REMEMBERING GENE SHAY, PHILADELPHIA’S FOLK MUSIC TASTEMAKER

Gene Shay on-air at WXPN

(photo by John Vettese for WXPN)

Late on the night of April 15, 2020, Gene Shay died at the age of 85. 

His death was caused by complications arising from Covid-19.

His son, Tom Vaughan, in a Facebook post, announced his death:

“So sorry to report that Gene Shay peacefully passed away yesterday.[He is] heading to join his wife Gloria in that great folk festival in the sky.”

Shay was a DJ at WMMR and WXPN. He was the driving force in Philadelphia’s folk scene for four decades. Most people new him as a tastemaker and the. arbiter of cool.

David Dye and Gene Shay

(photo courtesy of by Howard Pitkow

David Dye, a friend and the longtime host of World Cafe, posted a tribute to Shay on WXPN’s local music page The Key titled “A Party We Could All Sneak Into” [link] that read in part:

“When Gene Shay would get on stage at the Philadelphia Folk Festival and tell another bad joke to a smattering of applause, I figured these kids will never know.” 

“How could they?  Before blogs and email there was Crawdaddy and Gene.   If you wanted to know about meaningful songwriting and singers, Gene was the only way.  He is a man from another time whose influence is unimaginable to those who came after.”

There was a time from the early 60’s and well into the 70’s when that roly-poly man with the silly hats was THE arbiter of cool, as far as music in our city was concerned. At least that is how I thought of him while sitting in my suburban kitchen on Sunday nights.

• Bruce Warren also posted a tribute on The Key [link] that provided a bit of Shay’s life and career:

“Gene was the voice of a music community for over 50 years, a celebrator and curator of folk music on the airwaves and an eager supporter of it from the stage.”

“Born Ivan Shaner in in 1935, Shay debuted on Philadelphia radio in 1962 at WRTI, and hosted the Folk Show on WXPN from 1995 to 2015. He held down shifts on a spectrum of Philly radio stations in the years between, and was a driving force behind the Philadelphia Folksong Society and its annual Folk Festival.”

“Shay’s primary career from the 50s through the 90s was voicing a variety of commercials for ad agencies, including Philadelphia’s Elkman Advertising Agency.”

“His quick wit and irreverent sense of humor were assets in a field where his job was literally to get people’s attention. In a 2013 interview, Shay recalled keeping a tape recorder in the desk drawer of his office. He would secretly hit play during cli meetings and a cartoonish voice began to plead ‘Let me out of here!’”

He also had an eye for design and marketing. Gene came up with the name of XPN’s NPR-syndicated program World Cafe.

Gene Shay, center, with Joni Mitchell and her band,

as well as Philly DJ Ed Sciaky

“On-air, Shay had a formidable resume. The impact and influence of his shows on WMMR and WXPN cannot be overstated. Joni Mitchell famously wrote her song “Both Sides Now” during downtime when she was playing at The Second Fret. Gene brought her to WDAS, where he was working at the time, for an acoustic performance.”

“Gene also helped book Bob Dylan’s first-ever Philadelphia show on May 3, 1963, at the Philadelphia Ethical Society on Rittenhouse Square. His story about that is that only about 45 people were in attendance, Dylan “received $150 for this gig and he was such a sweet person.” 

Tributes to Gene Shay came from across the country:

• Nick Spitzer, Host and Executive Producer of American Routes worked with Shay at WMMR, wrote in an email to Spark News:

“I met Gene when I was the host of afternoon drive time at WMMR. We often crossed paths. Gene was always kind, cool, mellow and devoted to the Philly acoustic music scene. When I think of Gene, I recall fire-escape gatherings at the radio station and the twinkle in his eye.”

• Elise Brown Sr. PR Strategist, based in Philadelphia, worked with Gene at WXPN. She said in an email:

“It always felt so refreshing and reassuring when I. talked with Gene Shay about radio, concert promotion, or advertising & PR. He'd say, ‘well, you get it’ or ‘well, you know how it is.’”

“We talked frequently for nearly 30 years. There was never so much as a whiff of arrogance or mansplaining. I am so grateful to him for that. He was all heart, and just a gem.” 

• Brian Herres, now a media researcher in Los Angeles, listened to Shay at WMMR while he was growing up wrote:

“Gene was a wonderful broadcaster. His show on Sunday nights was an appointment listen. I never missed it. On a very direct level, his shows exposed me to music I would not have otherwise heard. To this day my listening is as diverse as ever because of his influence.”

“I attended the Philadelphia Folk Festival each summer because of him. Those artists featured are still a part of my weekly listening. I have a bootleg of the famous WMMR Bonnie Raitt live spot featuring Blender Blues. His playing of that version for many years motivated me to find a bootleg.”

“As a young high school kid I was infatuated by radio. I made friends with Ed Sciaky, Michael Tearson, Bill Vitka and Gene Shay. They allowed me to hang out every once in a while in the studio at WMMR. It was my entry into radio.”