Back on the air – had a blast tonight!

After having taken a little time away, I returned to the airwaves tonight, with the return of my main radio show, The Musical Journey, at its new home: iJoy Radio. It felt great to be back on the air, and I had a lot of fun!

Tonight, I played a collection of my all-time favourite songs: everything from Alannah Myles to Collective Soul to Supertramp. Beginning next week, I’ll have my regular mix of classic rock and more, including double plays in the third hour, every week on The Musical Journey.

And for those who are in the need of some music to help them recharge for the rest of the work week, I have you taken care of too, with Over The Hump, a mix of what I call “the lighter side of rock” and the best in contemporary instrumental.

Catch me twice a week on iJoy Radio: Over The Hump, Wednesdays at 10pm Eastern, and The Musical Journey, Fridays at 6pm Eastern.

And the request line is open. If there is something you’d like to hear, drop me a line: jim@ijoyradio.com

Check out the website: www.ijoyradio.com

New station for me. This is going to be fun!

As they say, change is inevitable. After four-plus great years of being with BounceRadio.net, it was time for me to move on.

Starting Friday, June 17, I will be hosting at a new net radio station: iJoy Radio. I’ll be continuing to play for you the same great music as I have for the past few years. I’ll simply be at a new home.

My shows will be mostly the same – just a slightly different start time for one of them. On Wednesdays at 10pm Eastern, it’s Over The Hump, with three hours of great music to help you recharge. And on Fridays at 6pm Eastern, it’s The Musical Journey, where classic rock is the main focus, but sometimes, I’ll play something a little different.

We have a great group of folks at this station, and a great mix of music, as well. Check it out!

www.ijoyradio.com

Back on the air tonight… :)

As some of you may have been aware, I was a bit under the weather a little while ago, causing me to miss my radio shows the past couple of weeks.

The worst time for me was nearly two weeks ago, when I had what building staff here described as a case of Bell’s Palsy. For those who don’t know what that is, Bell’s Palsy is an affliction of one of the nerves in your face. How it affects people varies. In my case, it got my mouth and lips, to the point that speaking was very difficult, because the muscles in my lips and the right side of my face were not working.

I’m very grateful that we have an excellent group of people here on the staff. They noticed that something was very wrong with me and called the ambulance to get me to the hospital. I had a series of tests done on me: blood work, x-ray, CT scan, all of which came back negative. That was a very good sign, because whatever had hit me was very likely to be a virus of some kind, and would pass by soon, so I would feel better.

Thankfully, I am feeling much better now. I made sure to relax the previous week or so, to give my body a good chance to recuperate.

I’m pleased to say that I’ll be back on the air at BounceRadio.net as of tonight, with my regular Wednesday night show, Over The Hump, starting at 10pm Eastern, 7pm Pacific. I’m looking forward to being back on the radio – I’ve missed it!

Hosting on internet radio: how do I do it?

Some time ago, a regular BounceRadio listener asked me how I determine what I play on my shows.

For those who don’t yet know: I host two shows every week on net radio station BounceRadio.net.

Over The Hump (Wednesdays, 10pm-1am Eastern) is a mix of what I call “the lighter side of rock” (meaning that it is still mostly rock, but not the driving, head-banging music you hear elsewhere) and contemporary instrumental: new age, jazz, rock instrumentals, and more.

The Musical Journey (Fridays, 7-10pm Eastern) is mostly what is called classic rock, but sometimes I will play something a little different. Hour three of this show is the Double Play Hour, with pairs of songs by the same artist.

Now, what separates internet radio from most conventional radio stations? In addition to the host, I am also the show’s producer and engineer, and the responsibility for selecting the music for the show is all mine. Instead of going to a regular radio station to host my show, I’m able to handle everything here at home. To listen, there are a number of options: you can go to the chat room on our website. We’re a listed station on both iTunes and Windows Media Player. Or you can use a number of other devices: iPhone, Blackberry, and more.

Is BounceRadio.net a legal entity? You bet it is! We’re a fully licensed radio station, and we are bound by the terms of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act.

Now, how do I choose the music for the shows? Well, if I told you everything, I’d have to hire hit men to track you down…just kidding!

One of the best resources I use is the fact that many conventional stations publish playlists of songs they have played. How much of a playlist they put up varies with each station: some post a few hours of songs, while others will have songs from the past few days listed.

Some stations play music that is better suited for Over The Hump, while others play music that I’ll want for The Musical Journey. I go with a mix of songs through the decades – not just one particular era or style, unless I’m using that style for a themed edition of The Musical Journey (which happens around once a month). I’m also careful to not play any one artist every single week. There are tons of artists out there that have provided us with some great music, so I mix up my music choices.

But using radio station playlists is not the only resource I draw from. Sometimes, I’ll hear a song and think, “I must play that one!” and add it to my own playlist. And as always, I welcome requests from listeners.

After I have enough music for the show, I pull each song into my Winamp player, and sort the songs into the order in which I wish to play them. Add the promos to the mix, and I’m ready to go! Just load the playlist into my broadcasting software, and I’m all set!

I’ve been hosting shows on BounceRadio.net for nearly 4 years now – the 4th anniversary is in mid-April. And I’m having a blast with it!

Does hosting a show like this sound fun to you? Why not join us? At BounceRadio.net, we’re always on the lookout for great new voices to join our group. If you think you have what it takes, put together a voice demo of yourself introducing a couple of songs, and send that to jobs@bounceradio.net.

Who knows? The whole world could be hearing your voice soon!

Another reason I enjoy being an internet radio host…

During my Over The Hump show on BounceRadio.net last Wednesday night, a compliment by one of my listeners reminds me why I love being on the radio.

Christine, aka @mousewords on Twitter, told me that the music that I play on Over The Hump inspires her own creativity. Now, Christine is a very talented writer and artist in her own right, but to hear from someone that my taste in music is an inspiration to them is, in my view, one of the best compliments a radio host can get.

An example of her creativity is a picture she drew at the end of 2009, while listening to my show. Here’s a link to the picture:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mousewords/4156055635/

She drew this as she was listening to one of my favourite contemporary instrumental pieces: “In the Court of the Mermaid” by guitarist Friedemann.

Christine, I am honoured that my radio show is an inspiration to you. And thank you for allowing me to share your talent with others.