This intimate conversation between 2 young men provides some insight into the little discussed phenomenon of cutting. In an ideal world, you would hear that the cutter is receiving treatment that is helping him overcome it, but you don't, so it is uncomfortable listening; But nonetheless important listening.
Could be used with great effect, as an opener on a youth-focused call-in show, to introduce the subject matter, and prompt discussion.

I really feel like you buried and then ignored the lede. I want to hear about the little pink house. I want to hear about the bait shop. And I want to know who Megan is. That would have kept my interest.

Readers of Andrea Barrett's novel The Forms of Water will know the story of rural Massachusetts towns in the '30s sacrificed for vast reservoirs to keep greater Boston swimming. Ancient loss remembered is often the loss most keenly described and there are wonderful interviews here. But seeing as how this is clearly a piece in progress with different versions in the offing, I will apologize if I see this as an opportunity to nip certain production problems in the bud. First and foremost, the music selections convey neither place nor time. The music here has nothing to do with the 1930s; it has nothing to do with Massachusetts. This is a story from the era of the WPA, not This American Life.

Which leads me to another point: the voices documented are great already. They are all perfectly capable of saying what they feel and, more important, feeling what they say. There's no need to paraphrase when they can speak for themselves.

Finally, the story is too sparing with water itself. Zap Mama once used filling glasses of water as a rhythm track for an entire song. Toilet flushes, gurgling pipes, spitting radiators: water is noisy. I would lose the narration by the bathroom sink near the top. Get the running water, sure, but keep the narrator in the studio.

This is a good story as is, but why shouldn't it be great?

Even though Ian Shoales's commentaries have always been noted as rather rapid fire--wow.

S-l-o-w. d-o-w-n.

Even if this 2 minute commentary were slowed down to 3 minutes, it would still sound fast. At times it seems that the need to maintain the character gets in the way of the message, or at least the listeners ability to hear the message. Further, the rapid fire delivery causes ocassional odd breaths and pauses, which should've been recut or edited out.

These are extraordinarily well-written commentaries. However, the relience on style makes them impossible for a listener to follow.

A note to stations: most of these commentaries are extremely date sensitive, with topical discussions about very current events. If you use them, you need to serve them fresh. No preservatives are used here.

This program (along with the entire series) features "the best of" Jay Allison's feature-length work, each program defined loosely by a theme. In this case, it's "Memory." The program's host is Alex Chadwick.

The program flows incredibly well, seamlessly moving from piece to piece with musical breaks in between (which leads to my one criticism of the program: the music bridges are too long--it feels like the are filling time). Every element of this program illustrates why Jay has achieved his stature and reputation. The nat sound, writing, production, and editorial touch are generous, flawless, and evocative.

A favorite is a Lost and Found Sound piece by Jay with David Greenberger (author of the Duplex Planet 'zine and books) featuring "Jack," an elderly nursing home resident who claimed to have "more songs than Sinatra." Greenberger challenged him to sing for 45 minutes straight--the length of a cassette side. The piece's only audio (beside the narration) is Jack singing--and does throughout. It is odd, attention-grabbing, and somewhat humorous. Greenberger's narration provides all the back story and context over top of Jack's crooning. It feels natural, and his respectful and thoughtful comments weave nicely with the audio of Jack, pointing out the humor and quirks of Jack's worldview without passing judgment or making fun of him.

Another favorite is a Allison family trip to Florida that illustrates the beauty in unexpected experiences.

Impeccable production, highly listenable, and the most quietly engaging stories you'll find anywhere. Programs like this don't make the world bigger--it makes them smaller, and that feels good.

Folks, this is as close to perfection as it gets. Schedule the whole damn series.

One other thing: when offering an hour long series, it's always nice to offer a 30 second promo and some support materials to help stations promote your special/documentary.

i loved listening to this piece, but i wanted more information. first, the sound was great: the interviewee's speaking style was very easy and colloquial, engaging to listen to, and the music chosen at the end complemented his voice and accent well; and there was all kinds of other nice ambient noise like shouting and hammering. the interview was also well mixed with the ambient noise. second, i thought the subject was excellent because it informed me about basic but hidden parts of daily urban life, rooftops and water. i always find it fascinating to find out how cities work. i liked how the piece focused on the workmen and how they build and maintain the tanks, however, i wish the piece would have answered more questions about the mechanics of water provision. for example, why doesn't the water or the water pipes freeze in the winter? why are the tanks made of wood and not plastic? how is it done in other cities? is this system unique to new york? is seems unusual for a water system to be so locally developed. for example, i've seen plastic water tanks used in some places. also, how come water tanks were never replaced by a higher technology system, like more powerful water pumps, rather than a labor intensive system like these water tanks? overall, it was a tight, informative, and engaging piece. thanks!

This is a revealing and challenging first-person piece, an excellent and affecting example of its genre. The overall impression is of an environment that is loud, jarringly loud; replete with inmates (if this diarist is representative) whose potential to change/make amends is being squandered by the prison system. The piece is filled the mundane details of daily life behind bars: smoke breaks, watching ricki lake, endless hours in the cell. The diarist is honest and intimate, and the piece is seamlessly constructed.

This would fit in a spot a PD is looking to put a short segment, like a Star Date, but wants to focus on cooking. Or, if you have a local cooking show, the host could do his/her thing, then introduce one of these short pieces and come back with more on the local cooking or food-related show. This show focuse on licorice and has some interesting information about it.

For PD's looking for a piece done with the well-known PR sound, this will work well. The piece focused on the People's Temple, the church who brought us the Jonestown Massacre, through people who were members of the People's Temple but didn't die at Jonestown. The piece alternates between two interviewees, who at times even pick up on each other's sentences via edits (not just a married couple interrupting each other). The editing is nicely done, good sound, good music, it is an energetic piece. Very little reporter voice, just at the front and end, but it couldn't be edited off (BG music).

This piece is 10 minutes long, and I was surprised when it was over, because it seemed much shorter. It is very engaging. While I listened, I surfed a little to find out more about the People's Temple.

Nice piece. Great format! I will go listen to more of these now.