Radio Paradise

In an e-mail note, my Great Good Friend Lori in SFO (we go back to 1977) writes:

“I still haven't had a chance to read the Bushisms, etc., that you sent, but I wanted to thank you for the Radio Paradise link. This shit is GREAT!”

She’s right, ya know. I haven’t raved about much of late, but Radio Paradise is worth raving about. In previous posts I’ve written about my love for college radio and my admiration for American free-form FM radio of the 1970s. I’ve also railed against the current state of FM radio: it’s not even worth what you pay for it, i.e., nothing. Commercial FM radio these days is worse than worthless. There’s limited choice and NO variety in the music played, the play lists reinforce mediocrity, and discourage musical exploration on the part of the audience. Today's commercial FM radio limits it's audience while stifling new talent. I’ll cut to the chase: commercial FM radio sucks. Period.

There are alternatives to commercial FM, as I’ve mentioned. Among those alternatives, Radio Paradise has, for me, become the “station of choice.” RP is just SO damned good I’ve not ventured anywhere else in the past week or ten days. In case you haven’t followed the links I’ve posted, I’ll quote a little from RP’s FAQ page:

Each hour of music is carefully blended together to flow smoothly between different musical styles & genres - just like real DJs used to do on FM. We don't use the computer-generated playlists or "carefully researched music libraries" that have sucked the soul out of FM radio - and we never just throw songs together at random the way many web stations do.
We also depend on input from you to help fine-tune our music mix. If you hear something that you feel strongly about (either positively or negatively), please take a moment to post a comment on that song. Just click the song title on the playlist or in the mini-browser window. We'd also love to hear from you if there's an artist you don't hear, but think would fit in with our music mix. Registered users can upload suggested additions to the library for review.
Radio Paradise is located in Paradise, California (hence the name...). Paradise is a peaceful little town in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada mountains, far from the big city stress & turmoil. Hopefully we'll help to bring a little Paradise into your life, wherever you're located. Click here for our Paradise weather station.
The station is run using an innovative programming automation system designed by Radio Paradise's Bill Goldsmith. The actual music servers are located in San Jose, New York, and Portland, Ore and can be remotely controlled from our Paradise studio or from anywhere else in the world via a laptop. Look for some exciting "travels with RP" in the future.
Our audio servers are located in Vienna, Virginia (64kb & 128kb) and San Jose, California (32kb & 16kb). They all feature high-speed redundant Internet connections to keep the music flowing smoothly.

It’s amazing what three people (the entire staff: RP is a true “Mom and Pop” operation) can do in this day and age. I’m certainly glad Bill and Rebecca have come to radio’s rescue. One more thing to add: RP is commercial-free; they’re ALL about the music. You will get an occasional request for support, RP is completely listener-supported. (My check will be in the mail today.) Give ‘em a listen. There’s no better soundtrack available while you’re on the ‘puter. Hell, there’s no better soundtrack available, period!