Talk Radio - Plunging Right In

It was only a week and a half ago when Kevin O'Connor, our program director here at 102.3 The Wolf, asked me if I could step in at least temporarily to host the 6-9 a.m. morning show on our sister station WXLM, a news/talker at 980 AM. Within days, I was filling the time slot just vacated by Lee Elci. A new FM news talker in the market had given Lee an offer he felt he couldn't pass up. Thanks to Lee and WXLM management, the departure was on good terms. That being said, some decisions have to be made about the long term direction of the WXLM morning show. I've always been proud to be a "go to guy" who can be counted on to come through in a pinch, and I've indicated an interest in staying with the show beyond the status of temporary guest host. That is management's call, and I can respect whatever they decide. Whether it lasts long term or a couple of weeks, I am not trying to fill Lee's shoes. As he said, his show took years to evolve. It's the person who makes the position, not the other way around. The fans who want to follow Lee down the dial will do that. We hope listeners will continue to turn to WXLM as a leading choice for news and talk, and I'll do what I can to insure that. I know there's a lot of on the job training involved and three hours is a lot of time for me to talk, but news guy Nick Giuliano is great at chiming in as an important part of the show. I look forward to adding a few guests in studio and hope more folks will pick up the phone and interact. For now, we take it day by day as I continue to find new horizons in this hobby of mine gone haywire called radio. Listen online at www.wxlm.fm.

She Could Have Had It All

The music industry grieved at the loss of one icon while recognizing its newest superstar at Sunday's Grammy Awards. While not a big awards show fan, I found myself riveted to it for at least an hour. Whitney Houston's career peaked some twenty years before her death last weekend at a still young 48, but her volume of work in the eighties and early nineties was enough to make her music's most honored female performer. She was all over the radio back then. Bad press seemed to dominate her life since she began her tumultuous and drug-filled relationship with Bobby Brown, but she did take responsibility for her bad choices. Few of her hits seem to get airplay these days. That may change for awhile as people remember her meteoric rise and protracted fall. No one can forget her rendition of the Star Spangled Banner at the 1991 Super Bowl. I can't help but think of her hit "Didn't We Almost Have It All" when reflecting on her talent and beauty combined with a dysfunctional personal life. The rise was not worth this tragic fall. At the same time, Adele swept the Grammys. The first time I heard "Underneath the Deep" I knew it would be the top song of the year. It was another song about almost having it all. Her "60 Minutes" interview gave us a chance to know something about the woman behind the voice. The interview left me with the impression that Adele would be fine even if her throat condition had left her without that gift of a voice. Let's hope so.

She Nailed It

Madonna at Super Bowl Halftime show

Super Bowl 46 in Indianapolis proved to be a spectacle with the New York Giants defeating the New England Patriots 21-17. For all the attention garnered by Eli Manning, Tom Brady and company, the blogosphere was abuzz with everyone's opinion of Madonna's performance at Halftime. There are people out there, mostly guys, who will never understand the hype surrounding the Material Girl.   They charged her with lip synching as if nobody else has ever done that at a Super Bowl.   I think she actually sang, but how can a little technical enhancement be avoided in a production that big?   Madonna does everything in a big way, and that's just the point.   Music purists may cringe, but the dancing and scale of the show were exactly what you also expect from Madonna and her entourage.    Give a 54-year-old icon credit for doing cartwheels.   I'm not much older, but I have enough problems touching my toes.