Jake: 0:09

Coming to you almost live from Berkeley, California. It's Aaron's Radio Show, with your host, Aaron Gobler.

Aaron Gobler: 0:19

Thanks, Jake. And welcome, everybody to Episode 56. Welcome to My Three Songs where I play three special songs chosen by my guest, and we talk about why they chose each song. Today, my guest is Keith Jefferds. Keith is an award-winning stage, film, and voice actor, but I met him when he was doing graphic design work here in the San Francisco Bay Area. Welcome to the show, Keith. How are you today?

Keith Jefferds: 1:14

I'm doing well. Aaron, how are you?

Aaron Gobler: 1:16

I'm doing well. Can't beat the weather here in the East Bay.

Keith Jefferds: 1:19

The best in the world.

Aaron Gobler: 1:20

Yes, yes. Keith, I've been following your acting exploits the past several years over Facebook and uh ... what projects or shows are you involved with at the moment?

Keith Jefferds: 1:30

The one I'm involved with currently, it's a repeat for me. I've only done repeated, you know a script two times. And this one is "Harvey". The well known some people call it a chestnut, but it still plays wonderfully well. So I'm doing that down in San Leandro, San Leandro Players.

Aaron Gobler: 1:50

Okay.

Keith Jefferds: 1:50

Boy, this is like a whole other experience. You know, we've had some great audiences, from whom I learned, you know what I mean? The feedback is extremely important. And I, I really feel there's a loop between me and the audience. And it just helps me to find the absolutely new things every time.

Aaron Gobler: 2:09

And you mentioned that so this is your second go-round on with this particular show. But it sounds like you did it with a different troop or a different location.

Keith Jefferds: 2:17

Yes, I did. I did it with Chanticleers Theatre in Castro Valley about 10 years ago. You know, as a graphic designer, you know, "Harvey" requires a portrait of my character Elwood P. Dowd with his friend, the invisible rabbit, kind of, you know, large framed portrait, so I created it for that show. They gave it to me at the end of the show, so I was able to supply it to this new production. They were thrilled at not having to, to do another one. So it was another little calling card as it were.

Aaron Gobler: 2:51

And how did you land it? Or did you seek out this role, again? Are you listing yourself as you know, this particular character available for "Harvey" performance in your local town?

Keith Jefferds: 3:03

No, it tends to not work that way.

Aaron Gobler: 3:05

Oh okay.(Laughter)

Keith Jefferds: 3:05

I've done two shows this year and the I didn't audition for them. The first one I was invited, which is very rare. And for the "Harvey", they lost their Elwood P. Dowd. So they were, they were looking around, it was still many weeks before opening, so it wasn't a panic situation. But the guy who was there previous Elwood, who had to bail out called me and said, Would you by any chance, be interested in this? And I said, Yeah, and I've done it before. And so I called them up. And they were, they were delighted. They didn't really know me. But, you know, I sent them my resume and seemed pretty clear to them that I could drop into the production.

Aaron Gobler: 3:51

And during the height of the pandemic, I know I saw on Facebook that you were doing certain things from the comfort of your home, perhaps or remotely or from the stage maybe without an audience. Is that right?

Keith Jefferds: 4:03

Yes. There was one instance of that I had done before the pandemic just before the pandemic, at Contra Costa Civic we did "It's a Wonderful Life" which is staged, as it is sort of based roughly on on a real event, which was after the movie came out, they did a radio production also with the lead Jimmy Stewart. And the radio production was as you would expect people standing in front of microphones with a foley artists making sound effects. All the usual. So this script, this play script, you know, for live theater is written in such a way that people are standing at mics, doing a radio show, right?

Aaron Gobler: 4:50

Okay.

Keith Jefferds: 4:51

So we had done that already, including with a wonderful wonderful foley artist and pianist. He was a kind of double threat. And so we already knew the production very well. So when the pandemic came, Marilyn, at Contra Costa Civic, asked us if we'd like to do it again. And what we did was we came into the theater, and we're, you know, videoed, each standing at a mic, and then they actually did some editing on it. So it was it was essentially like a film shoot, except people were, you know, we're obviously just, you know, figures in an old fashioned radio studio. And so they, they put it together, and then, you know, streamed it. And so but we came in to do that live in a sense, not with an audience, but with, with real people on a real camera man. And, and sound and staging.

Aaron Gobler: 5:49

That was a great improvisation of, due to the circumstances.

Keith Jefferds: 5:56

It was a perfect, it was a perfect script for, you know, for the pandemic period, because it because we could even stand apart from each other. Yeah, we didn't have to be close to each other beyond mic.

Aaron Gobler: 6:10

But it's got to be like, 180 degrees different than being in front of a live audience and actually getting that feedback immediately.

Keith Jefferds: 6:18

You know, we all think about that. And as I just said, from "Harvey", boy, the feedback has been extremely, you know, like a learning experience for me. And yet, sometimes I still feel like I can, you know, even in rehearsals, I'm the type of person who comes in and tries to give it you know, everything for the beginning which unnerved some people, they just want to learn the lines and find out, you know, where their spots are, and move to them and put it all together slowly and carefully, you know, but I'm, I'm essentially acting a part as soon as I, you know, soon as we start. I can't think of any other way that makes sense to me.

Aaron Gobler: 6:55

But it sounds like you're saying that the audience is instructive to you in some fashion, not just that they're making noise, but they're actually something extra there.

Keith Jefferds: 7:04

Yeah, well, the responses and a comedy is of course, easier than a, you know, then on a serious drama. But, you know, in a comedy, you have absolute feedback on whether it's successful or not. Okay, and when they laugh and how they laugh. So, yeah, that that's the kind of thing I mean, so sure, it helped a lot in that instance, but I don't have any problem like standing in front of the camera and doing the same thing. You know, maybe I wouldn't be learning the same things.

Aaron Gobler: 7:35

Right. But you also lack the silence if something doesn't land properly.(Laughter) If you're in front of a group and it doesn't land then you know also.

Keith Jefferds: 7:45

Yeah, the deathly silence. So I guess I guess it's better to do a drama. Cuz you'll never know.

Aaron Gobler: 7:54

As long as you're not falling asleep. Right.

Keith Jefferds: 7:57

"Death of a Salesman" unless someone is somebody's weeping. (Laughter)

Aaron Gobler: 8:02

Yeah, I really appreciate the fact that you're doing stage acting and was there acting in your pre-graphic design life?

Keith Jefferds: 8:10

So I had done some ... I did some acting in junior high school, then just completely forgot about it. I literally forgot that I'd even done it until an opportunity came to you know, in 2005, to be part of a show. But the show I did in junior high school, we had an ambitious director, and she picked a script from the French playwright Jean Anouilh, his version of the Joan of Arc story, a lot of weight. And I don't know ... I wish I knew how edited you know, our version had been. But we did a very serious adult play, you know, when I was in the eighth grade.

Aaron Gobler: 8:52

Okay.

Keith Jefferds: 8:52

Oh, and one more wonderful episode, which I still think of finally, Joan of Arc went up one night, meaning she forgot her lines. And she's talking to me and I'm playing the Douphin, you know, the prince in waiting. And she whispers to me go on. And I said, I babbled something that actually, you know, in this, you know, this happens that allowed her to pick up her next line, her next train of thought. She gave me a big kiss backstage.

Aaron Gobler: 9:21

Oh, wow.(Laughter)

Keith Jefferds: 9:24

You'd think I would have thought to continue acting.

Aaron Gobler: 9:28

Yeah. Yeah, it's a real team effort, isn't it? Because if you're up there and you're not you can't just say stop. You can't stop. And then you gotta you gotta keep it. Keep it going.

Keith Jefferds: 9:39

Yeah, it can be hair raising. You know?

Aaron Gobler: 9:42

Keith, I ask a lot of people to be a guest on the show, but only a handful take the opportunity. So what inspired you to be a guest?

Keith Jefferds: 9:50

Well, you asked me, to be frank. It's, it's like so many things. I just never thought to ask, you know, hadn't really looked at your specs or, you know how you found your your guests. You know, I just started to get your emails and stuff. And I think I gave you some feedback about it or something. And then you asked me to, uh, you know, I love the idea and I jumped right at it. I just never thought, me? That's often the case I often have the thought"me?"

Aaron Gobler: 10:24

Yeah, I don't just ask - I don't like walk down the street just asking people to do this since... I picked people who, who, who I believe have would have a certain passion for music or in your case, I knew you would have a certain amount of charisma and be comfortable, you know, being interviewed and whatever. And and I don't know, something just made me think that you would be a good guest. And I'm delighted that you that you agreed to it. And it sounds like it was mostly me nudging you.

Keith Jefferds: 10:52

That's right.

Aaron Gobler: 10:53

And that just encourages me to keep nudging people, I guess.

Keith Jefferds: 10:56

Never be shy.

Aaron Gobler: 10:58

Yeah. Yeah. So Keith, before we get started with your song list, there's a question I ask every guest, and that is how does music fit into your life? Like is it in the foreground, or the background of each day?

Keith Jefferds: 11:10

It is in the background. It is not like I play, you know, CDs, like in the old days, or I listened to Apple Music or that I'm, you know, consciously seeking out things. And you know, some of some of what I explain, you know, why I picked these three songs, we'll, you know, go to that point. But, but when I'm into something, you know, I'm really into something, but I may have to, like, fall into it. I stumbled into it. I don't go out looking for a huge range of things. Now, you know, with YouTube and everything, you know, it's wonderful. I'll hear about something and then I can easily find that song, you know, and just play it for myself. But yeah, my interests have been, well like my whole life has been a random path of accidents. And that includes, you know, the three things we're gonna talk about, but I'm not like some people who were Oh, yes, I'm cleaning the house and I'm listening songs. You know, I do sing when I drive. Part of it is a voice exercise part of it.

Aaron Gobler: 12:22

Okay.

Keith Jefferds: 12:23

I just love it. And I have I have a bunch of song collections. I've made sort of, you know, my, my tapes, as it were, but they're on an old iPod. And I sing along with them. So I am kind of a partner with lots of people. Jo Stafford, Frank Sinatra, Hank Williams. You know, it's quite a potpourri.

Aaron Gobler: 12:49

Yeah, that's great.

Keith Jefferds: 12:50

That's, that's absolute. When I'm driving, I'm always singing. So be careful when you see me passing.

Aaron Gobler: 12:58

So kind of segueing from what you described in terms of your music, listening styles and patterns. You did choose three very interesting songs that I had never heard of ... the artist who actually had heard of Mary Martin ... but I hadn't really heard of the songs before. And so let me go through your list. It's "My Heart Belongs to Daddy" by Mary Martin from 1938."You're Running Wild" by The Louvin Brothers from 1959."Parlez-moi d'Amour" by Lucienne Boyer from 1930. I took French for several years at school so that's very exciting for me.

Keith Jefferds: 13:34

Yeah me too.(Laughter) That's good.

Aaron Gobler: 13:36

So as I mentioned, I've never heard any of these songs before seeing your list. And so I'm really eager for us to listen to them together. And then I'm interested in knowing like why each of them is meaningful to you. So first, let's listen to the first song which is "My Heart Belongs to Daddy" as sung by Mary Martin.

Aaron Gobler.: 14:07

Keith, this was one of so many wonderfully witty songs by Cole Porter. I know Wikipedia says that there have been over 20 notable recordings of the song. I'm eager to know like what inspired you to include this song, and this version on your list?

Keith Jefferds: 14:21

It took many, many different exposures to make me alert to the pop music of America, say pre 1950 And now I absolutely love it.

Aaron Gobler: 14:35

Okay.

Keith Jefferds: 14:36

But it was like, where did you hear this as a kid? Your parents might have played something like this. There may be an other sources or maybe some strange rock and roll covers, you know, the songs. But one thing that was a big input was there was a radio station and this was in the 1970s and 80s. And I listened to it all the time. So there was a time when I really would have the radio on all the time. And they were playing songs from this period and earlier. So we'd basically cover 20s 30s 40s, you know, a little 50s, a, you know, sort of got into my blood. So I knew a little bit, you know, about the period, and, you know, and Broadway and Tin Pan Alley. So when I finally had multiple other exposures to this, I was sort of ready. Then one more thing happened, I stumbled upon a book, maybe it was at a garage sale, which was "Great Broadway Hits", you know, of the period. And I laboriously started to work on them on my guitar. Which is, which focuses you on a song in a way that nothing else can particularly you know, when you see a diminished seventh, or you know, a nice flatted fifth, or you have to figure it out, you know, on an instrument that wasn't made for it. So I started, I, you know, started to play through this book, and I learned a lot of these songs. And then very recently, I found that I can no longer play my guitar, I'm not in bad shape, but one of my fingers, you know, is developing some arthritis. So bridging and guitar has become very difficult. So I said, Okay, I think I have a little old keyboard somewhere in the background. And I dug it out, I had bought it on a whim and then never played it, and I brought it out. So now I converted some of you know, my musical knowledge from, you know, the fretboard to the keyboard. And I started playing the song, so it brought everything back to life. And when you finally got to me, I really started to think about it, this was my go to book and this song, there are so many wonderful songs, there's countless songs, I could never in my life, land on my favorite song, you know, couldn't do it doesn't mean much to me. This particular song just leapt out of me and leapt out at me for certain ways, how it's put together, what it represents, in terms of influences, the wild humor of it, the history of it, staging, et cetera. So this song is a combination of many, many things. One of them, which just leaps out at me every time maybe you heard it, it starts out in a very bright major key, a almost a razzmatazz-y fanfare, you know, like big, big brassy, Broadway, et cetera. And there's a key change where it becomes a little more modal. You know, he shifted to a, it's not a minor key, but he used a lot of accidentals, you know, musically. And then full on at a certain point, it becomes practically Hasidic. The melody though, you know, you might have heard it, or the same kind of modal sound, you might hear in, you know, the muscle of call to prayer or something very, very, very Middle Eastern or middle European. Which was everywhere in the songwriting of the period, partly because I would say that the vast majority of the successful songwriters were Jewish, and they brought this music from their background. They were dead set on becoming as American as they could be, in their own in their own way without abandoning anything. Porter, was this really amazing, you know, assimilator. He was a complete anomaly in the songwriting field, a really"goyish" guy from Indiana, who, you know, started out writing, you know, what sounded like the elegant Broadway songs, you know, of the pre war period, pre-World War One that is, but at a certain point he made and this is this is, I would say, confirmed fact. He heard, you know, what the Jewish songwriters were doing, and the use of that, that minor melodic thing and said, I'm going to write Jewish songs. Cole Porter went on to use this dynamic of the major minor, like nobody ever has. So the thing moves from, you know, bright razzmatazz to suddenly you're in some kind of modal, you know, twilight, yeah. And this really hasidic melody, you know, which ends with this unique you know. You can almost imagine somebody dovening while he sings.(Singing) I don't know how he does this musically, but he picks up -- it's the same note, but the key changes and picks up that note in a major way. So you're back for the the big major finale, which, which he then ends in a minor, of course, that, you know, the fluidity of all that, you know, also in this song, you can hear where they decided, Okay, we're gonna do Latin rhythms here, we're in the Caribbean. And then we're gonna do big, you know, big band jazz styles, you know, and the content the absolutely wonderfully scandalous content.

Aaron Gobler: 20:40

Yeah, I will have to go back and listen to at least just listen to the audio part again, considering all the things you said. I often compare a song to, like a recipe, somebody can make a recipe, really sparkle, some people can just make it be kind of mundane, the end product may taste really, really amazing, but you're not sure what's in it until you talk to the person who made it. And it sounds like you really have done a whole study on this song. And so now I know what the ingredients are, and to go back and listen to it again and enjoy it in a in a more robust way. Yeah, cuz I mean, it sounds it's fun to listen to. And it sounds kind of racy, but I didn't really consider all the levels of how it was constructed. So I appreciate all that, all that information that's gonna make me eager to go back and, and listen to it a few different times, trying to listen for those parts.

Keith Jefferds: 21:32

Wonderful.

Aaron Gobler: 21:33

So thank you for including that on your list. The next song on your list is"You're Running Wild" by the Louvin Brothers. And that's from 1959. Let's take a listen to that. And we'll talk about it on the other side.

Aaron Gobler.: 21:48

Keith, I really love this song. And I want to thank you for including it. The harmony by the woman reminded me of Linda Ronstadt. And I don't listen to a lot of country music. So there probably are other women singers who might also fit the bill here. But I understand the Louvin Brothers helped popularize this kind of harmonizing and country music. I also don't know how common it is to have a mandolin in country music. So I'm, I'm curious what inspired you to include this song on your list?

Keith Jefferds: 22:27

That's very interesting. Let me ask you one thing in return ... the woman... there's no woman on the recording.

Aaron Gobler: 22:33

So, oh that's interesting okay.

Keith Jefferds: 22:35

That's yeah, that's a high harmony --

Aaron Gobler: 22:37

Wow.

Keith Jefferds: 22:38

The high harmony, which started to appear in the 30s. Anyway, yeah, there. Yeah. Up on top is, is Ira Louvin. And they're dynamite. Yeah. And so, you know, it's not unusual. If you even go back to the origins of bluegrass, you know, Bill Monroe, he's the guy who more or less invented what they call it the high lonesome sound, which is to have the harmony on top. And very, very high as you know, he was an incredible tenor, you know, got a push, push the tenor range, like a lot of people couldn't do. And the same thing is true here. So these are these these are guys.

Aaron Gobler: 23:20

Yeah, I'm glad I made that mistake. Because I don't know if I would have gotten the information from you about about that. And it opens up my eyes to how talented someone can be to change their register like that.

Keith Jefferds: 23:33

Sure. Yeah. In terms of the mandolin that's a very excellent question. I think yeah, it was Ira who played the mandolin recognized for his skill. Even Bill Monroe you know, the grandfather of Bluegrass recognized and said he was a terrific mandolin player. See, that's part of the thing about this song. This is like the middle ground of country music what you hear today is kind of country rock. It's like rock ... country invaded rock and then rock invaded country right back. Well, this is from a period ... well, well, let me just talk about this particular style as it were, and some of your listeners surely recognized a connection to the Everly Brothers here. The harmony style is is very, very similar and aloof and just they got the jump on the Everlys just a little bit. I have no doubt that the Everlys who were up in wherever they were Indiana listening to WLS you know, picked up the Grand Ole Opry. These guys were on the opry from 1955 you know to one of them died. Yeah. And so the Everlys, I think owe a huge debt. And what kills me about this song we just played is the absolute straight ahead power of it. It just just, it's, you know, unremitting, simple, clear, powerful, heartfelt.

Aaron Gobler: 25:08

Yeah. All those things. Yeah, it is. Yeah.

Keith Jefferds: 25:11

Yeah. So I love it also, because I, it's sort of, in another thing I completely fell into, you know, was country music, something happened again, this is in the realm of the complete accidents of you know how I got interested in different genres. I was walking home one night in Albany, Albany, California, I walk past the house on the corner, and there was a guy who I didn't know very well named Warren Zittel. And we got to talking about music. And he invited me over, I said, I played a little guitar. And we got together, you know, a couple of days after that. And he introduced me to a Hank Williams song. And he taught me a harmony part. And we just aced it, nailed it, you know, from the very beginning, and I'd never done any such thing. And then I started to buy records and CDs and so forth. Warren, who passed away a couple of years ago, was was a brilliant kind of self made, you know, music historian about American music, folk music, blues pop, you know, etcetera going back to before the Civil War. So, anyway, so we did, we did harmony parts we did, he introduced me to Jimmy Rogers, Hank Williams, all kinds of stuff. And I also discovered the Hank Williams, who everybody thinks of the people that know him. And that is our wish everyone did. You know, as a soloist, and his harmony parts work extremely well on Hank Williams song. So anyway, so we sang and then, you know, I sort of fell into another thing, just to, you know, circle back to your comment about where does this fit into country. At the same time this was happening, they were already well into the era of what's called country-politan. You know, it's not exactly a compliment. It means the highly processed, somewhat homogenized prettified you know, pop sound when Nashville was you know, trying to cross sell, you know, to the full American public. But these guys, these, these are the real guys in my mind. These guys early George Jones, Hank Williams, the great, great, great master, and Jimmy Rogers. They're just feet on the ground. You know, sing your heart out. No complications, no, no string section.

Aaron Gobler: 27:52

Yeah, there's basically rhythm, guitar, and mandolin and yeah, voices. And you're right, they come right out of the gate, just like going for it and, and it's spotless. It has so much emotion and sounds very authentic.

Keith Jefferds: 28:06

Right.

Aaron Gobler: 28:07

Thank you again for introducing me to that. And I'm sure our listeners enjoyed it as well. The last song on your list is "Parlez-moi d'Amour" sung by Lucienne Boyer and this is from 1930. So let's give that a listen.

Aaron Gobler.: 28:25

Keith this version is remastered and often we think that would bring up a song to current standards. But the recording still has a lot of anomalies in it. And I can only imagine the condition of the version they started with. But I don't really know anything about the song or this artist. Tell me why did you choose to include this on your list?

Keith Jefferds: 28:53

Just first a comment about the remastering quote unquote ... I don't know even know what the claim means. A couple of different versions online and they're all you know like listening through the fog. And yet you know, she just comes right through to the heart. It overwhelms ... I can almost hardly speak after listening to this song and the you know, the fuzz, you know of the old vinyl somehow it all seems so perfect. It's like watching an old French film, it doesn't have to be up to criterion films. It's still you know, the humanism and humanity of the you know this music and you know other French arts of the time, you know, really comes right right through. So anyway, I again I have to I have to tell you a story of accidents you know, being someone who stumbles on things and doesn't even know what's allowed for him to be interested in until you know various trips and stumbles and and then intention takes over. Now I want to go back not to this artist, but to Edith Piaf, which is the name many more people will know. But this is kind of the pre Piad. This is the beginning of the great chanson ... the great French, you know, intimate cabaret, heartbreak song. I had a friend in college and she played me a 45 of "La Vie en Rose" by, by Edith Piaf. You know, I almost feel like I'd heard it before then, but I don't know where but anyway, so that, you know, made an impression. Years later, when I was living in Albany, I took guitar lessons from very, very fine and fairly well-known jazz guitarist named Will Bernard. But he was at the time playing with a French-style quartet, and they were playing what's called Bal-musette music. It's the music, they played in these little cafes and boîtes you know, dives, even sometimes. So then I thought, okay, so this exists, you know, there's this tradition of wonderful, intimate French, you know, one on one singing as it were. So then years later, I'm singing I'm, I'm taking not lessons, but just kind of friendly drop ins with a very good pianist, I met doing shows, and she had a copy of "La vie en rose" and I learned to do that and a couple other Piaf songs, and all this is like building up then I can't remember the first time I think I saw "Casablanca" once decades ago, but then it became popular, and you could see it more easily on disc. And we all saw it, you know, somewhat later. And so I'm watching "Casablanca", okay. And this will probably resonate at least subliminally, with, you know, much of your audience. When Ilsa first walks into Rick's cafe after this, you know, years long hiatus between them, Sam launches into"Parlez-moi d'Amour". It's, it is the song we just listened to played as an instrumental on the piano. Okay, so all this gradually piled up, and I finally bought a CD of, you know, the chanson tradition, which includes the singers I mentioned, and lots of male singers of the later period, like Yves Montand and Charles Aznavour, you know, and they all involve really intense, you know, emotional relationships. This song is just incredibly candid, beautiful, honest, if I may, I just want to do a little translation here.

Aaron Gobler: 32:46

Sure, please.

Keith Jefferds: 32:47

The verse is, is very pretty. It says, you know,"speak to me of love, tell me all those beautiful things that you're telling before all that beautiful talk. That my heart never tired of listening to these these words that I adore, your voice caressing, the murmur, the trembling murmur kind of rocks me with it's beautiful ..." and think of this word story "histoire" ... "...and despite myself, I want to believe it." Okay. So here's, here's what she says in the frame when it shifts to that little duh duh duh duh that added, you know, the little light to almost ditty like quality. "It is so sweet, my dear treasure, to be a little crazy. Life is sometimes so bitter. If one can't sometimes believe in illusions, you know, life is just too hard. The pain is appeased. And I'm consoled by a kiss the wound of the heart is cured or at least assuaged by,... " ... and the word is"serment", ... "that reassures it. "Serment" can be translated as oath, but what she's really saying is, all your promises make me feel better. What to say? It's like, it's so candid about relationships. And yes, yes, I know, you know, what, whatever the relationship of men and women of the period, you know, it doesn't look pretty from this song. But frankly, a lot of people, you know, sometimes they do just want to be, you know, have reassurances that they know, they can't quite believe so, it's, it's powerful writing, and yet it's so lovely and fragile and, you know, like fine china or something.

Aaron Gobler: 34:46

Yeah. And that's so much really on her delivery of the song.

Keith Jefferds: 34:50

I mean, in a way this is what you know, came later in American parlance to be known as a Torch Song. You know, I woman who carries a torch or a man who is, you know, mentally bound to an unattainable woman or something, again, the influence of female blues singers in America, Bessie Smith, Ma Rainey like that, you know, talking unfiltered about adult relationships, you know, something nobody would discuss in, you know, Moon June songs of the early 20th century. So anyway, that's all I have to say. But yeah, the main thing about this, this song we just listened to is it just goes straight through me. Maybe it's like the lupins, too, it's just straight ahead and gets right to the point and goes for it.

Aaron Gobler: 35:41

Keith, is there anything else you'd like to share about your selections, like things you may have thought about while you were listening to them that you haven't said or any answers to questions I didn't ask?

Keith Jefferds: 35:50

No, I think we're good. I mean, the one the one thing that I just think is fascinating, particularly in terms of the first one, you know, the Mary Martin ditty, you know, is is that sense of, you know, there was no American music until, you know, the fresh-off-the-boat or the disenfranchised started to make it the, you know, there was a self satisfied quality about the 19th century parlor song, you know, you know, going back to England, and, you know, someone sitting around the piano in the parlor. But then suddenly, boom, incredible stuff started to feed in, you know, from the fields, and from the Caribbean, you know, and from the shtetls.

Aaron Gobler: 36:37

Yeah.

Keith Jefferds: 36:38

And it was an explosion, you know, and Cole Porter, you know, he got away with, you know, taking this and running with it, you know, even though he was a, you know, a multimillionaire by birth. But anyway, he has this sense of synthesis. And the possibilities are just limitless. You know, you talk about fusion music. My God, the fusion that was happening, you know, starting, I would say, you know, late 1800s, but picking up after World War One.

Aaron Gobler: 37:12

Keith, thank you again, so much for your list. And for your time today. I had a great time. You know, hearing your stories and all your accidental little tidbits there. And, and I hope you had a good time, too.

Keith Jefferds: 37:24

I had a wonderful time. So glad you asked me.

Aaron Gobler: 37:29

Oh, well, I'm, again, I'm delighted that you know, my nudging worked. And you've inspired me to nudge some other people who I want to have on the show. And to my listeners, if you want to be part of the show start by going to our website, Aaron's Radio dot show and clicking on the My Three Songs button on the homepage. You can also sign up for our mailing lists so you'll know immediately when a new episode is available. You can also find Aaron's Radio Show on your favorite podcast service. But the podcast episodes only include interviews and no licensed music.

Aaron Gobler.: 38:02

Before we wrap-up this episode, I wanted to let you know of an experimental format we have for the radio show called "Dedications". If you're familiar with Casey Kasem's Top 40 show, he would read a dedication written by one listener with hopes that it would reach the ears of another listener, and then he would play the song. I'm hoping to recapture some of that magic. So I'm asking you, if you have a dedication you'd like to make to somebody, please go to Aaron's Radio dot show slash dedications to submit yours. Once I receive a few I'll begin making episodes based on those dedications.

Aaron Gobler: 38:40

So until next time, keep your ears and mind open and let more music into your world.

Female voice: 39:01

You're listening to Aaron's Radio Show.