Podcasts about Colonel Tom Parker

Author of “Driving Marilyn: The Life and Times of Legendary Hollywood Agent Norman Brokaw,” Joel Brokaw, joins Bob Sirott to talk about the many friendships his father created as a talent agent, as well as how he got his start. Joel tells stories about Marilyn Monroe, Colonel Tom Parker, Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz, and […]

On the 62nd Episode of the Album Review Crew of Shout It Out Loudcast, Tom, Zeus & special guest, singer, guitarist and bassist from the Ace Frehley Band, Gene Simmons Band and also Rock City Machine Co, Ryan Spencer Cook, review the 1968 legendary album from Elvis Presley, "NBC TV Special" or better known as the "1968 Comeback Special." By 1968 Elvis had not performed live since 1960. Although, his movie career had been a tremendous success, even making him the highest paid actor in Hollywood, Elvis was not satisfied creatively. His music had been basically soundtracks to his movies and Elvis was frustrated. Since Elvis rocket stardom was born out of his legendary television performance, Elvis and along with young television producer Steve Binder, created a TV Special that would become affectionately known as the 1968 Comeback Special. Ignoring his manager Colonel Tom Parker's insistence that the TV Special be a Christmas theme event, Elvis & Steve Binder created a TV Special that would end up being the highest rated tv show of the year gaining 42% of the television audience. This special brought the KING back! The television special including various types of performances. Elvis performed some of his greatest hits, sometimes alone, sometimes with his original band in an intimate round setting, sometimes in sketches and even with dancers and gospel singers. The songs were varied and styles as well, matching Elvis' versatile appeal. The audience was young and attractive and Elvis wore various outfits, including the leather outfit which has become legendary and synonymous with this performance. Elvis never looked as good or sounded as good as well. The album went to number 8 on US Billboard charts and eventually platinum. There are numerous variations of this album and special releases that include a lot of the songs not featured in the television special. But all versions, include his incredible medley of Trouble / Guitar Man and the medley of his biggest hits like Love Me Tender, Hound Dog, Heartbreak Hotel, All Shook up and more. The album does include his single, If I Can Dream, which may be Elvis' greatest performance of all time. As usual the boys breakdown and dissect the tracks and rank the songs. They then rank the album and the album cover against the previous albums reviewed on the Album Review Crew. This was obviously Zeus' pick. So as Eddie Murphy says, "We got to win this race!" and we want to thank you, thank you very much, you're a beautiful audience thank you! To Purchase Elvis Presley's “NBC TV Special” On Amazon Click Below:   Elvis Presley's "NBC TV Special"   To Purchase Shout It Out Loudcast's KISS Book “Raise Your Glasses: A Celebration Of 50 Years of KISS Songs By Celebrities, Musicians & Fans Please Click Below:   Raise Your Glasses Book   For all things Shout It Out Loudcast check out our amazing website by clicking below:   www.ShoutItOutLoudcast.com   Interested in more Shout It Out Loudcast content? Care to help us out? Come join us on Patreon by clicking below:   SIOL Patreon   Get all your Shout It Out Loudcast Merchandise by clicking below:   Shout It Out Loudcast Merchandise at AMAZON   Shop At Our Amazon Store by clicking below: Shout It Out Loudcast Amazon Store   Please Email us comments or suggestions by clicking below: ShoutItOutLoudcast@Gmail.com   Please subscribe to us and give us a 5 Star (Child) review on the following places below: iTunes Podchaser Stitcher iHeart Radio Spotify   Please follow us and like our social media pages clicking below: Twitter Facebook Page Facebook Group Page Shout It Out Loudcasters Instagram YouTube   Proud Member of the Pantheon Podcast click below to see the website: Pantheon Podcast Network Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the 62nd Episode of the Album Review Crew of Shout It Out Loudcast, Tom, Zeus & special guest, singer, guitarist and bassist from the Ace Frehley Band, Gene Simmons Band and also Rock City Machine Co, Ryan Spencer Cook, review the 1968 legendary album from Elvis Presley, "NBC TV Special" or better known as the "1968 Comeback Special." By 1968 Elvis had not performed live since 1960. Although, his movie career had been a tremendous success, even making him the highest paid actor in Hollywood, Elvis was not satisfied creatively. His music had been basically soundtracks to his movies and Elvis was frustrated. Since Elvis rocket stardom was born out of his legendary television performance, Elvis and along with young television producer Steve Binder, created a TV Special that would become affectionately known as the 1968 Comeback Special. Ignoring his manager Colonel Tom Parker's insistence that the TV Special be a Christmas theme event, Elvis & Steve Binder created a TV Special that would end up being the highest rated tv show of the year gaining 42% of the television audience. This special brought the KING back! The television special including various types of performances. Elvis performed some of his greatest hits, sometimes alone, sometimes with his original band in an intimate round setting, sometimes in sketches and even with dancers and gospel singers. The songs were varied and styles as well, matching Elvis' versatile appeal. The audience was young and attractive and Elvis wore various outfits, including the leather outfit which has become legendary and synonymous with this performance. Elvis never looked as good or sounded as good as well. The album went to number 8 on US Billboard charts and eventually platinum. There are numerous variations of this album and special releases that include a lot of the songs not featured in the television special. But all versions, include his incredible medley of Trouble / Guitar Man and the medley of his biggest hits like Love Me Tender, Hound Dog, Heartbreak Hotel, All Shook up and more. The album does include his single, If I Can Dream, which may be Elvis' greatest performance of all time. As usual the boys breakdown and dissect the tracks and rank the songs. They then rank the album and the album cover against the previous albums reviewed on the Album Review Crew. This was obviously Zeus' pick. So as Eddie Murphy says, "We got to win this race!" and we want to thank you, thank you very much, you're a beautiful audience thank you! To Purchase Elvis Presley's “NBC TV Special” On Amazon Click Below:   Elvis Presley's "NBC TV Special"   To Purchase Shout It Out Loudcast's KISS Book “Raise Your Glasses: A Celebration Of 50 Years of KISS Songs By Celebrities, Musicians & Fans Please Click Below:   Raise Your Glasses Book   For all things Shout It Out Loudcast check out our amazing website by clicking below:   www.ShoutItOutLoudcast.com   Interested in more Shout It Out Loudcast content? Care to help us out? Come join us on Patreon by clicking below:   SIOL Patreon   Get all your Shout It Out Loudcast Merchandise by clicking below:   Shout It Out Loudcast Merchandise at AMAZON   Shop At Our Amazon Store by clicking below: Shout It Out Loudcast Amazon Store   Please Email us comments or suggestions by clicking below: ShoutItOutLoudcast@Gmail.com   Please subscribe to us and give us a 5 Star (Child) review on the following places below: iTunes Podchaser Stitcher iHeart Radio Spotify   Please follow us and like our social media pages clicking below: Twitter Facebook Page Facebook Group Page Shout It Out Loudcasters Instagram YouTube   Proud Member of the Pantheon Podcast click below to see the website: Pantheon Podcast Network Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Can You Be Reasonably Happy   In this episode of Richer Soul, I had the privilege of speaking with Paul Ollinger, a stand-up comedian, podcast host, and author who left a lucrative career at Facebook to chase his dream of comedy. Through his podcast, Reasonably Happy, Paul explores the interplay between money, happiness, work, and purpose. His life journey, marked by bold choices and valuable lessons, offers incredible insights into navigating life's financial and emotional complexities.   Key Takeaways: Childhood Money Scripts Matter: Paul grew up in a large Catholic family where money was stable but never abundant. This upbringing shaped his initial belief that wealth equates to freedom from stress—a script he reevaluated later in life. Chasing Dreams Is Risky but Rewarding: Paul's decision to leave Facebook to pursue stand-up comedy was financially unprofitable, but it brought him immense personal growth and fulfillment. Money and Happiness Are Interlinked but Complex: Paul's podcast and essays examine how financial success can coexist with personal happiness, emphasizing balance over blind ambition. The Power of Giving Back: From supporting his family as a child to providing thoughtful insights through his podcast, Paul embodies the spirit of contribution, proving that fulfillment often lies in lifting others.   Money Learning: Paul's journey reveals that our financial habits often stem from childhood experiences. His early lessons about saving and frugality played a pivotal role in his career choices. However, he emphasizes the importance of not letting outdated beliefs limit your growth. For Paul, real financial wisdom lies in balancing practical discipline with pursuing meaningful experiences.   About Paul Ollinger: Paul Ollinger is a stand-up comedian and the host of Reasonably Happy, a podcast where he discusses money, happiness, and work with renowned guests like Judd Apatow and LL COOL J. His latest book, Reasonably Happy, compiles over 200 interviews into humorous and insightful essays. Based in New York City, Paul lives with his wife, two teenagers, and their French bulldogs, Theo and Colonel Tom Parker​​.   Key Discussion Points: Early Money Lessons: Paul shared how his upbringing in a frugal, Catholic family shaped his financial mindset. His parents' values emphasized stability over luxury, which initially instilled in him the belief that wealth equated to stress-free living​. The Psychological Impact of Wealth: Paul discussed the emotional challenges of growing up with financial stress. He later learned to untangle these experiences to adopt a healthier relationship with money​. Balancing Career Risks and Fulfillment: Leaving a well-paying job at Facebook for comedy was a gamble. Paul explained how this decision was fueled by the desire for purpose and authenticity over monetary gain​. Cultural Narratives Around Money: Paul touched on societal attitudes towards wealth, noting how Catholicism often associates financial success with moral compromise—a narrative he actively worked to rewrite​. Teaching Financial Lessons to the Next Generation: As a parent, Paul is mindful of the lessons his children absorb from him, ensuring they learn the value of money without developing unhealthy attachments or anxieties.   Conclusion: Paul Ollinger's story is a testament to the fact that money, while essential, is just one piece of the happiness puzzle. His journey from corporate success to personal fulfillment through comedy and podcasting showcases the courage it takes to align your financial habits with your values and passions. Tune in to this episode to gain deeper insights into how money, happiness, and meaning intersect.   Links: Book on Amazon: Reasonably Happy: Essays on Money, Work and Other Things that Piss Me Off- https://www.amazon.com/Reasonably-Happy-Essays-Money-Things/dp/0997270659/ref=sr_1_1?crid=326TDOT9XWWGI&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.dLZOV_Igvsr40nXuxzsMbULjnDLojjeLCAnUkSK67wDL2ByRXdMpN6QwaDis5Ewq.RqJ-nLbHhL2CsP6768q3Ko-D9W2Wo1HMtxKDr_cs7Es&dib_tag=se&keywords=paul+ollinger&qid=1733763670&sprefix=paul+ollinger,aps,208&sr=8-1   Substack: https://words.paulollinger.com/   Watch the full episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@richersoul Richer Soul Life Beyond Money. You got rich, now what? Let's talk about your journey to more a purposeful, intentional, amazing life. Where are you going to go and how are you going to get there? Let's figure that out together. At the core is the financial well-being to be able to do what you want, when you want, how you want. It's about personal freedom! Thanks for listening!   Show Sponsor: http://profitcomesfirst.com/   Schedule your free no obligation call: https://bookme.name/rockyl/lite/intro-appointment-15-minutes   If you like the show please leave a review on iTunes: http://bit.do/richersoul   https://www.facebook.com/richersoul http://richersoul.com/ rocky@richersoul.com   Some music provided by Junan from Junan Podcast   Any financial advice is for educational purposes only and you should consult with an expert for your specific needs.

We trace the early years of Elvis Presley's career, from his first recordings at Sun Records through to his first LP with RCA and first television appearance on "Stage Show". We'll also be introduced to Andreas van Kuijk aka "Colonel" Tom Parker.

The talent manager and concert promoter is best known for managing Elvis Presley, a relationship that lasted 21 years. 

In the first half, author and historian Steve Ubaney discussed his theories surrounding the death of Elvis Presley, suggesting a massive cover-up and foul play. Ubaney has spent over a decade researching Elvis's untimely demise, and he began the conversation by recounting the star's humble beginnings in Tupelo, Mississippi, where Presley was born into poverty. "Elvis was dirt, dirt poor... they were eating three-day-old food," Ubaney explained. As Elvis's career took off, so did the influence of his manager, Colonel Tom Parker. "[Parker] was arguably the best and worst thing that ever happened to him," Ubaney stated, explaining how the financially manipulative manager helped elevate Elvis from a regional act to a national superstar.Ubaney expressed skepticism about the official narrative regarding Elvis's death. "From day one, I never believed what they said," he claimed. He pointed out that Elvis had undergone two comprehensive physicals shortly before his passing, which found no alarming issues. The conversation turned to the musician's rampant drug use and the financial pressures he faced, with Ubaney revealing that the singer and his manager were essentially bankrupt. "Colonel Parker owed $32 million... the pressure was mounting," he explained. Ubaney described how Elvis sought the protection of the FBI, wanting to become a federal narcotics agent to combat threats he had been receiving, particularly from the mob, which Parker was allegedly involved with.Ubaney went on to suggest that Elvis's death was not a simple overdose but rather a murder orchestrated against the backdrop of Parker's gambling debts and mob connections. "I do believe Elvis knew his assailants," he stated. "When Elvis died, Colonel Parker owed millions... it was not going to end well." Ubaney dismissed the popular story that Elvis died on the toilet, asserting, "Elvis was never on the toilet... they tackled Elvis from behind."Ubaney then pointed to inconsistencies in the autopsy reports, mentioning two death certificates—one citing cardiac arrhythmia and the other asphyxiation. He also connected Elvis's fascination with the JFK assassination to his own untimely demise, revealing that both he and JFK investigator William Sullivan died shortly after attempting to uncover the truth.In the second half, paranormal researcher and spirit communicator Karen A. Dahlman discussed her journey with channeling and Ouija boards. Dahlman, who has been channeling since childhood, explained that it is a way to access information from various sources, including spirit guides and one's higher self. "We're all channeling all the time," she noted. She also highlighted the significance of intention in channeling, saying, "The energy you put out is the energy you attract back."Discussing the popularity of Ouija boards, Dahlman described them as both collectibles and tools for accessing divine wisdom. "They have a rich history... and they allow me to bring through divine wisdom and consciousness from other spiritual beings," she explained. When asked how someone could start channeling, she advised creating a relaxed environment and setting intentions to connect with one's higher self. "Get into a self-hypnosis state... open up your heart and say, I would like to channel my divine wisdom," she recommended. Dahlman emphasized the importance of maintaining a positive mindset to attract beneficial energy, stating, "You must get into a space of, 'I'm open, I'm positive.'"She emphasized that this time of year, with celebrations such as Christmas and Hanukkah, creates a "raising of energy" that individuals can tap into. "Why not ride that wave of greatness, of merriment, of joy?" she suggested. Dahlman, who is also an officer of the Talking Board Historical Society, shared insights on the history of Ouija boards, tracing their origins back to 1886. She recounted a fascinating anecdote about President Grover Cleveland, who received a "witch board" as a wedding gift.

fWotD Episode 2805: Elvis Presley Welcome to Featured Wiki of the Day, your daily dose of knowledge from Wikipedia’s finest articles.The featured article for Wednesday, 8 January 2025 is Elvis Presley.Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), known mononymously as Elvis, was an American singer and actor. Known as the "King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century. Presley's energized performances and interpretations of songs, and sexually provocative performance style, combined with a singularly potent mix of influences across color lines during a transformative era in race relations, brought both great success and initial controversy.Presley was born in Tupelo, Mississippi; his family relocated to Memphis, Tennessee, when he was 13. His music career began there in 1954, at Sun Records with producer Sam Phillips, who wanted to bring the sound of African-American music to a wider audience. Presley, on guitar and accompanied by lead guitarist Scotty Moore and bassist Bill Black, was a pioneer of rockabilly, an uptempo, backbeat-driven fusion of country music and rhythm and blues. In 1955, drummer D. J. Fontana joined to complete the lineup of Presley's classic quartet and RCA Victor acquired his contract in a deal arranged by Colonel Tom Parker, who managed him for the rest of his career. Presley's first RCA Victor single, "Heartbreak Hotel", was released in January 1956 and became a number-one hit in the US. Within a year, RCA Victor would sell ten million Presley singles. With a series of successful television appearances and chart-topping records, Presley became the leading figure of the newly popular rock and roll; though his performative style and promotion of the then-marginalized sound of African Americans led to him being widely considered a threat to the moral well-being of white American youth.In November 1956, Presley made his film debut in Love Me Tender. Drafted into military service in 1958, he relaunched his recording career two years later with some of his most commercially successful work. Presley held few concerts, however, and guided by Parker, proceeded to devote much of the 1960s to making Hollywood films and soundtrack albums, most of them critically derided. Some of Presley's most famous films included Jailhouse Rock (1957), Blue Hawaii (1961), and Viva Las Vegas (1964). In 1968, he returned to the stage in the acclaimed NBC television comeback special Elvis, which led to an extended Las Vegas concert residency and a string of highly profitable tours. In 1973, Presley gave the first concert by a solo artist to be broadcast around the world, Aloha from Hawaii. However, years of prescription drug abuse and unhealthy eating severely compromised his health, and Presley died unexpectedly in August 1977 at his Graceland estate at the age of 42.Presley is one of the best-selling music artists of all time, with sale estimates ranging from 500 million records to over a billion worldwide. He was commercially successful in many genres, including pop, country, rock and roll, rockabilly, rhythm and blues, adult contemporary, and gospel. He won three Grammy Awards, received the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award at age 36, and has been inducted into multiple music halls of fame. He holds several records, including the most RIAA-certified gold and platinum albums, the most albums charted on the Billboard 200, the most number-one albums by a solo artist on the UK Albums Chart, and the most number-one singles by any act on the UK Singles Chart. In 2018, Presley was posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom.This recording reflects the Wikipedia text as of 00:58 UTC on Wednesday, 8 January 2025.For the full current version of the article, see Elvis Presley on Wikipedia.This podcast uses content from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.Visit our archives at wikioftheday.com and subscribe to stay updated on new episodes.Follow us on Mastodon at @wikioftheday@masto.ai.Also check out Curmudgeon's Corner, a current events podcast.Until next time, I'm neural Niamh.

These children of showbiz legends are ensuring that their fathers' memories and legacies live on. We speak with James Tormé and Melissa Tormé-March about their Velvet Fog of a dad, Mel Tormé, as we approach the 80th anniversary of his incomparable contribution to the holiday music canon, 'The Christmas Song'. Then Joel Brokaw joins us. His new book 'Driving Marilyn: The Life and Times of Legendary Hollywood Agent Norman Brokaw' chronicles the history of William Morris star-maker, Norman Brokaw, known to Joel as Dad.Melissa and James share their enthusiasm for Oy! To the World Christmas with a Twist, a new musical playing this month at North Hollywood's El Portal Theatre, which features their father's music alongside a hit list of Christmas classics composed by Jewish-American songwriters. James and Melissa take us back to the sweltering July day in 1945 when their Dad and Bob Wells attempted to beat the heat with wintery lyrics and remained sweaty but created magic by conjuring “Chestnuts roasting on an open fire…”They rushed the song over to Nat King Cole who was in at a few bars and proudly led a parade of 80,064 recorded covers, including James' own version! The Torme kids share their Torme Christmas memories which include their dad and contraband Christmas movies!Then Joel shares his family's history as a Ukrainian vaudeville acrobatic act that segued into the agency business when his Uncle, Johnny Hyde became VP of William Morris, discovered Marilyn Monroe and took on his young nephew, Norman to drive and accompany Marilyn to events.Starting in the mailroom, Norman worked his way up to CEO.  We hear about his working relationships with Marilyn Monroe, Kim Novak, Colonel Tom Parker, Dick Van Dyke, Gerald Ford, Mark Spitz, Barry Gordy and so many other greats.Joel talks about his complicated history with a father whose clients received his primary caregiving. Joel grew up with TV stars spending weekends by his pool, monopolizing his Dad's attention.But what were the qualities that made Norman so affective as a talent mentor? We learn the magic ingredients and hear how Norman took the new fangled TV department and made history with Loretta Young, Barbara Stanwyck, Dick Van Dyke and Andy Griffith.  Joel also talks about Norman's relationship with Bill Cosby and how his father's dementia buffered him from the horrors of Cosby's crimes. And, finally, what was the fate of Norman's sacred, secret keeping Rolodex?Plus, this week Weezy recommends Nutcrackers on Hulu and Fritz is all about Thelma, now in theaters and on streaming platforms.Path Points of Interest:Oy! To The WorldJames Tormé James Tormé on YouTubeJames Tormé  on XThe Christmas Song by James Tormé James Tormé at Kookaburra on 12/21Joel BrokawDriving Marilyn by Joel BrokawNorman Brokaw on WikiNutcrackers on HuluThelma - Streaming in Most Places  

With Paul Ollinger | Comedian | Speaker | Host at 'Reasonably Happy' Podcast | Summary: In this episode, Paul Ollinger shares heartfelt lessons about money, happiness, and fulfillment, inspired by his father's example of frugality and contentment. Growing up in a large family, Paul reflects on how humour became a survival tool, fostering connection and resilience, and how it later shaped his career in comedy. He explores the role of laughter and joy in creating a meaningful life, highlighting how happier people often make better money decisions. Paul also examines the tension between chasing financial success and finding balance, offering insights into the difference between desire and compulsion in the pursuit of wealth. Through stories of gratitude, self-awareness, and aligning career choices with personal values, Paul provides fresh perspectives on the connection between humour, happiness, and financial well-being. BIO:After 15 years in sales at companies like Yahoo! and Facebook, Paul Ollinger left the corporate world to pursue comedy, performing at top clubs like Carolines on Broadway and Zanies, and sharing stages with stars like Norm Macdonald and Chelsea Handler. He hosts the Reasonably Happy podcast, exploring the connection between money, happiness, and meaning with guests like Judd Apatow, LL COOL J, and Nobel Prize winners. Paul's collection of essays, Reasonably Happy, was released October 2024. He lives in New York City with his wife, two teenagers, and their French bulldogs, Theo and Colonel Tom Parker. Highlights: The best money lessons often come from family. Frugality can bring both security and peace of mind. Humor can help navigate chaos and foster resilience. True happiness isn't tied to wealth; it's about defining 'enough.' Career choices should reflect your passions and values. Gratitude and self-awareness are essential for fulfillment. Meaningful experiences matter more than material possessions. Personal choices and reflection shape our relationship with money. Comparing yourself to others hinders happiness. Life's challenges and joys are both part of the journey. Quotes: "How much is enough?" "You have to be eminently unreasonable." "I wouldn't trade my life for your billions." "Life is 80% good stuff and 20% bullshit." Links: Paul's Book: Reasonably Happy: Essays on Money, Work and Other Things that Piss Me Off Paul Ollinger's Website: CLICK HERE

With a career spanning decades, Tom Hanks has embodied more unforgettable characters than most actors have roles.This episode brings back Tom's inspiring conversation with Guy Raz from 2023, where he shares his journey through film—from early breakout roles to timeless classics—and his process of breathing life into each character.You'll also learn how Tom deals with nerves and self-consciousness on set; what Joe DiMaggio and Paul Newman told him about performance anxiety; and why he believes ‘bringing an idea' is the secret to success.Links from the show:Tom and Peter Scolari in Bosom BuddiesTom and Daryl Hannah in SplashThe cross-country running scene from Forrest GumpThe execution scene from The Green MileTom as Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger in Sullly: plane crash in the Hudson sceneTom as Colonel Tom Parker in Baz Luhrmann's ElvisThe real Colonel Tom Parker in an interview on ABC Trailer for A Man Called OttoFor more conversations like this – with guests ranging from Jason Sudeikis to Anna Kendrick to Ben Gibbard of Death Cab for Cutie – go to https://www.thegreatcreators.com.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

We remember longtime RSC colleague Jerry Kernion, who passed away last week after a short illness. Jerry acted for us in multiple shows and produced, directed, and edited our DVD film version of The Complete History of America (abridged). A much in-demand stage and film actor, we hear excerpts from previous podcast interviews where Jerry discusses performing both Dromios in A Noise Within's The Comedy of Errors, Sir Toby Belch, and Colonel Tom Parker in the jukebox musical Heartbreak Hotel. (Length 23:01) The post Remembering Jerry Kernion appeared first on Reduced Shakespeare Company.

What do you know about the King, baby? Did you know how poor he was growing up? How quickly he became famous as an adult? Did you know he had a pet chimp, Scatter, that he let get drunk and terrorized costars on some of his movie sets? A lot about Elvis and a little bit on the history of Rock n Roll this week!  Thank ya very much. Watch the Suck on YouTube: https://youtu.be/pd-Dm1tfkOUMerch and more: www.badmagicproductions.com Timesuck Discord! https://discord.gg/tqzH89vWant to join the Cult of the Curious PrivateFacebook Group? Go directly to Facebook and search for "Cult of the Curious" to locate whatever happens to be our most current page :)For all merch-related questions/problems: store@badmagicproductions.com (copy and paste)Please rate and subscribe on Apple Podcasts and elsewhere and follow the suck on social media!! @timesuckpodcast on IG and http://www.facebook.com/timesuckpodcastWanna become a Space Lizard? Click here: https://www.patreon.com/timesuckpodcast.Sign up through Patreon, and for $5 a month, you get access to the entire Secret Suck catalog (295 episodes) PLUS the entire catalog of Timesuck, AD FREE. You'll also get 20% off of all regular Timesuck merch PLUS access to exclusive Space Lizard merch. And you get the download link for my secret standup album, Feel the Heat.

In this podcast episode, Julian, Steve, and Arthur are joined by producer Mike in a rich discussion about Elvis Presley’s profound influence on the entertainment industry. They reminisce about Elvis’s captivating performances, his controversial gyrations, and his groundbreaking role in popularizing rock and roll. The conversation covers the strategic management by Colonel Tom Parker, Elvis’s […] The post Elvis is Everywhere | Tales From Hollywoodland appeared first on The ESO Network.

In this podcast episode, Julian, Steve, and Arthur are joined by producer Mike in a rich discussion about Elvis Presley's profound influence on the entertainment industry. They reminisce about Elvis's captivating performances, his controversial gyrations, and his groundbreaking role in popularizing rock and roll. The conversation covers the strategic management by Colonel Tom Parker, Elvis's transition from movies to live shows in Las Vegas, and the missed opportunities in his career. Personal anecdotes reveal Elvis's interactions with fans and the challenges he faced, including financial struggles and drug use. The episode paints a comprehensive picture of Elvis's legacy, his cultural impact, and the lasting significance of his work in music and film. Tales From Hollywoodland on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/talesfromhollywoodland  Tales From Hollywoodland on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/talesfromhollywoodland/ Tales From Hollywoodland on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCdLX2kbwHqdn47FNN6vVN7Q  We want to hear from you! Feedback is always welcome. Please write to us at  talesfromhollywoodland@gmail.com and why not subscribe and rate the show on Apple Podcast, Spotify, iHeartRadio, Goodpods, PlayerFM, YouTube, Pandora, Amazon Music, Audible, and wherever fine podcasts are found.  #TalesFromHollywoodlandPodcast #ElvisPresleycareer #ElvisPresleydiscussion #Elvismusiclegacy #ElvisPresleymovies #Elvisrockandroll #KingofRockandRoll #ElvisHollywoodcareer #ElvisPresleyachievements #ElvisPresleyhistory #ElvisPresleyinfluence #ElvisPresleypopculture #ElvisPresley #ElvisPresleyimpact #ElvisPresleylegacydiscussion #Podcast

Harvey Brownstone conducts an in-depth Interview with Deborah Presley Brando, Elvis Presley's Daughter, Author, “Memoirs of a Starseed Child: Elvis, Marlon, Christian and Me” About Harvey's guest: Today's special guest, Deborah Presley Brando, has lived a life that most of us could never possibly imagine, in the shadow of one of the greatest superstars of all time – Elvis Presley.    Although many people still believe that Elvis had only one child, Lisa Marie, who passed away tragically last year at the age of 54, the fact is – and this has been confirmed by an order of the Tennessee Court of Appeal - Elvis had another child, our guest, born on March 4, 1956.   Our guest's mother, Barbara Jean Lewis, met Elvis in 1954, before he became famous, through his cousin Gene Smith, when she was 14 years old.  She had a romantic relationship with Elvis in the summer of 1955, when she spent several weeks with him on tour in Mississippi.  Elvis and Barbara were very much in love, and when Elvis learned of the pregnancy, he invited Barbara to come to Memphis and live with his parents.  Barbara did visit Elvis in Memphis, but his manager, Colonel Tom Parker, fearing the impact on Elvis' career and public image of being seen in the company of a pregnant 16-year-old girl, persuaded Barbara to return home to her family in North Carolina.  Barbara married a man by the name of Don Yandel prior to having the baby, and she kept the identity of our guest's father a secret from her for many years, until 1977, when, at the age of 21, she finally told her daughter the truth.   She also told our guest that Elvis had been a part of her life until she was 4 years old, and that he sent gifts and money throughout her childhood.    In the 80s our guest became good friends with the one person besides her mother, who was able to confirm the details that I've just mentioned:  Elvis' cousin and best friend Gene Smith, who was Elvis' driver and who was with him constantly, including during the time of Elvis' relationship with Barbara.   In fact, Gene Smith provided a crucial affidavit in the court case launched by our guest, leading to the judicial finding that our guest is, indeed, the biological daughter of Elvis Presley.     Our guest has written a fascinating and compelling book entitled “Memoirs of a Starseed Child: Elvis, Marlon, Christian and Me”, in which she shares her heart wrenching and sometimes traumatic journey through a difficult childhood, her quest to learn the truth about her paternity and to be acknowledged and validated for who she is, and several complicated relationships including her marriage to Marlon Brando's late son Christian.   Our guest has also written a children's book entitled, “Creations of the Goddess Maylaya: An American Fairy Tale”, and she's had a varied career, not only as a writer, but as a special education assistant working with autistic children, and as an artist and a curator for an art gallery. For more interviews and podcasts go to: https://www.harveybrownstoneinterviews.com/ To learn more about Deborah Presley Brando, go to:https://www.facebook.com/deborah.presley.98/https://www.instagram.com/deborahdelainepresley/https://twitter.com/devidelaine #DeborahPresleyBrando    #harveybrownstoneinterviews

Elvis, The Memphis Mafia and Colonel Tom Parker. Tom Parker's ridiculous gambling style: "He didn't understand the basics, but it was his favorite thing to do." ALSO: Mashed potatoes, gravy, sauerkraut, crisp bacon and sliced tomatoes. PLUS: "The worst news I've ever heard in my life about anything." (re: spinning fish), Can Do Cold Brew and a song of the week from Ride!!!Ride - "Portland Rocks": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QglDc7tJsCECold Brew Patreon: Patreon.com/chriscroftonChannel Nonfiction: Channelnonfiction.comCan Do Cold Brew: Candocoldbrew.com

Today on the Rarified Heir Podcast we are talking to Matt Axton, son of singer, songwriter, commercial pitchman and actor Hoyt Axton. If you're first thought is that Hoyt Axton was the dad in the film Gremlins, you'd be correct but you'd only be scratching the surface of this well rounded entertainer. We learn from Matt how his father wrote the smash hit “Joy To The World” made popular by Three Dog Night, how he became the house performer in the 1960s at the world famous Doug Weston's The Troubadour for close to a decade and how bands like Steppenwolf & The Kingston Trio recorded his songs before the general public ever really heard of the name Hoyt Axton. Matt also tells us about his grandmother Mae Boren Axton aka the “Queen Mother of Nashville” who was one of only two (yes you heard that right) in the music business in Nashville in the 1950s. She also penned more than 200 songs, got her undergraduate degree in journalism when most women simply did not go to college and she happened to be the person who introduced Colonel Tom Parker to Elvis Presley. Yes, you heard us correctly. But that's not even half of it. She wrote Elvis' first #1 hit song. Can you guess what that song was? Because you definitely have heard it. And that's still not even the whole story. It was great to talk to Matt, the third in his family to go into the entertainment business, as he also is a singer/songwriter and performer who talks to us about his own career on stage, the difference between how he, his father and grandmother toured and made records and how he's bringing his own “Joy To The World” by practicing what his dad preached. That was:  “Be a conduit for good music and hopefully you can also be the satellite dish that pulls in the songs as they come in.” This is the Rarified Heir Podcast. Everyone has a story.

In this captivating episode, “Let's Talk Elvis and the Colonel Part 2,” we continue the enthralling exploration into the dynamic partnership of Elvis Presley and Colonel Tom Parker. Picking up where we left off from Part 1, we examine Elvis' Vegas and touring years, as well as the post-Elvis years and the Colonels impact on them all. Tune in now to relive the crazy relationship that was Elvis and Colonel Tom Parker. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/clancy-phillips/support

Unveiling the Enigma: Part 1 - Colonel Tom Parker's Journey with Elvis Presley. Delve into the early life and formative years of the elusive Colonel Tom Parker, unraveling the intricacies of his childhood and the remarkable path that led him to discover the legendary Elvis Presley. Join us in this captivating exploration as we decode the enigmatic relationship between the Colonel and the King of Rock 'n' Roll. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/clancy-phillips/support

While Matt is off getting married and honeymooned, I Was There Too will feature a special run of guest hosted episodes! This week actor Jack Grinnage joins guest hosts Amanda Lund and Maria Blasucci to discuss the 1955 film Rebel Without a Cause. Jack explains how he lied about his age to get a role in the movie, his college friendship with actress Beverly Long, and how they built the action around James Deans strengths. Then, they talk about the evolution of craft services, why everyone wanted to be paid for golden time, and how a terrible interview got Jack cast in King Creole. Finally, Jack tells of meeting Colonel Tom Parker, why he never saw Elvis out of makeup, and Laurence Oliviers reaction to finding Jack in his chair during the filming of Spartacus.This episode is brought to you by Harry's (www.harrys.com/IWTT) and HelloFresh (www.hellofresh.com code: IWTT30). Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

While Matt is off getting married and honeymooned, I Was There Too will feature a special run of guest hosted episodes! This week actor Jack Grinnage joins guest hosts Amanda Lund and Maria Blasucci to discuss the 1955 film Rebel Without a Cause. Jack explains how he lied about his age to get a role in the movie, his college friendship with actress Beverly Long, and how they built the action around James Deans strengths. Then, they talk about the evolution of craft services, why everyone wanted to be paid for golden time, and how a terrible interview got Jack cast in King Creole. Finally, Jack tells of meeting Colonel Tom Parker, why he never saw Elvis out of makeup, and Laurence Oliviers reaction to finding Jack in his chair during the filming of Spartacus.This episode is brought to you by Harry's (www.harrys.com/IWTT) and HelloFresh (www.hellofresh.com code: IWTT30). Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Oh yeah, we went there. Gurdip & Justin sit down with the 1978 compilation album, intended for children but so often cited by Elvis fans who were around at the time as one of the worst and most misguided projects Colonel Tom Parker ever spearheaded... but is it, really?! Closer examination may be necessary! (Note: the guys ponder why the presence of an elephant in the artwork; Bec reached out after the fact and reminded us that Colonel Parker's favorite animal was, in fact, the elephant!) Also discussed is the newly surfaced Forth Worth, TX footage of Elvis from early 1958 (available here through the University of North Texas: https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc2049375/m1/?fbclid=IwAR1d8oliLIWVkU29QBzgdovqXuai1MqaWMZClyo3eYU3hHMPQjYTj8typek) and the upcoming release of numerous demos from songwriter Randy Starr on the Bear Family Records label "Randy Starr - Presley Style" as well as a rarely-seen or discussed November 1957 article about Elvis from TAN magazine that was dug up by friend of the show John Michael Heath. For Song of the Week, Gurdip knocks out another classic 50s track with the early country ballad "I'm Counting On You" that featured on Elvis' debut LP, while Justin sifts through the web of interconnected gospel songs that connect to "You Better Run," which Elvis was recorded and filmed singing during the rehearsals for "Elvis On Tour" in 1972 and also performed in concert at least a couple more times later in the 1970s. Source for the TAN magazine scan: https://archive.org/details/sim_tan_1957-11_8_1/page/30/mode/2up?view=theater

AI is reshaping industries, but how is it affecting audio outside of Voice Replication? This week, we're diving deep into this "can of worms" on the latest episode of the Pro Audio Suite podcast! Join us as we host a riveting discussion with MPA from WAVES as we unpack: AI's role in enhancing creativity rather than replacing it.  WAVES AI investment strategies. • The potential risks of letting AI scrape and replicate without human creativity. The balance between traditional mixing and AI's edges in audio engineering. Perspectives on the rise of AI voices in media.   We're not looking for a future where AI spits out a Taylor Swift song on command. Instead, we're all about how AI can serve as the ultimate assistant in the studio, ensuring creativity and passion remain at the heart of production. Don't miss this nuanced conversation on the future of AI in pro audio.

Elvis and the Colonel: An Insider's Look at the Most Legendary Partnership in Show Business by Greg McDonald and Marshall Terrill is a fresh biography of entertainment manager Colonel Tom Parker, a largely misunderstood figure in the life of Elvis Presley. McDonald, who worked under Parker for years, presents a contrarian and corrective point of view on a trailblazing man. The heart of the book is the long, strong, warm, and complex relationship between two iconic men. ABOUT THE AUTHORS Greg McDonald is an entertainment producer who got his start in show business with Colonel Tom Parker, who knew him when he was a teenager. He managed Ricky Nelson for seventeen years, ran Sonny Bono's mayoral and congressional campaigns, and was president of Transcontinental Records (Backstreet Boys, NSYNC and O'Town). He's also produced several feature films, television series (Making the Band) and large-scale concerts. McDonald manages Colonel Tom Parker's show business assets, including his name, likeness and image. He resides in the Palm Springs area with his wife Sherry. Marshall Terrill is a veteran film, sports and music writer and the author of more than 30 books. They include best-selling biographies of Steve McQueen, Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Billy Graham, and Pete Maravich. His book, Steve McQueen: The Life and Legend of a Hollywood Icon, is in development to be made into a feature film. He also executive produced the 2017 feature film documentary, Steve McQueen: American Icon and the 2022 documentary Johnny Cash: The Redemption of an American Icon. He resides in Tempe, Arizona, with his wife Zoe. For more info on the book click HERE --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/steve-richards/support

Singer, Actor and Voiceover Artist Rodney Saulsberry narrates this bio feature on the King Of Rock and Roll, Elvis Presley. Saulsberry talks about Presley's hit records, movies and television specials.

On this episode of Our American Stories, Greg McDonald got his start in show business as a teenager after meeting Elvis Presley and his manager, Colonel Tom Parker, shortly after Parker began managing Elvis in the ‘50s. Here's Greg with a Colonel and Elvis Christmas story. Support the show (https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate)See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this episode of Our American Stories, Greg McDonald got his start in show business as a teenager after meeting Elvis Presley and his manager, Colonel Tom Parker, shortly after Parker began managing Elvis in the ‘50s. Here's Greg with a Colonel and Elvis Christmas story. Support the show (https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate)See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this episode of Our American Stories, Greg McDonald got his start in show business as a teenager after meeting Elvis Presley and his manager, Colonel Tom Parker, shortly after Parker began managing Elvis in the ‘50s. Here's Greg with a Colonel and Elvis Christmas story. Support the show (https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate)See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Relive the magic of rock history with our guests, John Guthrie and Greg Wheat, who take us back in their time machine to the iconic concerts of the late 70s. Imagine yourself in the crowd as Black Sabbath, Van Halen, and the Ramones rock the stage at the legendary 1978 concert at the Omni in Atlanta. Experience the surprise of an unexpected soundcheck by the Ramones, and feel the confusion of old-time Black Sabbath fans. Listen to the stories behind the scenes that shaped the musical landscape of that era and the lasting impact of these bands that continues to resonate in the music scene today.Fast forward to 1979, as we revisit another unforgettable concert featuring these same giants of rock. Picture the energy and atmosphere of the stage as The Clash performs songs from their forthcoming and groundbreaking album "London Calling". Join our guests as they share their memories of being part of a select group to witness this incredible performance. We'll also delve into the meteoric rise of Elvis Presley following his 1968 comeback on NBC, and the influence of Colonel Tom Parker on his career. All this and more awaits you in this episode of Music in my Shoes. Don't forget to drop us an email, we'd love to hear from you.

The relationship between Elvis Presley and Colonel Tom Parker is one of the most successful ones in music. A new book by one of the Colonel's protegees puts a new spin on the relationship and legends of this fascinating relationship. We talked with co-author Marshall Terrill. The book is available November 28th.

In remembrance, of Elvis Presleys death on August 16, 1977: Join us for this replay of episode 258, an electrifying episode of "One More Thing Before You Go" as we dive deep into the mesmerizing world of the King of Rock and Roll, Elvis Presley! Hosted by Michael R. Herst and his delightful co-host Diane, get ready for an exhilarating Wednesday discussion packed with insights, emotions, and a spotlight on one of this year's Oscar-nominated films.

Tom Hanks has had more iconic roles than most actors have had roles. From Big, to Forrest Gump, to Saving Private Ryan, to 2022's Elvis, Tom has played countless characters spanning across different genres and different decades. In this wide-ranging interview from earlier this year, Tom discusses the trajectory of his career, the importance of bringing his own ideas to the films he's acted in, and how he has managed to stave off self-consciousness while remaining as authentic as possible.Links from the show:Tom and Peter Scolari in Bosom BuddiesTom and Daryl Hannah in SplashThe cross-country running scene from Forrest GumpThe execution scene from The Green MileTom as Sully Sullenberger in Sullly: plane crash in the Hudson sceneTom as Colonel Tom Parker in Baz Luhrmann's ElvisThe real Colonel Tom Parker in an interview on ABC Trailer for A Man Called OttoSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This month we've been catching up on some hyped up movies we missed from last year and we finally got around to Baz Luhrmann's big bright biopic “Elvis” starring a pretty damn great Austin Butler and Tom Hanks in a rare psychopathic performance as Colonel Tom Parker. Baz brings his extra into it and it's quite the spectacle. How's the drama? Does it goof? Bob wants this movie to goof real bad. Hear us talk about it. Subscribe to our Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuJf3lkRI-BLUTsLI_ehOsg Contact: MOVIEHUMPERS@gmail.com Our OG podcast “Documenteers”: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/documenteers-the-documentary-podcast/id1321652249 Soundcloud feed: https://soundcloud.com/documenteers Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/moviehumpers

Aged 21 in 1963, Harvey Lisberg wanted to be the next Brian Epstein and ended up managing Herman's Hermits and 10cc, among others, before relaunching the snooker stars Jimmy White and Hurricane Higgins. We thoroughly recommend his just-published memoir ‘I'm Into Something Good' and this wide-ranging encounter takes in … ... the unique division of labour in 10cc and the magnificently doomed invention of ‘the Gizmo'. … the perils of $100,000's credit in Las Vegas casinos. … life for the wives of rock stars “in love with music”. … his friendship with Colonel Tom Parker and a day spent with Elvis in Honolulu. … a prickly relationship with Mickie Most. … why America fell in love with Peter Noone. … Herman's Hermits' US tours with the Stones and the Who. … and how he changed the snooker world by remodelling the “Artful Dodger” Jimmy White.  Buy Harvey's memoir here …https://www.amazon.co.uk/Im-Into-Something-Good-Managing-ebook/dp/B0BSHGRN5VSubscribe to Word In Your Ear on Patreon for early - and ad-free! - access to all of our content: https://www.patreon.com/wordinyourear Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Aged 21 in 1963, Harvey Lisberg wanted to be the next Brian Epstein and ended up managing Herman's Hermits and 10cc, among others, before relaunching the snooker stars Jimmy White and Hurricane Higgins. We thoroughly recommend his just-published memoir ‘I'm Into Something Good' and this wide-ranging encounter takes in … ... the unique division of labour in 10cc and the magnificently doomed invention of ‘the Gizmo'. … the perils of $100,000's credit in Las Vegas casinos. … life for the wives of rock stars “in love with music”. … his friendship with Colonel Tom Parker and a day spent with Elvis in Honolulu. … a prickly relationship with Mickie Most. … why America fell in love with Peter Noone. … Herman's Hermits' US tours with the Stones and the Who. … and how he changed the snooker world by remodelling the “Artful Dodger” Jimmy White.  Buy Harvey's memoir here …https://www.amazon.co.uk/Im-Into-Something-Good-Managing-ebook/dp/B0BSHGRN5VSubscribe to Word In Your Ear on Patreon for early - and ad-free! - access to all of our content: https://www.patreon.com/wordinyourear Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

For your summer listening while driving, walking, gardening, pleasure, Paul reads three of his latest pieces from Substack (Money and the Meaning of Life), including: How to Stay Hungry When Your Life is Full Money, Pain, and New Cars You Deserve It, i.e. reflections on what it means to “deserve” something Paul publishes these essays (about) every other Tuesday.You should subscribe here. 

On this day in 1982, Elvis Presley's Memphis home was opened to the public for tours. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The boys are back and this time they're discussing the first long play in the Hip's discography, Up to Here.https://ratethispodcast.com/ghtthLive tracks featured in the episode:Blow at High Dough - Barrie ON 1990Everytime You Go - London ON 1989Transcript0:00:00 - Speaker 1We're now one episode into this grand experiment, and I'm not sure if we've learned anything concrete at this point. I think it's safe to say that the EP surprised Pete and Tim. Going into this, they were under the impression that the hip is a very special band with cultural significance, and the whole nine and Then their first foray into said music Gave them werewolf baby. Now, before you go sending me nasty emails, know that in my heart the EP has a charming place on the mantle. I wouldn't hide from the music on the EP, nor, however, what I seek it out. Now, though, we move on to a more honed and refined version of our bar band. from Kingston Up to here is a taste of the South, delivered on the backs of songs that have stood the test of time, Produced by a famed knob turner, Don Smith, who had previously worked with the likes of you, to the traveling willbaries and Keith Richards, to name just a few. At any rate, let's just say, the hip picked up what Don Smith was putting down, and together they birthed the classic. That's what I think anyway. What, though, will our friends Pete and Tim think of up to here on their first listen? Let's find out in this episode of getting hip to the hip. 0:01:25 - Speaker 2Long sliced brewery presents getting hip to the hip. 0:01:35 - Speaker 1Hey, it's JD here and welcome to getting hip to the hip, a tragically hip podcast. I'm here, as always, with my friends Pete and Tim, and I want to ask them right up front How are you doing, boys? 0:01:47 - Speaker 3Doing well, doing great. It's Monday, Monday morning in Portland and there's frost on the ground. 0:01:52 - Speaker 1Oh, Really not here. 0:01:54 - Speaker 3Yeah, Yeah, Oh, no, no. 0:01:57 - Speaker 5Molly is. it's Monday night in Malaga and You know it's a thunderstorm right now outside, so I hope my internet holds up, but It's getting chilly. man, We're definitely in the winter, That's for sure. 0:02:12 - Speaker 1Oh god, What does that mean? like 20 degrees. 0:02:16 - Speaker 5It's, it's 16 right now. You know that's. Oh I'm trying for you. 0:02:21 - Speaker 1What is it here right now? It's four. 0:02:25 - Speaker 5Oh god man, No thanks Geez. 0:02:31 - Speaker 1I'm a hardy Canadian, for four is good for this time of year, for is like your coat's unzipped and you're drinking a stout. 0:02:38 - Speaker 5I can't drink those stouts here. Let me tell you, man, I'm sticking a light beer, That's for sure. 0:02:43 - Speaker 1Oh, yeah, I'm, yeah I'm, I'm well into the stouts, That's for sure. So up to here, I believe it's recorded in Memphis. I'm gonna double check that right now. Yep, Memphis, Tennessee, and it's got that sort of muddy southern Field to it. you know it's like a well, It's like a well-worn in pickup truck. you know it's got some, it's got some mud on the sides, Really comfortable to drive. That's what this record is and it comes on the tail of their 87 EP. But in those two years the growth to me anyway seems Market. you know, like there is a market growth in terms of, you know the songwriting and the songwriting, The lyrics in particular. but the but the content, you know is is just a little more Worn in like a great pair of jeans. What do you guys think, Pete? Wow. 0:03:43 - Speaker 5Well, you said something in beginning of the Of your kickoff and it's really hard, because I wanted to make this note, because I know that you, there's probably some pretty hardcore hip fans listening to this. so, given the Yeah, given the fact that there's only a week to To listen to these, to really dig into them, you know, I'm just, Basically, on behalf of Tim and myself, begging for forgiveness. you know, don't send hate mail because it's, it's, It's tough, like it's. I know Tim is really a solid music connoisseur, Probably well more than I am, and you know No, but you know he's, he's pretty thoughtful, But, but, but I thought about it too. like, like bands that I really love, like God man, What would I, how, what would my reaction be for listening to two jokers Who never heard this before and have a week to listen to it? you know what? what would they? You know what I'm saying, Tim, Do you do? JD, Do you feel me like I? 0:04:49 - Speaker 1I feel like there's daggers toward us, you know first of all, Pete, at getting hip to the hip. calm is where you want to go with your complaints about. No, I'm kidding, but You got to think in terms of context. here everyone gets the conceit of the shell. people got this record, people got their hands on this record And they got to sit with it for a year before the next record came out. 0:05:15 - Speaker 5So yeah, yeah, you know, Just asking for forgiveness, but all in all, to what your your your. your point was JD, I mean I did. I know we're gonna go song by song, but I just want to say I I started off with this record. This is kind of the same way I did the other one, the last EP. first I started off on my computer, was not feeling it Pop the pop the earbuds in, went for a run with it, Really started to warm up to it and then I took it out in the car and and JD, you've been in my cars, You know that's got a premium audio sound system in it Yeah and oh man, Oh man, It is. I want to walk into a roadhouse somewhere in Memphis and this band's playing and just whoo, there's a lot of crunch man. Oh, I dig it. I got lots to say, but I'll send it over to Tim. 0:06:10 - Speaker 3Well, I had a similar Reflection. I was talking to my wife the other day and about the band and I Said or you know what if my favorite band was in a podcast, someone else was reviewing it, and What if they didn't like it? What if they loved it or what have you You know in either way? I thought, well, hopefully, if I, you know, if I'm an open-minded Pod listener to my favorite band, Hopefully it would be entertaining, Hopefully it'd be funny to hear these Two schmucks talking about what they think you know and with without much background at all. It's kind of like what I said last time without you know, ever trying a certain type of food. It's like, oh, my god, okay, Let's do this. but I am with this album. I, Yes, I started it in the car and it just seemed like really good road trip music. I totally concur with you, Pete, about it being in the boss, in the car Felt like road trip music, felt like, you know, I wanted to drive to go see a show or go see a show by them. Definitely worked in the car. listen to it at home a fair amount, I think. in general it feels, and no production value. definitely more polished Than the last album we listened to totally. yet You get very familiar, like the storytelling is still there, right? The song structures changed a little bit but like the. the DNA is definitely still there. Compared to the last album, Yeah, it's like pinnacle. 0:07:51 - Speaker 1Top perfection bar rock. Yeah, I heard, You know. 0:07:54 - Speaker 3George Thoreau, good like guitar. I just heard this bluesy rock and roll bar Kind of just awesome riffing and I you know, now that you mentioned it, Being in Memphis, I just absolutely heard some country Wow kind of rock and roll tones in there. Oh, that's big time, big time, Elvis, you know there's, There's definitely some of that in there, from Memphis for sure. more so, much more so than the last album. 0:08:25 - Speaker 1Interesting. So, experience wise, did you prefer this record to the last record or not? or where were you there? 0:08:34 - Speaker 3For me. I kind of likened the last record as a pizza with the works, like where is this going? kind of thing. Throw it all together and see what we get. and this one is for sure an evolution. So I would say, sure, I like it more. but it just to me also just feels like an evolution and I'm curious. I was describing it to a friend, and actually to my wife actually, and she was like it sounds like it's just going to get better And I said, well, I definitely hope so, As we listen. 0:09:11 - Speaker 1Yeah, well, I mean, that's what makes this interesting to me getting your first listens in on these records that were seminal to not only me but to a great swath of our country and places you know near and far. I am curious whether the evolution continues for you, And I think that that's going to be fascinating as we as we roll into things. So, Tim, thanks for that. Now, Pete, what have you got in terms of last questions or comments on this record, Or do you have any? Let me know. 0:09:55 - Speaker 5Oh, there was one question I was going to ask you to JD Diamond status. Yeah, So that's Canada's version of platinum, But I'm curious to know why they have that different status. when, for example, if you have the Stones or the Beatles who are from the UK, does the UK have a different? 0:10:21 - Speaker 1I don't know if they have a different one. I've never heard if they have a different one. I know that you guys have diamond, like America has diamond as well. 0:10:28 - Speaker 2It's 10 million copies. 0:10:29 - Speaker 1Yeah, it's 10 million copies. 0:10:31 - Speaker 2We do. 0:10:32 - Speaker 1It's 10 times what we have. So diamond in Canada is one million and platinum in Canada is 100,000. Okay, I see, And it jives out because America has roughly 10, 10 times the population. So, you know, 100,000 and a million. What's interesting, though, is the province of Quebec, which is, you know, I think, 11, 10 or 11 million people. they have artists that have, in the past, consistently hit platinum status, or diamond status, rather, with 100,000, pardon me, a million copies of a record, which is staggering, You know, when you figure, the rest of Canada has a difficult time putting together a million, a million sales in records. Now, this is all off the table, now that we don't sell records anymore, But back in the day, this was a, you know, a big marker of things. So, yeah, you have Quebec. that just is, you know, able to market themselves to. it's because they can put up stuff in French and they can, they can. you know they have access to that audience. 0:11:52 - Speaker 5That's crazy. Yeah, it was a lot of questions. 0:11:55 - Speaker 1What were you listening to in 89? Do you remember Either of you guys? 0:11:59 - Speaker 3Yes. 0:12:00 - Speaker 1Where are you at? 0:12:02 - Speaker 3I was senior in high school. 0:12:04 - Speaker 1Yeah. 0:12:05 - Speaker 3Yeah, it was everything from Southern California punk rock. Yeah, we had a lot of local punk rock going on and we had you know friends in punk rock bands But you know kind of flip the rock and roll coin. I was also listening to like, oh, a lot of new wave, Holy cow, a lot of new wave kind of influence for my sister And that's everything 80s new wave. And then also I was for a period there like a big fan of the cult. You know I like Epic Guitar. I don't always need it, but I like a band that has you know back bone drum bass, blah, blah. but I love a great guitar player And the hip has definitely some guitar going on. 0:12:54 - Speaker 5Yeah, 89. 89, I was. I was I'm a tad younger than you guys, but 89, it was coming out of like some late stage Steely Dan and and Huey Lewis sports was just, I mean, God damn Nice. I don't think there was a bigger album and we talked about that last week. you know some Huey Lewis vibes in there And then you know, I just feel like I went right into. you know Guns N' Roses and the Motley crew of that time before getting thrust into. you know 90s grunge, like everybody else did with Alice and Chains and and and you know Soundgarden and eventually Nirvana. 0:13:45 - Speaker 1I was a big Pearl Jam guy, That was kind of where I was at. Okay, Yeah, I was a Pearl Jam guy, and but that was later. That was, you know, into the 90s. Back in 89, when this came out, I was listening to hair metal. I was straight up listening to hair metal And I recalled, on the intro, the cold open of the first episode. you know, when I heard the hip for the first time and the impact that it made on me. you know, in spite of the, the garishness of the hair metal that I was listening to, there was something that I really liked about this pickup truck band from Kingston, And you know there's a lot to like on this record for sure. So what do you say? we get into it and attack this sucker track by track. Yeah, good to go, man, All right, So we kick off with Blow It High, Do Welcome back and welcome back to CFY's fourth annual Canada Day Festival for Canada's 123rd birthday. 0:14:54 - Speaker 4We're at very Ontario half the time of our lives. Believe me, this band is going to be very, very hot. We'd like you to listen now to Tragically Hip. He's a rapper like Tizorim, never like the stars To throw some passion, throws a passion in some. just bring him on. We're so close, the best that we get to listen now. But you can't look me in for the smile of your eyes. the further it's gone, the higher I go. And if I'm high I go, and if you blow the cry I go. Maybe I feel fine, I'm pretty, just genuine. It makes no sense. it makes no sense for a track to be unified And if I'm hip-sick you should leave it high. It was the strangest thing. I should move so fast, move so fast in the better way I pray Sometimes, the best that we get to listen. now you gotta remember the smile of your eyes. the further it's gone, the higher I go. And when you blow the cry, I go. Now that the speedway, the same evidence, the same. Well, I ain't no movie star but I can give it hand in a thing In the better way I pray Sometimes, the best that we get to listen. now you gotta remember the smile of your eyes. the further it's gone, the higher I go, And if I'm high, I go. Yeah, I'm gonna fly, I go, Gonna fly, I go, I fly. Now that the speedway. the same evidence, the same evidence. 0:19:25 - Speaker 3I mean to me that just crushed it. as the first song, It just hit the ground running, which I love. I'm really into checking out song orders and there was a while many, many, many years ago, I was hoping to be a fan of song three. There was a cadence to some albums that I really enjoyed and this song as a song one it was super good. This is kind of where I mentioned hearing guitar licks that you'd hear from George Thurgood or you know. it was very kind of smithereens, Tom Petty friendly in that way. Some of the lyrics like oh, what do I have? Don't get ahead of yourself. or faster it gets, the less you need to know. I love that line faster it gets, the less you need to know. It's like, just keep the momentum going, And that's also a song that was awesome in the car. 0:20:21 - Speaker 5Well, I mean, yeah, I mean, what a fucking banger of a first tune, The slide. I had the same thing. I very much got some Thurgood tunes or vibes in there, The way the song starts out, I think, with the drums and then a little crunch guitar, and then that in my notes I wrote down the layers, the way they layer the song into getting it, getting the ball rolling, and it just from no disrespect to the EP, but leaps and bounds, recording quality wise, just production, leaps and bounds. It was just. 0:21:00 - Speaker 2you tell me like well, this is going to be a fucking record. 0:21:07 - Speaker 5I was very excited from that first track, Absolutely All right, We'll stick with you and move into. 0:21:13 - Speaker 1I'll Believe in You or I'll Be Leaving You Tonight. 0:21:17 - Speaker 5Which it took me a minute to get the play on words there. I know I'm a bit dense, I'm a blonde, You can't see that for just you listeners out there, But the riff in there is just so catchy I think. at first I was like, oh, this is like a typical late 80s riff and I'll make that reference a couple of times for a few songs here. But the more I listened to it I was like I want to try to play that. I took out the guitar and I was like, oh, that's cool man, It's just cool, It's cool to play and it sounds cool And I can imagine playing it back in that time I mean, if I was alive in that time. it's just like I don't know. I'm sorry I'm trying hard time, particularly myself, but it's a really love that jam. 0:22:11 - Speaker 1We're not rock critics, so we're people who are telling it like it's Oh, yes, we are. Oh, I forgot, Put your quill away. What did you think of this one Lesser Bangs? 0:22:26 - Speaker 3Yeah, it's kind of a little bit of a similar feel. It was cranking in the car really well, I found myself I didn't know what to call it I was doing the chin back and forth to the cadence of the song. It was like kind of reminded myself. I was like I'm doing kind of the chicken thing right now. Just have this good tempo. The two minute mark around then is when Gord starts kind of talk singing, as he does sometimes, And then it moves into, as Pete mentioned, the big guitar riff. And I enjoy when the structure changes up a little bit. I think the last album I felt like there was more consistency and structure which made me lose my interest a little bit. So I like it when the tempo changes or there's like a build up, slow down, build up. you know This had a good speed to it. There's also definitely some country music influence in there. I mean, I could hear it right away. 0:23:34 - Speaker 1That's so interesting to me. I'd have to listen really hard to hear to find country in there. 0:23:41 - Speaker 3But if you listen to some, yeah, some old school kind of country and it just reminds me of, like, the era from when Elvis started to go a little more rock and roll, Like it. just it's very Memphis. It's definitely influenced by the region, I feel. 0:23:58 - Speaker 1All right. the next track on the record is another single from this record. It's probably one of the songs that if you do meet somebody that knows the Tragically Hip, they might know this song. 0:24:11 - Speaker 3Okay. 0:24:11 - Speaker 1It stands. you know it stood the test of time in their live set Throughout the nineties. it was a fertile place for them to play when they played it live. It was a fertile place for them to jam inside of and introduce or workshop new songs. So you'd get like a record two years down the road from a time that you saw them live and there'd be this worked out song. But you'd hear this rough you know this rough lyric phrase or a lick that maybe is familiar on a record two years down the road. It was such a cool little thing to hear them. you know, jam these songs out and you'd go see them. I would see them like multiple nights in a row and it would be different, Like it wasn't, like they were just fucking around and like it was spontaneous and it was very storytelling and yeah, So I'm talking way too much here. This is your show. New Orleans is sinking. 0:25:12 - Speaker 3Yeah. So you know, I'd love to hear a version of this song where they take it longer or they jam out it and or something like that. because first listen, you know the story is actually pretty doom and gloom sounding It's. you know it's kind of about maybe giving up, I don't know. It just felt like, you know, there was some dark, heavy thoughts in there and then it felt just as as a song on the album. it felt a little bit filler to me it was more staple. it was more regular hip. It just like had the typical structure I've heard thus far Wow. So I didn't think I loved it. That is fucking awesome. I like the idea of the song, but it just felt kind of like, okay, this is a, this is a song. three hip, hip song. 0:26:05 - Speaker 4No No. 0:26:07 - Speaker 1Oh wow, It'll be interesting to hear if this change. I hope so. 0:26:13 - Speaker 3Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, Yeah. No, I want to hear, I want to hear more versions of it. 0:26:17 - Speaker 1Yeah, you should. 0:26:18 - Speaker 3Like I was saying, like it was songs have some, have some change or cadence change or an up and a down, and this just felt like, okay, this is song three. What are we going to do for four? Oh wow, Sorry, hip hip fans who have that as a moment, It's not mine yet. 0:26:36 - Speaker 5Well, I'm going to read from my notes to, but before I do, real quick, I got to say this song just by the title and the way that it started. I got this really weird feeling and I'm going to indulge me for just one moment with a story I remember when Hurricane Katrina hit in 2005. Tim, you remember, I mean JD. I don't know if the news of it was as big in your neck of the woods as it was, Oh yeah. 0:27:05 - Speaker 1It was huge, It was huge. 0:27:07 - Speaker 5But the night the hurricane made, you know, landfall, so to speak. I remember listening to a guy. you may or may not have heard of him. He used to do some something called Freeform Radio. He's the godfather of Freeform Radio. His name is Jim Ladd, Nationally syndicated, but he's from LA, and I remember smoking weed on my patio there and he said ladies and gentlemen, this is going to be really bad. It was before like the hurricane even made landfall and this is going to be really bad. And he started. the song he played was When the Levy Breaks by Led Zeppelin And it was just really dark and haunting. So I got that same vibe when I started listening to this song and I was like, like Gord's fucking vocals on this are up into this song. from everything I've heard from the EP with the most extreme, in my opinion, just the most range, the most talent. Like if I was a record producer and I'd heard this as a demo, I'd be like sign this fucking band, this guy's off the charts. There's a mention of somebody named Colonel Tom in the song And I don't know who Colonel Tom is. JD, if you got a line on this, let me know. But my initial thought was go ahead, Tim or whoever knows. No, you tell us your initial thought. My initial thought was it was a David Bowie reference to Space Up, but I could be wrong. 0:28:49 - Speaker 3I just read two references. One was just, it was about the North versus the South. you know, some war back then, back then. But then I also read a reference said that it had to do with Elvis's manager, which made me think, okay, yeah, Colonel Tom Parker. So I think that's what it ties to in Memphis and all of that. 0:29:10 - Speaker 5That makes sense. 0:29:12 - Speaker 1Yeah they talk about. this is like Gord's first foray into writing most of the songs. He's handling most of the lyrics, but not all of the lyrics. And why am I saying this? Oh, because they talk about his notebook. He was notorious for having always having a notebook on him and just writing down phrases. And you know, like he would write full lyric, full lyrics or stanzas or whatever. But even if he heard something that he thought was cool, like a cool turn of phrase, he would write that down. So maybe it was even, you know, like Colonel Tom from Memphis, and that's literally the only thing that's relevant about that lyric is that one individual moment. You know it might not be the story of the rest of the song, you know. 0:29:59 - Speaker 3Sure Yeah. 0:30:01 - Speaker 1I don't know though. Yeah, Colonel Tom Parker. That's what I've always thought. 0:30:05 - Speaker 5Good, What a song, though, man? What a fucking song. I mean, it is just chock full of dirt, you know. 0:30:13 - Speaker 1It's a dirty song, right It's yeah. It is Dirty, Dirty, It's mighty yeah. 0:30:18 - Speaker 3You know it's, it's. I just thought it was also. yeah, I agree, I agree, I just yeah, let's just. 0:30:24 - Speaker 1There's other tracks that you like better. That's cool, That's totally cool. It's not. it's not on my top 10 list, So. 0:30:30 - Speaker 3I'd like to hear other versions of it maybe other live versions of it and see how they can do it Me too. 0:30:36 - Speaker 1It became a staple. for sure, It was a. it was a staple. 0:30:38 - Speaker 3Yeah, That's. that's exactly what my take of it was. 0:30:42 - Speaker 1Whereas the next song was not so much a staple Early on, it was, but it didn't live on in the set list for forever. but it's a great example of Gord, you know, sort of weaving a yarn here and telling a story and using actual Canadian history but giving it a unique spin. So you know, he's playing with things a little bit, but he's telling the story and then he makes it about his own family. What do you guys think of 38 years old? 0:31:14 - Speaker 4I've got my name in administration So People leave. don't have people left, nothing to feed. The last thing they wanna do is hang around here. Most of came from town from long French name, But one other dozen was a hometown shame. Same pattern on the table, same clock on the wall, Been one seat empty, 80 years and all Freezing slow time, away from the world. He's 38 years old, never kissed a girl. He's 38 years old, never kissed a girl. Music. We're sitting on the table. heard the telephone ring. Father said he'd tell him if he saw anything Other type from the window in the middle of the night. Held back the curtains for my older brother, Mike. See, my sister got a ring. so a man got killed. Love for which prison man's buried on the bill. Folks spend back a normal when they close the case. They still stare at the shoes. in the past, our place, Music, Music, Music. My mother called. the horror finally ceased. He whispered yeah, for the time being, Natalie, No, but show the squad, come make a phone. Said let's go, Michael's son, we're taking you home. Same pattern on the table, same clock on the wall, Been one seat empty, 18 years and all Freezing slow time, away from the world. He's 38 years old never kissed a girl. He's 38 years old never kissed a girl. He's 38 years old never kissed a girl. Music, Music, Music, Music. 0:35:03 - Speaker 5Music. It's crazy. so I ended up this above all songs. I ended up doing the most research on, Started researching the prison and there was a guy who was shot there years ago And his last name was Trudeau and I was like, was he related to the prime minister or what? Like all this weird miraculous rabbit hole that I went down. But getting back to the song, I got to be totally honest with you. So I know you guys feel me on this. when you look at like records during this time that came out, You'd have the first one or two to three songs will be just these fucking bangers. And then song four just you look in the structure of the record is going to bring it down a little bit. It's kind of like, okay, everybody relax. you think about it like even playing a live show. That's just the way that the records were made back in the day. And I start hearing that and I'm hearing this song come in with the guitar And I'm like, oh, this is man. those first three songs are fucking bangers. And I'm like, no, they're just going to be this fucking cheesy. yeah, just, you know, Give me some acoustic, a little bit of love, whatever. And I got to say this is probably my favorite song in the record And it took some evolution on my part because first I started digging in the lyrics And I was like you know there's rape prisoners, murder, like all this crazy shit, And I'm like what the fuck is going on here. And then you know ultimately just the song itself, like the melody and everything involved, Which is it's just. it's a I probably my favorite song in the record. Sorry to spoil your alert, but yeah, loved it. loved it. 0:37:00 - Speaker 1It gave the record legs. I think this is the fourth single from the record, Maybe the third or fourth single. So there were four singles on the record and I want to say this is the third, But it might have been the fourth, so gave it some legs as well. 0:37:13 - Speaker 3Favorite song. I'm just confirming 38 years old favorite song. 0:37:20 - Speaker 5On this record. Yeah, I just think it's really 38 years old. was it never been kissed, never made love? 0:37:31 - Speaker 3Yeah, all that, yeah, Never kissed a girl. 0:37:35 - Speaker 5Just, I don't know man, I feel like and this is crazy, I can't believe I'm going to say this And I'll probably be if you kick me off this podcast after what I'm about to say. I totally get it, But a lot of hip lyrics, especially this song about something historical. I really get some Gordon Lightfoot vibes from man. 0:38:02 - Speaker 1Hey, there's nothing wrong with that. 0:38:05 - Speaker 5You know same name, I guess, but you know, I don't, I just and that guy I fucking fucking loved Gordon Lightfoot. If you don't like it and you want to kick me off the podcast, be my guest, That's the hill I will die on. 0:38:16 - Speaker 3We'll keep you. I think I thought, okay, this is some more kind of dark, gloomy storytelling And I feel like I, you know, on an album, I don't need too much of that, I don't need a lot of that, and me personally. And I also thought, okay, if I'm at a hip show, Some dude next to me is like yelling for this song to be played. I think that's a little weird. like when would they play this song at a live show? It's just like, it's just a little much. you know, Maybe Gordon knew that in the future, true crime would be a thing. you know, podcasts and TV shows and everything. Because it just feels like I mean a song about rape and killing. It's just like how many times you need to hear that? I don't need to hear it very many times. So I thought it was super heavy and you know the same thing Like lyric just too much. Yeah, storytelling is just a lot. you know, maybe I'm too sensitive or something, But I was like, yeah, if I'm at this show with my girlfriend and some dude just keeps yelling to hear this song, we're gonna move. 0:39:24 - Speaker 1I've always said that the hip is really funny with their, because I came from the same school that Pete did With. you know especially heavy metal where it was like banger, banger, banger and then like ballad. Yeah, the ballads would be where you would slow dance and you would make out on the dance floor, you know, after you were head banging and stuff like that. And I just think the tragedy hip does the same thing. they do two slow songs or two ballads on every record, kind of thing ish. But the subject matter is never something that you would want to slow dance or make out to Like. it's always fucking heavy, heavy shit And really when you think about it it's like C, G, D, A minor on an acoustic guitar. you know it's like a three or four chord song that fits in the realm of those heavy metal ballads. But then you put that story about family over top of it and it's like Jesus Christ, this is unreal, Yeah, and you know it overall just comprises them into this epic band that can go there. 0:40:33 - Speaker 3Like not many bands even do something like that lyrically or with storytelling, you know. So, you know it's so. part of me was like, okay, what makes me feel uncomfortable about this? Because I appreciate the music and all the effort and creativity. you know, it's like it's because bands don't really do this often Sinister type storytelling. maybe I know a person or two who kind of fits this mold of a character a little bit to a degree. you know it's just like, wow, okay, What's the next song for me? 0:41:07 - Speaker 5The song when I heard the guitar start and I got to tell you JD I don't know if I told you this, I know I didn't mention this to you, Tim, But the very much got some, you know, with those, those that rock ballads and nothing else matters, vibes from Metallica. And growing up in Downey, where I was born, you know, James Hetfield went to my high school, so, like you, you if you weren't a Metallica fan like you, Or you could be excommunicated from the city. like everybody was Metallica fan Like you. just you just weren't not, you know, a Metallica fan. and getting to Tim's question about why or you, JD, you said why the hip never. I mean it's the eternal question why the hip never broke through. You know, here you got this ballad that everybody's expecting to like dance to at a concert or whatever. but then there's lyrics of, like you know, rape and murder and stuff like they did. they did went outside the box, And that's kind of cool, because not a lot of bands do that Exactly. And so like they sacrificed the ability of being, you know, the ability of of fame or whatever it may be, to have to be a fucking cool outside the box band. I don't know. that's my view. 0:42:36 - Speaker 3Well, there's some also, like I was trying to say, there's some artistic merit to it. you know if, if not, a lot of bands go, go there with something. I mean I mean at the same time, era, late 80s. it's not like Morrissey wasn't talking about doom and gloom with Smith or the Cure or something. I mean it was right there, right in there, but I don't know when it. for me it just hits differently when it's comprised of the sound formula that the hip have, and there he's just like letting the listener have it with this character, and it's just guitar driven rock and roll, it's just. 0:43:13 - Speaker 5It's like a preacher that's telling the congregation like, like he's saying some, some shit to the congregation that, hey, you may not like what you're about to hear, but you're going to fucking hear it whether you like it or not. 0:43:25 - Speaker 1Exactly, I don't know that's. 0:43:27 - Speaker 5does that make sense to you, Tim? 0:43:28 - Speaker 3I mean, that's kind of the way I'm going to provide for you, For sure, for sure, yeah, yeah, yeah, I'm not going to jump the gun, but I kind of had a similar, you know, mindset, feel from the next song. 0:43:41 - Speaker 1Well, let's go into it. she didn't know. I was going to say it's sort of dark too. you know it's couched in this blues, bass, lick sort of thing. you get a nice groove in the back with the bass and the drums, but then those lyrics come in and it's like man, yeah, this is some more broken hearted, dark shit. 0:44:10 - Speaker 3At the same time, it does have this groove to it. there's almost this like I don't want to say pop, but there's this, there's this beat to it that is a little bit different than the other songs. it's I don't know, it's it's Interesting. A little bit different but there's like yeah, yeah, exactly it, it, it. to me it ties a little bit more back to the overall feel, not conceptually with lyrics, but from blow it high to like there's a drive to it, there's a good. it embraced me more just musically in the song it's, it's, it feels like a good sing along, like I could hear the song on the radio driving across Canada. 0:44:51 - Speaker 1You do, I'm. I'm very curious why it wasn't a single it's perfect length for a single it's. it's three minutes and 30 seconds. you know it's, you're in, you're out. there's a nice bridge. you get a little bit of silliness. maybe the subject matter, I don't know, but 38 years old, was a single, so yeah. so what do you got? 0:45:12 - Speaker 5Well, I kind of, you know, just sticking with what Tim said, you know the amount of tragedy fitting with the name of the band involved in the lyrics. I really think, because a lot of the, a lot of the sound that that that Memphis, correct, it was recorded in Memphis. Yeah, that that vibe is just, it is consistent. I mean, I feel like if you asked me where do you think this record was recorded, Pete, I probably would have said Memphis, if I, if, like you, had a gun to my head and I had to guess, just because this the overall sound of it. And one thing I noticed really strangely and I don't know if you got this too, Tim JD, you may have noticed this listening to it so many more times, but moving from the end of this song into boots or hearts, there's a vinyl crackle. there's a tape crackle and and maybe the hardcore hip fans will get this. So at the end of she didn't know if the song ends with like a tape crackle and then the begin. it's something you don't, at least I didn't hear on any other songs. you hear a tape crackle at the beginning of boots or hearts. 0:46:39 - Speaker 3I heard it. 0:46:40 - Speaker 5I know you're talking about you know I'm talking about it, just I heard it. 0:46:44 - Speaker 3I heard it on my, on my sono speaker. I heard it and I went back and replayed it and stuck my ear over there. I was like what the hell is that sound? I mean, I'm familiar with what that sound is but yeah, I thought it was like coming from outside or something because it wasn't on any other tune and I was like right right. 0:47:03 - Speaker 1I think if you did it on more tunes it would take away from it, but to me it's. to me it's like just an accoutrement. that's like there to remind you that this is rustic, this is, you know, this is coming out on CD, but this should be, you know, like vinyl was. vinyl wasn't as popular in 1989 as cassettes and CDs were. CDs were really just emerging, but cassettes were like huge but it was still recorded on tape, I would imagine yes, yeah, yeah, yeah for sure, for sure yeah so you add a little bit of that into it and it's like you know it makes it sound more like authentic. 0:47:41 - Speaker 3I don't know, that's just my, I mean back back then you know BC boys were doing some like needle-hitting the the disc sound to start off songs. or you know, back then people were take starting to take other sounds as the beginning of songs or even ending songs or whatever. so I think it kind of it fits, definitely fits for 1989 let's go to boots, baby there's a line in there. 0:48:06 - Speaker 5I don't know if there's one line in that song that gets me anybody. anybody want to throw a guess out there? I don't know. no, Tim. Gady, no, okay it's even babies raid raised by wolves. know the wind, he's just like what? 0:48:24 - Speaker 3yeah, man, dude, that was the second wolf, the second wolf reference earth song. right, you know for sure there's more to come imagine what it will. 0:48:36 - Speaker 1hardcore fan I'm not joking, there's more to come these f**king douchebags man this song to me it felt really long. 0:48:46 - Speaker 3that it was not long and it felt like a little more country than the last ones. definitely, you know boots or hearts come on. you know it's like okay, is this the crossover song to the south of the United States to get more fans? yeah, I just the lyrics was a single yeah, for sure, I can't imagine a single, but it was a single who was managing these guys at the time who were like we got it, we got it, we got, at least get the south, because if you get the southern belt of the US, that's like that could be a business, you know so yeah, when I heard the song, I was like, oh yeah, I get it. they were after something here and it seems very it's too much more country to me, so I just kept moving well, if you know, you also have to think too like. 0:49:35 - Speaker 5I don't know how long the recording process took for them, but if you're, you know you're Canadian boys. from where, what? which province are they from? JD? 0:49:45 - Speaker 1they're from Ontario, so they're from where I am, about two hours, about two hours east of where I live. they live in King. there, they came from Kingston okay, yeah, Kingston, that's right. 0:49:56 - Speaker 5so, if you know, maybe they, maybe they individually travel, but you're all there as a group of people, you're recording a record, it's your first full length studio album and you're spending time in Memphis, Tennessee. I mean, I see what you're saying, Tim. then maybe the manager, the the high rubs for maybe like, but guys, we got a, we got to do this. but also, you know, it's the same thing, as you know, that that culture takes a hold of you. you know you spend JD when you over in the UK for the pave tour for a while. how quickly did it? I mean, we don't say it in the United States, but how quick did it take you to say cheers instead of thanks? you know, yeah, yeah, it only takes a couple of days and then asking for the toilet. 0:50:46 - Speaker 1that's, that's the. that's the biggest thing for me. like I just thought, like it sounds so rude, like where's the hey man, where's the toilet? you know, it just sounds rude, but it's just what everybody says. yeah. 0:50:59 - Speaker 3I got it to say that really clear yeah. 0:51:04 - Speaker 5Tim, how long did it take you to say little symetheos when you were over here in Madrid? 0:51:08 - Speaker 4I mean, you know, I've traveled around yeah, yeah, yeah, not long it's a song called every time you go there, I got my hands, the numbers be up, my smile's right in my hands. Every time you go, every time you feel what I see. Every time you go, heart and eye feel me. Well, down here, but I take two kids round the gas like no place. Say the thing is time when things start, The dance, the wilds of charity, no time to rise, to get afraid. They were pissing, pissing, playing a part. She's a lover, a man, a soul, a game of games, Say the door. I'll remain in the corner of your lips And I was made up of my smile. you're both a man. Every time you go, every time you feel what I see. Every time you go, heart and eye feel me And it makes them feel. let me dance through the air to feel Love me, love, love, love, love, love, love, love, love, love, love. Well, I tell you, every time you go, what I see. Every time you go, heart and eye feel me. Every time you go, every time you go, what I see. Every time you go, heart and eye feel me. Every time you go, heart and eye feel me. Oh gosh. 0:54:37 - Speaker 5Go ahead Tim please. 0:54:39 - Speaker 3I feel like this is just a total hip song. It's got good structure, has awesome drum, backbone beat. I like the chorus ad. Not all their songs have a strong chorus, So I like that aspect of it. It felt like maybe the last quarter of the song felt a little repetitive, like excessively repetitive, Like it just kept going a little bit. But I don't know, man In the Big Snake Pit, it's a song about taking risks, falling in love. What else about it? It's still kind of on the emotional high spectrum to me. But it's a good song. It's a oh. what did I have a note here about? Oh, the drawn out dramatic ending with the vibrato Just becoming a hallmark signature of some of the hip, And I'm just slowly accepting it as one of their things, Because it was really shocking to me on the first EP to hear excessive vibrato. It's like woo Yeah. 0:55:56 - Speaker 5Let's go. I gotta say, gentlemen, this is the only song on the record that literally my notes are. I just it's just nothing. I listened so many times I'm like what the fuck am I missing? And I don't know. It's one of those songs where maybe, hopefully, in a year or two years, and I listen to it and be like dude, yeah, there it is, But I just didn't. it couldn't, it was a sleep placebo, I just didn't do it. I don't know why. 0:56:34 - Speaker 3Well then you should talk about the next one, because I was similar with when the weight comes down. 0:56:41 - Speaker 5Okay, I really liked the structure of the song. I liked the tone of the guitar, One of the things this and well, another one I'll get into But I really think there's a lot of thought put into the guitar tone there. Maybe people I just think at that time people were really obsessed. There wasn't a lot of tricks you could do on things like Logic or Pro Tools or whatever. So whatever was coming out of that speaker was what was going to be on the tape. The guys were like dialing shit in, but the harmonies on when the weight comes down. I think there's talent there, but it just takes away from the meat of the song. If I would and there's other songs on this record where I love the harmonies, but for me that song just it just sounds like maybe just in age Well, I don't know 10 more years. 0:57:48 - Speaker 3I very few notes. I just thought, yeah, it's all right. I thought it was kind of heavy weight comes down, I don't know. 0:57:57 - Speaker 2I didn't. 0:57:58 - Speaker 3at that point I was yearning for something a little bit more different through the tracks which I think I got with the next song. 0:58:05 - Speaker 1Well, that's good, because you're starting to disappoint me here. 0:58:09 - Speaker 3Well, trickle down. I mean Gord's voice. he gets a little more adventurous with going low and high and high and low. There's a kind of a change at a minute and a half where the lyrics pause and you get some actual music, Like he's storytelling a lot through these songs. He's singing, getting to the chorus. The jam keeps going through many songs, but this one there's actually a pause with lyrics and you get some good. you get some good guitar There's like kind of these swing back into the lyrics with guitar. I don't know, I thought that was just better, a better composed song. You know the idea about it. you know being poor, being on welfare, waiting for the check. you know I think it's a song that probably was appealing or easily identifiable across Canada or the US at the time being down and out on your luck financially. I mean, who has not been able to identify with that? So to me it was a pretty great song. This was up there more. 0:59:27 - Speaker 5Well, I trickle down my notes. I wrote half on a paper, half on my phone. Again, guitar tone. I remember one of my first guitar teachers had a Mesa Boogie triple rectifier stack and this guy was obsessed with tone and just very similar like early 90s, late 80s, sort of hair bandy, but just that tone, just there. that's there in that song And this reminded me of like when I was listening to that song I pictured Patrick Swayze. do you know the line in Roadhouse when he goes always be nice till it's time not to be nice. I feel like like I just like I just got that vibe dude, This is a banger, Love it This takes. I feel like the last couple of songs dipped down a little bit for the record. It's a bit of a, of a valley, so to speak, And then it's like man, put your, put your boots on, man, we're going back uphill And this song takes me right back there. 1:00:38 - Speaker 4And I loved it. Love it Same. 1:00:40 - Speaker 2Loved it. 1:00:41 - Speaker 1Yeah. So now that we're uphill and our boots are on, we get. we get what could be. I'm going to tip my hand here and I'm sorry to tip my hand before you guys get to weigh in The 11th track. the last track on this record is on my top 10. Okay, But I don't think it should have been the last track on the record. I think the last track on the record should be another midnight. 1:01:09 - Speaker 4Okay, So I'm going to tip my hand here and I'm sorry to tip my hand before you guys get to weigh in. Okay, So I'm going to tip my hand here and I'm sorry to tip my hand before you guys get to weigh in. So I'm going to tip my hand here and I'm sorry to tip my hand before you guys get to weigh in. I think this was the last track on the record. And the mountains stand high. When the mountains stand high, Can't let us run wild For another midnight, For just another midnight. Perhaps we'll run our election day Pumping hands and kissing all the babies. Ain't no time for a shout of doubt. So maybe is there another way? Or where a storming catalach Racing for a roadblock in the distance, Flashin' by a lifetime in an instance. Can we take it back? Am I is dying? Am I is dying? And the river don't sleep? When the water runs cold And the calender burns And the story unfolds, And the mountains stand high. When the mountains stand high, Can't let us run wild For another midnight. Can we take it back? Can we take it back? Can we take it back? Can we take it back? And the mountains stand high. When the mountains stand high, Can't let us run wild For another midnight, For just another midnight, For just another midnight, For another midnight. 1:05:01 - Speaker 3I'm down. I think opiate it is a. it's just. It left me either wanting to take a break from the hip for a bit and listen to something else Or, like just it was, I was a little stumped. 1:05:14 - Speaker 1Too dark for you, I guess. Well, let's focus on, let's focus on another midnight first then. So where do you, where do you stand on that track? 1:05:27 - Speaker 3I overall yeah, I overall liked it. I don't have a whole lot of notes about it Overall liked it. You know, I thought it fit well in there. There was, as I kind of said about Every time you go, there was a better mix between verse and chorus. you know, with song structure, I love the one lighter that we're all, or we're a stolen Cadillac, Like you know. I'm going to use that. I love that. That just makes me feel the pain of, you know, escape or trying to be better, do better, I don't know. I thought it was a pretty solid track. 1:06:05 - Speaker 5It's funny that line stood out to you. I mean, I noticed it. I love this song, man. I actually would have put this song at the end to close the record too, And I'll give you my thoughts on opiated. but the line that stuck out to me the most was Burning like a cigarette long season. And then the chorus, the core. I don't know if you'd call it the chorus, You'd call it maybe the pre-chorus, because Oh My, He's Dying is the chorus, more or less. I don't know, I don't write songs, I'm not a musician and I don't play one on television. But and the river don't sleep when the rottar one runs cold, That entire stanza, if you will. I don't know if we're going to call it. is it's fucking dude? I mean, that's Grammy. shit, man, That's. Grammy shit, It comes together with the music. so well, I'm like man, that's one of the things that when I listen to this record, I'm like, yeah, why did that band not fucking peak in the US and all over the world? Because that's so good, It's so good. 1:07:19 - Speaker 3I mean, this could have been like a track three. It was just a great song, good momentum, and it just had the makeup for it. 1:07:30 - Speaker 1for me, Yeah, I would have made it a single, for sure. 1:07:33 - Speaker 5Yeah, totally. 1:07:35 - Speaker 1It's a little long 356, but you could probably trim it up a bit, But I wouldn't because it's perfect. But yeah, I think it's a great, I think it's fucking great And it's just making me think. Tim's reaction to this album as a whole at this point is making me come back to the fact that these guys at this point are like 23, 24 years old. This is some dark shit for young men to be documenting And it makes me wonder if that's a reflection of. you know they've been advanced since 84 in Canada. At this point they have a manager. you know they're booking things. They're not just, you know, driving around willy-nilly touring, They're doing full on tours that are planned out and they spent a fuck of a lot of time on the road, And in Canada that's that means driving all night, like to get from city to city. you know you're driving hours you're driving. you know it's like the last song we listen to, Like another midnight, like. I know it's not couched in that way in the song, but you could take it that way because to me, What I'm getting at here is this is a road record, This is a. this is their first record. This is, you know, the EP is almost like those first four Beatles records where they're playing cover songs. They're still doing their garage act, but this is this is it. This is life on the road and all the shit that comes with it. 1:09:20 - Speaker 3So mr Leiden, like that to me, says you know a lot about the songwriting style, But I'm wondering what you think of the songwriting so, yeah, I briefly, you know, looked into Gord songwriting, how he did it, and so much of it led me to believe that he was, or they were, meeting Band, meeting people on the road and hearing these you know tough stories and you know, just Putting those into song, Yeah, that's the only thing I could come up with. he wasn't sitting around To me Making up these stories like they were influenced by something, and that's how a lot of great writers and poets are. like David Berman, I think a lot of what he wrote was about people he connected with at bars, sitting around on a barstool, you know. 1:10:11 - Speaker 1Interesting. Yeah, I'm not sure. What are you thinking there, Pete? 1:10:17 - Speaker 5To be honest with you, I feel What you said, JD, about. you know the darkness for these people, this young, and you know I often think about. you. know the way and Tim can relate to this. JD, You cannot, because, just by virtue of where you were born, you know A lot of the way we view Canada is, you know, and to put it in just the most beautiful terms, It's Snow, it's bears, It's manitoba, It's maple syrup, It's mounted police, everything's jolly, you guys have health care and Everything's grand north of the border, on the roof of the US. you know, in the most simplest terms now, When I look at and in JD this, you and I have talked about funny things like, You know, the show trailer park boys, right, and yes, I'm making a big Canadian reference there, Right, as funny as that show is, Tim, I don't know if you've ever watched it It's not very plenty plenty. Well, you know, as funny as that show is and I love it to my boat, to the core of my bones That reality in Some parts of Canada, you know, we don't view parts of Canada as being like, You know, some really dark, dreary parts of Portland, where you're at, or me being from LA, or Long Beach to me, To be more specific, There are some dark ass parts of Long Beach and it's, you know, That has I don't know what Kingston's like, I don't know where these guys grew up, but I'd have to imagine, you know, being on the road and seeing, being exposed to different, different things had influenced their, their lyrical content to this, to make them go to this really dark place. and Maybe that's why, again, they didn't, they didn't break through to the States. But I think it's all for the better, because I think the art would have suffered had they, had they done so, You know, are they not? Yeah? 1:12:28 - Speaker 1Yeah, Yeah, I'm, I'm interested in that. I mean, definitely the specter of Milhaven lives large for a Kingston er growing up in the 70s, I have to imagine, But I don't know. but I like the idea of the amalgam of their you know roots Combined with all this time on the road, Accounting for that sort of songwriting style. you know what I'm saying. 1:13:00 - Speaker 3It's gotta be why they had a good following in Detroit, you know, Cleveland, New York, All that whole region, because that's like some tough living around there and I in this, this Band, I think resonates with so much of that, so much of that. 1:13:22 - Speaker 1Yeah Well, fellas, That's up to here. There's only one thing left to do in this episode, and And that is for you to pick your playlist song, your MVP of the album, if you will, And let us know what that is. so I don't know. I'm gonna close my eyes and point. 1:13:54 - Speaker 5What are you doing this to me, man? 1:13:56 - Speaker 3I'm just gonna go. yeah, I'll go blow it. I do. I is, that's, you know, like you said, Pete, a sister banger. it got me right, right at the right, at the opening of the gate. 1:14:07 - Speaker 1I wonder if that's where your your view of the album as a whole comes from then as well, or it's influenced by The idea that you know your favorite track is the first track. You know it should get better than that, right, like again, We're talking about song Structure here, not structure Sequencing. you know, like blow it oh is like the perfect song to Open a concert or open an album, but It's also tough to get bigger than that. 1:14:44 - Speaker 3True, I think it we start to with trickle down, or every time you go, definitely every time you go, it just has a A more singable single, you know, on the radio aspect to it. I think I'm just trying to, you know, find What resonates most with me with this band and where I'm gonna see them Stay at, I guess sort of thematically, and how they evolve, you know, and and how I wanted them I maybe subconsciously to evolve, especially on the production side of things that for some did it Gotcha. 1:15:23 - Speaker 1All right cool. How about you Pete? 1:15:27 - Speaker 5It's a tough draw. I mean blow at the high-doh or 30 years old. I mean flip a coin. 1:15:36 - Speaker 1Won't do it. I won't do it, No no, no, it's fine. 1:15:38 - Speaker 5Okay, so I'd say the first track to it, Just it. just. there's the thing that the reason why I'm saying that over 30 years old because I remember listening the first time 30 years old be like And I don't want this the person Who's listening this playlist to start listening and be like You know, I want them to like, just fucking love you, right, You know me, I want them So Holy. but yeah, blow at the high-doh. 1:16:11 - Speaker 1All right. Well, thanks so much for doing this again, fellas. We'll talk again soon, and and We'll keep on getting hip to the hip, Looking forward to it. Thanks, JD pick up your shit. 1:16:34 - Speaker 2Thanks for listening to getting hip to the hip. Please subscribe, share, rate and review the show at getting hip to the hipcom. Find us on Twitter and Instagram at getting hip pot and Join our Facebook group at Facebookcom slash groups slash fully and completely. Questions or concerns email us at JD. at getting hip to the hipcom. We'd love to hear from you podcast, some such. Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/fully-and-completely/donationsAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Was there ever a more brainless, incoherent, intelligence-insulting cash grab of a music album released during Elvis' lifetime than Elvis Sings Hits From His Movies, Volume 1?  As Gurdip and Bec discuss this week, at least many of the other Camden releases prior to this bothered compiling material fans might not have otherwise had from EPs, singles and unreleased studio cuts. But 1972's "Hits From His Movies" hit new lows in Colonel Tom Parker's attempts to snow Elvis' fans and part them from their money... which makes it all more fun to deconstruct all these years later! Then, both hosts still seem to have Easter on the brain, with Gurdip picking the Million Dollar Quartet jam on the gospel traditional "I Shall Not Be Moved," while Bec praises the uplifting take Elvis & the band gave on Charles Albert Tindley's old spiritual "By and By" on the "How Great Thou Art" album! If you enjoy TCBCast, please consider supporting us with a donation at Patreon.com/TCBCast. If you are unable to support us via Patreon, but want to support us another way, please make sure to leave a positive review or mention our show to another like-minded music/movie history enthusiast.

The true story about the man who contributed mightily to the destruction of one of America's greatest 20th century icons.

The true story about the man who contributed mightily to the destruction of one of America's greatest 20th century icons.

Elvis, directed by Baz Luhrmann, tells the story of Elvis Presley through the lens of manager Colonel Tom Parker. Behind only Bohemian Rhapsody, it is the second-highest-grossing musical biopic of all time. For more movie reviews and bonus content, join our Patreon: patreon.com/listentobrunch

The Colonel and The King - Baz Luhrman's Elvis  This week Ibrahim and I sit down to discuss the Academy Award nominated, Baz Luhrman directed, Elvis Presley Bio-Pic, Elvis. Definitely a visual assault on the senses, Luhrman has an incredible eye that re-creates the country from the 1950s thru the birth of the Vegas Lounge Act in the 1970s. Featuring an award-winning performance from star, Austin Butler, as Presley and Tom Hanks as his controversial and Svengali-like manager, Colonel Tom Parker (born Andreas Cornelis van Kujik) in a strange and polarizing performance. Luhrman's film hits the familiar points; the music, censorship, racism and segregation, The Blues, Gospel, and - of course - the enduring legacy of Elvis Presley and the early days of the media star and the beginnings of cancel culture. Take a listen; it's an interesting discussion. Questions, Comments, Complaints, & Suggestions can be directed to gondoramos@yahoo.com. Our Continued Thanks. 

Originally released in January 2016: BJ is joined by James L. Dickerson, who is the author of many books including a great one called Colonel Tom Parker: The Curious Life of Elvis Presley's Eccentric Manager and that book was the impetus for the discussion BJ and James have about the mysterious past of Andreas van Kuijk (aka "Colonel Tom Parker") and the unfortunate impact that the mysterious Parker had on the life and career of Elvis Presley. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Tom Hanks has had more iconic roles than most actors have had roles. From Big, to Forrest Gump, to Saving Private Ryan, to 2022's Elvis, Tom has played countless characters spanning across different genres and different decades. In this wide-ranging interview, Tom discusses the trajectory of his career, the importance of bringing his own ideas to the films he's acted in, and how he has managed to stave off self-consciousness while remaining as authentic as possible.Links from the show:Tom and Peter Scolari in Bosom BuddiesTom and Daryl Hannah in SplashThe cross-country running scene from Forrest GumpThe execution scene from The Green MileTom as Sully Sullenberger in Sullly: plane crash in the Hudson sceneTom as Colonel Tom Parker in Baz Luhrmann's ElvisThe real Colonel Tom Parker in an interview on ABC Trailer for A Man Called OttoSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Baz Luhrmann is an Australian director whose debut film, Strictly Ballroom, became one of Australia's most successful releases, and also inspired the title of the BBC's popular Saturday night dance show. He went on to direct Romeo + Juliet, Moulin Rouge!, the Great Gatsby and, more recently, Elvis starring Tom Hanks and Austin Butler. Baz was born Mark Andrew Luhrmann in 1962. His friends nicknamed him Baz after the puppet Basil Brush because of his unruly hair. When he was five the family moved to Herons Creek, a remote settlement in New South Wales. Several years later Baz started ballroom dancing after he picked up a leaflet advertising classes while travelling on a bus. At drama school in Sydney he devised a play called Strictly Ballroom with his fellow students and later wrote a screenplay with his school friend Craig Pearce. The film was screened at the Cannes Film Festival in 1992 where it received a rapturous response and went on to win eight Australian Film Institute awards and three BAFTAs. Baz's most recent film, Elvis, tells the life of Elvis Presley from the perspective of his infamous manager Colonel Tom Parker, played by Tom Hanks. The film has been a commercial success – making almost $300 million around the world to date. In addition to making feature films Baz has directed theatre and opera productions. He lives mainly in New York with his wife and frequent collaborator, the production designer Catherine Martin, and their two children. DISC ONE: Changes by David Bowie DISC TWO: One by John Farnham DISC THREE: Spanish Flea by Herb Alpert & The Tijuana Brass DISC FOUR: Suspicious Minds by Elvis Presley DISC FIVE: Puccini: La Boheme / Act 1 - 'Che gelida manina' by Luciano Pavarotti DISC SIX: Unfinished Sympathy by Massive Attack DISC SEVEN: Lady Marmalade by Christina Aguilera, Lil' Kim, MYA, Pink DISC EIGHT: No Church in the Wild by JAY Z, Kanye West, Frank Ocean, The-Dream BOOK CHOICE: War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy LUXURY ITEM: A silk eye mask CASTAWAY'S FAVOURITE: Puccini: La Boheme / Act 1 - 'Che gelida manina' by Luciano Pavarotti Presenter Lauren Laverne Producer Paula McGinley

Episode one hundred and fifty-eight of A History of Rock Music in Five Hundred Songs looks at “White Rabbit”, Jefferson Airplane, and the rise of the San Francisco sound. Click the full post to read liner notes, links to more information, and a transcript of the episode. Patreon backers also have a twenty-three-minute bonus episode available, on "Omaha" by Moby Grape. Tilt Araiza has assisted invaluably by doing a first-pass edit, and will hopefully be doing so from now on. Check out Tilt's irregular podcasts at http://www.podnose.com/jaffa-cakes-for-proust and http://sitcomclub.com/ Erratum I refer to Back to Methuselah by Robert Heinlein. This is of course a play by George Bernard Shaw. What I meant to say was Methuselah's Children. Resources I hope to upload a Mixcloud tomorrow, and will edit it in, but have had some problems with the site today. Jefferson Airplane's first four studio albums, plus a 1968 live album, can be found in this box set. I've referred to three main books here. Got a Revolution!: The Turbulent Flight of Jefferson Airplane by Jeff Tamarkin is written with the co-operation of the band members, but still finds room to criticise them. Jefferson Airplane On Track by Richard Molesworth is a song-by-song guide to the band's music. And Been So Long: My Life and Music by Jorma Kaukonen is Kaukonen's autobiography. Some information on Skip Spence and Matthew Katz also comes from What's Big and Purple and Lives in the Ocean?: The Moby Grape Story, by Cam Cobb, which I also used for this week's bonus. Patreon This podcast is brought to you by the generosity of my backers on Patreon. Why not join them? Transcript Before I start, I need to confess an important and hugely embarrassing error in this episode. I've only ever seen Marty Balin's name written down, never heard it spoken, and only after recording the episode, during the editing process, did I discover I mispronounce it throughout. It's usually an advantage for the podcast that I get my information from books rather than TV documentaries and the like, because they contain far more information, but occasionally it causes problems like that. My apologies. Also a brief note that this episode contains some mentions of racism, antisemitism, drug and alcohol abuse, and gun violence. One of the themes we've looked at in recent episodes is the way the centre of the musical world -- at least the musical world as it was regarded by the people who thought of themselves as hip in the mid-sixties -- was changing in 1967. Up to this point, for a few years there had been two clear centres of the rock and pop music worlds. In the UK, there was London, and any British band who meant anything had to base themselves there. And in the US, at some point around 1963, the centre of the music industry had moved West. Up to then it had largely been based in New York, and there was still a thriving industry there as of the mid sixties. But increasingly the records that mattered, that everyone in the country had been listening to, had come out of LA Soul music was, of course, still coming primarily from Detroit and from the Country-Soul triangle in Tennessee and Alabama, but when it came to the new brand of electric-guitar rock that was taking over the airwaves, LA was, up until the first few months of 1967, the only city that was competing with London, and was the place to be. But as we heard in the episode on "San Francisco", with the Monterey Pop Festival all that started to change. While the business part of the music business remained centred in LA, and would largely remain so, LA was no longer the hip place to be. Almost overnight, jangly guitars, harmonies, and Brian Jones hairstyles were out, and feedback, extended solos, and droopy moustaches were in. The place to be was no longer LA, but a few hundred miles North, in San Francisco -- something that the LA bands were not all entirely happy about: [Excerpt: The Mothers of Invention, "Who Needs the Peace Corps?"] In truth, the San Francisco music scene, unlike many of the scenes we've looked at so far in this series, had rather a limited impact on the wider world of music. Bands like Jefferson Airplane, the Grateful Dead, and Big Brother and the Holding Company were all both massively commercially successful and highly regarded by critics, but unlike many of the other bands we've looked at before and will look at in future, they didn't have much of an influence on the bands that would come after them, musically at least. Possibly this is because the music from the San Francisco scene was always primarily that -- music created by and for a specific group of people, and inextricable from its context. The San Francisco musicians were defining themselves by their geographical location, their peers, and the situation they were in, and their music was so specifically of the place and time that to attempt to copy it outside of that context would appear ridiculous, so while many of those bands remain much loved to this day, and many made some great music, it's very hard to point to ways in which that music influenced later bands. But what they did influence was the whole of rock music culture. For at least the next thirty years, and arguably to this day, the parameters in which rock musicians worked if they wanted to be taken seriously – their aesthetic and political ideals, their methods of collaboration, the cultural norms around drug use and sexual promiscuity, ideas of artistic freedom and authenticity, the choice of acceptable instruments – in short, what it meant to be a rock musician rather than a pop, jazz, country, or soul artist – all those things were defined by the cultural and behavioural norms of the San Francisco scene between about 1966 and 68. Without the San Francisco scene there's no Woodstock, no Rolling Stone magazine, no Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, no hippies, no groupies, no rock stars. So over the next few months we're going to take several trips to the Bay Area, and look at the bands which, for a brief time, defined the counterculture in America. The story of Jefferson Airplane -- and unlike other bands we've looked at recently, like The Pink Floyd and The Buffalo Springfield, they never had a definite article at the start of their name to wither away like a vestigial organ in subsequent years -- starts with Marty Balin. Balin was born in Ohio, but was a relatively sickly child -- he later talked about being autistic, and seems to have had the chronic illnesses that so often go with neurodivergence -- so in the hope that the dry air would be good for his chest his family moved to Arizona. Then when his father couldn't find work there, they moved further west to San Francisco, in the Haight-Ashbury area, long before that area became the byword for the hippie movement. But it was in LA that he started his music career, and got his surname. Balin had been named Marty Buchwald as a kid, but when he was nineteen he had accompanied a friend to LA to visit a music publisher, and had ended up singing backing vocals on her demos. While he was there, he had encountered the arranger Jimmy Haskell. Haskell was on his way to becoming one of the most prominent arrangers in the music industry, and in his long career he would go on to do arrangements for Bobby Gentry, Blondie, Steely Dan, Simon and Garfunkel, and many others. But at the time he was best known for his work on Ricky Nelson's hits: [Excerpt: Ricky Nelson, "Hello Mary Lou"] Haskell thought that Marty had the makings of a Ricky Nelson style star, as he was a good-looking young man with a decent voice, and he became a mentor for the young man. Making the kind of records that Haskell arranged was expensive, and so Haskell suggested a deal to him -- if Marty's father would pay for studio time and musicians, Haskell would make a record with him and find him a label to put it out. Marty's father did indeed pay for the studio time and the musicians -- some of the finest working in LA at the time. The record, released under the name Marty Balin, featured Jack Nitzsche on keyboards, Earl Palmer on drums, Milt Jackson on vibraphone, Red Callender on bass, and Glen Campbell and Barney Kessell on guitars, and came out on Challenge Records, a label owned by Gene Autry: [Excerpt: Marty Balin, "Nobody But You"] Neither that, nor Balin's follow-up single, sold a noticeable amount of copies, and his career as a teen idol was over before it had begun. Instead, as many musicians of his age did, he decided to get into folk music, joining a vocal harmony group called the Town Criers, who patterned themselves after the Weavers, and performed the same kind of material that every other clean-cut folk vocal group was performing at the time -- the kind of songs that John Phillips and Steve Stills and Cass Elliot and Van Dyke Parks and the rest were all performing in their own groups at the same time. The Town Criers never made any records while they were together, but some archival recordings of them have been released over the decades: [Excerpt: The Town Criers, "900 Miles"] The Town Criers split up, and Balin started performing as a solo folkie again. But like all those other then-folk musicians, Balin realised that he had to adapt to the K/T-event level folk music extinction that happened when the Beatles hit America like a meteorite. He had to form a folk-rock group if he wanted to survive -- and given that there were no venues for such a group to play in San Francisco, he also had to start a nightclub for them to play in. He started hanging around the hootenannies in the area, looking for musicians who might form an electric band. The first person he decided on was a performer called Paul Kantner, mainly because he liked his attitude. Kantner had got on stage in front of a particularly drunk, loud, crowd, and performed precisely half a song before deciding he wasn't going to perform in front of people like that and walking off stage. Kantner was the only member of the new group to be a San Franciscan -- he'd been born and brought up in the city. He'd got into folk music at university, where he'd also met a guitar player named Jorma Kaukonen, who had turned him on to cannabis, and the two had started giving music lessons at a music shop in San Jose. There Kantner had also been responsible for booking acts at a local folk club, where he'd first encountered acts like Mother McCree's Uptown Jug Champions, a jug band which included Jerry Garcia, Pigpen McKernan, and Bob Weir, who would later go on to be the core members of the Grateful Dead: [Excerpt: Mother McCree's Uptown Jug Champions, "In the Jailhouse Now"] Kantner had moved around a bit between Northern and Southern California, and had been friendly with two other musicians on the Californian folk scene, David Crosby and Roger McGuinn. When their new group, the Byrds, suddenly became huge, Kantner became aware of the possibility of doing something similar himself, and so when Marty Balin approached him to form a band, he agreed. On bass, they got in a musician called Bob Harvey, who actually played double bass rather than electric, and who stuck to that for the first few gigs the group played -- he had previously been in a band called the Slippery Rock String Band. On drums, they brought in Jerry Peloquin, who had formerly worked for the police, but now had a day job as an optician. And on vocals, they brought in Signe Toley -- who would soon marry and change her name to Signe Anderson, so that's how I'll talk about her to avoid confusion. The group also needed a lead guitarist though -- both Balin and Kantner were decent rhythm players and singers, but they needed someone who was a better instrumentalist. They decided to ask Kantner's old friend Jorma Kaukonen. Kaukonen was someone who was seriously into what would now be called Americana or roots music. He'd started playing the guitar as a teenager, not like most people of his generation inspired by Elvis or Buddy Holly, but rather after a friend of his had shown him how to play an old Carter Family song, "Jimmy Brown the Newsboy": [Excerpt: The Carter Family, "Jimmy Brown the Newsboy"] Kaukonen had had a far more interesting life than most of the rest of the group. His father had worked for the State Department -- and there's some suggestion he'd worked for the CIA -- and the family had travelled all over the world, staying in Pakistan, the Philippines, and Finland. For most of his childhood, he'd gone by the name Jerry, because other kids beat him up for having a foreign name and called him a Nazi, but by the time he turned twenty he was happy enough using his birth name. Kaukonen wasn't completely immune to the appeal of rock and roll -- he'd formed a rock band, The Triumphs, with his friend Jack Casady when he was a teenager, and he loved Ricky Nelson's records -- but his fate as a folkie had been pretty much sealed when he went to Antioch College. There he met up with a blues guitarist called Ian Buchanan. Buchanan never had much of a career as a professional, but he had supposedly spent nine years studying with the blues and ragtime guitar legend Rev. Gary Davis, and he was certainly a fine guitarist, as can be heard on his contribution to The Blues Project, the album Elektra put out of white Greenwich Village musicians like John Sebastian and Dave Van Ronk playing old blues songs: [Excerpt: Ian Buchanan, "The Winding Boy"] Kaukonen became something of a disciple of Buchanan -- he said later that Buchanan probably taught him how to play because he was such a terrible player and Buchanan couldn't stand to listen to it -- as did John Hammond Jr, another student at Antioch at the same time. After studying at Antioch, Kaukonen started to travel around, including spells in Greenwich Village and in the Philippines, before settling in Santa Clara, where he studied for a sociology degree and became part of a social circle that included Dino Valenti, Jerry Garcia, and Billy Roberts, the credited writer of "Hey Joe". He also started performing as a duo with a singer called Janis Joplin. Various of their recordings from this period circulate, mostly recorded at Kaukonen's home with the sound of his wife typing in the background while the duo rehearse, as on this performance of an old Bessie Smith song: [Excerpt: Jorma Kaukonen and Janis Joplin, "Nobody Loves You When You're Down and Out"] By 1965 Kaukonen saw himself firmly as a folk-blues purist, who would not even think of playing rock and roll music, which he viewed with more than a little contempt. But he allowed himself to be brought along to audition for the new group, and Ken Kesey happened to be there. Kesey was a novelist who had written two best-selling books, One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest and Sometimes A Great Notion, and used the financial independence that gave him to organise a group of friends who called themselves the Merry Pranksters, who drove from coast to coast and back again in a psychedelic-painted bus, before starting a series of events that became known as Acid Tests, parties at which everyone was on LSD, immortalised in Tom Wolfe's book The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test. Nobody has ever said why Kesey was there, but he had brought along an Echoplex, a reverb unit one could put a guitar through -- and nobody has explained why Kesey, who wasn't a musician, had an Echoplex to hand. But Kaukonen loved the sound that he could get by putting his guitar through the device, and so for that reason more than any other he decided to become an electric player and join the band, going out and buying a Rickenbacker twelve-string and Vox Treble Booster because that was what Roger McGuinn used. He would later also get a Guild Thunderbird six-string guitar and a Standel Super Imperial amp, following the same principle of buying the equipment used by other guitarists he liked, as they were what Zal Yanovsky of the Lovin' Spoonful used. He would use them for all his six-string playing for the next couple of years, only later to discover that the Lovin' Spoonful despised them and only used them because they had an endorsement deal with the manufacturers. Kaukonen was also the one who came up with the new group's name. He and his friends had a running joke where they had "Bluesman names", things like "Blind Outrage" and "Little Sun Goldfarb". Kaukonen's bluesman name, given to him by his friend Steve Talbot, had been Blind Thomas Jefferson Airplane, a reference to the 1920s blues guitarist Blind Lemon Jefferson: [Excerpt: Blind Lemon Jefferson, "Match Box Blues"] At the band meeting where they were trying to decide on a name, Kaukonen got frustrated at the ridiculous suggestions that were being made, and said "You want a stupid name? Howzabout this... Jefferson Airplane?" He said in his autobiography "It was one of those rare moments when everyone in the band agreed, and that was that. I think it was the only band meeting that ever allowed me to come away smiling." The newly-named Jefferson Airplane started to rehearse at the Matrix Club, the club that Balin had decided to open. This was run with three sound engineer friends, who put in the seed capital for the club. Balin had stock options in the club, which he got by trading a share of the band's future earnings to his partners, though as the group became bigger he eventually sold his stock in the club back to his business partners. Before their first public performance, they started working with a manager, Matthew Katz, mostly because Katz had access to a recording of a then-unreleased Bob Dylan song, "Lay Down Your Weary Tune": [Excerpt: Bob Dylan, "Lay Down Your Weary Tune"] The group knew that the best way for a folk-rock band to make a name for themselves was to perform a Dylan song nobody else had yet heard, and so they agreed to be managed by Katz. Katz started a pre-publicity blitz, giving out posters, badges, and bumper stickers saying "Jefferson Airplane Loves You" all over San Francisco -- and insisting that none of the band members were allowed to say "Hello" when they answered the phone any more, they had to say "Jefferson Airplane Loves You!" For their early rehearsals and gigs, they were performing almost entirely cover versions of blues and folk songs, things like Fred Neil's "The Other Side of This Life" and Dino Valenti's "Get Together" which were the common currency of the early folk-rock movement, and songs by their friends, like one called "Flower Bomb" by David Crosby, which Crosby now denies ever having written. They did start writing the odd song, but at this point they were more focused on performance than on writing. They also hired a press agent, their friend Bill Thompson. Thompson was friends with the two main music writers at the San Francisco Chronicle, Ralph Gleason, the famous jazz critic, who had recently started also reviewing rock music, and John Wasserman. Thompson got both men to come to the opening night of the Matrix, and both gave the group glowing reviews in the Chronicle. Record labels started sniffing around the group immediately as a result of this coverage, and according to Katz he managed to get a bidding war started by making sure that when A&R men came to the club there were always two of them from different labels, so they would see the other person and realise they weren't the only ones interested. But before signing a record deal they needed to make some personnel changes. The first member to go was Jerry Peloquin, for both musical and personal reasons. Peloquin was used to keeping strict time and the other musicians had a more free-flowing idea of what tempo they should be playing at, but also he had worked for the police while the other members were all taking tons of illegal drugs. The final break with Peloquin came when he did the rest of the group a favour -- Paul Kantner's glasses broke during a rehearsal, and as Peloquin was an optician he offered to take them back to his shop and fix them. When he got back, he found them auditioning replacements for him. He beat Kantner up, and that was the end of Jerry Peloquin in Jefferson Airplane. His replacement was Skip Spence, who the group had met when he had accompanied three friends to the Matrix, which they were using as a rehearsal room. Spence's friends went on to be the core members of Quicksilver Messenger Service along with Dino Valenti: [Excerpt: Quicksilver Messenger Service, "Dino's Song"] But Balin decided that Spence looked like a rock star, and told him that he was now Jefferson Airplane's drummer, despite Spence being a guitarist and singer, not a drummer. But Spence was game, and learned to play the drums. Next they needed to get rid of Bob Harvey. According to Harvey, the decision to sack him came after David Crosby saw the band rehearsing and said "Nice song, but get rid of the bass player" (along with an expletive before the word bass which I can't say without incurring the wrath of Apple). Crosby denies ever having said this. Harvey had started out in the group on double bass, but to show willing he'd switched in his last few gigs to playing an electric bass. When he was sacked by the group, he returned to double bass, and to the Slippery Rock String Band, who released one single in 1967: [Excerpt: The Slippery Rock String Band, "Tule Fog"] Harvey's replacement was Kaukonen's old friend Jack Casady, who Kaukonen knew was now playing bass, though he'd only ever heard him playing guitar when they'd played together. Casady was rather cautious about joining a rock band, but then Kaukonen told him that the band were getting fifty dollars a week salary each from Katz, and Casady flew over from Washington DC to San Francisco to join the band. For the first few gigs, he used Bob Harvey's bass, which Harvey was good enough to lend him despite having been sacked from the band. Unfortunately, right from the start Casady and Kantner didn't get on. When Casady flew in from Washington, he had a much more clean-cut appearance than the rest of the band -- one they've described as being nerdy, with short, slicked-back, side-parted hair and a handlebar moustache. Kantner insisted that Casady shave the moustache off, and he responded by shaving only one side, so in profile on one side he looked clean-shaven, while from the other side he looked like he had a full moustache. Kantner also didn't like Casady's general attitude, or his playing style, at all -- though most critics since this point have pointed to Casady's bass playing as being the most interesting and distinctive thing about Jefferson Airplane's style. This lineup seems to have been the one that travelled to LA to audition for various record companies -- a move that immediately brought the group a certain amount of criticism for selling out, both for auditioning for record companies and for going to LA at all, two things that were already anathema on the San Francisco scene. The only audition anyone remembers them having specifically is one for Phil Spector, who according to Kaukonen was waving a gun around during the audition, so he and Casady walked out. Around this time as well, the group performed at an event billed as "A Tribute to Dr. Strange", organised by the radical hippie collective Family Dog. Marvel Comics, rather than being the multi-billion-dollar Disney-owned corporate juggernaut it is now, was regarded as a hip, almost underground, company -- and around this time they briefly started billing their comics not as comics but as "Marvel Pop Art Productions". The magical adventures of Dr. Strange, Master of the Mystic Arts, and in particular the art by far-right libertarian artist Steve Ditko, were regarded as clear parallels to both the occult dabblings and hallucinogen use popular among the hippies, though Ditko had no time for either, following as he did an extreme version of Ayn Rand's Objectivism. It was at the Tribute to Dr. Strange that Jefferson Airplane performed for the first time with a band named The Great Society, whose lead singer, Grace Slick, would later become very important in Jefferson Airplane's story: [Excerpt: The Great Society, "Someone to Love"] That gig was also the first one where the band and their friends noticed that large chunks of the audience were now dressing up in costumes that were reminiscent of the Old West. Up to this point, while Katz had been managing the group and paying them fifty dollars a week even on weeks when they didn't perform, he'd been doing so without a formal contract, in part because the group didn't trust him much. But now they were starting to get interest from record labels, and in particular RCA Records desperately wanted them. While RCA had been the label who had signed Elvis Presley, they had otherwise largely ignored rock and roll, considering that since they had the biggest rock star in the world they didn't need other ones, and concentrating largely on middle-of-the-road acts. But by the mid-sixties Elvis' star had faded somewhat, and they were desperate to get some of the action for the new music -- and unlike the other major American labels, they didn't have a reciprocal arrangement with a British label that allowed them to release anything by any of the new British stars. The group were introduced to RCA by Rod McKuen, a songwriter and poet who later became America's best-selling poet and wrote songs that sold over a hundred million copies. At this point McKuen was in his Jacques Brel phase, recording loose translations of the Belgian songwriter's songs with McKuen translating the lyrics: [Excerpt: Rod McKuen, "Seasons in the Sun"] McKuen thought that Jefferson Airplane might be a useful market for his own songs, and brought the group to RCA. RCA offered Jefferson Airplane twenty-five thousand dollars to sign with them, and Katz convinced the group that RCA wouldn't give them this money without them having signed a management contract with him. Kaukonen, Kantner, Spence, and Balin all signed without much hesitation, but Jack Casady didn't yet sign, as he was the new boy and nobody knew if he was going to be in the band for the long haul. The other person who refused to sign was Signe Anderson. In her case, she had a much better reason for refusing to sign, as unlike the rest of the band she had actually read the contract, and she found it to be extremely worrying. She did eventually back down on the day of the group's first recording session, but she later had the contract renegotiated. Jack Casady also signed the contract right at the start of the first session -- or at least, he thought he'd signed the contract then. He certainly signed *something*, without having read it. But much later, during a court case involving the band's longstanding legal disputes with Katz, it was revealed that the signature on the contract wasn't Casady's, and was badly forged. What he actually *did* sign that day has never been revealed, to him or to anyone else. Katz also signed all the group as songwriters to his own publishing company, telling them that they legally needed to sign with him if they wanted to make records, and also claimed to RCA that he had power of attorney for the band, which they say they never gave him -- though to be fair to Katz, given the band members' habit of signing things without reading or understanding them, it doesn't seem beyond the realms of possibility that they did. The producer chosen for the group's first album was Tommy Oliver, a friend of Katz's who had previously been an arranger on some of Doris Day's records, and whose next major act after finishing the Jefferson Airplane album was Trombones Unlimited, who released records like "Holiday for Trombones": [Excerpt: Trombones Unlimited, "Holiday For Trombones"] The group weren't particularly thrilled with this choice, but were happier with their engineer, Dave Hassinger, who had worked on records like "Satisfaction" by the Rolling Stones, and had a far better understanding of the kind of music the group were making. They spent about three months recording their first album, even while continually being attacked as sellouts. The album is not considered their best work, though it does contain "Blues From an Airplane", a collaboration between Spence and Balin: [Excerpt: Jefferson Airplane, "Blues From an Airplane"] Even before the album came out, though, things were starting to change for the group. Firstly, they started playing bigger venues -- their home base went from being the Matrix club to the Fillmore, a large auditorium run by the promoter Bill Graham. They also started to get an international reputation. The British singer-songwriter Donovan released a track called "The Fat Angel" which namechecked the group: [Excerpt: Donovan, "The Fat Angel"] The group also needed a new drummer. Skip Spence decided to go on holiday to Mexico without telling the rest of the band. There had already been some friction with Spence, as he was very eager to become a guitarist and songwriter, and the band already had three songwriting guitarists and didn't really see why they needed a fourth. They sacked Spence, who went on to form Moby Grape, who were also managed by Katz: [Excerpt: Moby Grape, "Omaha"] For his replacement they brought in Spencer Dryden, who was a Hollywood brat like their friend David Crosby -- in Dryden's case he was Charlie Chaplin's nephew, and his father worked as Chaplin's assistant. The story normally goes that the great session drummer Earl Palmer recommended Dryden to the group, but it's also the case that Dryden had been in a band, the Heartbeats, with Tommy Oliver and the great blues guitarist Roy Buchanan, so it may well be that Oliver had recommended him. Dryden had been primarily a jazz musician, playing with people like the West Coast jazz legend Charles Lloyd, though like most jazzers he would slum it on occasion by playing rock and roll music to pay the bills. But then he'd seen an early performance by the Mothers of Invention, and realised that rock music could have a serious artistic purpose too. He'd joined a band called The Ashes, who had released one single, the Jackie DeShannon song "Is There Anything I Can Do?" in December 1965: [Excerpt: The Ashes, "Is There Anything I Can Do?"] The Ashes split up once Dryden left the group to join Jefferson Airplane, but they soon reformed without him as The Peanut Butter Conspiracy, who hooked up with Gary Usher and released several albums of psychedelic sunshine pop. Dryden played his first gig with the group at a Republican Party event on June the sixth, 1966. But by the time Dryden had joined, other problems had become apparent. The group were already feeling like it had been a big mistake to accede to Katz's demands to sign a formal contract with him, and Balin in particular was getting annoyed that he wouldn't let the band see their finances. All the money was getting paid to Katz, who then doled out money to the band when they asked for it, and they had no idea if he was actually paying them what they were owed or not. The group's first album, Jefferson Airplane Takes Off, finally came out in September, and it was a comparative flop. It sold well in San Francisco itself, selling around ten thousand copies in the area, but sold basically nothing anywhere else in the country -- the group's local reputation hadn't extended outside their own immediate scene. It didn't help that the album was pulled and reissued, as RCA censored the initial version of the album because of objections to the lyrics. The song "Runnin' Round This World" was pulled off the album altogether for containing the word "trips", while in "Let Me In" they had to rerecord two lines -- “I gotta get in, you know where" was altered to "You shut the door now it ain't fair" and "Don't tell me you want money" became "Don't tell me it's so funny". Similarly in "Run Around" the phrase "as you lay under me" became "as you stay here by me". Things were also becoming difficult for Anderson. She had had a baby in May and was not only unhappy with having to tour while she had a small child, she was also the band member who was most vocally opposed to Katz. Added to that, her husband did not get on well at all with the group, and she felt trapped between her marriage and her bandmates. Reports differ as to whether she quit the band or was fired, but after a disastrous appearance at the Monterey Jazz Festival, one way or another she was out of the band. Her replacement was already waiting in the wings. Grace Slick, the lead singer of the Great Society, had been inspired by going to one of the early Jefferson Airplane gigs. She later said "I went to see Jefferson Airplane at the Matrix, and they were making more money in a day than I made in a week. They only worked for two or three hours a night, and they got to hang out. I thought 'This looks a lot better than what I'm doing.' I knew I could more or less carry a tune, and I figured if they could do it I could." She was married at the time to a film student named Jerry Slick, and indeed she had done the music for his final project at film school, a film called "Everybody Hits Their Brother Once", which sadly I can't find online. She was also having an affair with Jerry's brother Darby, though as the Slicks were in an open marriage this wasn't particularly untoward. The three of them, with a couple of other musicians, had formed The Great Society, named as a joke about President Johnson's programme of the same name. The Great Society was the name Johnson had given to his whole programme of domestic reforms, including civil rights for Black people, the creation of Medicare and Medicaid, the creation of the National Endowment for the Arts, and more. While those projects were broadly popular among the younger generation, Johnson's escalation of the war in Vietnam had made him so personally unpopular that even his progressive domestic programme was regarded with suspicion and contempt. The Great Society had set themselves up as local rivals to Jefferson Airplane -- where Jefferson Airplane had buttons saying "Jefferson Airplane Loves You!" the Great Society put out buttons saying "The Great Society Really Doesn't Like You Much At All". They signed to Autumn Records, and recorded a song that Darby Slick had written, titled "Someone to Love" -- though the song would later be retitled "Somebody to Love": [Excerpt: The Great Society, "Someone to Love"] That track was produced by Sly Stone, who at the time was working as a producer for Autumn Records. The Great Society, though, didn't like working with Stone, because he insisted on them doing forty-five takes to try to sound professional, as none of them were particularly competent musicians. Grace Slick later said "Sly could play any instrument known to man. He could have just made the record himself, except for the singers. It was kind of degrading in a way" -- and on another occasion she said that he *did* end up playing all the instruments on the finished record. "Someone to Love" was put out as a promo record, but never released to the general public, and nor were any of the Great Society's other recordings for Autumn Records released. Their contract expired and they were let go, at which point they were about to sign to Mercury Records, but then Darby Slick and another member decided to go off to India for a while. Grace's marriage to Jerry was falling apart, though they would stay legally married for several years, and the Great Society looked like it was at an end, so when Grace got the offer to join Jefferson Airplane to replace Signe Anderson, she jumped at the chance. At first, she was purely a harmony singer -- she didn't take over any of the lead vocal parts that Anderson had previously sung, as she had a very different vocal style, and instead she just sang the harmony parts that Anderson had sung on songs with other lead vocalists. But two months after the album they were back in the studio again, recording their second album, and Slick sang lead on several songs there. As well as the new lineup, there was another important change in the studio. They were still working with Dave Hassinger, but they had a new producer, Rick Jarrard. Jarrard was at one point a member of the folk group The Wellingtons, who did the theme tune for "Gilligan's Island", though I can't find anything to say whether or not he was in the group when they recorded that track: [Excerpt: The Wellingtons, "The Ballad of Gilligan's Island"] Jarrard had also been in the similar folk group The Greenwood County Singers, where as we heard in the episode on "Heroes and Villains" he replaced Van Dyke Parks. He'd also released a few singles under his own name, including a version of Parks' "High Coin": [Excerpt: Rick Jarrard, "High Coin"] While Jarrard had similar musical roots to those of Jefferson Airplane's members, and would go on to produce records by people like Harry Nilsson and The Family Tree, he wasn't any more liked by the band than their previous producer had been. So much so, that a few of the band members have claimed that while Jarrard is the credited producer, much of the work that one would normally expect to be done by a producer was actually done by their friend Jerry Garcia, who according to the band members gave them a lot of arranging and structural advice, and was present in the studio and played guitar on several tracks. Jarrard, on the other hand, said categorically "I never met Jerry Garcia. I produced that album from start to finish, never heard from Jerry Garcia, never talked to Jerry Garcia. He was not involved creatively on that album at all." According to the band, though, it was Garcia who had the idea of almost doubling the speed of the retitled "Somebody to Love", turning it into an uptempo rocker: [Excerpt: Jefferson Airplane, "Somebody to Love"] And one thing everyone is agreed on is that it was Garcia who came up with the album title, when after listening to some of the recordings he said "That's as surrealistic as a pillow!" It was while they were working on the album that was eventually titled Surrealistic Pillow that they finally broke with Katz as their manager, bringing Bill Thompson in as a temporary replacement. Or at least, it was then that they tried to break with Katz. Katz sued the group over their contract, and won. Then they appealed, and they won. Then Katz appealed the appeal, and the Superior Court insisted that if he wanted to appeal the ruling, he had to put up a bond for the fifty thousand dollars the group said he owed them. He didn't, so in 1970, four years after they sacked him as their manager, the appeal was dismissed. Katz appealed the dismissal, and won that appeal, and the case dragged on for another three years, at which point Katz dragged RCA Records into the lawsuit. As a result of being dragged into the mess, RCA decided to stop paying the group their songwriting royalties from record sales directly, and instead put the money into an escrow account. The claims and counterclaims and appeals *finally* ended in 1987, twenty years after the lawsuits had started and fourteen years after the band had stopped receiving their songwriting royalties. In the end, the group won on almost every point, and finally received one point three million dollars in back royalties and seven hundred thousand dollars in interest that had accrued, while Katz got a small token payment. Early in 1967, when the sessions for Surrealistic Pillow had finished, but before the album was released, Newsweek did a big story on the San Francisco scene, which drew national attention to the bands there, and the first big event of what would come to be called the hippie scene, the Human Be-In, happened in Golden Gate Park in January. As the group's audience was expanding rapidly, they asked Bill Graham to be their manager, as he was the most business-minded of the people around the group. The first single from the album, "My Best Friend", a song written by Skip Spence before he quit the band, came out in January 1967 and had no more success than their earlier recordings had, and didn't make the Hot 100. The album came out in February, and was still no higher than number 137 on the charts in March, when the second single, "Somebody to Love", was released: [Excerpt: Jefferson Airplane, "Somebody to Love"] That entered the charts at the start of April, and by June it had made number five. The single's success also pushed its parent album up to number three by August, just behind the Beatles' Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band and the Monkees' Headquarters. The success of the single also led to the group being asked to do commercials for Levis jeans: [Excerpt: Jefferson Airplane, "Levis commercial"] That once again got them accused of selling out. Abbie Hoffman, the leader of the Yippies, wrote to the Village Voice about the commercials, saying "It summarized for me all the doubts I have about the hippie philosophy. I realise they are just doing their 'thing', but while the Jefferson Airplane grooves with its thing, over 100 workers in the Levi Strauss plant on the Tennessee-Georgia border are doing their thing, which consists of being on strike to protest deplorable working conditions." The third single from the album, "White Rabbit", came out on the twenty-fourth of June, the day before the Beatles recorded "All You Need is Love", nine days after the release of "See Emily Play", and a week after the group played the Monterey Pop Festival, to give you some idea of how compressed a time period we've been in recently. We talked in the last episode about how there's a big difference between American and British psychedelia at this point in time, because the political nature of the American counterculture was determined by the fact that so many people were being sent off to die in Vietnam. Of all the San Francisco bands, though, Jefferson Airplane were by far the least political -- they were into the culture part of the counterculture, but would often and repeatedly disavow any deeper political meaning in their songs. In early 1968, for example, in a press conference, they said “Don't ask us anything about politics. We don't know anything about it. And what we did know, we just forgot.” So it's perhaps not surprising that of all the American groups, they were the one that was most similar to the British psychedelic groups in their influences, and in particular their frequent references to children's fantasy literature. "White Rabbit" was a perfect example of this. It had started out as "White Rabbit Blues", a song that Slick had written influenced by Alice in Wonderland, and originally performed by the Great Society: [Excerpt: The Great Society, "White Rabbit"] Slick explained the lyrics, and their association between childhood fantasy stories and drugs, later by saying "It's an interesting song but it didn't do what I wanted it to. What I was trying to say was that between the ages of zero and five the information and the input you get is almost indelible. In other words, once a Catholic, always a Catholic. And the parents read us these books, like Alice in Wonderland where she gets high, tall, and she takes mushrooms, a hookah, pills, alcohol. And then there's The Wizard of Oz, where they fall into a field of poppies and when they wake up they see Oz. And then there's Peter Pan, where if you sprinkle white dust on you, you could fly. And then you wonder why we do it? Well, what did you read to me?" While the lyrical inspiration for the track was from Alice in Wonderland, the musical inspiration is less obvious. Slick has on multiple occasions said that the idea for the music came from listening to Miles Davis' album "Sketches of Spain", and in particular to Davis' version of -- and I apologise for almost certainly mangling the Spanish pronunciation badly here -- "Concierto de Aranjuez", though I see little musical resemblance to it myself. [Excerpt: Miles Davis, "Concierto de Aranjuez"] She has also, though, talked about how the song was influenced by Ravel's "Bolero", and in particular the way the piece keeps building in intensity, starting softly and slowly building up, rather than having the dynamic peaks and troughs of most music. And that is definitely a connection I can hear in the music: [Excerpt: Ravel, "Bolero"] Jefferson Airplane's version of "White Rabbit", like their version of "Somebody to Love", was far more professional, far -- and apologies for the pun -- slicker than The Great Society's version. It's also much shorter. The version by The Great Society has a four and a half minute instrumental intro before Slick's vocal enters. By contrast, the version on Surrealistic Pillow comes in at under two and a half minutes in total, and is a tight pop song: [Excerpt: Jefferson Airplane, "White Rabbit"] Jack Casady has more recently said that the group originally recorded the song more or less as a lark, because they assumed that all the drug references would mean that RCA would make them remove the song from the album -- after all, they'd cut a song from the earlier album because it had a reference to a trip, so how could they possibly allow a song like "White Rabbit" with its lyrics about pills and mushrooms? But it was left on the album, and ended up making the top ten on the pop charts, peaking at number eight: [Excerpt: Jefferson Airplane, "White Rabbit"] In an interview last year, Slick said she still largely lives off the royalties from writing that one song. It would be the last hit single Jefferson Airplane would ever have. Marty Balin later said "Fame changes your life. It's a bit like prison. It ruined the band. Everybody became rich and selfish and self-centred and couldn't care about the band. That was pretty much the end of it all. After that it was just working and living the high life and watching the band destroy itself, living on its laurels." They started work on their third album, After Bathing at Baxter's, in May 1967, while "Somebody to Love" was still climbing the charts. This time, the album was produced by Al Schmitt. Unlike the two previous producers, Schmitt was a fan of the band, and decided the best thing to do was to just let them do their own thing without interfering. The album took months to record, rather than the weeks that Surrealistic Pillow had taken, and cost almost ten times as much money to record. In part the time it took was because of the promotional work the band had to do. Bill Graham was sending them all over the country to perform, which they didn't appreciate. The group complained to Graham in business meetings, saying they wanted to only play in big cities where there were lots of hippies. Graham pointed out in turn that if they wanted to keep having any kind of success, they needed to play places other than San Francisco, LA, New York, and Chicago, because in fact most of the population of the US didn't live in those four cities. They grudgingly took his point. But there were other arguments all the time as well. They argued about whether Graham should be taking his cut from the net or the gross. They argued about Graham trying to push for the next single to be another Grace Slick lead vocal -- they felt like he was trying to make them into just Grace Slick's backing band, while he thought it made sense to follow up two big hits with more singles with the same vocalist. There was also a lawsuit from Balin's former partners in the Matrix, who remembered that bit in the contract about having a share in the group's income and sued for six hundred thousand dollars -- that was settled out of court three years later. And there were interpersonal squabbles too. Some of these were about the music -- Dryden didn't like the fact that Kaukonen's guitar solos were getting longer and longer, and Balin only contributed one song to the new album because all the other band members made fun of him for writing short, poppy, love songs rather than extended psychedelic jams -- but also the group had become basically two rival factions. On one side were Kaukonen and Casady, the old friends and virtuoso instrumentalists, who wanted to extend the instrumental sections of the songs more to show off their playing. On the other side were Grace Slick and Spencer Dryden, the two oldest members of the group by age, but the most recent people to join. They were also unusual in the San Francisco scene for having alcohol as their drug of choice -- drinking was thought of by most of the hippies as being a bit classless, but they were both alcoholics. They were also sleeping together, and generally on the side of shorter, less exploratory, songs. Kantner, who was attracted to Slick, usually ended up siding with her and Dryden, and this left Balin the odd man out in the middle. He later said "I got disgusted with all the ego trips, and the band was so stoned that I couldn't even talk to them. Everybody was in their little shell". While they were still working on the album, they released the first single from it, Kantner's "The Ballad of You and Me and Pooneil". The "Pooneil" in the song was a figure that combined two of Kantner's influences: the Greenwich Village singer-songwriter Fred Neil, the writer of "Everybody's Talkin'" and "Dolphins"; and Winnie the Pooh. The song contained several lines taken from A.A. Milne's children's stories: [Excerpt: Jefferson Airplane, "The Ballad of You and Me and Pooneil"] That only made number forty-two on the charts. It was the last Jefferson Airplane single to make the top fifty. At a gig in Bakersfield they got arrested for inciting a riot, because they encouraged the crowd to dance, even though local by-laws said that nobody under sixteen was allowed to dance, and then they nearly got arrested again after Kantner's behaviour on the private plane they'd chartered to get them back to San Francisco that night. Kantner had been chain-smoking, and this annoyed the pilot, who asked Kantner to put his cigarette out, so Kantner opened the door of the plane mid-flight and threw the lit cigarette out. They'd chartered that plane because they wanted to make sure they got to see a new group, Cream, who were playing the Fillmore: [Excerpt: Cream, "Strange Brew"] After seeing that, the divisions in the band were even wider -- Kaukonen and Casady now *knew* that what the band needed was to do long, extended, instrumental jams. Cream were the future, two-minute pop songs were the past. Though they weren't completely averse to two-minute pop songs. The group were recording at RCA studios at the same time as the Monkees, and members of the two groups would often jam together. The idea of selling out might have been anathema to their *audience*, but the band members themselves didn't care about things like that. Indeed, at one point the group returned from a gig to the mansion they were renting and found squatters had moved in and were using their private pool -- so they shot at the water. The squatters quickly moved on. As Dryden put it "We all -- Paul, Jorma, Grace, and myself -- had guns. We weren't hippies. Hippies were the people that lived on the streets down in Haight-Ashbury. We were basically musicians and art school kids. We were into guns and machinery" After Bathing at Baxter's only went to number seventeen on the charts, not a bad position but a flop compared to their previous album, and Bill Graham in particular took this as more proof that he had been right when for the last few months he'd been attacking the group as self-indulgent. Eventually, Slick and Dryden decided that either Bill Graham was going as their manager, or they were going. Slick even went so far as to try to negotiate a solo deal with Elektra Records -- as the voice on the hits, everyone was telling her she was the only one who mattered anyway. David Anderle, who was working for the label, agreed a deal with her, but Jac Holzman refused to authorise the deal, saying "Judy Collins doesn't get that much money, why should Grace Slick?" The group did fire Graham, and went one further and tried to become his competitors. They teamed up with the Grateful Dead to open a new venue, the Carousel Ballroom, to compete with the Fillmore, but after a few months they realised they were no good at running a venue and sold it to Graham. Graham, who was apparently unhappy with the fact that the people living around the Fillmore were largely Black given that the bands he booked appealed to mostly white audiences, closed the original Fillmore, renamed the Carousel the Fillmore West, and opened up a second venue in New York, the Fillmore East. The divisions in the band were getting worse -- Kaukonen and Casady were taking more and more speed, which was making them play longer and faster instrumental solos whether or not the rest of the band wanted them to, and Dryden, whose hands often bled from trying to play along with them, definitely did not want them to. But the group soldiered on and recorded their fourth album, Crown of Creation. This album contained several songs that were influenced by science fiction novels. The most famous of these was inspired by the right-libertarian author Robert Heinlein, who was hugely influential on the counterculture. Jefferson Airplane's friends the Monkees had already recorded a song based on Heinlein's The Door Into Summer, an unintentionally disturbing novel about a thirty-year-old man who falls in love with a twelve-year-old girl, and who uses a combination of time travel and cryogenic freezing to make their ages closer together so he can marry her: [Excerpt: The Monkees, "The Door Into Summer"] Now Jefferson Airplane were recording a song based on Heinlein's most famous novel, Stranger in a Strange Land. Stranger in a Strange Land has dated badly, thanks to its casual homophobia and rape-apologia, but at the time it was hugely popular in hippie circles for its advocacy of free love and group marriages -- so popular that a religion, the Church of All Worlds, based itself on the book. David Crosby had taken inspiration from it and written "Triad", a song asking two women if they'll enter into a polygamous relationship with him, and recorded it with the Byrds: [Excerpt: The Byrds, "Triad"] But the other members of the Byrds disliked the song, and it was left unreleased for decades. As Crosby was friendly with Jefferson Airplane, and as members of the band were themselves advocates of open relationships, they recorded their own version with Slick singing lead: [Excerpt: Jefferson Airplane, "Triad"] The other song on the album influenced by science fiction was the title track, Paul Kantner's "Crown of Creation". This song was inspired by The Chrysalids, a novel by the British writer John Wyndham. The Chrysalids is one of Wyndham's most influential novels, a post-apocalyptic story about young children who are born with mutant superpowers and have to hide them from their parents as they will be killed if they're discovered. The novel is often thought to have inspired Marvel Comics' X-Men, and while there's an unpleasant eugenic taste to its ending, with the idea that two species can't survive in the same ecological niche and the younger, "superior", species must outcompete the old, that idea also had a lot of influence in the counterculture, as well as being a popular one in science fiction. Kantner's song took whole lines from The Chrysalids, much as he had earlier done with A.A. Milne: [Excerpt: Jefferson Airplane, "Crown of Creation"] The Crown of Creation album was in some ways a return to the more focused songwriting of Surrealistic Pillow, although the sessions weren't without their experiments. Slick and Dryden collaborated with Frank Zappa and members of the Mothers of Invention on an avant-garde track called "Would You Like a Snack?" (not the same song as the later Zappa song of the same name) which was intended for the album, though went unreleased until a CD box set decades later: [Excerpt: Grace Slick and Frank Zappa, "Would You Like a Snack?"] But the finished album was generally considered less self-indulgent than After Bathing at Baxter's, and did better on the charts as a result. It reached number six, becoming their second and last top ten album, helped by the group's appearance on the Ed Sullivan Show in September 1968, a month after it came out. That appearance was actually organised by Colonel Tom Parker, who suggested them to Sullivan as a favour to RCA Records. But another TV appearance at the time was less successful. They appeared on the Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour, one of the most popular TV shows among the young, hip, audience that the group needed to appeal to, but Slick appeared in blackface. She's later said that there was no political intent behind this, and that she was just trying the different makeup she found in the dressing room as a purely aesthetic thing, but that doesn't really explain the Black power salute she gives at one point. Slick was increasingly obnoxious on stage, as her drinking was getting worse and her relationship with Dryden was starting to break down. Just before the Smothers Brothers appearance she was accused at a benefit for the Whitney Museum of having called the audience "filthy Jews", though she has always said that what she actually said was "filthy jewels", and she was talking about the ostentatious jewellery some of the audience were wearing. The group struggled through a performance at Altamont -- an event we will talk about in a future episode, so I won't go into it here, except to say that it was a horrifying experience for everyone involved -- and performed at Woodstock, before releasing their fifth studio album, Volunteers, in 1969: [Excerpt: Jefferson Airplane, "Volunteers"] That album made the top twenty, but was the last album by the classic lineup of the band. By this point Spencer Dryden and Grace Slick had broken up, with Slick starting to date Kantner, and Dryden was also disappointed at the group's musical direction, and left. Balin also left, feeling sidelined in the group. They released several more albums with varying lineups, including at various points their old friend David Frieberg of Quicksilver Messenger Service, the violinist Papa John Creach, and the former drummer of the Turtles, Johnny Barbata. But as of 1970 the group's members had already started working on two side projects -- an acoustic band called Hot Tuna, led by Kaukonen and Casady, which sometimes also featured Balin, and a project called Paul Kantner's Jefferson Starship, which also featured Slick and had recorded an album, Blows Against the Empire, the second side of which was based on the Robert Heinlein novel Back to Methuselah, and which became one of the first albums ever nominated for science fiction's Hugo Awards: [Excerpt: Jefferson Starship, "Have You Seen The Stars Tonite"] That album featured contributions from David Crosby and members of the Grateful Dead, as well as Casady on two tracks, but  in 1974 when Kaukonen and Casady quit Jefferson Airplane to make Hot Tuna their full-time band, Kantner, Slick, and Frieberg turned Jefferson Starship into a full band. Over the next decade, Jefferson Starship had a lot of moderate-sized hits, with a varying lineup that at one time or another saw several members, including Slick, go and return, and saw Marty Balin back with them for a while. In 1984, Kantner left the group, and sued them to stop them using the Jefferson Starship name. A settlement was reached in which none of Kantner, Slick, Kaukonen, or Casady could use the words "Jefferson" or "Airplane" in their band-names without the permission of all the others, and the remaining members of Jefferson Starship renamed their band just Starship -- and had three number one singles in the late eighties with Slick on lead, becoming far more commercially successful than their precursor bands had ever been: [Excerpt: Starship, "We Built This City on Rock & Roll"] Slick left Starship in 1989, and there was a brief Jefferson Airplane reunion tour, with all the classic members but Dryden, but then Slick decided that she was getting too old to perform rock and roll music, and decided to retire from music and become a painter, something she's stuck to for more than thirty years. Kantner and Balin formed a new Jefferson Starship, called Jefferson Starship: The Next Generation, but Kantner died in January 2016, coincidentally on the same day as Signe Anderson, who had occasionally guested with her old bandmates in the new version of the band. Balin, who had quit the reunited Jefferson Starship due to health reasons, died two years later. Dryden had died in 2005. Currently, there are three bands touring that descend directly from Jefferson Airplane. Hot Tuna still continue to perform, there's a version of Starship that tours featuring one original member, Mickey Thomas, and the reunited Jefferson Starship still tour, led by David Frieberg. Grace Slick has given the latter group her blessing, and even co-wrote one song on their most recent album, released in 2020, though she still doesn't perform any more. Jefferson Airplane's period in the commercial spotlight was brief -- they had charting singles for only a matter of months, and while they had top twenty albums for a few years after their peak, they really only mattered to the wider world during that brief period of the Summer of Love. But precisely because their period of success was so short, their music is indelibly associated with that time. To this day there's nothing as evocative of summer 1967 as "White Rabbit", even for those of us who weren't born then. And while Grace Slick had her problems, as I've made very clear in this episode, she inspired a whole generation of women who went on to be singers themselves, as one of the first prominent women to sing lead with an electric rock band. And when she got tired of doing that, she stopped, and got on with her other artistic pursuits, without feeling the need to go back and revisit the past for ever diminishing returns. One might only wish that some of her male peers had followed her example.

Bill O'Reilly returns to chat with Greg Kelly about his latest book, "Killing the Legends." In it, O'Reilly draws eerie and startling parallels between three of the biggest influences on pop culture: Elvis Presley, Muhammad Ali, and John Lennon. In this conversation, Bill and Greg discuss how those three icons shaped pop culture, and how the lasting effects of their fame reverberate today. Plus, O'Reilly offers his thoughts on why exactly Colonel Tom Parker held such sway over Elvis throughout Presley's life and career."Killing the Legends: The Lethal Danger of Celebrity" is available now.Today's sponsor is Terrence K. Williams' Gourmet Pancake brand, Cousin T's Pancakes. Learn more here: Cousin T's (cousints.com).

The legacy of Elvis Presley is often reduced to gaudy iconography and tales of excess: the white jumpsuit, Las Vegas, drugs. So what happens when director Baz Luhrmann takes on the man, the myth, the legend? You get the dizzying biopic Elvis. Austin Butler stars as "the King of Rock and Roll," and Tom Hanks plays Elvis' shady longtime manager Colonel Tom Parker.