John Richards

Good morning, happy Friday, and welcome to the all-request version of The Morning Show with John Richards! Let us know via text (206-903-5397) or email (dj@kexp.org) what you would like to hear today! We're so glad you're here! -- Hi John, Just got tickets to see the National. Will be my son's first real concert (he saw Dude York with me at Kexp 100,000 yrs ago, pre pandemic). Will be my first time seeing them live as well. So stoked! Could you get anything by them on today? Appreciate all KEXP represents for this city! Cheers, Marc -- The National will be at Marymoor Park on Sunday, June 4th,, 2023.

"There are hints of early grunge here, but the track still finds its home sitting snugly amongst the high energy, ready-for-radio material of the late 1980s...." Enjoy this "Celebrate Boston" tribute to "Dig for Fire": www.celebrateboston.com -- Watch the Pixies performing at KEXP in 2014! bit.ly Then watch the Pixies play this track in in Brazil in 2010: bit.ly

Tim, who's never made a request before, said, "Trio, "Da Da Da ich lieb dich nicht du liebst mich nicht aha aha aha" (yes that's what Spotify says the name is, and it is, I even looked it up." -- A hit in Europe in 1982, "Da Da Da" became popular 15 years later in America when it was used in a Volkswagen commercial. After the commercial started running, US radio stations began getting requests for this song. They had a hard time finding it, as it was only available on an obscure collection: Sedated In The '80s, Volume 3.

This is the band's cover of The Go-Go's 1981 hit. It was co-written by Jane Wiedlin and Terry Hall, singer of the Specials and Fun Boy Three. Fun Boy Three were an English new wave pop band, active from 1981 to 1983 and formed by singers Terry Hall, Neville Staple and Lynval Golding after they left the Specials. Terry Hall died on December 18, 2022, from pancreatic cancer at the age of 63.

Thanks, Craig (in Portland), for this fine request! -- This is a wonderful mashup of Bruce Springsteen's "Dancing in the Dark" and LCD Soundsystem's "All My Friends." -- Give yourself some dancing room when you watch Hot Chip perform this one live in Glastonbury in 2015: youtu.be

The Rapture are a New York based dance-punk outfit comprising guitarist/vocalist Luke Jenner, drummer Vito Roccoforte and multi-instrumentalist Gabriel Andruzzi. -- "In The Grace of Your Love" was released in 2011, following a five year hiatus during which Jenner attended church regularly and sang in its choir. "I got really into gospel and its big, uplifting vocals. That's what I'm trying to do on 'How Deep Is Your Love' - it's my interpretation of gospel music. Some of those songs are prayers, literally. The subject matter is bigger than myself and trying to communicate with that universe, or whatever you want to call it: God. Being in the church choir was really cool -- I got involved with some cool music." You can see those influences in the video: tps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AoedK3XcoBE

Recognize that voice? That's Wayne Coyne of The Flaming Lips with Steven Drozd on backing vocals. Coyne said about The Chemical Brothers: "I love that band; they are one of the greatest inventions of our day." Coyne recalls about the recording process of his band's vocals: "We recorded our part very quickly, almost flippantly, like we'd get a second chance. Then Tom and Ed left a message within 20 minutes of receiving the tape. You could hear them jumping up and down in the background, shouting 'We're ecstatic.'"

Noah Lennox, aka Panda Bear explained in a 2009 interview: "I'm not big on possessions but, for some reason, being the owner of a space, a safe house for my wife and my daughter, has become the most important thing for me, for better or worse." -- Watch Animal Collective perform "My Girls" live at Coachella in 2008: www.youtube.com

That choir is the 40-piece New York Choral Society. -- "The Sisters Of Mercy mixed goth with Meat Loaf—and turned it into gold..." Read a tribute to this song (and see the video): www.avclub.com

Beck and Phoenix will be on their "Summer Odyssey" tour at Climate Pledge Arena on Tuesday, August 1st, 2023. -- Beck said in 2017: "My new song 'Colors' is about looking around and seeing what's around you. As bad as things are, or they get, we still have this world. We still have each other, and there is that refrain in the song, 'do you feel alive?' And sometimes, when you're in the grind of it, music is one of those things. There are many things, but music is one of those things that reminds me ... these songs makes me feel alive. I think of artists that give me feeling [like] Stevie Wonder, or the Beatles, or Michael Jackson, and many, many more. Some of the greatest music ever made is that piece of music that reminds you of the beauty of being alive."

Can we get some Lyrics Born "callin out" this snowy Utah morning? Thanks for all you guys do and helping us these last few years. I would have been lost without some music You guys were like best friends I could count on when everything seemed like it was going to hell. -- Tsutomu "Tom" Shimura, better known by his stage name Lyrics Born, is a rapper and producer. He is one half of the duo Latyrx with Lateef the Truthspeaker. Follow him on his Facebook page: www.facebook.com

That's producer Scott Litt on harmonica, drums, and background vocals.

Ahhh....the Friday song. (Great request, Henry!) Beginning February 1st, KEXP presents a new podcast, "50 Years of Hip-Hop," hosted by Larry Mizell, Jr.: www.kexp.org

R.I.P., Dave Greenfield, keyboardist of The Stranglers, who died in 2020 of COVID. He was 71.: www.nytimes.com

"With singed eyelashes And a humming in our ears.... And silver-colored tears... And soot in our eyes...." lyricstranslate.com -- Here are some "different clips put together after a weekend in Sunnmøre (Norway)" with accompaniment from this Icelandic band: www.youtube.com

Fontaines D.C. will be at Climate Pledge Arena (with Arctic Monkeys) on Friday, September 22nd, 2023. -- This song was inspired by the late Margaret Keane. Keane lived in Coventry for most of her life before passing at age 73, and had originally planned to have the Irish epitaph “In ár gCroithe go deo” – which translates as “in our hearts forever” – engraved on her headstone. However, a court of the Church of England ruled that the Gaelic phrase could be interpreted as “political” or “provocative” if displayed without an English translation. The decision sparked widespread anger among the Irish community and in response, Fontaines D.C., wrote ‘Skinty Fia’’s opener ‘In ár gCroíthe go deo’ (“Gone is the day/ Gone is the night”) in response to the decision.

In an online essay, singer-songwriter David Falkner writes that this is actually one of his favorite songs: "Whenever I’m asked to name a favorite of my songs I usually choose this one, not because I think it’s “the best” but because it best captures everything I try to do when writing any song. I wouldn’t change a note or a syllable of this one and I’m especially proud that it has two different choruses when one is usually enough." -- They sang it live in Sydney in 2009: www.youtube.com

Their original name was the Sherbert Monsters...Which do you prefer? -- "Inside Out" is a minefield of sparkling pop hooks -- finger-snapping percussion, toe-tapping guitars, and a chorus so catchy that one listen to the song can turn into an addiction." bit.ly

They named themselves Inspiral Carpets after a clothing shop in their hometown of Oldham in Greater Manchester. Here's a biography of this fixture in the "Madchester" scene: www.amoeba.com -- There's a convertible, wild Hawaiian shirts, ....and a rocket... in the video for "Saturn 5": www.youtube.com

Adam wrote this song when dealing with an everlasting intrusion by the press. They were always asking about his personal life, which was great fodder for the tabloids. Adam Ant was a very intriguing character with a colorful past, and while he sought out attention for his act, he preferred to keep his personal life private. He said, "Goody Two Shoes was a sort of answer back manifesto and just trying to keep things level-headed because I felt that, and still do, to a degree, that going on stage is creating an illusion. It's magical and it's wonderful and I love doing it, but off stage there has to be time out."

Bassist and lead vocalist for the band Chris Ballew came up with the song when he was cleaning his room while listening to a mixtape of various recordings he made. In one of them, he sang the song’s outro (Is this lump out of my head? I think so.) and wrote the song around that. -- This song is featured on the album, "Live at KEXP, Volume 10." 100% of the proceeds will go directly to the artists. kexp.bandcamp.com

"It's about nothing, really," CVB's David Lowery said. "But it's one of those songs that the more you repeat the mantra the more you understand it." -- "Everyday I get up and pray to Jah And he increases the number of clocks By exactly one..." Be sure to memorize these lyrics; genius.com

For whatever reason I've been hung up on Fugazi as of late. Would be nice to hear something from them, please. Thanks John & Owen. ~ Dallas in Delaware Here you go, Dallas! -- This song was originally released in 1989 on Fugazi's debut ep! "I am a patient boy..." If you have enough patience, you can listen to these 10 (!) covers of "Waiting Room," including by Rancid and Jimmie's Chicken Shack: www.verbicidemagazine.com

The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion were live in the KEXP studio back in 2011: www.youtube.com

Oh, my, watch a rare live performance of Kate Bush performing this classic at the Brit Awards in 1986: vimeo.com

All Hail the Queen was Queen Latifah's debut album. Feminist anthem "Ladies First" remains one of her signature songs. AMC’s Hip Hop: The Songs That Shook America is a docu-series that focuses on six individual rap songs that changed the genre. The season finale focuses on Queen Latifah and Monie Love’s masterpiece “Ladies First”: www.okayplayer.com

De La Soul announced they’ll be releasing their entire discography on streaming platforms this year, to celebrate the 34th anniversary of ‘3 Feet High And Rising’. -- The song is built on the drum beat from Double Dee and Steinski’s “Lesson 3” – which itself is a sample of Led Zeppelin’s “The Crunge." Here are the other songs that were sampled.: www.whosampled.com

Hi John, I live in Seattle but I’m listening to the morning show in Kelowna British Columbia right now. My dad passed away 7 months ago, mom sold our family home and today is the final push… Here I am power cleaning the kitchen for one final time. It’s a sad day, saying goodbye to 50 years of memories at this beautiful place….the house is empty and has fantastic acoustics, so if you have a chance to play anything by Beastie Boys to get us through the mopping and scrubbing, I will crank it! Thank you Laura -- The song has been described as a tribute to Jimi Hendrix by Beastie Boys member MCA, and contains samples from several Hendrix songs including "Foxy Lady", "Happy Birthday", and "Still Raining, Still Dreaming".

Hmmm...didn't we just hear this into? -- Cheap Trick guitarist-songwriter Rick Nielsen recalled that when he wrote it, he had to "go back and put myself in the head of a 14-year-old." This song contains one of the more famous key changes in rock. According to Rick Nielsen, the song begins in B flat, goes to B for two verses, then changes key to C around 2:15 as Robin Zander sings, "Whatever happened to all this season's losers of the year..."

See Beyonce perform "Freedom" live at the BET Awards in 2016: www.youtube.com

Often referred to as "The Black National Anthem," Lift Every Voice and Sing was a hymn written as a poem by NAACP leader James Weldon Johnson in 1900. His brother, John Rosamond Johnson (1873-1954), composed the music for the lyrics. A choir of 500 schoolchildren at the segregated Stanton School, where James Weldon Johnson was principal, first performed the song in public in Jacksonville, Florida to celebrate President Abraham Lincoln's birthday. -- Here are the lyrics: naacp.org

R.I.P., Christine McVie, who died last year at the age of 79: www.theguardian.com

I turned 30 on Tuesday but it felt better to share that today! Thanks for all y'all at KEXP, especially John for not only showing me new music but reminding me of the songs I have always been obsessed with but haven't listened to enough. Can we hear Transmission by Joy Division? Cheers! --Matt -- Peter Hook: “Transmission” started with the bass line, turned into our first hit record, and it’s a very very simple chord sequence, very effective. You can hear that youth, that you’re a punk and you mean it in the bass riff, which is obviously the most important thing in the world." -- The official music video begins with video of Hook playing that bass line: www.youtube.com

Hi John, and Happy Friday!! Any chance Lazy Eye by Silversun Pickups can find it’s way into the set list today? Either way, we have the music turned up and are dancing our way through this sunny day in Philly. Thank you! --Michelle (PhillyShell) -- See a live performance of this great song in the KEXP studio in 2015: www.youtube.com

Heartworms' debut album will be out on March 24th. Enjoy this interview with Heartworms' Jojo Orme: www.nme.com -- Watch the mud-drenched video for this single "Retributions Of An Awful Life.":www.youtube.com

"Lux Prima" — a meeting of minds between the punk queen and the shape-shifting avant-funk producer Brian " Danger Mouse" Burton— feels like the work of two kindred spirits. As Karen says, “Brian is as masculine as you get, but I just dragged him along my journey to the Divine Feminine.”: www.rollingstone.com

Did you know that Le Tigre has announced their first tour in 18 years? They'll be at The Paramount Theatre on Thursday, July 6th, 2023.: consequence.net The track "Deceptacon" references Barry Mann's 1961 single "Who Put the Bomp (in the Bomp, Bomp, Bomp)" by asking "Who took the Bomp from the Bompalompalomp?". It denounces a decline in meaningful lyrics in rock music. Kathleen Hanna expressed frustration that riot grrrl had been transformed into icons like the Spice Girls.

Bettie Serveert were formed in Amsterdam and existed briefly in 1986 when De Artsen members Peter Visser (guitar) and Herman Bunskoeke (bass) quit their band to join up with Canadian-born vocalist Carol van Dijk, whose family moved to the Netherlands when she was a child.: www.allmusic.com --

Allmusic describes them as a "Washington, D.C. indie pop band from the 1990s; combined in equal measure punk energy, twee melodies, and avant weirdness.": www.allmusic.com

Go behind the lyrics of this wonderful song: americansongwriter.com Watch this classic R.E.M. video for "It’s the End of the World as We Know It (and I Feel Fine)": youtu.be

Hi John, I wanted to say thank you for giving new meaning to songs that we have all known for so long. I was having a pretty terrible day earlier this week and "Get What You Give" came on the radio and I just felt this immediate weight lifted off of me. It's a song I've heard for many years and never really gave it too much thought (aside from the great music video and the bucket hats) but now the message of your show and this big weird, amazing community, I hear it differently. It gives me a renewed sense of hope, so thank you for that. Much love, --Sam from Pittsburgh -- . In an interview, U2 lead guitarist the Edge is quoted saying "You Get What You Give" is the song he is "most jealous of. I really would love to have written that."