Sunday, 27 August 2017

Sunshine Radio

I said earlier this year that I would be creating my station in the summer. Well, this summer has come and gone. I've moved house in recent weeks and am still trying to sort things out after that happened.

I'm loving where I live, but unscrupulous people were involved and so, I'm still trying to sort out the trouble they gave me in spades. Meanwhile, Radio Sunshine is still going ahead, but I have to apply myself to sorting out the new property first; then, I can buy a couple of studio upgrades I desperately need, to put everything together.

I MUST have a new mixer. Without that, I might be a bit compromised, as the one in use has shown signs of age. It still works well, but may need a repair to keep working. So I have to look at new equipment to go ahead with the station. I also need to employ a couple of engineers to help me get the thing started.

Since this takes cash - and since I'm a bit short of it yet, I need to be patient, which means so do you!

Soon as it's up and running, I'll be putting notices out everywhere. I have such a love of music, and 'doing radio', that I must get the project sorted. I'll be blogging the details as they start getting into position. Then, links will follow so nobody is left with an excuse not to listen!

They should all be heard

I'm very much into the production of a song. Sitting here, listening to a disco album, I can remember when I was a kid DJ, and the thing that people looked for was a song to be able to dance to. If you could pack a dance floor as a DJ, you were respected. But that's really not the issue, and it took me many years to learn that fact.

I did the whole driving to a venue thing, setting up the sound system we had, back in the 80's, and my main aim was to be a cool jock: spinning sounds, and getting people to enjoy what they thought was a good time. I enjoyed that good time with them! I'm telling you; the 'good time' I'm referring to has nothing on listening properly to a piece of music, whatever genre. When you listen to the record properly, and hear the whole musical accompaniment behind the vocals, that's where the thrill really lies.

Take, for instance, It's Party Time, by Bobby Womack. What does that do for you? Does it get you singing and wanting to dance? That's fine, if so. But there's a sleuth of musicians behind his vocals who were all a part of making that record. Because they all gave of their time and musical expertise, it thrills me to be able to be able to hear what they all contributed, even while I'm sitting still. In the studio, various technicians brought that song to its completion, and it was pressed for our pleasure.

Music thrills me. Yes, I want to dance. Yes, I want to sing, but I also want to hear the whole production. It ALL matters, and it all contributes to the great sound you and I love, so much.

It took me to gather the production of my own radio programme, years later, to be able to teach myself what music really means to me. Any song I love is like getting a hug. Living alone, you need to find your own joy. That joy comes for me, in music, as it always has, but hearing - really hearing a song is the thing that fires me up. I love to read a musicians history, then listening to what they are capable of in a studio. The story and the music are what floats my boat. Come. Join with me,  and tell me your musical loves, hates, and let's have a discussion! What 'floats your boat'? I can't wait to hear from you.