Pull Out Friday

After decades of enduring all the engineering attempts devised to improve AM radio, I think I have discovered a simple solution. It is perfect for small market stations and costs no money at all. Installation is simple and does not require referring to a manual or a consulting engineer. Suddenly, your station's fidelity will double. Your signal will sound deep-bodied, full and musical. Even balding grey-haired guys in baseball hats (like myself) will notice the difference!

What could this new solution be? Certainly nothing could be as wonderful as HD Radio. Isn't it amazing how one technology could improve on something as innovative as AM stereo and inspire America to buy all-new radios to hear hundreds of new channels imported from other markets or spewing out music like an iTunes shuffle? (While we are on the subject, can you tell me where I can get an AM HD Radio?)

I know! I know! It's the new FASTROAD QPSK/BPSK data system! (Radios don't reproduce audio under 550 Hz anyway!) Considering AM radio's current fidelity, I might actually need a digital display to remind me I'm listening to Rush Limbaugh. It's another fast road off a cliff in the plummeting demise of AM radio.

My friends, there is hope. Remember when you would pull out a button on your car radio and push it back in to create a preset? That time has come again! Let me rally America's station owners to a new day of freedom and autonomy: Pull Out Friday. On July 1, 2011, let's celebrate our independence from the corporate machine that corrupts and dirties the band we grew up on. AM station owners: Remove your NRSC filters, C-QUAM and IBOC encoders, narrow passband filters and heavy processing. Let AM radio sound just as wideband beautiful as you remember it as a kid! Paraphrasing the old spiritual 'Song of the Contribands:' "Go down, AM, Way down in radio land, Tell old Struble, Let my radio go!"

Moon Humor

The moon is waning. Are your feet wet? Do you need an umbrella?

Thank You, Old Grey Lady!

The New York Times has added a wonderful new feature to its online
editions. Now no effort is necessary to increase your vocabulary. Click on an unknown word and a little bubble with a question mark appears. Click on the question mark and your word is instantly described by a database of The American Heritage Dictionary and Roget's New Thesaurus. What a wonderful gift to those who love language.

Can You Kazoo?

Would you believe I was playing the kazoo on a 50 kilowatt clear channel radio station at 4:30 this morning? It was a duet with the guy on the left! Check out The Steve LeVeille Broadcast on WBZ 1030 weeknights from midnight until 5 am. Too early? Now you have no excuse! Steve LeVeille podcasts are now available at: http://wbz.cbslocal.com/?s=steve+leveille. Listen to the greatest show on earth!

Fun for Fall!

Promises made and promises fulfilled. If you haven’t seen it yet, rush to The Broadway Theatre in Manhattan and catch this gem now! Time will run out at the end of the year when stars Sean Hayes and Kristin Chenoweth move on to the next adventures in their careers. Here is the kind of Broadway show you’ll always remember, but just remember its run ends New Year’s Day!

This may be the perfect show. Burt Bacharach and Hal David composed hit after hit for the score. Two new songs have been added to this revival to boost Cheno’s unforgettable performance. Sean Hayes is simply amazing. He reminds me of Donald O’Connor at his peak – a physical and sharp-witted comedian who can sing and dance just as good as he wants.

Promises, Promises has been transformed into a modern tale for 2010 keeping all the best touches of the original show from the late 1960s. I’m old enough to remember both – and this revival could not be fresher. It’s funny and clever and will touch your heart. I saw it again last weekend and a woman behind me wept at the end (so romantic!) See it for yourself! I loved every minute of it.

Belle Chanteuse Canadienne

You could compare her with Diana Krall or Norah Jones, but she really is like no other. How often do you find someone who can embrace American standards and pop out a commercial hit without missing a beat? Nikki Yanofsky is the princess of silky melodies and lots and lots of fun. Watch her young career mature into possibly the most remarkable star of our generation.

I became aware of Nikki’s talents just before the Vancouver Olympics when Canada’s CTV staged a media blitz on her behalf. Nikki sang the Games’ anthem “I Believe” and represented her native land during the opening ceremonies flawlessly delivering ‘O Canada’ to the world. There she was, in a stunning red dress matching the Canadian flags all around her, before a billion people worldwide. As natural as can be, she performed with big smiles and enthusiasm to the delight of all.

This Spring, her debut solo album became a grand success in North America, Europe and along the Pacific Rim. Some of her most devout fans can be found in France and Japan. Nikki has been touring worldwide and will land in nearby Ridgefield, Connecticut at The Playhouse on Friday night, October 22^nd. Expect to see me there!

I can’t get enough of her sound – a delight to my ears. If her album is not enough, you’ll find many, many clips on line. Really hooked? Nikki’s live concert special for PBS is now available on DVD. The fun is back in music again. Thanks, Nikki!

Head South

After a long winter, wouldn’t a trip to Brazil be refreshing (especially if you are searching for new love?) Next Easter, take a trip to Rio! (It will only cost about ten dollars!) Blue Sky Studios, most famous for the Ice Age trilogy featuring my buddy Scrat, is about to introduce us to a whole new world of feathered friends. Don’t forget to brush up on your samba moves! It’s filled with Brazilian song, dance and vision. Have a great trip!

You’ll meet Blu, a macaw from Minneapolis that decides to travel south of the equator searching for the last girl of his breed. Jewel lives in Rio de Janeiro and it’s a big town with big adventure. The two of them make terrific comedy flying through a brilliantly colored world in 3D. Come on! You don’t want to spend the rest of your life in a cage with just a mirror and a bell, do you? Come to Rio!