Mary McCaslin's Roundup

Sept 28, 2000

GOOD MORNING MONTEREY BAY

We live in a place that still feels old fashioned, in spite of the invasion of the dot.coms and the proliferation of office buildings in downtown Santa Cruz. Sometimes all it takes to step back to an earlier time is to walk into the front door of a place like radio station KSCO.

The building that houses KSCO (1080 AM) was built in 1947 and is perched on the edge of the marshes between the Santa Cruz boat harbor and Pleasure Point. Even if there were no tall towers with blinking lights standing sentry in the water a couple hundred yards away, the classic structure of this building could only bring to mind one thing: an old-time radio station. At one time in this country there were probably hundreds of these "art decco" type buildings constructed mostly in the 1940s to house AM radio stations. (FM was not commonly heard on the airwaves until sometime later.) They are so unique that they should be preserved as architectural treasures.

KSCO began broadcasting in September of 1947, and with the exception of a brief time when it was known as KLRS, the station has maintained its original call letters. Remarkably, the station has only changed hands twice. The Zwerling family is KSCO's third and present owner.

Don Husing admits that he is stuck in radio. This month marks his 34th year with KSCO. Two previous owners have come and gone, but Don has remained. I think of him as a pillar of the KSCO broadcasting and listening community.

Don's radio carreer began at a Hollister station before his stint in the army as a communication specialist. He was hired by KSCO's first owner while still on active duty at Fort Ord. Over the years he has done just about every sort of technical job at KSCO, but since 1991 he has co-hosted the popular Good Morning Monterey Bay show from 7 to 9 am weekday mornings. Originally, Good Morning Monterey Bay was started with John Sandidge, who now hosts KPIG's Sunday morning show, Please Stand By. For the past few years, Rosemary Chalmers has been Don's partner on the morning airwaves.

Good Morning Monterey Bay offers the usual news, weather and traffic updates. But what gives this show its special charm are the interplay between Don and Rosemary and Don's wacky sense of humor. He slips in some real "groaners", but somehow they work.

He also features some cuts from the recordings of various musicians who have upcoming performances in our neighborhood. Don has long been a supporter of folk and acoustic music and is often seen at the Snazzy shows on Saturday nights. On weekends he "sleeps in" until 6 am, but on Sunday nights he returns to his regimen of retiring in the early evening to rise at the frightening hour of 2:30 am. He does this Monday through Friday mornings and arrives at the station 5 am.

Don and Rosemary have a way of making Good Morning Monterey Bay feel like a visit with family and old friends. Recently Rosemary had to search for a new place to live and asked listeners to keep an eye out and contact her with any suggestions. She made it clear that her pets would not be accompanying her, because they had permanent lodging. It turns out Rosemary's pets are four potbellied pigs and a donkey, who are living on a ranch in Felton. I am happy to report that she has found a new place to live and even happier to know that Don and Rosemary are here to greet us each weekday morning.

TALENT SHOWCASES

In the August Roundup I asked readers to let me know about any "open mics" in our neighborhood, so I could list them in this column. Back in the 60s, talent showcases were called "Hootenannies", or "Hoots", if they took place at folk clubs. Now it seems that they are once again known as showcases, or "open mics", no matter what kind of venue presents them.

Jeff Stewman at the Santa Cruz Mountains Art Center on Mill St. in Ben Lomond emailed to say that he has been hosting a Songwriters' Showcase on the second Saturday of each month. This takes place at the "Aloha Cafe" in the Art Center. He went on to say that these showcases are usually kind of folky, always eclectic, and range from acoustic soloists to electric trios. There is even a spinnet piano on site. The next showcase is Saturday, Oct 14.

The Aloha Cafe has also been presenting performances by musicians such as Ann Whittington and the Jeffery Luhn Quartet. The purpose of the cafe is to better meet and serve the varied degrees of musical talent in our area. A new venue is always welcome.

All performances take place on Saturday nights. For information about the showcases or other performances, call Jeff at 336-2585.

Bocci's Cellar, the wonderful restaurant on Encinal St. in Santa Cruz, has begun presenting a weekly talent showcase every Wednesday night from 6 to 9. Sign-ups are at 5:30 pm. Singers, songwriters, poets and musicians are all welcome. This is actually a contest with a $50 cash prize given each week. Richie Begin is the emcee. Call 427-1795 for information.

Our friends at Henflings Firehouse Tavern in Ben Lomond have been hosting the Sunday night Pro Jam for many years. It starts at 6 pm every Sunday, and you just never know who you'll see up there on the bandstand. Call Henfling's at 336-8811.

I'm sure there are more talent showcases in our neighborhood. Help me keep an ear out so they can get a mention here in the Roundup.

WHAT TO DO, WHAT TO DO...

Not only is the Fat Fry taking place this coming Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 30 and Oct. 1, but Saturday breaks the record for the most top qualitity performers booked to play on the same night here in the Santa Cruz area.

Here is a rundown of Saturday' shows : Dougie MacLean, the great Scottish singer-songwriter, is playing at the Pacific Cultural Center, which is at the corner of Seabright and Broadway in Santa Cruz. This is a make-up date. He was originally booked to play in April, but some bureaucratic snafu caused the cancellation of that entire tour. Call the Celtic Society at 464-2128.

Snazzy Productions is kicking off their fall line-up of concerts with a performance by Christine Lavin. She is a wonderful singer, with a hillarious take on everyday life. Snazzy's info number is 479-9421.

Lea Lawson Productions is presenting Patty Larkin at Palookaville. Patty is a marvelous songwriter and hot guitar player. Call 426-7828.

Larry Hosford's official CD Release Party takes place at the Windjammer in Aptos. A couple Saturdays back, he played at Skinny McDoogle's. That night he was celebrating his 57th birthday. If his performance that night is any indication, look out this Saturday night. He and his band were excellent.

The only scary thing is that I've probably forgotten someone else who is also playing on Saturday night!

Well, that's it for this time. Please keep in touch. Happy trails.

Mary McCaslin can be reached by e-mail at:mccaslin@juno.com or at PO Box 3394,

Santa Cruz, CA 95063.

She also hosts "The Fat Farm" on Thursday afternoons from 3 to 6 on KZSC, 88.1 FM.