Love is the Message: Dance, Music and Counterculture

This is an excerpt from a patrons episode. to hear the full thing and dozens more, visit Patreon.com/LoveMessagePod and become a patron from £3 per month.In this patrons-only episode we welcome writer and anti-fascist activist Joe Mulhall to the show to discuss his fantastic book Rebel Sounds: Music as Resistance, a survey across time and place of groups and cultures using musics as part of their resistance to forms of racism and imperialism. We hear about Irish rebel songs, Kneecap and an impromptu Irish history quiz in the toilets of a Wolftones gig; the role of Jazz, Blues and Soul in the Civil Rights Struggle; revisit Tropicalia with fresh eyes and ears; and fly to Nigeria to visit the Felabration in Lagos. Alongside these topics we consider how our personal tastes can divert from a music's political power, US cultural hegemony, music in the USSR, 'bone records', Two Tone, and bring things up to date with a trip to the trenches of Ukraine. We won't provide an order link here, but you can get the hardback of Rebel Sounds in your local bookshop, and the paperback is forthcoming in the Autumn. Thanks to Joe for joining us.

In this episode, Tim and Jeremy complete our mini-series on Saturday Night Fever by looking at the film in its cinematographic context alongside two other huge movies of the late1970s. With reference to Rocky and Taxi Driver, the guys unearth the shared visions of class and race politics in the USA of the period. They discuss the particular place of Italian Americans in the culture more broadly, discuss particular forms of American-ness, and spend some time on the real life events that inspired the character of Rocky Balboa. After that, attention returns to Travlota to wrap up SNF with a look at how the film was received at the time and since, and reflect on how their own attitudes to the movie have changed down the years. Plus the Trammps, Jem's Grandma, and the answer to the question of whether David Mancuso ever saw Tony Manero up on the big screen…Produced by Matt Huxley.We are now on Youtube! Find series 6 here: https://www.youtube.com/@LITMPodcastRemember, we have a rolling playlist of all the tracks discussed over on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3ZpKyqhvhOXfTuPMHCBkFsTracklist:Bernard Herrmann - Taxi Driver (Theme) Bill Conti - Gonna Fly Now Bee Gees - Night Fever The Trammps - Disco Inferno 

This is am excerpt from a patrons-only episode. To hear the full thing along with dozen more, visit Patreon.com/LoveMessagePod and sign up for as little as £3 a month.In this patrons-only episode we welcome writer Toby Manning to the show to discuss his recent book Mixing Pop and Politics: A Marxist History of Popular Music. Toby's book offers a political reading of popular music, taking as its methodological starting point the songs found in the charts from the 1950s to the present day, to explore how the music people listen to reflects and resists the politics of their time in fascinating ways.In this show Jeremy, Tim and Toby discuss the charts themselves, how we think of 'popular music', and discuss lyrics as a tool for analysis. This being LITM, we of course spend some time on the hits of the 1970s, but we hear also about '80s synth pop and yacht rock, Annie Lennox, MJ, and contemporary artists like FKA Twigs and Little Sims. Also found inside: the GLC, the High Sixties and Kneecap.Thanks to Toby for coming on the show. If you'd like to order his book, you can do so from Repeater Books: https://repeaterbooks.com/product/mixing-pop-and-politics-a-marxist-history-of-popular-music/. Enter the code 'popdiscount' for some money off.

In this episode, Tim and Jeremy pull on their white suits for a full run-down rewatch of Saturday Night Fever. Starting with the iconic 'Stayin' Alive' opening sequence, they draw out the class, race and gender politics of the film, including Italian American stereotypes, consumer culture, Bruce Lee, meritocracy and male grooming. On the music side, they talk blue-eyed Soul, falsetto, an early drum loop, Bee Gees, Kool and the Gang, MFSB and more.Produced by Matt Huxley.We are now on Youtube! Find series 6 here: https://www.youtube.com/@LITMPodcastRemember, we have a rolling playlist of all the tracks discussed over on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3ZpKyqhvhOXfTuPMHCBkFsTracklist:Bee Gees - Stayin' Alive MFSB - K-JeeBee Gees - More Than a Woman Kool & the Gang - Open Sesame Yvonne Elliman - If I Can't Have You

The day has finally come: after 79 episodes of Love is the Message, it's time to talk Travolta. Saturday Night Fever was always coming down the pipe for us, and now we're giving it the LITM treatment.In this episode, Tim and Jeremy establish some of the pre-history to the seminal 1977 film. With musical examples drawn from Vince Aletti's Disco Files playlists, we hear about the rise of the suburbs in the USA, the dynamics between the different boroughs of mid-70s NYC, and consider the suburban disco scene. We ask again what makes disco disco, revisit the Hustle, tune up the Salsoul Orchestra and take a trip to a disco conference.Of course, it wouldn't be Saturday Night Fever without the Bee Gees: often-derided and much-mocked but one of the highest selling bands of all time, it was their music which provided the soundtrack to the film. Are they a guilty pleasure? Listen along to find out.Produced by Matt Huxley.We are now on Youtube! Find series 6 here: https://www.youtube.com/@LITMPodcastRemember, we have a rolling playlist of all the tracks discussed over on Spotify: ⁠https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3ZpKyqhvhOXfTuPMHCBkFs⁠Tracklist:Carl Douglas - Blue Eyed Soul Gloria Scott - Just as Long as We're Together Babe Ruth - Elusive Tina Charles - Disco Fever Joe Bataan - The Bottle Van McCoy - The Hustle Salsoul Orchestra - The Salsoul Hustle Bee Gees - Spicks and Specks Bee Gees - Massachusetts Bee Gees - Jive Talkin' Bee Gees - You Should be Dancing

This is an excerpt from a patrons-only episode. To hear the full thing and dozens more episodes on topics ranging from Walter Gibbons to Glam Rock, visit patreon.com/LoveMessagePod.In this patrons episode we conclude our two-parter on Bob Dylan, dragging him from where we left off last time in 1966 all the way up to the freewheeling year of 1977. Through a glut of albums we hear about John Hammond, spirituality, gnosis, religious iconography, St Augustine, Joe Hill and The Band. Dylan meets the Panthers, who don't think much of him, he gets married and divorced, sets out on the road with the Rolling Thunder Review, and lights up the silver screen. Tim and Jeremy consider the Grain of his voice, the reception history of his mid-70s output, and leave him smiling as the happy hippy uncle we wish he'd became.Tracklist:Bob Dylan - As I Went Out One Morning Bob Dylan - Lay, Lady, Lay Bob Dylan - George Jackson Bob Dylan - Knockin' on Heaven's Door Bob Dylan - Meet Me in the Morning Bob Dylan - Tangled Up in Blue Bob Dylan, The Band - This Wheel's on Fire Bob Dylan - Isis 

Tim and Jeremy conclude our look at Eurodisco with a series of cuts from the mighty Giorgio Moroder. We hear the silky vocals of Donna Summer, the relentlessness of the 4-to-the-floor, the aesthetics of whiteness and what can only be called Prog Disco.Also in the episode Tim recounts a recent visit to the Philharmonie de Paris, Jeremy revels in a Star Wars rework, and we board the Trans Europe Express once again to spend some time with Kraftwerk.Remember, we have a rolling playlist of all the tracks discussed over on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3ZpKyqhvhOXfTuPMHCBkFsAnd you can hear plenty of bonus episodes by becoming a patron at patreon.com/LoveMessagePod.Produced by Matt Huxley.Tracklist:Giorgio - From Here to Eternity Munich Machine - Get on the Funk Train Donna Summer - Once Upon a Time Donna Summer - Back in Love Again Meco - Star Wars Theme Kraftwerk - Trans Europe Express 

This is an excerpt from a patrons-only episode. To hear the full thing and a hell of a lot more, visit Patreon.com/LoveMessagePod.Timothée Chalamet is currently lighting up the silver screen as Bob Dylan in A Complete Unknown. Have you seen in? We haven't, but we still thought it high time to dig into some Dylanology. In this episode Tim and Jeremy discuss Bob's early albums up to 1966, interrogating his intentions, his seriousness, his self-mythology, and whether he invented rock music.Tracklist:Bob Dylan - Song to Woody Bob Dylan - Blowin' in the Wind Bob Dylan - Chimes of Freedom Bob Dylan - Mr Tambourine Man

Tim and Jeremy are back on European soil for our second episode on Eurodisco. Examining their record boxes with a post-colonial lens they discuss the aesthetics and politics of race within the genre. We also here about homoeroticism, history-themed tracks, ‘the honky box', and the life and times of two of the key players in the scene: Jacques Morali and Richie Rome.And of course… Village People.Next time – Moroder!Tracklist:The Ritchie Family - Istanbul (Not Constantinople)The Ritchie Family - African QueensVillage People - San FranciscoBoney M - Ma BakerBoney M - New York City

This is an excerpt from a patrons-only episode. To hear the full show and lots more like it, visit Patreon.com/LoveMessagePod. For the first time in a while Tim and Jeremy dig into their record bags for a selection of tracks they've been enjoying recently. We hear the strange deep tones of the Rudra Veena, contemporary virtuosic New Age noodling out of California and some Antipodean sitar funk. Elsewhere in the episode Jeremy buys his first D'n'B white label in a long while, we get a few tributes to some big names of the UK scene, and revisit the mighty WAR. Tracklist: Madhuvanti Pal - Bhairavi (Part 1)Turn On the Sunlight - Floating SunsetGlass Beams - Black SandWar - War is Coming! War is Coming!Yannis & The Yaw - Walk Through FireVibration Black Finger - New Wave (The Hustle Bustle Song)Ariwo - El AlacránSami Galbi - Dakchi HaniBig Bud - CloudsurfingCalabra - Mazzara ReturnThe Mighty Zaf & Linkwood - Thinking About Phlash

In the first episode of 2025 Jeremy and Tim attempted to understand a somewhat maligned genre: Eurodisco. What is it and where did it come from? We hear about the cross-continental currents that gave rise to the form, unpack its aesthetics and spend time with some of its key proponents like the French composer and drummer Cerrone. Tim and Jeremy also take time to unpack the Switched On Classics, play us an infamous Beethoven reinvention, ask what the Enlightenment has to answer for, and compare Eurodisco and another genre that riles people up, prog rock. Tracklist: The SalSoul Orchestra - Magic Bird of Fire The Walter Murphy Band - A Fifth of Beethoven  Kongas - Jungle Cerrone - Love in C Minor Love and Kisses - I've Found Love (Now That I've Found You) 

This is an excerpt from a patrons-only episode. To hear the full show and lots more, visit Patreon.com/LoveMessagePod. On this patrons episode we complete our close reading of Resistance through Rituals: Youth Subcultures in Post-War Britain'. Jeremy and Tim take in chapters on criminality and culture, Style, and feminist analysis of girls' culture. They refer to another seminal work ‘Policing the Crisis', interrogate the links between class and generational consciousness, and return to the Mods, alongside Taylor Swift and Ray Davis. Jeremy and Tim also examine the long theoretical introduction to the book - a watershed piece of writing in the development of cultural studies.  Tracklist: Junior Murvin - Police and Thieves The Kinks - Dedicated Follower Of Fashion The Clash - Career Opportunities David Cassidy - Cherish 

In this episode of Love is the Message Jeremy and Tim have packed a bag chock full of stone cold 1977 dance floor classics that share a Black Disco aesthetic. We hear a number of cuts from Tom Moulton and Walter Gibbons that can be pinpointed as some of the most important contributions to early remix culture (whilst still guaranteed to go off at a party). François K makes a fleeting appearance, alongside Boney M, Grace Jones, Miami, the SalSoul Orchestra and Henri Bergson. We close out the show with an all-timer in Lamont Dozier's ‘Going Back to my Roots'. Enjoy this week listeners, as next time we're taking on Euro Disco…  Due to licensing issues, we can only play short clips of the music discussed. If you'd like to listen along to the full tracks, we have an ever-expanding Spotify playlist hosting (most) of the tracks played in the show. You can find Series 6 here: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3ZpKyqhvhOXfTuPMHCBkFs Produced by Matt Huxley. Tracklist: CJ & Co - Devil's Gun (Tom Moulton Mix) Elton John - Bite Your Lip (Get Up and Dance) (Tom Moulton Mix) First Choice - Dr Love (Tom Moulton Mix) Loleatta Holloway - Hit and Run (Walter Gibbons Mix) Rare Earth - Happy Song (François K Edit) T-Connection - Do What You Wanna Do Peter Brown - Do You Wanna Get Funky With Me? Sine - Keep It Coming Lamont Dozier - Going To My Roots

This is an excerpt from a patrons-only episode. To hear the full show, plus dozens more like it, visit Patreon.com/LoveMessagePod. We start this patrons episode with a tribute to Phil Cohen, a colleague of Jem and Tim's at UEL and a fellow traveller to the Birmingham cultural studies writers discussed in this episode. From there we pick up where we left off in our reading of the seminal edited collection ‘Resistance Through Rituals'. Tim and Jem cover the two ethnographies of 70s drug use found in the book - weed and acid if you're wondering - before rolling on to a disappointed essay on the Commune movement. We hear about Tim's experience on a Kibbutz, The Farm and a funky cut from YES. Later in the episode we examine two excellent pieces from the collection: Dick Hebdige on Reggae, Rastas and Rudis; and Ian Chambers on the Racial Politics of Rock'n'Roll. Next time we'll be completing our journey through the book with chapters on youth fashion, criminality and more, and taking a deep look at the weighty theoretical introduction. Produced by Matt Huxley. Tracklist: Yes - Yours is No Disgrace  The Farm Band - Loving YouBob Marley and the Wailers - Duppy Conqueror Big Joe Turner - Shake Rattle and Roll

In this episode Tim and Jeremy continue the story of Frankie Knuckles first year at the controls of the seminal Chicago nightclub, the Warehouse. We hear an investigation of Frankie's early musical aesthetic, how it would lend itself to the development of the House sound some years later, and whether stability or dynamism are better for a pumping dance floor. Elsewhere in the episode we hear about how Robert Williams came to know Frankie and Larry Levan, the experiences the two young club kids had at the Continental Baths, the understated role of social workers in the story of dance history, and what the PMC have to do with Afrika Bambaataa. Plus - stolen donuts, LSD in the fish tank, and Jeremy's dreams of lamé… Produced by Matt Huxley. Due to licensing issues, we can only play short clips of the music discussed. If you'd like to listen along to the full tracks, we have an ever-expanding Spotify playlist hosting (most) of the tracks played in the show. You can find Series 6 here: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3ZpKyqhvhOXfTuPMHCBkFs Tracklist: The Osmonds - One Bad Apple The Originals - Down to Love Town Roy Ayres - Running Away  Pam Todd & Love Exchange - Let's Get Together First Choice - Let No Man Put Asunder Made in USA - Melodies 

This is an excerpt from a patrons-only episode. To hear the full episode and dozens more like it, visit Patreon.com/LoveMessagePod. In this patrons episode we begin a reading series on a book we mentioned in the last episode: ‘Resistance Through Rituals: Youth Subcultures in Post-War Britain', edited by Stuart Hall and Tony Jefferson. This collection, first published in 1975, is a classic of the cultural studies reading list, but upon revisiting it for this show Jeremy and Tim found its content extremely pertinent to the project of this podcast. So, in true LITM style, why have one episode when you can have many? As such today we embark on a deep reading of the volume, starting with the first three chapters. Jeremy and Tim give a historiography of Stuart Hall's analytic method, tying in their own journeys through the academy, before discussing three interesting UK subcultures: Teddy Boys, Mods, and Skinheads. We hear about amphetamines, ska, racism, class, big lapels, Peaky Blinders, cut-price suits and the first teenagers in this journey through mid-century Britain. Stay tuned, much more to follow next time. Tracklist: Bill Haley - Rock Around the Clock The Who - The Seeker Symarip - Skinhead Moonstomp 

This is the first of two episodes on another seminal club in the history of dance culture: The Warehouse. Jeremy and Tim begin by spending some time discussing the city of Chicago, a place that despite its massive musical output hasn't really featured in out story so far. A crucible of industrial modernity, they consider its unique historical position, the move from Delta to Chicago Blues, and how it linked to NYC in the mid-70s. We hear about the several early locations of the club that would become The Warehouse, revisit Frankie Knuckles and Larry Levan, and give a shout out to another satellite of the US disco scene, Le Jock. Plus: singing bumblebees, Chaka Khan, and David Mancuso's enduring love of Tescos. Produced by Matt Huxley. Tracklist: Muddy Waters - Trouble No More Rufus and Chaka Khan - Once You Get Started Titanic - Rain 2000 Bumblebee Unlimited - Love Bug 

This is an excerpt from a patrons-only episode. To hear the full thing, and much much more, visit Patreon.com/LoveMessagePod to sign up from just £3 a month. In this patrons episode we thought we'd begin to explore the academic discipline of Cultural Studies. Tim and Jeremy (both Cultural Studies professors themselves remember) explain the ways in which academic study of popular cultural was developing in the mid-70s, including the political motivations informing academics developing the discipline, in the wake of sociology and social anthropology. They talk about analysis of subculture, Raymond Williams, Stuart Hall, Mods, Rockers, nostalgia, Cool Jazz, with a healthy dash of DH Lawrence thrown in for good measure.  In our next episode we'll discuss in detail the seminal book Resistance Through Rituals: Youth Subcultures in Post-War Britain. Books: William Foote White - Street Corner Society: The Social Structure of an Italian SlumC. Wright Mills - The Power ElitesRaymond Williams - Culture and SocietyRichard Hoggart - The Uses of Literacy DH Lawrence - Lady's Chatterly's LoverStan Cohen - Folk Devils and Moral Panics Paul Willis - Profane Culture Tracklist:Lennie Tristano - CrosscurrentsEwan McColl & Peggy Seeger - The Black Velvet BandThe Who - The Kids are AlrightBuddy Holly - Not Fade Away

We're back from our summer break and getting straight back to business to examine what was going on in the Downtown party scene during the fabled year of 1977. We return to a favourite of the show - Nicky Siano - to hear how the Gallery wound down, check in on what's happening back at the Loft, and unearth the very first iteration of the Paradise Garage. Also featured in this episode: a bit more Studio 54 wash-up, the decline of the New York Record Pool, Deleuzian sobriety and more on Jem's breakdancing. Produced and edited by Matt Huxley. Books:Jonathan Mahler - Ladies and Gentlemen the Bronx is Burnin Tracklist:Salsoul Orchestra ft. Loleatta Holloway - Runaway Teddy Pendergrass - The More I Get, The More I Want Grace Jones - I Need a Man Sylvester - Over and Over C.J. & Co. - We Got Our Own Thing Evelyn "Champagne" King - Shame

In this episode Jeremy and Tim complete our mini-series on the opening of Studio 54. They discuss links between underground and mainstream both generally and specific to 1977 NYC, consider the importance of celebrities to the Studio project, and interrogate the velvet rope. We hear about Bianca Jagger's birthday party, spend more time thinking about Richard Long and his sound system designs, and ask who really is a native New Yorker? We'll be away for the summer holidays, but will be back with more music, sound systems and counterculture in September. For now, why not dig into our back archive of bonus episodes on by becoming a patron at patreon.com/LoveMessagePod Produced and edited by Matt Huxley. Tracklist: Sweet Cream - I Don't Know What I'd Do  Olympic Runners - Keep It Up  Odyssey - Native New Yorker  Le Pamplemousse – Le Spank  The Trammps - The Night The Lights Went Out 

In this episode Jeremy and Tim walk us past the velvet rope and into opening night at Studio 54. They introduce us to Steve Rubell and Ian Schrager, the two businessmen who owned the club, as well as to the often overlooked Carmen D'Alessio, who's taste and art world connections were crucial to the look and feel of the party. Through these characters and more we get to learn about the founding of Studio 54. We also hear discussions on Muzak, eclecticism, returning champion Nicky Siano, and the aesthetics of ‘smoothness'. Tim and Jeremy interrogate the surprising links between Downtown and Midtown, explore how journalists tried to understand the Studio 54 phenomenon, and contemplate whether they even like disco anymore. Produced and edited by Matt Huxley. Tracklist: The Ritchie Family - Brazil  Anthony Whyte - Block Party (A Walter Gibbons Mix)  Chic - Dance Dance Dance  Santa Esmeralda - Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood 

This is an excerpt from a patrons-only episode. To hear the whole thing and hours more exclusive conversation, become a patron at Patreon.com/LoveMessagePod. In this patrons-only episode Jeremy dons his leather jacket to conclude our history of the early days of heavy metal. We hear about how the convergence of space rock, biker gangs, and the fantasy aesthetics of writer Michael Moorcock created an deeply abiding metal culture that would contribute massively to the second half of the Twentieth Century and beyond. Jeremy discusses the success of Warhammer, makes the case for rock opera, argues for the cultural significance of the Lord of the Rings and even has time to unpack metal masculinity, with reference to bands including Led Zeppelin, Hawkwind, Judas Priest and Deep Purple. Rock on! Produced by Matt Huxley. Tracklist: Led Zeppelin - Stairway to Heaven  Hawkwind - Silver Machine  Blue Oyster Cult - Stairway to the Stars  Deep Purple - Smoke on the Water  Lynyrd Skynyrd - Free Bird  Thin Lizzy - Whiskey in the Jar  Kiss - Black Diamond  Judas Priest - Winter Retreat  Hawkwind - The Wizard Blew His Horn  Hawkwind - Kings of Speed  Judas Priest - The Ripper  Motorhead - Motorhead 

In this episode Jeremy and Tim discuss the economic and social setting into which Studio 54 opened in 1977. They talk about the differences between midtown and downtown scenes, the antagonism (or lack thereof) between punk and disco, subcultural theory and escapism.  How did disco become so popular so quickly? The guys explore the commercial phenomenon as it exploded after 1975, including the first Disco Convention in 1976 (with awards ceremony!), the in-crowd vs the suburbs, and an extended meditation on the history and value of gimmick records. Plus: has Jeremy done the Hustle? Produced and edited by Matt Huxley. Books: Sarah Thornton - Club Cultures: Music, Media and Subcultural Capital Anthony Hayden-Guest - The Last Party Thomas Delany - Times Square Red, Times Square Blue Tracklist: Rick Dees and his Cast of Idiots - Disco Ducks  Van McCoy - The Hustle  Carol Douglas - Midnight Love Affair  Dr. Buzzard's Original Savannah Band - Cherchez La Femme 

This is an excerpt from a patrons-only episode. To hear the full thing and a whole lot more, go to Patreon.com/LoveMessagePod. In this patrons-episode Jeremy raises a devil's horn salute to the gods and demons of heavy metal. He explores the etymology of the genre term, excavating its shared roots with acid rock, and explaining how heavy metal compliments our story here on LITM. With reference to Easy Rider and the misconceived ‘end of the ‘60s', we hear about how biker culture, the legacy of the blues and changing regimes of accumulation contributed to the anguished intensity expressed in the music of Led Zeppelin, King Crimson and Iron Butterfly.  Jeremy also explores noise, feedback and distortion as the new aesthetic tools of metal, questions why people in the late 60s would want to explore occult and black magic ideas, and finishes with a deep dive on Black Sabbath, asking: was heavy metal an expression of the blues for white guys who's dad's worked in the car factories of Birmingham? Join us next time for pt. 2. Produced by Matt Huxley. Books and Films: Easy RiderRobert Walser - Running with the Devil: Power, Gender and Madness in Heavy Metal Music Tracklist: Steppenwolf - Born to be Wild  Blue Cheer - Summertime Blues  The Who - My Generation (Live 1968)  Led Zeppelin - Dazed and Confused  Led Zeppelin - Whole Lotta Love  King Crimson - 21st Century Schizoid Man  Iron Butterfly - Easy Rider (Let the Wind Pay the Way)  Black Sabbath - Black Sabbath  Black Sabbath - Paranoid  Black Sabbath - War Pigs 

In the final episode of our three-parter on punk, Jeremy and Tim stick a pin through their ears and make their way down the Kings Road for the release of Anarchy in the UK. We hear about the mercurial Malcolm McLaren, Situationism, Symbolism and SEX in discussion with the Pistols project. We uncover why John Lydon knows what he hates but not what he wants, how a prime-time curse word scandalised Britain, and ask who wasn't at the Manchester Free Trade Hall the night the Sex Pistols played. Elsewhere in the episode we dig deeper into what constituted punk as a structure of feeling, contrasting authenticity with irony and asking: how serious really is all this? With Blondie, John Waters, Rimbaud, the Mercer Street Arts Center and Patti Smith. Never mine the bollocks, here's Love is the Message… Produced by Matt Huxley. Tracklist:New York Dolls - Personality Crisis Patti Smith - Horses Blondie - X Offender Books:Frith & Hall - Art into Pop

This is an excerpt from a patrons-only episode. To hear the whole thing and much more besides, visit Patreon.com/LoveMessagePod Earlier this month UNESCO added Berlin techno to its List of Intangible Cultural Heritage, a register to recoginize and safeguard important traditions, practices and expressions. This news was met with consternation from music fans over how this honour completely overlooked the birthplace of techno, Detroit. For this patrons-only episode, Jeremy and Tim react to the news by pulling out a dozen or so of their favourite Detroit techno cuts to discuss. We hear about the ‘Belville Three', post-Fordism, Alvin Tofler and the relationship between Chicago and Motor City. The guys dwell on the aesthetic of coldness and futurity that characterised much of the Detroit sound, folding in the Panthers, jazz and unidentified flying objects into records from Underground Resistance, Carl Craig, Drexciya and Theo Parish. Plus, we hear one of the first records Jeremy ever bought, memories of squat parties past, and a de rigour David Mancuso cameo. Tracklist:Model 500 - No UFOs Rhythim Is Rhythim - It Is What It Is R-Tyme - R-Theme Underground Resistance - The Theory The Martian - Star Dancer K-Hand - Starz Innerzone Orchestra - Eruption Innerzone Orchestra - Bug in the Bass Bin The Aztec Mystic - Jaguar Drexciya - Birth Of New Life Carl Craig & Pepe Braddock - Angola (Carl Craig Mix) Theo Parish - Falling Up Innerzone Orchestra - People Make the World Go 'Round

In this episode we continue our trio of episodes on Punk by examining some crucial mid-70s proto-Punk antecedents. Via the lean funkiness of Dr Feelgood Jeremy and Tim explore the interesting British formation of pub rock, with its R'n'B roots and distinct danceability. This leads to a discussion on the slipperiness of Rock'n'Roll as a term and its tensions with ‘rock' proper. We also hear an early influence on Post-Punk and meet the influential Stiff Records at its foundation. In the second half of the show we make a second encounter on the show with the Ramones, and ask: what were they really up to? Authenticity, performance, historiography and hagiography all come under the microscope as we lead to the first definitively British Punk record: New Rose by The Damned.Join us next time for Blondie and the Sex Pistols.Produced and edited by Matt Huxley. Tracklist:Dr Feelgood - She Does it RightDr Feelgood - Keep it Outta SightNick Lowe - So It GoesThe Ramones - Blitzkrieg BopThe Saints - (I'm) StrandedThe Damned - New Rose

This is an excerpt from a patrons-only episode. To hear the whole thing and a huge number of other conversations, head to Patreon.com/LoveMessagePod. In this patrons episode Jem and Tim once again share what's been on their turntables recently. We hear two tracks - one contemporary and one not - from the UK Asian Underground, along with a consideration of the cosmopolitan aesthetic of artists like Bally Sagoo and Nitin Sawhney. Tim reflects on trips to the WOMAD festival and digs into trip hop while Jem shares a powerful Qawwali cut. Elsewhere we hear Swedish afrobeat, extremely psychedelic roots reggae, free love, a compilation for Gaza, Messages from the Stars and more… Tracklist: Nitin Sawhney - Charu Keshi RainNora Dean - Angie La LaBally Sagoo - NoorieMorelo - Promise (from ‘For Gaza' comp by Planet Turbo Records)The RAH Band - Messages from the StarsOrgōne - StrikeNusrat Fateh Ali Khan - Shamas-Ud-Doha, Badar-Ud-DojaOlumo Soundz - Sunday JumpJune Jazzin - Shine Your Brightest Light Books: Sanjay Sharma, John Hutnyk, Ashwani Sharma (Eds) - Dis-Orienting Rhythms: The Politics of the New Asian Dance Music 

Welcome to Series 6 of Love is the Message! We hope you enjoyed the series of conversations with writers and academics that comprised Series 5, but now we are returning to our usual format to examine a watershed year: 1977.  In this first episode we are unpacking Punk. What is it? A musical style, a subgenre of rock, a fashion sensibility, an attitude, a structure of feeling? In the first of three shows on Punk, Jeremy and Tim unfurl a general genealogy of the term as we build towards the release of Anarchy in the UK in two episodes' time. They discuss where the term came from and how it was codified; the importance punk placed on realness and spontaneity; and contrast Punk's nostalgic and avant garde modes.  Tim and Jeremy make reference to three bands not immediately thought of as Punk - The Seeds, The MC5 and The Stooges - to uncover what musical work was taking place in the late 60s and early 70s that could be viewed as proto-punk, and use these bands to show the problems of rock historiography in recounting the history of Punk. And, this being LITM, we of course spend some time untangling the Punk vs Disco dichotomy.  We hope you'll join us as we continue our long march through the 1970s and beyond! Become a patron at patreon.com/LoveMessagePod. Produced and edited by Matt Huxley. Tracklist: The Seeds - Pushin' Too Hard The MC5 - Kick Out the Jams The Stooges - Funhouse

This is an excerpt from a patrons-only episode. To hear the whole thing and a lot more besides, head to Patreon.com/LoveMessagePod. In this patrons' episode we conclude our trio of episodes on Glam Rock. Tim and Jeremy pick up where they left off with a walk on the wild side. This leads to a discussion of the relationship between Lou Reed, Bowie and Iggy Pop in the early 70s. They discuss the undisputed glam anthem Cum on Feel the Noize from Birmingham's finest Slade, replete with its football terrace chant and fist-pumping energy. And on the mellower side, explore the idea of glam as torch song, with entries from international treasure Elton John and a return to the show for Roxy Music. Jeremy and Tim conclude the episode with an acceptance of the might of Queen and a brief scintilla of postmodernism - much more of that to follow. Produced and edited by Matt Huxley. Tracklist: Lou Reed - Walk on the Wild Side David Bowie - Moonage Daydream Slade - Cum On Feel The Noize Suzi Quatro - Glycerine Queen Elton John - Goodbye Yellow Brick Road Roxy Music - In Every Dream Home a Heartache Queen - Killer Queen

This is an excerpt from a patrons-only episode. To hear the whole show, and a whole lot more besides, head to Patreon.com/LoveMessagePod to sign up. In this patrons' episode we move into the second of three episodes on Glam. The third part of this trilogy will be dropping in your feed sooner than our normal schedule so hold tight for that. Tim and Jeremy discuss that big beast of British rock, Roxy Music. They consider Brian Ferry's cultivation of a White British vocal style, the effects of art college on this and so many other contemporaneous UK bands, Ferry's eventual styling as ‘Frank Sinatra in quotation marks', and the emergence from within Roxy of one of the most influential producers of the Twentieth Century - Brian Eno. Also in the episode the guys go deep on Ziggy Stardust and unpack the desire of so many 70s musicians to just be taken seriously. Plus, the shadow of Dylan, Cornelius Cardew, and more Marc Bolan.  Produced and edited by Matt Huxley. Tracklist: Roxy Music - Re-Make/Re-Model Roxy Music - Virginia Plain David Bowie - Ziggy Stardust T.Rex - Children Of The Revolution

In this episode Jeremy and Tim are joined by writer, historian, and friend of the show Simon Reynolds to discuss British musical trends of the 1970s and his life as a music journalist. Simon is arguably the most important music critic writing today, having penned seminal books on post-punk, electronic dance music, feminist rock and much more. In this interview he mostly talks about his most recent book, ‘Shock and Awe: Glam Rock and Its Legacy, from the Seventies to the Twenty-First Century', sharing stories from his childhood interest in the decadent world of Glam. The three discuss how so many artists came to aestheticise a rejection of suburbia, the purply gauze of Top of the Pops, and thinking the Situationists were a band. They unpick how Punk is imagined and historicised versus how it was experienced, how Simon came to reappraise the 60s against a hostile critical culture, and consider the role of the music press historically and today. For patrons, our extended edition also includes a discussion around Simon's 2011 book ‘Retromania: Pop Culture's Addiction to its Own Past'. Tim, Jeremy and Simon recount the particular conjuncture from which the book arose, tease out its key theses, and apply those to contemporary music culture. Simon Reynolds is the author of ‘Blissed Out: The Raptures of Rock', ‘The Sex Revolts: Gender, Rebellion and Rock 'N' Roll' with Joy Press, ‘Energy Flash: A Journey Through Rave Music and Dance Culture', ‘Rip It Up and Start Again: Postpunk 1978–1984', ‘Bring The Noise: 20 Years of Writing About Hip Rock and Hip-Hop', ‘Retromania: Pop Culture's Addiction to Its Own Past' and ‘Shock and Awe: Glam Rock and Its Legacy, from the Seventies to the Twenty-First Century'. His next book, ‘Futuromania: Electronic Dreams from Moroder to Migos' is forthcoming. Tracklist: Scott Joplin - The Entertainer Ian Dury & the Blockheads - Plaistow Patricia The Rezillos - Top Of The Pops The Specials - Ghost Town Led Zeppelin - Whole Lotta Love

UNLOCKED - We've made public this previously patrons-only episode following the death of Can singer Damo Suzuki. If you'd like to become a patron, visit Patreon.com/LoveMessagePod. W do you call it? Krautrock, space rock, the Great Komische Music? It's all German to me. In a little under two hours the guys cover the history of post-WW2 Germany (East and West), anti-Communist geopolitics, what you want to hear when you're tripping, Pop Art, post-rock and playfulness, all in reference to the music of Can, NEU!, Ash Ra Tempel and more. We hear about the characteristics of the German counterculture from which many of these players came, the various tendencies of revolutionary European socialism, the Green Party, and the problems of De-Nazification. We consider the avant-garde compositions of Karlheinz Stockhausen, the impact of American acid rock, Ancient Egypt, and the many ways James Brown's funk filtered into the motor rhythms of Dusseldorf 1971. More than anything, we survey a formidable body of work that is at once mesmeric and danceable - both things we like here at Love is the Message! Produced by Matt Huxley. Books:Julian Cope - Krautrock Sampler: One Head's Guide  to the Great Kosmische MusikDavid Stubbs - Future Days: Krautrock and the Building of Modern Germany Tracklist:Ash Ra Tempel & Timothy Leary - TimeshipKarlheinz Stockhausen - Spiral (Realization A)Amon Duul ii - Yeti (Improvisation)Ash Ra Tempel - AmbossKraftwerk - StratovariusTangerine Dream - GenesisTangerine Dream - Flute Organ PieceCan - HalleluwahNEU! - HallogalloCan - MoonshakeKraftwerk - AutobahnHarmonia & Eno '76 - AtmosphereKraftwerk - Trans Europe Express

This is an excerpt from a patrons-only episode. To hear the whole thing, plus dozens of hours more discussion and conversation, head to patreon.com/LoveMessagePod. In this patrons' episode we continue our look at musical currents of the 1970s by pulling on our platform boots, pasting on some eyeliner and getting ready for Glam Rock. In the first of two episodes, Tim and Jeremy excavate the pre-history of this strange trans-Atlantic phenomenon, which expresses both fascinating cultural insights and some pretty bad music (to our ears). Tim and Jeremy discuss the concept of glamour itself, the glamorous side of Hippy culture, and clothing and makeup as forms of self-expression. They also get stuck into 60s Garage Rock, focusing on The Stooges and The Velvet Underground, to consider ideas of decadence, masculinity, mass culture, Warhol and more, before - via a detour through the singular artistry of David Bowie - teeing up two recognisable faces of early Glam: Marc Bolan and Alice Cooper. Next episode we'll be continuing on to Roxy Music, the New York Dolls, later Bowie, Slade, and the legacy of this strange musical force. Produced and edited by Matt Huxley. Tracklist: The Pleasure Seekers - What a Way to Die The Velvet Underground - Venus in Furs The Stooges - TV Eye Alice Cooper - I'm Eighteen David Bowie - The Man Who Sold The World Alice Cooper - School's Out T. Rex - Hot Love Books: Philip Auslander - Performing Glam Rock: Gender and Theatricality in Popular Music Simon Reynolds Book - Shock and Awe: Glam Rock and Its Legacy, from the Seventies to the Twenty-First Century Colin Campbell - The Romantic Ethic and the Spirit of Modern Consumerism

To hear an extended version of this conversation, become a patron at Patreon.com/LoveMessagePod. In this episode Jeremy and Tim are joined by historian and New Yorker Kim Phillips-Fein to discuss a crucial event in the Love is the Message story: the 1975 New York City fiscal crisis. Kim's book ‘Fear City: New York's Fiscal Crisis and the Rise of Austerity Politics' is widely regarded as the definitive text on the matter, so she was the perfect person to talk to, and she brought some great music recommendations to boot. The three discuss both the long- and short-term backdrop to the crisis, charting how the city's unique social democratic municipal system of rent controls, hospitals and education changed across the twentieth century, before examining how the centre of international capital came extremely close to bankruptcy. Kim explains the financial mechanisms which animated the crisis and the political choices that precipitated it. She elucidates President Ford's predicament during the crisis, the effects of ‘white flight', and reminds us that New York was itself an industrial city rapidly de-industrialising.  This being Love is the Message, naturally we also hear about the extraordinary cultural creativity of the time and examine its material causes, including changing democraphics and the transformation of Soho. Finally, Tim Jeremy and Kim consider what happened next, and how the fiscal crisis has been historicised to serve a particular ideology. Kim Phillips-Fein is the Gardiner-Kenneth T. Jackson Professor of History at Columbia University. Her book ‘Fear City: New York's Fiscal Crisis and the Rise of Austerity Politics' was named a finalist for the 2018 Pulitzer Prize for History. She is also the author of ‘Invisible Hands: The Making of the Conservative Movement from the New Deal to Reagan'. Tracklist: Television - Venus The Dils - Class War The Rolling Stones - Shattered Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five - The Message

This is an excerpt from a patrons-only episode. To hear the whole show, plus much more, head to Patreon.com/LoveMessagePod. On this festive edition of What We're Listening To, Jeremy and Tim share selections from their turntables alongside thoughts on religion, atheism, death - and Blondie. We hear psychedelic jazz from north India and northern England, a brace of uplifting Gospel anthems from Pastor T.L Barrett, and some free-wheeling spiritual jazz from the Bronx via Puerto Rico. A smattering of seasonal song is dispersed throughout the selections, and with an eye on the horrors of the last two months in the Middle East, an uplifting call for peace to sign off on. We will be taking a short break for Christmas and New Year but will be back in mid-January with more LITM. Tune in, turn on, get down… Produced by Matt Huxley. Tracklist: Manish Pingle - Raga Puriya Kalyan Erobique (ft. Florence Adooni) - Mam Tola Matthew Halsall - An Ever Changing View Pastor T.L. Barrett And The Youth For Christ Choir - I Shall Wear a Crown Pastor T.L. Barrett And The Youth For Christ Choir - Jingle Bells Blondie - Yuletide Throwdown Antonio Ocasio ft. Nina Hadzi Antich - That Something Alfredo Linares - La Musica Por Dentro (Remixed by Jose Parla & Phenomenal Handclap Band) Joseph Macwan - Climb That Mountain (3AM Mix) Mike Anthony - Why Can't We Live Together

This is an excerpt from a patrons-only episode. To hear the full show, plus much more, sign up at Patreon.com/LoveMessagePod. In this patrons episode, Tim and Jeremy continue their investigation into the musical cultures of Europe and the UK of the 1970s. For this show, pull on your wide-leg jeans, pop a dexy and talc the floor, because we're talking Northern Soul. We hear about Mod culture, subcultural theory, Quadraphenia, and clubs like the Twisted Wheel, the Wigan Casino and the Blackpool Mecca. Tim and Jeremy excavate a particular wistful, romantic and nostalgic affect to the mid-60s Soul music that fuelled these all-night dances in the north of England, and consider to what extent the dancers were seeking escapism. We also hear about Rave, Jackie Chan and Paul Mason, so get out on the floor and keep the faith! Tracklist: Don Gardner - My Baby Likes To Boogaloo Small Faces - All Or Nothing Christine Cooper - Heartaches Away My Boy Dobie Grey - Out on the Floor The Flirtations - Nothing But A Heartache Kariya - Let Me Love You For Tonight  Gloria Jones - Tainted Love Geno Washington & the Ram Jam Band - Bring It To Me Baby Tobi Legend - Time Will Pass You By Books: Stephen Catterall and Keith Gildart - Keeping The Faith: A History of Northern Soul Stan Cohen - Folk Devils and Moral Panics Watch Fiorucci Made Me Hardcore by Mark Leckey here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-dS2McPYzEE Watch Paul Mason's Keeping The Faith doc here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xJsgkXdlkgs

In this week's episode, Tim and Jeremy are joined by writer, critic and academic Emily J. Lordi to discuss her 2020 book The Meaning of Soul (and much more besides). Emily talks about how she got into writing about Black music and the particular status Soul held in academia at the start of her career. The three consider changing historiographies of Black culture, talk over some key canonical texts, and contrast Soul with scholarship on Blues and Jazz. Emily explains how her analysis looks beyond lyrics in its appraisal of the political content of Soul, and how through an evaluation of a shift between sacred and secularised notions of the genre, we can see an articulation of a collective subjectivity representative of the congregational traditions from which the music draws on. Elsewhere, Tim, Jeremy and Emily consider ‘the crew' in Soul and Hip Hop, Disco's relationship to Soul, Gladys Knight and the Pips and Minnie Ripperton. For patrons, the three dig into Emily's concept of ‘Afro-Presentism', Beyonce, Janelle Monáe, contemporary R'n'B, and the affect of resilience. Emily J. Lordi is a writer, professor, and cultural critic whose focus is African American literature and Black popular music. She is professor of English at Vanderbilt University and the author of three books: Black Resonance (2013), Donny Hathaway Live (2016), and The Meaning of Soul (2020). Produced by Matt Huxley. Check out the back catalog, reading lists, playlists and more at our website: https://www.loveisthemessagepod.co.uk/

In this week's episode, Tim and Jeremy are joined by writer and scholar Mark Anthony Neal. Mark's 1999 book ‘What the Music Said: Black Popular Music and Black Public Culture' is a crucial text for us here at Love is the Message, so it was fantastic to have him join the show to discuss his life and work in music. We discuss how the Black popular music of the past 60 years provides an insight into black socio-political life, via Gospel, Soul, Hip Hop and more. Mark explores how his upbringing in the South Bronx, from spending Sunday mornings with his parents to heading to the Apollo to see the Jackson 5 and Aretha, shaped his view of the Black public sphere. The interview provides Jem and Tim with the opportunity to trace their interest in the progressive potential of the 1970s back to the slave experience, the development of spirituals that became a channel for acts of resistance, the African American church's reversioning of Christianity as a space of Black communion and expression, the importance of the jook and the rent party for expressions of Black pleasure. These spaces contributed to the shaping of an increasingly radical Black politics, from the burgeoning civil rights movement to Black Power, with rhythm and blues, soul and funk. We discuss the late-80s turn toward commodity culture within Hip Hop and consider what happened politically to black musicians into the 90s. For patrons, Mark, Tim and Jeremy also discuss early disco, Black dance music and Saturday Night Fever; consider the aspirational, entrepreneurial mindset of many of the 70s pioneers; and the role of sampling as an act of Black archival work undertaken by caretakers of Black musical lineage, bringing us right up to the listening practices of today. Mark Anthony Neal is the Professor of Black Popular Culture in the Department of African and African-American Studies at Duke University host of the weekly webcast ‘Left of Black' in collaboration with the John Hope Franklin Center at Duke University. He is the author of ‘What the Music Said: Black Popular Music and Black Public Culture', ‘Soul Babies: Black Popular Culture and the Post-Soul Aesthetic', ‘Songs in the Keys of Black Life: A Rhythm and Blues Nation', ‘New Black Man: Rethinking Black Masculinity' and ‘Looking for Leroy: (Il)Legible Black Masculinities'. Produced by Matt Huxley. Become a patron to hear an extended version of this conversation by visiting patreon.com/LoveMessagePod. Check out the back catalog, reading lists, playlists and more at our website: https://www.loveisthemessagepod.co.uk/ And listen along our Spotify playlist featuring music from the series at: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1ZylmJYk5SxyyTI2OQp0iy Tracklist: The Sugarhill Gang - Rapper's Delight  The Jackson 5 - Dancing Machine Eugene McDaniels - Headless Heroes Eric B. And Rakim - Paid in Full Ray Charles - (Night time Is) The Right Time The Isley Brothers - Fight the Power Marvin Gaye - What's Going On Sly & The Family Stone - Stand!  Bessie Smith- Back Water Blues LL Cool J - The Boomin' System

This is an excerpt from a patrons-only episode. To hear the full show, plus many more hours of conversation, become a patron at Patreon.com/LoveMessagePod. In this patrons episode Tim and Jeremy offer music on the theme of war and peace. They reflect on the ongoing conflict in Palestine, discussing the current unfolding crisis and taking a longer view on Israeli history. We hear about the ecstatic peace of John Coltrane, a lesser-known companion to Edwin Starr's ‘War', why Tim loves the Human League but New Order not so much, and consider the Promised Land. Tim and Jeremy also share music by Palestinian musicians Sama' Abdulhadi and Kamilya Jubran, talk about Jem's experiences DJing the country, Boiler Room as an unexpected anti-imperialist organisation, and the pitfalls of cultural appropriation. Produced by Matt Huxley. Tracklist: John Coltrane - Peace on Earth (Live At Shinjuku Kosei Nenkin Hall, Tokyo, Japan / July 22, 1966) Edwin Starr - Stop The War Now The Human League - The Lebanon  Sama' Abdulhadi - Reverie  Mutado Pintado presents Sworn Virgins - Michelle (Acid Arab Mix) Bashar Murad - Maskhara Joe Smooth - Promised Land (Club Mix) Willie Hutch - Brother s Gonna Work it Out Kamilya Jubran & Werner Halser - Wa (pt.1) Maurice Ravel - Kaddish

In this week's episode, Tim and Jeremy welcome writer and academic Gayle Wald to the show to tell us about the life and times of Sister Rosetta Tharpe. Christened on social media ‘the queer black woman who invented rock'n'roll', yet derided in 1970 as ‘a blacked up Elvis in drag', Sister Rosetta's story disrupts the received narrative of rock history. We hear about her religious upbringing, hitting the road with her evangelist mother; playing in the Cotton Club, the Decca Records studios, and from the centre field of a football stadium (in her wedding dress!); and being feted by Johnny Cash at the Rock'n'Roll Hall of Fame. Sister Rosetta's story concerns misogyny, Pentecostalism, the evolution of the electric guitar, gossip, Little Richard and more, and Gayle is the perfect person to share it with us. This is an edited version of the full interview. To hear more about Sister Rosetta as well as about Gayle's book on the television programme ‘Soul!' - a groundbreaking piece of public broadcasting that brought black thinkers, activists and musicians to the TV screen - and her forthcoming work on the eminent children's musician Ella Jenkins, become a patron. Gayle Wald  is a professor of English and American Studies at George Washington University and a Guggenheim Fellow. She is the author of 'Crossing the Line: Racial Passing in U.S. Literature and Culture', ‘Shout, Sister, Shout!: The Untold Story of Rock-and-Roll Trailblazer Sister Rosetta Tharpe' and ‘It's Been Beautiful: Soul! and Black Power Television'. Produced by Matt Huxley.Become a patron at Patreon.com/LoveMessagePod Check out the back catalog, reading lists, playlists and more at our website: https://www.loveisthemessagepod.co.uk/ Produced by Matt Huxley. Tracklist: Sister Rosetta Tharpe - Rock MeSister Rosetta Tharpe - Up Above My Head Sister Rosetta Tharpe and Marie Knight - Didn't It RainSister Rosetta Tharpe - Strange Things Happening Every DayMahalia Jackson - Move On Up a Little HigherSister Rosetta Tharpe - Move On Up a Little Higher

In this episode Tim and Jeremy begin a series of shows for patrons that flesh out some of the other musical currents of the UK and Europe in the late 60s and early 70s, beginning with… well, what do you call it? Krautrock, space rock, the Great Komische Music? It's all German to me. In a little under two hours the guys cover the history of post-WW2 Germany (East and West), anti-Communist geopolitics, what you want to hear when you're tripping, Pop Art, post-rock and playfulness, all in reference to the music of Can, NEU!, Ash Ra Tempel and more. We hear about the characteristics of the German counterculture from which many of these players came, the various tendencies of revolutionary European socialism, the Green Party, and the problems of De-Nazification. We consider the avant-garde compositions of Karlheinz Stockhausen, the impact of American acid rock, Ancient Egypt, and the many ways James Brown's funk filtered into the motor rhythms of Dusseldorf 1971. More than anything, we survey a formidable body of work that is at once mesmeric and danceable - both things we like here at Love is the Message! Produced by Matt Huxley. Become a patron at Patreon.com/LoveMessagePod For rights reasons, we can only play excerpts of the tracks we discuss. However, if you'd like to listen along in full, with updates every episode, follow our Spotify playlist at: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1ZylmJYk5SxyyTI2OQp0iy Books: Julian Cope - Krautrock Sampler: One Head's Guide  to the Great Kosmische Musik David Stubbs - Future Days: Krautrock and the Building of Modern Germany Tracklist: Ash Ra Tempel & Timothy Leary - Timeship Karlheinz Stockhausen - Spiral (Realization A) Amon Duul ii - Yeti (Improvisation) Ash Ra Tempel - Amboss Kraftwerk - Stratovarius Tangerine Dream - Genesis Tangerine Dream - Flute Organ Piece Can - Halleluwah NEU! - Hallogallo Can - Moonshake Kraftwerk - Autobahn Harmonia & Eno '76 - Atmosphere Kraftwerk - Trans Europe Express

Love is the Message is back for Series 5! After a few weeks off for the summer holidays, Tim and Jeremy return to the show for more music, dancing, sound systems and counterculture. This time round, we're changing things up. As you'll hear, we're taking a break from our chronological narrative to bring in scholars and writers for a series of guest interviews, allowing us to both deepen our understanding of the late 60s and early 70s, and move around a bit more to histories we haven't got to yet. For patrons, we'll also be recording a number of episodes on the European and British musical phenomena that were taking place at the same time as the Loft and its ecosystem, so hold tight for that. But for this introductory episode, we're sharing a ‘What We're Listening To' show, featuring ten tracks that Jem and Tim have had on the turntables this year. We'll hear a rare Northern Soul cut from Tim, driving Brazilian funk, Carol King at her grooviest, plus spiritual jazz, ambient DnB, a conversation about Burning Man, and a pledge from Jem to keep playing Max Romeo until the rents go down. Become a patron at Patreon.com/LoveMessagePod And check out the back catalog, reading lists, playlists and more at our website: https://www.loveisthemessagepod.co.uk/ Produced by Matt Huxley. Tracklist: The Flirtations - Nothing But a Heartache Antonio Carlos & Jocafi - Simbarere Carol King - Believe in Humanity Miriam Makeba - We Gotta Make It Max Romeo - Rent Crisis Universal Togetherness Band - Ain't Gonna Cry Pharaoh Sanders - Oh Lord, Let Me Do No Wrong Underworld - Dark & Long (Spoon Deep Mix) Omni Trio - Higher Ground Brawther - Sundials Ft Nathan Haines

This is it - the final episode of series 4, New York City 1975-76. For this show Jeremy and Tim are staying in the Bronx for more discussion around the links between Downtown party culture and the port hip-hop scene. We hear about the very first B Boys, what their moves looked like, and what sort of music they were breaking to. We explore how important performing or being watched was to these dancers, and the similarities and differences with losing yourself on a disco dance floor. Tim and Jeremy unpack the class dimension of the early breaking scene, set against a backdrop of poverty and rising gang membership. They profile Africa Bambaataa, both as a DJ and an agent for social cohesion, and also introduce a young Grandmaster Flash - more on him to follow. Plus - Jeremy shares his own breaking experiences… We will take a short break (no pun intended) for summer, and will be back in the autumn for Series 5. Thanks to everyone for your continued support as we reach our 60th main episode of the podcast, closing in on 100 hours of music, dance floors, sound systems and counterculture. Love is the message… Become a patron at Patreon.com/LoveMessagePod And check out our new website: https://www.loveisthemessagepod.co.uk/ Books: Jeff Chang - Can't Stop Won't Stop Jonathan Mahler - Ladies and Gentlemen, the Bronx Is Burning: 1977, Baseball, Politics, and the Battle for the Soul of a City Philippe Bourgois - In Search of Respect Tracklist: The Jimmy Castor Bunch - It's Just Begun Abaco Dream - Life & death in G & A Shirley Ellis - The Clapping Song Herman, Kelly & Life - Dance to the Drummer's Beat The Rolling Stones - Honky Tonk Women Sly & The Family Stone - Family Affair  Grandmaster Flash - The Adventures Of Grandmaster Flash On The Wheels Of Steel

In the penultimate episode of our current series, Tim and Jeremy explore the earlier incarnations of what would become Hip-Hop. They begin by asking where the term comes from and interrogating the problematic historiography of the genre. The show then moves on to a detailed profile of the legendary DJ Cool Herc and his nascent rec room parties, alongside the contemporaneous mobile DJ culture, the Jazz poetry of Gil Scott-Heron and the Last Poets, the ‘merry-go-round' mixing technique, and the historical and affective significance of the breakbeat for hip-hop and disco. Plus: the only evidence you'll find of David Mancuso cutting breaks. Become a patron by visiting Patreon.com/LoveMessagePod And check out our new website: https://www.loveisthemessagepod.co.uk/ Books and Films: Wild Style (1982) Stan Cohen - Folk Devils and Moral Panics Tim Lawrence - Life and Death on the New York Dance Floor 1980-1983 Jeff Chang - Can't Stop Won't Stop: A History of the Hip-Hop Generation David Toop - The Rap Attack: African Jive to New York Hip HopTracklist: Rare Earth - Get Ready Gil Scott-Heron - The Revolution Will Not Be Televised The Last Poets - When the Revolution Comes Incredible Bongo Band - Apache Benny Goodman Orchestra - Sing Sing Sing Dennis Coffey & The Detroit Guitar Band - Scorpio

For this episode, Tim and Jeremy pull on their dancing shoes to explore why the Downtown dance floors of the early 1970s were such historically unique places. Situating the forms of dancing found at the Loft and the Sanctuary as part of a turn away from the forms of partner dancing covered in our previous episode, we hear how these new forms of dance deconstructed how people experienced their bodies socio-sexually and conceived of themselves as part of a newly self-conscious audience. Tim and Jeremy discuss how developments in both sound, DJ practice, lighting and the now famous mirror ball contributed to a ‘polymorphously perverse' experience for dancers. We also try to understand how people were actually dancing, ‘freakout gestures', ‘lofting', and how the ‘hustle' reterritorialised disco for a suburban market. Become a patron by visiting Patreon.com/LoveMessagePod And check out our new website: https://www.loveisthemessagepod.co.uk/ Tracklist: Earth, Wind & Fire - Power Lloyd Price - Bad Conditions James Brown - Cold Sweat (Live at the Apollo vol.2) Dinosaur L – Go Bang! #5 The Meters - Hand Clapping Song Tribe - Koke Van McCoy - The Hustle

This is an excerpt from a patrons episode. To hear the full show, and much more like this, head to Patreon.com/LoveMessagePod. In this patrons-only bonus episode, Jeremy explores what it means to analyse music from a feminist perspective. Beginning with a literature review of both the various forms of feminism theorised in the 1970s, and the body of feminist music writing from the late 80s to the early 2000s, we hear about the work of important thinkers like Susan McClary, Simon Reynolds, Angela McRobbie and Judith Butler to tease out what the various feminist perspectives were and what the task of feminist music criticism might be. We consider formal expressions of gender within music through Bach, Beethoven and Black Sabbath; spend time with the feminist post-punks Siouxie Sioux, Patti Smith and the Raincoats; think about how disco fits into all this; and consider the work of Laurie Anderson and Donna Haraway in the early 80s as they point towards a new form of cyborg feminism. Produced and edited by Matt Huxley. Books and Articles:Simon Frith and Angela McRobbie - Rock and SexualitySimon Reynolds and Joy Press - The Sex Revolts: Gender, Rebellion and Rock and RollRichard Dyer - In Defence of DiscoAndy Beckett - I Promised You A Miracle: Why 1980-1982 Made Modern BritainDonna Haraway - A Cyborg Manifesto Tracklist:JS Bach - The Art of Fugue, BWV 1080 (Contrapunctus 1)Black Sabbath - ParanoidThe Byrds - Wild Mountain ThymeThe Chicago Women's Liberation Rock Band - Mountain Moving DayThe Pleasure Seekers - What a Way To DieJoni Mitchell - Woman of Heart and MindSiouxsie And The Banshees - Mirage (John Peel Sessions)Patti Labelle - The Spirit's in ItDonna Summer - I Feel LoveThe Raincoats - LolaThe Raincoats - Dancing in my HeadSoft Cell - Say Hello, Wave GoodbyeLaurie Anderson - O Superman

We say that LITM is a podcast about music, the dance floor, sound systems and counterculture, but we realise that we haven't dedicated a show to dance floor practices for some time. So in this episode, Tim is in the hot seat to give us a quick primer on the history of social dance in the USA and beyond. With reference to the prevailing gender, class and power relations of their time, we learn about the surprising sensuousness of the Waltz, James P Johnson and the Charlston, the Lindy Hop, the Swing Age, The Twist and even Deadhead freakouts.  Calling into this history the Great Migration, the Harlem Renaissance, Elvis, the Acid Tests and more, Tim charts a history of social dance spanning over 200 years, and bringing us to the doors of the Loft and the Sanctuary in the early 1970s, from where we'll pick up next episode. Become a patron my visiting Patreon.com/LoveMessagePod And check out our new website: https://www.loveisthemessagepod.co.uk/ Tracklist: Johann Strauss II - The Blue Danube Waltz James P Johnson - Charlston Frankie Manning - Hellzapoppin Count Basie - One O'Clock Jump Hank Ballard & The Midnighters - The Twist The Grateful Dead - Mama Tried (Live at Woodstock)

This is an excerpt from a patrons-only episode. To hear this and much much more, become a patron at Patreon.com/LoveMessagePod. In this patrons-only bonus episode, Tim draws on some recent research into David Mancuso's record collection to share some tracks that might have been played during what he called ‘the prelude' -  the introductory portion of the night's musical entertainment. Taking into account the different settings at both the Broadway and Prince Street Lofts, and David's never-ending adjustments of the sound system, Tim explains what the prelude represented for the party, why hi-fi audio was crucial, and how the prelude changed across the 70s. Drawing on the three bardos understanding of the acid trip, we explore why this gentle introduction to a night of dancing was an important innovation and select a range of pieces of music that we can speculate would have been played. Produced and edited by Matt Huxley. Tracklist: Van Morrison - Astral Weeks Morgana King - A Taste of Honey Aretha Franklin - Amazing Grace Valerie Simpson - I Don't Need No Help Jean-Michel Jarre - Oxygene, Pt. 1 Gong - Bambooji Norman Connors - You Are My Starship Elliott Fisher - Land of Make Believe Carl Orff - Fortune Plango Vulnera Donald Byrd - Places & Spaces

In this episode Jeremy is reunited with Tim to explore the early life and times of the legendary DJ Larry Levan. We hear about his youthful friendship with fellow DJ (and future leading light of House) Frankie Knuckles as they embed themselves deep in early 70s dance floor culture, taking us not just to discos but to rent parties, drag balls and The Continental Baths.  Naturally, we look at the role David Mancuso played both in inspiring Larry and in advancing his career, and shout out one of his less well-known mentors, T Scott, alongside the ever-present Nicky Siano. Tim and Jeremy also discuss shame, the Hustle and Mick Jagger's strut, and ask the question: should we all be playing more musical theatre records? Become a patron at Patreon.com/LoveMessagePod And check out our new website: https://www.loveisthemessagepod.co.uk/ Produced and edited by Matt Huxley. Tune in, Turn on, Get Down! Tracklist:B.B. King - Philadelphia Shirley & Company - Shame Shame ShameConsumer Rapport - Ease On Down The RoadDonald Byrd - Change (Makes You Want To Hustle)Babe Ruth - Elusive

This is an excerpt from a patrons-only episode. To hear more, become a patron at patreon.com/LoveMessagePod In this patrons-only episode Jeremy is once again flying solo on the podcast to explore the lives, ideas, and uses of the French philosophers Gilles Deleuze and Felix Guattari. Starting in the intellectual hotbed of late-60s Paris, Jeremy explains who the pair were, how they met, what their shared - somewhat heterodox - philosophical canon was, and how this was expressed in their two-volume work Capitalism and Schizophrenia. Deleuze and Guattari are often seen as being very hard to comprehend, but Jeremy introduces us to concepts like schizoanalysis, deterritorialisation and reterritorialisation, the rhyzome, the refrain and the notorious body-without-organs in accessible and easy to digest language. Through the work of both the composers cited by the philosophers and a good deal of musicians who weren't, Jeremy shows how the radically materialist, non-dualist analysis of Deleuze and Guattari can help us understand how music works on us as listeners, with examples ranging from Messiaen to Keith Rowe and Kode9. Books: Deleuze and Guattari - Anti-Oedipus Ian Buchanan - Reader's Guide to Anti-Oedipus Deleuze and Guattari - A Thousand Plateaus Jeremy Gilbert and Ewan Pearson - Discographies Jeremy Gilbert - Common Ground Kojo Eshun - More Brilliant Than the Sun Ian Buchanan & Marcel Swiboda (eds) - Deleuze and Music Tim Lawrence - “In Defence of Disco (Again)”. New Formations, 58, Summer 2006 Jeremy Gilbert - “In Defence of 'In Defence of Disco'”, New Formations, 58, Summer 2006 Tracklist: Olivier Messiaen - Fête des Belles Eaux Olivier Messiaen - Chronochromie Mozart - Adagio for Glass Harmonica Schumann - Cello Concerto in A Minor mvt. 1 Debussy - Rêverie Spontaneous Music Ensemble - Karyobin Pt. 5 Keith Rowe - Ode Machine No. 2 Oval - SD II Audio Template Kode9 & The Spaceape - Sine of the Dub