RFW FLASHBACK

THE ASYLUM PARTS 1 & 2

The occasional RFW Flashback draws from hundreds of hours of old radio shows, comedy bits, interviews, promos and commercials from my long strange trip in radio. Each Flashback has a unique story and place in my memory and heart. I'm really surprised (but then again I'm not) how the music from the early shows has stood up against the test of time. I also find great amusement in my thick Boston accent and boundless enthusiasm.

WTBS/WMBR 88.1 FM, Cambridge was a dream come true. A place where I and others like me went to put the sounds and songs and words that we had in our heads on the air. Some of those people are still close to me, the others remain in my mind like a frozen snap-shot of the way we looked and sounded like then - so many years ago. Needless to say, they were very special times!

The Asylum was a show that ran on WMBR every Saturday night/Sunday morning from 12 midnight to 4 am. Everyone who did their own show at the station was expected to do an Asylum show. My partner (and still good friend) for this bizarre outing was the infamous Tony V, who reads from an imaginary program guide early on and describes what we were about to do as - "The Asylum - insanity". The official basis for the show was to take your regular show, persona, deepest fetish-fear-guilty pleasure and check into The Asylum for the night.

On January 5, 1980, Tony and I were the new inmates and after rather lengthy and intense "pre-show preparations" we performed this legendary piece of Boston Radio History. It is very interesting to hear the show in retrospect with it's elements of theatre, improvisation, avant-guarde, musique-concrete, sound collage, mashing, sampling, tape manipulations, loose but intact story line and eclectic musical selections. This was a time before many of these terms and techniques were even in use!

It is as close to a live audio "trip" as has ever been committed to the airwaves, tape or an institution. In all it's warped glory - I am very proud of THE ASYLUM!

THE ASYLUM is a 5 Part 128k mp3 made * to be played loud!

Part 1 is MB and 46:46 in length.

Part 2 is MB and 47:16 in length.

"It's still ahead of it's time" - Tony V

RFW

These files are blog specials only-no podcast!

THE ASYLUM PARTS 3 & 4 will be posted next Sunday, 2/18/2007.

*The Asylum has been recorded at a lower level than usual to reduce distortion and tape noise during the 28 year old cassette transfer. Use your volume and let it rock!