July 14, 2025 – Bang on a Can

This week’s show is a celebration of sonic invention, genre-defiance, and creative collaboration. We’re diving deep into the world of Bang on a Can, a musical collective that’s been reshaping the sound of contemporary classical and experimental music since the late 1980s.
Bang on a Can was founded in 1987 by composers Julia Wolfe, David Lang, and Michael Gordon. Frustrated by the boundaries of academic classical music and inspired by punk, minimalism, noise, world music, and jazz, they envisioned a space where new music could thrive—wild, visceral, and unbound by category.
What started as a marathon concert in a SoHo art gallery became a movement: a group, a label, a festival, a touring ensemble—the Bang on a Can All-Stars—and an ecosystem supporting boundary-pushing music around the world. Today’s playlist features founding composers, All-Star performers, guest artists, and offshoot collaborations.

Playlist for the week of July 14, 2025:

00:00:00 Michael Gordon; Bang On A Can All-Stars – “Gene Takes a Drink”

00:09:55 Conlon Nancarrow (arr. Ziporyn) – “Studies for Player Piano No. 3c: Boogie-Woogie Suite”
00:13:16 Julia Wolfe; Choir of Trinity Wall Street – Anthracite Fields: IV. Flowers
00:19:53 van Ziporyn – Music from Shadowbang: No. 1 Angkat

00:22:53 Jeffrey Brooks – After the Treewatcher

00:30:43 Meredith Monk – The Games: Spaceship

00:35:02 Julia Wolfe – “Reeling”

00:43:02 Don Byron – “Fyodorovich”

00:45:25 Michael Gordon; Icebreaker – “Yo Shakespeare”

00:56:09 Terry Riley – “See Them Out There”

00:59:00  David Lang – “Cheating, Lying, Stealing”

01:09:30 Lao Luo & 龔琳娜 – “Tan Te”

01:12:54 Brian Eno; Robert Wyatt; Rhett Davies – “1/2”

01:21:46 Kyaw Kyaw Naing – “Seik Kyu Ahla (Version 2)”

01:26:15 Julia Wolfe – “Big Beautiful Dark and Scary”

A Reminder:

Next To Silence streams live at:

1700AM and on the web at PeaksIslandRadio.com

On:

Mondays Fridays @7:00PM

Tuesdays @Noon

Thanks for listening.

Dave

This Forest Is Not Yours

Show me your original face before you were born.

                     			—Zen Koan

I walked in

because I thought I could leave

myself behind.

The trees didn’t care.

The leaves kept falling—

with or without me.

I stood by the water

and saw a face.

Not mine.

Just shape and light—

no owner.

We want to believe

in something that stays.

But even stillness

moves

if you sit long enough.

Belief, doubt—

they’re just names.

What’s real doesn’t speak.

It doesn’t need to.

I turned back

and left nothing behind.

Nothing was ever mine

to begin with.

Peaks Island, Maine

July 7, 2025 – 1970’s Highlife from Ghana

This week Next to Silence presents some the best recordings of 1970’s Ghanaian guitar Highlife.

 The early 1970s marked a golden chapter in Ghanaian highlife music—a moment when village wisdom, city innovation, and post-independence energy converged in song. This was music built for both the dance floor and the spirit, composed of storytelling lyrics, percussive drive, and glowing melodic lines that seemed to float above it all. What you’ll hear in this playlist is a living memory of Ghana’s musical heartbeat—highlife in its guitar-band prime.

These are songs to move to, but also to sit with. They come from the people, and they bring the people together. These songs are meditations in groove, built to move both body and spirit. Let’s step into the pulse of early 70s Ghanaian highlife.

This show is dedicated to my brothers and sisters of Peace Corps Ghana 1970, along with the former students and teachers at Kadjebi Secondary School.

Playlist week of July 7, 2025:

00:00:00 African Brothers International Band – Ɛna Ɛye A Mane Me 

00:08:01  Francis Kenya; The Riches Big Band – Ensuah Nzema Kotoko – The Nezema Kotoko Family

00:14:16 Oyihwam Internationals – Anoma Franoas

00:22:08 Ashanti Afrika-Jah Int Band of Ghana – Ede Mabo

00:29:41 African Brothers International Band – Abusua Nnyɛ Asafo

00:32:59 Mangwana Stars – Atiadele

00:40:07 Kweku Dei; Guyoyo Guitar Band – Osikuni Atamfo (Gossiper Enemies)

00:45:26 City Boys Band – Nye Asem Hwe

00:52:04 F. Kenya – Engame Ma Menko

00:57:43 African Brothers International Band – Ebi Te Yie

01:01:08 St. Peter and The Holy Men – Bofoo Beye Abowa Den

01:04:20 F. Kenya – Nyameco

01:12:12 Nana Kwame Ampadu – Mede Aseda

01:19:50 Francis Kenya; The Riches Big Band – Madame Zehae Ala – Just As I Am

A Reminder:

Next To Silence streams live at:

1700AM and on the web at PeaksIslandRadio.com

On:

Mondays Fridays @7:00PM

Tuesdays @Noon

Thanks for listening, Dave

Unorthodox Congeniality

In a shed
behind a boat

a giraffe hugs

a mannequin

in lingerie.

She’s taped up

like hope

with no follow-through.

Left breast: duct tape.

Right breast: same.

They appear

to be having

a moment.

One arm raised,

one finger pointing—

at what?

Nobody knows.

Maybe God.

Maybe the fuse box.

You cannot

roller skate

in a buffalo herd.

But you can

make eye contact

with a fiberglass giraffe

and feel

understood.

Do giraffes

recognize mirth?

If so,

they hide their tell.

Too much thinking

chokes the magic.

Too much seriousness

snaps the string.

Let it be—

and the surreal settles

like a memory

of an almost familiar song.

Just look.

Don’t ask.

Sit still.

Don’t name it.

Don’t fix it.

Just—

watch.

People want meaning.

They want cause

and effect,

a punchline

with timing.

But not everything

needs to resolve.

A mannequin.

A giraffe.

Some duct tape.

And the question:

Do giraffes recognize mirth?

Or are they simply better

at not needing to?

Sense arrives late

and ruins the view.

You cannot

roller skate

in a buffalo herd.

But here,

you can listen

to plastic silence,

witness

unorthodox congeniality,

and know,

without knowing,

that stillness lives

in the unsolved.


Porter Lake, Maine

June 30, 2025 – Tribute to Brian Wilson

This week NEXT TO SILENCE presents a heartfelt tribute to one of the towering figures in American music—Brian Wilson, who passed away last week at the age of 82.

Brian wasn’t just the creative force behind The Beach Boys—he was a visionary who changed the shape of modern music. He taught us that pop could hold deep sorrow, spiritual yearning, and sheer beauty—all in the same breath.

With his passing, we’ve lost a singular voice, but the harmonies he created still echo in our lives. Tonight, we honor his journey: from the early days of surf and sunshine, through the introspection of Pet Sounds, into the kaleidoscopic ambition of Smile, and finally his brave return in later years.

Playlist for the week of June 30, 2025:

00:04:01 Surfin’ U.S.A. – The Beach Boys

04:06:27 The Warmth of the Sun – The Beach Boys

00:09:19 Help Me, Rhonda – The Beach Boys

00:12:24 California Girls – The Beach Boys

00:15:09 Please Let Me Wonder – The Beach Boys

00:17:58 In My Room – The Beach Boys

00:20:10 When I Grow Up (To Be a Man) – The Beach Boys

00:22:12 Don’t Worry Baby – The Beach Boys

00:25:00 And Your Dream Comes True – The Beach Boys

00:30:19 Wouldn’t It Be Nice – The Beach Boys

00:32:40 You Still Believe in Me – The Beach Boys

00:35:10 That’s Not Me – The Beach Boys

00:37:35 Don’t Talk (Put Your Head on My Shoulder) – The Beach Boys

00:40:30 God Only Knows – The Beach Boys

00:43:19 I Know There’s an Answer – The Beach Boys

00:46:35 Here Today – The Beach Boys

00:49:37 Caroline, No – The Beach Boys

00:56:09 Good Vibrations – The Beach Boys

00:59:45 Heroes and Villains – The Beach Boys

01:03:25 Vegetables – The Beach Boys

01:05:31 Darlin’ – The Beach Boys

01:07:42 ’Til I Die – The Beach Boys

01:10:10 Child Is Father of the Man – Brian Wilson

01:12:28 In Blue Hawaii – Brian Wilson

01:15:27 Surf’s Up – Brian Wilson

01:19:31 Love and Mercy – Brian Wilson

01:22:25 Summer’s Gone – The Beach Boys

01:28:40 I Just Wasn’t Made for These Times – The Beach Boys 

A Reminder:

Next To Silence streams live at:

1700AM and on the web at PeaksIslandRadio.com

On:

Mondays Fridays @7:00PM

Tuesdays @Noon

You can find the archives of past shows at PeaksIslandRadio.com. Click on SCHEDULE – scroll down to NEXT TO SILENCE

Thanks for listening.

Dave

Pull of an Empty Tide

The bed sagged like a cracked raft,

smelling of rust, salt, and lost time.

The other side was hollowed out,

a dent where someone used to dream.

The air bent yellow at the edges.

A radio somewhere cracked and whined —

low country and western misery,

a voice leaking out about someone who never came home.

The floor leaned west, 
always west,

because that's where things go 
when they’re too tired to fight.

The clock on the wall had stopped 
sometime last night,

but no one noticed, 
not even the dark.

The sea dragged the dead nets, 
and the chain inside the walls, 
hummed low 
against the bones of the room.

It ran through my empty wallet,

through my cracked teeth,

through the long thin cigarettes 
burning themselves out.

It rattled whenever I breathed too hard.

The motel bible sat open on the nightstand,

a page torn loose,

a note scrawled in blue ink:

"don’t wait for me."

I tasted rust,

saw the green of rotting rope,

felt the floorboards creak 
with a tired red sadness.

White gulls circled low,
no purpose left;
their shadows vanish
into the sea’s forgetting.

I thought about standing up,
walking toward the window,
singing along 
with the sad broken radio.

I didn’t move. 
The tide had already 
taken everything.


Ocean Cay, Atlantic Ocean

June 23, 2025 – Sly Stone Tribute

This week, we find ourselves holding a shared, quiet grief. Two titans of American music—Sly Stone and Brian Wilson—have left us. Each, in his own way, redefined what pop music could be: Sly, with his electrifying fusion of funk, soul, and social revolution; Brian, with his fragile genius for harmony, melody, and emotional truth.

They were architects of joy and beauty, of rhythm and reflection, and their music will echo long past this moment. 

This week we commemorate the music of Sly Stone and the Family Stone, and next week’s show is a tribute to Brian Wilson and The Beach Boys.

Sylvester Stone was the preacher, the prophet, the mad scientist of funk—mixing black and white, male and female, gospel and psychedelia into a sound that wasn’t just music, but movement. At his best, he gave us the soundtrack to liberation and joy. At his worst, he was the echo of a dream cracked under the weight of its own idealism.

Playlist for the week of June 23, 2025:

00:00 Sly & The Family Stone – Dance to the Music

06:31 Sly & The Family Stone – Everyday People

08:51 Sly & The Family Stone – Sing a Simple Song

12:44 Sly & The Family Stone – I Want ToTake You Higher

19:11 Sly & The Family Stone – Stand!

22:18 Sly & The Family Stone – Hot Fun in the Summertime

25:46 Sly & The Family Stone – Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice ElfAgin)

30:34 Sly & The Family Stone – You Can Make It If You Try

34:10 Sly & The Family Stone – Family Affair

37:13 Sly & The Family Stone – Runnin’ Away

40:06 Sly & The Family Stone – Time

44:23 Sly & The Family Stone – Just Like a Baby

49:30 Sly & The Family Stone – If You Want Me To Stay

52:28 Sly & The Family Stone – Babies Makin’ Babies

A Reminder:

Next To Silence streams live at:

1700AM and on the web at PeaksIslandRadio.com

On:

Mondays Fridays @7:00PM

Tuesdays @Noon

Shadow Rattles

Shadow rattles through dreams

of a non-trivial world—

a lattice of wires and heat exchange,

ragtime pulsing beneath

the tireless rhythm

of rails and ties.

Through this windowed trespass

of industrial apprehension,

we pass ductwork like iron lungs,

humming with function,

resigned to necessity.

We ride inoculated, immune

by the promise of arrival,

fleeing once again

the rust-backed burden,

the redbrick breath

of imposition.

Bridgeport, Connecticut

June 16, 2025 – Crazy

On this Next to Silence, we’re diving headfirst into the many shades of “crazy.” Not the clinical kind, but the kind that colors everyday life—when emotions run hot, logic takes a back seat, and the heart writes its own script.

There’s the giddy madness of falling in love, and the slow unraveling when it doesn’t work out. There’s the chaos of desire, the ache of obsession, and the wild, spinning joy that comes from dancing too close to the edge. Sometimes “crazy” means laughter that doesn’t quite stop; other times, it’s the quiet confusion of feeling too much, too fast.

This playlist is a collection of voices caught in those moments—songs from the brink, the breakthrough, and the beautiful mess in between. Whether you’ve been driven crazy, called someone crazy, or felt a little crazy yourself, there’s a place for you here today.

Playlist for the week of June 16, 2025:

00:00:00 Prince – “Let’s Go Crazy”

00:08:03 Fine Young Cannibals – “She Drives Me Crazy”

00:11:37 Heart – “Crazy On You”

00:16:31 Patsy Cline; The Jordanaires – “Crazy”

00:19:14 Paul Anka – “Crazy Love”

00:21:39 Van Morrison – “Crazy Love” 

00:24:14 Joni Mitchell – “The Crazy Cries of Love”

00:28:06 Smokey Robinson & The Miracles – “Crazy About The La La La”

00:34:16 Jim Kweskin – “Crazy Words-Crazy Tune”

00:36:16 Peggy Lee; Toots Thielemans – “You’re Driving Me Crazy (What Did I Do?)”

00:38:32 Simi; Tiwa Savage – “Men Are Crazy”

00:41:38 Queen – “Crazy Little Thing Called Love”

00:44:12 The Clash – “Let’s Go Crazy”

00:48:46 Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band – “Crazy Little Thing”

00:51:22 ABBA – “Crazy World”

00:58:30 Johnny Clegg; Savuka – “Cruel Crazy Beautiful World”

01:02:52 Bob Marley & The Wailers – “Crazy Baldhead”

01:06:03 Paul Simon – “Crazy Love, Vol. II”

01:10:19 Marvin Gaye – “I’m Crazy ‘Bout My Baby”

01:13:00 The Rolling Stones – “Crazy Mama”

01:17:33 Billie Holiday – “Crazy He Calls Me”

01:20:36 Seal – “Crazy”

01:27:40 Tuba Skinny – “Crazy About You”