Emitt’s Merry-Go-Round

On my Logitech Media Server network I’m listening to Barnes Newberry’s online radio show, My Back Pages. Barnes played a couple of songs by Emitt Rhodes, who’s one of those musicians that seemed to have all of the ingredients needed to be a big name, and yet superstardom eluded him. Rhodes did some excellent stuff, and I remember alternative FM station WBCN in Boston playing his solo album, with the song Fresh As a Daisy.

Emitt was only seventeen when his band The Merry-Go-Round had a minor hit with She’s a Very Lovely Woman, and it holds up very well today.

Barnes is back with his Back Pages

Just in time to celebrate Bob Dylan turning 70 on Tuesday, Barnes Newberry returns to radio with My Back Pages. When? Tomorrow morning at 8! Barnes says…

Okay folks, looks like it is ON tomorrow at 8 am for the debut of My Back Pages with Barnes Newberry. Please join us online at mvyradio.com to pre-celebrate the 70th birthday of His Bobness! Thanks for all your early good wishes (to us both!) and of course, a big thanks to MVY.

WMVY is a commercial FM station on Martha’s Vineyard, and mvyradio is a public Net-only station, and that’s where Barnes will be. It has high-quality (96k) audio, and I’ll be listening on my excellent-sounding Logitech Squeezebox Radio. Note: mvyradio will be posting the complete Neil Innes show I attended last Saturday, A People’s Guide to World Domination, in its archives, and I’ll link to it when available.

Follow-up: Well, that was disappointing. There was a technical screw-up at the station and the show didn’t play over the live stream. It can be heard at this link.

Barnes Newberry’s new show!

This just in from Boston-based DJ Barnes Newberry, whose radio show “Highway 61 Revisited” was part of my Saturday mornings for ten years:

RADIO NEWS! Thrilled to announce I will be on-air again very soon with my new show My Back Pages on mvyradio (mvyradio.com). Great station, fine music choices and terrific staff! Show will be Saturdays, 8 am -12 noon, available online only. All shows will be archived. Start date to be announced shortly. Please spread the word. If you were a fan of my old Highway 61 Revisited program, this will be right down your alley!

Thanks Barnes, this is great news! I’m looking forward to hearing you again. MVYradio.com is a great Internet radio station, and it has a high quality 96 Kbps audio stream. After you get started at the station I will become a member and send them some bucks in your name.

White man’s jungle

Another act from the enjoyably eclectic “Bob Harris Saturday Night” playlist is Australian C.W. Stoneking.

I hope Bob Harris has another, similarly mixed show coming up on BBC Radio 2. And I’m looking forward to the possibly probable return to Boston radio this spring of one of my favorite DJ’s, Barnes Newberry. A song that Barnes liked to play on his Highway 61 Revisited radio program is this one, by Leonard Cohen.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vZ61su9H5RU

I first heard this on the old WBCN at least 40 years ago, and only its use of my sister Marianne’s name kept me from fully embracing it. Later, I would mentally substitute another, similar sounding, name and that gave it meaning.

The return of Barnes?

Barnes Newberry has been off-the-air for going on a year, after ten years of hosting his “Highway 61 Revisited” show on WUMB (UMassBoston). Barnes had what can be termed a “falling-out with management,” and I’ve really missed listening to him on Saturday mornings. I’ve been told there is the possibility of Barnes returning to the airwaves sometime in the Spring. Here’s hoping he can put it together. Stay tuned!