Earl Lewis on Doo Wop Thursday!

Doo Wop Thursday RETURNS this week with the GREAT EARL LEWIS of THE CHANNELS!

This will surely be a Doo Wop Thursday Night Prowl Show to remember as Matt The Cat is joined by one of Doo Wop's unsung heroes. Earl Lewis was there at the beginning and with the Channels recorded some of the best remembered records of the era. What was it like to tour back in the mid 1950s? What was New York City like back then for emerging vocal groups? How was the record business? These questions and more will be answered live on the radio, as Earl Lewis joins Matt The Cat for Doo Wop Thursday.

Thursday, March 1st from 4-7pm EST

Harlem: Week Of 2/26/07 - Open The Door, Richard!

Every Hit Version of The Song....

Open The Door, Richard

In the late 1940's, the phrase, "Open The Door, Richard" was on everyone's lips. The song of the same name began as a comic routine, but blew up to the point where it sent four different versions to #2 on the R&B charts. This week HARLEM uncovers as many versions, sequels and answer records as it can to represent this historical record. You'll hear versions of "Open The Door, Richard" by Jack McVea, Dusty Fletcher, Louis Jordan, Count Basie, The Charioteers, The Pied Pipers, The Three Flames and even the Hit Paraders. Matt The Cat will also give you the story behind who wrote it and who got sued over it. This is one HARLEM not to miss. So put down that beer and OPEN THE DOOR, RICHARD!

Harlem Airs on XM-5:
Monday 2/26 @ 1pm EST
Tuesday 2/27 @ 9pm over LA and Midnight over NYC
Friday 3/2 @ 6pm over Baltimore
Sunday 3/4 @ 11am over Newark

I hope you enjoy this evolution of a song.

-MTC

Harlem: Week Of 2/19/07 - New Orleans R&B!

This week on HARLEM....

New Orleans
Rhythm & Blues

Harlem gets fat all week (not just Tuesday) with a full hour of nothing but great New Orleans rhythm & blues from the early '50s. Celebrate Mardi Gras in the juke joint with the likes of Fats Domino, Professor Longhair and Smiley Lewis. I spilt gumbo all over my 45s and 78s.

Harlem airs on the 50s on 5:
Monday 2/19 @ 1pm in NY and noon in New Orleans
Tuesday Night 2/20 @ 9pm PST - Midnight EST
Friday 2/23 @ 6pm EST
Sunday morning 2/25 @ 11am EST and 10am in New Orleans

Keep it soulful, ya hear!


Matt The Cat

Harlem: Week of 2/12/07 - R&B Love Songs

Love Won, Lost & Unrequited
on
HARLEM

This week, Harlem features an entire hour full of rhythm & blues love songs. Whether it's songs about love won, lost or unrequited, Harlem's got it covered. Oh, and what would a love songs show during Valentine's week be without plenty of songs about drinkin', cheatin' and gamblin'? We've got those too. So open up a bottle of Jack Daniel's good ol' Tennessee Whiskey, because this is going to be a long week, on Harlem.

Harlem Airs on The 50s on 5:
Monday 2/12 @ 1pm over NYC
Tuesday 2/13 @ 9pm PST / midnight EST
Friday 2/16 @ 6pm EST
Sunday 2/18 @ 11am EST

Drink up, you lovers!

Matt The Cat

Frankie Laine: Dead At 93

Frankie Laine

1913 - 2007

Iconic crooner, Frankie Laine passed away on Tuesday, February 6, 2007 at the age of 93. His death has been blamed on complications from a recent hip replacement surgery. Laine's career took off at the tail end of 1946, when Mercury Records released "That's My Desire". This song would become a must for 1950s vocal groups to know and master. Versions by Hadda Brooks, Dion and The Belmonts, The Channels and The Flamingos still sound great today, as does Frankie Laine's. He had several number one records in the late 40s, into the 1950s, including "Mule Train" and "The Cry Of The Wild Goose". He left Mercury for Mitch Miller and Columbia Records. "The Moonlight Gambler", "Hey Joe", "Jezebel" and other great hits would follow.

Laine had a voice that was so versatile, he could sing ballads, jazz, R&B and pop. He sang with such power and passion, that I would place him right next to Johnny Ray and Elvis Presley as a singer and entertainer. Even though he had largely been retired and inactive since the mid 1980s, his loss in the music world will most surely be felt.

Yes, he was 93, but it's still very sad to see another great star of the 1950s pass on. Frankie's up in heaven now chasing "That Lucky Ol' Sun", while the rest of us are left down here with just his memory and his records to enjoy.

-Matt The Cat

Harlem: Week of 2/5/07

This week, HARLEM is co-hosted by BILLY VERA!!

Billy Vera joins Matt The Cat as HARLEM takes a satellite ride out to Central Avenue in Los Angeles. Jump n' jive at the Dunbar Hotel, The Last Word and Ivie's Chicken Shack as HARLEM features an hour of the best of Los Angeles rhythm & blues from the doo wop harmony of The Medallions and Jesse Belvin to the down-home R&B of Floyd Dixon and Richard Berry. Billy Vera shares some memorable stories while Matt The Cat screams a lot, this week on HARLEM.


HARLEM airs on the 50s on 5:
Monday 2/5 @ 10am over Roscoe's Chicken & Waffles in Long Beach
Tuesday Night 2/6 @ 9pm over LOS ANGELES
Friday Afternoon 2/9 @ 3pm over Watts
Sunday morning 2/11 @ 8am over Hollywood