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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.
Beginning with early exposure to folk music in a series of East Coast coffeehouses, Valerie has been a long time fan, promoter and concert producer of local, national and international Celtic and American folk as well as a KKFI listener from the very beginning and is now a part of the regular collective of Foolkiller Folk program hosts.
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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.
Recent Episodes
February 14, 2021 Folk, Music
Valentine’s Day Porpourri
This fund drive week Mark & Val have music to warm your heart on a cold day - some old, some new, some borrowed, some blue. You'll hear love songs and anti-love songs, some of our favorite Trad, and local Artist banjo Kelly Hunt. And since we're still pandemic hunkered down and Kathy and Bob & Diana can't join us on the show, we'll play our idea of some of what they would have done had they been able to join us. KKFI loves you! Stay inside and listen up...
Read MoreJanuary 24, 2021 Folk, Music
Will You Miss Me When I’m Gone? (Part 1)
Mark and Val with their annual tribute to artists who have passed away during the last year. It’s not news to anyone, but 2020 was a bad year. Sadly, so many folks passed away that it’s going to take three full programs to get in just the folks we’d normally program. This first show features those who passed away from January through March 2020.
Read MoreJanuary 3, 2021 Folk, Music
The Turning of the Year, Part II
January 3rd will be the 10th day of Christmas (10 Lords a Leaping, anyone?) and well into winter. So a winter show it is! We’ll drive the cold winter away and warm ourselves up; reprise a bit of Christmas; hunt the cutty wren; offer a reminder that Christmas is not all joy and bliss for everyone; give a nod to the ongoing pandemic; usher the new year in; and end with a message of hope.
Read MoreDecember 13, 2020 Folk, Music
The Christmas Story in Song
To do a 2020 Christmas show or not to do a 2020 Christmas show – that is the question! And, given the pandemic, it’s a hard question. But we’re doing one (although we’re not including any songs that would encourage gathering in large groups :-)). Usually I put together a primarily British voices/tradition Christmas show heavy on uncommon carols, wassails and songs of joy. This year, I focused on presenting the Christmas story in song, with familiar material in predominantly American iterations (although I still tried to include a couple of songs/song variants/artists I’ve never included before).
Read MoreNovember 22, 2020 Folk, Music
UnBand Auction! Local Folk
And here we are on day three of the all local music UnBand Auction, with a collection of folks who have volunteered their time and their music to benefit KKFI on Foolkiller Folk in Band Auctions past. And yes, Mark & Val skew Celtic as always, but we'll kick off with long time friends of the station, Betse & Clark and wrap up with banjo Kelly Hunt, and in between you'll get to hear Three Dollar Band, Chad Elliott, Kasey Rausch, David Hakan, Mark Montgomery, Gary Kirkland, Gerald Trimble, Fraoch, Turlach Boylan, Ensemble Iberica with Nathalie Pires, Mikal Shapiro, Shapiro Brothers, Scotch Hollow and Under the Big Oak Tree.
Read MoreNovember 1, 2020 Folk, Music
English Folk plus Two Norwegians
It's Mark & Val's turn on air today and we're pleased to bring you a show of English folk released in 2019/2020 plus a couple of Norwegians.
You'll be hearing from Hannah James, the JigDoll Ensemble; Josienne Clarke; Tim Edey; Sam Carter; Rowan Rheingans; Jon Boden, the Remnant Kings; Fay Hield; and Erland Apeneseth Trio and Frode Haltli.
Read MoreOctober 11, 2020 Folk, Music
Mark & Val’s Mailbag
Today we treat you to music we've recently acquired! One thing that's arrived is the 4 CD boxed set of the 'Social Power of Music', a timely collection of songs of struggle, devotion, celebration, and migration that remind us that music has the potential to change our world. From that collection you'll be hearing from Sammy Walker, Baldemar Velasquez and Aguila Negra, Grupo Raiz, Expresion Joven, Ewan MacColl & Peggy Seeger, and the Almanac Singers. We'll also bring you songs from Tom Russell, Mama's Broke, Jack Rutter, Show of Hands, Edgelarks, Red River Dialect, Josienne Clarke, and Dick Gaughan.
Read MoreSeptember 20, 2020 Folk, Music
FolkAlliance 2020 – Artists We Wish We’d Heard
Mark & Val are closing out the last part of our 5 part Folk Alliance Conference series with artists we wish we'd heard, but didn't have time to get to. You'll be hearing from Lone Pinon; Genticorum; Jigjam; Ann Savoy; Savoy-Doucet Cajun Band; Muddy Gurdy; Birds of Chicago; Luke Winston-King; Rainbow Girls; Beppe Gambetta; Hannah Sanders and Ben Savage; Carrie Elkin; Catherine MacLellan; and Danny Schmidt
Read MoreAugust 30, 2020 Folk, Music
M & V’s Annual Kansas City Irish Fest Show
A combination of folks who will be performing for the Kansas City Irish Fest's FEST WHERE YOU ARE and some of our favorite bands from Irish Fests past.
Read MoreAugust 9, 2020 Folk, Music
Mark & Val Mailbag Show
Yes, music is coming in to us thick and fast! Today we bring you Dan Boner; Shane Hennessy; Eliza Gilkyson; Mike McGoldrick, John McCusker & John Doyle; Jayme Stone; Julie Fowlis, Zoe Conway, Eamon Doorley, John McIntyre; Tom Kitchling; Anna Meike; Marie Fielding; New Leaf; Xavier Boderiou with Sylvain Barou & Antoine Lahay and Kern. Tune in!!
Read More