I was raised on the Blues. My dad had it playing in the garage in our house in Toledo, working on old Chevy's and Oldsmobiles from the 1950s. This was in the 70's mind you, but it was the blues of the 50s and 60s that raised me.

One holiday season my dad was late coming home from work. Turns out he was wishing Happy New Year to the owner of the store down the street from his own, who sold pool tables and jukeboxes. My dad knew he was late, and that my mom was waiting for him so they could head out to a holiday party thrown by who-knows-who? I was young, like five.


The story goes that my dad knew he was late, and he couldn't come home late empty-handed, so he purchased a jukebox, had it loaded up with 50 blues and R&B 45s and brought it home, so my mom wouldn't be as angry as she was absolutely going to be anyway. And yes, she was, thank you for asking.
Anyway, my dad comes home stinking drunk, or so my five year self, and 50 year old memory wants to believe, come stumbling up the driveway, sees my mom standing at the door, hand on hip, glaring at him for being two hours late (you can see that I have no real reason to believe this happened any other way), and my dad looks at her throw beer bottle goggles and proclaims in a beautiful drunken stupor "I bought a big record player" and then hit the floor.

God, how I want this story to be exactly how it has been colored to me over the years.

That jukebox was in our family room in one house, the rumpus room of another. What the hell is a rumpus room? Is that a thing still? Was it a thing, ever? It ended up in my bedroom by the time I was 8. That thing scared the hell out of me when I would see it in the dark of my bedroom. I thought it was the robot of Lost in Space. It looked nothing like it, but I was 8, with a vivid imagination, which I still have, thankfully.

It was the music in that machine that made the biggest impact on my young life. If I were to host a full time daily Blues radio show, that would make my life complete.

Tonight's show is all about the Blues. This first hour features the fire and brimstone of Big Mama Mae Thornton in all her 300 pound glory. This is a great soundboard recorded live in Berkeley, CA in 1970, possibly at the Berkeley Folk Festival at the Greek Theater.
The second hour features what might be my all-time favorite John Lee Hooker show. This is recorded live for WXRT at Wise Fools Club in Chicago, IL.

Here's John Lee Hooker laying down some nasty blues/boogie in front of a very enthusiastic Chicago audience. Hooker and his band are clearly feeding off the energy in the room and turn in a blazing performance in return. It's
obvious from listening that the room is quite small and one can imagine how exciting it must have been watching a blues legend work his magic in such an intimate setting.

Enjoy.

jh

When I was in my early teens, I heard The Doors for the first time, or at least it's the first time the resonated with me. I'm sure it was "Light My Fire". And regardless of its status as a FM radio hit for the band, that song blazes hot! Robbie Krieger's blistering guitar lines. Ray Manzarek's hypnotic keyboard/bass runs. John Densmore's jazz sylings. And all of this topped with the man who wanted to "take you higher", Jim Morrison.

How couldn't a young, impressionable teen be hooked? I ate up this band. I am certain I owned all of the
Morrison-led Doors LPs within a year, and wore them all out by two. I read "No One Here Gets Out Alive", by Jerry Hopkins and didn't care if half of the stories were rumor and conjecture. I was working at Tower Records in San Mateo, which had a Tower Books next door, when the two volumes of Morrison's poetry were published. Hot damn, I bought those up and devoured them overnight.
I was happily getting stoned, watching the "Live at the Hollywood Bowl" concert film. I actually saw some of it again recently, and surprised myself how I recalled so much the banter between songs. Morrison was such an instigator, wasn't he?

I read John Densmore's book "Riders on the Storm" when it came out, and regardless of how angry he obviously has been over the years, the stories are great.

And to top it all off, I was an extra in The Doors film, by Oliver Stone! That was a trip. No pun intended. The indoor concert scenes were filmed at The Warfield in San Francisco, and the outdoor concert scenes were filmed at the Pulgas Water Temple in San Mateo county. I have a very vivid memory of being pulled to a set that was made to look like the backstage of a concert, where the band was going to come from their limo, head into the theater, and straight onto the stage. I was one of about 20 extras that were supposed to be clamoring for Morrison, played by Val Kilmer, as he drunkenly stumbled onto the stage while holding onto his girlfriend Pamela, played by Meg Ryan. In the film this lasted all of about 10 seconds. It took about six hours to film.
In between takes I would rouse the extras and other stagehands into singing theme
songs from shows like "The Brady Bunch", and "The Jetsons". More than once I caught both Kilmer and Ryan laughing about the goings on. I got to meet them both, as well as Oliver Stone. What a trip.


Both Krieger and Mazarek were at the Warfield shoots. It's Robbie Krieger's hands used in the closeups
during the live shows.

My mother swears she can see me in the concert scenes. I can guarantee you cannot see me in this film. It was a fun though. I think I still have the t-shirt they gave us for being an extra. I did get paid too, and it actually gave me a chance to get my SAG card, which I did not. Hmmmm. Why didn't I do that? Oh yeah, I was a broke radio DJ, who didn't want to try my hand at being a broke actor. That's it.
For tonight's bootleg bonanza, I offer you two, count them two shows. Well, actually one show, and one private recording. The first 70 minutes features a stellar set from the Aquarius Theater in Hollywood, July 21, 1969. Hot damn, this is a great show! WOW! The balance of the show features private recordings of Jim Morrison on March 1969 and June 1971 (weeks before his death), reading his own poetry. There is some organ accompaniment, but not much. It is very well recorded.

I still think of this band as a go-to band. Can you imagine seeing them in a small Hollywood club, or at the Matrix in SF, which sat about 50 people, back in 1966 or 1967? I often still think about that when I listen to them.
Enjoy the hell out of this. I know I still do.

jh

Have you tried out our iPhone or Android app yet? Get them where you get your phone apps. I love the iPhone app and use it every day.

I swear I didn't mean to play two shows from the same date a day following the anniversary. I really didn't realize this was happening when I chose them both. Obviously it's kismet.
First up is the great John Zorn and his Electric Masada ensemble. I cannot say enough great things about this group. There aren't enough adjectives to describe their brilliance. This is not your grandpappy's jazz. Instrumentation includes: sax, guitar, drums, percussion, electronics, bass and keyboards.

John Zorn often plays festivals with many of his groups. This festival, June 25 - 27, 2007 in Rome was broadcast live on RAI Radio Tre. This particular show is from the final day of Zorn-fest, June 27, 2007, fourteen years ago, Sunday. I edited out the Italian radio DJs commentary between a few tracks.

The second show tonight features the remarkable drummer Tony Williams along with rock guitar GOD, Ronnie Montrose: "The Battle Night", from June 27, 1978 in Tokyo, Japan. Legendary drummer Billy Cobham joins them on the final tune of the night. This is a stellar soundboard recording from this rare lineup.

You like Queen. I like Queen. You loved that movie that was amazing, even though it wasn't completely thorough, nor linear in its storytelling. That's all good. You think to yourself "self, if I were to travel back in time to see any show, Queen would definitely be in the top 10". How right you are. And I've got what you need.

Monday night 6-8PM Pacific I'm playing what is considered the greatest unreleased show in Queen history, as well as one of the greatest Queen shows ever performed. This magnificent soundboard from The Summit in Houston, December 11, 1977.

I double dog dare you to find a better Queen show. The boys are in top form, throughout. And the in-between song banter is worth the price of admission.

And a good Memorial Day to you all. In celebration of all who gave all, let's play two great American acts that we all can agree are worth fighting for. First up, Stevie Wonder in all his glory, live at the Rainbow Theater, January 31, 1974. This is one his all time best shows, and from the Innervisions tour, possibly my favorite album of his. This soundboard recording is taken from the liberated "Funkified Rainbow" bootleg, and really should have been considered for official release.

The second show tonight features an all-American band of rockers who really just don't wanna do much of anything at all. I'm talking about The Ramones!!! This Utica, New York show from November 14, 1977 shows them still in the early days of the balls-to-the-wall punk glory. I've taken this from the "Transmission Impossible" radio broadcast bootleg set. If this was vinyl I would have worn it out ages ago.
Let's get all-American as we celebrate the women and men in red, white and blue, who gave there all so we can rock and roll.

This is what you missed, but do not fret, because it's all archived here just for you!

I celebrated Bob Dylan's 80th birthday on Monday night by playing what may be his most legendary show, May 17, 1966 at Free Trade Hall in Manchester, UK. This is the "Judas" show. You're not familiar? Get familiar.

I close out the two hours with a few tracks from the 1975/1976 Rolling Thunder tour, and one track from the Dylan/Petty tour of 1986.

If you're hungry for more Dylan birthday treats, head over to my other blog "A Season In Hell" for two hours of studio Dylan and a few great covers.

Let's pay tribute to the genius that is Bob Dylan.

The show I chose is a true classic. It's the "Judas" concert from May 17, 1966 in Manchester, UK. Dylan opened with an acoustic set, and then was joined by The Hawks (later to be known as The Band) for a second electric set. This upset many in the audience, who felt Dylan was turning his back on his folk roots. The recording is incredible and considered by Dylan fans to be much better than the official release from CBS, which was compressed and lost the warmth and depth of the performance.

Tracks:
Set one - Solo Acoustic:
Just Like Tom Thumb's Blues (soundcheck)
She Belongs To Me
Fourth Time Around
Visions Of Johanna
It's All Over Now Baby Blue
Desolation Row
Just Like A Woman
Mr. Tambourine Man

Set Two - Electric with The Hawks:
Tell Me Momma
I Don't Believe You
Baby Let Me Follow You Down
Just Like Tom Thumb's Blues
Leopard-Skin Pill-Box Hat
One Too Many Mornings
Ballad Of A Thin Man
Like A Rolling Stone

Do I play you something from deep within my vault, or throw you something that is fresh off the presses? How about both?!?!?
If you're a fan of Neil Young, then you really do need to spend some time over at his Archive. It's more incredible than any fanboy or fangirl can imagine. He's starting to release more and more right now, since he has all of this extra time on his hands. Really, Neil has been busy.

This is the freshest release from his live archive: November 6, 1976 from Balch Fieldhouse, University of Colorado. The first half is Neil acoustic and solo. The second half is with his great backup band, Crazy Horse. This soundboard recording will seriously knock you for a loop.
This show runs one hour 36 minutes, which gives me a little bit of time to throw something else in for the balance of the show. You'll just have to tune in to find out what that is.

Stick around 8-10pm Pacific, Monday night for my weekly music mix Hell's Kitchen Radio. I always have something new to share.

Enjoy.

jh

The first show tonight is from those boys from Dublin, Thin Lizzy. I was wondering for the longest time where their name came from, and I think it's based on the nickname for the Model-T, "Tin Lizzy". I could be wrong, but I'm too busy to look this up. Anyone? Anyone? Though Thin Lizzy still tours (pre-COVID), they just were never the same without frontman, bassist, vocalist, Phil Lynott. That's of course my opinion, the only one that counts...here. HA! Soundboard from this band are really hard to come by. I realized that I owned three copies of this great Detroit show from 1976. It's just so damn good. So that's the show I'm sharing tonight. Thin Lizzy live in Detroit, May 14, 1976.

Sometimes I just need some good ol' rock and roll. You know what I mean? Tonight let's rock out to two of the best 70s-era rock bands, hands down. Tonight's headliners, Chicago's Cheap Trick! "Can you honestly tell me you forgot? Forgot the magnetism of Robin Zander, or the charisma of Rick Nielsen?" Who can tell me where I stole that line from? Cheap Trick is ageless and just never slows down. I chose this stellar soundboard/FM master from The Roxy in Hollywood, April 27, 1998. I tell you, this band always fires on all cylinders. Pull out your air guitar, let your hair down, and give it up for this quartet of rockin' balladeers.

Enjoy.

jh

It's James Brown's birthday. Whatever you're doing isn't better than what I'm playing for the next four hours. Get on the good foot, I'm starting out with two hours of live JB throughout the years, then two hours of studio selections from across his illustrious career, focusing on my favorite era 1968 - 1975.

I was lucky to have seen the Hardest Working Man in Show Business perform live three times, and each was better than the previous. I was also honored to have interviewed him in 1992 (or was it 1993?) soon after he got out of prison, during my Friday 10am-2pm jazz, soul, funk show on KFJC, Temple of the Bird. He graciously offered my 15 minutes to talk about his music and not to bring up prison, women, or drugs. Thanks James.

Enjoy.

jh

The opening two hours, which you can find here, feature two shows from two of his hot 70s-era bands.

July 1971 - Apollo Theater, New York City, New York

December 18, 1977 Stars at The Hotel Bradford, Boston MA

The second half of my show is all about the hot studio sessions that had us up and sweating on the good foot. See the set list below and get up on the get down.You can find that show on my RV blog: Hell's Kitchen Radio, or go to my personal blog found here: [url]https://hellskitchenradio.blogspot.com[/url]

James Brown: Nancy Dupree
Lickin' Stick, Lickin' Stick: James Brown
Say It Loud (I'm Black and I'm Proud): James Brown
Message From James Brown
Super Bad: James Brown

Doin' It To Death: Fred Wesley and the JBs
Let's Go Get Stoned: James Brown
Let's Make Christmas Mean Something This Year: James Brown
America Is My Home, Pt. 1: James Brown

Let A Man Come In And Do The Popcorn: James Brown
Down And Out In New York City: James Brown
Brother Rap: James Brown
Please Please Please 1974: James Brown

More Mess On My Thing: The JBs
Funky Music Is My Style: The JBs
Shake It Baby: Maceo and the Kings Men
Get Up, Get Into It, Get Involved: James Brown

I Know You Got Soul: Bobby Byrd
If You Don't Give Me What I Want: Vicki Anderson
What So Never The Dance: Bootsy Collins

Talkin' Loud and Sayin' Nothing: James Brown
My Thang: James Brown

Get On The Good Foot: James Brown

Here's a double treat for you tonight. A stellar show from Nirvana, October 30, 1991, at the Commodore Ballroom, Vancouver, BC, just five weeks following the release of the seminal hit "Smells Like Teen Spirit", which would go on to redefine a genre and a generation, and lead to the demise of its lead singer. At least along the way he got to turn people onto some of his favorite bands, like Flipper. Thanks Kurt!

I got to see Nirvana twice: once in San Jose in 1990, and then again about a week before this show, at the Warfield Theater in San Francisco. That was a real treat, except when I walked back to my 1968 Mustang following the show, to find a wing window was smashed in. Stay classy, San Francisco. This show is really amazing if you're looking to hear Nirvana as the rocket ship of stardom is ascending.

Lineage: Soundboard -> ANA(M) -> DAT(2) -> WAV [48kHz] -> WAV [44.1kHz] -> FLAC [Level 8]

Following up Nirvana is a super fun show from Buzzcocks, December 15, 1979, at the legendary Temple Beautiful in Sunny San Francisco. This was also once the temple used by the Reverend Jim Jones, prior to taking his flock down to Guyana, South America and killing them all. Never take religion from a man named Jim.

But I digress. This is an excellent and really fun show. They play all your favorite hits.

Lineage: Stage snake > splitter > dedicated snake > Peavy MkII 12 channel mixing board (10 channels snake, 2 channels audience mics) > Technics RS-1500 Reel To Reel

Have you tried out our iPhone or Android app yet? Get them where you get your phone apps. I love the iPhone app and use it every day.

Stick around Monday's 8-10PM Pacific for my weekly music mix, Hell's Kitchen Radio. Lots of new music to share with you every week.

Enjoy and pay it forward.

jh

That are certain shows that I fantasize I attended. Isn't that all of us? The two I'm going to share tonight definitely make the list. Up first is a rip-roaring show from septet-era Traffic, on a cold winter night at Winterland in San Francisco, January 26, 1973. This is a soundboard tape of unknown generation, but the quality is amazing. The band featured Steve Winwood, Jim Capaldi, Chris Wood, David Hood, Rebop Kwaku Baah, Barry Beckett & Roger Hawkins at this time, giving it a strong stage presence.

Hour two features Steve Winwood in his short-lived power-quartet Blind Faith, alongside Eric Clapton, Ginger "Beware Mr" Baker, and Rick Grech, live in Hyde Park, in London, June 7, 1969. This is the band's debut performance!!! Can you even imagine?
This is a rare and excellent soundboard recording. This band didn't last long, well, er, because Ginger Baker. You know? If you don't know, then you must watch the documentary "Beware of Mr. Baker" ASAP! I always wondered what would have become of this band had they a drummer who wasn't such a ferocious presence on and off stage? I guess we'll just have to enjoy what they left behind.

And that's where I come in! Two hours from two great bands, all for you, Monday 6-8PM Pacific on Radio Valencia.

Once again it's Monday, so it's time to get ready for a two hour dive into John Hell's live bootleg vault.
Tonight is all about David Bowie!!! He's five years gone, and it hasn't gotten any easier. Tonight I have one of his absolute best live performances: the FINAL Ziggy Stardust performance. This July 3, 1973 performance is special for that along with the fact that only Bowie knew he would be "killing" Ziggy on this night. Not even his manager or closest friends were aware of this! Going out at the top, indeed. Can you even imagine?

Strap in for one of the finest shows in rock and roll history. It's time for Bowie!

If it were up to me, and it is, I would be playing Iggy all night, every night. I mean, right? Right? I'm literally having the hardest time even conveying to you how much I love, and I do mean LOVE every tone Iggy Pop has produced over these past 50+ years. 50+ years! And he still is kicking ass!

Tonight at 6pm (Pacific) I'm featuring an Iggy and the Stooges show from their comeback tour in 2003, featuring the Asheton brothers, Mike Watt and bass and Steve MacKay. This is an incredible soundboard recording from an exceptional show.

In the second hour, I'm featuring one of my all time favorite Bob Marley and the Wailers shows. It's from his 1975 tour, in support of Natty Dread. This is live at the Boarding House in San Francisco, and originally broadcast live on KSAN - 94.9FM. These shows were small and intimate, to the point that you could here the crowd pounding on the walls and stomping on the floor, a common show of appreciation for Reggae acts. There's plenty of pounding happening here.

First up, is a wicked Herbie Hancock and the Headhunters from 1975. This is a full broadcast from Omaha Civic Auditorium Music Hall, Omaha, Nebraska, featuring Herbie and his still fresh Headhunters backing group. The Headhunters had already recorded on their own, but were making time to tour with Hancock, including playing this amazing show.

For the second hour I have a real treat, the Australian psychedelic septet (or octet???) King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard, live from the Bowery Ballroom in NYC, June 19, 2015. This is an excellent matrix (soundboard + audience mix).

Please support this excellent band: http://kinggizzardandthelizardwizard.com/

As a matter of fact KGLW is making a lot of their music not only free for download from their site, but they want you to do whatever you want with it, including pressing it and releasing it on your own, with your own record covers!!! Just send them a few copies so they can see what you did. And you keep the profit! What a fabulous idea. I love this band!