Another week of MG flaring up too much for me to do a new piece of physical work sees me dragging out a smallish rough piece from late last year.  This is another Chicago cityscape, rendered in pastel crayon with colored ink wash over top in places, on illustration board. It’s basically just a visual “note” for a potential later piece on canvas with much greater detail.

This was done to capture the composition and color that I wanted, but if I take it to canvas I may try to employ some Hopperesque technique on it.

To see it bigger try clicking HERE.

Over in radioland, Monday beginning at 2 PM on The AIR, we bring you a classic episode of Psychedelic Shack, and then at 3 PM an also classic edition of Herman Linte’s weekly showcase of the Progressive Rock of the past half-century, Prognosis.  You can listen to The AIR at the website, or on the embedded radio player elsewhere on this page.

Psychedelic Shack can be heard every Monday at 2 PM, with replays Tuesday at 9 AM, Wednesday at 10 PM, Friday at 1 PM,  and Saturday at 9 AM. You can hear Prognosis on The AIR Monday at 3 PM, with replays Tuesday at 7 AM, Wednesday at 8 PM, Thursday at Noon, and Saturday at 10 AM.

At 8 PM you can hear the twisted music of Barnes and Barnes on a classic episode of The Comedy Vault.

Tonight at 9 PM for the Monday Marathon we alternate between Psychedelic Shack and Beatles Blast, beginning with the crossover episodes between Nigel Pye and myself.

Sometimes, when it’s time to choose a topic for PopCult’s Sunday Evening Video, I do it when I’m hungry.

Here are two short videos about how cheese puffs are made.

I mean, they are part of the food pyramid. Actually they’re two parts, grain and dairy. And some folks include air in that, so that’s three parts of the pyramid.

This week we venture once again back to March, 2011, as Radio Free Charleston was on a roll with a weekly run of terrific shows. This episode featured the first non-FestivALL solo appearance by Andy Park on the show, and the first-ever performance we filmed by an early line-up of QiET.

We also present the second song that we’d recorded with Roger Simms performing in the back of a pick-up truck on Capitol Street, and we have a short film by MURFMEEF and remastered CGI animation by Frank Panucci.

Host segments for this show were shot at Gallery 1031, and my performance in this show was pretty sub-par, as I managed to get the name of the gallery wrong at one point, and nearly mangle Deron Sodaro’s name, even though I knew him for almost twenty years at that point. Still, I got to wear my Green Lantern shirt to give the show its title before Big Bang Theory forever ruined wearing DC Comics shirts in public.

The PopCulteer
February 21, 2025

This week’s PopCulteer is pretty much a local-focus column.

Starting next Wednesday, a plethora of events tied to Charleston’s Celtic Calling begins. It’s always a fun time, and aside from the nifty graphic below, we’re going to share highlights of their schedule for you here.

This is just the tip of the iceberg. For the full schedule, visit  www.celticcalling.org for updates and more details.

Wednesday, February 26th

9AM to 7:30 PM Children’s Story Walk and Make and Take Craft activities start today and continue everyday throughout the gathering. – 4th Floor, Kanawha County Public Library, 123 Capitol Street – FREE

6 to 8 PM: Acoustic Music Session/Jam- regular weekly music gathering with a celtic twist – The Bears Den, 405 Capitol Street – FREE ( 2025 -T- shirt sales)

7.30 PM: Film: ‘Kneecap at Celtic Calling – ‘Kneecap’, responsible for raising interest in Irish Gaeilge amongst young people, it chronicles the story of a hip hop group in Northern Ireland. Floralee Hark Cohen Cinema by WVIFF, 230 Capitol Street — Admission – $12 Adults, $7 Students. Tickets in advance at: https://wviff.org/movies/kneecap/ ( 2025 -T- shirt sales)

Thursday, February 27th

7 to 9 PM: The Charleston Rogues Music Session – Wandering Wind Meadery, 422 Washington St W, Charleston, WV 25302 – FREE ( 2025 -T- shirt sales)

Friday, February 28th

5 to 7 PM: Swingstein and Robin – Celtic jazz, swing and song. ‘Irish Road Bowler Stout’ and ‘Barney Fife Irish Red Ale’ available this evening and all weekend – Fife Street Brewing 180 Summers Street, Charleston – FREE

7 PM: The Charleston Rogues, acoustic set : Short Story Brewing Charleston, 186 Summers St, Charleston – FREE ( 2025 -T- shirt sales)

7 to 10 PM: Celtic Ceilidh for all ages – Music by the Mudlarks from Morgantown presented by FOOTMAD . Kanawha United Presbyterian Church, Fellowship Hall, in rear of Church, 1009 Virginia Street East, or enter adjacent Parking from Kanawha Boulevard – Admission – $10 Children under 10 Free. ( 2025 -T- shirt sales)

7 30 to 9 30 PM: Poetry Open Mic: Share Your Inner Bard with The Rustic Mechanicals. Cozy book nook with celtic authors and craft beers, coffee – Taylor Books, 226 Capitol St, Charleston, WV 25301 – FREE

Saturday March 1st – Happy St Davids Day (Welsh National Holiday)

9am: Celtic Calling 5K Kilt Run and 2K Walk. to benefit Friends of Spring Hill Cemetery Park and Arboretum, 1555 Farnsworth Drive, Charleston, WV 25301. Sign up: https://runsignup.com/…/CelticCallingFriendsOfSpringHil…

Downtown Charleston Venues: All Events FREE unless indicated:

10am- 3 45pm: Celtic Village – Music and Dance Stage at Charleston City Center, Slack Plaza, 169, Summers Street.
Main Stage, music and dance:

10.30- Tim and Maggie Pipes (https://www.timandmaggie.net/)

10.45- Lincoln County Cloggers

11.30 – Tim and Maggie (Tunes) with Vaughan Gold(Vocal)

12.30 – Savanna Brown Scottish Dance with Kanawha Valley Pipes and Drums

1pm: Celtic Calling Pageant to select the Chieftains Court wear your best Celtic Attire – cash prizes and more.

1.30pm: Lincoln County Cloggers

2 pm: Celtic Calling Dog Show celtic and all breeds, incl. fancy dress.

2:30: Children’s Tug O War in front of Main Stage.

2. 45pm: Faire May (Wheeling), hi tempo exciting young band, playing from large repertoire of tunes and songs.

Games Field: Children’s mini–Highland Games with prizes and demonstrations by Rutherford Academy of Celtic Arms

11am: Celtic Arms Demonstration (sword and shillelagh)

11.30am: Sheaf Toss

12.30am: Celtic Arms Demonstration (sword and shillelagh)

1:30pm: Caber Toss

In the Park and on the street: Clan Tents, Over 20 Crafter’s and Civic Organizations, food vendors set up on Summers Street.There will also be roaming musicians, reenactors, chilrden’s crafts, bellydancing, face painting and Highland Games (not to be confused with Highlander Games. Nobody will be beheaded during Celtic Calling).

4pm: Celtic Calling Parade – Lee Street Triangle to Kanawha Blvd Kanawha Valley Pipes And Drums, Beni Kedem Highlanders, West Virginia Highlanders, Coomhola Wren Boys Whistle Band, St Albans High School Art Class, Dancers, Puppets, Civic Organizations, Unicorns, Clans – Its not to late,

7 30pm: FOOTMAD Presents: The Jeremiahs from Dublin Ireland in Concert. Capitol Theater / Resurrection Church,123 Summers St, Charleston, WV 25301, Ticket information: FOOTMAD.org or Info: 304-729-4382

7:30-9:30pm: Tim and Maggie Music – (https://www.timandmaggie.net/), multi instrumentalists in the cozy confines of Taylor Books, 226 Capitol Street, Charleston, WV 25301 – FREE

10 pm: Traditional Celtic Music Session, host Garrett Maner – The ‘craic’ is always mighty, a great place for a pint of Guinness and late night food – Adelphia Sports Bar & Grille, 218 Capitol St. -FREE

Sunday March 2nd

11 30-2pm: Legendary Celtic Brunch – Menu changes yearly, but a place to possibly grab a Scotch Egg, bangers and mash, Guinness stew – Sam’s Uptown Cafe, 28 Capitol Street

Kanawha County Main Library , 123 Capitol Street – FREE

Noon – 4pm: Children’s Story Walk and Make and Take Craft activities and Make Irish Badges

2 30pm: Mountain Thyme with special guest fiddler Jenny Allinder. All women group Mountain Thyme have been playing celtic and appalachian traditional music together for over 35 years. Folklore Music Exchange – 91 Summers St, Charleston, WV, United States, West Virginia – FREE

4pm: Celtic Theatre—5 Plays—Short Story Brewing incl. a bonus play read by local thespians. Thanks to Tip Jar Theatre for c0-ordinating – Short Story Brewing Charleston, 186 Summers St – FREE

What’s Coming To Park Place? 

Up front, let me answer that…I don’t know. This piece is mostly speculation.

First off, if you’re late to the game, Park Place is the (allegedly) upscale shopping center that has been under development in South Charleston (right across MacCorkle Avenue from Riverwalk Plaza) for what seems like an eternity.

The hold up has been sufficiently preparing the land, which used to be the site of a fly ash pond, and having been to a shopping center in Pennsylvania that was built on insufficiently prepared land before, I assure you that the delays have been quite prudent. When completed, Park Place is expected to have 20 stores or restaurants.

The Starbucks and Chik-Fil-A are already open (Starbucks, I believe, is on unrelated but adjacent property). We know that, at some point, a Menards will take up a big chunk of that land as one of the anchor stores. It has also been confirmed that the Kroger in Riverwalk will expand dramatically and move across to the new shopping center. I’m guessing here, but I think they’ll leave the Kroger gas station right where it is, but it does appear to be in a new location on the architect’s rendering. We also know that the national restaurant chain, Mission BBQ, will have a location there.

At this point, I need to mention that, one thing that gets on my nerves as a blogger is the habit some folks have of jumping down your throat if you dare to even mention a national restaurant chain. I mentioned Crumbl Cookie coming to Charleston a while back, and the reaction on social media ranged from people wanting me hanged to people wanting to cut down my body and defile it, all because I didn’t list the thirty or forty local places that sell fresh-baked cookies and say that they were infinitely better.

So let me clarify something. I support shopping local and supporting local businesses. I’m the “Support Your Local Scene” guy, remember?  But that doesn’t mean that I think it’s a mortal sin to eat at a national restaurant chain once in a while. If you’re going to pick that hill to die on, please hurry up and do it, because I’m going to suggest some national retail and food chains that might be a good fit for Park Place. A huge retail development filled with nothing but local merchants is a ghost mall waiting to happen. And Charleston already has one of those.

Does that mean I’m going to eat at Mission BBQ?

Hell no. The smell of pork cooking nauseates me. I know there are already all kinds of local BBQ places. I know this because I go out of my way to not drive near them, because they smell is so bad to me.

But, if that’s what you want to eat, go ahead and enjoy it. You can have my share.

Back to the speculation.  here’s a list of a dozen retail/food chains that might just be a good fit in Park Place. These are purely my guesses. I have no inside information. Feel free to make your own guess in the comments. I am choosing stores that seem to be in expansion mode, and don’t currently have locations in the area. So I’m going to skip mentioning Five Below or Dollar Tree, or any of the five or six stores remaining in the Town Center that might move.

Old Navy

The closest Old Navy location to Charleston is in the Huntington Mall. They have never had a presence in Charleston. This division of The Gap, Inc, offers women’s and men’s clothing, with up-to-date styles, and prices that aren’t bad.  It’s more upscale than a discount chain, but it’s not a luxury brand either. It’s on my radar because it’s one of Mel’s favorite places to shop.

Barnes & Noble

Charleston does not have a decent magazine rack. Taylor’s is at the mercy of the local distributors and Books A Million went from having one of the best selections of magazines in the country to one of the worst. The Dudley Farms location offers less than one-sixth the selection they used to.  Some of this is because the entire magazine industry has contracted, but when we’re travelling and I go into a Barnes & Nobel store, they still have hundreds more magazines than I can find locally. In addition, they have a sizable toy department and their book selection is pretty incredible.

Denny’s

Charleston has needed a Denny’s for decades, preferably a 24-hour version. I really like Denny’s and even did a painting based on one recently. Park Place will need a family-style restaurant that serves “American cuisine,” so why can’t they go with Denny’s? Granted, it might be the final nail in the coffin for our local Shoney’s restaurants, but at this point that’d be a mercy killing.

LUSH

Mel loves the products of this company, which includes bath bombs, salves and cosmetics and to be honest, I’ve never set foot in one. I can’t stand fragrances that strong. But they have a loyal following and they are considered a luxury brand, so it’d make sense to bring them in. If we had one locally, I’d sit in the car while Mel goes in.

Half Price Books

If they can’t attract Barnes & Noble, then the bookish crowd would still be satisfied with Half Price Books. Primarily selling used books and remaindered volumes, they also sell vinyl, CDs, action figures, video games and other cool and sundry items. I always try to stop in when I’m in Pittsburgh or Lexington.

Freddy’s Frozen Custard & Steakburgers

This is a modestly-priced sit-down restaurant that offers frozen custard along with hamburgers, hot dogs and really thin shoe-string fries. Every shopping center ought to have a good, inexpensive place to grab a burger and ice cream. Freddy’s would fit the bill perfectly.

Culver’s

Everything I said about Freddy’s, (except for the thin fries) also applies to Culver’s. They have a wider selection of stuff on their menu, but their drive-thru is painfully slow. Still good food, though.

Potbelly

Potbelly, (named after the stove) is a fast-casual sandwich chain that is sort of like Jimmy John’s, if Jimmy John’s had edible food. They’re all over Chicago and they are in expansion mode. Their food is more than just edible (unlike Jimmy John’s), it’s downright tasty. And if they screw up your order, not only do they make it right, they also give you coupons for free stuff on your next visit.

Pop Mart

This one’s a long shot. This designer toy store, based in China but with a couple dozen locations in the US, offers cool, totally unnecessary toys based on Anime, Kawaii and a few licensed properties. Prices range from extremely high to certifiably insane, but they are a luxury brand, so maybe they’d come here.

Miniso

A more plausible possibility is Miniso. We already have one in the Huntington Mall. Their offerings are like Pop Mart, only priced to be affordable to normal humans. They have a wide range of their own brand of cool toys, some featuring licensed characters, as figures, building sets, charms, and all sorts of fine knick-knackery.

Box Lunch

The socially-conscious sibling of Hot Topic, Box Lunch sells pretty much the same stuff, only they have a different assortment of it. If that makes any sense. They carrry a lot of LoungeFly items and other stuff that Mrs. PopCulteer really, really likes. The nearest store is in the Huntington Mall, and it’s one reason we head down that way as much as we do.

Panda Express

This is more of a personal wish-list item for me. I’d love it if there were a handy, drive-thru, Asian restaurant in town. Sadly, almost every Asian restaurant locally is a buffet, now that Taste of Asia has tasted oblivion. It’s a dining option that is underserved in this market, and it’d be a nice change of pace from all the Mexican food and breweries that spring up like weeds.

That’s a dozen possibilities for Park Place. All of those are guesses. Hopefully in a year or three we’ll find out how good I did guessing.

And having stirred the pot of speculation, that is this week’s PopCulteer. Check back for fresh content every day, and all our regular features.

It’s been a while since I’ve recommended a Kickstarter project, but today we’re going to have a little Déjà vu and suggest you go support a collection of a comic book I first recommended (as a Kickstarter project) back in 2023.

I’ve been telling you about Anthony Stokes’ comics for a few years now. He’s one of the most exciting young storytellers to turn up on the scene, and I loved his futuristic pro-wrestling drama/satire, Tap or Die. Readers get to follow the adventures of Domino from his childhood as a fan, to adulthood when he has to face the stark realities of the business side of laying the smack down on people.

TAP OR DIE is chockful of action, but it’s also loaded with humor, mindgames and a few adult situations.  It’s about perseverance, battling adversity, and REVENGE. The book has lots for wrestling fans in the form of references to classic wrestlers, but non-wrestling fans will enjoy the high-octane action and character drama. There’s something here for everyone. Now, for those who missed out on Tap or Die, or those who just skipped it because it was in black-and-white, the book is newly-colored and collected as an 80-page trade paperback or deluxe hardcover.  All three issues are included, with bold new colors.

After Decay and Intrusive Thoughts, I was sold just seeing Anthony’s name on the book.  The fact that I follow pro wrestling is just gravy.  If you missed out on his previous works you’ll have the chance to play catch-up with add-ons during the campaign, plus there are variant covers, prints, your choice of softcover or hardcover and even some spicy variants, if you’re into that sort of thing.

Written by Anthony Stokes, drawn by Emilio Uterera, and with incredible new colors, Tap or Die is an absolute gem of comic storytelling. I have all three issues, but I’m expecting a whole new experience reading it in color.

This is a short campaign with just a few days left to contribute. This book was already fully-funded before I had a chance to tell you about it, the first day, in fact. If you want to see why, Kick In and find out.

The weather was slightly improving before this latest wave of snow, Capitol Street might just be dried out, and there’s some cool things to tell you about, so let’s dive into the boilerplate and get to the STUFF TO DO in and around Charleston this weekend. Just drive carefully if you go out.

Before we get into that, I do have a special message to share with people in the future: Attention, People of the Future, if you came here looking for the playlist (and links to the artist’s pages) for Radio Free Charleston Volume Five, number 214  because you listened to it sometime after its premiere, be advised that I screwed up the date of the show when plugging the PopCult links. I said that you’d find the post containing the links today. In fact, it was yesterday. You can read all about that show HERE.

As always, you should remember that THIS IS NOT A COMPLETE LIST OF EVENTS.  It’s just a starting point, so don’t expect anything comprehensive, and if you feel strongly about me leaving anything out, feel free to mention it in the comments. Also, if you have a show that you’d like to plug in the future, contact me via Social Media at Facebook, BlueSky or Twitter. I dont charge for this, so you might as well send me something if you have an event to promote. Some links look like they shouldn’t work because they have lines through them, but that’s just a WordPress glitch, so click on them anyway. They should still work.

You can find live music in and around town every night of the week. You just have to know where to look.

Most Fridays and Saturdays you can find live music at Taylor Books. There is no cover charge, and shows start at 7:30 PM.

You can find live music every night at The World Famous Empty Glass Cafe. Mondays feature open mic night. The first Tuesday of every month sees the legendary Spurgie Hankins Band perform. There’s both Happy Hour music and local or touring bands on Thursday and Friday, and live bands Saturday nights. On Sundays when there’s a new Mountain Stage, musicians from the legendary WV Public Radio show migrate to The Glass for the Post-Mountain Stage jam.

Live at The Shop in Dunbar hosts local and touring bands on most weekends, and is a nice break away from the downtown bar scene.

Louie’s, at Mardi Gras Casino & Resort, regularly brings in local bands on weekends.

In Huntington, local institution, The Loud (formerly The V Club), brings in great touring and local acts three or four nights a week.

The Wandering Wind Meadery holds several events each week, from live piano karaoke to bands to burlesque.

The multitude of breweries and distilleries that have popped up in Charleston of late tend to bring in live musical acts as well. I tend to miss a lot of these because, being a non-drinker, they fly under my radar.

Roger Rablais hosts Songwriter’s stage at different venues around the area, often at 813 Penn, next door to Fret ‘n’ Fiddle in Saint Albans and also at The Empty Glass. You might also find cool musical events at Route 60 Music in Barboursville and Folklore Music Exchange in Charleston.

To hear music in an alcohol-free enviroment, see what’s happening at Pumzi’s, on Charleston’s West Side. You can also visit Coal River Coffee in Saint Albans for live music in an alcohol-free environment. I am looking to expand this list, so please contact me through the social media sites above if you know about more alcohol-free performance venues.

For cutting-edge indepent art films, downstairs from Taylor Books you’ll find the Floralee Hark Cohen Cinema by WVIFF. Each week they program several amazing movies in their intimate viewing room that you aren’t likely to see anywhere else.

Please remember that viral illlnesses are still a going concern and many people who have very good reasons are still wearing masks, and many of us, understandably, are still nervous about being in crowds, masked or not. Be kind and understanding  while you’re out. And if you’re at an outdoor event, please remember that it’s awfully inconsiderate to smoke or vape around people who become ill when exposed to that stuff.

Keep in mind that all shows are subject to change or be cancelled at the last minute.

Here we go, roughly in order, it’s graphics for local events that I was able to scrounge up online…

Continue reading

The long weekend has ended, and  Tuesday is once again “New Show Day” on The AIR.  As such, we have a sort of new episode of  Radio Free Charleston for you. To listen to The AIR, you simply have to point your cursor over and tune in at the website, or you could just stay here, and  listen to the cool embedded player found elsewhere on this page.  

You can hear Radio Free Charleston Tuesdays at 10 AM and 10 PM, with boatloads of replays throughout the week.

The week we bring you an hour of patented mixture of local, independent and any other kind of music, and then for our second and third hours we resurrect an episode of Radio Free Charleston International that hasn’t been heard in over six years. I don’t really have a playlist for our presentation of Radio Cult and friends, so I’ll tell you about that part of the show below.

Our first hour opens with a new live track from The Settlement, who are gearing up for a summer filled with live shows, and then we bring you new music from Nashville’s Saycouth, who will make their first live stop at the Virgin Hotel in Nashville this Friday. The rest of hour one is filled with exquisite musical gems, guaranteed to satiate the most sophisticated tastes.

The links in the playlist will take you to the pages for the artists in this week’s show.

RFC V5 214

hour one
The Settlement “Blindman”
Saycouth “Magic”
The Heavy Hitters Band“Come Dance With Me”
Madeline Peyroux “Dance Me To The End Of Love”
Massing with Shelem “Shabby”
Gyasi  “23”
Dinosaur Burpss “Eat My Hat”
Novo Combo“Sorry For The Delay”
Andy Summers & Robert Fripp “I Advance Masked”
Chuck Biel “Genvieve Is Bob”
Galen and Paul “The Lighthouse Waltz”
Brian Diller “Some Miles Back”

hour two and three

The rest of the show brings you a special episode of Radio Free Charleston International. This is a bootleg recording of Radio Cult at ToyLanta, recorded March 10, 2018. Radio Cult was the house band for ToyLanta and they put on a heck of a show in one of the conference rooms at the Marriott Century Center in Atlanta.

The cool part is that they had convention-goers join them onstage. In this show you will hear Mike Gardner and Alex Massey guest on guitar, JD Luck on bass, a couple of guys whose name I didn’t catch on drums and Jas Ingram on Theremin. You’ll also get to hear guest vocals by Dan Cioffi, David Lane, Jas Ingram and Mel Larch, among others.

It was a real kick to see Mrs. PopCulteer join the band late in the show on “Country Roads” and “Smells Like Teen Spirit, ” since she wasn’t really feeling up to singing at the beginning of the show.

This recording is bootleg-quality, so don’t expect a lossless 5.1 audio mix or anything. I asked steven Wilson if he’d do a special remix and he threw stuff at me. I do think it conveys the pure fun of Radio Cult’s performance. You’ll hear a few Radio Cult originals and covers of everything from AC/DC to KISS, to Skynyrd to Nena and Madonna. There’s even a snippet of Queen in there.

You can hear this episode of Radio Free Charleston Tuesday at 10 AM and 10 PM on The AIR, with replays Wednesday at 9 AM,  Thursday at 2 PM, Friday at 9 AM, Saturday at Noon and Midnight, Sunday at 8 PM and  Monday at 11 AM, exclusively on The AIR. Now you can also hear a different classic episode of RFC every weekday at 5 PM, and we bring you a marathon all night long Saturday night/Sunday morning.

I’m also going to  embed a low-fi, mono version of this show right in this post, right here so you can listen on demand.

 

After RFC, stick around for encores of last week’s episodes of  MIRRORBALL at 1 PM and Curtain Call at 2 PM.

At 3 PM we give you an encore of two classic episodes of The Swing Shift.

 You can hear The Swing Shift Tuesday at 3 PM, with replays Wednesday at 8 AM, Friday at 10 AM and 8 PM and Saturday afternoon, only on The AIR . You can also hear all-night marathons, seven hours each, starting at Midnight Thursday and Sunday evenings.

So the Myasthenia Gravis caught up with me last week. I was not able to hold an implement of art in my fingers, so had to resort to creating a digital image.

This week’s piece is a sort of Celtic-looking concentric-circle thingy, but it also looks a wee bit like a suncatcher, so I stuck the title on it you see above.

It was created by taking a photographic image and mangling it with filters and effects so that it became an abstract. If you squint long enough, you might be able to see the large-breasted young lady whose photo I used as a base.

Or it might have been a puppy…or a ’57 Chevy.  I forget which.

Anyway, with Charleston’s Celtic Calling looming in a couple of weeks and this piece winding up with a lot of green in it, I decided to give it an appropriate name.

I hope I can go back to physical art next week.

To see it bigger try clicking HERE.

Over in radioland, Monday beginning at 2 PM on The AIR, we bring you a classic episode of Psychedelic Shack, and then at 3 PM an also classic edition of Herman Linte’s weekly showcase of the Progressive Rock of the past half-century, Prognosis.  You can listen to The AIR at the website, or on the embedded radio player elsewhere on this page.

Psychedelic Shack can be heard every Monday at 2 PM, with replays Tuesday at 9 AM, Wednesday at 10 PM, Friday at 1 PM,  and Saturday at 9 AM. You can hear Prognosis on The AIR Monday at 3 PM, with replays Tuesday at 7 AM, Wednesday at 8 PM, Thursday at Noon, and Saturday at 10 AM.

At 8 PM you can hear Part One of Rawlinson’s End by Viv Stanshall on last week’s new episode of The Comedy Vault.

Tonight at 9 PM for the Monday Marathon we dip into the archives a few months and bring you some recent episodes of Radio Free Charleston.

Last month I wrote about the new Corgi Model Club USA, which releases highly accurate reproductions of the extremely cool die-cast cars from the UK that were beloved by kids in the 1960s, and by adult collectors ever since.

The reaction I had was tremendous, both from fans of the original toys, and from folks who never heard about them and wanted to know more.

So, for the folks who wanted to know more, here are a few videos about Corgi Toys, their history and the new club reissues.

 

At the head of this post, you see Radio Free Charleston 122, “Fistful Of Mercy Shirt.” This episode of the show dates back to March, 2011, and featured music from Roger Simms, Drop Ded Phred, and a return visit from Sasha Colette. We also had a preview clip of the Contemporary Youth Arts Company production, “A Service For Jeremy Wong” (courtesy of Austin Sussman), and animation from Frank Panucci.

Host segments were shot in the friendly confines of Taylor Books Annex Gallery, prominently featuring the art of our late friend, Charles Jupiter Hamilton in the background. The namesake shirt for this episode is a t-shirt featuring the band logo for the group, Fistful Of Mercy, which included Ben Harper, Joe Henry, and longtime RFC fan, Dhani Harrison.

Our first musical guest was Roger Simms. I met Roger & spoke to him about being on the show, when he said OK, grabbed his twelve string, and walked me out of the Blue Parrot to a pickup truck on Capitol Street where he let down the tailgate, hopped in, and treated me to a couple of songs. We included one of them in this show.

You can find the original production notes for this show HERE.