[Nancy]

Thanks, Bob. I have passed this along...

[Nancy]

Originally Posted by Bob

After 27 different shows, the "formula" for Playing Favorites is now apparent: The guest host is asked to select ten or so songs and record appropriate introductions and/or followups for those. Then, Sirius inserts additional random material in between the host's selections to fill out the hour (usually different songs for each of the three shows during the week). The problem is that the Sirius selections often do not match those of the guest DJ.

For example, this week, musical theater star Joel Grey chose mostly Broadway and film songs, including some rarely heard material such as the Rosemary Clooney duet "Cherry Pies Ought To Be You" and the Betty Garrett duet "You're Awful" from On The Town. But the Sirius programmer inserted pop songs like "We'll Be Together Again" and "Granada," which didn't really match the mood and style set down by Joel Grey.

What's worse is when they sometimes insert songs in the wrong places. In today's broadcast, Joel Grey introduced "I'll Be Seeing You," but they played "Granada" instead. A similar but different mistake was made earlier in the week. A little more attention to detail by Sirius would make these shows much more enjoyable.

Sorry. I didn't know I would start a new page!

[S V PELUZIO JR]

Do you know if we will have Tom Brokaw again at Sirius? Any reprise?Unfortunately i lost his show.

SV: There have been occasional repeats of the early shows in some weeks, but not many. Since Tom Brokaw was just on two weeks ago, I doubt that we'll hear him again soon. Sorry.

BTW, see post #1 in this thread for the complete list of guest hosts to date.

[S V PELUZIO JR]

Thank you, Bob.
I hope to listen Brokaw´s show again soon.

By the way, i still remember his "NightlyNews", that i watched here on cable frequently. I used to say that listen Brokaw was great to learn and improve english skills.

Originally Posted by Nancy

Thanks, Bob. I have passed this along...

Thank you, Nancy. I don't know if my complaint was the reason, but someone at Sirius seems to have gotten the message.

Today's repeat of Phil Ramone's show was devoid of any extra insertions (usually indicated by song titles in brackets in my listings). It made for a much shorter program (just nine songs and 33 minutes), but the show was much more cohesive and honest. I truly had the feeling I was listening to Phil Ramone's choices and not a computer.

From the Siriusly Sinatra web page:

Julius La Rosa Hosts Playing Favorites
Mon 4/14 6:00 pm ET

This week, legendary entertainer Julius La Rosa stops in to hand pick an hour’s worth of Frank favorites. Julius remembers seeing Frank live in the ‘40s at the Paramount and buying the Columbia 78s. He fondly recalls the great Capitol sides, as well. And get ready for a visit from actress Marilu Henner, on next week’s Playing Favorites.

Rebroadcasts: Thurs., April 17th @ 3 pm ET & Sat., April 19th @ 12 pm ET.

Show #29 — Julius La Rosa: Apr. 14–19, 2008

1. My Funny Valentine
2. I've Got A Crush On You (Columbia)
3. I Get A Kick Out Of You (Reprise)
4. I've Got You Under My Skin (Capitol)
5. Just One Of Those Things
6. Witchcraft (Reprise)
7. In The Wee Small Hours Of The Morning (Capitol)
8. One For My Baby
9. Ol' Man River (Columbia)
10. Swinging On A Star
11. I'm Gonna Sit Right Down And Write Myself A Letter (Capitol)
12. I Concentrate On You (Columbia)
13. I Concentrate On You (Capitol)
14. Well, Did You Evah? (with Bing Crosby)

[David B.]

I really enjoyed Julius La Rosa's contributions this week. The combination of his enthusiasm as an early and longtime fan and his insider knowledge of what Frank brought to the poetry of popular music was a treat.

And I loved that he demonstrated the difference between the way an American musical great like Cole Porter orignally wrote some of his songs vs the way another American musical great, Frank Sinatra, molded Porter's work around his own strengths.

I had never heard that done on a tribute program before. Good stuff.

This week, on Julius La Rosa's show, there were no "extra" songs inserted by Sirius. Each and every song played was introduced specifically by the host. This is a big improvement over past practice, and I hope it continues.

However, listening to the replay today, I noticed that one song ("Witchcraft") was reordered and inserted much later in the program than during the first broadcast. This leads me to wonder how much direction the hosts have in determining the sequencing. (I must admit that, in this particular case, the song fit better in its replay position.)

From the Siriusly Sinatra web page:

Marilu Henner Hosts Playing Favorites
Mon 4/21 6:00 pm ET

Hear actress Marilu Henner share her picks of the Sinatra music she loves best along with anecdotes from her life with Frank’s music as the soundtrack. It’s an hour with a delightful woman who has great taste in music... and only on Siriusly Sinatra. Next week: Jazz singer Dianne Reeves!

Rebroadcasts: Thurs., April 24th @ 3 pm ET & Sat., April 26th @ 12 pm ET.

Show #30 — Marilu Henner: Apr. 21–26, 2008

1. Chicago (That Toddlin' Town) - Capitol 1957
2. Fly Me To The Moon - Reprise 1964
3. High Hopes (with "A Bunch of Kids") - Capitol 1959
4. Luck Be A Lady - Live 1966
5. What Are You Doing The Rest Of Your Life? - Reprise 1974
6. The Lady Is A Tramp - Capitol 1956
7. Bewitched, Bothered And Bewildered - Reprise 1963
8. Witchcraft - Reprise 1963
9. Summer Wind - Reprise 1966
10. Come Blow Your Horn - Reprise 1963
11. I've Got You Under My Skin - Capitol 1956
12. My Kind Of Town - Reprise 1964

[jimsully]

a very nice episode with Marilu. some nice comments and good selections of songs
what are you doing the rest of you life- She said she saw him rehearsing this for the jerry lewis telethon- I didnt think he ever sang it on the telethon Did he?

this is a great song
and of course the summer wind and my kind of town are perfect songs too

nice job marilu

thanks

I agree she did a nice job, Jim.

(You're correct that FS never sang "What Are You Doing..." on the Telethon.)

From the Siriusly Sinatra web page:

Dianne Reeves Hosts Playing Favorites
Mon 4/28 6:00 pm ET

This week, join jazz singer Dianne Reeves as she plays her favorite Sinatra performances. We'll hear some Basie, some Jobim, some ballads and some swingin' sessions. Dianne's taste is as broad as Frank's catalog of recordings.

Rebroadcasts: Thurs 5/1 3:00 pm ET, Sat 5/3 12:00 pm ET.

Show #31 — Dianne Reeves: Apr. 28–May 3, 2008

1. Come Fly With Me
2. Quiet Nights Of Quiet Stars (Corcovado)
3. I Won't Dance [with Count Basie Orchestra]
4. You're Getting To Be A Habit With Me
5. They Can't Take That Away From Me
6. Indian Summer [with Duke Ellington Orchestra]
7. I've Got The World On A String
8. I Wish You Love [with Count Basie Orchestra & strings]
9. Cheek To Cheek
10. You Make Me Feel So Young
11. I Get A Kick Out Of You
12. I've Got A Crush On You

[Jersey Lou]

Wait until you hear next week's Playing Favorites. It's the extended, fully blown out Phil Ramone show. It starts just like the one you might have heard a few weeks back but it keeps going past where thay one ended. Phil takes us through the 70's up to the Duets sessions. It's a rare treat to have one of Frank's producers/engineers in our studio and we were thrilled to have Phil in....twice...to make some memories. Don't miss this one.

And the next week....Sal and Joe from Patsy's Restaurant in NYC tell stories that only they can. You'll smell the marinara coming through the radio on this one.

We're excited about these upcoming PF shows and hope you love them, too!

Thanks for the previews, Lou. Looking forward to the new shows!

[SinatraFan]

Yeah... thanks for the info., Lou! I'm looking forward to the shows.

From the Siriusly Sinatra web page:

Phil Ramone Hosts Playing Favorites
Mon 5/5 6:00 pm ET

This week, record producer Phil Ramone returns to Playing Favorites. If you heard his show a few weeks ago, you only heard the beginning of Phil's recollections. We asked him to come back and finish the story ... and did he ever! For those who missed it, we'll start the show at the beginning with Phil's earliest recollections of hearing Frank's music. Then, we'll let him take us from the ‘40s through the '60s when they first met ... right up into the '80s and the Duets sessions.

Rebroadcasts: Thurs., May 8th @ 3 pm ET & Sat., May 10th @ 12 pm ET.