Station Archive

Craig McNamara, 72, now grows walnuts near Winters, but he grew up in Washington, D.C., at the center of power. His father Robert McNamara was the U.S. defense secretary for presidents Kennedy and Johnson during the Vietnam War. In his new memoir Because Our Fathers Lied / a Memoir of Truth and Family, from Vietnam to Today, Craig writes about opposing the war, his love for his dad, loyalty to the Constitution instead of to a president, coexistence, and other aspects of his life shaped by this core conflict. We talk about his story today on Davisville.

Eric Jordan grew up in Davis, and while he was in high school he fell in love with the opera. The world ended up being his stage. Performing around the country and the world, he ended up with the Metropolitan Opera in New York. In New York he suffered a massive stroke which eventually ended his career as an opera singer.

While performing in opera productions, he also had an alter ego (as The Opera Cowboy) and performed country music, especially Johnny Cash songs.

In this episode of Listening Lyrics, Eric joins us as we listen to some of his story and music, both in opera and as the Opera Cowboy.