Monday, January 19, 2009

Little Steven's Underground Garage


Driving home last night we tuned in a radio show that I haven't heard for a while: Little Steven's Underground Garage on Q104.3.

Little Steven is Steven Van Zandt who was a member of Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band as well as an important songwriter and producer. Of course, he's probably best known for playing the mobster Silvio Dante on The Sopranos. Although he's made a whole career out of being the sidekick to famous guys from Jersey,
on the Underground Garage, Little Steven is the absolute star.

This is an eclectic music show and nostalgia trip for anyone who loves or remembers popular music from the 1950s to 1970s. Although it's mostly a rock show, Little Steven also plays various offbeat songs and medleys. The first time I heard the show he played "Do the Mouse" by Soupy Sales and last night he played a bizarre yet hilarious version of Frank Sinatra singing Simon and Garfunkel's "Mrs. Robinson." Most of the songs he plays, however, are by bands I've never heard of but wish I had.

What's great about this show is you get the feeling that you're listening to a guy with the world's biggest, coolest music collection and with an encyclopedic knowledge about music. Little Steven doesn't talk much on the show but, when he does, he's hilarious. On last night's show, he talked about the character Frank Sinatra played named Tony Rome. He was, according to Little Steven, even cooler than James Bond because, instead of sleeping with lots of women, he turned them all down!

The Underground Garage is on Q104.3 every Sunday night from 10 to 12. It's one of the few interesting music shows left in NYC and a great cure to the Sunday night blues.

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