KRCL History With Original Fret 'N Fiddler

  • December 4, 2024
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More KRCL history on Day 2 of our year-end mini-drive. Recorded during the 45th Birthday Bash, Fret 'N Fiddle's Mark Cantor shares his 45-year history at Listeners' Community Radio of Utah.

Tonight's show features some of KRCL's history as we celebrate 45 amazing years of serving the community with music discovery and community connection.  We held a big birthday bash last month, including a history panel with some of the folks who were in the room when 90.9fm went live.

Volunteer DJ Mark Cantor shared some of his memories as a programmer and host of Fret 'n Fiddle, Sundays from 4:00-6:00 p.m., and another unique project, Desertaire. Here's what he recently posted about his time with KRCL:  

  • "I was 24 years old when Lewis Downey invited me to join him in starting the weekly folk music radio program Fret and Fiddle on the new station KRCL 90.9 FM in Salt Lake City. I’m now 70 and have been one of the hosts of the show continuously to this day. Dean Mednick and Mike Evans also currently host the show and have been on air for too many years to count. Like Lewis himself, Paul Truex, Pete Tinker and Tom Smart have taken their turn at the mic and then moved on. The show features Celtic, British Isles, Quebecois, Old-Time, Tin Pan Alley, Cowboy and Western as well as live interviews and performances by local and touring musicians. For many years, the Fret and Fiddle featured monthly live shows with the performers from the Intermountain Acoustic Music Association’s Local Music series.

  • "For ten years in the ‘80s and early ‘90s, I was the host and a co-writer/performer on the monthly comedy show Desertaire which was broadcast in front of a live audience from various theaters and bars in Salt Lake. Steve Rasmussen, Carolyn Wood, John Shuman, Jeffrey Price, Michaela Nelligan and myself were The Desert Breath Theater along with countless musical guests and actors and actresses who joined us for episodes and entire seasons. For the past year and a half, I’ve been a pretty regular substitute host on Brian Kelm’s (another 45-year veteran) Red White and Blues aired Monday nights. It’s a cliché to say, but KRCL has given me so much more in return."

RadioACTive is grateful for your support, from listening to the show and getting active in your community to supporting KRCL with a financial donation. We ask for your help again during the station's year-end mini-drive. Plenty of thank-you gifts await once you call 801-359-9191 or visit krcl.org/donate and contribute now.

Guests' views, thoughts, or opinions are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of the board, staff, or members of Listeners' Community Radio of Utah, KRCL 90.9fm. Questions, comments, or suggestions for the show? Email radioactive@krcl.org. Tonight's RadioACTive team included:

 

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