There is something so reassuring about being able to turn on the radio at any time of the day or night to hear Billie Holiday sing.

And that’s what’s happening at WKCR . They are playing Billie Holiday for fifteen days straight. 360 hours of anything is probably too much. But if you like total immersion, tune in to 80.9 or the web broadcast and give it a go.  For me, her music holds up to the constant play.

The Billie Holiday marathon started on April 1 and it’s going to continue until April 15th, which would have been Billie Holiday’s 90th birthday. 

It gives you faith in humanity that something like this is going on.

Firstly, the fact that there is a radio station in the world crazy (wonderful) enough to come up with such a concept. And as a fund raising measure. You gotta love WKCR, Columbia University’s radio station, with Phil Schaapp at the helm of the Jazz Department.

WKCR has been responsible for independent programming for over 63 years. Since 1999, they’ve been sending out their signal worldwide over the internet. They’re famous for their Louis Armstorng, Charlie Parker (Bird) and other jazz greats’ marathons. But this may be their longest one yet.

Currently, WKCR is in a period of financial crisis. And they need the financial support of their listeners to  ensure that they can keep on going.

Radio in New York is, generally speaking, a sad state of affairs. Other than New York Public Radio and WFMU, what’s a gal to listen to in this city?  WKCR is an oasis in a desert of lousy, commercial radio.

Billie Holiday, is, in my opinion, one of the greatest artists of the 20th century. The way she transformed the popular songs of her day into masterpieces of phrasing, nuance, meaning, and deep emotion is remarkable. When I was in college, I nearly wore out my copy of "The Golden Years  Volume Two."  "All of Me" I’ll Cover the Waterfront," "No Regrets," "I’m Pulling Through," Them There Eyes," and all the other songs on that three record set were the soundtrack of my life back then.

So it’s really not that strange to listen to Billie Holiday for 15 days straight. For me it’s like being twenty-years-old again when the lilt of Billie’s voice was all that I needed to get out of bed in the morning.

-Louise G. Crawford