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The Team
Bob is a retired railroad engineer, union member and supporter of workers and their rights.
Mark was Treasurer for the Missouri Valley Folklife Society, and is the Registered Agent for Crosscurrents Culture. He is a folk programmer with Valerie Andruss on the KKFI 90.1 FM "Foolkiller Folk" radio show on Sunday morning, and is Co-host of the Classical Challenge on Wednesday night.
I discovered folk music in High School when my mother dragged me to a Joan Baez concert and I was hooked. A haunter of coffeehouses during my college years, after moving to KC I found both The Foolkiller and the Missouri Valley Folklife Society, produced concerts with them, and gradually worked my way into KKFI where I now help Bob, Diana, Kathy & Mark bring you Foolkiller Folk.
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Bob and Diana Suckiel on the “Foolkiller Folk” radio show:
We have been longtime supporters of folk music and we are performing musicians as well so the name of our program is Foolkiller Folk!
We are members of the old Foolkiller now known as CrossCurrents and we are involved in theater and local political activism.
We want to share the music we love with the rest of the community and share historical aspects of the music also. We want to help broaden our listeners’ knowledge of all kinds of folk music from all over the country, from the pre-war era to now.
What is CrossCurrents, formerly, Foolkillers? CrossCurrents is Kansas City’s Folk Arts Alliance. It is a nonprofit corporation in Kansas City which is dedicated to people creating their own culture. They produce concerts, plays, and community events, such as barn dances. This alliance encourages all interested people to get involved, no matter what level of talent they think they have. If you are looking for locally produced Folk music, Contra-dance, original acoustic music, women’s music, theatre or banjo-playing, join CrossCurrents.
By the way, if you wondered about “ Foolkillers” …
“We prefer crude vigor over polished banality. Remember, as one becomes enlightened, one KILLS the FOOL within.” — Jack Conroy.
November 12, 2023 Folk, Music
“Stone Soup”
So we've got a radio set, a Dirk Powell set, a Gillian Welch debut album set, an unusual enthusiasm set (spinach, roller skates, trombone), an AJ Srubas and Rina Rossi set courtesy of Bob and Diana's house concert to which Mark has added a recommendation from Linda Wilson (remember Linda Wilson from WomanSong?), an Edith Piaf set (because you need to hear her now and again), a skit from Beyond the Fringe, a Tracy Chapman debut album set, three from Kelly Hunt's latest album, and a Gonora Sounds set from Zimbabwe. Tune in!
Read MoreOctober 22, 2023 Folk, Music
Mixed Bag with Mark & Val
A mixed bag for you today on Foolkiller Folk. We start off with Flatt and Scruggs and a song recorded in 1950, end with a tune set from the new traditional Irish band Consequences recorded in 2023, and in the middle we bring you folk and Americana, including selections from Kelly Hunt's new release 'Ozark Symphony'. Tune in at 11:00 and enjoy!
Read MoreOctober 15, 2023 Folk, Music
Foolkiller Folk Hangs Out at the Station
Join the entire crew today as we hang out together at the station, share songs, and talk about KKFI. This is the last day of the pledge drive of the year, so if you haven't called in or gone online to help keep KKFI on the air next year, now's your chance!! 888.931.0901 or kkfi.org/donate. See you at 11:00 !
Read MoreSeptember 17, 2023 Folk, Music
Mark & Val
The inspiration for today’s show was twofold: first, we’ve been watching a BBC police series by the name of Happy Valley and enjoy the theme song of the show enough to add it to our collection; and we’ve recently replaced a fair amount of the music we had only on vinyl with the MP 3 versions. So today’s show is mostly the replacement songs, plus a sprinkling of songs with ‘Town’ in the name, starting with Ewan MacColl’s Dirty Old Town (done by Ewan MacColl & Peggy Seeger) and ending with Trouble Town by Jake Bugg, the theme of Happy Valley.
Along the way you’ll be hearing from Kornog, Paul Simon & Art Garfunkel, Mary McCaslin, Emmylou Harris with Dolly Parton and Linda Ronstadt, Flat and Scruggs, The Osborne brothers, Red Knuckles and the Trailblazers, Iris Dement, Pierre Brensusan, Indigo Girls, Nickel Creek, Maddy Prior and Tim Hart, Jim Stafford, Gayle Davies, Gillian Welsch, Jean Redpath with Abby Newton, and Roy Baily.
Read MoreAugust 27, 2023 Folk, Music
Mark & Val’s Annual Irish Fest Preview
Yes, it's that time again! The Kanas City Irish Fest is back Friday, Sept 1 through Sunday, Sept 3 and Mark & Val are here with our annual preview featuring some old favorites and some new discoveries.
We'll be bringing you a few of our favorite songs from: The Canterberries, Eddie Delahunt, The Elders, Tullamore, Kian Byrne, Neil Byrne & Ryan Kelly, Ashley Davis, Gaelic Storm, Shane Hennessey, The Henry Girls, Jigjam, The Nashville Celts, Red Hot Chilli Pipers, Aoife Scott, Screaming Orphans, Talisk, and The Wee Heavies.
As always, the show will be archived for two weeks and you can see the full schedule and link to more of the bands at https://www.kcirishfest.com.
Read MoreAugust 20, 2023 Folk, Music
Kansas City Shanty Choir
To celebrate national radio day, Foolkiller Folk Kathy (with a little help from Valerie) will be playing sea songs and talking with the Shantymen of the Kansas City Shanty Choir, who formed the choir to provide people with an opportunity to sing traditional sea shanties and meet new people over a pint. And who knows – we may be able to get them to sing the Wellerman live!
Read MoreJuly 16, 2023 Folk, Music
Around the World in 1/960 of the Time of Phineas Fogg
Mark & Val are in the mood for something completely different today, so Mark dug into the world music collection and we're taking you Around the World in 1/960 of the time of Phineas Fogg (the protagonist in the 1872 Jules Verne novel Around the World in Eighty Days).
You'll be hearing music from Bavaria, Switzerland (via Wisconsin), Israel, Greece (via Ellis Island), Tuva (a tiny republic in the heart of inner Asia), Mongolia, Hungary, Bulgaria, Sweden (and the Sami region), Ukraine, Wales, and Estonia, plus a bit of English Music Hall (because this is community radio and we can (Music Hall is a type of British theatrical entertainment that was most popular in the early Victorian era)).
Read MoreJuly 2, 2023 Folk, Music
Mixed Bag with Mark & Val
A random bit of music we like for you today from Atilla the Hun (Calypsos from Trinidad 1930s) to Lauren MacColl (Scottish fiddle player from Fortrose) with a release from 2023.
Read MoreJune 11, 2023 Folk, Music
Tune in today; donate through Thursday 🙂
Tune in today to join Mark & Val and Bob & Diana as we play and talk about folk music from our collections. Only one day to donate during Foolkiller Folk this fund drive, but you can donate through Thursday!
Read MoreMay 28, 2023 Folk, Music
Will You Miss Me When I’m Gone?: August through December 2022
Yes – we lost so many greats last year that it’s taken Mark & Val two Foolkiller Folk shows to honor them. This is the final program, covering August 2022 through the end of the year. You’ll be hearing songs and tunes from Paul Sartin, Mary McCaslin, Loretta Lynn, Noel Duggan, and Ian Tyson. But we’re going to start off with a song from Mick Maloney, a carryover from last week’s program that we wanted you to hear. Maloney passed away July 27, 2022.
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