The Desert Shield Wacky Iraqi Bootleg Tape
[128k mp3 (20.3 MB)] [192k mp3 (30.3 MB)]
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When I was in the Navy back in 1990, I was stationed in Long Beach, CA. My favorite radio station was Pirate Radio USA 100.3 FM.  It's odd to find it on the air again (when did that happen?) because I remember when it first started up, the first song they played was "Welcome to the Jungle" by Guns N Roses, which was also the last song they played when they died. I remember listening to the station on their last day as they played the final song. Then without any announcement, the radio started oozing with soft, easy-listening music.  After a few songs had played, this soft female voice came on the air and said "If you're looking for hard rock, keep looking. This is Easy FM 100.3"  I thought, "What a wench!" and turned the channel.

Anyway, so here I am in 2006, and I'm cruising the thrift shops in Billings, Montana. A long way from Los Angeles. And what do my wondering eyes behold but a cassette tape entitled "Pirate Radio USA Desert Shield Wacky Iraqi Bootleg Tape".  This can't be the Pirate Radio from Los Angeles can it?  I paid the 50 cents for the tape and took it home. I put it in my cassette deck (yeah, I still have one of those) and turned it on. Sure enough, there's the familiar voice of "Shannon In The Morning".  So I promptly recorded it to an MP3 file.

The program runs 22 minutes. It contains song parodies & skits that make fun of Saddam Hussein.  The thing it brings to mind for me is the difference in the political climate between 1990 and 2006. Back then, this was funny.  Today, it would be considered politically incorrect, if not hate speech altogether.

So I offer it here for your amusement, if you aren't offended by comic irreverence.

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