WJFF Radio Catskill Brings You the Latest News and Information about Our Elections. Plus Music, Talk and Community Updates.
Starting October 16 you will hear announcements from staff and volunteers asking you to give to your community radio station during our quiet fall pledge drive. With your continued help Radio Catskill can provide the latest news and information about the candidates, the races and what it means for our communities.
Beginning Monday, October 12, WJFF broadcasts NPR News’ live, anchored, standalone Special Coverage of the Senate Judiciary Committee hearings for Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett, President Trump’s pick to fill the seat of Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who died in September. Senators may attend the hearings either virtually or in person. The hearings — and NPR’s live coverage — are slated to begin at 9 am each day. Some days of the hearings may be very long, extending into the evening. Monday’s schedule includes opening statements from the full committee and Judge Amy Coney Barrett; Tuesday and Wednesday, October 13 and 14 Senators Question Judge Barrett.
Radio Catskill is carrying NPR coverage of the remaining presidential debate on Thursday October 22, beginning at 9 pm.
For archives of all our local programs go to Archives to stream. (Note: music shows for two weeks only after airing.)
A salute to Old Skool Sessions (Saturdays 10 pm) celebrating 20 years on air throughout the month of October. The four-hour program features Paul “Selector Starkey” Henshaw and Charles “DJ Chucks” Anderson spinning roots reggae, old skool hip-hop, club classics, funk, and much, much more. DJ Chucks first went on air with Old Skool Sessions in October, 2000.
The theme of Living Jazz (Fridays noon to 2pm) on October 9 is Something Old, Something New. Host Thane Peterson begins the show with a track from the extraordinary, newly rediscovered 1962 Ella Fitzgerald concert in Berlin, followed by a remembrance of the great baritone sax player Pepper Adams, who would have been 90 this week. The rest of the first hour is devoted to guitarist Lionel Loueke’s new tribute to Herbie Hancock, sax player James Brandon Lewis’ tribute to Charlie Haden, and London-based trumpeter Yazz Ahmed’s tributes to the Pakistani activist Malala Yousafzai and the pioneering English sax player Barbara Thompson. (Backing Ahmed, who was born in Bahrain, is what one critic describes as “a who’s who of London’s happening, woke jazz scene,” most of them women.) Hour 2 introduces some new names to Living Jazz: Chilean-born guitarist Camila Meza and her Nectar Orchestra, the 22-year-old alto player/composer Immanuel Wilkens, and Chicago bass virtuoso Junius Paul, 33, who plays with both the venerable Art Ensemble of Chicago and the very “woke” young drummer/composer Makaya McCraven. The show ends with Ella singing the blues. Talking about his October 23 show, Host Thane Peterson says “We’re at a juncture in our nation’s history where we’re badly in need of heroes. We have lost so many recently, including Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Congressman John Lewis. The search for heroes and mentors has been a constant theme in the history of jazz, especially since the 1960s. We’ll listen to a bunch of tributes that resulted from this search, including Hugh Masekela’s to Nelson Mandela, bassist Christian McBride’s to Rosa Parks, sax player Roxy Coss’ to heroic women, and moving elegies by Dave Brubeck and Phil Woods’ to Duke Ellington and Bobby Kennedy, respectively.”
Rosie Starr, host of Farm and Country (Saturdays at 11:05) reports that the October 10 show features Keith Hubbard, who says to look for a very bright Mars in the western evening sky on the Star Talk segment. And, in her segment Now You Know, Stephanie Phillips speaks with NY State wildlife rehabilitator and educator Pam Golben about the lifestyle of opossums. On October 17 Keith Hubbard with Star Talk, says, thanks to comet Haley, the Orionid Meteor showers highlight the night time skies next week. In her segment Now You Know, Stephanie Phillips speaks with NY State wildlife rehabilitator and educator Pam Golben about her work with opossums. Along the Poet’s Row”, Christine San Jose narrates writer’s words on the theme of October. And, Rosie Starr shares some of her locally sourced, postcard 2020 memories of our socially distanced summer. On the October 24 show Keith Hubbard introduces the big and bright “Capella” twinkling on the horizon in the northeastern evening sky in Star Talk; Pat Jim Sanders reports For the Birds on the subject of flocking European Starlings; in Along the Poet’s Row, Christine San Jose sets a dark scene with her narration on birds and fire and in her segment Now You Know, Stephanie Phillips speaks with NY State certified arborist Charlie Blume who shares his expertise on chainsaws. On October 31, Stephanie Phillips’ segment “Now You Know”, features staff members from Sullivan County’s planning and community development conversing about their work; Keith Hubbard’s “Star Talk” is about the Full Blue moon on Halloween; in “Along the Poet’s Row”, Christine San Jose hands out seasonally written treats to trick listeners.
Staff Sergeant Doug Sandberg host of Let’s Talk Vets (every other Wednesday at 7 pm) invites you to join Part 1 of a two-part very special conversation with Larry Winters Vietnam Vet, survivor, author, poet and career mental health professional. Larry shares his deepest thoughts and feelings about war and healing. October 14. Doug”s show on October 28 looks at the VA’s caregiver support programs and the director will have some updates from the VA Hudson Valley Healthcare System. Doug chats with vets Sgt First Class James Strasser and Vince Benedetto.
The Wagonload of Monkeys (Sundays at 3 pm) with host Graham Rice brings you British and Irish folk music; on October 18, songs about English towns. On October 25 Graham presents another hour of British and Irish folk music including songs about Liverpool, plus more winners of the Best Original Song Award at the BBC Folk Music Awards over the years, recent releases and more.
Immedialy following The Wagonload of Monkeys, Folk Plus (Sundays at 4 pm) host Angela Page presents on October 18 an archived show from 2014, a special on Dave Van Ronk, including an interview with his co author which became the motivation for the movie Inside Llewellyn Davise, and interviews with his wife Andrea, Christine Lavin and other musicians in Dave’s life. Sitting in for Angela on October 25 Graham Rice presents a special British and Irish edition of the show with music from the best selling British and Irish folk albums of 2020 so far.