December 2007

December 14, 2007
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12/17-12/21 HOLIDAY MUSIC

Time for our annual Holiday Music week.  Here is what is coming up! Monday, December 17th
12-1 pm Lea Gilmore shares her favorite music.  Want to check out some of what she played?  Here is the playlist.
  • Baby, It's Cold Outside, performed by Eric Byrd and Lea Gilmore
  • Santa's Got the Blies, by Denise Lasalle
  • Please Come Home for Christmas, by Charles Brown
  • Santa Baby, by Eartha Kitt
  • All I Want for Christmas is You, by Mariah Carey
  • This Christmas, by Donny Hathaway
  • Give Love on Christmas Day, by the Jackson 5
  • So This is Christmas, by John Lennon
  • Mary Did You Know, by Clay Aiken
  • I am Not Forgotten, by Israel and New Breed
  • Hark the Herald Angels Sing, by Norman Hitchens
  • Silent Night, by Mahalia Jackson
  • What a Wonderful World, by Louis Armstrong
1-2 pm, Tom Hall shares from of his favorite music.
  • Oh Come, All Ye Faithful
  • Come Colors Rise
  • Thank you, by Dave Brubeck
  • Gabriel's Message
  • Yvette in English, by Joni Mitchell
  • I Wish You Love
  • It Came Upon a Midnight Clear
  • Never Will I Marry
  • Nine Crimes, Damien Rice
  • Didn't My Lord Deliver Daniel
  • Hallelujah Chorus
Tuesday December 18th
12-1 pm Jon Carney is the Concertmaster of the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra and he brought some of his favorite classical music for us.  What did he play?
  • Edward Elgar conducting the London Symphony- 1st movement of violin concerto featuring Yehudi Menuhin at age 16 - 1931
  • Vivaldi - Largo from "Winter" of the Quattro Stagioni, Jon's recording w/ the Royal Philharmonic - 1992
  • Camille St. Saens - from his "organ" symphony (#3) - Jean Martinon and French Radio Symphony - 1975
  • Michael Nyman - Prospero's Books (miranda) - 1996
  • Beethoven - slow movement from his opus 135 String Quartet - Guarneri Quartet 1987
  • Bartok - Concerto for Orchestra - last movement - RPO w/ Danielle Gatti - 1997
  • Bach - Chaconne for Partita #2 in D minor for solo violin - Henryk Szerying
  • Fritz Kreisler - "La Gitana" for violin and piano - Jon's own recording w/ his mother on piano - 1995
  • closing music: Michael Nyman - Quartet #4 - track 14
1-2 pm Jason Willett is the co-owner of the True Vine Record store in Hampden, as well as a member of a litany of fine bands including Leprechaun Catering and Half Japanese.  We asked him to bring his favorite Christmas music, and this is what we heard - not quite in the order we heard them, go figure -
  • James Brown - Santa Claus, Go Straight to the Ghetto
  • Culturcide - Depressed Christmas
  • Frieder Butzmann - White Christmas
  • Hybrid Kids - Good King Wenceslaus
  • James White and the Blacks - Christmas With Satan
  • The Jethros - I'm Dreaming of a Wide Christmas
  • Rotary Connection - Opening & Silent Night Chant
  • finally, 3 awesome song poems called Snowbows, Santa Came on a Nuclear Missile, and Santa Goes Modern
Wednesday, December 19th
12-1 pm Keith Covington is the owner of the New Haven Lounge, one of the best places around to see live jazz.  He brought us the gift of great holiday jazz music; here they are in order:
  • Slim & The Supreme Angels - Precious Lord
  • Selah Jubilee Singers - When Was Jesus Born
  • Kenny Burrel - Merry Christmas Baby
  • Ramsey Lewis - Christmas Blues
  • David Benoit - Christmas is Coming
  • Ramsey Lewis - Merry Christmas Baby
  • Chris Botti - Ave Maria
  • Dianne Reeves - Carol of the Bells
  • The Swan Silvertones - I'm Not Tired Yet
  • Ramsey Lewis - God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen
  • Bobby Durham - Jingle Bells
  • Van Morrison - Have I Told You Lately?
  • The Original Five Blind Boys of Alabama (not to be confused with the Unoriginal Five Blind Boys of Alabama, seriously they're better) -This May Be the Last Time
1-2 pm Rock and Roll has had something to say about Christmas since the 50's.  Former disc jockeys Toby Bray and Michael Butscher came by and spun the following tunes.
  • Do They Know It's Christmas? - Band Aid
  • Father Christmas - The Kinks
  • Wonderful Christmas Time - Paul McCartney
  • Step Into Christmas - Elton John
  • Happy Christmas (War Is Over) - John Lennon
  • Santa Claus Is Coming to Town - Chicago
  • White Christmas - America
  • The Christmas Song - Linda Ronstadt
  • The First Noel - Air Supply
  • Merry Christmas, Baby - Southern Culture on the Skids
  • Merry Christmas - The Ramones
  • Christmas Wrapping - The Waitresses
  • Blue Christmas - Elvis Presley
  • Please Come Home for Christmas - The Eagles
  • River - Joni Mitchell
  • Santa Claus is Coming to Town - Bruce Springsteen
  • Little Drummer Boy - Bing Crosby & David Bowie
  • Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas - Shawn Colvin
  • The Christmas Song - Nat "King" Cole
  • Jingle Bells - Frank Sinatra
  • Let It Snow - Dean Martin
  • It's Beginning to Look A Lot Like Christmas - Perry Como
  • Santa Claus is Coming to Town - The Jackson Five
  • Christmas Isn't Christmas (Without the One You Love) - The O'Jays
  • This Christmas - Donny Hathaway
  • L'il Saint Nick - The Beach Boys
Thursday, December 20th
12-1 pm Ed Polochick is a busy guy.  He's conductor of the Lincoln Symphony Orchestra in Nebraska, Artistic Director of the Choral Artists of Baltimore, and Director of Choral Activities at the Peabody Conservatory.  He was good enough to find time to come in and share his favorite classical and choral Christmas Music.
  • The First Noel, from the album Crystal Carols by Dean Shostak
  • The Holy Boy by John Ireland, from the album A Christmas Garland
  • Adeste Fideles, by Liszt, performed by Walker Marshall
  • Many Moods of Christmas, Suite 2, by Robert Shaw, from the album Festival of Carols
  • Candlelight Carol, from the album Christmas Night: Carols of the Nativity, conducted by John Rutter
  • Christmas Night, Christmas Night: Carols of the Nativity, conducted by John Rutter
  • Many Moods of Christmas, Suite 3, by Robert Shaw, from the album Festival of Carols
  • Hallelujah Chorus from Handel’s Messiah, performed by the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra and Concert Artists Symphonic Chorale
  • Worthy is the Lamb That Was Slain performed by the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra and Concert Artists Symphonic Chorale
1-2 pm Hopefully you'll have some time to relax during the holidays.  And if you do, maybe you'll want to go to the movies...but what to see?  Never fear, we've brought together a great panel of film critics to tell you what to see.  We'll talk to Violet Glaze of the Baltimore City Paper, Mike Speir from Variety, and Michael Sragrow from the Baltimore Sun. We really hope you enjoy all of this music and special programming.  Happy Holidays! -Jessica, Justin, Marcus
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December 13, 2007
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12/13/07 The Bay

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I went down to southern Maryland last August and took this picture standing in the Chesapeake Bay at Calvert Cliffs, although maybe that wasn't such a good idea.  Beautiful place, but the water didn't quite look as clean as it might have.

This hour we'll be talking about what really would need to be done to clean up the Bay.  Is it realistic at all to see a cleaner Bay?  Efforts have been made for decades, but results are less than hoped for so far.. What do you think?

-Justin

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December 13, 2007
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12/13/07 Helicon

 

Time for one of our annual shows. HELICON, a great band that reunites once a year to play an annual winter solstice concert, will be in the studio today from 1-2 to bring you some great music.  We'll be hearing Ken Kolodner on hammered dulcimer, hammered mbria and fiddle; Chris Norman on wooden flutes, tin whistle, small pipes and piano; and, Robin Bullock on guitar, cittern, fiddle and piano.  The guys will be playing their 22nd annual concert at Kraushaar Auditorium at Goucher College, on Saturday, December 15 at 3:30 pm and 8 pm.  Go here for more information. You are psyched.  Don't deny it.  The hammered dulcimer is hardcore.  Join us today!

-Jessica

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December 12, 2007
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12/12/07 In 15 Minutes..

..we go on the air.  Just time for a quick post today. In the first hour, we'll be looking at the role religion is playing in the '08 presidential campaigns, so far, and more broadly at the role religion plays and has played in American political life.  What does it say about our society that a candidate's religious beliefs have become a central part of political campaigning?  Are Democrats trying to out-biblethump the Republicans?  What did you think of Romney's speech last week?  When will we elect our first openly atheist president?  More at noon... In the second hour, we'll have what has now become an annual show commemorating Homeless Memorial Day, which is actually next Friday, December 21st.  We were talking here recently and I asked if anyone else had noticed a more visible, larger homeless presence in certain parts of downtown (Guilford Ave under the JFX, St. Vincent's Church...) We all had noticed, but didn't know what to attribute it to, so I called Jeff Singer at Healthcare for the Homeless and got the scoop from him.  He'll be here at 1pm to discuss with us further on the air, but basically he said, yes, the homeless population is growing in Baltimore and has been for years.  He attributed it to factors including homeless shelters closing, some shelters that are still open have become transitional, rather than emergency, shelters and offer less beds, the rising cost of housing, the decrease of available public housing units, and the increasing difficulty of obtaining public assistance for single adults.  On top of all that, for those that do get public assistance, it hasn't been adjusted for inflation in about five years.  More at 1pm... -Justin
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December 11, 2007
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12/11/07 Foster Care Reform

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Here's a picture from earlier this year of Governor O'Malley swearing Brenda Donald in as the new Secretary for Maryland's Department of Human Resources.  With her job, comes the responsibility of running the state's foster care system.

About a month ago, we had a show looking at the foster care system, which I described at the time like this:

We’re starting off the hour with a look at Baltimore’s foster care system, which, no one would argue, is in need of some huge reforms.  A class action suit was brought on behalf of 2,500 foster children in 1984.  In 1988, the court entered a comprehensive consent decree requiring reforms, and nearly 20 years later we’re still waiting for those reforms.  Change doesn’t happen overnight, but two decades is a long time by anyone’s standards.  If you’re unfamiliar with this lawsuit, or the foster care situation here in general, a good place to start would be this article from Tuesday’s Sun.

Where are things now, another month later?  Brenda Donald will be here at 1pm to let us know, and take your questions, as well.

-Justin

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December 10, 2007
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12/10/07 Surge?

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What effect has the increased level of US troops, 'the surge,' had in Iraq?  Statistics show decreased levels of violence, but does that constitute a success?  There are still tragic amounts of daily violence, and a host of other problems, throughout Iraq.  What would a "good" outcome to the war look like at this point?

 Joining us today is Nancy Youssef, who just returned from Iraq where she reports for the McClatchy newspapers.  Read her articles here.  Also joining us is Adil Shamoo, who recently wrote an article supporting a military withdrawal from Iraq, which you can read here.

 

Join us...

-Justin

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December 10, 2007
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12/10/07 Kid’s Books

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Does anyone remember this book, "Owl At Home?"  I remember a lot of great books from my childhood, but this one has really stuck with me for some reason.  I picked it up again a few years ago, and was struck by how emotionally evocative it was.  Arnold Lobel, also the creator of the Frog and Toad books, is a genius.

What are your favorite kid's books?  We had great response from our kid's books show a year ago, so we're bringing back the same guests today at 1pm for another round.

-Justin

Useful links:

Enoch Pratt Free Library

Children's Bookstore in Roland Park

Red Canoe Bookstore and Cafe

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December 6, 2007
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12/06/07 What to Eat?

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Marion Nestle will be here at 1pm today, and looking at the cover of her most recent book above, you can see the some of the questions we'll be discussing.  She's got a great blog - check it out here.  And don't forget to let us know what you think as you listen to her on the air with us today.  Continue the discussion with your comments here!

-Justin

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December 6, 2007
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12/6/07 Mothers

In my work as producer for the Just Words series, I've come to believe that inner city mothers are the new stoics.  I can't tell you how many times I have asked a mother "How do you deal with all this?" and they just look at me like I am crazy to even imagine that they would take the luxury of considering NOT dealing with it all.  I do not know how they do it.  Being a mother is hard enough, I imagine.  But to be a mother trying to raise a child with drug dealers on the corner,without much money, with the schools in terrible shape and murders on the rise?  That's what we are going to hear about today.  We're invited three women who have been featured on the Just Words series.  Lorraine Mackey lost her son, Aaron Mackey, to gang violence over a year ago.  She's doing everything she can to keep her other son safe, and is trying to pick up the pieces and figure out, what went wrong?  Sheilah Cannon's daughter was caught in gang crossfire while going to pick her little brother up from school, and had to spend months in shock trauma.  Now Sheila is doing everything she can to find a place she can afford to move her children to.  Nargas Hyman began to worry about her eldest son years ago when she saw him and his friends hanging out after school, with nothing to do.  She created an afterschool youth program that she is still running, over a decade later, out of her mother's basement. What do these women go through as they struggle to keep their children safe?  We'll find out today.  Join us. To hear Nargas, Sheila, and Lorraine on JUST WORDS, go here. -Jessica
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December 5, 2007
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12/05/07 Deputy Mayors

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Dixon at yesterday's inauguration.. who's the guy in the suit?

Sheila Dixon was sworn in as Mayor of Baltiomore yesteday, after being Mayor for about a year already, since the guy in the suit left this small town for a nice position in Annapolis.  Can't blame him, being Mayor is not an easy job.

Today we'll welcome two of the people Dixon has chosen to help her run the city:

Andrew Frank - Deputy Mayor for Neighborhood and Economic Development

Salima Marriott - Deputy Mayor for Community and Human Development

What would you like to ask, or tell, the people running this city?  Call us between noon and one pm today, 410-662-8780, while we're on the air with Baltimore's Deputy Mayors.

-Justin

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December 5, 2007
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12/5 Holiday Television

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Last night CBS television aired the holiday favorite Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer. It wasn't that long ago when there were only three main television networks. One of the highlights of tv seasons past were holiday specials hosted by Bing Crosby or Bob Hope. In addtion to Rudolph, A Charlie Brown Christmas would have to be included as one of the top holiday specials evoking special memories for young and old.

Join us at 1pm today as we discuss holiday television, and the current television season, with Baltimore Sun television critic David Zurawik.

                                                                                                                            -Marcus

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December 3, 2007
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12/04 Jonathon Scott Fuqua and Zakes Mda

The Marc Steiner Show is getting into the Christmas spirit with a doorbuster opportunity for you today...A twofer!  At one o'clock we're going to bring you two authors in one hour.  First, we're talking with Jonathon Scott Fuqua.  When you were a teenager, did you ever have a book that just so perfectly captured your life or your feelings that you read it over and over again?  I did.  It was Girl, by Blake Nelson and I can't say it so much captured my life as it was the life I wished I had.  I also loved Unfinished Portrait of Jessica by Richard Peck.  Both of these books are about girls turning into women and how thorny that process can be.  Jonathon Scott Fuqua writes books like this.  They are books that come as a relief to the people reading them; finally, someone understands!  His latest book is called Gone and Back Againand is the story of Caley, a teenager whose dad has a personality disorder and whose brother is handicapped.  His parents are divorced and he's been moved all around the country, eventually ending up in Florida, which is where the novel begins.  It's a story that draws upon the author's own struggles with depression. And then we talk with Zakes Mda.  He's a writer from South Africa whose work is really about our interactions with history and memory and how we manage those things in the middle of present life.  His latest book is Cion, and is about Toloki, the hero from a previous novel, moving to Ohio with his family and learning about his ancestors, runaway slaves.  Join us today at one, for all that!

-Jessica

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