Sidetrack with Jason Croft
First Saturday of the month at 6 pm
Fun stories, quirky interviews, thought-provoking commentaries, great tunes, and more!
Sidetrack is AM 580's monthly news/features magazine hosted by Jason Croft. Sidetrack's goal is to bring you the stories you might have otherwise missed--the stories that sometimes get overlooked during the busy day-to-day headlines. The stories are sometimes off-beat, sometimes unusual, but never dull. It's a fresh look at the what's going on in our backyard and around the world. Be sure to explore program contents for links to more info and a few surprises.
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September 2008
Program air date: Saturday, September 06, 2008
This time around, we find out about the sport of mutton busting—young kids riding sheep…revisit an interview from the archives about International Talk Like A Pirate Day…and we present an encore broadcast of a tribute to singer/songwriter Dan Fogelberg—a remembrance from those who know him when he played in Champaign-Urbana.
Menu:
- Mutton Busting
- Japanese and Euro Bike Lovers in Harley Country
- Hummingbird bander
- Talk Like A Pirate revisit
- Dan Fogelberg: A Remembrance
Audio:
Play now:
Download: mp3 file
August 2008
Program air date: Saturday, August 02, 2008
On this month’s program, we learn about the poetic side of actor and comedian Bill Murray…visit a tap-dancing competition in Chicago…talk to a man who runs a freak show in California…and hear about a street drummer who plays on just about anything he can get his hands on.
Menu:
- Chicago Tap Dancing
- Street Beats
- Project Pimento
- Poetry Festival/Bill Murray
- Disabled Swimmer
- The sociology of the Simpsons
- Pop Culture Roadtrips
- Modern-day Freakshow
Audio:
Play now:
Download: mp3 file
July 2008
Program air date: Saturday, July 05, 2008
This month we find out how Hollywood icon Hedy Lamarr is responsible for modern technology…hear about one writer’s adventures after getting stuck in her bathroom…and we talk to the B-movie actress Tura Satana, star of Russ Meyer’s Faster Pussycat, Kill! Kill!
Menu:
- Instrument Builders
- "Damsel, Distressed"
- Hedy Lamarr
- "Naughty Picturers"
- Tura Satana Interview (web site)
Audio:
Play now:
Download: mp3 file
June 2008
Program air date: Saturday, June 07, 2008
We go into the Sidetrack archives for some summertime fun. We have stories about rock and rolls greatest myths, the search for the legendary tropical drink The Zombie, and the Continuum Fingerboard—a strange electronic instrument that be heard in the latest Indiana Jones movie.
Menu:
- Continuum Fingerboard
- "Is Tiny Dancer Really Elton’s Little John? Music’s Most Enduring Mysteries, Myths, and Rumors Revealed.”
- Water Parks Essay
- Pi Omega Omega--The Downtown Drinking Fraternity
- Interview with Jeff Berry author of "Sippin’ Safari: In Search of the Great 'Lost' Tropical Drink Recipes…and the People Behind Them."




