Michael Gaither’s Songs And Stories
New series airs weekends on KC Cafe Radio
Monday, March 1, 2010 – KC Cafe Radio announces the addition of Michael Gaither's "Songs And Stories" podcast series to its programming lineup. The program will air Saturdays at 9 a.m., and Sundays at 6 p.m. Eastern Time beginning March 6th.
The series, which recently celebrated its third anniversary, stems from Gaither's past as a journalist. "I used to be a journalist for the local paper, the Santa Cruz Sentinental." Gaither said. "I've always done writing, and I have been a songwriter for about 8 years. When I started my website about five years ago, it seemed awfully narcissistic. So, I put a blog on the front page and I talked about songs I was working on. Then I started reviewing other CDs. After my first CD came out, someone suggested I do a podcast."
It didn't take long for Gaither's journalistic roots to take hold, which assisted him in developing his new podcast. "I did a few episodes where I picked apart a few of my songs, told the stories behind them." he said. "Then I thought, I used to interview other performers for the newspaper, and now that I am a performer, maybe I can give a different spin on it. So, I went around and interviewed a few local people that I knew so I could get comfortable with it. And then when somebody rolled through town that I liked I would contact them, and it went from there."
It was during this experimental phase in podcasting, when Gaither came up with the series title. "At first it was mostly interviews," he said. "Then it became 'well, while you're here, play us a couple of songs, tell us the stories behind them,' and that became 'Songs And Stories'."
With more than 85 episodes under his belt, Gaither has acquired quite a bit of experience, both as an interviewer and producer of his podcast. Still, according to Gaither, the best plan for his show is to not necessarily have a plan at all. "Usually I have no questions prepared," he suggested. "If I don't know the person at all I may have one opening question, and then we just go from there. So it's really an informal chat between a couple of songwriters."
John Dutton, Operations Director for KC Cafe radio said the addition of "Songs And Stories" to the station's lineup is a perfect fit. "It really makes sense if you think about it," Dutton said. "Since the beginning, almost two years ago, we have always been about discovering unique, original, never-before-heard music. Many of the musicians Michael has interviewed are already playing on the station, and we are looking forward to discovering even more new music through the show."
The series begins running on KC Cafe Radio beginning March 6th with the most recent episode in the series. Since the show is produced on a bi-weekly basis, broadcast of the program will then alternate between the most recent program, and an archive selection for the following weeks.
The entire series of podcasts are also available from Gaither's website, www.michaelgaither.com.
Recently, John Dutton talked with Michael Gaither about the podcast series, and his music:
Listen To The Interview Here (20:52):
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Download The Interview Here (19.1 MB)
Music By Michael Gaither On KC Cafe Radio:
New Music On KC Cafe Radio (February 23, 2010)
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Batdorf & McLean: Don't You Know
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Batdorf & Rodney: Still Burnin'
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Delvek: Dec-O-Dents
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Hans York: Young Amelia
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Hans York: Inside Out
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Matt Muldoon: Hoolymungo
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Martin Gangl: Conjuring The Muse
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Rich O'Brien: Under The Kansas Sky
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Glenn Butterhorn: Sugar In My Coffee Ooh
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Terry Holder: Colored Rooms
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Terry Holder: Am I Here Is This Me
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Red Reyne: Moment That Will Do
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Thej CSL Jr. Band: Voice Of The Heart
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Romeo Soler: Over And Over
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Lee Tyler Post: Emancipate
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Callel: Body Discovery
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Butch And Sundance
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KC Cafe Performing Artist Appears In Oscar-Nominated Film
Tuesday February 2, 2010 – The Oscar-nominated film Up In The Air starring George Clooney includes an appearance from a rather unique individual, that at first glance, may not be all that familiar with KC Cafe Radio fans.
However, if we were to tell you that this talented individual appears as "Ruby Falls" in the KC Cafe Radio Performing Artist band Alacartoona, the connection becomes a little more clear.
Actually, Erin McGrane considers herself as much a singer as she does an actor. And her work with Alacartoona features a unique combination of both. She calls her appearances with the group (which includes McGrane, Christian Hankel, Kyle Dahlquist and Gregg Jackson) "theatrical music," which takes the form of a cabaret-style performance.
For the movie, McGrane plays the role of a former love interest of Clooney's character, Ryan Bingham. In the scene, which lasts a total of about 40 seconds, McGrane's character enters Bingham's Omaha apartment, apparently to drop off some mail, but takes advantage of the opportunity to inform Bingham that she is now seeing someone else, which elicits very little reaction from Bingham. It may be a brief appearance, however the scene is a significant character building moment in the film.
A 1990 graduate of the University of Missouri Kansas City Theater program, McGrane has also appeared in several independent film projects, and most recently in a You Tube series called "Unreal Housewives of KC."
McGrane says she is looking forward to continuing her work in both film, and theatrically through Alacartoona. She doesn't rule out the possibility of travel in her future however, and says she would be open to working with artists all over the world.
Music By Alacartoona on KC Cafe Radio:
