. . . little ditty 'bout Rachel and BradSometime during my final year or so at my undergraduate station I found a copy of the Posies's Amazing Disgrace, featuring the Hüsker Dü tribute song, Grant Hart. I added the short two-and-half minute song back into rotation, occasionally playing it when I found myself substituting on the rock shifts. I think I may have added some other tracks as well but the song about the Minnesota trio always stuck out.
Two pretend kids in a story that's really sad
Rachel's gonna be a girl that's depressed
Brad's callin' round radio stations makin' requests . . . .
Fast forward a year or so to my stint as a graduate student serving as a manager of completely different college station. Much like my undergraduate station, they too played their fair share of modern rock-ish music, though there here there was a much wider selection of lesser known artists and full albums I had never seen. Just as before, rock was regulated to the evening hours, usually from 8pm until sign-off, which was 2am the next morning.
As station manager, it was my responsibility to train the staff, listen and critique the students and make sure operations ran smoothly. This meant listening to the radio, usually in an office on campus, in the car, or, more likely, at home. And it was at home where I had the most fun, many times calling up whoever was on the air, with me attempting to disguise my voice, to test them about station policies or guidelines. Usually I'd start off discussing something music related before switching gears and asking them what that weird chirping noise was that was heard once a week. If the DJ were paying attention, he or she would spout off some accrued knowledge that the noise was weekly Emergency Alert System test. I would then make sure they knew who was calling and ask them to run a test themselves. Grades could be – and were – affected by not knowing what to do.
One night I decided I wanted to hear the Poises and, not wanting to call and flat out request the song, I decided to have a little fun with the DJ, a not-too bright guy named Todd. I never knew much about the kid except he came across as slightly muddled in life, not really sure where he was or where he going. When Todd answered the phone, I began a long-winded ramble about how my name was Brad and my girlfriend, Rachel, and I were on the fritz and that if he could play "our song," it would mean a lot to us. Todd didn't immediately jump on the bandwagon – he was hesitant at first and tried the ol' "I'll see what I can do" response, something I felt I could worm my way out of if I kept him on the line long enough. In the end, he promised he'd play Grant Hart – which I have to admit is a pretty odd song to reunite a couple, even an imaginary one.
The thing that cracked me up, and that I still remember all these years later, was that when he did get a chance to play the song, he prefaced it with a ramble of his own. Hemming and hawing about the story he'd just heard, he said something along the lines that he'd "go ahead and break format" to play the song for the lovebirds. Break format? I never got that one. The Posies are rock, you're in the middle of a rock shift, the song is named for a member of one of the great American rock bands – what the hell do you mean, "break format?"
I don't think Todd really knew what was going on and since he seemed to fully believe the Brad/Rachel saga, I never bothered to reveal who they really were.
Oh, yeah. Life goes on.
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Grant Hart
(Jon Auer/Ken Stringfellow)
The Posies
From the album Amazing Disgrace
1996
I can't cry, I can't apply a word to sum it up
Under stress I can't repress the moment it erupts
Hear the sound of paper drums and shredded paper voice
Got to turn up 'Keep Hanging On' as if I had a choice
Prairie fires and pitchfork choirs inspire as they create
Turn it up, It's too far down, until we can relate
Minnesota New Day Rising first day in the store
Take the couch at someone's house and wait around to score
Nervous children making millions: you owe it all to them
Power trios with big-ass deals: you opened for it then
I can see, I can see, I can see it all with my one good eye
For a start take two Grant Harts and call me when you die