3 Chords & the Truth: Dial 'M' for music

Want music? Just dial "M." 

Dialing "M" will connect you with 3 Chords & the Truth and all the great music you want . . . . . . and need these days. These days. Boy, that's a loaded phrase, isn't it.

Thus, the need for all the best tunes we can get our ears on. 

As usual, you won't know what's coming next, but you'll be glad when it hits your speakers. That's kind of the nature of the Big Show. 

And that's da name of dat tune. 

It's 3 Chords & the Truth, y'all. Be there. Aloha.

3 Chords & the Truth: Geeking out

Are you unpoopular? Do you pop out at parties, Poindexter?

Well, fret not -- 3 Chords & the Truth is here!

It will cure what ails you, because what ails you isn't an ailment. 

The ailment is all the Alpha Betas out there, who must be put in their place. Because Alpha Betas suck.

And while we're doing that on the Big Show this week, we'll also have the merriest, the wildest and the most happenin' holiday selections as part of the winning musical mix. It's another great program, and you're cordially invited to attend.

But not the Alpha Betas. Or the Omegas, for that matter.

It's 3 Chords & the Truth, y'all. Be there. Aloha.

3 Chords & the Truth: No old ladies were harmed

Let's be clear: Despite what you may have been told, no old ladies actually have been harmed by listening to 3 Chords & the Truth. 

There may have been a close call or three since 2008, however. 

Just wanted to clear that up straight away. 

That said, we have another stellar program for you this week on the Big Show. Really. That's no bull. Honestly, it's good. 

And we have a surprise for you during the course of the festivities. No, I won't tell you what it is. Then it wouldn't be a surprise for you, now, would it?

I am authorized to reveal that we are officially kicking off the Christmas season on 3 Chords & the Truth this week. That is quite musically tasty, too.

I think that ticks off all the boxes on the ol' checklist, so my promotional work here is done. And, again, no old ladies were harmed -- or institutionalized -- because of this program. Really. 

It's 3 Chords & the Truth, y'all. Be there. Aloha.

3 Chords & the Truth: Super!

Here I am, staring at a blank page on the computer. 

Well, crap. Now it's not blank anymore, because I just wrote about staring at a blank page on the computer. Which really doesn't merit a "Well, crap," because writing something on the computer screen was the point.

Right?

Of course, while writing this on the previously blank computer screen, I did totally manage not to mention 3 Chords & the Truth once. That's a fail. Then again, I just did mention the Big Show -- twice now in the same paragraph, so that's a win!

Right?

ON THE OTHER HAND, I did not mention any positive attributes of this week's show. Fail. Of which, there are many . . . positive attributes, not fails.

"Mention positive attributes." Check. 

"Mention good music from a wide variety of genres." Well, crap. 

Oh . . . and we have lots of good music this week, as usual, and it's typically eclectic. 

Check. Dodged a bullet there. 

Roger that, chief.

And look at that; the page ain't blank no more. Poor grammar notwithstanding. 

It's 3 Chords & the Truth, y'all. Be there. Aloha.

3 Chords & the Truth: So, where were we?

After a scheduled interruption for home-construction chaos and an unscheduled interruption for a sinus infection and panicked making sure it wasn't COVID, the 3 Chords & the Truth whatchamacallit is back.

So . . . where were we when we were interrupted?

Naw, I can't remember either. Crap. OK, let's just start here and go from there.

Actually, that's pretty much what we do every week on the Big Show. Umm hmm.

It's 3 Chords & the Truth, y'all. Be there. Aloha.

3 Chords & the Truth: Any show for just . . . FREE!

You want a great musical deal? We'll give you a great musical deal. 

What would you think of 23 great songs -- all quality songs selected for your listening pleasure -- absolutely free! Well, your fondest desire is our stone-cold command here at 3 Chords & the Truth. 

This week, you'll get an insane number of songs for the low, low price of . . . absolutely nothing. And most every week, you'll get 90 minutes for the best listening your money can't buy for that same low, low non-price, downloaded to your digital device or conveniently streamed over the Interwebs. 

We here at Favog House call it the Big Show, and it's absolutely yours, absolutely all the time. 

HERE'S ALL you have to do, and the biggest thing you have to do, you've already done. You came here!

Now all you have to do is to click on the link, then download a carefully curated sonic cornucopia, or you can stream effortlessly by using the handy player right here at your fingertips. That's all! 

Really, how can you say no to the best bargain in music today? Forget the radio; we have radio done right, right here at 3 Chords & the Truth. And it costs you squat. That, my friend, is a deal that cannot be beaten. 

Ever. 

Are you ready for some entertainment? Some real mind-expanding stuff? 

We knew that you were. And you have to send in absolutely nothing to get what's yours. It's yours for a simple click. 

Right here, right now. 

It's 3 Chords & the Truth, y'all. Be there. Aloha.

3 Chords & the Truth: Uhhhhhhhhh . . . .

I was working on putting together this week’s episode of the Big Show, last night and it was going just fine, but then something happened.

We had a bit of weather here in Omaha, by God, Nebraska.

By “weather,” I mean all hell broke loose. For about an hour, conditions varied between “strong tropical storm” and Category 1 hurricane. This, mind you, 1,000 miles from the nearest coastline. 

In the Midwest, we call that “a pretty good thunderstorm.” And some fallen limbs, a neighbor’s fallen tree, a blown-off downspout, no cable or Internet and a battered and blacked-out city later, we’re going to see how it goes trying to post 3 Chords & the Truth using the 4G connection from my iPhone.

WELL, at least the apocalypse bunker still has electricity, though there were doubts about that during the storm as the lights flickered and transformers blew up here and there in the night.

That said, it’s a pretty good edition of the Big Show. When everything is surveyed and considered, all you need is love . . . and electricity.

This week, there’s some of this and a bit of that, and it’s all primo stuff, man. If I were you, I’d give it a listen. After all, it took a little doing (and some duct tape and jury rigging) to get it to you.

C’mon. Show a little gratitude. Is what I’m sayin’.

It’s 3 Chords & the Truth, y’all. Be there. Aloha.

3 Chords & the Truth: It's 100% fun

The Big Show is 100 percent fun, once you get used to it.

And, if you ask me, it's nice to get used to not hearing the same 100 songs -- if you're lucky -- over and over and over again on the radio. Then again, some folks just can't handle expanding one's mind . . . or one's horizons. 

Thanks for not being one of those people. Because you're here at 3 Chords & the Truth and not there. And, boy, are you gonna get some variety today.

There's not really anything more to say, is there? So let's get on with the Big Show. 

 It's 3 Chords & the Truth, y'all. Be there. Aloha. 

3 Chords & the Truth: You've gotta warm up to it

It could be that you're listening to the Big Show and thinking "What the f***???" 

If you are,  maybe you've gotta warm up to it. And -- maybe -- once you've warmed up to it, you'll be hooked. Maybe you'll look forward to not looking forward to what you figure will be playing next on the show. 

Maybe you'll be hooked on being surprised. A lot. 

Maybe you'll find that you're the type who likes shows like 3 Chords & the Truth, which is like Forrest Gump's box of chocolates. You never know what you're going to get next.

IN FACT, there's at least a couple of those moments on this very episode. Really, you'll be surprised -- pleasantly so, one hopes.

Like the time when I go from. . . . Hang on. If I give it away, you won't be surprised, now, will you?

That was close.

So I guess you'll have to just listen to yet another stellar installment of this here program and be waylaid all over again. Because that's what we do.

Yes, indeed.

It's 3 Chords & the Truth, y'all. Be there.  Aloha.

3 Chords & the Truth: Well, I don't know about that

It's a colossal phantasmagoria this week, coming to you live -- recorded to hard drive -- from the www.revolution21.org apocalypse bunker here in Omaha, by God, Nebraska. 

Well, I don't know about that. 

But this episode of 3 Chords & the Truth may be a colossal something. You be the judge.

I mean, there's some wild sh . . . uh, some wild things going on. Mushroom hunting is a tricky thing, and I may have picked the wrong batch. Is what I'm sayin'. 

And, well, I don't know about that. 

It's all this week on the Big Show. 

Teacher, does this have to be 500 words? Because I'm done.

It's 3 Chords & the Truth, y'all. Be there. Aloha.

3 Chords & the Truth: Operator, get me Internet

Listen, I'm trying to just phone in the program this week, but Ernestine kept wanting me to feed the pay phone with quarters. 

Wait. What's this "cell" thing you keep talking about? Smart what? I phone? 

No, I not a telephone. I am Mighty Favog. What the hell is wrong with y'all?

Anyway, you have Ernestine the Telephone Operator to thank for having a reasonably engaging and well curated edition of 3 Chords & the Truth this week. Otherwise. . . .

So. There's a pretty good show. 'Nuff said.

Hey, just because I couldn't phone in the Big Show this week, it doesn't mean I can't just phone in the description of it. Peace . . . out. 

It's 3 Chords & the Truth, y'all. Be there. Aloha.

3 Chords & the Truth: Those were the days

Those were the days, my friend. We thought they'd never end.

But they did.

The virus saw to that -- the end of what passed for normal life. Of course, there have been those who think the virus didn't apply to them and insisted on normality. A certain percentage will not make that mistake again . . . or any other mistake, for that matter.

But what does that have to do with 3 Chords & the Truth? 

FOR ONE THING, it's sort of why there wasn't one last week. I got the second Moderna vaccine, and (at least for me) it's true what they say: It kicked my butt for a couple of days. And you know what? I've never felt so good about feeling bad. 

Now I'm counting down the last handful of days until peak immunity. And freedom, or what passes for freedom as the COVID pandemic endures, in large part because too many Americans refuse to get vaccinated.

We think we'll sing and dance forever and a day.

I don't know what to do with that. 

So, I guess all of that has influenced this week's edition of the Big Show. The lost past and an uncertain future. The relentless tick tock of racing to vaccinate an obstinate public as the virus continues to mutate. 

All this mess kinda does make you want to turn back that clock up on the wall, doesn't it? Turn it back to the day. 

Back when we could live the life we choose. When we could fight and never lose. 

Those were the days, oh yes, those were the days. 

It's 3 Chords & the Truth, y'all. Be there. Aloha.

3 Chords & the Truth: Listening on the corner

It's long been a cliché, the group of misunderstood teenagers passing the time by standing on the street corner and singing in perfect harmony. 

There, they are discovered, taken to the recording studio, make a hit record, then find fame, girls, a turbulent lifestyle and drugs.

Our corner is a bit different here at 3 Chords & the Truth. 

FOR ONE THING, over there is Emerson, Lake and Palmer with a crapload of electronic gear.

Pete Townshend is across the way smashing his guitar on the sidewalk.

On the other corner, Herb Alpert is playing some mean trumpet between taking calls regarding some record-label business.

Paul Mauriat is looking for a corner big enough for a full orchestra and string section.

And you don't want to know what the New Wavers are doing.

Pretty interesting corner here on the Big Show. 

If I were you, I'd stick around to listen. You never know what you're going to hear next.

It's 3 Chords & the Truth, y'all. Be there. Aloha. 

3 Chords & the Truth: Classing the joint up

I sit here in the studio listening to Juan Garcia Esquivel at ear-splitting volume, because that's what the hell I do. I love this stuff . . . but that's probably the next edition of the Big Show.

Mrs. Favog loves the "space age" of space age bachelor pad music. She's highly suspicious of the "bachelor pad" part.

Her husband turns 60 on Wednesday, so I'm not sure how much she has to worry about on that front. 

None of that, however, tells you much about this week's edition of 3 Chords & the Truth as we continue classing up Omaha, as we have since 2008.

Well, I'll tell you. Now that I'm a certain age, I just don't care. I do what I want -- like that wasn't already the case -- and this particular program is about as eclectic as it gets. We have a bit of everything (almost), and it's quite the ride. Strap in. 

Heck, we even have what Lawrence Welk once called "a modern spiritual." Poor Lawrence. He was neither hip nor happening, and certainly not "now." 

As I said,  it's a hell of an episode of the Big Show. 

And that's all I have to say about that. Now on to getting the first vaccine jab -- yay! -- and turning a certain age. Old age is gonna be lit. 

It's 3 Chords & the Truth, y'all.  Be there. Aloha.

3 Chords & the Truth: We got the beat

We got the beat.

We got all the colors of the rainbow. 

We got the music. 

We 3 Chords & the Truth, y'all. And we still hangin' in there and holdin' out against the 'rona. While we're waiting on the miracle vaccine jab, we'll just play some really good music for you.

Truly, it's been a terrible year since the world stopped last March. The Big Show has done what we could to make it a little less intolerable, because what else can you do that doesn't involve curling up into a little ball under the covers?

Now there's a light at the end of the tunnel, and if we don't do stupid things and if we keep masking up for a bit longer, there's every chance that light won't just be the 'Rona Blossom Special. All you have to do is keep calm and listen to the music. Right here.

It'll take the edge off.

It's 3 Chords & the Truth, y'all.  Be there. Aloha.

3 Chords & the Truth: Stereo rock

I pity those who never  got the chance to be inspired by the radio -- at least inspired to do something other than storm the Capitol. 

I suppose this is yet another step down the road to old farthood, the compulsion to tell the young'uns how much better it was back when we were whippersnappers. Some of that is, undeniably, bullshit. The thing about how special radio once was -- especially that brief moment where freeform radio shined -- definitely is not.

This week, I find myself thinking of my first encounters with enlightenment, my early forays into subversion of the constipated world The Man desperately was trying to foist upon my young self all those years ago. And remembering lying in bed out at our camp in south Louisiana, which was within the range of the glorious FM signal of Rampart 102 in New Orleans, WWL-FM.

Rampart 102, named for the street where the good music lived, was a middle finger in the face of The Man. Kind of fittingly, it was owned by the Jesuits back then. And it played what my parents would call "hippie music," which was what they called it when they were in a good mood. What they called it when they weren't would make them, if they were still with us, MAGAs of the Year. 

I'D LIKE to think 3 Chords & the Truth carries the torch today for that lost moment in time -- the subversive moment, not the reactionary one. The reactionaries today have no problem carrying their own torches. Literally.

If you'd like to authentically relive the 1971 experience of kids like me, surreptitiously listening to The Music of Which Your Parents Would Not Approve, the music that would get your ass labeled an Enemy of Right Thinkin' (say this in your head with a Southern accent), you'll listen to the Big Show late at night, in bed, under the covers, with an earphone to hide your inner subversiveness from the agents of repression. 

For the full glory of the music, however, I recommend a good stereo system or listening through good headphones -- not crappy earbuds. 

And remember the days when listening to the radio -- listening to the FM radio -- could be an enlightening experience, a chance to connect with that late-night radio host, sitting with an audio board and a couple of turntables in a darkened studio somewhere in the ether, through the music. It was a supremely human thing.

It's Rampart 102 . . . er . . . 3 Chords & the Truth, y'all. Be there. Aloha.

3 Chords & the Truth: Thaw is not a four-letter word

The sun is shining (for now), the temperature is above freezing, and life could be worse here in Omaha, by God, Nebraska. 

Like, you could be Ted Cruz right now.

Or . . . you could be totally ignorant of the best music on the Internets. That would be 3 Chords & the Truth.

Well, we have another stellar program for you this week, and your Mighty Favog is going to take you on a couple of musical journeys. You're gonna want to stick around for those.

And that's about all you need to know about this week's edition of the Big Show. Yep, c'est tout.

It's 3 Chords & the Truth, y'all. Be there. Aloha. 

3 Chords & the Truth: The deep freeze

The weather here in the upper Midwest is fitting, I think.

It's a meteorological manifestation of the times in which we live. Frigid. Harsh. Bleak. Potentially deadly.

The difference between America's sociopolitical weather and that chronicled by the weather forecaster is this -- meteorologically, we know that spring will come in a matter of weeks. Yes, baby, it's cold outside, but it's as warm as we can make it in here -- on 3 Chords & the Truth.

So, put on your warm sweatpants, your fuzzy slippers and maybe a wool cap, too, and wrap up in a toasty blanket after getting a warm cup of something. Then put on this here episode of the Big Show and enjoy the music as we wait on spring.

Whenever it may come.

Oh . . . and you really want to hear how we get from Ray Conniff to The Clash. Sometimes, you just have to do something difficult just to see whether it can be done.

It's 3 Chords & the Truth, y'all. Be there. Aloha.

3 Chords & the Truth: Zap!

Blame it on the Jewish space lasers.

This show . . . the problems with the United States of Qmerica . . . that bald spot on the top of your head . . . wildfires . . . that we have a congresswoman who believes in Jewish space lasers -- take your pick, or take all of the preceding.

Howard Walowitz going up to the International Space Station? Coincidence? I think not.

There are two types of people who listen to 3 Chords & the Truth: Those who have been zapped by the Jewish space laser . . . and those who will be zapped by the Jewish space laser. Qmerica is the land of zaportunity.

So, while you're waiting to get baked like a nice brisket by a beam from low earth orbit, we have some nice music for you this week on the Big Show. Some really nice tunes, and a nice musical journey in the middle of the program.

Because you only live once, and then you get zapped.

It's 3 Chords & the Truth, y'all. Be there. Alo . . . ZORRRRRRRRRRRCH!

3 Chords & the Truth: Too colorful?

This week on the Big Show,  we have a lot of cool music and a little straight talk.

There also may be a joke about public radio. Excuse me a second; I have to take a phone call.

Um hmm. Um hmm. Yes. Um hmm. Well, it was all in good f. . . .

Um hmm. Um hmm. I'm sorry you feel that way. Um hmm. Well . . . I think that's a bit of an overreaction.

Um hmm. Um hmm. No! Not that! A "Car Talk" marathon! C'mon! The one guy has been dead for years!

Um hmm. What? Surely you're not serious about a Tibetan throat singing retrospective. Complete liner notes for every selection?

Listen, what can I do to make things right?

Um hmm. Um hmm. OK, I think I can do that. Goodbye. 

IT SEEMS there's one more thing I have to do before we move ahead with this week's edition of 3 Chords & the Truth. Just a sec.

I will not make fun of public radio again. 

I will not make fun of public radio again. 

I will not make fun of public radio again. 

I will not make fun of public radio again.  

I will not make fun of public radio again. 

I will not make fun of public radio again.  

I will not make fun of public radio again. 

I will not make fun of public radio again.  

I will not make fun of public radio again. 

I will not make fun of public radio again.  

I will not make fun of public radio again. 

I will not make fun of public radio again. 

I will not make fun of public radio again. 

I will not make fun of public radio again.  

I will not make fun of public radio again. 

I will not make fun of public radio again.  

I will not make fun of public radio again. 

I will not make fun of public radio again.  

I will not make fun of public radio again. 

I will not make fun of public radio again.  

I will not make fun of public radio again. 

I will not make fun of public radio again. 

I will not make fun of public radio again. 

I will not make fun of public radio again.  

I will not make fun of public radio again. 

I will not make fun of public radio again.  

I will not make fun of public radio again. 

I will not make fun of public radio again.  

I will not make fun of public radio again. 

I will not make fun of public radio again.  

I will not make fun of public radio again. 

I will not make fun of public radio again. 

I will not make fun of public radio again. 

I will not make fun of public radio again.  

I will not make fun of public radio again. 

I will not make fun of public radio again.  

I will not make fun of public radio again. 

I will not make fun of public radio again.  

I will not make fun of public radio again. 

I will not make fun of public radio again.  

I will not make fun of public radio again. 

I will not make fun of public radio again. 

I will not make fun of public radio again. 

I will not make fun of public radio again.  

I will not make fun of public radio again. 

I will not make fun of public radio again.  

I will not make fun of public radio again. 

I will not make fun of public radio again.  

I will not make fun of public radio again. 

I will not make fun of public radio again.  

I will not make fun of public radio again. 

I will not make fun of public radio again. 

I will not make fun of public radio again. 

I will not make fun of public radio again.  

I will not make fun of public radio again. 

I will not make fun of public radio again.  

I will not make fun of public radio again. 

I will not make fun of public radio again.  

I will not make fun of public radio again. 

I will not make fun of public radio again.  

I will not make fun of public radio again. 

I will not make fun of public radio again. 

I will not make fun of public radio again. 

I will not make fun of public radio again.  

I will not make fun of public radio again. 

I will not make fun of public radio again.  

I will not make fun of public radio again. 

I will not make fun of public radio again.  

I will not make fun of public radio again. 

I will not make fun of public radio again.  

I will not make fun of public radio again. 

I will not make fun of public radio again. 

I will not make fun of public radio again. 

I will not make fun of public radio again.  

I will not make fun of public radio again. 

I will not make fun of public radio again.  

I will not make fun of public radio again. 

I will not make fun of public radio again.  

I will not make fun of public radio again. 

I will not make fun of public radio again.  

I will not make fun of public radio again. 

I will not make fun of public radio again. 

I will not make fun of public radio again. 

I will not make fun of public radio again.  

I will not make fun of public radio again. 

I will not make fun of public radio again.  

I will not make fun of public radio again. 

I will not make fun of public radio again.  

I will not make fun of public radio again. 

I will not make fun of public radio again.  

I will not make fun of public radio again. 

I will not make fun of public radio again. 

I will not make fun of public radio again. 

I will not make fun of public radio again.  

I will not make fun of public radio again. 

I will not make fun of public radio again.  

I will not make fun of public radio again. 

I will not make fun of public radio again.  

I will not make fun of public radio again. 

I will not make fun of public radio again.  

IT'S 3 Chords & the Truth, y'all.  Be there.  Aloha.