Why 1979 was the best year for music, featuring Edgar Wright and Julia Cumming

Why 1979 was the best year for music, featuring Edgar Wright and Julia Cumming

OK, this Snap Crackle POP! is a DOOZY. For this show, my live in-studio guests (for the first 1 hour and 15 minutes of the 2-hour show, at least) are singer/songwriter/bassist Julia Cumming [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Julia_Cumming] from Sunflower Bean [https://www.sunflowerbeanband.com/] whose 2026 debut solo album Julia is blowing [https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/julia-cumming-julia/] people [https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-features/julia-cumming-sunflower-bean-solo-album-interview-1235541488/] away [https://www.standard.co.uk/culture/music/julia-cumming-sunflower-bean-solo-album-b1280503.html], and legendary film director Edgar Wright [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edgar_Wright] who, believe it or not, I do not talk about movies with here at all. Why? Because we are all there to talk about our shared thesis - that 1979 is the best year for music EVER - and we are letting out GEEK. FLAGS. FLY. This is a must listen, people.  Up The Junction – Squeeze Lucky Number – Lene Lovich Hit Me with Your Rhythm Stick – Ian Dury & The Blockheads One Step Beyond – Madness Ring My Bell – Anita Ward Regiment – David Byrne & Brian Eno Beat the Clock – Sparks Is She Really Going Out With Him? – Joe Jackson Making Plans for Nigel – XTC Pop Muzik – M Dance Away – Roxy Music  Street Life – Randy Crawford & The Crusaders I Don’t Like Mondays – The Boomtown Rats  52 Girls - The B-52s Kid – The Pretenders Clampdown – The Clash  Good Times – Chic (w/ brief excerpt of “Rapper’s Delight” by The Sugarhill Gang) Swan Lake (Death Disco)/Radio 4 – P.I.L. (partial) Video Killed the Radio Star – The Buggles 'Nuff Said.

Breaking Up (and Fundraising) is Hard To Do

Sigh. This was supposed to be a "Catch a Wave" week fundraiser for WPKN, with the great Dawn Eden Goldstein joining me for the first half and the legendary Rob Silber joining me for the second half. Dawn came up with the idea of playing break-up songs as a theme within the "we need money" theme. Well, I mean, it was a fundraiser, but we didn't get a single donation during my shift, though. It would do me (and our brilliant radio station!) a tremendous amount of good if you donated to WPKN here [https://www.wpkn.org/donate] in honor of Snap Crackle POP... so: Please?   --------------------------------------------- Catch A Wave – The Beach Boys You're Gonna Miss Me – The 13th Floor Elevators Off and Running – Lesley Gore Partially Awesome – Edward O'Connell Alone Again Or – The Damned Shake Hands and Walk Away Cryin' – Lou Christie Valentine's Day – Wild Hares Future Me Hates Me – The Beths So You Say You Lost Your Baby – Gene Clark I'm Not Living Here – Sagittarius The Breakup – Art Garfunkel All I Know – Art Garfunkel Bye Bye Love – The Cars If I Didn't Love You – Squeeze I Summon You – Spoon Lovers Who Wander – Dion Both Sides Now – Judy Collins

Happy (belated) 70th Birthday, Richard Butler!

Song for Hal – U2   A ? of When – Panda Bear & Sonic Boom Feelin' So Good (S.K.O.O.B.Y. D.O.O.) – The Archies Lost & Alone – Aaron Lee Tasjan    Blowin' Up – Kiwi Jr.  All This Disaster – Sarah McLachlan If You Change – Widowspeak     Pretty In Pink – Psychedelic Furs  Radio Free Europe (Jackknife Lee 2025 mix) – R.E.M. Wu-Tang – They Might Be Giants  Eat at Home – Paul & Linda McCartney    Momma Gets By – Paul McCartney It's Over Now – The Beach Boys  What Is Left to Say – Thundercat (feat. The Lemon Twigs) 2 or 3 – The Lemon Twigs    Forgotten (Alternate Version) – Neil Diamond Michigan – Margret Glaspy   Rainbows – Allison Russell  Real Deal – Endearments Pink Lemon – Elder Island   Aht Uh Mi Hed – Shuggie Otis Strawberry Letter 23 – Shuggie Otis

A belated Memorial day radio show, and a tribute to Cynthia Louise Harden (1957-2026)

This show was kind of a "memorial 2-fer". First, it was a belated tribute to Memorial Day; Dawn Eden Goldstein [https://dawneden.blogspot.com/] and I were going to co-host the Snap Crackle POP! WPKN show on the Memorial Day morning of 5/25/26, but due to a family issue we had to re-run the 1/27/26 Beatles REVOLVER special. Secondly, this show served as a memorial of sorts to the memory of Cynthia Louise Harden [https://www.legacy.com/us/obituaries/name/cynthia-harden-obituary?id=61570927], who passed on 5/26/26 - and yes, that was the family issue. Cynthia was the mother of my amazing daughter Julia Cumming [https://www.juliacumming.com/], my partner and co-leader of the '90s pop-rock-rap duo Bite the Wax Godhead [https://bitethewaxgodhead.bandcamp.com/], and... my ex-wife. I am still extremely sad and in shock, even as I write this. I'm not sure I did her memory justice (much less to the brave and women who lost their lives to war) but here it is anyway. I meant well.  =========================================== The Way We Were / Try to Remember – Gladys Knight    Reflections of My Life – The Marmalade Do You Remember Walter? – The Kinks Remember – John Lennon   Here Today – Paul McCartney    As You Lie There – Paul McCartney   Soho Square – Kirsty MacColl Never to Be Forgotten – The Bobby Fuller Four I’ve Got a Broken Heart – The Lemon Twigs Till We Meet Again – The Cheepskates   Galveston – Glen Campbell Ruby, Don't Take Your Love to Town – Kenny Rogers and the First Edition Powderfinger (acoustic) – Neil Young    I Can’t Write Left-Handed (live) – Bill Withers The Green Fields of France – Dropkick Murphys  Between the Wars – Billy Bragg   Old World – The Modern Lovers Rivers of Babylon – The Melodians  Keep On Movin' – Soul II Soul  The Captain of Her Heart – Double    Starlight – Nick Kivlen  Only Love Can Break Your Heart – Neil Young

SEDAKA IS BACK! (again!)

This is a repackaging of two live Snap Crackle POPs from March 2nd and 3rd of this year. The lovely and brilliant Eden Dawn Goldstein joins me for the first half. [All songs performed by Neil Sedaka unless otherwise noted.] That's When the Music Takes Me Stupid Cupid – Connie Francis  The Diary I Go Ape    One Way Ticket (To the Blues) Oh! Carol Oh! Neil – Carole King    Calendar Girl Breaking Up Is Hard to Do I Can't Stay Mad at You – Skeeter Davis  Magic Colors – Lesley Gore   When Love Comes Knockin' (At Your Door) – The Monkees Workin’ on a Groovy Thing Beautiful You   Laughter In the Rain Bad Blood  Anywhere You're Gonna Be (Leba's Song) (Is This the Way To) Amarillo – Tony Christie I'm a Song, Sing Me   Superbird – Neil Sedaka  Solitaire – Neil Sedaka It Hurts to Be in Love – Gene Pitney  Donna – 10cc   Love Will Keep Us Together – The Captain & Tenille Puppet Man – The 5th Dimension     The Hungry Years  Beginning to Breathe Again