Michael Hedges - Live & Interview on 'Mixed Bag' in 1986 & in 1988-02-21, the latter date with Leo Kottke, on WNEW-FM, NYC, NY.

Here's another one of my cassette tape transfers of Michael Hedges. This torrent is two of the times that Michael was on the 'Mixed Bag' radio show which was created and hosted by Pete Fornatale on WNEW, New York City. Pete passed away on April 26, 2012 so this one is dedicated to him. Pete was considered a pioneer of FM radio and having grown up on Long Island, New York his voice on the radio and the music he played is something I grew up with. Mixed Bag itself was a great show on which Pete introduced his audience to new music and musicians and his interviews were always thoughtful and well prepared. Thanks for all the music Pete and thanks for having Michael Hedges on your show to help us remember you both!

Michael Hedges was on Mixed Bag at least three times. These two shows are the second and thrid times he was on it. Tracks 1-8 of this torrent are from Spring 1986. I'm guessing it must have been in April since Pete Fornatale mentiones an upcoming Michael Hedges concert at Tarrytown Music Hall on May 3, 1986. It could have been March, but I doubt it. The entry for this show on db.etree.org only has 1986 listed, but it also has the setlist slightly wrong. Unfortunately, my recording is missing the song The Streamlined Man...sorry! And to be honest the sound isn't great, but it isn't awful either. The recording on the tape itself was always too slow and I tried the best that I could using pitch adjustment in Sound Forge to make it sound better. The tape must have stretched and/or otherwise damaged and ultimately at this point, it is what it is. As they say, 'you just can't polish a turd!'

Tracks 9-15 are from February 21, 1988 when Michael was touring with Leo Kottke. Both Michael and Leo are present for a solo song each and one song performed together. They both participate in the interview portions of the show. These songs on the torrent are OK as far as the speed/pitch, but it does suffer from some annoying FM static throughout the recording. It is a first generation recording, but obviously the guy I got it from was having trouble with his radio reception the day this was broadcast. Again, it is what it is until maybe someone comes up a better quality copy of either of these Mixed Bag shows. Maybe someone even has the first time Michael Hedges was on Mixed Bag.

Finally, all said about the problems with the sound quality, these are both quite listenable recordings. Of course it's always great to hear Michael talk about his music and like I mentioned, Pete Fornatale was a great interviewer. If you have upgrades for this or/any other Michael Hedges music in general, please upload it!

Transferred and uploaded on June 20, 2012 to Dime by robsam. I hope you enjoy and share the music! Rob

Source: FM broadcasts > ? > Low generation cassette tape > Unknown Nakamichi tape deck (transfer) > WAV > Soundforge Pro 10 (volume adjustment, fading, editing & pitch correction) > Nero 10 WAV Editor (split tracks) > dBpoweramp (conversion to FLAC) > Trader's Little Helper (fix SBEs & create FFP/MD5 files) > FLAC (level 8). Originally uploaded to DIME (June 20, 2012).

Michael Hedges - Live on & Interview Mixed Bag with Pete Fornatale, WNEW-FM, NYC, NY, sometime in April 1986 (I'm guessing at the month, but Pete Fornatale does mention a concert coming up on May 3, 1986) - 23 minutes
01. (introduction)[by 'Mixed Bag' host: Pete Fornatale]
02. Rikki's Shuffle
03. (interview)
04. Dancing In The Back Seat
05. (interview)[The Streamlined Man edited out!]
06. (interview)
07. Follow Through
08. (outro)

Michael Hedges & Leo Kottke - Live & Interview on 'Mixed Bag' with Pete Fornatale, WNEW-FM, NYC, NY, on February 21, 1988 (1st generation with lots of FM static) - 26 minutes
09. Ritual Dance [Michael Hedges]
10. (interview)[Come Together from Live on the Double Planet edited out]
11. (interview)
12. Short Wave [Leo Kottke]
13. (interview)
14. Theme From 'Doodles' [Michael Hedges & Leo Kottke]
15. (outro)[by 'Mixed Bag' host: Pete Fornatale]

Total time = 49:27