Explore every episode of the podcast Snap, Crackle, POP! with Alec Cumming
| Title | Pub. Date | Duration | |
|---|---|---|---|
| TOO. MUCH. SNOW. | 24 Feb 2026 | 01:55:02 | |
Snowhaustion? These g-ddamn blizzards keep happening on Sunday nights, which means these days that the Monday- and Tuesday- wee hours commute to WPKN's Fairfield Avenue studios in downtown Bridgeport becomes impossible, so I have to pre-record these shows, which often improves the quality of the show (yay!) but it takes me too much damn time to prepare (boo!_ because I fuss over them too much. (Did I write about this about yesterday's show? I'm losing it, people. A mind is a terrible thing.) This was actually a re-jiggered - and, franky, improved - January 26th show. I think it came out well. My apologies to Steve Di Costanzo for my forgetting to mention that I was filling in for his RADIO BASE CAMP SHOW, as I will continue to do until April. Enjoy your world travels, Steve, but get back here safely and soonly! Cold, Cold, Cold – Little Feat Blizzard of '77 – Nada Surf Cold Hands, Warm Heart – Brendan Benson Snowglobe – Sugar Fight
Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out – Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band Coldest Winter EVER! – Lewis Black She’s So Cold – The Rolling Stones Ice Cold Daydream – Shuggie Otis
Slip Slidin’ Away – Paul Simon The Blizzard – Camera Obscura Cold, Cold Heart – Norah Jones (Hank Williams cover) Out In the Cold Again – Sam Cooke Snow – Claudine Longet (Randy Newman cover)
Snowfall – Eisley Looks Like a Cold, Cold Winter – Ingrid Michaelson Song for a Winter’s Night – Gordon Lightfoot Hazy Shade of Winter – Simon & Garfunkel Avenue – Saint Etienne
The Fox in The Snow – Belle & Sebastian Cold Light of Day – Lewisburg
Howlin’ Wind – Graham Parker & The Rumour (R.I.P. & thank you Andrew Bodnar) Ice Cold Ice – Hüsker Dü When It Touches You, A Snowflake Dies – Norma Tanega Soon It Will Be Cold Enough – Emancipator It’s a Cold Night for Alligators – Roky Erickson The Blizzard – Jim Reeves Amid the Falling Snow – Enya The Frozen Man – James Taylor
Walking On Thin Ice – Yoko Ono Sometimes in Winter – Blood, Sweat & Tears (Hey, you guys know that you can friend me on Facebook so you can get the latest info on upcoming SCP broadcasts, right??) | |||
| Calvin, O Calvin... | 23 Feb 2026 | 01:54:54 | |
Today was the crazy-ass "Calvin" blizzard day - still happening as I post this - so for this morning it was time for another last-minute Sunday pre-recorded Snap Crackle POP! show for a Monday morning. And yeah, yada yada I like to do these shows live, weather traffic yada yada, and pre-recording is such a pain because I fuss over the shows too much (tho grateful to have an opportunity to delete all my ummms and ahhhs and delete my word-retrieval shenanigans). But this show gets to the point, PLUS I get to play my daughter Julia's first-ever solo single. I'm enjoying the re-listen, especially after last week's live fiascoes. Valhalla, I am coming! ================= Cold Rain and Snow (live at the Capitol Theatre, Port Chester, NY 2/21/1971) – Grateful Dead
Angel In the Snow – Elliot Smith Valley Winter Song – Fountains of Cold As Ice – Foreigner Hazy Shade of Winter – The Bangles Wu Tang – They Might Be Giants Goodbye Girl – The Shins Junior’s Farm (live BBC 2) – Squeeze Nineteen Hundred and Eighty Five – Paul McCartney and Wings
The Immigrant Song – Led Zeppelin Snow Blind – Black Sabbath Heavy Snow – Lightnin’ Hopkins Cold, Cold Heart – Hank Williams Hold Steady – Queen Esther Headless Heroes – Eugene McDaniels My Life – Julia Cumming
Anyone Who Ever Had a Heart (live) – Wynonna So Far Away – Carole King That’s the Way I’ve Always Heard It Should Be – Carly Simon
American Obituary – U2 How Much Did You Get for Your Soul? – Lucinda Williams A Plea – Flea The Windows of the World – Dionne Warwick Winter (Giles Martin 2020 mix) – The Rolling Stones Frozen Pines – Lord Huron White Winter Hymnal – Fleet Foxes Freeing Wheels – Souled American | |||
| I Only Ever Wanted to See You Enjoying the Radio Show | 13 Jan 2026 | 01:54:42 | |
The title of this podcast is influenced by a Reds, Pinks and Purples song lyric. Lotsa good new/new-ish music here, much in the tradition of the show I'm filling in for - Steve Di Costanzo's RADIO BASE CAMP. Hard Livin' – Railroad Earth Save Your Soul – Kathleen Edwards Pick Up That Knife – Wednesday Frontrunner – Horsegirl Gimme Time – Hannah Jagadu
All We Ever Do Is Talk– Del Water Gap Oh Dorian – Ben Kweller (feat. MJ Lenderman) Dancing in the Club – This Is Lorelei (MJ Lenderman Version)
Summer Seizures – The Cribs Brassneck – The Wedding Present Therapy II – Viagra Boys
Heroes – David Bowie Warning Sign – Talking Heads Miss Modular – Stereolab Wreck – Neko Case
I Only Ever Wanted to See You Fail – The Reds, Pinks and Purples Cruise Ship Designer – Dry Cleaning So Long – Fischer–Z
Popsicle – Juliana Hatfield Forgotten Dreams – Leroy Anderson | |||
| Fare Thee Well, Bob... | 12 Jan 2026 | 01:54:48 | |
On this morning's show, I did a tribute of sorts to the great Bob Weir, who passed away over the weekend. A great big thanks to Lane Steinberg for writing insightfully about what Bob could really make happen on guitar. But before that we started off with some sexy mornin' Dusty. Just a Little Lovin' – Dusty Springfield Some of Your Lovin' – Dusty Springfield
Pussywillow, Cattails – Gordon Lightfoot Little Bird – The Beach Boys Glad and Sorry – The faces My Friend the Sun – Family
How To Live – Del Water Gap Lose – Hannah Jadagu Small Town Joan of Arc – Del Water Gap Never Ending Game (Panda Bear Remix) – Angel Du$t
Holo Boy – This is Lorelei Popafangout – Sharp Pins Mary Anne with the Shaky Hand – The Who
Truckin' – Grateful Dead Playing in the Band (Live at Manhattan Center NYC 4/6/71) – Grateful Dead Jack Straw (Live in Paris 1972) – Grateful Dead Cassidy (Live at Radio City Music Hall, 1980) – Grateful Dead
Don't Let It Bring You Down – Neil Young Here She Comes Now – The Velvet Underground Sally, Go 'Round the Roses – The Jaynetts Damn – Del Water Gap Sugar Magnolia (demo) – Grateful Dead | |||
| Coke? Suede? Waterbeds? Yes please, Sopwith Camel! | 06 Jan 2026 | 01:54:47 | |
In which I finally give up and acceptance the consensus worship of my friends re: Sharp Pins. Life Is – Jessica Pratt Mock The Hours – David Nance Say It On – J Mascis Coke, Suede and Waterbeds – Sopwith Camel Not Enough – Benny Sings
Cruise Ship Designer – Dry Cleaning Wreck – Neko Case Edge of the Ocean – Ivy Keep On Movin' – Soul II Soul
Hold Steady – Queen Esther Vague Utopia – Tia Gostelow I Knew Love – Sunflower Bean Under the Milky Way – The Church
Astor Place – Edward Rogers Dominoes – Mary Timony Traffic and Weather – Fountains of Wayne
Popsicle – Juliana Hatfield Is It Better – Sharp Pins Queens of Globes and Mirrors – Sharp Pins Queens of Cans and Jars – Guided By Voices But You Just Woke Me Up – This Is Lorelei
Elderberry Wine – Wednesday Baby, Now That I've Found You – Alison Krauss | |||
| Deep Dish '70s | 05 Jan 2026 | 01:54:29 | |
For the first show of a precarious new year, I chose to focus on a theme of reletively obscure 1970's "deep cuts", apropos of... nothing. Some great songs, though. The first song isn't all that obscure, but the movie it served as the theme song for is deeply quaint; it's about a late '70s commercial rock radio station being forced (gasp) into using a format and playing from a songs list , and the outrage that then ensues - how dare they take away the deejay's rights to play whatever the hell they want? Like I said, quaint... in terms of commercial radio, of course... but not so much for our beloved WPKN. FM – Steely Dan
O Lucky Man! – Alan Price Friends – Elton John
Real Thing – Drugdealer (feat. Weyes Blood) Keep It Warm – Flo & Eddie
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| New Year... Happy? | 30 Dec 2025 | 01:55:00 | |
This was a fill-in episode for Steve Di Costanzo's classin WPKN morning show, RADIO BASE CAMP. I should be doing a lot of these Tuesday shows as well as the Monday shows, and that's good because I can get better at this. Because it's the Eve of New Year's Eve, I went with that as the theme; hour 1 is more of a downer than hour 2. Millennium – Robbie Williams
Auld Lang Syne – Guy Lombardo Enjoy Yourself (It's Later than You Think) – Guy Lombardo In These Shoes? – Kirsty MacColl Happy New Year Next Year – Violent Femmes
Getting Ugly Out There – Wille Nile A Town Called Malice – The Jam New Year – SVT Together We'll Ring In the New Year – Motion City Soundtrack
The New Year (demo) – Death Cab For Cutie My New Year's Resolutions – Mae West Resolution Blues – Dinah Washington Brand New Year – Eric Carmen
Better Things – The Kinks Life Gets Better – Graham Parker Shooting Star – Sunflower Bean Happy New Year – Camera Obscura Walk Out to Winter – Aztec Camera
Romeo – Edward Rogers This Will Be My Year – Semisonic A Little Bit of Light Banter – Sparks Glad Tidings – Van Morrison Higher Ground – Stevie Wonder This Will Be Our Year – The Zombies
Auld Lang Syne – The Beach Boys Wake The World – The Beach Boys | |||
| CBGBs + CTBG's salute, plus: that weird time period between Christmas and New Years | 29 Dec 2025 | 01:55:00 | |
There's been a lot of CBGBs in the air lately at WPKN, courtesy of programmers Dave Schneider (The Zambonis), Chris Frantz (Talking Heads, Tom Tom Club) - yes, THE Chris Frantz -and Rob Tannenbaum, a great music journalist who produced a must-have (IMHO) new box set for Cherry Red Records named "CBGB: A New York City Soundtrack 1975-1986". Inspired by the annual CTBGs show at the Fairfield Theater Company, I programmed a mainly-early CBGBs music set. This music is so important to me - and to many many other musicians and fans, whether they realize it or not. Punk Rock, "New Wave" and Alternative Rock STARTS HERE. In The Congo – The Bongos My Three Sons (Revolve Around the Earth) – The Individuals Teenage News – Sylvain Sylvain Red Lights – The Marbles Pretty Dress – Cryptic Soup Days – Television Green For Go – Polyrock December 26th – Alicia Witt (feat. John Paul White) | |||
| Snap, Crackle, POP on Ice! (A Christmas Special) | 22 Dec 2025 | 01:54:44 | |
It's a Christmas week episode - what a concept! I owe my friend Al Quagliari a huge thank for providing me with lots of wondrous and oft silly Christmas and New Year's songs and soundbites, and for turning me on to Bob Rivers, the Weird Al of Christmas music. It may have been a bit self-indulgent to play my own Christmas song at the end, but I'm working on a larger Bite the Wax Godhead project at the moment, so I'm hoping to give my and Cynthia's old band just a bit of additional visibilty in the next few months before we return to obscurity. And the song isn't half-bad. This was a fun show to prepare and pull off. Happy Holidays! Merry Christmas Baby – Otis Redding O Little Town of Bethlehem – Bob Rivers Bounce of the Sugar Plum Fairy – John Kirby and His Orchestra
Joy To the World – The Butties I Don't Intend to Spend Christmas Without You – Margo Guryan Tchotchkes– Tchotchke & The Lemon Twigs Decorations – Bob Rivers (Yes It's) Christmas – War
Christmas In Suburbia – The Cleaners from Venus Bellringers Are Hungover – Lorraine Bowen The Christmas Song – Big Dee Irwin & Little Eva Old Toy Trains – Roger Miller Christmas At the Airport – Nick Lowe
How Do You Spell Channukkahh? – The Leevees I Saw Hanukkah Harry Beat Up Santa Claus – Hal Singer
Sled Zeppelin – Bob Rivers Santa Claus Is Comin' To Town – John Davidson What Christmas Means to Me – Stevie Wonder
God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen/Carol of the Bells – Robert Glasper & Cynthia Erivo Christmas Time Is Here (Vocal Version – studio chatter + Takes 6 & 7) – Vince Guaraldi & St. Paul's Episcopal Church Youth Choir Santa Don't Go – Farrah You Trashed My Christmas – The Primitives Xmasploitation (Santa's Badass Revenge) – monochronic
All I Want for Christmas (Is My Two Front Teeth) – Nat King Cole (MJ Cole Remix) Father Christmas – The Kinks Silver and Gold – Rosine (featuring Nancy Howell and Mark Lerner)
(I'll Be Glad When) Christmastime is Done – Bite the Wax Godhead | |||
| Add Some Music To Your Day! | 15 Dec 2025 | 01:54:42 | |
In which we hear from The Elbow Patches (aka John Dunbar), Downtown Mystic, Guerilla Toss, Drugdealer (fronted by Weyes Blood!),The Belair Lip Bombs, a ridiculously hot early take of Vince Guaraldi's "Skating" from 1965, and many more fine performers and combos. Add Some Music To Your Day – The Beach Boys Eyes of the World (Shorefire Remix) – Downtown Mystic You Can't Kid Yourself Anymore – The Elbow Patches Play On – The Lemon Twigs Let's Pretend – The Raspberries Cuddly Toy – The Monkees Red Flag to Angry Bull – Guerilla Toss Heartthrob – Indigo De Souza Chocolates – The Aluminum Group Twiggy Twiggy/Twiggy vs James Bond – Pizzicato 5 Real Thing – Drugdealer, Weyes Blood Love Me or Let Me Be Lonely – The Friends of Distinction Say My Name – The Belair Lip Bombs Try To Make It – Sloan Teenage FBI – Guided By Voices Quite the Opposite – Dominic Fike Tomorrow Tomorrow – Brad Mehldau & Daniel Rossen classic love – Luke Roberts & Kurt Vile Grocery Store – Kate Micucci The Crumble Song (brown sugar remix) – Lorraine Bowen Baby Doll – Juniper Annie Almond – The Junipers Looking For Santa – The Hungry Dutchmen Southhold Santa – The Hunkerdowns Skating (#7, Take 2/September 22, 1965) – Vince Guaraldi Trio | |||
| Can't Wait Too Long For The Jokerman | 08 Dec 2025 | 01:54:44 | |
My apologies for struggling to try to do the "morning drive traffic". I shouldn't even bother until I get a solid way of doing it that doesn't mess up the flow of the show. Then again, here I am complaining again about how I do the show, and everybody's telling me NOT to do that. I'm trying. I'M TRYING!! Anyways, I hope you find the Black Lodge Singers' rendition of "Mighty Mouse" as silly and life-affirming as I do. I was also happy to hear that Zoos of Berlin track, which I discovered somehow when I started at the station in 2016. I know nothing about them, but "Electrical Way" is slammin'. And Finn Wolfhard - who knew? Immortal Hands – Stereolab TPA – Bad Bad Hats Apples (Radio effect intro) – Pugwash Jokerman (live on David Letterman 3/22/84) – Bob Dylan & The Plugz Can't Wait Too Long – The Beach Boys Have You Seen Her Face – The Byrds Sunday Love – Bruce Springsteen Harvest – Rufus Wainwright (feat. Andrew Bird & Chris Thile) | |||
| Bloom Baby Bloom, Baby! | 01 Dec 2025 | 01:54:47 | |
Heavy Music – Bob Seger & The Last Heard No Bills in Heaven – Sunflower Bean
Straight Line Was a Lie – The Beths Bloom Baby Bloom – Wolf Alice Here We Go Crazy – Bob Mould Always Reaching – The Mommyheads
Jaded – The Mommyheads Unsatisfied – The Replacements 2468 – Horsegirl Where Evil Grows – The Poppy Family Little Green Bag – The George Baker Selection
Let's Pretend – The Lemon Twigs Friday (I'm Gonna Love You) – The Lemon Twigs I Wonder What She's Doing Tonight – Tommy Boyce & Bobby Hart The Door into Summer – The Monkees
Be Like Him – Darian Sahanaja & Probyn Gregory Witchi Tai To – Harpers Bizarre Prelude/To Claudia on Thursday – The Millennium Looking for the Magic – The Dwight Twilley Band
Glad – Saint Etienne Can I Talk My Sh*t – Vagabon Northern Star – Aggie Miller Believe – Kashus Culpepper T-Shirt – David Byrne
Transportation (1990 version) – Bite the Wax Godhead Getting Away with It – Electronic | |||
| It's a Mardi Gras WPKN Fun(d)raiser! | 13 Feb 2026 | 02:41:58 | |
Laissez les bons temps rouler! Yes, this is a fundraiser for our dear radio station, but the music is SO GOOD and I had SO MUCH FUN. Christine Ohlman (The Beehive Queen!) and Amy Wachtel (The Night Nurse!) and I had never hung out - heck, I hadn't even met Christine, a legendary and soulful vocalist/performer who fronts NBC's Saturday Night Live, whom I was hoping I could someday meet, until 10 minutes to air. (I was 50 minutes late!!! So sorry ladies.) It was such a pleasure doing this show, and - you know - I really do miss New Orleans. I gotta get back there, tout de suite!!! Barefootin' – Robert Parker Enjoy Yourself (It's Later Than You Think) – The Specials 504 – Soul Rebels Brass Band
Meet De Boys On The Battlefront - The Wild Tchoupitoulas Ja Funmi – King Sunny Ade 79rs Bout to Blow – 79rs Gang
Holy Cow – Lee Dorsey Let the Four Winds Blow – Toots & The Maytals Hey Pocky Way – The Neville Brothers
She Put the Hurt on Me – Prince La La Who Shot the Lala – Oliver Morgan They All Ask'd for You – The Meters Party Time – Lee “Scratch” Perry
Tell It Like It Is – Aaron Neville You Talk Too Much – Joe Jones
Here Comes the Hotstepper – Ini Kamoze Time Is On My Side – Irma Thomas House Of The Rising Sun – Gregory Isaacs
Tell The Truth (Uptown Remix) – Jon Batiste feat. Big Chief Romeo Lady Marmalade – LaBelle Trick Bag – Earl King I'm Gone – Jon Cleary
One Scotch – Admiral Bailey & Chaka Demus Sophisticated Cissy – The Meters Ooh Poo Pah Do – Jessie Hill My People – Cha Wa
Right Place Wrong Time – Dr. John Life (Is What You Make of It) – Frighty
Ride Your Pony – Lee Dorsey Say Hey [I Love You] – Michael Franti & Spearhead Feat. Cherine Anderson Bony Moronie – Larry Williams Walking To New Orleans – Fats Domino
Do You Know What It Means To Miss New Orleans? - Louis Armstrong | |||
| Well Hello, Monday Morning Commuters! | 24 Nov 2025 | 01:54:58 | |
Radio history in the making! (LOL) Starting with this show, I am now the regular Monday "morning drive" 7-9 am deejay at WPKN. I've long wanted to be a cheerful get-your-morning-started announcer, and watch out for what you wish for... but I love it anyways. I finally get my shot, right here, right then. Apologies in advance for all the apologies. And Rest In Peace, Jimmy Cliff. And thank you. I Wanna Be With You – Vicki and Debbie Peterson
Just Like a Flower – Winter Little Bird – Famous Groupies
The Fool on the Hill (Take 5 – Instrumental) – The Beatles Tell Me Why (Takes 12 And 13) – The Beatles While My Guitar Gently Weeps (Third Version/Take 27) – The Beatles
Let's Pretend – The Lemon Twigs Cruisin' Music – Ronnie D’Addario Not Today – The Lemon Twigs (Ronnie D’Addario cover) This Whole World – The Beach Boys
I Like Girls (Bearsville Version) – Sparks Dick Around – Sparks
Deuce – Kiss Black Diamond – The Replacements I Will Dare – The Replacements
Many Rivers to Cross – Jimmy Cliff Wonderful World, Beautiful People – Jimmy Cliff Hard Road to Travel – Jimmy Cliff Rivers of Babylon – The Melodians Reconsider Me – Warren Zevon
Crying Inside – Nick Lowe & Los Straitjackets Tomorrow Tomorrow – Brad Mehldau (feat. Daniel Rossen & Chris Thile) God Knows – Tunde Adebimpe Ankles – Lucy Dacus | |||
| Radio Free Bridgeport | 16 Sep 2025 | 01:56:00 | |
This was the last of my series of late-summer 2025 fill-ins for Steve DiCostanzo's Radio Base Camp shows; he would shortly return the favor in November 2025 by filling in for several of the new 7-9 AM morning shows that I was assigned to that I couldn't pull off quite yet because my right foot was healing from (successful) surgery. Thanks, Steve! As a shortwave radio fan and historian, I was absolutely horrified by the current administration's takedown of our hisroric and essential international broadcasting stations, including the Voice of America, Radio Free Asia and Radio Free Europe. So I was glad to see that mu eternal heroes R.E.M. OK'd the use of their debut song to the world, 1981's "Radio Free Europe", in a new EP that included an excellent new remix of the mysterious, propulsive and soaring original track - the Hibtone one, which came out before the first EP, which I also played. Profits from their new "Radio Free Europe" EP are going towards keeping the actual Radio Free Europe broadcast operations alive, although (as I write this) they are still barely managing to survive. Radio Free Europe (Jacknife Lee Remix) – R.E.M. Radio Free Europe (Original Hibtone 45) – R.E.M. Lament – Blake Babies So Long – Fischer-Z This Time – INXS
Block of Wood – The Bats Pink Frost – The Chills Map Ref 41 Degrees N 93 Degrees – Wire First Day – Far Caspian Metal – The Beths
You Didn't See – Andy Shauf F.O.O.F. – Frankie Cosmos Save Your Soul – Kathleen Edwards
Cryin' Inside – Nick Lowe American Squirm – Nick Lowe Everyday I Write the Book – Elvis Costello & The Attractions Mayor of Simpleton – XTC
Here, There and Everywhere (Take 6) – The Beatles Stray Cats in Spain – Jeff Tweedy As We Go Along – The Monkees
Glad – Saint Etienne Can I Talk My Sh*t? – Vagabon Shooting Star – Sunflower Bean Tomorrow Tomorrow – Brad Mehldau feat. Daniel Rossen Porcupine – Sparks
The Summer's Over (solo acoustic) – Alec Cumming | |||
| Back-to-Back-to-Back Stax-o-Trax | 13 Sep 2025 | 02:54:57 | |
If you're an avid listener of the show*, you'd know that a big fave "genre" of mine to play on Snap Crackle POP! is (are?) backing tracks... that is, the sound of a finished track minus the vocals, so one can hear the instruments and the musicians and the musician's/producer's/arranger's artistry much more clearly. You can see the sausage/donuts/magic being made, in other words. So I decided to dedicate a whole show to these kind of tracks, because... well, I probably listen to Beatles and Beach Boys session tracks much more now than I do to their actual finished tracks. (This is why that, for the life of me, I don't care at all about the whole "mono mixes versus today's remastered crap" thing. As long as I can hear an elctrifying/life-affirming piece of music played in a ass-kicking, classic and/or deconstrucrted way, as long as the "magic" of the art-being-made is still thrillingly evident, I'm there.) Yes, many of these tracks are actually outtakes, alternate versions, rarities or covers in addition to actual backing tracks, but... well, you can deal. Jackson 5
The Association
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| Snap, Bubblegum, POP! | 09 Sep 2025 | 01:55:59 | |
This show is an unashamedly gooey look at a wonderful if greatly underrated genre of music - BUBBLEGUM. That is, the stuff you heard from the mid-60s through the early '70s. Bubble Gum Music – The Rock & Roll Dubble Bubble Trading Card Co. of Philadelphia 19141 Hello Hello – Sopwith Camel
Popsicles And Icicles – The Murmaids Can't Get Used to Losing You – Andy Williams Dance On Through – The Human Beinz Let Her Dance – Bobby Fuller Let's Dance – Chris Montez
California Sun – The Rivieras Count Me In – Gary Lewis & The Playboys I'm Into Something Good – Earl–Jean Dizzy – Tommy Roe I Think We're Alone Now – Tommy James & The Shondells
Sugar, Sugar – The Archies Feelin' So Good (S.K.O.O.B.Y.-D.O.O.) – The Archies Comes The Sun – The Archies Who Loves the Sun – The Velvet Underground
I’m a Believer (w/ studio chat) – The Monkees Look Out Here Comes Tomorrow (w/ studio chat & Peter VO) – The Monkees
I Wonder What She's Doing Tonight – Tommy Boyce & Bobby Hart Gimme Gimme Good Lovin’ – Crazy Elephant Cherry, Cherry – Neil Diamond How She Boogalooed It – The Beach Boys Shake – The Shadows of Knight Valleri – The Pineapple Heard
2-4-6-8 – The Jackson 6 Bouncin' All over the World – The Globetrotters (1970 animated series) Michael & His Slipper Tree – The Equals I'd Like to Talk to You – Mark Eric Things (Goin' Round My Head) – Merrell Fankhauser & H.M.S. Bounty Baby, Now That I've Found You – The Foundations
Baby's Coming Back – Jellyfish Nanny & The Professor theme – Swan Dive | |||
| Next Plane to London | 02 Sep 2025 | 01:55:01 | |
I had to pre-record this episode, because on September 2nd I was actually in London on a wonderful honeymoon (which had been delayed for 9 months!). I rarely pre-record shows these days - it takes me too much time because I fuss over them way too much - but I had to do it for this one, and I'm suprised at how tired and unenthusiastic I sound. I *think* that was because I was rushing to get it done before getting on the plane. Lotsa power-pop on this one. Radio Wam Bam Boom – The Peppermint Kicks Like I Do – Tim Heidecker Round – Personal Trainer
Doing Now – Hannah Judagu Float – Jaysom Heartthrob – Indigo DeSouza Dotted Line – Why Bonnie
Save Your Soul – Kathleen Edwards It’s Not Just Me, It’s Everybody - Weyes Blood Caves – Bonzie
There She Goes - Curtis Harding Answer Me, My Love – Swamp Dogg God Knows – Tunde Adebimpe Have U Ever Been 2 Wales – The Bug Club Everybody Cares, Everybody Understands – Brad Mehldau
Lonely Night in the Park – Bruce Springsteen Can’t Wait – Piper Starry Eyes – The Records
Sweet Spot – The Flashcubes Pathetic – Graham Parker & Mike Gent Bitter Blue – Smash Palace
Long Live Rock – The Who With Love from A to Z – Counting Crows Bootleg (John’s Version) – John Fogerty Is It Making You Feel Good – Superchunk
Harness Your Hopes (Live at Cirkus, Stockholm, 2022) – Pavement Sea of Heartbreak – Paul Carrack Bloom Baby Bloom – Wolf Alice
Who’ll Stand With Us – Dropkick Murphys | |||
| A tribute to my friend Jim Van Norstrand | 26 Aug 2025 | 02:18:13 | |
Occasionally I do shows like this, and it's both an honor and something quite sad when I do. My buddy from Syracuse University, Jim Van Norstrand, passed away a few days before this broadcast, so I did this show in honor of him. Love you, Jim. Miss you. Free As a Bird (2025 Mix) – The Beatles
Salt Of the Earth – The Rolling Stones | |||
| Feeling You... Around Me? | 19 Aug 2025 | 01:54:56 | |
I'm not sure what to write about shows like this... this is just me putting together a set on the fly. Some new stuff, some old stuff, a small Joni tribute at the top, a Cornershop two-fer later. It works (I think). Chelsea Morning – Sergio Mendes & Brasil 66 Night in the City – Joni Mitchell All I Want – The Supremes
Pleasant Valley Sunday (demo) – Carole King Pressed Flower – Frankie Cosmos
It's All I Can Do – The Cars Home – Mac DeMarco Feel You Around Me – NRBQ
A Little Bit of Banter – Sparks Brimful of Asha (Norman Cook Remix) – Cornershop No Rock: Save In Roll – Cornershop
Astroboy (and the Proles on Parade) – The Buggles Immortal Hands – Stereolab Take Out Your Insides – Sunflower Bean Tomorrow Tomorrow – Brad Mehldau & Daniel Rossen
Molly – Biff Rose Night Birds – Mike Viola Through The Long Night – Billy Joel
Romeo – Edward Rogers Porterville (John’s version) – John Fogerty That Kind of Guy – Peter Holsapple I'd Be Lost Without You – Chris Stamey Forgotten Dreams – Leroy Anderson | |||
| Dawn Eden Goldstein AND Jesse Krakow! | 18 Jul 2025 | 02:54:50 | |
This is a fave recent episode of mine. For the first half of the show, my dear friend Dawn Eden Goldstein (who now resides in Milford and whom I would love to hear on the air at WPKN, and I'll do whaterver I can to make that happen) stopped in and co-hosted the show with me, pulling *so* many great, obscure '60s records out of our legendary stacks and then talking about them brilliantly. Although she's obviously a one of a kind, the world needs more Dawn Eden Goldsteins!!! And for the second half, another dear friend - Jesse Krakow, a brilliant bassist/composer/producer/thinker - called in from The Garden State (my old neck of the woods) to talk about his new project KRAKHOUSE... as well as The Shaggs, Supercute!, and his extraordinary interactions with one Corey Feldman. He's an extraordinary musician, a great guy, amazing Dad and the founder of MANDONNA - the all-male Madonna tribute band that I sing background vocals for. ================================== Free To Be...You and Me – The New Seekers
Green Tambourine – The Lemon Pipers I've Been a Bad Bad Boy – Paul Jones Rattler – The Seekers Back Street Mirror – David Hemmings Go To the Mirror! – The Who
Morning Dew – Tim Rose Too Much Talk – Paul Revere & The Raiders Shadow In the Corner of Your Mind – The First Edition Sing Little Bird Sing – The Left Banke
I Don't Know Anything at All – The Trouble Dolls Feel Some Love – Edward O'Connell You Were Near Me – Cindy Malone
Cut And Come Again – Del Shannon It's So Easy Falling – Manfred Mann Jubilation – Norma Tanega The Earth Won't Hold Me – Kathy Heideman Disappearing – The Sinceros
We Go Blam Blam – Krakhouse Two Five Fun – Krakhouse On The Mind Of A Bangle – Krakhouse
Philosophy of the World – The Shaggs Banana Bike – The Dot Wiggin Band The Hula-Hoop Song – Jesse Krakow Cigarettes – Julia Cumming (live on WFMU) Her Eyes Are a Blue Million Miles – Nona Hendryx & Gary Lucas The Potato Song – Krakhouse | |||
| The World Debut of SNAP CRACKLE POP JR.! | 13 Jul 2024 | 02:54:56 | |
At some point in the earty aughts, when I was going through a divorce and saw my daughter mainly on the weekends, I discovered a Saturday morning show on the classic freeform station WFMU called "Greasy Kids Stuff". She and I both LOVED it. It was a music show for kids, but it wasn't cheesy kids music. No offense to The Wiggles and Baby Beluga and all that, but that stuff's aimed at a 5-year-old and younger audience; Greasy Kids Stuff, hosted by by Belinda Miller and Hova Najarian, was aimed at smart-ass 7 to 11 year olds with music that DIDN'T SPEAK DOWN TO THEM. It was wonderful music that kids and adults could both fall in love with. So this was my first attempt at doing a sort-of tribute show to GKS. I did a few! (Later on, I started calling these shows "Snap Crackle Pop Jr."... kind of like Nick Jr. ) Rod Ross, a classic WPKN DJ with a regular 6 - 9 am Saturday morning slot, was taking time off in the summer of '24, so I volunteered to fill in - and then decided I would try to do a kid-friendly show thast was also a tribute to Hova and Belinda's GKS. Whether any kid (of any age) ever listened to these shows is something I'll never know, but I had THE BEST TIME doing these and would do them again.
I Wanna Eat Chocobars – Shonen Knife
Good Morning! How Are You? Shut Up! – Ivor Cutler
Bulbous Bouffant – The Vestibules
(Oh Gilbert) I Need Help – The Junipers
Three Is a Magic Number – Bob Dorough (Multiplication Rock)
A Hard Day's Night – The Beatles
Gimme – Fatcat & Fishface
Where Do They Make Balloons? – They Might Be Giants (feat. Danny Weinkauf) | |||
| RIP/Long Live Hall & Oates: A Deep Dive and Radio Special | 04 Jan 2024 | 02:48:07 | |
Saddened by all the ugly Hall & Oates break-up news coming out around Thanksgiving 2023, I wanted to try to understand their story and their music better, f*ck the derision. So I did a my own deep dive into their music and history, and turned a vast new appreciation of Darryl and John's duo/band into a proper radio special, with soundbites I snagged here and there. (It's funny that such a brilliant, artistic yet vastly popular pop/rock 'n' roll act - with genuine Pilly soul roots - gets so little recognition and appreciation.) About 2 hours and 13 minutes in, the show goes "live" - previous to that it's a tightly edited special, but I ran out of steam in early 2024 to finish the show properly, in part because of an auto incident that had happened that freaked me out. So I did the remaining part live ("WE'LL DO IT LIVE!!!") so the announcements get much more loosey-goosey from that point onwards. I got a lot of nice feedback about this one, and it's one of my favorite shows! Hall and Oates are dead; love live Hall & Oates. All songs are performed by Daryl Hall & John Oates unless otherwise noted. All The Way From Philadelphia (2002 rough mix) Girl Don't Make Me Wait (Daryl Hall) [unreleased single - 1968?] Perkiomen (demo) Fall In Philadelphia (demo) Lilly (Are You Happy) Waterwheel Had I Known You Better Then Las Vegas Turnaround She's Gone Can’t Stop the Music (He Played It Much Too Long) Beanie G. And The Rose Tattoo Grounds For Separation Sara Smile Camellia Back Together Again Rich Girl Bad Habits and Infections The Farther Away I Am (Daryl Hall w/ Robert Fripp) Something In 4/4 Time (Daryl Hall w/ Robert Fripp) Why Was It So Easy (Daryl Hall w/ Robert Fripp) August Day It's a Laugh North Star – Robert Fripp w/ Daryl Hall You Burn Me Up I'm A Cigarette – Robert Fripp w/ Daryl Hall How Does It Feel To Be Back Kiss On My List Every Time You Go Away (Paul Young) Did It In A Minute I Can't Go for That (No Can Do) One On One Family Man Some Things Are Better Left Unsaid Out of Touch Downtown Life Someday We'll Know (feat. Todd Rundgren) Can We Still Be Friends (Todd Rundgren & Daryl Hall) Without Tears (Daryl Hall w/ Robert Fripp) | |||
| Magic In The Air: The Big, Orchestral Pop Sound of Black America (part 1?) | 09 Feb 2026 | 01:50:49 | |
As part WPKN's Black History Month celebration, I focus here on the type of music Kenny Gamble, Leon Huff and Thom Bell made - something I'm here calling "Black Orchestral Pop", and what some others would call "Champagne Soul" (although that can be a problematic phrase to the creators themselves). Ironically, this music is such a focus of love and a huge topic for me... it was ridiculous that I dedicated a 2-hour show to it - I only played one Thom Bell song, right at the end. I HAVE TO DO ANOTHER ONE. There Goes My Baby – The Drifters Baby I'm Yours – Barbara Lewis
Just My Imagination (Running Away with Me) – The Temptations Rainy Night In Georgia – Brook Benton | |||
| Julia Cumming co-hosts again! (songs that inspired us Pt. 2) | 01 Jun 2023 | 02:49:56 | |
Can't Get Used to Losing You – Andy Williams The Only Living Boy in New York – Simon & Garfunkel/
Our Prayer – The Beach Boys/
Love's Theme – The Love Unlimited Orchestra
Gentle On My Mind – Glen Campbell
I Will Dare – The Replacements/
I Forgot – The Moldy Peaches
Don't Worry About the Government – Talking Heads
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| Julia Cumming co-hosts! (songs that inspired us Pt. 1) | 06 Apr 2023 | 02:49:57 | |
Love Me Like You – The Magic Numbers
Tiny Spark – Brendan Benson
A 1000 Times – Hamilton Leithauser + Rostam
Aquarius – Boards of Canada
Any Time Of Day – The Lemon Twigs
The Book of Love – The Magnetic Fields
Mountain Top – Daniel Johnston
Sweet Dreams – StilLi
Birthday – The Sugarcubes | |||
| Is Peter Noone Into Something Good? Why yes, he is! | 28 Mar 2023 | 01:18:30 | |
This is my WPKN Peter Noone interview and special from April 2023. At the time, I was interviewing Peter at the time for gig he was promoting in Norwalk CT, and he was charming and funny and oh-so-British. You'll hear lots and lots of Herman’s Hermits (and even a bit of Beatles) music as I tell this relentlessly cheerful chappie's fascinating back story with this interview plus soundbites and songs, with Peter's cheerfulness as a constant. (Even though he didn't want to talk too much about The Tremblers.) What a lovely man. (All songs are performed by "Herman's Hermits" unless otherwise indicated.) I'm Into Something Good Can't You Hear My Heartbeat Silhouettes Just A Little Bit Better Eight Days a Week – The Beatles
Mrs. Brown, You've Got a Lovely Daughter I’m Henry the VIII, I Am Listen People A Must To Avoid
Dandy No Milk Today There’s a Kind of Hush Museum
For Love Moonshine Man It's Nice to Be Out in the Morning
Oh! You Pretty Things – Peter Noone She Was Something Else – The Tremblers Ooh Girl – The Red Button with Peter Noone Wonderful World | |||
| The White Album: thank you, Dan Neer! | 10 Nov 2018 | 02:53:40 | |
I've done this more than once - and I really went to town on the REVOLVER one (1/27/26) - but here I take a syndicated radio special, created by classic NYC FM deejay Dan Neer, about The Beatles WHITE ALBUM, and played it whilst surrounding it with even more tracks from the then-new re-release. ================================ A Beginning (Anthology 3 version) DAN NEER SPECIAL PART 1 Across the Universe (Take 6) DAN NEER SPECIAL PART 2 Revolution (Take 18) Let It Be (outtake) While My Guitar Gently Weeps (Take 2) | |||
| One-Hit Wonders... Part One! | 13 Jul 2018 | 02:49:51 | |
My first try at one of these - I've done the One-Hit Wonders thing a few times since, and absolutely love these. The phones really lit up for this one, with callers - mostly from Long Island, fwiw - either cheering me on or correcting me. There is SO MUCH GREAT MUSIC HERE that is far too overlooked... but these tracks are ALL stone-cold classics and important parts of pop/rock history, even though pop/rock historians don't know how to deal with them. Joy - Apollo 100 Summertime, Summertime - The Jamies
That Thing You Do - The Wonders Judy In Disguise With Glasses - John Fred & his Playboy Band
The Rapper - The Jaggerz Ah, Leah! - Donnie Iris
More, More, More - The Andrea True Connection Steal My Sunshine - Len Green-Eyed Lady - Sugarloaf*
Na Na Hey Hey Goodbye - Steam Ding Dong! The Witch is Dead - The Fifth Estate
Ça Plane Pour Moi - Plastic Bertrand Turning Japanese - The Vapors Video Killed the Radio Star - The Buggles Girl of My Dreams - Bram Tschaikovsky
Brandy - Looking Glass Couldn't See the Light - Climax Blues Band Ride Captain Ride - Blues Image Magic - Pilot Oh Babe, What Would You Say? - Hurricane Smith
Time Won't Let Me - The Outsiders Precious and Few - Climax Rock On - David Essex
Love Jones - Brighter Side of Darkness Basketball Jones - Cheech & Chong Concrete & Clay - Unit 4 +2 Come on Down to My Boat Baby - Every Mothers Son Popsicles and Icicles - The Murmaids Goodbye Girl - David Gates Tubthumping - Chumbawumba
Somebody That I Used To Know - Gotye (feat. Kimbra) Under the Milky Way - The Church Ariel - Dean Friedman In The Summertime – Mungo Jerry
* It turn out Sugarloaf is a two-hit wonder. "Don't Call Us, We'll Call You". I got a call and an FB message about it! | |||
| Late-night Beatles... zzzzzzzzzz | 09 Jun 2018 | 03:42:18 | |
(My apologies - I can't find my song list for this show... yet. I'm certain it lives somewhere on my computer, but further digging is required. Stay tuned - Alec, 1/18/26) So yes to "Long, Long, Long", no to "Good Day Sunshine". Yes "Here Comes the Moon", no "Here Comes The Sun". Yes "Waterfalls", no "Take It Away". Yes "Nobody Loves You (When You're Down and Out)", no "Power To The People". Yes "Blindman", no "No No Song".
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| Have You Seen the Stars Tonight? | 26 May 2018 | 03:53:39 | |
This is a good one. It's December 27th 2025 as I write this, and I'm remembering now how I used to have to get to the WPKN studios at the University of Bridgeport an hour early so I could go through the stacks and pull lots and lots of the station's own vinyl, with most of the records sent originally at the time of that album's release as a radio promotional for-airplay copies. (An arduous task, as the stations albums are listed chronologically instead of alphabetically.) A lot of the records are scratchy as f*ck, hence the name Snap CRACKLE Pop. Regrettably - perhaps - I've gotten much lazier, and I rely much less on the station's crackle-filled record stacks and the more on my collection of "clean" individual song WAVs as channeled through my laptop's DJ Pro software. This night I was filling in for two two-hour shows, one right after the other: "Railroad Dave" Schartz and KC Vaz (Paralelo Zero-Radio Brazil). This show is pretty adventurous and plays lots of good obscure music, and it's making me think I should try to add a bit more of this dreamy/mysterious/old-school free-form FM vibe into my curent morning show, and even more so for the occasional fill-ins I still do, especially those at weirder hours. The more crackles each record has, the more plays it must've gotten on the WPKN airwaves, and the more soulfully deep cosmic vibrations get re-released into the ether. (What Does It Take) To Win Your Love – Jr. Walker & the All-Stars Comes The Sun – The Archies Smiling Faces Sometimes – The Undisputed Truth (producer: Norman Whitfield) On the Beach – Neil Young Aubrey – Bread The Kiss – Judee Sill
Sands of Time – Fleetwood Mac Birth of an Accidental Hipster – The Monkees Flash – Wreckless Eric Godspell – The Cardigans Wild Bird – John Surman & Karin Krog Have You Seen the Stars Tonight? – Paul Kantner & Jefferson Starship | |||
| Happy 90th, Burt! (aka 6 Hours of BACHARACH!) | 16 May 2018 | 05:47:12 | |
It started out innocently enough, as an evening prime-time radio salute to the maestro Burt bacharach, who had just turned 90... Promises Promises – Dionne Warwick Toledo – Burt Bacharach & Elvis Costello Walk On By – Dionne Warwick Make It Easy On Yourself (Live at The Garden State Arts Center, 1970) – Dionne Warwick A House Is Not a Home – Burt Bacharach Twenty-Four Hours from Tulsa – Dusty Springfield Baby It's You – The Beatles Always Something There to Remind Me – Naked Eyes After the Fox – The Hollies Are You There (With Another Girl) – Dionne Warwick Promise Her Anything – Tom Jones Mexican Divorce – The Drifters Don't Make Me Over – Dionne Warwick I Smiled Yesterday – Dionne Warwick This Empty Place – Mexican Divorce My Little Red Book – Manfred Mann Walk On By – The Beach Boys New York Lady – Burt Bacharach & The Houston Symphony Such Unlikely Lovers – Burt Bacharach & Elvis Costello In Between the Heartaches – Ronald Isley The Last One to Be Loved – Lou Johnson Wives and Lovers – Burt Bacharach I'll Never Fall in Love Again – Jill O'Hara & Jerry Orbach The World is a Circle – Diana Lee, Bobby Van & Chorus Balance of Nature – Rumer So Long Johnny – Jackie Deshannon With Open Arms – Jane Morgan Hasbrook Heights – Burt Bacharach You'll Never Get to Heaven (if You Break My Heart) – The Stylistics Nikki – Burt Bacharach Dancing With Your Shadow – Sheryl Crow Close to You – Burt Bacharach Everybody's Out of Town – B.J. Thomas The Blob – The Five Blobs Saturday Night in Tiajuana – The Five Blobs Ich Warte Jeden Tag – Dionne Warwick I Say a Little Prayer for you (alternate) – Dionne Warwick And Then He Walked Right Through the Door – Dionne Warwick Go Ask Shakespeare – Burt Bacharach Alfie – Burt Bacharach The Windows of the World – Bobbie Gentry What the World Needs Now – Jackie Deshannon BUT THEN: after the initial 3 hours o' Burt, Mark Mushin - who had the 11-2am slot that night - at the last minute couldn't make it in, so I ended up doing 6 HOURS OF BACHARACH music. MINDBLOWING. Who's Been Sleeping in My Bed? – Linda Scott Tower of Strength – Gene McDaniels Me, Japanese Boy – Harpers Bizarre Dionne Warwick – Dionne Warwick Send Me No Flowers – Doris Day Where There's a Heart – The Sandpipers Love in a Goldfish Bowl – Tommy Sands I'm a Better Man – Englebert Humperdinck Another Tear Falls – Puddles Pity Party Don't You Believe It – Andy Williams Let the Music Play – The Drifters Trains and Boats and Planes – Burt Bacharach What's New, Pussycat? – Tom Jones This Guy's in Love with You – Herb Alpert & The Tijuana Brass The Look of Love – Dusty Springfield Make It Easy On Yourself – Burt Bacharach Paper Mache – Dionne Warwick Kentucky Bluebird (Send A Message To Martha) – Lou Johnson In the Land of Make Believe – Dusty Springfield Living Together, Growing Together – The 5th Dimension One Less Bell to Answer – The 5th Dimension Arthur's Theme (Best That You Can Do) – Christopher Cross Anyone Who Had a Heart – Wynonna The Wine Is Young – Dionne Warwick Walk the Way You Talk – Dionne Warwick God Give Me Strength – Burt Bacharach & Elvis Costello Magic Moments – Perry Como The Story of My Life – Marty Robbins True Love Never Runs Smooth – Gene Pitney Live Again – Irma Thomas No One Remembers My Name – Burt Bacharach Who Are These People? – Burt Bacharach feat. Elvis Costello Lost Horizon – Yeongene Turkey Lurkey Time – Megan Sikora, Mayumi Miguel, Cameron Adams & the "Promises, Promises" Ensemble (2010) Knowing When to Leave – Jill O'Hara Another Night – Dionne Warwick Don't Go Breaking My Heart – Burt Bacharach I Still Remember – John Pagano In the Darkest Place – Burt Bacharach & Elvis Costello Long Ago Tomorrow – BJ Thomas I Don't Need You Anymore (From the Motion Picture "Together?") – Jackie Deshannon The Sweetest Punch – Bill Frisell Don't Say I Didn't Tell You So – Dionne Warwick | |||
| Here's one of my Sam Hopkins overnight fill-ins, for example | 14 May 2018 | 03:54:22 | |
Are You Ready for Love – Elton John More, More, More – Andrea True Connection Steal My Sunshine – Len Numb (Single Edit) – Pet Shop Boys Save Me a Place – Fleetwood Mac Through the Long Night – Billy Joel Poor People – Alan Price Me and My Arrow – Harry Nilsson Mosquito – Geraint Watkins Wives and Lovers – Burt Bacharach Domingo no Parque – Gilberto Gil Mistry Roses – Colin Blunstone Sea Song – Robert Wyatt Ghosts of American Astronauts – The Mekons Leroy – Family Steady State – Penguin Cafe Orchestra Kala – Ali Farka Touré & Toumani Diabaté Crinian Wood – Alexi Murdoch The Ways of the Wind – P.M. Dawn Gratitude for the Shipper – Fan Modine Automatic – Pernice Brothers Meadows – Joe Walsh Fortune Teller – Robert Plant & Alison Krauss Moon Shake – Can On The Roof - The Feelies Goin' back – The Byrds Same Old Man – Karen Dalton 4am - Stueve So Begins the Task – Manassas Every Kind of Wrong – John Moreland River – Terry Reid Long Ago Tomorrow – B.J. Thomas The Bells – Laura Nyro & LaBelle Oh, Why – Balam Acab The Donor – Judee Sill Met Her on a Plane – Jimmy Webb Lift Him Up That's All – Washington Phillips Like a Ship – Pastor T.L. Barrett & The Youth For Christ Choir Mona – Bo Diddley Another Way Out – Brave Belt Long Way Around – Gerry Rafferty She Might Have Been a Nice Girl – The Guess Who Fineline – Ned Doheny Mother Earth – Emitt Rhodes I Wonder If I Care As Much – The Everly Brothers One Night of Sin – Elvis Presley Night Shift – Lucy Dacus Everything Put Together Falls Apart – Paul Simon Country of Illusion – William Tyler
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| We All Remember Comfort Food (Music) | 08 May 2018 | 02:53:55 | |
If you start at the very beginning (which is a very good place to start) with these Snap Crackle POP! shows/podcasts, you'll notice I am mainly doing fill-ins, many of them in the wee hours. At the time, I was working a low-self esteem job where the hours were very... well, lets call them variable. So I was frequently doing overnight shifts there, and my sleep hours were all fakakta, and plus... the "romantic" ideal I had of the lonely overnight DJ really appealed to me (cf. the cover of Donald Fagen's The Nightfly). A lot of this music is what I'd call - for myself - "comfort-food music". For better or worse, many of these songs are regulars on my shows to this day...
(What Does It Take) To Win Your Love - Jr. Walker & the All-Stars Let's Go - The Cars The Captain of Her Heart - Double Old Town - Phil Lynott Teenerama - The Records Warm Self Sacrifice - Emitt Rhodes
Deadbeat Club - The B52s London Bridge - Bread Baby Blue - The Beach Boys You Might As Well Smile - Glen Campbell Amateur - Aimee Mann
The World Is a Circle - Burt Bacharach Brandy - Looking Glass Jackie Blue - The Ozark Mountain Daredevils Sweet Music - Lon & Derek Van Eaton Skinny Man - The 5th Dimension Save Me - kd lang I Must Be in a Good Place Now - Bobby Charles
Drowning In a Sea of Love - Joe Simon New Sensations - Lou Reed Jesus Was a Cross-Maker - Judee Sill Don't Go To Strangers - JJ Cale Every Night (live) - Paul McCartney & Wings
The World Is Turning On - The Pooh Sticks Hey Julie - Fountains of Wayne I've Got a Secret - Richard Barone & James Mastro That's the Story of My Life - The Velvet Underground You Ain't Going Nowhere - Bob Dylan Speak Your Mind - Marc Benno
No Wonder Love's a Wonder - Smokey Robinson & the Miracles Secret Smile - Semisonic Emma Blowgun's Last Stand - Beulah I've Been Loving You Too Long (live) - Otis Redding Power of God - Jaimeo Brown Transcendence
Station Approach - Elbow We All Remember Wes (live) - George Benson | |||
| There Go the Hotsteppers: a Sly & Robbie Tribute | 03 Feb 2026 | 01:54:41 | |
Today’s Snap Crackle POP! was a tribute to the epic production team of drummer Sly Dunbar and bassist Robbie Shakespeare. Sly passed away on January 26th 2026 at the age of 73. ==============================
Double Barrel – Dave & Ansell Collins Right Time – The Mighty Diamonds
Sponji Reggae – Black Uhuru
Pull Up to the Bumper – Grace Jones
Jokerman – Bob Dylan
Breakdown – Grace Jones | |||
| 7 Hours of Snap Crackle POP? Preposterous! (Part 2) | 06 May 2018 | 02:54:38 | |
Here's part 2. Hoo boy. I wanted to do radio... I got my chance this day. (See episode 1). Here you can hear me subbing for whomever had the 2 - 5 pm slot that Sunday afternoon... it was most likely a fill-in for La Esquina Latina. So here's the latter 3/7th of my unexpected Snap Crackle Pop marathon. It was super-fun and definitely exhausting but also SO MUCH FUN. Thanks to everybody out there who was listening and cheering me on. Also Sprach Zarathustra – Deodato Her Eyes Are a Blue Million Miles – Nona Hendryx & Gary Lucas (w/ Jesse Krakow) Jesus Just Left Chicago – ZZ Top Hallelujah – Sweathog Tigers – Stephen Malkmus & the Jicks Electrical Way – Zoos of Berlin Found a Job – Talking Heads I'm On Fire – Dwight Twilley Group Shadow of a Doubt (A Complex Kid) – Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers Hanging On The Telephone – The Nerves Going Down to Liverpool – Katrina & The Waves Red Lights – The Marbles The Dean & I – 10cc Girls Talk – Dave Edmunds & Rockpile New York Is My Home – Dion & Paul Simon The Only Living Boy in New York – Simon & Garfunkel Leaving On a Jet Plane – Peter, Paul & Mary Lucky One – Alison Krauss & Union Station Never Dreamed You'd Leave In Summer – Stevie Wonder After Taxes – Lane Steinberg Dancing Barefoot – Patti Smith Group Disappearing – The Sinceros Elephant Ride – Squeeze Hypnotize – Scritti Politti I Belong to Me – Richard Barone Hurry Up Now – Harumi Sleep a Million Years – Kathy Heidemann International – Jackie DeShannon Keep On Movin' – Soul II Soul Unfinished Sympathy – Massive Attack Standing Outside a Broken Phone Booth with Money in My Hand – Primitive Radio Gods How Blue Can You Get – B.B. King Rockferry – Duffy The Windmills of Your Mind – Dusty Springfield Strange (live) – Patsy Cline I’m Into Something Good – Earl–Jean Uptown Town Ranking – Althea & Donna Pleasant Valley Sunday (demo) – Carole King Kisses Sweeter Than Wine – Peter, Paul & Mary | |||
| 7 Hours of Snap Crackle POP? Preposterous! (Part 1) | 06 May 2018 | 03:55:44 | |
(Note to podcast listeners: though I started doing WPKN airshifts as of April 14 2016, this is the oldest episode I have that exists as a music file. So that's where we'll begin. Enjoy... I hope!) Hoo boy. I wanted to do radio... I got my chance this day. 7 hours of it. I was subbing for Dave Golden's Morning Maniac Music between 10am and 2pm - already a generous 4-hour shift - and then I found out the 2-5 host couldn't make his show due to an emergency of some kind. So I ended up doing a marathon Snap Crackle Pop. It was super-fun and somewhat exhausting. Thanks to everybody out there who was listening and cheering me on. Here's part 1. (What Does It Take) To Win Your Love – Jr. Walker and the All–Stars Family Affair – Sly and the Family Stone You Just May Be the One – The Monkees Sunday Morning – The Velvet Underground Easy – The Commodores Sunday Kind of Love – Etta James Nothing Takes the Place of You – Toussaint McCall Wiser Time – The Black Crowes Sunday Papers – Joe Jackson Sunday Girl (French version) – Blondie Sunday Mornin' – Spanky & Our Gang Will You Be Staying After Sunday? – Peppermint Rainbow Sunday Morning Coming Down – Johnny Cash Get Down Moses – Joe Strummer & the Mescaleros Went To See the Gypsy – Bob Dylan Water Baby – Tom Mirsch The Gentle Rain – Astrud Gilberto Tanto Tempo – Bebel Gilberto Walk the Way You Talk – Dionne Warwick Fina Estampa – Caetano Veloso Mansinneedof – Sarah Jarosz What Makes You Think You're the One?– Fleetwood Mac Raindrops – Dee Clark Laughter in the Rain – Neil Sedaka Only a Moment – Sunflower Bean Have You Seen the Stars Tonight? – Paul Kantner & Jefferson Starship Let It Be Me – George Harrison Glad and Sorry – The Faces Dead Flowers (alternate) – The Rolling Stones My Baby Gives It Away – Pete Townshend & Ronnie Lane The Race Is On – George Jones My Elusive Dreams – George Jones & Tammy Wynette Trinity Lane – Lilly Hiatt 12 Bellevue – Kathleen Edwards Dear Boy – Paul & Linda McCartney Dear Boy – Percy "Thrills" Thrillington South American Getaway – Burt Bacharach I'll Never Find Another You – The Seekers Oh Gilbert (I Need Help) – The Junipers Clair – Gilbert O’Sullivan Chelsea Morning – Sergio Mendes & Brasil '66 All I Want – Karin Krog This Flight Tonight – Joni Mitchell Free Man in Paris – Joni Mitchell Subspace Biographies – Robert Pollard Crazy – REM Car – Porches Lament – Blake Babies Dreams – Brandi Carlile Taking Chances – Sharon Van Etten Lost a Number – Nils Lonfgren & Grin I Say Yeah – The Pets Shore Leave – Yung Wu Captain Lou – NRBQ (w/ Capt. Lou Albano) Nothing But a Heartache – The Flirtations I Never Dreamed – The Cookies Funky Pretty – The Beach Boys Lazy Sunday – Small Faces Shut Up Kiss Me – Angel Olsen Over the Ocean – Here We Go Magic Wan Light – Orange Juice | |||
| The winter of '26: The Battle for Minneapolis | 02 Feb 2026 | 01:54:28 | |
In tribute to, and in acknowledgement of, the Battle of '26 in wintry Minneapolis. Enclosed photo is by Philip Cheung for The New Yorker. ==================================== Why Can't We Live Together – Timmy Thomas Streets of Minneapolis – Bruce Springsteen How Much Did You Get for Your Soul? – Lucinda Williams
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| "Ayy! What does a record do? It REVOLVES. Great!" | 27 Jan 2026 | 01:54:53 | |
I've been doing two "drivetime" 7 - 9 am airshifts lately on WPKN 89.5 FM Bridgeport lately - my regular Monday morning one and, for a bit, the Tuesday morning slot too, covering for a world-wandering Steve Di Costanzo. I like doing these shows live, as I can announce times and give weather reports and even traffic news if I can find and organize it (which I'm not too good at yet). But I live in Mystic CT these days, and because of the massive Sunday snowstorm, I was asked to pre-record my Monday and Tuesday shows, and... While I like how the pre-recorded shows come out, I spend too much time on them, trying to make them "perfect", and prepping Monday's "blizzard" show was exhausting. So when I finished that one, I decided I would do a replay of a REVOLVER thing I did at the time the massive (and expensive) REVOLVER box set came out, in fall 2022, using - as its base - a syndicated radio special created by NYC FM radio hero Dan Neer. What you hear here is a greatly expanded 80-minute-ish version of that special, featuring many of the re-mixes and outtakes from the original 1966 sessions, plus interviews with the Beatles themselves and both George and Giles Martin (many from a cool crowdsourced internet-only audio series called "The Beatles Anthology Revisited") plus additional commentary from... Beatle nerd me. The remaining half-an-hour of the show is a melange of interesting basic tracks, overdubs and pieces from 1969's ABBEY ROAD sessions, plus a John Lennon run-through of "Julia" from 1968's WHITE ALBUM sessions, all intersperesed with soundbites and noises from John, Paul, George and producer George Martin. Not everyone will agree, but for me and (I know) for some of you - this stuff is endlessly fascinating. I listened to the whole shebang this morning on an Amazon Dot and I was shocked - not only at how good the remixes sounded through that little speaker, coming from its tiny compressed WPKN signal - but how much astonishing energy, creativity and brilliance is captured in all those tracks. In 1966, they were more united and ambitious than ever, and they were untouchable. (Oh - we started off with the new remix of "Free As a Bird", which I think is just fine.)
Free As a Bird (2025 mix)
Paperback Writer (excerpts from takes 1 & 2 + 2022 mix) Rain (2022 mix) Good Day Sunshine (2022 mix)
The Ballad of John & Yoko (John speech + basic track) Julia (Paul speech + John rehearsal performances) Sun King/Mean Mr. Mustard/Her Majesty (medley in progress) Come Together (George Martin speech + Take 5) You Never Give Me Your Money (basic track) Something (George speech + Take 39 – strings only instrumental) Ain’t She Sweet (7/24/69 impromptu version) | |||
| It's COLD, people (and it's pre-recorded) | 26 Jan 2026 | 01:54:59 | |
This Morning’s Backstory: though I always want to do these “Snap Crackle POP!” drivetime programs live, so I can give out weather and traffic (lol) reports, I had to pre-record this one because of the blizzard-y weather, considering that I was snowed as of Sunday evening, the night before the show, way out here in Mystic.
Why my time announcements may be off here and there: uhhh... it's too esoteric to explain. Plus this is the podcast version, anyways. That said, I do TRY. Take it all with a grain of salt. And then throw that salt on the ground, will ya? Today’s theme: it’s friggin' COLD. 🥶 Today's picture: my car in the driveway this morning.
Cold, Cold, Cold – Little Feat Cold As Ice – Foreigner
Blizzard of '77 – Nada Surf Cold Hands, Warm Heart – Brendan Benson Snowglobe – Sugar Fight
Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out – Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band Coldest Winter Ever – Lewis Black She’s So Cold – The Rolling Stones Ice Cold Daydream – Shuggie Otis
Slip Slidin’ Away – Paul Simon The Blizzard – Camera Obscura Cold Cold Heart – Norah Jones Out In the Cold Again – Sam Cooke Snow – Claudine Longet
Snowfall – Eisley Looks Like a Cold, Cold Winter – Ingrid Michaelson Song for a Winter’s Night – Gordon Lightfoot Hazy Shade of Winter – Simon & Garfunkel
The Fox in The Snow – Belle & Sebastian Cold Light of Day – Lewsberg
Howlin’ Wind – Graham Parker & The Rumour Ice Cold Ice – Hüsker Dü When It Touches You, A Snowflake Dies – Norma Tanega Soon It Will Be Cold Enough – Emancipator It’s a Cold Night for Alligators – Roky Erikson The Blizzard – Jim Reeves Amid the Falling Snow – Enya The Frozen Man – James Taylor
Walking On Thin Ice – Yoko Ono Sometimes in Winter – Blood, Sweat & Tears Comin’ In From the Cold – Bob Marley & The Wailers
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| Life In a Blender - twee? Discuss. | 20 Jan 2026 | 01:54:32 | |
I talked a lot about and played some Life In a Blender, a fantasticly creative band from NYC who are coming up to Milford this Friday, January 23rd, 2026. And I also played some music that I'd consider twee, although I don't think that's a bad word. (Google's "AI Overview" is telling me "'Twee' describes something overly cute, sweet, quaint, or sentimental, often in an affected or delicate way, originating from a baby's pronunciation of 'sweet,' and also refers to a subgenre of innocent, simple indie pop music and an aesthetic featuring childlike whimsy, though it can sometimes be used as a mild insult" (cf. SNL's "Bein' Quirky With Zooey Deschanel"). I actually do not consider LIAB "twee". Well, possibly, at moments, but not really. Anyway, this show was a melange of intelligent pop music I like, and I hope you like it too. ===================
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| Martin Luther King Jr. Day: let's celebrate it while we still can | 19 Jan 2026 | 01:54:37 | |
In a recent interview with the New York Times, President Donald J. Trump said he felt the Civil Rights Movement and its reforms were harmful to white people, who “were very badly treated.” Also, the administration made sure that Martin Luther King Jr. Day - still a national holiday (for now) - would not be a day where people could visit America's national parks for free. Trump did, however, make his own birthday as a day for National Parks free admissions. For Christ's sake. I usually steer away from political commentary on the Snap Crackle POP! show, but I wanted to do my part (as infintesimly small as it may be) to celebrate this important American holiday. I am hearing there are more-than-usual MLK Jr. day celebtations happening today, which I'm grateful for. I remember his assasination day and I was so confused by it - why? Just... why? And why are some sh*tty. powerful, hate-filled people trying to erase this day in 2026? Happy Birthday, Martin. And thank you for your brilliance and bravery. Our lonely nation (still) turns its eyes to you. ==================== Happy Birthday – Stevie Wonder Like a Ship (Without a Sail) – Pastor T.L. Barrett and the Youth for Christ Choir
Memory Be a Blade – waterbaby I'm Going Down – Rose Royce
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| Neil Sedaka, RIP! (Part 1?) | 02 Mar 2026 | 01:55:59 | |
I am probably going to re-upload this show shortly, vut for the time being here's this morning's Snap Crackle POP! tribute to Neil Sedaka, with my amazing co-host Dawn Eden Goldstein! [All songs are performed by Neil Sedaka unless otherwise noted.]
That's When the Music Takes Me
One Way Ticket (To the Blues) Personality – Lloyd Price Kissin' My Life Away (excerpt) – The Hondells Beautiful You Laughter In the Rain Breaking Up Is Hard To Do (Slow Version)
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| Why 1979 was the best year for music, featuring Edgar Wright and Julia Cumming | 22 Jun 2026 | 01:55:00 | |
OK, this Snap Crackle POP! is a DOOZY. For this show, my live in-studio guests (for the first 1 hour and 15 minutes of the 2-hour show, at least) are singer/songwriter/bassist Julia Cumming from Sunflower Bean whose 2026 debut solo album Julia is blowing people away, and legendary film director Edgar Wright who, believe it or not, I do not talk about movies with here at all. Why? Because we are all there to talk about our shared thesis - that 1979 is the best year for music EVER - and we are letting out GEEK. FLAGS. FLY. This is a must listen, people. Up The Junction – Squeeze Lucky Number – Lene Lovich Hit Me with Your Rhythm Stick – Ian Dury & The Blockheads One Step Beyond – Madness Ring My Bell – Anita Ward Regiment – David Byrne & Brian Eno Beat the Clock – Sparks Is She Really Going Out With Him? – Joe Jackson Making Plans for Nigel – XTC Pop Muzik – M Dance Away – Roxy Music Street Life – Randy Crawford & The Crusaders I Don’t Like Mondays – The Boomtown Rats 52 Girls - The B-52s Kid – The Pretenders Clampdown – The Clash Good Times – Chic (w/ brief excerpt of “Rapper’s Delight” by The Sugarhill Gang) Swan Lake (Death Disco) – P.I.L. (partial) Video Killed the Radio Star – The Buggles
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| Breaking Up (and Fundraising) is Hard To Do | 15 Jun 2026 | 01:54:41 | |
Sigh. This was supposed to be a "Catch a Wave" week fundraiser for WPKN, with the great Dawn Eden Goldstein joining me for the first half and the legendary Rob Silber joining me for the second half. Dawn came up with the idea of playing break-up songs as a theme within the "we need money" theme. Well, I mean, it was a fundraiser, but we didn't get a single donation during my shift, though. It would do me (and our brilliant radio station!) a tremendous amount of good if you donated to WPKN here in honor of Snap Crackle POP... so: Please? --------------------------------------------- You're Gonna Miss Me – The 13th Floor Elevators
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| Bachelor Pad Chess Music | 30 Mar 2026 | 01:52:06 | |
Breathe (4square mix) – Telepopmuzik
Heaven's Gonna Burn Your Eyes – Thievery Corporation In the Waiting Line – Zero 7, Sophie Barker Kiss From a Rose – Seal
Billions – Caroline Polacheck The Captain of Her Heart – Double
Come to God – Indigo De Souza Real Thing – Drugdealer, Weyes Blood Please Let Me Remember This – Julia Cumming (It Takes All Kinds) To Make a New World – Gail Ann Dorsey
Lebanese Blonde – Thievery Corporation Here's That Rainy Day (Koop Remix) – Astrud Gilberto Waltz for Koop – Koop Where Do I Begin (Away Team remix) – Shirley Bassey
The Sofa – Wolf Alice Rust & Wire – Anjimile
Days We Left Behind – Paul McCartney Jenny Wren – Paul McCartney February Sky – Ringo Starr
Doomscrollin' – The Gershwin Brothers Tears In My Martini – Edward Rogers Yours (If You Want Me) – The Bug Club Forgotten Dreams – Leroy Anderson | |||
| Drivin' on 9: Women's History Month Part 2 | 24 Mar 2026 | 01:53:28 | |
The second of two day's worth of Snap Crackle POP! shows with female performers, songwriters, musicians, etc. in honor of Women's History Month. Pictured: the mighty BREEDERS. Drivin' on 9 – The Breeders
I Am Woman – Helen Reddy I'm a Woman – Peggy Lee Lola – The Raincoats
Spellbound – Siouxie and the Banshees Don't Go Away – Tallulah Gosh Never Say Never – Romeo Void Thinking About Sex Again – The Waitresses
O Superman – Laurie Anderson Hounds of Love – Kate Bush
There's a Part I Can't Back – Sunflower Bean Small Town Girl – Tracey Thorn Night Terrors – Diet Cig Jersey – Barrie
Cloud 9 – Beach Bunny Twilight Café – Susan Fassbender & Kay Russell Go Away – Strawberry Switchblade
Black Boys on Mopeds – Sinéad O'Connor How Much Did You Get For Your Soul? – Lucinda Williams There She Goes Again – King Princess
Broken English – Marianne Faithful
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| Jubilation: Women's History Month Part 1 | 23 Mar 2026 | 01:54:44 | |
The first of two day's worth of Snap Crackle POP! shows with female performers, songwriters, musicians, etc. in honor of Women's History Month. Pictured: a jubilant Norma Tanega. Jubilation – Norma Tanega
Don't Make Me Over – Dionne Warwick Fujiyama Mama – Wanda Jackson Turn My Motor On – Kirsty MacColl
Picture This –Blondie New Toy – Lene Lovich Money – The Flying Lizards Typical Girls – The Slits Son of a Gun – The Vaselines
I'll Be Your Mirror – The Velvet Underground & Nico Hidden From History – Bright Girls Come Again – Au Pairs Just Once in My Life (demo) – Carole King
That's The Way I've Always Heard It Should Be – Carly Simon At Seventeen – Janis Ian Kid – The Pretenders
It's a Fine Day – Jane
The Book of Love – Olivia Rodrigo Nothing I Could Hide – Arlo Parks Across The Sea – Salem 66 Hammond Song – The Roches My Life – Julia Cumming
Drivin’ On 9 – The Breeders (partial) | |||
| Everyone knows it's WINDY | 17 Mar 2026 | 01:50:51 | |
Wind – Circus Maximus Windy – The Association The Wind Cries Mary – Jimi Hendrix Part of the Wind – Tim Hardin Wind Chimes – The Beach Boys
Catch the Wind – Donovan I Talk to the Wind– Giles, Diles & Fripp Four Strong Winds – Ian & Sylvia
All I Did Was Dream – beebadoobee Passion Plug – Bella Litsa Rust & Wire – Anjimile Ghosted – Laura Nyro
Doomscrollin' – The Gershwin Brothers I Don't Like Hockey No More – The Zambonis Best Tears I've Ever Cried – Lane Steinberg Steer The Wheel – Bubble
Wu–Tang – They Might be Giants Piccadilly – Squeeze Can't Wait – Piper
Teenage Kicks – The Undertones Rat Trap – The Boomtown Rats I Will Follow – U2 Soon – My Bloody Valentine
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| Why Does It Always Rain on... who, exactly? | 16 Mar 2026 | 01:54:40 | |
Raindrops – Dee Clark Rhythm of the Rain – The Cascades
Rainy Days and Monday – The Carpenters Why Does It Always Rain on Me? – Travis I Wish It Would Rain – The Temptations Cloudbusting (Be Kind version) – The Staves
Fool In the Rain – Led Zeppelin I Played the Fool – Michael Stipe In The Middle of It – Hiss Golden Messenger Put the Message in the Box – Mary Chapin Carpenter & The Mountain Goats Is It Like Today? – World Party
Why Don't You? – Squeeze Elderberry Wine – Wednesday Steel Reserve – Cass McCombs & Chris Cohen Site Unseen – Courtney Barnett & Waxahatchee
My Life – Julia Cumming I Was Wrong – Danny Ayala I Can't Get Over Losing You – Lemon Twigs Tell Me Why – The Beatles Look Through Any Window – The Hollies Headline Hustler – 10cc The Holdup – David Bromberg
Edge of the Ocean – Ivy Waltz for Koop – Koop Gymnopedie No. 1 – Erik Satie (I can't seem to find the name of the actual pianist, sorry)
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