The Art of the Story

WBGO Archive (2003): Musician and author James McBride chats with WBGO's Gary Walker

By Doug Doyle,

Published November 26, 2025 at 3:27 PM EST

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On this episode of The Art of the Story from the WBGO Archive: Gary Walker's 2003 chat with acclaimed author and musician James McBride.

"You can't be a novelist, you can't be a creative person, if you are so cynical about the world that everything you say and write is negative," says novelist James McBride. He won the 2013 National Book Award for his novel The Good Lord Bird. — "You can't be a novelist, you can't be a creative person, if you are so cynical about the world that everything you say and write is negative," says novelist James McBride. He won the 2013 National Book Award for his novel *The Good Lord Bird.*

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Doug Doyle

Doug Doyle has been News Director at WBGO since 1998. Since then, Doug and his news staff have received more than 300 awards from organizations like PRNDI (now PMJA), AP, New York Association of Black Journalists, Garden State Association of Black Journalists and the New Jersey Society of Professional Journalists.

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Gary Walker

In jazz radio, great announcers are distinguished by their ability to convey the spontaneity and passion of the music. Gary Walker is such an announcer, and his enthusiasm for this music greets WBGO listeners every morning on Daybreak. He's the winner of the 1996 Gavin Magazine Jazz Radio Personality of the Year Award and the recipient of the 2021 Marian McPartland-Willis Conover Award for Career Achievement in Broadcasting from the Jazz Journalists Association. Gary hosts the morning show each weekday from 8am til noon. And, by his own admission, he's truly having a great time.

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