News reports suggest the future of Voice of America (VOA) is seriously in doubt. I haven’t listened to VOA in five decades but there was a time I tuned in during my teenage years back in the Stone Age. It might seem strange for a spotty English kid to switch on VOA so I will attempt to explain.
When I was about 14 I bought a transistor radio primarily to listen to the latest hit songs on Radio Luxembourg without disturbing my parents who preferred the BBC which broadcast very little pop music. Listening to overseas stations in the evenings became something of a hobby and it was while surfing the airways I first came across VOA.
Being a teenager I wasn’t interested in the political side of the VOA broadcasts, but late one night I came across a programme that would influence my musical tastes forever. The show was Jazz Hour, hosted by the late Willis Conover with the theme music being Duke Ellington’s iconic Take the ‘A’ Train. Conover had a deep “made for radio” voice and he would introduce every broadcast with “Time for Jazz. This is Willis Conover in Washington DC”.
Conover spoke slowly because the daily broadcast was aimed at foreign listeners and not a domestic audience. Anyway his show sparked my early interest in jazz. Towards the end of the broadcasts I would often drift off to sleep to the strains of Lester Young, Billie Holiday or Charles Mingus. So, thank you for that Mr Conover.
A dark day in Dallas
Sadly I also associate VOA with a dark moment in American history. It was Nov 22, 1963 and in the early evening I was in my bedroom hunting down music on the radio.
By chance I came across VOA only to hear the devastating breaking news from Dallas that US president John F Kennedy had been assassinated. I had never heard such dramatic radio news coverage in my life and it was clear the newscasters were in a state of shock and disbelief. I dashed downstairs to inform my parents who were totally stunned.
I was playing in a table tennis tournament later that evening at the local church hall and many people didn’t believe me when I told them the news.
Gently, Bentley
During the austere post-war days of the early 1950s in the UK before television took hold, the radio was my family’s main source of entertainment. I have memories of my dad sitting in front of a coal fire on a winter’s evening chuckling at his favourite show Take It From Here. Among the stars were Jimmy Edwards and Dick Bentley and one of the first popular catchphrases in Britain was Edwards’ cautionary “Gently, Bentley”. After that, anyone named Bentley had to get used to that retort for years to come.
I was brought up on Hancock’s Half Hour, arguably the best UK radio sitcom ever. Tony Hancock was brilliant and some of his regular expressions like “Have you gone raving mad?” and “Stone me!” became an indelible part of British culture.
The boat that rocked
My first exposure to Thai radio came aboard a boat on the Gulf of Thailand. In April 1969 with an English friend I boarded a Thai Maritime Navigation vessel in Songkhla bound for Bangkok via Koh Samui. We travelled deck class, a 75-baht ticket which meant you could sleep anywhere on the deck.
The young Thai crew were amused at having a couple of farang for their entertainment. They had a radio and spent much of the time hunting down Western pop music just to please us. Among the songs I can recall were Petula Clark singing Kiss Me Goodbye which was a big hit in Thailand and Crimson and Clover by Tommy James & the Shondells. Then there was the hugely popular San Francisco by Scott McKenzie which continued to be a hit in Thailand long after it had been forgotten everywhere else.
We ate with the crew. It was fish for breakfast, lunch and dinner but at least we knew it was fresh having witnessed it being caught from the Gulf only hours before. It was one of the most enjoyable journeys I have ever experienced.
Soothing shortwave
In my first couple of decades in Thailand I listened to the BBC World Service thanks to a pocket-sized short-wave radio. In those days, before satellite TV and the internet, the BBC shortwave was one of the few reliable sources of news.
That small radio was a great companion and must have accompanied me to nearly every province in Thailand. It was particularly comforting to be sitting in the jungle in Nakhon Nowhere and hear the refrains of Lilliburlero come drifting through announcing the approaching news bulletin. Then there were the chimes of Big Ben, while strains of the church bells ringing out Oranges and Lemons also hit the right note.
Barking mad
Normally I’m not a fan of people dressing up their pets in silly costumes. However last weekend was an exception. UK social media was swamped with images of dogs wearing the distinctive black and white colours of Newcastle United who won their first trophy in 70 years. It was a sight to behold and I’m convinced Newcastle would not have achieved victory without the canine support. Woof! Woof!
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