Oh, shut up, Charlie. There’s no bloody way you’re going to be anything approaching unbiased, so quit pretending you’re going to do anything approaching a review.

Let me put it this way: my morning, for the first time since April, started the way it was supposed to start. And to steal a line from one of the XM promos, “I’m a happy man!”

After a short history piece about the launch of Sputnik 1 back in 1957, he proceeded to launch The Bob Edwards Show. (Good thing he didn’t instead relate the opening of the show to the premier of Leave it to Beaver, which also began on this date in 1957! And to just for a second pretend to do a show opening, “It’s the anniversary of the birth of Damon Runyon in 1884, and the birthday of Charlton Heston, who is 80 today.”)

Almost immediately thereafter he cracked me up…when describing the troubles back in March, he noted that he had hosted a daily news show for almost thirty years, and the executives at NPR told him he, “should never do that again…” Then into a lengthy interview with David Broder about the upcoming news of the week (this will be a Monday morning feature on the show), and a chat with USA TODAY Supreme Court reporter Joan Biskupic about the upcoming session which begins today.

The frontpiece of the premier show was a fascinating interview with Walter Cronkite, and it’s here I think better than anywhere else on this program where Bob’s style shows through. He gently questions, then gets the hell out of the way, allowing his guest to answer in any way he wishes, with gentle prompts and follow-ups, allowing the interview to go whatever way the guest’s answers take it.

I am a little sorry about one thing, though…when breaking, he’s only updating us on what happening after the break. I admit I kinda miss, “The time is 19 minutes past the hour…”

I’m also sorry he’s decided not to continue his “returns;” whether or not one of the guys who fired him created them or not, it’s something that is intimately connected to him.

I was also a little surprised that BBC News on the hour/half-hour wasn’t aired; but then, I’m of two minds on this. On the one hand, I’d like to be updated on the news I missed while I was asleep, but on the other hand it would remove eight minutes from the program. I’ll need to think about this for a week or two before I decide which is the more important.

The second half-hour is comprised of pre-recorded “soft-news” interviews, promoting books, movies, CDs, films, whatever. Again, two minds; he does an amazing job pulling out of people interesting and surprising stories, even those people I’m not particularly interested in. On the other, by and large I’m a whole lot more interested in the Supreme Court than I am in salsa music from Cuba. I know, I know, this isn’t Morning Edition (that show died last April), but still.

Bob referred to this as, “non-commercial public radio,” which isn’t exactly accurate…XMPR is instead technically “commercial public radio.” Not a thing wrong with that, though - instead of “donating,” I pay a commercial entity outright for the ability to hear the programs. I hope XM makes one helluva profit off of us, and continues to produce new and exciting public radio-style programs. I also admit to disagreeing strongly with Bob about supporting NPR member stations. These stations did not support Bob when he was foolishly removed as host of ME, so I don’t see a whole lot of reason to support them. I also disagree that “they” produce the programming on XMPR - a select few produce the programming, and I’m already supporting them by my XM subscription fees (you don’t think the stations are donating the programs to XM, do you?). The locals have gotten so intimidated by NPR that they roll over even when NPR becomes self-destructive. Bob’s a much bigger man than I am - I believe they do not deserve our support. Take the money you’d normally give to your local NPR member station and use it to buy an XM radio and subscription. This way, you an support quality public radio without supporting NPR…and get a heckuva lot of other options in music and talk as a bonus!

Ok, enough sermonizing. Bob closed out this morning’s show by acknowledging his staff; not only mentioning their names, but giving their bona fides. Sounds like one helluva team.

Lemme go back to where I started; for the first morning since April, the day started right. As I sit here listening to the rebroadcast, drinking my grande cappuccino and typing this on my Macintosh, everything seems right with the world for the first time since NPR released that moronic press release saying that Bob “chose” to leave the ME post. The little things just aren’t going to bother me this morning.

If you missed the program, or are not currently a subscriber to XM Satellite Radio, you can hear the program each day for the first week, between October 4th and October 8th, at the XM Radio website. They are “looping” the program, so you can come in any time and listen.