06/09/2026
On this day, June 9th, in 1992, Catherine Wheel released their incredible album, Ferment. I think it’s one of the best debut albums in the history of rock music.
I vividly remember the day I first heard the lead single, “Black Metallic”. I arrived at WYEP FM an hour before my Friday night radio show, “Modern Times”. I had a stack of new CD singles to preview before the show. I randomly chose “Black Metallic” as the first song to listen to. The song absolutely mesmerized me. It truly blew me away. From that moment I knew Catherine Wheel were going to be a special band.
I began my show with the song. Before I played it I told my listeners that they were going to remember where they were, and what they were doing, the night they first heard the song. I KNEW the song was going to move and excite a lot of the people.
And it sure did! The phone at the station rang off the hook for at least a half hour after the song finished. People wanted to know more about this new band and their incredible song. I continued to receive calls throughout my show from folks who heard about, but missed the song when I played it at 7 PM. So, I cued it up again as the lead track for my last hour on the air at 11:00. Again, I told the listeners they would remember the magic moment they first heard the song. And, again, the phone rang off the hook once the song finished.
I’ve always loved the thrill of sharing music that I enjoy with others. It began when I was a kid. I’d make mix tapes for my friends. Then, I got to share that love of music on a much larger scale during the years I was on the radio, and when I owned my record store. It’s all come full circle, sharing my love of music with friends like you who are reading this missive. It’s as exciting and rewarding now as it was all those years ago. ❤️
