Rudy Panucci On Pop Culture

Song Of The Week: 200th Post!

Well, we’ve hit a minor milestone here at PopCult, so in honor of our 200th post, we’re doing something completely self-indulgent. This week’s SOTW is another dip deep into the Radio Free Charleston archives, only this time, it’s the THEME SONG from Radio Free Charleston! This rare location recording features a number of the area’s finest performers and waiters collaborating, at almost 3 AM one night at the Charleston Playhouse. The tune was improvised on the spot. We had no idea what we were going to do, we just wanted to crank out a theme song for my radio show. It’s an example of the type of music that can only warp into existence during the nether hours at an establishment that serves alcoholic beverages. The Playhouse played host to quite a few magical moments like this during its short life.

Sung in a key previously unused by human voice, this rockin’ little ditty wound up being the theme song for Radio Free Charleston for the final five months that it was on the air. This was actually a performance by the Charleston Playhouse Quartet, which featured my own sorry-sounding voice, along with Jim Wolfe, John McIntyre, Jake Kennedy, and John (Sham Voodoo) Estep, who also played guitar. Yes, we always had at least five people in the Quartet. By the way, the photos accompanying this piece are not actually the performers on this song, but they were taken at the Playhouse.

Hearing this again makes me nostalgic for the old radio show. Sure would be great if, somehow, I managed to resurrect it now that we’ve landed in the internet age.

Hmm.

1 Comment

  1. Secular Spice

    Insomniacs from South Jersey are eternally grateful for this recording of the Radio Free Charleston theme.–>

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