The Uncle Henry Show

The Uncle Henry Show is a talk program on NewsRadio 710 WNTM in Mobile, Alabama. Modesty is what sets it apart. Plenty of talk hosts show up with verdicts, but this one shows up with a handful of news items and announces that it is learning time. Stories get read aloud, some pulled straight from the website of Fox 10, the local Fox affiliate, and the host reacts on the spot. In one aside, the host jokes that enough learning here might someday lead to a bigger, better show. That candor is what makes the news segments worth hearing. Following up on a Mobile City Council meeting, the host passes along that the city bus system will be renamed Second Line Transit, with different routes and other changes rolling out in July. Then comes a frank admission that much of the plan is hard to follow, and that 'microtransit' sounds like a tiny bus. Critter stories get equal billing, and one episode is simply titled 'Random Critter Talk'. A Mississippi report urging caution as rising temperatures get snakes moving gets special attention because of the snake trapper, who has called in and appeared as a guest several times over the years. The snake trapper always comes back to snakes, though a love of possums has come up too. The show keeps a voicemail line, and the host makes a point of getting to the messages. There is also an episode titled 'Music Review from Caller Buford'. Live music has its moments as well. In 'Camm Lewis Plays Music For Us', the guest sings in the studio and, asked how the music started, mentions a grandfather the family followed and a father who played drums. The host keeps praising the voice, then concedes that a fresh way to say 'great voice' is going to be needed. The segment points to a Sunday afternoon set at the Mud Bottom Music Festival, with tickets through Dogriver.org, and Camm Lewis describes a live recording where the coughing and throat-clearing were left in. Mobile itself is a steady presence: more than one episode carries a civic song with the refrain 'My love is Mobile, that's my wonderful town,' which name-checks Mardi Gras and the Senior Bowl. One episode also features a verse from Proverbs read in both the King James and New International versions. Other titles, including 'Alabama Legislators Need Badges', 'Do You Need a Ride or a Cruise' and 'Leave Water Street Alone', show a range that runs from state lawmakers to a single street. Courtesy runs through all of it, down to the host thanking people for listening and then adding 'I really do' for emphasis. The result is hometown radio with a curious, neighborly streak.