What goes into making a radio show?

As many of you know, I work in radio as well as writing for the Frontiersman. I find both to be very exciting mediums to explore. My latest project called “The Downbeat” is a new challenge in learning the ropes in radio broadcasting. How does one produce, edit and assemble a prerecorded music show slated for a 30-minute time slot? Well I’m going to let you in on it.

First off, you need an idea to set the parameters of a show. “The Downbeat” is a show where I choose the songs for airplay. They will be from different genres from classic rock to folk and much more. Most of the material will be from my personal collection and some will be from the archives of KVRF. No disco or rap, thank you — those don’t make my day whatsoever. But the others I want to explore on the air with the listener.

So I have the basic idea now. How do I put it together? Well, that takes a playlist, a kind of a script to plan and to use while recording. I broke down the show into threes: three “breaks” preceding three “sets”. The break is a segment I’ll use for voiceovers to introduce and comment on the music being played. The set is obviously the music. Now each set is broken down further like this: Band- Album- Song- Running Time. The latter “ running time” is the most critical. Remember this is a 30-minute radio show and that sets the limits. I have it all printed up as a master script sheet blank, which I fill in and take it with me to the studio on recording day.

Let’s use one I just recorded recently. During one of my thrift store runs I found a true gem of a record, really a CD to tell the truth. I call finds like this a “Thrift Store Score” to all my Facebook friends. It was recordings by the blues singer Billie Holiday. Actually these were rare recording sessions done for Commodore records in 1939 and 1944. These were done in the day when the term “cutting a record” meant just that. In those days the bands were gathered together in the studio and played live. At the same time, a record made of a special wax cut the sound track into its surface with special needles via input from the microphones. This was years before tape, multi track and overdub recording were invented. So each song was one take, leaving little room for error. The record made was called the master, and it would be used to print up the vinyl records found in stores back then.

Billie Holiday was a black jazz singer back in the day where even music was segregated. From 1935 to ’59 she gave the world some of the best blues and jazz ever sung. Her songs crossed racial lines. She was not a powerful singer like say Aretha Franklin (another of my favorites), but when she sang it was from the depths of her deeply troubled soul. Drugs and alcohol were some of her personal demons that would take her life in 1959, when she was only 44. It was her music we played on KVRF that turned me on to her. I wanted to share my golden find with the listener. So I took the double CD set home and went to work on it.

After listening to the CD I would choose the songs for the playlist. I will use one to illustrate:

Band Album Song Running Time

Billie H. Comod. Rec. Strange Fruit 3:15

Eight more songs would follow to be downloaded into a thumb drive; a grand total of 27 minutes and 31 seconds. That would give me over three minutes of voice time. More than enough to introduce each set to the radio audience.

In the studio Mike Chmielewski would take the thumb drive and do some computer magic to it. Meanwhile I’m in the production booth recording my vocals for the show using my notes and playlist as a guide. After a few takes I saved them. Now I was ready for the next step. With Mike’s help we sent the voice stuff over to the megaseque computer (it does all the broadcasts). Then it was up to me to put all the pieces together in proper order and then add it to the upcoming schedule for broadcast on Sunday and Friday afternoons. The computer stuff is kind of complicated (that’s the magic part) and a real learning challenge for me.

So thats how you do it. Would you believe I still can’t stand the sound of my voice on the radio?

Daniel D. Grota is a retired U.S. Army veteran with over 21 years in service. He is also a Tuesday morning co-host on KVRF 89.5 FM, Radio Free Palmer. Write to him at news@frontiersman.com.