The Hustle

L7 were pioneers. Yes, there were all female rock bands before, but how many rocked as hard as they did with as much authenticity? Those four girls let it all hang out and walked it like they talked it. Success had to find them, they weren't going to play any games to find it. They finally broke through with 'Pretend We're Dead" off their third album, but it was hard keeping it all together and the band began to fracture soon after. For the last several years, the original members have reformed for a new album (2019's Scatter the Rats), several "victory lap" tours celebrating their legacy. Donita Sparks joins us this week to discuss the whole story including hanging out with Lemmy, Nick Cave and Butch Vig as well as filming Serial Mom with John Waters, the response to their 2016 documentary, and tons more. Enjoy! 

Actor John Scott Clough appeared in two of the great 80s movies - one underrated and one super cheesy. His big break came in the Sidney Poitier directed Fast Forward about a dance troupe from Ohio who move to the Big Apple to "make it". After appearances in other movies and TV shows of the era like Family Ties, Empty Nest and the Love Boat, he also had a juicy role in Gross Anatomy with Matthew Modine and Christine Lahti. He gives us juicy tidbits from all of this and more including eventually retiring from acting and spending the last few years battling cancer. If I can't use this platform to connect with people I've always found interesting (music or not) then what's the point? Hope you enjoy it! 

Britain's Railway Children were a band stuck between movements. Too late for the post-punk explosion of the early 80s and done just before Britpop conquered the world, they released a handful of albums and songs that deserved more attention. "Every Beat of the Heart" did crackthe UK top 40 and singles like "A Pleasure" and "Brighter" did well on the indie charts, but it wasn't enough and the band called it quits in the early 90s after three albums. Frontman Gary Newby joins us this week to explain how it all went down including their tours of the states, going from Factory Records to Virgin, and releasing more music on the band's name. These guys are ripe for rediscovery. Enjoy! 

Candi Staton is arguably one of the best, and most underrated, soul singers in history. While Aretha and Gladys and Diana were getting most of the attention, Candi was consistently recording incredible music whether it's deep r&b in Muscle Shoals, disco smashes like "Young Hearts Run Free", or quality gospel music. She remains one of the finest interpreters of music ever and she joins us this week to discuss her storied career including starting out on the chitlin circuit, her approach to making a song her own, and her association with Jim and Tammy Faye Bakker back in the day. We're so lucky she's still here, sounding great, and making new music! 

Producer/Engineer/Mixer Danton Supple has been at the forefront of big music by big artists since he first broke into the business in the 80s. U2, Coldplay, Pet Shop Boys, Morrissey and more are prominently on his CV. In this conversation we cover all of those as well as Elbow, Doves, Starsailor (which included Phil Spector's last project), Spandau Ballet and his work with past guests Clive Langer, Steve Lillywhite, Trevor Horn, Julian Mendelsohn and tons more. His stories are gold and almost as great as his talents. Enjoy! 

Annie Golden's career has hit on almost every creative endeavor there is. She starts out in the 70s fronting the punk/new wave band The Shirts who are making waves in the CBGB scene with Blondie, Television and the rest. The band released three good albums, but none of them really took off. Then, one fateful night, director Milos Foreman goes to their show and immediately decides to cast her in his new movie Hair. This kicks off her acting career (both on the big and small screens as well as Broadway) that has never let up. She might be best known these days for her role as the mute inmate Norma on Orange is the New Black. The Shirts have released a couple more albums in the 2000s with different vocalists, but Annie lends her voice to a new single, "Move On Groove On" that's a tribute to a close friend. Her spirit is infectious. Enjoy! 

This week we continue speaking with some of the authors of the wonderful @ series. Our guest is Gillian Gaar, author of Springsteen@75. Gillian discusses her love of Bruce and how her book contributes to the narrative of one of America's most beloved artists. We discuss many of her other projects as well like books she's written on Nirvana and Queen. AND we have a copy of this book to give away! Enjoy! 

This week's twofer is a fun one. We hear from a major British rock band and then we hear from a newer band heavily influenced by the first band! First up is Mark Gardener of Ride! They, along with bands like Jesus and Mary Chain and My Bloody Valentine, were the key figures in the Shoegaze movement of the late 80s. Ride's debut album, Nowhere, is one of the greatest examples of the genre. Eventually the guys changed their style and imploded as they went, but they've been back since 2017 and their new album, Interplay, is their best yet. Mark and I get into all of it, including his recent collaboration with Ryan! A Shoreline Dream are a dream pop/shoegaze band heavily influenced by the likes of Ride and have been doing strong work for almost 20 years. Their new album, Whitelined, features songs with Mark. Ryan discusses the life of an indie artist and his early life in Hollywood. This episode is packed with great music. Gear up! 

Has it really been 25 years since "Everything You Want" took over the airwaves? The 90s are littered with one hit or album wonders, artists that broke out, but were forced to break down thanks to a chaotic music biz, but VH mastermind Matt Scannell has not only survived but thrived. He could have packed it in after the label buried their follow up album to the double platinum breakthrough, or he could have called it quits at any point while scratching to make it as an indie artist. But, instead, he's gone from strength to strength, gaining the admiration of people like Neil Peart and Richard Marx along the way. The band is about to hit the road with Gin Blossoms and Toad the Wet Sprocket to celebrate those glory days. Hear his stories from how he met the legends to his love of watches. Enjoy! 

Included in the bedrock of the American alternative rock sound created by bands like REM, the Feelies, the Bongos and the Replacements is the dB's. Their debut album, Stands for Decibels, is essential to showing what us Yanks were up to while New Wave and Post Punk were gestating largely in the UK. That seminal album was just re-released on vinyl for the first time last month and Peter Holsapple joined us to deep dive the whole experience like how he and former guest Chris Stamey split up the songwriting, what influenced the sound, how was it working with Martin Rushent and (another former guest) Don Dixon, trying to break out of North Carolina, and more. Enjoy! 

You can't tell the story of British rock and roll without acknowledging the impact of The Jam. Unfortunately, Paul Weller pretends that chapter never happened, which is sad and confusing. Drummer Rick Buckler recently published the book The Jam 1982 depicting the last year of the band's existence. They start off releasing The Gift with singles like "Town Called Malice" and "Precious" climbing the charts, but it ends with a call from Weller out of nowhere to pack it up. Rick tries to make sense of it all (Paul still isn't talking), the influence of Paul's dad John on the band, the progression of the band's sound, and what he's been doing since, including the short lived band Time UK and About the Jam. It's a disappointing and confusing epitaph for one of the greatest bands in history. 

Did America ever fully "get" 10cc? Their mix of perfect tunes with a biting sense of humor flew over the heads of many of us. Luckily, that didn't stop them from having a long and legendary career back in the UK. The only original member these days is the great Graham Gouldman, but he's taking the band on their first US tour in ages soon. He joins us this week to discuss his partnership with Andrew Gold to form Wax, his wonderful solo career (and new album, I Have Notes) working with other legends like Ringo Starr and Brian May, doing the Animalympics soundtrack, and more. We're lucky he's still at it, carrying the torch, and better than ever! 

To commemorate the 40th anniversary of the masterpiece that is Prince's Purple Rain, we welcome author Andrea Swensson to discuss her fabulous new book celebrating the achievement. Andrea knew Prince and had been to Paisley Park a few times, plus she's an acclaimed writer, podcast host, and expert on the music of Minneapolis, making her the perfect person for this book. We discuss his legacy, his artistry, his impact on Minnesota, and much more. Also, we have a copy of the book to give away! There will never be another Prince! 

This week we welcome reggae royalty to the show with guitarist Junior Marvin! If you can believe it - on the same day in 1977, Junior was offered jobs playing with Stevie Wonder AND Bob Marley! Which would you choose? He decided to go with Bob and it changed the rest of his life. After Bob's death a few years later, Junior focused on session work and solo albums while also touring with the Wailers to keep the One Love spirit alive. He recently released a brand new solo album called Happy Family. We discuss the whole journey, including what makes Bob the icon he is today, the songs he wrote (and didn't get paid for), what Rastafarianism means to him, the new Bob movie, and more. Enjoy! 

With the recent re-release of the breakthru Call album Reconciled on vinyl and remastered, we felt it was a good time to welcome back keyboardist Jim Goodwin and guitarist Tom Ferrier (for the first time) to go deep on the album that changed everything for the band. The album includes the powerful singles "Everywhere I Go" and "I Still Believe", which was made iconic by the "Sexy Sax Man" (and friend of the show) Tim Cappello in Lost Boys. We also discuss the spiritual lyrics by the late great frontman Michael Been, working with Peter Gabriel and Jim Kerr of Simple Minds, and whether the album qualifies as "Christian Rock". Oh, and what's the deal with the baby on the cover? All of this and more will be revealed, and you'll be reminded what a strong album this is. Enjoy! 

In 1985 the German group Propaganda managed their one perfect album, A Secret Wish. Released on Trevor Horn's ZTT label (he was also the Executive Producer), this synth pop classic featured hits like "Duel" and "Dr. Mabuse" which haven't aged a day. Though it was an achievement, it created friction within the group (as well as financial and interpersonal issues), causing the frontwomen, Susanne and Claudia, to leave the band before the follow up was recorded. Other bands were created and solo careers were attempted until 2022 when the two paired up with producer Stephen Lipson as xPropaganda and released the incredible comeback album, The Heart is Strange. This week Susanne and Claudia join us to discuss the entire ride and what they're up to now. It's rare we get to hear from one of them, let alone both! 

t took a few years, but Tom Bailey is finally reclaiming the wonderful legacy of the Thompson Twins. The excellent hit makers were everywhere in the 80s, but eventually Tom lost interest in pop music and moved on with then wife Alannah Currie to making dub and trance music under the names Babble and International Observer letting the Twins' flame die out. Thankfully, about 10 years ago he brushed off those old hits, put out a poppy solo album, and has been back in our lives since. He's now joining forced with Thomas Dolby and others on the Totally Tubular tour this summer. We get into all of it including working with Nile Rodgers and Rupert Hine, the late great Matthew Seligman, John uHughes movies, and the stories behind a bunch of songs. Enjoy! 

Session keyboardist Jeff Babko has a career that even he can't believe. His day job is playing keys in Jimmy Kimmel's band every night. Then, his side hustle on the weekends is as the musical director for Steve Martin and Martin Short on their tour. Those alone are incredible, but he also releases solo albums and has done sessions and tours with a bunch of legends. In this chat we discuss Huey Lewis, James Taylor, the Doobie Brothers, Sheryl Crow, Neil Young, Joe Cocker, Alanis Morissette, Smokey Robinson, Steve Perry, Colin Hay and Don Henley. He also plays on soundtracks for the likes of Scorsese and Nolan. On top of this, he's hilarious.You'll love this conversation about all of it and how it all even happened. Enjoy!

We have a very special twofer for you this week! We kick it off with the birthday boy himself, the great Ian Hunter! Ian turned 85 this week (!) and is still at it and as good as ever. He just released a new album called Defiance 2: Fiction (Defiance 1 came out last year) and both are star-studded affairs featuring Joe Elliott, Brian May, Slash, Todd Rundgren and tons more including the late great Taylor Hawkins and Jeff Beck. Ian and I discuss making music at this age, going glam with Bowie, his (underappreciated) solo career and more. Then we hear from John Butler, frontman for the wonderful Diesel Park West. They released one of the greatest debuts ever in 1989 with Shakespeare Alabama, and have continued to put out quality music, but remain one of those acts that deserved more. They also have a new album called Presley Trap that is among their best. You'll love what you hear! 

Have we come back around to Hootie & the Blowfish yet? They went from fun, good-time band, to hugely popular, to overexposed, to punching bag, back to fun, good-time band. Today, they've settled into a nice level of fame where the band successfully tours when they feel like it and the guys each do their own projects during the downtime. Guitarist Mark Bryan joins us this week to discuss it all, especially how it affected him and his family. We also get into a lot of his solo work, which is super strong and deserves a wider audience, as well as that post peak period when the band was still churning out great music, but to a smaller audience. It's been quite a ride with a lot of ups and downs, but Mark still takes it all in stride. Enjoy! 

Jim Peterik has the power to create a whole band for every musical impulse he ever has. Survivor is mostly in the rear view, but his original band The Ides of March still get together to perform for special occasions. He has a country band called The Stormchasers. He has a smooth jazz band called Lifeforce. He has a rock band called Pride of Lions. And he has World Stage, which is him collaborating with his musical friends like Jason Scheff, Don Barnes, Kevin Cronin and many more. Each of these continue to release new music with World Stage's Roots & Shoots Vol. 1 dropping most recently. Jim and I discuss these as well as his many collaborations over the years like Dennis DeYoung, the Beach Boys, Cheap Trick and more. He even breaks into song a couple times! Enjoy! 

Not only did the mighty Midnight Oil bless the world with their incredible music, they also educated us on the plight of Australian people and politics which ended up informing many of us and how we see the world. Guitarist and primary songwriter Jim Moginie recently released a memoir called The Silver River which tells the band's story, but, even more impressively, tells his personal journey as someone who was adopted at a young age and found his birth parents later in life. That story is really at the heart of this excellent book. We also talk about that powerful music, the pressure he felt to produce hits, saying goodbye, his writing process, and much much more. We are so lucky to hear from anyone in the Oil's camp. Enjoy!

For this week we welcome author, podcast host and private investigator (!) Darren Paltrowitz to discuss his book DLR Book. Capturing the real David Lee Roth, while also separating the real guy from the mythology he's worked hard to create is no easy task, but Darren does his best. David Carruth joins co-hosts this episode as we dissect DLR's Hollywood ambitions, his solo efforts, his radio hosting gigs, and much much more. He's surely one of the greatest entertainers ever, and one of the most confusing characters. Enjoy! 

Jon was invited to hang with his good friends Haydn and Bee of the INXS : Access All Areas podcast recently to discuss our love of Australian music, the rich history, and, of course, our mutual love of INXS. Any fan of this band needs to know this great podcast is out there if they don't already. Every member has appeared on there, it's a wealth of valuable knowledge. Jon tells some stories you've heard before and some you haven't, but enjoy either way! 

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Can you believe another year has gone by? We can't! Who would have ever thought 9 years The Hustle would become what it has. As usual, we always celebrate this day with a very special guest and this year is no different. This week we welcome the wonderful Nick Laird-Clowes of the Dream Academy! The band snuck up on everyone in 1985 with the seminal and wholly unique "Life in a Northern Town". Those who were there will never forget it. They followed that up with two more equally excellent albums before calling it quits, but Nick has never sat still. After forging a friendship with Dave Gilmour, he's collaborated with him on many projects and continues to compose his own music. They recently released a fantastic 7-disc box set called Religion, Revolution and Railways that has everything you could ever want. Nick's enthusiasm will burst through your speakers!

For this Deep Dive we welcome back John Parr to discuss his underappreciated album from 1992, Man With a Vision. By this point in his career, John was all alone with no major label support and litigation making it hard to get heard. He self-produced this album and it's an excellent slab of peak AOR goodness, even though it's from the early 90s. John gives us the full story and I hope you'll all seek out this beauty for yourselves. Enjoy! 

The short but solid trajectory of the Undertones' career reflects the arc of popular British music during the same time. Starting off in Derry Ireland as punks with an ear for melodies in the late 70s and ending up about five years later exploring sophisti-pop is a map of what was in style in the UK. If the band wasn't so good at both genres you might accuse them of selling out, but, in truth, they're just excellent at making catchy songs. The band split up in the early 80s and lead singer Feargal Sharkey went solo before leaving music altogether. We're joined this week by bassist and songwriter Michael Bradley. He went to work for the BBC before retiring and now tours occasionally with the other guys (minus Feargal) even releasing new music. He discusses some of the classic tunes he wrote, his approach to the band now, having John Peel as a fan, and much more. They're honestly one of the greatest ever.

Grammy winning engineer/producer Tom Lord-Alge has been behind some major music the last 40 years. He starts out in NYC under the tutelage of his brother Chris and breaks big working on Steve Winwood's Back in the High Life album. Over the years he's engineered dozens of gigantic hits including albums by Blink-182, Pink, Weezer, Marilyn Manson and Korn. We don't talk about any of those though (to Tom's surprise). Instead we get into Simple Minds, Live, Manic Street Preachers, OMD, REO Speedwagon, INXS, Hanson, Peter Gabriel, Earth Wind and Fire, Dave Matthews and a bunch of others surprises along the way. Tom is a riot, you're going to love this. 

Bassist Neil Stubenhaus was a key member of that pool of exceptional talent in LA in the 70s and 80s that were first calls to play on the great albums made during the era. Neil stood shoulder to shoulder with the likes of Nathan East, Lee Sklar and Pino Palladino (among many) to make good music even better. Included on his resume are people like Billy Joel, Lionel Richie, Al Jarreau, Anita Baker, Rod Stewart, Barbra Steisand, the Temptations and tons of others. In fact, we both had nothing else going on so we talked for 3 hours about these and dozens of others. For the last couple decades he's mainly lent his talents to movie soundtracks which is an entirely separate conversation. Strap in and enjoy a masterclass in being good at your instrument. Enjoy! 

Mike Post is probably the most successful composer of the last half century. He literally wrote the themes to hundreds of TV shows from the early 70s until now. In fact, there's a good chance that during the heyday, almost every person on earth heard his work at least once a week. That's astounding. You could argue that shows like NYPD Blue, Law & Order, Magnum P.I., Rockford Files, White Shadow, Hill Street Blues, L.A. Law and tons more wouldn't be what they are without him. He recently took a big risk and composed an original piece called Message of the Mountains & Echoes of the Delta that he's really proud of. It merges Americana and Classical in a way that's never been done before. We discuss all of this as well growing up with Jim Gordon, being a part of the Wrecking Crew, and producing the ill-fated Van Halen 3 album. He's "the luckiest guy you'll ever meet". Enjoy! 

Imagine being one of the architects of one of the biggest albums in rock history. It's like winning the lottery. As we know from the Fleetwood Mac story, what was happening behind the scenes on Rumours was as juicy and tasty as the music they were making. Witness to all of it was the great Ken Caillat! He went on to co-produce with Richard Dashut Tusk and Mirage as well before parting ways and parlaying that success into starting several music businesses over the years. Then, his daughter Colbie's massive success has provided an incredible second chapter no one would have predicted. We get into the nitty gritty on this one - the drama, the fights, the business, and the music. Enjoy! 

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This week, Jesus Jones embarks on their first US tour in 30 years! It's short, just a few shows over a couple of weeks, but it's, hopefully, the beginning of restoring a relationship with the states that will grow in the near future. Since lead singer Mike Edwards was on the show a few years ago, we are joined this time by keyboardist (and band manager) Iain Baker to not only explain the circumstances of the tour, but deep dive their 1991 breakthru Doubt while he's at it. We learn what influenced hits like "International Bright Young Thing", "Real Real Real" and, of course, "Right Here Right Now". He also gives his passionate feelings about everyone from Milli Vanilli to Michael Hutchence. It's a blast and even emotional in some parts. Enjoy! 

This week we get to hear from acclaimed songwriter Dean Pitchford! After 45 years of near consistent success, Dean will finally be inducted in the Songwriters Hall of Fame this year, which is just another line on his impressive resume. He won an Oscar for writing "Fame" for Irene Cara and achieved the absolute peak with Footloose. He not only wrote the screenplay, but every song on the soundtrack and collected a couple Grammys in the process. He tried again a few years later with the movie Sing, but it was less successful and his thoughts on why are fascinating. Along the way there have been collaborations with Roger Daltrey ("Quicksilver Lightning"), Cher ("After All"), Peter Allen ("The Boy From Oz"), Kenny Loggins ("Don't Fight It"), writing the Solid Gold theme song, and tons more.  He's just about the nicest man you'll ever meet and we're super lucky to hear from him. Enjoy! 

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Our guest this week is multi-Grammy winning producer Russ Titelman. Russ has been deeply rooted in the music business since the 60s as a producer, an engineer, a songwriter, and even a session guitarist. His midas touch has benefitted legendary artists like Paul Simon, Chaka Khan, James Taylor, Cyndi Lauper, Brian Wilson, Rickie Lee Jones, and won Grammys for Steve Winwood and Eric Clapton. In this conversation we hit on all of that and more including how songs like "Higher Love", "Tears in Heaven", "Ain't Nobody" and tons more came to be. We're lucky to spend so much valuable time with a luminary like Russ. Enjoy! 

In 1989 when Australian rock bands like Midnight Oil and INXS were screaming up the charts in the US, you'd think the easiest thing in the world would be to present one more and let them continue the streak. Such was not the story of Boom Crash Opera. Despite getting some airplay for "Onion Skin" off their second album, These Here Are Crazy Times, and despite having material just as strong as their peers, it didn't happen and BCO never got their just due (except back home where they remain a draw). Guitarist and primary songwriter Peter Farnan joins us this week to detail the whole story and discuss his wonderful solo career. What's surreal about all of this is that Peter is a fan of the show, making this a mutual appreciation society meeting! Enjoy and please dig into some BCO. It's killer! 

The Dandy Warhols have been around for 30 years. That can't be right! In the 90s they seemed like hedonistic little hippies and now, they still are, but the rest of the world has caught up with them. On the 15th, the band releases ROCKMAKER, their first fully guitar-driven album in a while (maybe ever) and they embark on a US tour this week. Zia McCabe joins us to talk about the new album, how the band writes songs (fans know their albums are gloriously all over the place), what it's like having David Bowie, Duran Duran, Slash and other huge names as supporters, her proud stance as a nudist, and a ton more. The Dandies have projected and lived by their life philosophy since day one. In a world where so many things change, it's nice to know you can rely on their version of unpredictability. Enjoy! 

These days, guitarist Nigel Bennett is as much an entrepreneur as he is a punk rocker. I'll explain. Nigel's career began in the 70s when he was hired to join The Members who were mixing punk, pop and reggae in unique ways. They're probably best remembered by their 1982 hit "Working Girl". The band didn't last long and Nigel bummed around until he was hired by the Vibrators in 1990, where he remains today. During the pandemic, the rest of the Vibrators called it quits, leaving Nigel to carry on and now he's remarried, moved to the states, and is wholly focused on building the Vibrators back up. He still puts out new music and tours mixing songs from his entire history. It's a fascinating story we don't hear that often. There are also stories involving Iggy Pop, Steve Lillywhite and more. Enjoy! 

Author Joel Selvin returns to the show to discuss his new book on one of the greatest and most complicated drummers in rock history, Jim Gordon. The list of songs made better by Jim's talent is endless - "Good Vibrations", "Rikki Don't Lose That Number", "Wichita Lineman", "Apache" and hundreds of others. He was also the drummer in Derek and the Dominoes and co-wrote "Layla". Unfortunately, Jim was overwhelmed by demons from schizophrenia most of his life and murdered his mother in 1983 confining him to prison for the rest of his life (he died in 2023). Joel paints a sympathetic portrait of a man overcome by voices that ultimately did him in. It's one of the best music books you'll ever read. 

The amazing Mike Scott returns to the podcast to go deep on the Waterboys' 1985 masterpiece This is the Sea. This benchmark album has been released in a massive 6-disc deluxe edition that includes almost 100 tracks, many of which have never been heard before, and a hardback book all of which tells the story of the album's creation. Mike takes us track by track through the original album, the contributions from other band members and where his head was at back then. If any classic album deserves the deluxe treatment, it's this one. We're honored to hear a part of that story. 

Cult icon Josie Cotton joins us this week! Of course, her career exploded in the early 80s with the help of Valley Girl and the immortal "Johnny, Are You Queer?" but her time on major labels was short-lived. For almost 40 years she's built a career thriving as an indie artist and doing her own thing. Last year she released a strong new album called Day of the Gun which, like everything she does, is a complete artistic package from the music to the fashion to the videos and beyond. She  discusses her long and unique career and how she conceptualizes what she puts out in the world. She's a legend in her own way. Enjoy! 

Rich Travali is one of the most successful guests we've ever featured on the show. He began his career in the 80s at the Hit Factory in New York working with legends like Patti Smith, Sting and Paul Simon, who he was especially close to during the recording of The Rhythm of the Saints. In the 90s he formed a bond with Puff Daddy which led to a couple decades of gigantic hits - 11 #1 singles and over 140 million in total record sales. We're talking generational hits like "Hot in Herre", "Big Poppa", "Independent Woman" "Gettin' Jiggy Wit It" and tons more. TLC, Robin Thicke, LL Cool J, Pharrell and many others make him "their guy". It's a fascinating and unique story. Enjoy! 

Ian Lloyd has been at this longer than many of us have been alive. He first took off fronting Stories in the early 70s for three albums. The second one, About Us, featured the surprising #1 smash "Brother Louie". From there he went solo and released some excellent (and sadly out of print) power pop albums including the wonderful Goosebumps from 1979. He also made a nice living singing backing vocals for Foreigner, Billy Joel and many others including several ads and jingles. He's still out there doing his thing with that other-worldly voice that hasn't lost a drop. We discuss all of it. Enjoy! 

For this Book Club we welcome noted Australian author Jeff Apter to discuss his new book on Neil Finn, Don't Dream It's Over. Jeff has been a successful music writer for decades, contributing to Rolling Stone as penning books on AC/DC, Keith Urban, and the Bee Gees. Nick and I nerd out on our love for Neil, what he's like, how the band and his family works (they're often similar), his relationship with his brother Tim and the late Paul Hester and much more. The book is essential for any Neil fan and so is our conversation. Enjoy! 

This week we welcome one of the greatest musicians alive, bassist Jah Wobble! Jah first rose to prominence in PIL alongside John Lydon on their first two groundbreaking albums. After he left he struggled for a few years before picking it back up with the Invaders of the Heart and playing with almost everyone. In this conversation we discuss artists as diverse as Sinead O'Connor, Ginger Baker and Suggs. In 2023 alone he released several new projects, the main one being his new solo album, A Brief History of Now. Jah joins us to discuss all of it (as much as we can fit anyway) including that infamous American Bandstand appearance, the late great Geordie Walker, getting sober, Buddhism, and everything in between. Enjoy! 

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Animotion's Bill Wadhams returns to the show to deep dive their excellent comeback album from 2017, Raise. I see this album as a perfect example of what legacy artists, especially ones from the 80s, are capable of doing in this day and age. It's an incredibly strong set of tunes that not enough people know about. Bill explains how the album came to be and the stories behind the songs. Please seek out this fantastic piece of pop. 

We go deep on excellent 90s British alternative rock with this week's twofer. First up is the iconic Saffron of Republica! The band is best known for (and still make a nice living from) "Ready To Go", which is saying a lot for a band that only managed a couple albums. They have recently come back together to make some new music including their latest single "New York". Saffron discusses all of it, including her second life as a nurse. After that we talk with Sneaker Pimp lyricist Ian Pickering. They needed some help with their debut album so they called on their friend Ian to provide some lyrics, including the still potent "6 Underground", and they had hits! The band changed direction and Ian went back to normal, but these days he's focused on his new project The Noise Who Runs. His story is pretty unique. Enjoy! 

We're honored to welcome one of music's greatest living musicians, Budgie! In this sprawling conversation we cover all the bases - coming up in Liverpool with Big in Japan, joining The Slits for their revolutionary album Cut, and joining Siouxsie and the Banshees where he would stay until the bitter end in the mid-90s. He also married Siouxsie and did their side project The Creatures for many years as well. Last year he teamed up with podcasting partner (and fellow legend), former Cure drummer Lol Tollhurst and super producer Jacknife Lee (both former guests) to release the album Los Angeles, one of the best of the year. Budgie touches on his entire career including working with Robert Smith in the Banshees, drumming with the Indigo Girls, and everything else. He's one of the best to ever do it! Enjoy! 

We're kicking off 2024 the way we often do by hearing from a legendary producer. This year we get to hear from the great Chris Kimsey! Chris was closely tied to the Stones for many years, producing albums like Some Girls, Undercover and Steel Wheels but his genius has impacted many other greats as well. In this conversation we cover artists big and small like Killing Joke, INXS, Duran Duran, Marillion, Led Zeppelin, Escape Club, Diesel Park West, Psychedelic Furs, Billy Squier, Bad Co., Curt Smith, Peter Frampton and reggae artists like Jimmy Cliff and Peter Tosh. You'll be knocked out by these stories and the breadth of songs he's worked on. Enjoy! 

It's a classic rock twofer this week! First up is Don Barnes of 38 Special. Next year the band will be celebrating 50 years and they're still as strong as ever. Their peak 80s period rivals anyone's with a bunch of hits that are still beloved. Don discusses the stories behind the songs, touring today, his lost solo album and much more. Then we get to hear from original Foghat drummer Roger Earl. Roger's the last man standing, but is also performing a bunch of shows every year. The band also has a brand new album called Sonic Mojo that keeps the fire going. Roger shares stories from his almost 60 years in rock. This one's a blast. 

The pioneering story of the Veldt is a one of one. Twin black brothers from North Carolina in the 80s embrace the alternative rock coming from the UK and record their debut album in 1989 with Robin Guthrie of the Cocteau Twins producing! The album was shelved, but they did get a couple great albums out in the 90s (Afrodisiac is especially excellent) but it never really takes off mainly because labels don't know what to do with black guys making alternative rock. They've soldiered on over the years releasing consistently great music and touring, converting skeptical audiences along the way. Today they are celebrating that Guthrie album, Illuminated 1989, finally being released. Guitarist Danny Chavis joins us to tell his fascinating story that is literally unlike anyone else's in history. Enjoy! 

www.theveldtmusic.bandcamp.com

www.patreon.com/thehustlepod

This week we welcome back two of our favorites - Maia Sharp and Garrison Starr. The girls (who are also friends) return to catch us up on what they're doing these days. Maia is producing Sarah & Shannon while Garrison has paired up again with Sean McConnell for their second release as My Sister, My Brother. They also get into the music industry's handling of lesbian artists, writing lyrics, and how they approach their career in the modern era. They're so great at what they do and we're big fans around here! 

Isn't the race for best alternative rock bass player in history neck and neck between Derek Forbes and Peter Hook? Those two showed what making great music with a bass as practically the lead instrument could do. Anyone who has listened to those early Simple Minds albums knows that what makes them so special is Derek's incredible bass work. Unfortunately, he was sacked from the band in '84 and has never returned for any real length of time. Many believe the band hasn't been the same since then. Derek joins us this week to discuss his whole career, including playing in Propaganda, Big Country and everything else he's done. His new book, A Very Simple Mind: On Tour is a must for any fan. We've wanted to have Derek on here for years, so it's a huge honor! 

We welcome back for a rarefied air third time, the excellent author, Martin Popoff, to discuss his Kiss at 50 book.

Kiss are a perfect band to discuss, and we enjoyed Martin's insights, and hope you do too!

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Manchester is known for all kinds of legendary bands emerging from the area. The Smiths, New Order, The Stone Roses, Oasis, Buzzcocks and tons more. The best of the 2000s has to be Doves. Beginning as the dance group Sub Sub, Doves went on to be one of the biggest and best bands the UK has brought the world, as five consistently great albums prove. They've been less busy the last decade or so (although 2020's Universal Want is a creative peak), as Jimi Goodwin works on his mental health, but there are rumblings that more could be on the horizon. Guitarist Jez Williams joins us to discuss all things Doves - every album, the Sub Sub days, side projects, key tracks and more. They are seriously so so good. Enjoy! 

This week we welcome back our friend Kevin Armstrong to discuss his new memoir, Absolute Beginner. This wonderful book details how his unique career took flight, from forming great bands that never go anywhere, to joining forces with David Bowie and performing with him at Live Aid, and rocking alongside Iggy Pop for a decade. There are also stops with Thomas Dolby and Propaganda as well as amazing McCartney and Eno stories. The book is a blast and we love Kevin around here so be sure to add this to your Christmas list. Enjoy!

The real story of Sly & the Family Stone needs to be told. Sly himself recently released a reportedly underwhelming memoir and there have been others over the years, but the true story of this revolutionary group is eroding too quickly. This week we welcome their legendary drummer (and Rock and Roll Hall of Famer) Greg Errico. Greg recounts just how special those early days were and how sad it was when it all ended. Greg has had tons of success elsewhere including with Santana, Weather Report, Billy Wyman, David Bowie, Lee Oskar and Betty Davis of all people! And check out his new project Stick People on YouTube. You won't want to miss this! 

This week we give thanks for another twofer with a couple of legends. First up is my brief chat with jazz icon Les McCann. This weekend Les is releasing a special box set for Record Store Day, Never a Dull Moment - Live From Coast to Coast 66-67. This gorgeous collection showcases his mastery of the piano in the Trio setting and is an incredible piece of history. We're SO lucky to get a few minutes of his time. Then we hear from original Guess Who drummer Garry Peterson. The band has been without Randy Bachman and Burton Cummings for decades now, but the younger and hungrier group is still making great music today. This year they released the album Plein D'Amour which, I'm not kidding, sounds just like something Jellyfish would have released in the 90s. Garry describes the band dynamic now, his relationship with his old bandmates, and where this new sound came from. Enjoy! 

Jon and Jan review our 3rd quarter episodes, gigs, life and more.

The Darling Buds were another one of those excellent British alternative bands of the late 80s/early 90s that was sadly short lived. Three strong albums in four years and then nothing for a long time. People listening to college radio or scouring records stores around that time would know them well. Thankfully, the band is back with an incredible box set, Killing For Love, Albums, Singles, Rarities, Unreleased 1987-2017, just released by Cherry Red Records (they're so good at this stuff). Andrea Lewis and Matt Gray join us to share stories for the journey like the impact of having John Peel as a fan, doing Top of the Pops, moving to the US, and more. It's good to say this great band is getting what they deserve. 

Former guests Robert LaRoche of the Sighs and John Douglas of the Trashcan Sinatras return to discuss their brand new solo albums. Robert's new one Forevermore continues his perfect brand of "country-tinged power pop". And John's self-titled release shows his take on acoustic stripped-down versions of original songs as well as some Trashcan covers. They're both great at what they do and we like supporting artists we believe in. Enjoy!

We have another excellent twofer up this week with two decorated artists. First is Andrew Roachford! In the US, he's primarily remembered for his 1989 hit "Cuddly Toy" which still slaps today, but did you know he's an MBE back in England and one of their biggest selling artists? Over the years, whether fronting his band Roachford, or singing with Mike + the Mechanics, or doing his own solo work, he's gone from strength to strength. Next month he goes on a UK Tour celebrating his entire body of work, including his latest album Twice in a Lifetime, as well as performing Christmas classics. Then we hear from celebrated singer/songwriter/producer Teddy Geiger. After being labeled the next big thing in the mid-2000s and having success with hits like "For You I Will", Teddy mostly retreated to the comfort of the studio. Eventually she came out as trans in 2017 which is also around the time her career exploded thanks to award winning collaborations with artists like Shawn Mendes and 5 Seconds of Summer. She just released her latest solo album, Teresa, which is very much a studio creation and shows what she's into these days. We discussed the whole amazing journey. Enjoy! 

It's another great twofer for you this week! First is Glen Mercer of the Feelies. If there's an American version of post-punk, the Feelies are the best example. They released one of the greatest debuts ever, 1980's Crazy Rhythms, but have only recorded sporadically as a unit over 45 years. The band's been quiet since 2017, and original member Anton Fier died in 2022, but they have a new live album of Velvet Underground songs called Some Kinda Love out now. Then we hear from the ever-charming Andy McCluskey of OMD. Since kicking off the band's second chapter in 2010 OMD have been consistently excellent. They too have a brand new album called Bauhaus Staircase that keeps the streak alive. Andy's just the best. Enjoy! 

It's a Jam Band adjacent twofer this week! First up is Blues Traveler guitarist and founding member Chan Kinchla. BT just released an excellent covers album called Traveler's Soul that includes their versions of songs by Dee-Lite, Stevie Wonder, TLC and more. It's a great companion to their last album Traveler's Blues. Chan discusses the making of the album, picking the songs, their live shows and much more. He's just about the nicest guy there is! Then we do something different. We talk to Dolphus Ramseur who is the manager for the excellent Avett Brothers. Dolph fills us in on what a manager does, how you take a band from nothing to stardom, the financial side and more, not to mention his love of music. Totally fascinating! Enjoy. 

The Cranberries are no more, sadly. After the tragic death of Dolores O'Riordan, the rest of the band decided they would not carry on and to leave the legacy as is. Drummer Fergal Lawler joins us this week to discuss the newly released 3-disc Deluxe Edition of the band's 3rd album To The Faithful Departed. This expanded collection includes outtakes and b-sides as well as a killer live show. Fergal talks where they were when they made this album, his early life as a breakdancer (!), his new career scoring films, completing the last band album In The End after she'd passed, and more. 

Genya Ravan's two seminal, and self-produced, solo albums, 1978's Urban Desire and 1979's ..And I Mean It!, have recently been re-released in all their glam rock mixed with Phil Spector and his girl group's glory. Seriously, if you aren't familiar with these two classics, you'll wonder how you've made it this long without them. Genya returns to the podcast to deep dive Urban Desires with us, go track by track, and talk about the making of the album in her inimitable way. She's rock and roll to her bones, you'll love it! 

This week we catch up with a couple ol' timers. First up is 80s heartland rocker Henry Lee Summer. In the late 80s, Henry scored a couple big hits with "Wish I Had a Girl" and "Hey Baby" and cut a memorable image with his giant mullet and tight jeans. Times got tough for Henry there for a while - drug addiction, arrests, bankruptcy, divorce etc - but he's working his way back with a new album. Then we hear from Melanie of Woodstock and "Brand New Key" fame. Melanie's still at it and tours frequently (but doesn't make any money off "Key" which is shocking) and has a new album called The Magic Bus which is a radio station visit she made back in 1972. She tells the complete story of Woodstock and more. Enjoy! 

Australia's Little River Band had an uncanny knack for nailing the beautiful Southern California soft rock sound of the 70s and early 80s despite being on the other side of the world. Guitarist Graeham Goble, along with core members Beeb Birtles and Glenn Shorrock were the primary songwriters behind many of the hits like "Reminiscing", "Lonesome Loser", "Cool Change" and dozens of others. Be warned: the current version of LRB that tours and releases albums does NOT contain any original members. Graeham joins us to discuss this, as well as two recent compilations including all the hits and the should-have-been hits that any fan will want to get their hands on, the stories behind the songs, his spiritual life and a ton more. Music doesn't get much more pleasurable than classic LRB! 

The wonderful "Artists at" series continues with our guest this week. Author Daniel Bukzpan recently released Ozzy@75 detailing the entire Prince of Darknesses career, Black Sabbath and first wives, to reality TV stardom and Ozzfest. The book is packed with goodies, including Daniel's dry humour that's fitting for a book about Ozzy. We have a copy to give away too! Enjoy! 

Last year, Lush lead singer Miki Berenyi released one of the greatest memoirs ever written by a rock star, of which there are many. She grew up in the UK with a Hungarian dad and a Japanese mom who soon divorced with her mom becoming an actress and moving to Hollywood, while her dad remained a freelance writer living in relative squalor. Miki found her tribe in the local music scene which led to her and Emma Anderson forming Lush. After three solid albums and the tragic suicide of drummer Chris Acland, the band called it quits. Miki retells all of this in amazing detail in Fingers Crossed in 2022 as well as touring with Lollapalooza, working with Robin Guthrie, her new band Piroshka, and the inherent drama (sex, drugs and rock and roll) that come with being in a band. I can't recommend this book highly enough and this conversation is a revelation. Enjoy! 

Multiple Grammy and Emmy winning producer, mixer and engineer Elliot Scheiner is behind some of the most pristine pop music ever made. Mentored by the great Phil Ramone, Elliot has produced luminaries like Van Morrison, Steely Dan, Billy Joel, Fleetwood Mac, Bruce Hornsby, Ashford and Simpson, the Eagles, George Benson, John Denver, Bobby McFerrin, Chaka Khan, Phish and tons more. Success like this has also translated into car audio where he's partnered with Acura and Panasonic to improve the stereo quality in new cars. And he's the go-to guy for remixing classic albums into Atmos 5.1. We get into all of this and much more. Enjoy! 

It's been stated that Jon's favorite soundtrack ever is for the John Hughes film Some Kind of Wonderful from 1987. We've heard from artists featured on it, including the music supervisor Tarquin Gotch, but this time we're hearing from some of the lesser known bands. We start with Alison Marr of Lick the Tins whose cover of "I Can't Help Falling in Love With You" plays over the closing credits. Next up is David Joyner and Linda Hall of Blue Room who had "Cry Like This" in the film, but also had "I'm Afraid" in Ferris Bueller's Day Off and a cover of "Every Time You Go Away" in Planes Trains & Automobiles. And lastly we hear from Tom Ashton and Rosie Garland of the March Violets who not only had two songs in the film ("Turn to the Sky" and "Amanda Jones"), but also appeared in the club scene in the movie! Each one has their own unique story in and out of the movie. Enjoy! 

The multi-talented Stephen Duffy could have a fine rock doc made about all the different facets of his music career. Being a founding member of Duran Duran. Being a synthpop pioneer. The folk-pop beauty of the Lilac Time. His excellent 90s power pop period. His soundtrack work with John Hughes. His hits writien with Robbie Williams. See what I mean? For the last few years, the Lilac Time has been the main focus and they just released a fantastic new album called Dance Till All the Stars Come Down. Stephen joins us to discuss all of these themes and more. He's one of the most talented songwriters the UK has ever had. We're lucky to have him. 

Among the many bands bringing excellent power pop/punk to the mainstream in the 90s, floating slightly above the rest were Chicago's Smoking Popes. Probably best known for their song "Need You Around" featured on the Clueless soundtrack, the band released some excellent albums there for a while that stood out thanks to the power of the riffs and the unmistakable croon of Josh Caterer. Once Josh converted to Christianity, he felt he couldn't continue in the same way, so the band went from top priority to secondary. They continue to put out strong material, just on their own schedule. To celebrate the 30th anniversary of their debut, Get Fired was just released on vinyl for the first time with a couple bonus tracks, including a surprising cover. Josh and I get into all of it. Enjoy! 

They just don't make 'em like John Cafferty and the Beaver Brown Band anymore, but luckily they're still out there doing what they do best. John returns this week to discuss their 1985 album Tough All Over, which featured the hits "C-I-T-Y" and the title track. It was their first album not tied to Eddie and the Cruisers. Plus, they said it would never happen, but the band has released three new singles this year in preparation for their first album in about 35 years. Listen to a true "Voice of America's Sons" this week!

Perseverance could be Richard Patrick's mantra. Navigating his band Filter for 30 years, through the ups and downs, fads, cultural moments, and tastes, can't be easy, but he's done it by staying true to himself. They just released their 8th album, The Algorithm last week and it's one of their strongest yet. Richard gets intensely personal here discussing his appearance in the popular Hired Gun documentary, leaving Nine Inch Nails to go out on his own but eventually reuniting with Trent Reznor, the current state of the country and some of his fan's views of his politics, parenting teenagers, his current Freaks on Parade tour, and a ton more. You'll be pleasantly surprised by how great this is. Enjoy! 

Big life changes often make for the best art. That's certainly true with the wonderful singer/songwriter Maia Sharp. After 30 years in the indie trenches, a divorce and a move to Nashville has changed her perspective and made for some of the richest material of her career. Her latest album, Reckless Thoughts, details where she is now, amidst the changes and opening up to what comes next. We talk about writing songs for legends like Art Garfunkel, Cher, Paul Carrack and, Bonnie Raitt. We also discuss collaborating with other fantastic females like Garrison Starr, Mindy Smith and Lizz Wright, being discovered by Miles Copeland, coming out at 23 and much more. If you aren't familiar with Maia's work, get ready to fall in love. 

Is there a better punk rock name than Rat Scabies? When drummer Chris Millar picked that pseudonym and took up with the legendary Damned, he solidified his legacy in rock royalty. Along with his decades with the Damned, Rat has also always had several side projects going on. These days, one of his main focuses is The Sinclairs, his collaboration with guitarist Billy Shinbone. The sound is a beautiful blend of surf rock and hazy blues and psychedelia. They just released their second album, The Long Slow Death of a Cigarette. Here, Rat and I discuss how he manages his time with his many side-projects, the legacy of the Damned, including his thoughts on their excellent documentary, Don't You Wish That We Were Dead, their evolution of sound, and much more. Enjoy! 

Where would we be without Stiff Records? Founded by Dave Robinson and Jake Riviera in 1976, this is the label that introduced the world to artists like Elvis Costello, Madness, Ian Dury, Graham Parker, the Damned, the Pogues, Nick Lowe and many more. This week Dave Robinson showers us with numerous stories about these and many other artists, including his former roommates Van Morrison and Jimi Hendrix! He also tells us about the hot young band that brought him back to management, Hardwicke Circus. The man's a legend. Enjoy every second! 

www.hardwickecircus.tv

www.patreon.com/thehustlepod

Bassist Ricky Phillips is a glue guy, which is saying something when you figure the bands he's been in and big personalities he's worked with. He joined the Babys near the end of their time and weathered the storms well enough to get the call to join Bad English with some of the same guys. Then, when that band began to implode he joined a couple more legends named Coverdale/Page. Finally, the call came to join Styx where he's been happily employed for about 20 years. He shares the story of this journey with us, all the twists and turns and more. Crowded House and Tina Turner even make an appearance. Enjoy!

Brit Pop! A term used for good and bad to describe a bunch of excellent bands coming out of the UK in the 90s. As usual, they were leading the charge in sounds and style making the rest of the world observers. Echobelly, with their killer sound ("Great Things", "King of the Kerb", "Insomniac" and more) and beautiful lead singer looked and sounded different and made a dent because of it. Unfortunately, when Brit Pop moved on, so did the spotlight leaving bands like Echobelly in its wake. This week we hear from lead singer Sonya Madan and guitarist Glenn Johansson about it all, how they picked themselves back up, the music they make now, how they get by and more. If you don't know them, you'll fall in love. 

Our Book Club guest this week is writer John Robb. John wears many hats - he runs the popular music website Louder Than War, he's a popular talking head and commentator of music and culture, he's written several books, and he's been in a couple punk bands. His latest is the massive endeavor, The Art of Darkness: The History of Goth which manages to explain the origins of the scene (Edgar Allen Poe, Marquis de Sade, Dionysus) and how that lead to the excellent music we all love (Adam Ant, Siouxsie and the Banshees, Bauhaus, etc). We debate what is and what isn't goth, why people gravitate to it, its morality and sexuality, and more. It's a great book and an incredible undertaking. Check it out. 

Paul Kelly has been labeled "the Australian Bob Dylan" for decades and as much as that's a huge compliment, it undercuts that Paul is legend in his own rite. The talents he shares with the greats are a never ending ear for melody, a bag of hooks that never empties, and a knack for storytelling envied by many. After almost 50 years, Paul is currently curating his vast catalog in a new way. The last couple years has seen him release several "Mix-Tape Compilations" of his songs based on themes like Poetry, People, Drinking, and Time. In many cases the songs on these comps have been reimagined in fresh new ways. Paul discusses how he approaches his history, how "How to Make Gravy" has taken on a life of its own, how he keeps things fresh, and much more. He is absolutely one of the finest artisans to ever write a song. We're lucky to have him. 

www.paulkelly.com.au

www.patreon.com/thehustlepod

Jon and Jan recap Q2, with some excellent gigs in the bag!

We hear about Jan's sabbatical, and more!

A huge debt of gratitude to those who filled in.  We couldn't have managed it without you.

We hit a million downloads, so have some goodies to give away, which Jon will tell the Patreon folks about, in the next few days.

Mark and Tony of the mighty Big Country are back to discuss Cherry Red's amazing deluxe reissue of their 1999 album, Driving to Damascus. In the late 90s, Big Country were finally starting to find their footing again after some years of reinvention and Damascus shows a ton of promise of where they might be headed. Sadly, it ended up being their last album with the core four guys. Mark and Tony are upfront about all of it. This reissue collects the original album as well as demos, the "Nashville Sessions", alternate mixes, and more. It's one of the band's strongest works. Here's the story. 

It's always a good feeling when artists you haven't heard from in a while come back with some of their strongest work. California's Rain Parade were one of the key bands of the Paisley Underground, the name given to indie bands like the Bangles and the Dream Syndicate who were focusing on melody and steeped in Big Star and the Byrds. Their '83 debut is still a masterwork of any genre. After switching to a major label, the usual challenges ensued and the band ceased, though the members all went on to other projects. This summer sees the release of the first Rain Parade album in 38 years, Last Rays of a Dying Sun, and it might be their strongest yet. Matt and Steven join us to discuss what motivated the new album, their collaboration process, the passing of Steven's brother and original member David Roback who went on to form Mazzy Star, and much more. It'll be hard to knock this album off my best of the year list. Enjoy! 

Only the late 80s/early 90s Britain could have produced a band like Carter the Unstoppable Sex Machine. With sarcasm and attitude to spare, Jim Bob and Fruitbat pilloried modern British culture in a way no one else could. That talent got them a number one album and a headlining spot at Glastonbury in 1992. Eventually the band went their separate ways and Jim Bob has been on a roll ever since releasing album after album of wry cultural criticism packed with hard won wisdom. His latest, Thanks For Reaching Out, comments on the world today in a way we can all relate to (and laugh about). He tells us about all of it and more. Enjoy! 

ZZ Top producer Terry Manning returns this week to tell us about the making of the band's massive comeback album Eliminator. Billy Gibbons is lucky his risky bet that merging blues with new wave would be successful paid off because all signs point that it wouldn't. The album spawned four huge hits like "Legs", "Sharp Dressed Man" and "Gimme All Your Lovin'" and went on to sell about 20 million copies, not to mention confirming their legendary status. Terry discusses helping Billy fulfill his vision and the challenges involved. Enjoy! 

This week is another fun twofer! We kick it off with Collective Soul guitarist Dean Roland! Dean talks about hitting the road this summer playing various festivals, and the plans next year for a big 25th anniversary celebration. Plus, we hear the stories behind several songs and collaborations. Then, we welcome accomplished songwriter Brock Walsh! Brock is probably best known for writing "Automatic", which the Pointer Sisters turned into a big hit. Brock's career hits many fun pop culture touchstones including writing for Cop Rock, being the voice of Mac Tonight, working with Quincy Jones and Sidney Poitier, writing for Bruce Willis, James Ingram, Earth Wind and Fire, movie soundtracks, ad jingles and much more. It's a total blast! 

The 90s were the best time in music history for women that rocked. When punk went pop the alternative underground was full of killer rock bands fronted and driven by women, including Veruca Salt. Co-founders Louise Post and Nina Gordon made a big splash with hits like "Seether" and "Volcano Girls" and even after Nina left, Louise kept the band going for two more equally, if not harder edged, albums. Louise recently released her first solo album, Sleepwalker, which shows a lot of maturity and vulnerability but loses none of the songcraft. Louise talks about how the pandemic, marriage, children, and time brought out some of those vulnerabilities and a lot more. She's an inspiration. Enjoy! 

Drummer Simon Kirke has been at the forefront of what most people consider real, authentic rock and roll to be. Beginning with the amazing Free and then joining Paul Rodgers in Bad Company, Simon has played on some of the greatest rock songs ever and seen just about everything along the way. In our conversation we talk about the state of the band now, the Brian Howe years, his solo career, his family's take over of Hollywood, the RnR Hall of Fame, and everything in between. The guy has contributed a lot. We're lucky to hear from him. 

Jon and Andy record their memories of the first quarter of 2023 (better late than never). The guests, the state of the pod, concerts and whatever else came up. This was recorded live and unedited. 

www.patreon.com/thehustlepod

Pere Ubu mastermind David Thomas has never found a dark, unchartered corner of music he didn't want to explore. More punk in spirit than sound, David has guided the band for almost 50 years leading with his rants and raves and sounds uniquely his own. Last week, the band released their umpteenth album, Trouble on Big Beat Street, and it's as full of ideas as anything else they've done. Here David and I discuss his approach to "pop" music, working with Stephen Hague in the 80s, how he plans out (or doesn't) his music and much more. He's a notoriously irascible character, but he's also one in a million. 

www.ubuprojex.com

www.patreon.com/thehustlepod

Chapterhouse were one of the premiere bands to come out of that shoegaze scene of the early 90s in the UK. They were experts at mixing shimmery, psychedelic guitars with acid-house drum samples taking listeners on deep mental and emotional journeys. Guitarist Stephen Patman joins us this week to discuss the new 6-disc box set Chronology coming out this week! We also get into the history of the band, why it only lasted two albums, (Whirlpool and Blood Music, both excellent) and what those wild days were like. Get ready to fall in love with Chapterhouse! 

www.patreon.com/thehustlepod

If "influencer" had been a thing back in the 70s, Don Letts would have been the master. He's one of the most important figures in British music and culture, but it's not just because of him being in Big Audio Dynamtie (which he was) or because he's a revolutionary film director (which he is) or because he's a successful DJ (which he is). It's because in the late 70s, he was in the nexus of music, fashion, punk rock and culture and brought the sounds of underground dub and reggae to creatives like the Clash who would go on and change the world. So many stories from that period begin with "I was at a party at Don Letts's house when...". Don has recently completed his first solo album, Outta Sync which will be out in September. Don discusses all of it, the videos he directed, the times hanging out with Bob Marley, joining B.A.D. and all the rest. Enjoy! 

www.donletts.com

www.patreon.com/thehustlepod

Toronto's Crash Test Dummies are one of the quirkier acts to ever achieve world-wide fame. Thanks to the 1993 smash "Mmm Mmm Mmm Mmm" off their second album, the world became aware of this band of creative misfits doing their own thing. While more smash hits were not to be, their audience have remained loyal over the years, no matter what style seems to be tickling head Dummy Brad Roberts at the moment. Here Brad and I discuss what inspires him creatively, his feelings about his unique singing voice, plans for the future, and the band's new single "Sacred Alphabet" which is lovely and, no surprise, totally unique. Enjoy! 

www.patreon.com/thehustlepod

www.crashtestdummies.com

Author Shane Robitaille joins us for Book Club this week to discuss his recent book, Rockit Crew. This wonderful little novel depicts the (mostly) personal story of close friends growing up in the 80s, dealing with being outcasts, bullied, uncool, working class, and broken homes all while also falling in love with Hip-Hop. It's a beautiful coming of age story of teenage boys finding each other at a crucial time in life and forming bonds and memories that last a lifetime. We've all been there. Enjoy! 

The Hustle turns 8 years old this week and we celebrate by bringing on the excellent singer/songwriter Robbie Nevil! When most of us think about Robbie we remember those late 80s hits like "C'est La Vie" and "Dominoes" and then probably wonder where he went. Robbie actually had a successful career as a writer for others before and after his solo career took over. Among the people he wrote for that we talk about are Sheena Easton, Al Jarrreau, Earth Wind and Fire, David Lee Roth, the Pointer Sisters, Melissa Manchester, Rockwell, El Debarge and many others. For a couple decades now he's made a living writing songs for placement in movies and TV shows and has excelled at that too. Robbie's been one of our dream guests since "Day 1" (get it?), so we're lucky to hear from him. Enjoy! 

Our conversation with legendary producer Ed Stasium continues today with part two. This time we cover more Ramones, the Smithereens, Genya Ravan, the Sighs and much much more. Enjoy! 

The great author Martin Popoff returns to the show to discuss his new book in the @ series, AC?DC @ 50. These beautiful books by Motorbooks serve as a great read and an excellent coffee table book.The content counts down 50 benchmark events in the career of AC/DC accompanied by beautiful rare photos. Popoff, one of the best rock writers there is, knows this history inside and out and weaves an entertaining story. Check it out!

When you look back over Glen Matlock's career, the parts involving the Sex Pistols are relatively short blips. Yes, they're titans that cast a tall shadow on everything else, but Glen has carved a path for himself the last few years very much his own. He's become a go-to session guy for legends like the Faces and Blondie (who gave a triumphant performance at Coachella last weekend), as well as his own excellent solo career. His latest, Consequences Coming, is out on April 28th and contains all the vitriol an aging punk looking at the world today can muster. It's among his best work, solo or otherwise. We also get into Pistols reunions, playing with Iggy, Johnny Thunders, Ian Hunter and others and (finally!) the release of the Rich Kids album Ghosts of Princes in Towers from 1978 on Record Store Day on the 22nd. Enjoy hearing from a bona fide legend! 

We are honored to welcome back Icehouse mastermind Iva Davies to deep dive their breakthrough album Man Of Colours from 1987. This was the album that brought Icehouse into the mainstream with hits like "Crazy" and "Electric Blue" and remains their best known globally. Iva gives us incredible stories about every song on the record, how they came to be, writing with John Oates, and much much more. We're lucky to hear from Iva again! Enjoy. 

Romeo Void were a sneaky important band. First, they were the most successful band to come out of the San Francisco scene of the early 80s and showed that interesting things were happening in that city. They also had a couple of the most provocative hits of the era, "Never Say Never" and "A Girl in Trouble (Is a Temporary Thing)" that remain potent today. And frontwoman Debora Iyall represented proudly large women everywhere with her style, intellect, talent and grace. Debora joins us to talk about the band's history, how she coped with being unique, and the new album Romeo Void has coming out on Record Store Day which is a concert from 1980 at the Mabuhay Gardens. She's a icon and we're lucky to hear from her. 
www.romeovoid.com

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Why do people who love music so passionately, still have styles, genres, decades etc that they just can't get into? Does it mean you have a closed mind? Baggage? Bigotry? Have you ever come around to certain artists or styles once the right person or situation turns you on to them? Can you ever approach anything artistic with a completely open mind? Brad Page, BJ Kramp and Eric Miller join Jon to discuss these topics. Tell us what you think! 

I wonder if it's Peter Case's slightly rebellious spirit that has endeared him to fans for so long. Within one decade he was a member of two hugely important rock bands - the Nerves ("Hanging on the Telephone") and the Plimsouls ("A Million Miles Away"), but since the late 80s he's been doing things his way - a little folk, a little jazz, a little blues, just whatever he felt like. His diverse tastes have made for an equally diverse body of work and his latest album, Doctor Moan, is no exception. The album explores his jazz and piano side more than any other release and is all the better for it. We hear about his love for all kinds of music, his historic legacy, playing piano at the church of John Coltrane, and much more. Enjoy! 

This week is a fun, UK-focused, twofer. First is the great Nik Kershaw. Nik was a major hit maker in the early 80s with songs like "Wouldn't It Be Good" and "The Riddle" peaking with his appearance at Live Aid. Things started to slow down after that, but he's continued on releasing excellent music. This fall he'll be going back on the road in Europe for his first tour in 11 years. After that we hear from journeyman Henry Priestman. Henry was in a great new wave band called Yachts that had some success in the late 70s. It didn't last too long though, so he moved on to other bands, most notably The Christians who were multi-platinum hitmakers in the UK for a few years. For the last 15 years he's released a few high-quality solo albums. He shares stories of his early days in Liverpool, playing with Echo and the Bunnymen and Paul McCartney, and much more. 
Both lovely guys. Enjoy! 

The great Donnie Iris just turned 80 years old and is still out there playing packed shows that totally rock in his homebase of Cleveland and Pittsburgh. To celebrate we welcome author D.X. Ferris to discuss his book The Story of Donnie Iris and the Cruisers. Part oral history, part narrative, Ferris goes through every benchmark in Donnie's career, including every track on every album with Donnie, Mark Avsec, and the rest of the band. We learn about why Ferris felt compelled to write this book and honor Donnie in this way. Plus, we have a copy to give away. Enjoy! 

Philadelphia's Dead Milkmen hold a special place in American punk rock. Relying heavily on absurdist humour rather than ferocity, the band found a place in the hearts of many with underground hits like "Punk Rock Girl" and "Bitchin' Camaro". Eventually the band slowed way down and the guys went back to "normal" with the occasional reunion show, but as frontman Rodney Anonymous shows us, that caustic sense of rebellion has never left. Here Rodney tells us the band's story, his feelings on performing, the music he's into, and where they go from here. Don't remember the last time I laughed this hard. Enjoy! 

We are welcoming back Hall of Famer Gina Schock to discuss her lone solo album, House of Schock from 1988, After the Go-Gos called it quits, and with each member going off to do their own thing, Gina formed House of Schock with bassist Vance DeGeneres (Ellen's brother). They only managed one album, and a decent hit with "Middle of Nowhere" before moving on to other projects. Gina fills us in on the full story and much more. Enjoy! 

Producer John Leckie's long and storied career spans from Syd Barrett and John Lennon to Doves and the Coral. That's over 50 years of amazing work. In this 2 hour conversation we try to cover as much of it as possible. The diverse and far-ranging list of topics include Fela Kuti, Ornette Coleman, the Stone Roses, Human League, Simple Minds, Gene Loves Jezebel, Spiritualized, the Verve, Ride, Pink Floyd, John Lennon, George Harrison, XTC, T. Rex, the Fall, Public Image Ltd, Magazine, Radiohead, Elastica and Los Lobos. The man can do, and has done, everything and became a legend because of it. Enjoy every minute!  

It's been a long, sometimes confusing, ride for Tony Carey. His breakthrough on the big stage was being recruited to join Rainbow on their Rising album. After a year or so, Tony decided he'd be happier on his solo and chose to go back to focusing on his solo career. In the early 80s things started to pick up with the success of "A Fine Fine Day" and "Why Me" under his Planet P Project moniker. But, once again, he decided the rock and roll ratrace wasn't for him and he moved to Germany where he's been stationed ever since. We may not have heard from him as much, but his career's been going strong over the decades including his 2019 album Lucky Us. Tony and I try to make sense of it all and he does so in his own laidback and funny way. Enjoy! 

It hasn't been easy for Sean Dickson. In fact, he doesn't even look like the Soup Dragons frontman you remember from early 90s hits like "I'm Free" and "Divine Thing". There's a good reason for that - almost nothing is the same. Since the Soup Dragons closed up shop in the late 90s, Sean came out, left music for many years, spent some time battling mental health, marrying his husband and finally becoming an in demand DJ named HiFi Sean and releasing a hit new album with vocalist David McAlmont recently called Happy Endings. Sean opens up more than he ever has before, especially when it comes to the endurance of "I'm Free" which he doesn't benefit from. It's a lot and, ultimately, a story of redemption. By the end, we're both in tears. Enjoy!

Canadian singer/songwriter Ron Sexsmith has been so consistently strong his entire career that it's easy to take him for granted. If industry respect equated to hits, he'd have hundreds, but instead he carries on effortlessly doing what he does and doing it well. Last week we released his latest album, The Vivian Line, and it's just as good as anything else he's done, of course. Ron joins us this week to discuss his lengthy career, his unique Twitter persona, his approach to songwriting, and more. Give us a listen. 

Much like with recent guest Martin Popoff and his Bowie @ 75 book, author Gary Graff has summarized the incredible career of Alice Cooper into 75 key moments and illustrates the significance of each. Starting with his childhood in Arizona and Detroit, and then moving on to being discovered by Frank Zappa, hitting their stride thanks to Bob Ezrin, the big comeback with "Poison", and the settling in as shock rock elder statesman, every major up and down is featured in the book along with hundreds of glossy images rarely seen before. His love of golf, his born again Christianity and his crazy stage show are all included as well. Gary discusses how he put the book together as well as his history with Alice. And, there's a giveaway! Enjoy! 

Last year songs written by Dan Wilson were streamed on Spotify 743 million times. Think about that. Dan has turned a decent run as the frontman for Semisonic ("Closing Time"), into one of the most successful songwriting careers of the last 25 years. The big ones are Taylor, Adele, Mitski and the Chicks, but we also discuss his work with bands like Weezer and Nada Surf among others. Alongside all of this is his own beautiful solo career. He recently released an EP called Dancing on the Moon and it's just as wonderful as the work he's done for others. Listen up and catch a glimpse of how a master of his craft came to be. 

There's a good chance Steve Hillage was beamed here from another planet and has been living among us as an alien for over 70 years. He starts out in the far out prog band Gong making super challenging music. He then goes solo and makes equally challenging music with producers like Nick Mason and Todd Rundgren while exploring where the mind (and his guitar) could go. Then, he decides techno and trance music has a similar spacey effect so he becomes System 7 and travels the world DJing. Along the way he produces albums by Simple Minds, Cock Robin, Tony Banks, the Charlatans, Real Life, and more. What a long, strange trip it's been! Here him try to explain it all. Enjoy! 

The great DJ Richard Blade joins us to discuss a couple of his recent books. A couple years ago he released his entertaining memoir World In My Eyes which details his rise to fame as one of the most recognizable DJs in the world. He also recently released another book, The Unlocked Interviews which are conversations he had during lockdown with some of music’s greatest personalities. We discuss both of these as well as many behind the scenes stories from his long career.
Enjoy!  

The wonderful Swing Out Sister are celebrating 35 years of exceptional music this year. They may be best known for the global (and still evergreen) hit "Breakout" from their debut album in 1987, but there has been a steady stream of excellent albums and hits of all kinds ever since. Their style has gone deep into jazz, lounge and house while always remaining uniquely SOS. The duo of Corinne Drewery and Andy Connell are celebrating that history with the recent boxset Blue Mood, Breakout and Beyond... The Early Years Part 1 which collects their first three albums as well as discs of remixes and b-sides for the fans that want it all. Corinne joins us (after years of trying to make this happen) to tell us the full story, discuss some of their deeper tracks, and how they keep it going. She doesn't do a lot of interviews, so we're especially honored to have her. Enjoy! 

For a while there in the 90s Blur were one of the biggest bands in the world. Global dominance didn't last long, but for some people, especially in the UK, they're still legends. After years of making music for Film and TV, drummer Dave Rowntree has just released his first solo album, Radio Songs, which sounds like you might imagine someone adept at scoring might sound. In this conversation, Dave discusses the transition from band drummer to musician for hire, why the time was now for a solo album, his days with Blur, Oasis, and the stories behind some of the songs. We're lucky to hear from artists like Dave. Enjoy!

2022 was an excellent year for The Hustle Podcast, and Jon, Andy & Jan give their thoughts on the last quarter, and on their top ten  episodes for the year.

Jan goes bold, and predicts a specific episode will be hard to beat for the winner for the 2023 edition of this recap. Catch the reasoning behind that.

Watch out for some interesting updates at the Q1 recap.  Yeah, it's 3 months away yet, but you'll never believe it if we told you now, so we won't 

Who would have guessed when Alphaville recorded "Forever Young" way back in 1984 that it would go on to be the anthem that it is today? That's just one of several surprises in this band's career. They've taken many artistic risks over the years, never standing still for too long, and their fans have always stood by them. Recently, they turned their classic songs over to a German symphony and the result is Eternally Yours, which brings compelling new arrangements to the songs you know. Lead singer Marian Gold joins us to discuss the band's history, the new album, Bowie, and everything else. 

This week is another one of the greatest producer/engineers of all time Stephen Lipson! Lippy first made a name for himself when a little song he produced called "Driver's Seat" became a hit. Then, when he joined up with Trevor Horn's production crew, it was off to the races. We discuss their collaborations on albums by Grace Jones, Simple Minds, and Propaganda. From there he broke off to do his own thing and we get to hear stories on the Stones, Bruce Hornsby, Sinatra, Whitney Houston, Cher and especially Annie Lennox, who he's worked with extensively. For the last few decades he's worked closely with Hans Zimmer on movie music, including being on the team that won an Oscar for Billie Eilish's Bond theme, No Time To Die. The stories (and the honesty) never let up. Enjoy! 

Yes keyboardist and Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Tony Kaye returns to the show to discuss the making of Yes's 1987 album Big Generator. The band was not in a good place when producer Trevor Horn brought them together for the 90125 album. Because that album was such a surprise hit, the team came back together for the follow up, only to have more dysfunction and infighting. Surprisingly, with hits like "Rhythm of Love" and "Love Will Find a Way", the album became another hit almost in spite of itself. Tony recounts all the ups and downs, songs he co-wrote, tension with Trevor Horn, and much more. Fascinating story for an excellent album that's sometimes overlooked by its predecessor. Enjoy! 

We're kicking off 2023 and celebrating 400 episodes with one of our most desired guests - the great Trevor Horn! Known as the man who "invented the 80s", Trevor discusses his groundbreaking work with artists like Seal, Yes, Simple Minds, Grace Jones, Marc Almond, Frankie Goes to Hollywood and ABC as well as his adoption of technology to achieve his creative goals. More importantly, Trevor recently released a sort of autobiography called Adventures in Modern Recording: From ABC to ZTT that recounts his career in 24 songs and includes in depth stories with everyone mentioned above, as well as his own work in the Buggles and Art of Noise as well as Band Aid. Every page of this book is filled with juicy stories about his experiences making some of the greatest music ever made. It's essential reading. We've been waiting a long time for this one! Technology didn't completely cooperate, but we did the best we could. Enjoy! 

We're closing out 2022 with another twofer! This week we get to hear from 80s pop starlet Tiffany. At 16, Tiffany became the youngest female singer to reach #1 when "I Think We're Alone Now" took over the world. Pop stardom can be fleeting though, and in a short time she had to rethink her career. Since then she's done a little bit of everything - country and dance music, acting, cooking shows and more. Last month she released her latest album, Shadows, which is a fantastic collection of rock songs. She fills us in on everything she's up to these days. 

Guitarist Ivan Julian is a punk rock lifer. Though born in the states, Ivan became a professional musician when he moved to London and started touring with The Foundations in 1972. Eventually he made his way back to NYC and was a principle of the CBGB scene and founding member of Richard Hell and the Voidoids. Even though their lone album, Blank Generation, is considered  classic, the band didn't last long. Ivan has started a few other bands over the years, played with artists like The Clash, Matthew Sweet and Shreikback, produced bands like the Fleshtones, and released his own solo albums. In fact, he has a new one, Swing Your Lanterns, set for release in February and it's fantastic. Ivan discusses all of it, the uniqueness (or not) of being a black man in the punk world, and more. Enjoy! 

This week is a super fun twofer. First up is the delightful Lisa Loeb. She talks about her new radio show, Where They Are Now, her love of David Bowie, her more recent albums, her dabbles in children's music, and much more. She's as wonderful as you think she'll be. Then we hear from drummer Steve "Smiley" Barnard. Smiley has been one of the UK's most in demand musicians for 30 years. He started with the Mock Turtles but then spent a couple years play with Joe Strummer and the Mescaleros and even a gig with Robbie Williams. These days he's got multiple jobs - a member of Archival, drumming with the Alarm, owning a studio, producing, and his own solo career. There's a reason they call him "Smiley" and it's infectious. You'll love it! 

Author Joel Selvin joins us this week to discuss the re-release of his 1998 book Sly & the Family Stone: An Oral History. When Joel originally put this book together in the 90s, there was nothing even close to a definitive history of Sly and his band. Even today, it still stands as a striking and horrifying account of a musical genius torpedoed by drugs and the band members and family members that were affected, including the ones that followed him down. Also, Joel and I discuss his work on Sammy Hagar's incredible memoir RED. Joel has a long and rich history of music writing to discover. You'll love this. 

What a strange trip it's been for John Cafferty and the Beaver Brown Band. After a decade of playing every pier and boardwalk in the Northeast, they achieved "overnight success" when they were plucked to do the music for the 1983 film Eddie and the Cruisers. This brought them big hits like "On The Darkside" and "Tender Years" but because the popular video was taken from the movie, many listeners were confused where the movie ended and the band began. JCBBB continued to have hits on their next album like "C-I-T-Y" and "Tough All Over".but they could never quite convince everyone they weren't the guys in the movie. In '89 they did the soundtrack to the sequel that no one was asking for and that was it. However, the band never went away. They continue to play in some club or bar or theater almost every weekend and have done for 50 years. John Cafferty joins us to discuss this whole wild ride, as well as the Rocky 4 soundtrack, the band finally releasing a brand new Greatest Hits cd and much more. Enjoy!

In this live and unedited panel discussion, Jon is joined by three friends and fellow podcasters to debate whether Cher, icon that she is, belongs in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Team NAY is made up of Jon and Scott Kummer of the 10 Junk Miles Podcast. Team YAY is Josh Fitzgerald of the Movies that Rock podcast and Nick Bambach of the Rock in Retrospect podcast. You like fireworks and hot takes? We have plenty. What say you, does Cher make the cut? 

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/ten-junk-miles/id977007408

https://shows.acast.com/movies-that-rock-the-podcast

https://rockinretrospect.buzzsprout.com/

Did you know that Miami's Exposé are the 8th most successful girl group of all time? And did you know they were the first group to land four top 10 songs on their debut album? Accolades like that are mostly forgotten with these guys, unfortunately. The combination of Jeanette Jurado, Ann Curless, and Gioia Bruno - all great singers, all beautiful and all different - was unbeatable from the mid 80s to the early 90s. Svengali Lewis Martineé guided the girls to huge hits like "Point of No Return", "Come Go With Me", and the #1 ballad "Seasons Change". But, as is often the case with groups built like this, things were not always rosy. Jeanette is very open about how the group came together, the rough spots, her thoughts on their legacy, her relationship with the others, and her life outside of the group. It's a very unique glimpse into how it all worked. Enjoy! 

Tom Werman was one of the most successful producers of the 70s and 80s. He's responsible for making Cheap Trick what they are thanks to his work on their first few albums. He's also behind some of the best power pop of the era like the Producers, Off Broadway, and Gary Myrick. And, he helped shape the sound of the Sunset Strip by producing massive albums by Motley Crue, Twisted Sister and Poison. Oh, he also discovered Ted Hugent, Boston, REO Speedwagon and more. Surprisingly, in the 90s he left it all behind to open a Bed and Breakfast. Tom elaborates on all of these and much more including not getting along with Dee Snider, some of his favorite lesser known projects like Mother's Finest, and why he walked away. Enjoy! 

Talk Talk basically invented a new musical language with their fourth album, Spirit of Eden. The band began as a strong, but slightly derivative, synth pop group, but due to the artistic restlessness of main man Mark Hollis, Talk Talk evolved into something no one had ever heard before and hasn't heard since. Critics called what they did "post-rock", which is probably pretty close. Former guest Phill Brown was the engineer on those sessions and recounts the entirely unique circumstances Mark and his collaborators created this masterpiece. Here's the full story!

The Roots are revolutionary artists for many reasons. Not just the music they make, but being hired as Jimmy Fallon's house band changed the landscape of late night television. Guitarist Kirk Douglas has risen as one of the most exciting images on our TVs night after night. In addition to his two important day jobs, Kirk also has a solo career as Hundred Watt Heart and recently released his second solo album, New Unknown. Kirk's sound is true gumbo, but the main hallmarks are psychedelic guitar with a lot of soul and an alt rock base. In this chat, we discuss his many influences, but also some behind the scenes stories from the Tonight Show, the memorable guests, how he prepares, and much more. New Unknown will knock you out, be sure to give it a listen! 

Today sees the release of the much anticipated box set of songs from John Hughes movies called Life Moves Pretty Fast: The John Hughes Mixtapes. John's Music Supervisor, and friend of the podcast, Tarquin Gotch returns to discuss how he went about compiling the box, what got left off and why, and the love and care that went into it finally coming out. Over four discs (and plenty of extra goodies) we can relive the hugely influential music from one of the hugely influential voices of his generation. Check it out! 

Singer/songwriter Dar Williams can do it all. On top of her wonderful music career, she also publishes the occasional book and her latest is a gift to creative people everywhere. How to Write a Song that Matters shows her describing not only the best way to approach making music, but also how to tap into the best parts of yourself when tackling something inventive. She details her own experiences of stressing over a certain word, committing to an idea and seeing it through, finding the right chords, opening your mind to different thoughts, etc. It's a fascinating book whether you write songs or not. We also get into her 30 year career, a lot of her songs and much more. Enjoy! 

This week is a fun twofer with a couple of excellent singer/songwriters that are hitting the road together. First up is Toad the Wet Sprocket frontman Glen Phillips. Not only has Glen fronted Toad since the beginning with hits like "Walk On the Ocean" and "Come Down", but he's also had his own robust solo career. Glen has a new album coming out this weekend called There Is So Much Here that is a wonderfully optimistic take on the world. Glen is a deep guy and we hit all the big topics - faith, mental health, politics, and philosophy. 

This week is another special twofer! 

Jon, Andy and Jan review the 3rd quarter, discuss Andy's arboreal habits and find out what gigs we'd all been to.

Spoiler alert.  Jan didn't get to any this quarter.  Find out what he DID get to, on the last day of the quarter!

The mythology of classic rock is built on the backs of legendary characters like Bobby Whitlock. Bobby was involved in three of the greatest rock albums ever made - George Harrison's All Things Must Pass, the Rolling Stones' Exile on Main Street and, of course, Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs from when he and Eric Clapton teamed up for Derek & The Dominos. Bobby discusses his own solo career, plus working with legends like Delaney & Bonnie, Steve Winwood, Duane Allman, "Duck" Dunne, and many more. In addition, an album was recently found by CCR drummer Doug "Cosmo" Clifford called California Gold which was a project he and Bobby did together in the late 70s, but never saw the light of day until now and it's amazing. We discuss all of this and much more. Enjoy! 

Songwriters Hall of Fame member Jack Tempchin is probably best known for the hits he penned for the Eagles. "Peaceful Easy Feeling" and "Already Gone" are two of the most heard songs in history. He also helped Glenn Frey have a few solo hits like "Smuggler's Blues" and "You Belong to the City" among others. Johnny Rivers, Glen Campbell, Tanya Tucker and George Jones are also in his history. Today, Jack has a couple projects he's super excited about. First, he's collaborating with the great young rock band, Mrs Henry to re record some of his songs. He's also launched Jack's Beach Jams where he records himself writing a song on the spot at the beach by his house. Both of these further cement Jack's immense talent that includes his amazing solo work. Jack and I get into all of it. Enjoy! 

This week is a pretty unique pairing of classic rockers. First up we hear from Slade drummer Don Powell! Don discusses those glory days of Slade, why they never fully caught on in the States despite being one of the biggest UK bands of the 70s, how Quiet Riot's cover of "Cum on Feel the Noize" finally brought them some attention, the personal and business obstacles the band had to overcome and his recent solo album with the Occasional Flames, Just My Cup of Tea. He's about as nice as they come! 

God bless Billy Bragg, one of mankind's greatest gifts! The man has devoted his life to fighting for those that can't fight for themselves, to improving the planet and to inspiring all of us to get involved. We learn what actually motivates him is empathy and knowing that makes his mission even better. Last year he put out a new album called The Million Things That Never Happened that sees him looking at the world optimistically and this week he kicks off a North American tour. We also go deep on the Mermaid Avenue albums he made with Wilco, how those happened, working with Johnny Marr, and the stories behind many of his songs. Billy is a national treasure. 

Great news coming out of the Smithereens' camp these days. This weekend they released The Lost Album which is a collection of songs recorded in the early 90s that never saw the light of day until now. Hearing the band, especially the voice of the late great Pat DiNizio again is like manna from heaven for fans. We welcome drummer Dennis Diken to discuss the new album and then we Deep Dive the band's classic from 1988, Green Thoughts. We discuss each track, working with Don Dixon, the many guests and Dennis even lets us know what he thinks the greatest performance ever is! Are the Smithereens the greatest rock band America has ever produced? I say "yes"!

Tony James is one of rock's great shapeshifters. He starts out with Billy Idol in Generation X, one of the great punk bands, but when Billy went solo, Tony took some time to conceptualize his next creative move. That gestation period eventually brought about Sigue Sigue Sputnik, one of the most outrageous groups of the 80s. Though they were short-lived, the band left a giant lipstick stain on the collar of pop music. Tony then downgraded to sideman when he joined up with "The" Sisters of Mercy for a spell. Then, because he can, he pairs up with his old London SS buddy Mick Jones and forms Carbon Silicon and gives most of the music away for free. It's been a wild ride and today Tony lives comfortably off his success and does whatever he wants. It's a crazy, hilarious story. 

One of the best rock docs ever made is coming back to theaters next month to celebrate its 13th anniversary. Who can forget seeing Anvil! The Story of Anvil for the first time? For many (too many, sadly) it was our introduction to Lips and Robb and their decades long struggle to be taken seriously in rock and roll. The world fell in love with these guys, and the movie, and they've been enjoying a lot more success ever since. Anvil's Lips Kudlow and Robb Reiner along with director Sacha Gervasi join us to discuss their lives since the release, the new remastered version hitting theaters and Anvil's new album, Impact is Imminent. Enjoy! 

For a band that has barely made a peep over the last 25 years, the House of Love are having a major resurgence. This summer they released the incredible 8 CD box set Burn Down The World that showcases just about everything from their major label days. They're also kicking off a UK tour this week, as well as a 30th anniversary tour of the US next month, and, as if that isn't enough, they have a killer new album called State of Grace coming out this Friday! Mastermind Guy Chadwick joins us to discuss how he looks at his past, the transition from the scrappy indie days into the big time, what he did when the band ended, the solo album he made with Robin Guthrie, the latter day HOL work, and much more. This band is special, hop aboard! 

Acclaimed author Martin Popoff joins us to discuss his new coffee table book Bowie@75. Martin is probably best known for his many books and thoughts on hard rock and heavy metal, but this time he's focused on a beautiful book that celebrates Bowie at 75, but also the 75 chronological benchmarks in Bowie's career - good and bad. In here we talk about how he wrote the book, but also banter and debate our hot takes and opinions about the man. The book is as gorgeous as it is thought provoking. Check it out! 

Google Richard James Burgess. Trust me. His list of accomplishments, inventions, innovations, businesses, etc is long. We focus on his production career here and it barely scratches the surface. He started out in the late 70s as the frontman for a quirky synthpop band called Landscape that had a couple hits in the UK. He quickly went into production work starting with the first couple Spandau Ballet albums and then became a go-to guy for vibrant pop music with a dance accents and an r&b angle. His credits during this time include King, Living in a Box, Adam Ant, Kim Wilde, Shreikback, When in Rome and straight r&b with Five Star, New Edition and Imagination. Legends like Kate Bush and Thomas Dolby are in there too. He's an extremely interesting guy with a great musical resume. Enjoy!

This week we are honored to welcome our good friend, and first time author, BJ Kramp to the show to talk about his new book on Cheap Trick. Many of us may feel like we have a book somewhere inside of us, but BJ actually did, conducting hundreds of interviews to tell the origin story of one of the greatest American bands ever. We learn about his writing process, the band's involvement, and why he connects with Cheap Trick so much. The book is great and we're incredibly proud of our friend and his accomplishment. 

We did it! It only took 382 episodes, but we finally get to hear from the great Howard Jones! Next week sees the release of his new album, Dialogue, which is the 3rd album of a four-part series that discusses the issues of our time and humanity's responsibility to find common ground. If anyone knows about staying positive in the face of adversity, it's Howard Jones! We also discuss his performance at Live Aid, the ups and downs of his career, following his creative muse, and why he's so huge in Utah. The world needs more Howard Jones, we're grateful to have him! 

Writer Mitchell Cohen started working in the music business during those heady days in the 70s that we imagine as the peak period for record labels. When Clive Davis began Arista Records, Mitchell was there on the ground floor doing marketing and A&R and helping to build the label into what it would become. He writes about these experiences in his new book, Looking for the Magic, that details label politics, building marketing campaigns, and highlighting musicians big and small. He shares those stories with us as well. Enjoy! 

Gang of Four's 1979 debut album Entertainment! defined what we think of when we think of "post-punk". They perfected the mix of angular guitars crossed with disco bass, driving beats and political lyrics. The band's sound continued to evolve over time, but never lost its bite or urgency. Unfortunately, as with most bands, there's been a lot of animosity over the decades, but with the passing of guitarist Andy Gill last year, frontman Jon King is carrying the torch and recently completed a successful US tour. Jon and I discuss Andy's death, being banned by the BBC, whether David Byrne stole his look, being on the Karate Kid soundtrack, curating their new box set, and all the albums. Gang of Four deserve the deepest of deep dives. If you don't know them that well, now's your chance! 

Annabella Lwin has seen a lot. More than she wants to talk about, honestly. We know the story - discovered at 13 and made the lead singer of a band masterminded by the outlandish Malcolm McLaren, Bow Wow Wow. They make a sound no one's ever heard before and leave behind a bunch of hits no one will ever forget (sadly, only "I Want Candy" got much traction in the States). The career she had would never fly now, not like it did then, but she's survived a lot, including the end of the band, a solo album and grinding away as an artist in a tough business. These days Annabella is mostly viewed as the icon she is and plays many shows a year, including a couple Lost 80s Live shows on 8/20 and 25. We touch on all of this, address some tough stuff, and move past others. She can still do it all and better than ever. 

Rock in Retrospect host Nick Bambach recently had Jon and Haydn Murdoch of the INXS: Access All Areas podcast on his show to make their case why INXS deserves consideration for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Here is our impassioned plea!

www.rockinretrospect.buzzsprout.com

This week is another legendary producer, the fantastic Stephen Street! Stephen first came to prominence when he engineered those classic Smiths album like Meat is Murder and The Queen is Dead. He ultimately produced the Strangeways, Here We Come album, which led to a partnership with Morrissey on his solo debut. Stephen is also best known for his work with Blur and producing Parklife, one of the ultimate British albums of the modern era. He's also had long collaborations with the Cranberries and the Kaiser Chiefs. We also get in albums he's done with New Order, the Psychedelic Furs, Suede, and much more. Stephen's talent has defined a sound specific to British alternative guitar pop of the 80s and 90s. Here's his story! 

Jon, Andy and Jan recap the second quarter's episodes, and discuss what's going on in their lives, and gigs.  Jan's curious love of redheads makes an appearance ( you think he'd learn, after the first one ).

We also get into gig openers, and discuss our faves!  Make sure and tell us yours!

There's also some great music available.  Check out the following:

Opener: The Byson Family 

Dusty: Dusty Miller

Our featured song for this recap can be found at Rich Bischoff Original Music

In Minneapolis, the Peterson family musical dynasty goes back decades. Paul Peterson didn't even have to think about what he'd do with his life. In his late teens, he was pegged to join Morris Day and the Time for their Ice Cream Castles album which became their biggest and featured hits like "Jungle Love" and "The Bird". From there, Prince decided to build The Family, one of his many 80s side projects, around the voices of Paul and Susannah Melvoin. But, after one album The Family ended and Paul went solo. For over 30 years, Paul has been making his own music (new album Break On Free just came out) and working as an in demand hired gun for people like Steve Miller, Kenny Loggins, Oleta Adams and Donny Osmond. In addition to his excellent new album, Paul has a great podcast called Music on the Run about staying in shape on the road. It's a unique and fascinating story you have to hear!

In the second part of our conversation with the great Steve Lillywhite, we get into his work with Aretha Franklin, the Chameleons, Crowded House, The La's, Thompson Twins, Talking Heads, XTC, U2, Ultravox, and the Psychedelic Furs. And there's more ballbusting and strong opinions. Steve's the best! 

It finally happened! When Jon started this podcast seven years ago, at or near the top of his dream guest wishlist was producer Steve Lillywhite, one of his absolute favorites. Steve was so cool and generous with his time that we're releasing this in two parts. In part one we get straight into it discussing Steve's work with Travis, Morrissey, the Killers, Marshall Crenshaw, Big Country, Simple Minds, U2, Peter Gabriel, the Pogues, the Rolling Stones and Johnny Thunders. There are also side conversations on the late, great Kirsty MacColl, the famous gated drum sound Steve had a hand in creating and much more. Stay tuned for part 2 which is equally as good and will be out later this week. It's a dream come true, enjoy!

We have another wonderful 2fer for you this week. 

Seriously, what can you say about Roxy Music? They are literally one of the most inventive and influential musical acts in history. That fact was finally confirmed when they were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame a few years ago. Guitarist Phil Manzanera joins us this week to talk about the history of the band, the evolution of their sound, and how they're getting back together for some 50th anniversary shows later this year. In addition, Phil has had a fruitful career collaborating with many other heavy hitters like Pink Floyd and Tim Finn who he also produced back in the Split Enz days. In fact, Phil and Tim have a brand new album coming out at the end of the month. This man is a legend and we're lucky to hear from him. 

WARNING: 100% POLITICS TALK

Jon is joined by friends and fellow podcasters Eric Miller, Brad Page and BJ Kramp to discuss how we approach fandom when our favorite rock stars are on the wrong side of history. Are opposing political views and historically bad behavior grounds to move on? What are the stakes politically in this day and age? Here's our live and unedited discussion on this topic. 

Jon was recently invited by host Mike Wiles to come on the Retro Rock Roundup podcast to discuss the Doobie Brothers and go album by album through their career. Here's their conversation. 

www.retrorockroundup.com

Nobody does what the Cowboy Junkies do quite like they do. The Canadians' music is often slow, smokey, and emotional and conveys a heaviness even if it's not always heavy. They have also shown a mastery of covers, often taking ownership of the song from the original artist, and their latest album, Songs of the Recollection, is an album of excellent and well thought out covers, some of which might surprise you. Lead singer Margo Timmins joins us this week to discuss the band's long history including working alongside siblings, the label's pressure to change, and specific details about the recording of their landmark Trinity Sessions album. What shines through most is Margo's inherent decency. You'll come away loving them even more. 

It's a classic rock two-fer this week! First up is Nazareth bassist Pete Agnew. This band of Scots has been chugging along for over 50 years and Pete is the last original member still at it. Pete and the band managed to release a super strong new album this year, Surviving the Law, that's one of the best they've released in a while. Pete and I discuss the effects of the lockdown on touring, what it's like experiencing periodic success in various parts of the world, and the glory days of Hair of the Dog. 

We're lucky to be living in the golden age of excellent rock docs. The latest one to add to the list is Freakscene: The Story of Dinosaur Jr. In this episode, director Phillip Reichenheim joins us from Berlin to discuss making the movie and working with the unique personalities of J, Lou, and Murph. The film also includes excellent insights from Henry Rollins, Black Francis, Kim Gordon and more. The movie is now available for streaming, so check it out even if the band is new to you! 

This week is another excellent producer. Steve Levine had worked as an engineer on albums by the Clash and the Vibratoirs before doing the work that brought him the most attention - producing the first three Culture Club albums. He saw that band conquer the world and, ultimately, implode. This led to gigs producing the Beach Boys, Quarterflash, China Crisis, America, the Creatures, and the Vapors among many others. Today's he's busier than ever working for the BBC as well as many other projects. We discuss all of these acts as well as his work on John Hughes movie soundtracks, getting to know Stevie Wonder, winning a Grammy for gospel music and much more. His enthusiasm is infectious! 

Writer Nick Duerden has recently published a book that, if you've been a listener of this podcast for any length of time, will be manna from heaven. His new book, Exit Stage Left, explores what rock stars do when the spotlight has moved on. Sound familiar? It's one of the most enjoyable music books you'll ever read if you've ever wondered how and why artists try to make it work decade after decade. We get the inside story of around 50 artists of all levels of fame (many of which have also been guests on our show) including Shaun Ryder, Bob Geldof, Robbie Williams, Natalie Merchant, David Gray, Ceelo Green, Don McLean, Billy Bragg and many many more. This conversation is a mutual love fest between two people seeking the same answers. You'll love it! 

Ringleader Mike Scott has been at the center of the Waterboys keeping the train moving for about 45 years. He's always mixed traditional Irish folk music with the poetry of Bob Dylan or Yeats and a heavy dose of punk to create their unique sound and spirit. The result is spirit-lifting anthems like "The Whole of the Moon" and "Fisherman's Blues" and a bunch of fantastic and experimental detours. The last few albums have seen Mike experiment with drum loops and hip-hop beats culminating in the sparkling new album All Souls Hill. Mike shares with us his writing process, the inspiration behind several of his classics, working with Karl Wallinger, writing poetry and more. Mike is a generational treasure. We've all been blessed by his latent. 

This week is another very special two-fer who share a long history together. 

You could say Graham Bonnet is hard rock's greatest chameleon. Perpetually stylish and sexy with his white suits, short hair and sunglasses, he continues to be an anomaly compared to his metal peers. He was plucked from relative obscurity to front Rainbow in the late 70s, but only lasted one album before joining Michael Schenker's group where his time was even shorter. Then he created Alcatrazz which launched the careers of Yngwie Malmsteen and Steve Vai and which he's dipped in and out of over the years. All along there have also been solo albums and the Graham Bonnet Band, which have a strong new album called Day Out in Nowhere that's worth a listen. Whether it's crooning classic r&b songs or wailing like a banshee over the hardest metal, Graham does whatever he feels like and does it well. And his stories have to be heard to be believed. He's the Metal Gentleman. 

It's a couple of straight shooters this week. 

Guitarist Lenny Kaye has positioned himself as the ultimate tour guide through the history of rock and roll. Of course he's best known for being Patti Smith's enabler and co-conspirator, having been by her side since day one. He's also a producer helping artists like Suzanne Vega, James, Kristen Hersh and Soul Asylum find their best selves. He's a noted music historian, having curated the indispensable Nuggets compilation and writing articles and liner notes for decades. And, he's also a writer with a brand new book called Lightning Striking which details ten big moments in rock and roll. In this wonderful conversation, Lenny details how he structured the book, how he and Patti made music including Horses, working with Jimmy Iovine and Clive Davis, and his gratitude for a full life spent with what he loves most. It's inspiring stuff. 

When you think about music from the late 70s, chances are good you think about Leo Sayer. He practically owned that period with hits like "You Make Me Feel Like Dancing", "When I Need You" and "More Than I Can Say". Unfortunately, bad management robbed him of his career (and all his money) and he's had to build it all back up, which he's done successfully for decades. The last few years have been especially fruitful. In 2019 he released the excellent album Selfie and this year he put out Northern Songs which is him reimagining Beatles songs in a most creative way. Leo tells many incredible stories from his over 50 years in show business like interactions with the Beatles, hanging out with Prince and being the last person to speak with Elvis. You have to hear this to believe it! 

The Hustle turns seven this week and to celebrate we welcome Rock and Roll Hall of Famer and the "King of Rock" Darryl "DMC" McDaniels of Run-DMC! Darryl recently published a children's book called "Darryl's Dream" about an awkward kid with big glasses growing up in the hood with an interest in comic books and cartoons. That kid grew up to join forces with Run and Jam Master Jay and form Run-DMC, one of the most revolutionary music groups in history. Darryl discusses the history of the group, his battles with mental health and depression, getting clean, and the stories behind many classic songs. D is a total inspiration and is fighting the good fight shedding light on mental health. We're lucky to hear from him. Enjoy! 

The new book by Graeme Thomson answers many of the questions Simple Minds fans have had for decades. In Themes For Great Cities, Thomson explains (with participation from almost all band members past and present) how their artistically challenging beginning gave rise to their commercial peak in the mid-80s. What were their influences, how were songs like "I Travel" and "Love Song" even constructed, and what was behind the good and bad decisions the band made along the way. Theme is manna from heaven for SM obsessives because as enjoyable as the band is to listen to, they're equally as enjoyable to discuss. 

Guitarist Brinsley Schwarz, in his own little way, changed music. When his namesake band came on the scene in the early 70s, they popularized a sound (along with bands like Dr. Feelgood, Clover and Status Quo) that would forever be known as "Pub Rock". British bands emulating the American roots music they were hearing, while adding their own spin. After a few albums, the hyper talented Nick Lowe left the band and Brinsley joined up with Graham Parker to start the Rumour. After several years in and out of activity with GP (his This Is 40 story is hilarious) Brinsley is now focused on a beautiful solo career and his new solo album, Tangled. It's exactly what the world needs right now! Brinsley tells us all about his history and shares the story of a historically bad gig you won't believe. Enjoy! 

This week is another two-fer! First up is the legend herself and one of the greatest voices in rock history, Heart's Ann Wilson! Ann and Nancy have been doing their own thing the last few years and Ann has a brand new solo album called Fierce Bliss coming out on the 29th. To me, it sounds the closest to the heavy rock sound of the 70s that Heart and their influences like Led Zeppelin and Bad Company were doing. Singles like "Greed" and her cover of the Eurythmics' "Missionary Man" are already out there. Ann and I talk about her approach to covers, the status of Heart these days, how she got Roger Dean to do the album cover and more. 

Imagine being one of the hottest tickets in Hollywood in the early 80s. The parties. The celebrities. The glitz and glam. The BusBoys lived that life for a while. As most people know, they were captured for eternity thanks to their appearance in the movie 48 Hours, which cemented a friendship with Eddie Murphy that continues to this day. Frontman Brian O'Neal and the guys are finally back with new music! Excellent singles "Love On My Mind" and "Civil Rights" are already out there and a new album is in the works. Brian and I discuss those early days in LA, the challenges of being a rock band made up of black guys, how they also made it on the Ghostbusters soundtrack, his approach to hard work, and much more. The BusBoys are ripe for rediscovery! 

This time Jon is joined by Hustle CMO Any Schaal to recap the last three month's of episodes. Lots of behind the scenes stories, what's working and what isn't, some parenting experiences, Jan's new podcast (!), recent concerts and more. Enjoy! 

www.patreon.com/thehustlepod

Is Robin Guthrie one of the most influential guitarists ever? Going back to his days with the Cocteau Twins, up to his stellar solo work the last 25 years, his shimmering, reverb-heavy style pretty much kicked off the Shoegaze and Dream Pop movements. Not to mention, it inspired every bedroom player to mess with the pedals and knobs to find that perfect sound. Robin has spent the last couple decades adding to his legacy by consistenly releasing stellar albums (mostly ambient, many with others including frequent collaborator Harold Budd). This embarrassment of riches continues as he's put out three beautiful EPs as well as the wonderful full length, Pearldiving, just in the last year! Robin joins us to discuss his approach to music making, some of his production work with artists like Lush and Ian McCulloch, and stories from the old Cocteau Twins days. Enjoy! 

Author Ben Wardle has pulled off what, until a few years ago, would have been impossible. He's written a brand new book detailing the life of the late great, and intensely private, Mark Hollis of Talk Talk. A Perfect Silence includes interviews with many people who worked closely with Mark and helps us get as close as possible to understanding the man who walked away from music (and public life) almost 25 years ago and never resurfaced. We learn Mark was into golf and motorcycles, but never strayed from that fiercely independent streak. Enjoy! 

Good ol' Dave Wakeling. Still out there keeping the flame of English Beat and General Public alive. Sadly, after the passing of his old buddy Ranking Roger three years ago, the mantle sits squarely on his shoulders. In this conversation (that's the best word for it) Dave and I discuss the ups and downs of his relationship with Roger, his approach to songwriting, his non-starting solo album, their early 90s comeback, whether Mick Jones was meant to be a member of General Public, growing old, John Hughes, and about a dozen other topics. Dave and the English Beat are one of the most impactful bands of my life and it was an honor to chat with the legend himself. 

Would Lady Gaga, Madonna and New Wave music in general be what they became without the stylistic influence of Dale Bozzio and the guys in Missing Persons? Not only did the band establish a template for the new wave sound with their debut album Spring Session M in 1982, but Dale otherworldly look married substance and style in a way that hadn't been done before. Dale writes about her wild life in her new book Life Is So Strange, which details her being discovered by Frank Zappa, marrying Terry Bozzio, working with Prince, and much more. Believe it or not, in this conversation Dale gives us in detail her list of lovers from back in the day! Buckle up for a wild ride! 

Almost exactly 30 years ago, Curtis Stigers had it all going for him. His first album is hitting big thanks to the song "I Wonder Why" climbing the charts, his cover of "(What's So Funny 'Bout) Peace, Love and Understanding" is included on The Bodyguard soundtrack (famously making Nick Lowe a rich man) and he's working with legends like Carole King. But, after a few more years, Curtis makes the bold choice to switch to jazz and he's been among the best of the genre since. He recently released the fantastic This Life album and shares with us what brought on the switch, his love for the artists he's covered like Crowded House and the Blue Nile, run-ins with Clive Davis, and growing up in Boise. Curtis is an extremely cool guy and This Life might be his best album yet. 

This week we're welcomed by rock royalty. Tim Finn is one of the most consequential artists of the last 50 years, especially for music lovers Down Under. As one of the founding members of Split Enz, he brought New Wave closer to the mainstream and pushed boundaries for others. Then his wonderful solo career, dalliances with Crowded House and collaborations with brother Neil as well as Phil Manzanera, Eddie Rayner and many more have maintained an unparalleled level of quality. He and Eddie are at it again as Forenzics and have just released a new album called Shades and Echoes that is one of the best things either of them has done. Tim and I discuss this fantastic new project, his other incredible more recent work, and we hear stories from the past as well. He's a legend and better now than ever before, we're lucky to hear from him.

Australia's Hoodoo Gurus are releasing their first new album in 12 years, Chariot of the Gods on March 11th. Lead singer Dave Faulkner returns to the pod to discuss the state of the world that inspired a lot of these songs. the idea that it might be the band's final statement, and the status of their world tour. Also, the band will be performing the whole album on a livestream the day before the release. Tickets to the show are available on their website below. We're so lucky to have this band still with us and still at the top of their game. 

Thanks to the effective and entertaining documentary from 2020, the Go-Go's are enjoying a much-deserved resurgence. The revolutionary group of gals even made it into the Rock Hall last year, finally! Drummer Gina Schock released the beautiful coffee table picture book/memoir called Made In Hollywood last year. With all that's going on, it's time for Gina to tell her story. In this chat we expand on stories from the book, get a feel for the band dynamic, and go deep on her musical contribution to the band, as well as her solo career and singer like Miley and Selena who have sung her songs. She's a straight shooter, it's what we love about her! 

If all you know about Men Without Hats is their eternal hit "Safety Dance" you're missing out. The Canadian synthpop outfit tried other styles and broadened their sound (1987's Pop Goes The Worldbeing a high point), including a grunge album few have heard, but it's been "Safety Dance '' that has never gone away and for good reason, it's still as fresh as it was in '82. Frontman Ivan Doroschuk has been at the helm the whole time and talks candidly about some of his struggles, but, ultimately, his gratitude for what has turned out to be a wonderful career. We also get into his punk and prog roots and his new music including last year's covers EP Again, Pt.1 (Again, Pt. 2 comes out next month and includes all new songs). Ivan deserves all the success he gets! 

First time author Bradley Morgan felt compelled to compare the political world that encircled U2's creation of the iconic Joshua Tree album with the state of the country today. Bradley dissects the album track by track, retelling the inspiration behind each song, and paints a vivid picture of what inspired four Irish punks to make a definitive statement of Reagan's America. Additionally, how does it stand up today and have "the two Americas" become more unified? We're joined this week by co-host Karli Anderson to hear what inspired Bradley to write the book, his own personal story of discovery, and how the world has changed and not for the better. It's great book about a legendary moment in time. 

No Rock Doc is complete without an appearance from esteemed British rock writer Mick Wall. Mick's career goes way back to the 70s working promotion and PR for many of the great New Wave bands, but he quickly realized the real action was in Heavy Metal. This led to gigs writing for Kerrang! and Classic Rock magazines (among many others) and penning books on Zeppelin, GnR, Meat Loaf, Ozzy, Maiden, Sabbath, Lemmy and many more. Mick recently started the Mick Wall Podcast which is a load of fun. Mick shares stories about life in the trenches, fellow writers, and his encounters with everyone from Zeppelin to Bowie, to Iggy to Queen. This is a blast and Mick's seen it all! 

Here's my conversation with label honcho, political blogger, gay activist and more Howie Klein. In the 70s Howie was a DJ and concert promoter in San Francisco when he started 415 Records. That story was told brilliantly in Bill Kopp's new book Disturbing the Peace that we showcased last week. When 415 was sold to Columbia, it kicked off Howie's long career as a mover and shaker in the music biz. In here we talk a lot about his time at Sire and Warner Bros. where he worked closely with Depeche Mode, Lou Reed, Eric Clapton, Ice T, Morrissey, the Ocean Blue, Seal, Barenaked Ladies and Wilco (he was featured in their documentary). He's now involved in politics and blogs about it on his website Down With Tyranny (he tells a great story about the Clintons in here). Hear his recollections on it all! 

One could argue that producer Beau Hill is the architect of the sound of 80s Hair Metal. Just as his nascent producing career is getting started, Ratt hit the jackpot with Out of the Cellar and "Round and Round" and from there he (along with Bob Rock and Ron Nevison) becomes THE go-to-guy for that sound. That leads to huge commercial success with bands like Warrant, Winger, Twisted Sister, Europe and Alice Cooper (not to mention fantastic bands that didn't take off like Airrace, Sandy Stewart, Streets, Fiona, and Fast Forward). We hear about all of it including the stories behind "Cherry Pie" and "Seventeen" and how they affected Jani and Kip, his early career bands like Shanghai and Airborne, and what he does today. It's a huge honor to hear from one of the biggest producers of all time! 

Author Bill Kopp has gifted music lovers with a fantastic piece of history. In his new book, Disturbing The Peace, Bill tells the story of San Francisco's influential 415 Record label started by Howie Klein and Chris Knabb. The story recounts how this upstart label even got off the ground, the key venues that built the scene, and, of course, the many excellent bands, many of which have been lost to history. Eventually, when 415 artists like Romeo Void, Translator, Wire Train and Red Rockers started having success, Klein sold the label to Columbia, which turned out to be the deathell. This fantastic history book includes loads of rare pictures, flyers, and stories that deserve to be told, but haven't been till now. 

Rocker Mark Seymour is one of Australia's greatest gifts to music. From his many years fronting the mighty Hunters & Collectors to his last couple decades putting out quality solo work, Mark has fought the good fight and inspired millions of others to do the same. In our conversation we discuss the difficulty of being the main songwriter for a large band with strong opinions as well as their change in sound over time, why they never quite took off in the States while compadres like Midnight Oil, INXS and Crowded House (featuring his little brother Nick) did, why H&C's album Under One Roof might be the greatest live album of all time, his latest album Slow Dawn from 2020, and the stories behind several of his classic tunes like the immortal  "Throw Your Arms Around Me". And, of course, we get hear more "Only in Utah" stores. Rediscover Australian royalty! 

Jon and Jan look back at 2021, discuss life without their dads, the state of the world and more. We also recap the last three month's worth of episodes with any behind the scenes stories, and countdown our Top 10 eps of the year, as well as the listener picks. And lastly, we answer some listener questions (hope we got most of them). Thanks for sticking with us! 

Where to start with Jacknife Lee? He's been one of the most successful and in demand producers of the last 20 years for a start. A short list of people he's worked with include the Killers, Weezer, Modest Mouse, James, Neil DIamond, One Direction, Taylor Swift, REM, Snow Patrol, the Hives, Bloc Party and the Cars, and he won a Grammy for U2's Atomic Bomb album. Then there's his solo work, which always includes incredible artists like Beth Ditto, Sneaks, and Open Mike Eagle to create forward-thinking dance music. And then there are his many collaborations like his current one, Telefis with fellow Irishman Cathal Coughlan. This one's a doozy as Jacknife explains these pairings as well as many many others, how he got sick of himself and changed his way of producing, and the music that inspires him every day. There's a lot here, sit back and enjoy! 

Raleigh, North Carolina's Connells have had a unique career. Jangly, college rock mainstays in America/HUGE one-hit-wonders in Europe. Throughout the 80s and 90s the band was able to make a career in Indie rock with songs like "Stone Cold Yesterday" and albums like the MItch Easter produced Boylan Heights. But, in 1993 they had a giant hit across the Atlantic with "74-75" which seemed to come out of nowhere. The band called it quits 20 years ago, but in 2021 they released their first album since then called Steadman's Wake and it's easily among their best. Lead singer Doug MacMillian joins us to recount this wild road, share stories of recording at the same studio as Shane MacGowan and Joe Strummer, and almost going to jail in Salt Lake City. If you haven't thought about the Connells in a while, now's the time to reconnect! 

Singer Dee C. Lee's vocal talents are undeniable. She was already making strides in the London music scene when she was pegged by Wham! to sing back up on their first album which featured hits like "Club Tropicana" and "Young Guns (Go For It)". This led to the life-changing gig with the Style Council. Hits like "Walls Come Tumbling Down", "Shout to the Top", and "Wanted" wouldn't be what they are without her. She proved to be so valuable she became a full member and a writer, not to mention she married and had two kids with Modfather Paul Weller. Along the way she managed a couple of her own solo hits like the huge "See The Day". Eventually, when the band and the marriage broke up, Dee focused more on that solo career, but when it wasn't happening she pretty much retired. Today she's working on her first solo material in decades and ready to get back into the biz! We get to hear stories about all of it, including Live Aid, working with the late great Guru of Gang Starr, and Dr. Robert of the Blow Monkeys. Enjoy!

Would you ever guess that one of the key producers for the radical synth-styled music coming out of the UK in the 80s was an American former LA session musician? Thanks to artists like New Order, Pet Shop Boys, Erasure, OMD and many others, Stephen Hague shaped what we think of when we think of the best music artists like that had to offer in the 80s. He's been a key figure in music ever since. Since his 80s career was recently covered fantastically on the 80sography podcast, we dig into other areas like the 90s and beyond that included Robbie Robertson, Siouxsie and the Banshees, Peter Gabriel, James, Robert Palmer, a-ha, Dubstar, and Blow Monkeys (with New Order and PSB also being discussed), as well as his early days with Jules Shear and Walter Egan. When you combine this with the series on 80sography you get the complete picture of this genius. Enjoy! 

In 1980, Rocky Burnette hit #8 on the pop charts with "Tired of Toein' The Line", an excellent song that still holds up today. That may have been the peak of his solo career, but his musical history stretches much further. His dad was Johnny Burnette, the Godfather of Rockabilly. Rocky shares stories of growing up in old Hollywood and hanging out with Elvis. His cousin is Billy Burnette, who replaced Lindsey in Fleetwood Mac in the late 80s, and has had a solid career of his own. After Rocky's solo career stalled, he spent the next 30 years playing his dad's music and carrying the torch for Rockabilly. Unfortunately, he's been suffering from emphysema for a while and doesn't get out there much, but we were lucky to have him share some stories with us. Enjoy! 

Colin Campsie is one of those artists that consistently made quality music whether everyone was paying attention or not. He and his partner George McFarlane finally started having success in the early 80s as The Quick, an excellent dance group that had a #1 Dance chart hit with "Zulu". After three albums they changed their name to Giant Steps, took on a more r&b style, and scored a #13 hit in 1988 with "Another Lover". However, both before and since, Colin has written and produced for other people consistently racking up a diverse resume in the process. Along the way he even befriended former guest Phil Thornalley and the two have worked together on various projects (Natalie Imbruglia, Kasim Sulton, etc) ever since. Here's his whole story and you're likely to hear a lot of new songs that you're sure to love. Enjoy! 

DEVO are the template for New Wave. Mixing the DIY aggression of punk with the new technology of the late 70s is what they did better than anyone else. Over the years, the music could be up and down, but their vision of de-evolution has proven to be accurate. Co-founder Jerry Casale has also had a successful career as a director and has recently created one of his best videos yet to his new single "I'm Gonna Pay You Back". It's amazing. Here we discuss his entire career as well as a heavy dose of politics (of course). the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, the mysterious death of his brother, Bob 2, his wine business, 80s movie soundtracks, and a bunch more. He's a legend! 

This week I had a chat with four of our newer podcasting friends, all of which have started their own pods fairly recently. There's Alex Alt of the Sly Dog Music-Cast, Mike Wiles of Retro Rock Roundup, Patrick Dupuis of EETF and Nick Bambach of Rock in Retrospect. Each host brings with them stories about what it takes to start and maintain a podcast, what have we learned, what were expectations going in and how have they changed, monetization, work vs reward, and where we see this going.  If anyone is thinking of starting a podcast, here's everything you need to know! Special thanks for the work these guys do, give them all a listen if you haven't already! And, like the others, this was recorded live and immediately posted with no edits. Enjoy! 

Our good friend Brent Zius (Podcast Rock City) has a unique and ambitious music project we wanted to tell you about. With the help of musician Zoog Von Rock of Angelspit, they've created an epic vinyl sci-fi concept album called Sequence One: Glass Jar. It's a space fantasy audio journey unlike anything you've seen before. The project is in the kickstarter stage, so if you like what you hear, please consider contributing. Either before or after this interview, be sure to watch the video at the link below. It explains it all. Enjoy! 

Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Tony Kaye does what he wants. As a founding member of Yes, he helped build the band into legends, but left after three albums when it stopped being fun. After spurts in bands like Detective and Badfinger and touring with Bowie, he came back to Yes for their 80s heyday, but eventually left again, when it stopped being fun. In fact, he's been known to leave music altogether to play tennis, sell t-shirts, whatever got him excited. Now, largely retired in Florida, he's created a totally unique work for his first solo album. End of Innocence is an album he composed about 9/11 illustrating the devastation of that day and its aftermath. Here we get into all of it and more. Emjoy! 

This week we welcome back more of our best buddies - Joy Royland of Sit and Spin with Joe, Ben Montgomery of Records Revisited and, the Podfather himself, Ken Mills to discuss again our impressions of the Get Back documentary. What did we learn, what would we change, etc. This leads to a second discussion on musical wormholes we went on this year. Again, this was recorded live and then released - no edits! Enjoy! 

When you think about all the classic synth pop duos of the 80s (Erasure, Pet Shop Boys, OMD, etc) Naked Eyes are right up there too. Rob Fisher and Pete Byrne only managed two albums in their heyday, but scored four top 40 hits like "Always Something There to Remind Me" and "Promises Promises" that have remained evergreen. After Rob's death, Pete IS Naked Eyes these days and put out a brand new album this year called Disguise The Limit, their first album of all new material in over 35 years. Pete tells us about singing with Stevie Wonder, writing for the Olsen Twins, and a lot more. Enjoy! 

Today we recorded a live round table with some of our best friends - Brad Page of the I'm In Love With That Song podcast, BJ Kramp from Rock and/or Roll, and Eric Miller of the Pods & Sods Network. The point of the discussion was to countdown our top three TV shows of the year, which we do, but before that we spend a lot of time discussing Get Back, whether BJ and Eric are even still in podcasting, Thanksgiving, turning friendly chats into content, and a bunch of other stuff. Once again, we just hit record and started talking, no edits, songs etc. Enjoy! 

When singer/songwriter Jude Cole was on the scene from the mid 80s to the mid 90s you knew you were listening to someone special. His ability to marry hooks and harmonies in a rock, bordering on Americana, tradition (think of someone like Aimee Mann) put him above the rest. But, after four strong albums and some moderate hits, he decided to change his focus to artist management, even discovering successful acts like Lifehouse. After 20 years of being on that side of the business, Jude is back this year with two (!) excellent new albums, Coup De Main and Coolerator. Here we talk about his various experiences, brushes with McCartney, 80s movie soundtracks, and more. Rediscover this hugely talented artist! 

Noted audio engineer/producer Susan Rogers began her unique career in the late 70s, but she really earned her bona fides when she moved to Minneapolis to assist Prince. She was right by his side during those peak Purple Rain to Sign O the Times years, helping him create, record, log, and document his every creative impulse (she created his famous "Vault"). She shares stories of her experiences that add invaluable color to who Prince was and what he was like to work with. After leaving Prince, she worked with rising indie rock acts like Michael Penn, Edie Brickel and New Bohemians, Public Image Ltd., Paul Westerberg, Geggy Tah, and Barenaked Ladies. For the last 20 years she's been teaching at the Berklee School of Music. Her encyclopedic memory of it all makes for one of the most fascinating conversations we've ever had on the show. Enjoy!

Unless you live in Ohio or Pennsylvania, you may not have heard from the great Donnie Iris for a while. Many of us fans probably even carry some regret that he wasn't a bigger star when he was active back in the 80s. Well, there's no need to worry! Donnie has been living the life for many years now, playing a few shows a year along the Rust Belt, putting out an album or two here and there, and enjoying the spoils of his labor. This was a light-hearted, funny conversation and I think you'll agree it's good to hear from Donnie again! 

Jon and Jan recap the last three months of episodes, including a few behind the scenes stories. While they're at it they get into death, work, travel, and life in general. Join us! 

This week is a special two-fer, two legendary producers in one shot! First up is the legend himself, Alan Parsons! If you think about it, even with all the iconic albums he's worked on like Dark Side and Abbey Road, his main focus has largely been his Alan Parsons Project. In fact, they are releasing a brand new live CD/DVD called The Neverending Show: Live in the Netherlands on Nov. 5th. We discuss the Project's history and hits as well. Then we talk to producer Mike Thorne. This is the man who produced eternal hits like "Tainted Love", "Smalltown Boy", and "Voices Carry". Not to mention that while he worked A&R, he encouraged EMI to sign the Sex Pistols! Lots to cover! 
www.alanparsons.com

Midge Ure has done so many amazing things, been in so many amazing bands, and recorded so much amazing music that you could fill several books! From Slik to the Rich Kids to Thin Lizzy to Visage and finally Ultavox, he was a pioneer in the sound that synths and guitars could make together, creating some of the most enduring music ever. We touch on just about all of this, as well as his solo career and working with luminaries like Phil Lynott, Paddy Maloney, and Kate Bush as well as many others. This week he embarks on the US leg of the Unzoomed and Face to Face tour before kicking off the Voice and Visions tour in Europe in early 2022. He's one of the greats! 

This week we are honored to welcome Amy Ray of the Indigo Girls! Any conversation with a citizen as solid as Amy is going to include the current state of the world, but her empathetic and wise view of it all may surprise you. She's seen it all and knows firsthand that positive change happens slowly. We also discuss fun stuff like her excellent solo career, her memories of Lilith Fair (they've evolved over the years), her love for Salt Lake City, her memories of the recently departed Nanci Griffith, and what it's like making new music now, like last year's excellent IG album Look Long. The world is a better place thanks to the Indigo Girls and we're lucky to have them! 

In this edition of Book Club we welcome seasoned rock writer Mike Evans to discuss his new book, The Who: Much Too Much. Mike's book tells us the whole Who story, from beginning to end, while also reviewing every Who album and song. Plus, it features scores of never before seen photos. It's the perfect starter guide for the band. Jon and Dave discuss Mike's history with the band, his feelings are the band's dynamics, favorite songs, and more. Enjoy! 

Drummer Bermuda Schwartz has been by "Weird" Al's side since that fateful day when they recorded "Another One Rides the Bus" for Dr. Demento. In all these years, he's watched as new generations discover Al at just the right time and remain devoted fans over the decades (bringing their kids and grandkids along for the ride). While helping Al fulfill his comedic and creative vision, Bermuda has also served as archivist, collecting every speck of swag/recording/photo there's ever been. This has resulted in the glorious book, Black & White & Weird All Over: The Lost Photographs of "Weird Al" Yankovic '83 - '86 which came out last year. Every "Weird" Al fan should have a copy! We talk about all of it and more! 

Last year, drummer Chris Frantz released his excellent memoir "Remain in Love", a sincerely wonderful and unique rock bio. This week he joins us to discuss his life before, during and after Talking Heads, but also the central relationship in his life, his marriage with the great Tina Weymouth. He also share stories how the band's sound evolved over time, his production work with Happy Mondays and Ziggy Marley, and how Tom Tom Club's "Genius of Love" has provided a very nice living thanks to Mariah Carey. Hopefully this conversation makes you want to read the entire book, because it's well worth it! 

Singer/Songwriter Martin Briley's solo career may have been brief, but he isn't bothered about it. Best known for the 1983 hit "The Salt in My Tears", Martin has always been way more comfortable working behind the scenes. He has been a session guy for artists like Ellen Foley, Ian Hunter, Julian Lennon and Bonnie Tyler (he even plays on "Total Eclipse of the Heart"), but his focus has always been on writing, preferably for anyone but himself. This has led to everyone from Celine Dion to N'Sync to Kenny Loggins to Greg Allman and even Patrick Swayze recording his tunes.Martin, in his own very dry and self-deprecating way, explains his feelings and motivations about his unique career, the stories behind some of his songs, and  the new music he's making now. He downplays his talent, but Martin is an amazing songwriter ripe for rediscovery! 

Whether you're aware of it or not, you've heard Tessa Niles' voice on dozens of beloved songs. She was one of Britain's most in demand backup singers for more than 20 years appearing with artists like ABC, Duran Duran, Tina Turner, Steve Winwood, Tears For Fears. In addition she toured with Eric Clapton, the Police, Robbie Williams and performed at Live Aid with David Bowie. She's written her entire story in the endlessly entertaining memoir Backtrack which is highly recommended. In our conversation, we cover all of these people as well as unbelievable interactions with Stevie Ray Vaughn, Mick Jagger, George Harrison and more. She's a wonderful lady with so much to say. Enjoy! 

Esteemed music writer John Aizlewood returns to the podcast to discuss his new book Joy Division + New Order: Decades. The book is a fantastic distillation of the band's story along with beautiful never before seen photos and reviews of every album, written in that intelligent and entertaining way that only John can do. We also discuss the band's place in history, it's current dysfunction and favorite songs. And, since we're lucky to have John back, we discuss some other artists too. Enjoy! 

Can you imagine what it must have been like to actually work with Queen on "Bohemian Rhapsody"? Producer Gary Langan can say he was there! Gary's done a lot, but his career really started to take off in the early 80s when he was a member of Trevor Horn's production team. That connection had him working on landmark albums by Yes, ABC and Malcolm McLaren. He went on to do his own work with artists like Spandau Ballet, Public Image Ltd, Then Jerico, Scritti Politti, The Dream Academy and Billy Idol. We cover all of this as well as how he handled Trevor's working style, what he does now, and his continual work with the Art of Noise. So much great music, enjoy! 

This week is one of the best sidemen in the business, Kasim Sulton! Kasim hit the big leagues when he joined Utopia in the mid-70s where he stayed for about a decade. Of course this formed the bond with Todd Rundgren that has remained to this day. In addition there have been stints with Meat Loaf, Joan Jett, Hall and Oates, Blue Oyster Cult, the Indigo Girls and many more. When he has the time, he releases solo albums, including his latest, Kasim 2021 (produced by former guest Phil Thornalley), which comes out on Sept. 17th. Here we go deep on the new album, how he's managed to be a Robin to so many "difficult" Batmen, collaborating with other former guests like Cherry Vanilla and Glen Burtnik, and much more. Enjoy! 

As great as the Icicle Works were, they will forever be remembered for one perfect moment, the still gorgeous "Birds Fly (Whisper to a Scream)". After that one hit in the States (and a few more in the UK), the band called it quits in the 90s and lead singer Ian McNabb has been going strong ever since. He's been on an especially epic hot streak the last few years with several exceptional albums in a row, capped off with his latest, Utopian. Ian discusses very openly the history of Icicle Works, how "Birds Fly" even came to be, working with Neil Young's band Crazy Horse, and how he manages his independent solo career. Ian is funny and honest, the two best qualities in a guest, making this one of the best episodes of the year! 

The duo of Difford and Tillbrook are up there with Jagger/Richards, Lennon/McCartney, John/Taupin and Holland/Dozier/Holland as one of history's greatest songwriting teams. Glenn's knack for a melody has always provided the perfect space for Chris's intelligent lyrics. Today, Squeeze is as busy as ever. They're currently on tour (some dates as openers for Hall & Oates), and Glenn continues to release strong albums, both with Squeeze and solo. Glenn and I discuss the history of the band, the stories behind some of his deeper tracks, and how he views where Squeeze is now. He's simply one of the best there's ever been. Enjoy! 

From out of nowhere, former guest Ellen Foley has released one of the best rock albums of 2021. Her latest work (and only her second in 40 years), Fighting Words hearkens back to her glam rock beginnings when she was a beautiful instrument in the hands of legends like Ian Hunter and Mick Ronson. This is why, in addition to discussing the new album, we deep dive her debut album Nightout that features those two greats and, in some ways, feels like an extension of the music she had been making with Meat Loaf a couple years prior. Do yourself a favor and check out both albums. You'll be blown away. 

These days Guy Pratt might be best known as the co-host of the second best (😉) music podcast in the world: Rockonteurs, which he does with his buddy Gary Kemp of Spandau Ballet. They bring so many years of experience and music love to every conversation, it's just about the best thing out there. Guy's experience includes some of everything. He started out with Icehouse in the early 80s, toured with Pink Floyd in the late 80s and played with everyone from Bryan Ferry to Madonna to Michael Jackson to Whitesnake in between. We talked for a couple hours and still barely scratched the surface, but the funny stories came nonstop. These days he and Gary tour with Nick Mason's Saucerful of Secrets so be sure to catch them when you can. I don't know that I've ever laughed more than I did during this one. Enjoy!

This week is a special two-fer: two great bass players from two great 80s bands that are releasing new music this weekend. We start with Vapors bassist Steve Smith. Everyone knows the Vapors from their enduring hit "Turning Japanese", but the fantastic band only managed two great albums in the early 80s before calling it quits. Finally, a couple years ago they came back "together" for a long-awaited third album called Together that has been welcomed warmly. Now they're enjoying playing 80s festivals and releasing a new box set on Cherry Red Records this weekend. Then we hear from the lively Tony Marsico of the Cruzados. The band managed two albums in the mid 80s, before drugs and disarray did them in. Tony went on to play with artists like Matthew Sweet, John Doe and Neil Young. During COVID, Tony relaunched the Cruzados name and recorded an album of new material called She's Automatic which keeps the spirit alive. Both guys have a fascinating story to tell. Please make it a point to check out what these great bands have to offer. Enjoy! 
www.thevapors.co.uk

www.facebook.com/The-Cruzados-113906253685573

www.patreon.com/thehustlepod

Guitarist Lyle Workman is one of the more successful multi-hyphenates. He began his career in the 80s as a member of Bourgeois Tagg where he co-wrote their biggest hit, the beautiful "I Don't Mind At All". When that band broke up, he became a hugely in demand sideman and session guitarist where he lent his talents to artists like Jellyfish, Frank Black, They Might Be Giants, Alanis Morissette, Bryan Adams, Pat Monahan, Sting, Todd Rundgren and many others. As if that wasn't enough, he eventually made a name for himself as a celebrated film composer, scoring many Judd Apatow projects for screens big and small. Earlier this year he managed to release an excellent solo album called Uncommon Measures that sums up so many aspects of career perfectly. In this conversation we discuss how you go about scoring a film, hear stories of the many people he's worked with and what inspired his new album. Is there anything Lyle can't do? 

Don't we all kind of wish we'd been in London in the 70s absorbing all the fantastic music pouring out? One of the greatest that doesn't get enough credit is glam rockers Sweet. Known for eternal jams like "Ballroom Blitz", "Fox on the Run" and "Love Is Like Oxygen", Sweet (with the help of Nicky Chinn and Mike Chapman) married sparkling, but heavy, guitar riffs with perfect pop songs like few others. Today, guitarist Andy Scott is carrying on the Sweet name and released a great album of reworked Sweet classics called Isolation Boulevard earlier this year. If you're new to the band, here's the entire history. Enjoy! 

www.thesweet.com

www.patreon.com/thehustlepod

For the latest Recap Jon is joined by Hustle CMO Andy Schaal to discuss the last three months of podcasting Commando Style! No edits, no songs, no production. Totally live. We have to kick it off with some very sad news but then we cover newsworthy topics and, of course, all the episodes from April, May and June. Thanks everybody for your continued support. 

www.patreon.com/thehustlepod

Paula Cole was one of the key figures of the "Lilith Fair Generation" - that class of fantastic female artists like Sarah McLachlan, Shawn Colvin, India Arie, Joan Osbourne, and many more - whose artistry finally got the attention it deserved. Sadly, when the spotlight on Lilith moved on it moved off many of them too. But, Paula has consistently released strong albums ever since and her latest, American Quilt is her doing gorgeous versions of many American spirituals and folk songs from history. Here we talk about the inspiration for it, her time with Peter Gabriel on the Secret World tour, growing old gracefully, social issues, the impact of "I Don't Want to Wait" and the stories behind many of her songs. Enjoy! 

In his early 20s Joel Miller, like most of us, was floating.  There was telesales, film production work, and other things. He eventually decided to try his hand at being a roadie and quickly joined a Stone Temple Pilots tour where he rose up the ranks. This lead to tours and interactions with Guns n Roses, the Cranberries, and many others. He decided to write about his experience in his entertaining book Memoir of a Roadie. In this discussion, Jon and Dave bro down with Joel about his experience and what it takes to be a roadie. Enjoy! 

Jon was invited to join the gang from Pretty Much Pop: A Culture Podcast recently to discuss how we relate as adults to the music we loved in our youth. Does it hold up? Do we ever really move on? What does it say about us if we still go back there? Will new music ever surpass the music we grew up on? The panel tackles these topics in an engaging discussion. Go in the PMP archives and find other eps you might like. It's good stuff! 

Dennis DeYoung is saying goodbye. Last month he released what he says will be his final studio album, the killer 26 East Vol.2 (the equally excellent Vol.1 came out last year). But before he goes off into retirement, he agreed to share with us his thoughts on just about everything. Dennis holds court on Styx and it's various iterations, capitalism, punk rock, lockdown, his hits, his solo career, prog rock, street cred, marriage and a million other things. If you know Dennis, you also know the guy is hilarious and tells it like it is. Strap in and enjoy the ride! 

We don't normally cover new bands on the Hustle, but we're making a special exception this time. Beauty in Chaos is the brainchild of musician Michael Ciravolo. Michael is steeped in the dark goth rock of the 80s, bands like the Cure, the Mission, Gene Loves Jezebel (who he also played with). He's taken that and released two great albums (as well as two remix albums), but what's amazing is who he's gotten to appear on these albums. Here's a list - Robin Zander, Michael Anthony, Simon Gallup, Ice T, Michael Aston, Al Jourgensen, Dug Pinnick and several former guests like Wayne Hussey, Tim Palmer and John Fryer. It's a collection of musicians you won't see anywhere else. Hear from Michael how he made all this happen and how he intends to move forward. 

Fans know that Enuff Z'nuff are one of the most mishandled, mismarketed and misunderstood rock bands ever. The boys from Chicago had way more in common with logical legends Cheap Trick and the Beatles than with the Poisons and Warrants they were getting lumped in with (nothing against those bands). This cost EZ the chance to truly take off like they should have. Sadly, the aftermath was drugs, bankruptcy, sex, lawsuits, you name it. Donnie left years ago for an excellent solo career, while Chip Znuff has kept the name alive. In this brutally honest conversation, Donnie details all these setbacks, how it impacted him and how he's managed to bounce back. He also talks about the new solo material he's working on. If you don't know much about Donnie or Enuff Z'nuff, you owe it to yourself to get into it. Enjoy! 

In the late 80s the Godfathers were on to something. College radio hits like "Birth, School, Work, Death" was a swift punch in the face at a time just before that sound would become more commonplace. Covid prevented the band from celebrating their 35th anniversary to the fullest, but that will hopefully be changing soon. Frontman Peter Coyne gives us the full band history lesson, shares some killer newer tunes, tells touring stories, and even offers his tips for keeping those immaculate suits clean on the road. Next time you're ready to listen to some true, full-bodied rock and roll, put The Godfathers at the top of that list! 

When Shakespeare's Sister struck gold with their #1 hit "Stay" in 1992, what listeners may not have known is that singer Marcella Detroit had already put in 20 years of professional singing by then. Marcy Levy starts out in the early 70s singing with Bob Seger, then moves on to Leon Russell, and then Eric Clapton where she even co-wrote several of his songs including "Lay Down Sally". She eventually joins up with Bananarama's Siobhan Fahey for SS, but that's really a short chapter of her long career which includes several solo albums, session singing (Hall & Oates, Aretha Franklin, Alice Cooper) and songwriting (Al Jarreau, Chaka Khan, Philip Bailey). To celebrate her birthday, Marcella just released a new single, "Vicious Bitch" that is available on her website (www.marcelladetroit.rocks/music) . We get into all of this and hear the stories behind everything including Live Aid. Enjoy! 

Dunfermline Scotland's Skids were local legends in the late 70s. Led by lead singer Richard Jobson and guitarist Stuart Adamson (later of Big Country, of course), the band kept their punk bona fides while also writing classic anthems like "Into the Valley" and "The Saints are Coming", songs that have only gotten bigger over the years. After three albums, Stuart left for bigger things, while Richard did a little of everything - the Armoury Show with John McGeoch, spoken word, acting, TV presenting, film critic, etc. The remaining Skids are back with a killer new album, Songs From a Haunted Ballroom, which is a collection of covers of songs from those early days that truly made an impact (it was also produced by Big Country's Bruce Watson). Richard discusses his years as a punk, working with tragic geniuses like Stuart and John, his acting career and everything else under the sun. Don't miss this one! 

Del Amitri's Justin Currie doesn't get enough credit for being one of the best songwriters around. The fantastic Scottish band have been at it since the mid-80s, but didn't really find their voice until the early 90s and their commercial peak soon followed when "Roll To Me" became a top 10 hit. Justin has bounced between Del Amitri and solo albums for decades now, but the band is back together for their first album in many years, Fatal Mistakes. Justin and I get deep into the process of songwriting, the many ups and downs the band has experienced, his solo albums, and the behind the scenes story of that famous BBC Songwriters Circle where he made Chris Difford cry. He's also a big muso, so we discuss the Beatles, Simple Minds, Nick Cave, Trashcan Sinatras, Orange Juice and many others. Enjoy! 
www.joeyssong.org

When james are at their best hardly anyone can rival their mixture of ecstasy, passion, groove, and spirit. In this discussion with frontman Tim Booth you'll learn that isn't an accident. In fact, you may question whether "Pop Group" is too limiting a title for what james sets out to accomplish. And they've done it again with the release of their new album, All The Colours of You, this weekend. Once again they've tapped into the global sense of frustration and dismay to record a hopeful set of excellent tunes that may be their best set in a couple decades. Tim and I cover all the major bases - Politics, Drugs, God, and Music and Tim shows some sides of himself that may surprise you. When it's over you may ask yourself if Tim Booth is a pop singer or some kind of deity, a question us fans have been asking for a long time. Enjoy! 

Noted rock doc director John Scheinfeld joins us this week to discuss his new outstanding documentary on the great Sergio Mendes, In The Key of Joy. John talks about what got him excited about making this particular film, why Sergio is an important figure, and what the music of Brazil means to him. We also discuss some of John's other documentaries on artists like John Lennon, Harry Nilsson, John Coltrane and Herb Alpert. Sergio Mendes: In The Key of Joy will have a full theatrical release later this year, but a shortened version will air on PBS in June, so check your local listings for that. You won't want to miss it! 

Any list of synth pioneers would include the great Martyn Ware. He's basically devoted his life to seeing what that machine is capable of. He starts out in Sheffield forming the Human League with pals Ian Craig Marsh and Phil Oakey, but after two ambitious albums, the band splits. Phil stays put, but Martyn and Ian get with Glenn Gregory and form Heaven 17, birthing classics like "Let Me Go", "Temptation" and many others. Martyn's career as a producer is also taking off as he works with Terence Trent D'Arby, Erasure, and Tina Turner who jump-started her major comeback when she sang on his B.E.F. project. These days, Martyn has one of the best podcasts out there, Electronically Yours, where he talks to all kinds of legends and peers. We get our hands dirty discussing all of this and much much more. Enjoy! 

Throughout most of the world, Spandau Ballet were stadium fillers there for a while. They famously came out of the same club scene as friendly rivals Duran Duran and Ultravox, the lads were immediate trendsetters both in music and fashion. It all comes together in 1983 with the release of their third album, True, and the global title track smash. Success would continue to grow (though not so much in the States) for the rest of the 80s, including unforgettable appearances at both Live Aid and Band Aid, before drama would settle in and never completely go away. Lead singer Tony Hadley has been out of the band officially for four years, but his solo career is ongoing. In fact he recently released a new single, "Obvious" and has another solo album coming out soon. We get to hear stories about all of it and then some. Enjoy! 

Graham Parker has been a master at his craft for so long, you probably think you have him figured out. You'd be wrong. Is he a cult artist? A punk? An angry young man? He says no. What he is, and this is indisputable, is one of the finest songwriters of all time. He even hilariously played up the image many have of him in Judd Apatow's film The Is 40 (he tells us the whole story on that one). This year he released another fine live album called Five Old Souls, which shows perfectly where GP is as an artist today. In this candid and impassioned chat, Graham debunks some "rumors", sets some records straight, and, best of all, tells us what he really thinks about all kinds of issues. He's one of the bes there's ever been, we're lucky to have him. 

Jon and Jan discuss the first quarter of 2021, the stories and thoughts behind the episodes, what's happening in our personal lives, and we answer some listener mail. 

We celebrate our 6th year of podcasting this week by welcoming Rock and Roll Hall of Famer, award-winning actor, and decorated producer Little Steven Van Zandt! Steve has his hands in so many projects it's hard to cover them all - whether it's his Sirius radio stations, his multiple charities like teachrock.org, running his label Wicked Cool Records, backing up The Boss, or his own utterly fantastic solo career. As if that isn't enough, he's publishing his memoir, Unrequited Infatuations, in September. We discuss all of these plus his work with people like Southside Johnny and Darlene Love, the current state of politics, and some Sopranos and Lilyhammer. Little Steven is a gift to the world and especially the good word of Rock and Roll. Bless him! 

The music world lost a true one-of-a-kind recently with the death of the great Jim Steinman. He's probably best known for his work with Meat Loaf on Bat Out of Hell, but don't forget he also wrote legendary tracks like "Total Eclipse of the Heart", "Making Love Out of Nothing at All" and "It's All Coming Back to Me Now." We bring back singer Ellen Foley (ep78) who's breakout was duetting with Meat on "Paradise by the Dashboard Light". She recalls her time working with Jim and we discuss what an "extremist" he was. There's only ever been one Jim Steinman. He'll be missed.  

Canada's Saga is proof that the country does some things better than the rest of us. That fantastic band has been merging prog rock with a solid tunefulness for 45 years now and show no signs of slowing down. This year they released a new album, Symmetry, which is an acoustic reimagining of many of their signature songs from their long career. What makes Symmetry special is that these aren't just scaled back versions - they've been given new life. Frontman Michael Sadler discusses the thought process behind the album,  working with the late great Rupert Hine, their 80s hits like "On the Loose" and "Wind Him Up", why he left the band and then came back, and what excites him about prog rock. Saga are a great band that have been making interesting work for decades. Respect! 

John Waite has been blessed with one of the greatest voices in music. Whether he's belting killer rock tunes with the Babys or Bad English or his own solo work, putting his spin on blues and Americana on a lot of his albums the last 30 years, or bringing a ton of soul to ballads like his chart topping "Missing You", he always sounds perfect. These days he's recreating many of his songs acoustically on his Wooden Heart album series, which will soon add a third volume and come out as a box set. Here we talk about his feelings on his whole career, why now was the time for an acoustic album, his feelings on the Babys and Bad English, and how many of his great hits came to be. He's one of the best we have. Enjoy! 

We're starting a new sidecast called Book Club where we will be inviting authors of great music-related books to discuss them with us.  Our first installment is with guitarist Jeffrey Lee Campbell who details the year he was plucked from obscurity and chosen to tour the world with Sting in Do Stand So Close. We learn how this even happened, what Sting is like to work for, and what life is like on the road. To change things up, joining me is my good friend Dave Carruth. We hope you enjoy these conversations, but mostly we hope you'll seek out Jeffrey's book. 

We all know the Milli Vanilli story. Have you ever wondered who really sang those songs? This week we welcome singer/songwriter John Davis, one of the actual voices for Milli Vanilli. John was an American living in Germany and working as a musician when he was picked by producer Frank Farian to sing for a project he was working on, only to later hear his voice coming out of Fab's mouth. John tells us the before, during, and after of the whole story, and we hear some of his own music, including his fantastic 2009 album Runnin' Back to You he made with musician Roland Muller. Here is a unique glimpse on the infamous Milli Vanilli story from someone with first-hand experience. 

Jethro Tull's Ian Anderson becomes our first three-time guest with this return to The Huste, and, as usual, the conversation doesn't go where you think it will. First of all, Ian has a book coming out this summer called Silent Singing which is a lyric book of all Tull and Ian solo songs and includes pictures, stories, etc. You can pre-order the book at the link below and get your name printed in it. In addition, The 40th Anniversary deluxe edition of Jethro Tull's album "A" comes out this month too. We discuss the making of that album, as well as many other things like European history, politics, and his health. 

Producer/Engineer/Mixer Gareth Jones didn't set out to be the "synth guy", but that didn't stop him from working closely with some of the greatest synth artists ever. First came John Foxx and his first solo album, the revolutionary Metamatic. Then came a string of legendary albums with Depeche Mode like Black Celebration and Some Great Reward. And lastly, he continues to work with Erasure and produced albums of theirs like Wild! and Cowboy. There have also been notable work with bands like Wire, Interpol, Embrace, and Grizzly Bear. Gareth also has some recent solo projects that deserve your attention like Electrogenetic. We get stories about all of it and learn how Gareth was the man to help these people find their creative voices. Enjoy! 

For this very special edition of Deep Dive we are honored to welcome back guitarist Steve Stevens to discuss one of the seminal rock albums of the 80s, Billy Idol's Rebel Yell. Steve and Billy created one of the classic rock albums ever and Steve lets us in on how the songs came together, how the input of producer Keith Forsey enhanced the album and what it meant to everyone's career. Rebel Yell was huge - to the people who made it and the people who heard it. Here's the full story. 

You couldn't plan for Stan Bush's career if you tried. He came on strong in the early 80s as a rising rock singer, but he carved a niche for himself when he was featured on soundtracks for movies like Kickboxer, Bloodsport and, most famously, Transformers - The Movie in 1986 which featured his signature song "The Touch". Of course that song was resurrected a decade later when Dirk Diggler sang it to great effect in Boogie Nights. Stan has always delivered consistently strong AOR rock that feels like it's still 1987, including his latest album, 2020's Dare to Dream. Along the way he's won an Emmy and been inducted into the Transformers Hall of Fame. Stan shares his unique story with us this week. Enjoy! 

Super producer Daniel Lanois has just released the album of the year. This legendary record maker (U2, Peter Gabriel, Robbie Robertson, Bob Dylan, Willie Nelson, Emmylou Harris, etc),  has created the music we all need right now with the just released Heavy Sun. Lanois mixes his masterful knack for atmosphere with his love of gospel music to create a healing gumbo for these tense times. In this conversation, Daniel explains his approach to producing, what musical project is getting him excited, and he shares stories about the artists listed above. Daniel also performs a new song for us that will change your life. I wish all of us had as much soul and calm as Daniel Lanois. Enjoy! 

We're excited to put out a special bonus episode with former Grand Funk Railroad frontman Mark Farner! On April 6th Mark is releasing a brand new live DVD From Chili with Love featuring many GFR and solo hits and even a couple new tracks. This conversation is quite unique as we focus on things like the current state of the country and how many of his songs reflect it, his fitness regimen, what it was like working with Todd Rundgren, Ringo Starr and Frank Zappa, and his born again Christianity. He's also brutally honest about his feelings about the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. In addition, Mark works passionately with America's veterans including www.vsf-usa.org. There's no one quite like Mark. Enjoy! 

This week we are honored to welcome one of the greatest and most underrated guitarists of all time, Echo & the Bunnymen's Will Sergeant! The first four Bunnymen albums are core to the foundation of the post-punk coming out of the UK in the early 80s. Hits like "The Killing Moon", "The Cutter", "Rescue" and many more will never ever die. After taking a break, Will and frontman Ian McCulloch reformed in the late 90s and have been going strong ever since. In this rare long form interview, Will gives his feelings about the band's legacy, how involved (or not) he's been in the creation of the music the last 20 years, his opinions about himself as a guitarist versus his contemporaries, and the stories behind many songs. If you're a fan, you will love this conversation! 
www.bunnymen.com 

www.willsergeant.com

www.patreon.com/thehustlepod

Producer/engineer/mixer Phill Brown can say he was in the room when songs like "All Along the Watchtower", "Sympathy for the Devil", "Stairway to Heaven" and "I Shot the Sheriff" were recorded. He also worked with legends like Sly and the Family Stone, Bowie, Traffic (and Steve Winwood), and Roxy Music. Can you believe this? Two of his longest collaborations were with Robert Palmer on his first few albums and Talk Talk on their last few when they were inventing a new kind of music. He's written a book about it all called Are We Still Rolling? that tells these stories and many more. Phill is one of our best guests ever and this is an instant classic. Sit back and enjoy this fantastic story time! 

Punk rock has produced some of music's greatest characters, but tops of all is probably TSOL frontman Jack Grisham. Jack was there for the band's first two albums Dance With Me and the game changing Beneath The Shadows before deciding to explore other genres and finding some success with The Joykiller in the 90s. He eventually returned to the fold and has been at the helm ever since. Jack talks openly about homelessness, sobriety, his marriages, the punk ethos, the books and movies he's created, and much much more. There really is no one like Jack, bless him! 

This week we welcome back drummer Tris Imboden to talk about Kenny Loggins's 1979 classic Keep The Fire! Tris was a member of the incredible band that recorded this beauty and that featured the Grammy winning smash "This Is It". Tris fills us in on how the songs came to be and what it was like working for him. Not to mention what the deal is with that cover! Enjoy! 

This week is our first producer of 2021, 2x Grammy winning producer/engineer/mixer Bill Schnee! Bill was an integral part of creating the soft rock sound of the 70s that we think of thanks to his work with artists like Carly Simon, Art Garfunkel, Pablo Cruise and Leo Sayer. Not to mention the Grammys he won for engineering the Steely Dan albums, Aja and Gaucho. This legend releases his memoir next week - Chairman at the Board - and recounts some stories from his amazing career with us. Huey Lewis and the News, the Pointer Sisters, and a fascinating Thelma Houston story also make appearances in this one. Bill is a smart, humble guy, but his ears and his talent helped make the 70s what it was. Enjoy! 

Thanks to his Satanic masterpiece "Fire" from 1968, Arthur Brown will forever be known as "The God of Hellfire". That spine-tingling hit topped the charts all over the world and cemented his image as the banshee with fire on his head and paint on his face. But Arthur has been a musical explorer ever since making progressive music in the spirit of Captain Beefheart and Frank Zappa one minute, but then an album made entirely on a drum machine or dedicated to dancing the next. We get into the inspiration for his "crazy" persona, his spiritual side, what he did for a living during the lean years, and how he came to lend his voice to an all-star charity single "House of the Rising Sun". Enjoy getting to know this mysterious figure! 

Wayne Hussey's knack for writing deep, beautiful pop songs about struggles with the divine and a penchant for darkness are unlike anyone else. He has led his formidable band The Mission for over 35 years, giving a voice to the confused and unsure with songs like "Tower of Strength", Butterfly on a Wheel" and "Wasteland"among many others. Wayne discusses how his Mormon upbringing may have influenced his art, his short time in Dead Or Alive and Sisters Of Mercy, how he feels about being labeled "goth", the stories behind many of the songs, and how he pulled off the "modern Band Aid" with his TOS2020 Remission charity single. He's one of a kind! Enjoy!

www.themissionuk.com

www.patreon.com/thehustlepod

This week is the big 3-0-0! 

Who remembers the skinny tie, new wave power pop days of the late 70s? Over in the UK, a band called The Records were on that train and released the cult classic "Starry Eyes" in 1979. Guitarist Huw Gower bailed after one album though and immediately went to work with greats like David Johansen and Graham Parker among others. He has also released some stellar solo material over the years as well as many other projects. We talk with Huw about why he left the Records, what it was like working with others, and what he does now. Enjoy! 

Jon and Jan look back on the ups and downs of the last year, recap the last three months, countdown their top 10 episodes of the year (as well as the listener’s), and answer some listener questions. Thanks everybody for the support this year. It hasn’t been easy but you all make it worth it.

www.patreon.com/thehustlepod

In the US Icehouse may be best known for those two huge hits from 1987, "Crazy" and "Electric Blue", but back in their native Australia they're practically royalty. Mastermind Iva Davies has directed the band for over 40 years, consistently finding new shades and angles of alternative rock to explore. These days Iva gets to bask in the love and success he's built all these years Down Under, including recently releasing a new live album, Icehouse Plays Flowers Live to celebrate the 40th anniversary of their debut album. Here we discuss what happened to their stature in America, what led to him taking 16 years off, and the stories behind many songs and albums. Iva is one of popular and Australian music's great minds, we're honored to have him. 

Stooges guitarist (and Rock and Roll Hall of Famer) James Williamson's sludgy, greasy sound is uniquely his own. Plus, he was a perfect match and co-conspirator for Iggy Pop at just the right time when he took over for Ron Asheton on the Raw Power album and then partnered up with Iggy for a few more years, writing songs, and taking whatever record contracts they could get while totally strung out. James quickly left and forged a long and successful; career in Silicon Valley, not even touching a guitar for over 20 years! He eventually stepped in when needed again for Asheton and toured with the Stooges for a few more years before deciding to do his own thing. His "own thing" has included several excellent albums including last year's Two To One with vocalist Deniz Tek, one of the best of the year. We go deep on albums, songs, software, Bowie (not a fan), and other stories. Enjoy! 

Jane's Addiction might be the most influential and important band of the last 35 years. Think about it - did anyone bridge the alternative rock of the 80s with the grunge sound of the 90s better? They are the link in that transition. Hugely creative, fantastically musical, and tragically dysfunctional, their records may be few, but their power is enormous. Speaking of power, drummer Stephen Perkins joins us to share his philosophy on drumming, music, life, band dynamics and everything in between. We also hear the stories behind the songs and albums that we all love. His passion is infectious and the music never gets old. Enjoy!

We're ending 2020 the same way it began, by hearing from a fantastic and accomplished songwriter. Clif Magness has won a grammy, been nominated for an Oscar, and has had songs recorded by everyone from Barbra Streisand to Cheap Trick to Quincy Jones. But some of his biggest successes have been writing "All I Need" for Jack Wagner back in the 80s and working closely with Avril Lavigne on her debut album. He's also found time to release a couple excellent solo albums which you'll want to check out if you're a fan of meat and potatoes AOR rock. In addition to all this, we discuss his partnership with Glen Ballard, some of his soundtrack work, a serious health scare, and more. Enjoy! 

It's Christmastime and it felt right to share our conversation with the lovely Leigh Nash of Sixpence None the Richer! Of course SIxpence broke through big when their third album in 1997 launched "Kiss Me" into the public consciousness where it would remain embedded forever and ever and the band has released music when the mood hit them ever since. Along the way, Leigh has forged her own solo path, including the wonderful EP Get Happy, released earlier this year. Leigh and I discuss the whole career, how she approaches a cover, her love of Country and Religious music, and the good and bad things about being labeled a Christian artist. Leigh is about as sweet as it gets, so please enjoy and have as Merry a Christmas as is possible! 

We are welcoming back rock doc director Jon Brewer to discuss his recent documentary “Chuck Berry: The Original King of Rock and Roll”. Chuck is on the Mt Rushmore of rock but is also s complicated person. Jon and I discuss the good and bad sides of the man and his legacy. We also are giving away two copies of the Blu-ray so join Patreon to be in the running. Enjoy!

www.patreon.com/thehustlepod

I can't think of another band quite like Modern Romance. They came out of the Blitz scene in the early 80s with bands like Duran Duran, Ultravox and Spandau Ballet and originally sounded like lesser versions of those guys. On their third single, "Everybody Salsa", they adopted big Latin rhythms and stumbled on a unique new sound and a bunch of hits followed - "Best Years of Our Lives", "Ay Ay Ay Moosey" and more. Soon after styles and band members changed and the band called it quits. In 1999 original percussionist Andy Kyriacou brought the band back and they've been playing Retro Fests ever since. Andy's story is a unique one and when he talks about his family a profound lesson is shared. They also just released Their Greatest Tracks. Enjoy! 

We close out our recent producer series by talking to the fantastic Tim Palmer! Tim's career goes back 40 years and includes everyone from Ozzy to Kajagoogoo to Heatwave. We hear amazing stories about his time with artists like Tin Machine, Pearl Jam, Dead or Alive, Robert Plant, Tears for Fears, U2, Psychedelic Furs and many others. Tim is still very active today, in fact a recent production of his couldn't be more important. Wayne Hussey of The Mission put together an all-star group of music legends to re-record their seminal hit, "Tower Of Strength" with Tim producing as a charity single for front-line workers during the pandemic. Think of it as the 2020 version of Band-Aid. It's beautiful stuff and so is everything else Tim touches. Enjoy!

Tis the season! Jon and Jan are joined by friends Ben Montgomery from the Records Revisited podcast and Jon's buddy, regular, podcast-less civilian, Dave Carruth to discuss Christmas music, but also movies, traditions, etc. Hot topics are debated like whether "Wonderful Christmastime" and "Last Christmas" are good or bad, whether Die Hard is a Christmas movie, and a number of other hot takes. We also countdown our top 3 Christmas songs/albums ever. And listen to the intro and outro songs provided by friends of the pod. 

Don't we all miss the 70s? That golden era of soulful singer-songwriters left an impression that has never been replicated and high among them is the great Melissa Manchester. After 50 years in the business, Melissa keeps getting better releasing material in the 2000s that's easily as good as her peak 70s period. We talk openly about her journey, how the glory of the 70s led to the gloss of the 80s that completely changed her sound before the 90s passed her by almost entirely. We also talk about her relationship with songwriters like Carole Bayer-Sager, Kenny Loggins and Paul Simon, her teaching career, and how she was nearly a cast member on Saturday Night Live! They don't make them like Melissa anymore, we're lucky to have her! 

For this Deep Dive we are welcoming Gunnar Nelson to tell us the full story behind the Nelson's blockbuster debut album After the Rain. Few rock albums from that era stand the test of time like this one, helped by several smash hits like "More Than Ever" and "Can't Live Without Your) Love and Affection". Gunnar tells us how he and Matthew wrote the songs, the obstacles they had to overcome to release it and make it a hit, and much more. Gunnar's honesty and passion is infectious. Enjoy! 

Producer Terry Manning is a Jack of All Trades and Master of Many! Starting out as a pre-teen in Texas, Terry went on to work with everyone from Led Zeppelin to Otis Redding to Bjork and many more in between. After a long relationship with ZZ Top he produced their breakthrough Eliminator and from there was hired to bring similar success to acts like George Thorogood and the Fabulous Thunderbirds. His time at Stax and Ardent Studios brought time with Big Star, Al Green and Isaac Hayes and while running Compass Point in the Bahamas booked time with David Bowie and Lenny Kravitz. He's also an accomplished photographer,runner, and recording artist in his own rite. This episode of jam packed with more great stories than you can imagine, including everyone mentioned here. You'll love it! 

Steve Stevens and Billy Idol are a pair that goes together like Marr and Morrissey, like Plant and Page, like Scott and Adams, like Pirroni and Ant... you get the idea. This power duo has created some of the most indelible songs and styles of the last 40 years with Steve's identifiable guitar leading the way. In this chat we learn some of the stories behind their dynamic, the albums, his solo work, and our thoughts on the passing of Eddie Van Halen (news broke about 15 mins before the interview). Here's a chance to listen to a true game-changer. 

The loss of the Outfield's Tony Lewis recently really stings. The Outfield were a consistently excellent band that deserved more and Tony's incredible voice paired with the late John Spink's songwriting was a match made in heaven. To honor Tony we bring back former guest producer William Wittman (ep 215) who did their first two, and biggest, albums, Play Deep and Bangin'. And go back and listen to our interview with Tony himself (ep 164). He's the best. 

Nick Launay started his career when still in his teens and when John Lyden picked (forced?) him to produce PiL's "Flowers of Romance" in 1981 he was off and running. His resume includes greats like Killing Joke, Talking Heads, Semisonic and even recent albums from Arcade Fire, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club and Yeah Yeah Yeahs. I planned to cover these amd many more in our conversation, but instead we went deep on a few - INXS (he produced The Swing), Midnight Oil, The Church, Nick Cave, Silverchair, Phil Collins (he was in the room when Phil did the drums for "In The Air Tonight", Eric Clapton and Public Image Ltd (which is maybe the craziest story we've ever heard). This is another instant classic!