Music of Paul Robeson, Judy Garland, et al. Feat. on 'Everything Old..." Radio Show, 5/2

This Sunday's Everything Old is New Again will be featuring the music of Paul Robeson. The program can be heard every Sunday from 9-11AM on WBAI 99.5 FM.  The upcoming Robeson show will include some of his most popular tunes including: "Every Time I Feel The Spirit" from Othello, "Mood Indigo", "Ol' Man River", "Going Home" and more.

The program will also feature Robeson's Dramatic Testimony before the House Unamerican Activities Commitee as performed in Eric Bentley's play Are You Now or Have You Ever Been. Everything Old is New Again will also include four different versions of "The Music That Makes Me Dance" with performances by:  Barbara Streisand, Judy Garland, Liza Minelli, and Nancy LaMott.

For more information, visit:  www.oldisnew.org

 

Everythng Old is New Again began on radio in Boston in the mid-1970's under the title "The Great Entertainer." The broadcast focused entirely on the music, career and life of a particular Star. Each Saturday morning, the Boston radio audience tuned in to listen to a show spotlighting such talents as Frank Sinatra, Barbara Streisand, Edith Piaf, etc.

After moving from Boston to New York, in the spring of 1979, producer/host DAVID KENNEY approached the Program Director of WBAI-FM about the possibility of bringing a program like "The Great Entertainer" to the New York airwaves. The program expanded its focus to feature vocal groups and Big Bands, as well as solo performers. In addition to these "feature artist" segments, the show presented an unusual blend of big band Jazz, Swing, Standards, Showtunes and Contemporary Cabaret.

The show was scheduled to debut in June but still lacked a name and theme song. In May, David interviewed Peter Allen, then starring on Broadway in his one man show "UP IN ONE." He found Peter to be "a gracious and terribly funny man." The song "Everything Old is New Again" came up in the conversation and the two decided almost on the spot that the song should serve as the title and theme song for the broadcast. The show aired on Tuesday mornings from June 1979 to January 1985. At that point it moved to the Sunday night/Monday morning overnight slot. The three-hour weekly broadcast developed a dedicated cult of listeners. Also, during this period a new segment was introduced. Each week the audience was presented with four or five different renditions of the same song throughout the broadcast.

In January 1999, then Program Director Samori Marksman brought EVERYTHING OLD IS NEW AGAIN to Prime Time. In doing so created a unique block of programming for the Sunday night listeners--beginning With MAX SCHMID'S "The Golden Age of Radio" at 7:30 PM; followed then by EVERYTHING OLD IS NEW AGAIN with David Kenney at 9:00 pm. Because of its move to Prime Time, it has become the show to tune in to for Celebrity Interviews and unique musical programming.