WUMB Music Mix

About the show . . .

WUMB Music Mix A mix of contemporary and traditional folk, roots, acoustic, and Americana music; with live interviews, news, and informational features.

Jay Moberg

"I grew up in a house that was more often than not filled with music, even though no one in my immediate family can play an instrument very well.  And by "very well", I really mean "at all".  I grew up with the sounds of Harry Chapin, Neil Young, Peter Paul & Mary, The Beatles, James Taylor, and Gordon Lightfoot percolating through my parents stereo.  I gravitated towards radio when I was in college (even though it was against the will of my college advisor) because I always loved the notion of turning someone on to an artist or a song that maybe they hadn't heard before."

Jay has worked in radio for over ten years, including longtime stints at his college radio station, and over eight years at WZLX Boston.

When not on the air, Jay can be seen spending time with his better half (clichéd but true) Karen, and keeping incredibly fit by chasing his baby daughter Ellie all over the place!

Dave Palmater

"I grew up in a rural area of Central New York State, just north of the Catskill and just south of the Adirondacks. Because it was so near Cooperstown and the Hall of Fame, baseball was like a religion in the region. I’m still a big fan, but am more of a fan of historic baseball and know way more about the 1939 Homestead Grays than I do about the current Boston Red Sox. Though the area was poor, we were lucky enough to have an abundance of both kinds of music: Country and Western.  

The invention of the transistor radio broadened my world. If I climbed up one of the many hills I could pick up everything from the Canadian CBS to WLS with the Louisiana Hayride followed by Lee Moore the Coffee Drinkin’ Nighthawk. Late at night I sometimes heard WBZ from Boston, but not clearly. And if I hid the radio under the covers, and lay in bed just right, I could listen to Cousin Brucie from NYC.  

Of course pop music made a major impression. I loved the Beach Boys and especially Jan and Dean (don’t hold it against me.) I really wanted to be a surfer but soon realized that there was no surf to ride on Schenevus Creek. Then the Beatles appeared on the Sullivan Show and I wanted ever so to be English. Actually I probably still do. Hitchhiking to the nearest college town I ended up hanging around a bookstore/coffeehouse where I discovered folk music, only to find that it wasn’t that much different from the music I grew up with.  

After briefly considering a career in theater, I ended up going to a state college near Woodstock, the town, not where the festival was. Considering all of the folks who lived there then, I figured I had a good chance of running into Dylan, Butterfield, Muldaur or other famous people on the street, but never did. Eventually I moved to New York City, because everyone should live there at some point in their lives, to be a community organizer. A year later I followed a job to Boston and have been here ever since.  

I got involved in radio early on with WTBS at MIT and eventually turned “pro.” Over the years I’ve been, sometimes briefly, on several other stations and did a memorable stint on WGBH waking up the birds for Robert J. Lurtsema. Considering all the great people I’ve gotten to work with over the years, my time at WUMB has been wonderful. Even the time I attended a Member Concert in a kilt on a bet."

Dick Pleasants

“I was born in the small town of Groton MA, just an hour west of Boston. My musical education started with Guy Mitchell “Singing the Blues” and wove its way through the 50s, Elvis, the Kingston Trio and great Rock and Roll. Tom Rush influenced me a lot in the 60s. My Dad used to try to teach him French. I went to see him at Cambridge’s Club 47 and The Unicorn coffeehouse. I was thrilled by the music of the Kweskin Jug Band, the Chambers Brothers and many of the others on the scene. I loved Judy Collins, Joan Baez and Pete Seeger, but it was looking at the track listings of the songwriters that really interested me. I started digging back into the wealth of the blues of Memphis Minnie, Mississippi John Hurt, Sleepy John Estes, Muddy Waters and Howling Wolf. Robert Johnson was being covered by everyone. Who was this guy who only recorded 32 tracks and what was the hold that he had on everyone.

After graduating from Emerson College in 1970, I started in radio on the Cape, bringing together the elements of the music that I loved. It wasn’t just folk music but the threads that were winding through it. The urban and country blues had a huge effect on rock and roll in the 60’s and 70s’, the bluegrass brought us Clarence White and Doc Watson and the songwriters, well they just stared coming after Dylan and Taylor. I kept my ears open and discovered the Byrds, particularly Sweetheart Of the Rodeo and the distinctive voice of Graham Parsons. Of course, his songs with Emmylou set a standard for a particular harmony singing. This edgy country rock music would be a core of my listening for years to come.

For the next forty years, I expanded upon the Blues, Old Time Stringband music, Bluegrass and Newgrass (Jazzy Bluegrass) and the edgy country sound of Buddy Miller, Uncle Tupelo, Wilco, and the Jayhawks. Starting in 1978 and ending in 2003, I worked with WGBH hosting the Folk Heritage and got to know many of the musicians making the music. I came to WUMB in 1995 with a show in the mornings that eventually evolved into The Morning Express. Now I am on air in the afternoons and loving the sleep. This is an exciting time in radio, with a radio station like ‘UMB showcasing music that is deeply rooted in the American tradition and the songwriting movement of the last 30 years. It’s the only one and it must succeed.

The past 30 years has seen a real renaissance in music. Independent artists and labels have enriched us and what a great ride it has been. I feel fortunate to have been part of it. My heartfelt thanks goes out to those that have listened to what I done over the years and maybe joined with me in a musical journey that has really just scratched the surface.”