album was originally released there was no indication it was a Frank Zappa album.It was simply released as "Cruising" by some band named Ruben and The Jets. If you were a Zappa fan, however, there was no mistaking his twisted take on doo wop music.

Casey Redmond - Real Life Adventures of a One Man Band
Cool five song EP from crazy man Casey Redmond who pens songs like Ian King of Beers and Rockin' the PTA. Reminds me a bit of an acoustic Link Wray. He promises a full album of monster songs for Halloween! I'm waiting!


Jennings - Storybook EP & Femtastic
Powerful singer/songwriter Mary Jennings has a strong voice and a varied musical palate to enthrall us. Her Femtastic release includes two discs- one fully produced and one "stripped down." It's an interesting and revealing technique. We get to evaluate the songs on several levels. The more recent Storybook Ep reveals songwriting just as strong, but with a somewhat more polished production. Both worth a listen.

Korla Pandit - Exotica 2000
Korla Pandit, who, like Yma Sumac had created an elaborate alternate identity for himself, was one of the founding father of Exotica music. Unlike other Exotica practitioners like Martin Denny or Richard Lyman, Pandit didn't pepper his music with musical tricks and sound effects- it was just him and his Hammond B3. He came to fame in a daily 15 minute TV show in which he simply played his unusual arrangements of songs on his organ while he stared intently at the camera. He was a sensation.

I've also been beefing up my selection of Summer music. We switch to our Summer music lineup on June 1st and we've got some great surprises for you!

You can hear all this music on NeverEndingWonder Radio
Or tune in via iTunes by going to the radio section and finding us in the Eclectic section.

NeverEndingWonder's Summertime Music Mix!

NeverEndingWonder Radio is now in Summer Celebration mode! That means along with our unique mix of electronic, experimental, rare, forgotten, independent & funny music we're adding songs of the Summertime, sun, vacations, hot dogs, ice cream, Hawaii, calypso, Soca, marimbas, steel drums, flowers, islands, oceans, swimming, fishing, surfing and much much MORE!

Of course, being NeverEndingWonder Radio, we can't do it in a normal fashion. One of the greatest songs ever written is the Gershwin's "Summertime." We have 36 versions in our Summer mix - from traditional renditions by Billie Holiday and Ella Fitzgerald, to the pop versions popular in the 50s and 60s by such artists as The Marcels and Sam Cooke, and even more modern treatments such as one of my favorite versions ever, a beautiful Swahili translation by Angelique Kidjo.

You'll hear all the usual Summertime hits like Summertime Blues, Summer in the City, Here Comes the Sun, Summer Breeze, Cruel Summer and of course The Jamies Summertime Summertime.

Surf music? Of course we have The Beach Boys, The Ventures, Jan & Dean and Dick Dale, but how bout this nifty collection of Frank Zappa songs done surf style?



Or how about an album of experimental noise by Philip Jeck, titled "Surf?"


For Calypso sounds we go right back to the beginnings with collections such as Calypso Awakenings and Best of Trinidad 1940-1952.



For our Hawaiian music offerings we run the gamut of ultra-traditional Polynesian influenced sounds, to the beginnings of a pop Hawaiian musical sound in the 20s and 30s, to the birth of the exotica sound in the 50s, and then full circle back to modern traditional artists such as Keola Beamer.




Add to that calliope music from a set of extremely rare albums I picked up at a thrift store several years ago, tons of old drive-in theatre intermission ads and so much more it's hard to express how wide the variety of our Summertime mix is! I've only touched on a few items here. To hear it all, you'll have to tune in!

Right here:
NeverEndingWonder Radio

Of course I'll be adding even more Summer gems as the weeks progress.

New Music Update: Angelique Kidjo, Delaney & Bonnie, George Cates, Gypsy & More!

Some recent additions to NeverEndingWonder Radio:

TIM MEECE - A TURN IN THE ENDLESS CORRIDOR
Four extended pieces of electric guitar noodling from independent musician Tim Meece.
You can download some free tracks by Tim Meece here:
Free Tim Meece tracks

BAUHAUS - BURNING FROM THE INSIDE

This was Bauhaus's last album and it's an interesting document of the end of the icons of Goth. It contains some unreleased items from the band's early days as well as their last recordings.

GYPSY - GYPSY and IN THE GARDEN


First two albums by 1970s prog outfit "Gypsy." Most compositions were written by guitarist/vocalist Enrico Rosenbaum, which is interesting because it's organist James Walsh that really stands out. His keyboard work is inventive and strong. This and the well integrated vocals, which have a feeling of British prog of the era, make this band stand out from the pack.

KATHI MCDONALD - INSANE ASYLUM

Another rare gem from the 1970s. Kathi McDonald sang as one of the Ikettes and was vocalist for Big Brother and The Holding Company after Janis left. It was a logical choice- her voice is big & bluesy. This is her first solo album, produced by none other than Pete Sears & featuring contributions from Nils Lofgren, Linda Ronstadt, Neil Schon and Papa John Creach among others. She covers Neil Young, Peter Frampton, Willie Dixon and Martha & the Vandellas. She also contributes her own numbers. A dynamite, little known classic of the era.

ANGELIQUE KIDJO - KEEP ON MOVING

Born in Benin, relocated to Paris, Angelique Kidjo has been one of the leading forces in world beat music for over twenty years. This is a "best of" collection of sorts, featuring numbers from five albums released in the 1990s. Of particular note is her recording of Gershwin's "Summertime" performed in Swahili. I know- sounds like a train wreck, doesn't it? Her sensitive rendering of the song transcends any objections. The melody is so pure and she gives it the respect it demands. It may be my favorite version of "Summertime" ever, because it forces you to take a fresh look at the song and realize just how marvelous an accomplishment it is- both the composition and the reinterpretation. She also performs as song with Carlos Santana ("Naima"). The full range of her musical styles are exhibited here- afropop, blues, jazz, funk, rhumba & more.

DELANEY & BONNIE & FRIENDS - MOTEL SHOT

This is the album that got me into traditional American music. I got it because I dug the top 40 hit "Never Ending Song of Love" and was astounded by the rest of what I heard. Lured by the overwhelmingly soulful voice of Bonnie Bramlett and the all-star cast of collaborators which included Duane Allman, Joe Cocker, John Hartford, Dave Mason, Gram Parsons and Leon Russell, I had my eyes opened to the wonders of Gospel, blues, country and folk music all at once. The heartfelt renditions of songs such as Rock of Ages, Will the Circle Be Unbroken and Faded Love all performed on acoustic instruments spoke to me on a very deep level. Combined with the loose "jam session" atmosphere of the recording it makes for a very unique experience.

GEORGE CATES - POLYNESIAN PERCUSSION

This is straight up Exotica. George Cates is mostly remembered, when remembered at all, for his work with schlockmeister Lawrence Welk. Don't worry- there are no champagne bubbles here. This is Arthur Lyman/Martin Denny territory here, done very well. The standards are here- Pagan Love Song, Hawaiian War Chant, Bali Hai. What makes this release stand out are the fact Alvino Ray and Buddy Cole are among the musicians. There's an impressive list of percussion instruments used: Guiro, Boo-bams, Rhythm Logs, Celeste, Marimba, Xylophone, Bells, Pu Ili (or Pui Sticks), Kalaau, Uli Uli, Tympani, Timbales, Conga Drum, Bongos, Maracas, Finger Cymbals (or "Ching-Chings"), and Triangle. My only complaint is there's a bit TOO MUCH of that guiro. That's that thing that looks like this:

A little bit of that goes a long way and we hear it in nearly every song!

All these albums are currently in rotation on
NeverEndingWonder Radio