Podcasts about Whisky a Go Go

Welcome to the Nothing Shocking Podcast episode 285 with our guest Tony West of Blacklist Union.  We discuss the band's latest single Mississippi Moonhound, as well as plans for more new music.  We also discuss songs from the bands albums Letters from the Psych Ward, Back to Momo and side projects Silverstar, The Savior Complex, and more!   For more information visit:  VIDEO  - Mississippi Moonhound Filmed and edited @magikstudioshtx   Social Media/Online https://www.instagram.com/blacklistunionofficial https://www.facebook.com/BlacklistUnionRocks https://x.com/blacklistunion2 https://www.tiktok.com/@blacklistunion https://blacklistunion.bandcamp.com/ https://blacklistunion.com/   Blacklist Union LIVE - Cruefest Hollywood @ the Whisky A Go-Go - 8901 W Sunset Blvd, West Hollywood Los Angeles - July 12th, 2025 Bar Sinister -1652 N Cherokee Ave, Los Angeles -  September 13th, 2025   Please like our Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/nothingshockingpodcast/  Follow us on twitter at  https://twitter.com/hashtag/noshockpod.   Libsyn website: https://nothingshocking.libsyn.com For more info on the Hong Kong Sleepover: https://thehongkongsleepover.bandcamp.com Help support the podcast and record stores by shopping at Ragged Records. http://www.raggedrecords.org 

Maggie speaks with legendary guitarist, songwriter and founded member of The Doors about The Doors 60th Anniversary this year (2025) and all the exciting events and releases that are happening and will be happening. Robby Krieger is the guitarist for the legendary rock band The Doors and the songwriter behind some of the band's biggest hits, including “Love Me Two Times,” “Touch Me,” “Love Her Madly,” and their #1 smash, “Light My Fire.” The Doors have sold over a hundred million albums worldwide, inspired a major feature film, been awarded a Lifetime Achievement Grammy®, and been inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. Robby, meanwhile, has also become a Grammy®-nominated solo artist, and was listed among the “100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time” by Rolling Stone. He is also an accomplished painter and the co-founder of the annual Medlock-Krieger Rock & Roll Golf Classic & All-Star Concert.Source: https://robbykrieger.com/#x-content-band-3Source: https://whiskyagogo.com/calendar/Source: https://thedoors.com/Source: https://www.artforacause.net/Source: https://www.genesis-publications.com/book/9781905662883/night-divides-the-dayHost Maggie LePique, a radio veteran since the 1980's at NPR in Kansas City Mo. She began her radio career in Los Angeles in the early 1990's and has worked for Pacifica station KPFK Radio in Los Angeles since 1994.Send us a textSupport the show@profileswithmaggielepique@maggielepique

We're back to discuss all the latest, greatest, and strangest in the rock world with Geekwire! Here's what we're chewing on this time: David Lee Roth performs Van Halen hits at the M3 Rock Festival. Reactions were mixed. We give ours. A behind-the-scenes book on This Is Spinal Tap and its sequel is set for release in September. We hope it's in Dubly. Rikki Rockett says Poison gets a strong offer for a 2026 headlining tour; but it's up to Bret Michaels. Will The Cat get Dragged In again in 2026? Wolfgang Van Halen explains why he dropped the "WVH" from Mammoth's name and we try to decipher what he's talking about. Kirk Hammett unboxes Metallica's remastered Load deluxe box set and enthusiastically celebrates it's artwork. A fan spends $12,495 to be Gene Simmons's roadie and shares the experience. Was it worth the dough? Henry Rollins discusses large-scale Punk Rock Museum project and we speculate on it's possible Nashville location. Dee Snider explains why he moved his family to rural North Carolina. Was it worth The Price? A dump truck crashes into the Whisky A Go Go ahead of a Boy Hits Car concert. We really do live in a simulation, eh? George Lynch launches a new band, George Lynch & The Mob, with a rotating lineup. Basically, Lynch Mob. Motörhead's previously unreleased 1976 album The Manticore Tapes gets a release. We share our excitement. A rumor circulates that Led Zeppelin plans a new album and 2026 tour. But, is it even true? Additionally, we touch on listener-submitted topics including Sammy Hagar (yes, again), new releases from LA Guns and Faster Pussycat, Steve Perry collaborating with Willie Nelson, Sleep Token, the live return of Savatage, an upcoming Stryper Christmas album and more. We hope you enjoy Geekwire and SHARE with a friend! Decibel Geek is a proud member of the Pantheon Podcasts family. Contact Us! Rate, Review, and Subscribe in iTunes Join the Facebook Fan Page Follow on Twitter Follow on Instagram E-mail Us Subscribe to our Youtube channel! Support Us! Buy a T-Shirt! Donate to the show! Stream Us! Stitcher Radio Spreaker TuneIn Become a VIP Subscriber! Click HERE for more info! Comment Below Direct Download  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We're back to discuss all the latest, greatest, and strangest in the rock world with Geekwire! Here's what we're chewing on this time: David Lee Roth performs Van Halen hits at the M3 Rock Festival. Reactions were mixed. We give ours. A behind-the-scenes book on This Is Spinal Tap and its sequel is set for release in September. We hope it's in Dubly. Rikki Rockett says Poison gets a strong offer for a 2026 headlining tour; but it's up to Bret Michaels. Will The Cat get Dragged In again in 2026? Wolfgang Van Halen explains why he dropped the "WVH" from Mammoth's name and we try to decipher what he's talking about. Kirk Hammett unboxes Metallica's remastered Load deluxe box set and enthusiastically celebrates it's artwork. A fan spends $12,495 to be Gene Simmons's roadie and shares the experience. Was it worth the dough? Henry Rollins discusses large-scale Punk Rock Museum project and we speculate on it's possible Nashville location. Dee Snider explains why he moved his family to rural North Carolina. Was it worth The Price? A dump truck crashes into the Whisky A Go Go ahead of a Boy Hits Car concert. We really do live in a simulation, eh? George Lynch launches a new band, George Lynch & The Mob, with a rotating lineup. Basically, Lynch Mob. Motörhead's previously unreleased 1976 album The Manticore Tapes gets a release. We share our excitement. A rumor circulates that Led Zeppelin plans a new album and 2026 tour. But, is it even true? Additionally, we touch on listener-submitted topics including Sammy Hagar (yes, again), new releases from LA Guns and Faster Pussycat, Steve Perry collaborating with Willie Nelson, Sleep Token, the live return of Savatage, an upcoming Stryper Christmas album and more. We hope you enjoy Geekwire and SHARE with a friend! Decibel Geek is a proud member of the Pantheon Podcasts family. Contact Us! Rate, Review, and Subscribe in iTunes Join the Facebook Fan Page Follow on Twitter Follow on Instagram E-mail Us Subscribe to our Youtube channel! Support Us! Buy a T-Shirt! Donate to the show! Stream Us! Stitcher Radio Spreaker TuneIn Become a VIP Subscriber! Click HERE for more info! Comment Below Direct Download  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Bill Gates to give away 99% of his money by 2045. Dump truck crashes into Iconic Whisky A-Go-Go in West Hollywood #BillGates #Money #wealth #WhiskyAgogo // Crash at Whisky A Go Go. A band called Boy Hits Car was meant to be playing a show tonight at the iconic venue on the Sunset Strip. Wango Tango. Power Washing is the BEST! #Powerwashing  Valley Village killer arrested #ValleyVillage #TrueCrimes #Crime // Apartment building in Valley Village/NoHo area [Ashton Sherman Village Apartments] has “really bad reviews,” here are some of them. Management responded to some of the bad reviews in agreement with them. Built over the site where the “Scrubs” hospital was. // Whisky A Go Go plowed into by a dump truck coming out of the Hills. Tim once opened as a standup comic for Taylor Dayne, no-one laughed during his set. Everyone sings “Don't Worry, Be Happy.” High-speed chase in San Pedro, lasted about a minute. Update on Menendez Brothers trial. Website about teen bike gangs in LA launched by man who was attacked by said youths. The father of a teen who shot up people has been arrested. #TaylorDane #HighSpeedChase #LABikeTeen 

On Friday, May 9, 2025, an unmanned dump truck crashed into the legendary Whisky a Go Go in West Hollywood, causing serious damage and chaos on Clark Street. We're breaking down all the details from eyewitness accounts to what this could mean for upcoming shows at this iconic venue. Thankfully, no injuries were reported — but it was a wild scene.

Imperfections can feel like all anyone can see, making it difficult to shine the light we hope is underneath all of our flaws. Today we talk to guest expert Jowell Doughly on how coaching can help us love ourselves- imperfections and all- so that we can truly step into our power and live life to the fullest. Jowell is a certified Confidence and Wellness Coach based in West Hollywood. Her mission is to help people embrace their imperfections, break free from societal norms, and build unshakable confidence. She works with individuals struggling with anxiety, depression, and self-worth, providing the tools and support they need to step into their power.In addition to coaching, she founded Midnight Wonderland, an annual rock ‘n' roll charity event at the Whisky A Go Go that raises awareness for mental health and supports The Midnight Mission. She also launched Show Me The Truth, a nonprofit dedicated to raising money for other non profits who fund therapy, rehabilitation, and medication for those in need, especially survivors of trauma.Her passion for music, fashion, and mental health advocacy drives everything she does. Whether through coaching, events, or creative projects, her goal is to inspire others to walk away from toxic situations, embrace self-growth, and live authentically.Find more from Jowell at www.imperfectrockstar.com IG: juju_jowellTikTok: TheimperfectrockstarFind Curtis McCollum with Bespoke Human Potential Coaching here: https://www.bespokehumanpotentialcoaching.comOr on LinkedIn Get your Jumpstart Journal here: http://subscribepage.io/YCauoKWork with me: www.karaleighgarrison.com/coaching

Boy Hits Car singer CRegg Rondell zoomed in to talk about their new single "Mind Elevation" along with their upcoming concert at the Whisky A Go Go in Hollywood on Friday, May 9, 2025. Here's what we talked about: Drummer Erik Peterson (0-3) new song "Mind Elevation" (3-6) 5/9/25 concert at the Whisky A Go Go (6-12) "LoveFuryPassionEnergy" song (12-15) Upcoming 25th Anniversary of "self-titled" album (15-23) Mandatory Metallica (23-end)

He Is Legend singer Schuyler Croom zoomed in to talk about the 20th anniversary of their debut album "I Am Hollywood" which they are performing live at the Whisky A Go Go on Saturday, May 3 2025. Here's what we talked about: mutual friend David Mast (0-2) "I Am Hollywood" 20th Anniversary at Whisky on 5/3/25 (2-4) making "I Am Hollywood" with Adam D (4-11) New Music (11-12) Cancer Bats opening 20th anniversary tour (12-13) Final Ozzy Osbourne concert 7/5/25 (13-18) Mandatory Metallica (18-end)

Victor Crusner (@vcrusner) är rockmusiker och lirar bas i svenska Heavy Metal-bandet Eclipse. Vi snackar träning, turnéliv och den kreativa process som skapar världens bästa sound - nämligen när rocken låter högoktanigt som den gjorde på det glada 80talet! Lyssna in på ett avsnitt fullt av idoldyrkan, musiknörderi och oväntade insikter om livet bakom och på scen.- Hur såg vägen ut från fritidsgårdar i Mölnlycke och ut på världsturnéer till bl.a. legendariska rockklubbar som Whisky A Go Go & Rainbow? - Kommer vi se en revival av Sex, Drugs & Rock'n'Roll fast mer mot Sex, Fitness & Rock'n'Roll? - Vad föredrar Victor - ett Van Halen med David Lee Roth eller Sammy Hagar på sång?Det och mycket annat i ett högst inspirerat avsnitt.... Nu blåser det starka glamrocksvindar! Gör dig redo för en konsertsommar!---------------------------------------------------------------------Timeline för avsnittet:00:00 Intro / försnack02:30 Presentation av gästen05:20 Victors senaste resa till USA & hårdrockens Bucket List09:45 Victor som basist i Eclipse - ett av Sveriges bästa rockband13:30 Victors origin story: från Göteborgs kranskommuner, fritidsgårdar och replokaler och ut till rockstjärnelivet 20:55 Rockstjärnestatus, star power och idoldyrkan inom hårdrocken: då och nu25:15 80talsrock, influenser och stilbildning: vad finns det för typer av rockmusik och var passar Eclipse in?28:10 Sex, Drugs & Rock'n'Roll - i framtiden Sex, Fitness & Rock'n'Roll?32:55 Träning, hälsa & rutiner för en heltidsmusiker37:25 Hur fysiskt är det att vara spela musik live? 40:00 Högoktaniga sångare: Bruce Dickinson, Kenny Leckremo och Erik Mårtensson45:45 Hårdrock, gimmicks och dynastier: Vilka band håller längst och gör störst avtryck?48:45 Hur ser jobbfördelningen ut för ett dagsaktuellt rockband? Förutom att spela in plattor & giga, vad gör ni?53:15 Skapande & kreativitet 101: Hur arbetar Victor & Eclipse? Hur skapas musik?1:03:00 Rock'n'Roll Rapid Fire Questions: Van Halen med Sammy Hagar eller David Lee Roth?1:04:30 Rock'n'Roll Rapid Fire Questions: HEAT med Erik Grönwall eller Kenny Leckremo?1:06:30 Rock'n'Roll Rapid Fire Questions: KISS med eller utan smink?1:06:40 Rock'n'Roll Rapid Fire Questions: Kommer Bon Jovi att sjunga igen?1:11:10 Avslutande ord / brandtal / något som inte blev sagt idag?1:12:25 Kom i kontakt med Victor & Eclipse1:13:30 Utro / eftersnack---------------------------------------------------------------------Kom i kontakt med Victor:@vcrusner@eclipse_sweden---------------------------------------------------------------------Kom i kontakt med FFF⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@henrikvalis⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@fitnessfilosofifloskler⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠fitnessfilosofifloskler@gmail.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Köp Fitness, Filosofi & Floskler från ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram-butiken här⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠*Episk introvinjett av bandet Big Red Fire TruckHitta dem på ⁠⁠Spotify⁠⁠ & ⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠!------------------------------------------------------------------Kom i kontakt med mig som Personlig TränareE-post: henrik.valis@gmail.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Vagnhallen⁠ i Göteborg ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@vagnhallengbg ⁠på Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Vagnhallen ⁠på FacebookYouTube - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Fråga Coach Valis⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠YouTube - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Ett År av Mobility Flow-videos⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠------------------------------------------------------------------Hjälp oss gärna genom att lämna en review av podden:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://podcasts.apple.com/se/podcast/fitness-filosofi-floskler/id1664145080

Today on the Rarified Heir Podcast, we are talking to Michael Rivers, son of rock n' roll icon Johnny “Secret Agent Man” Rivers. Retired and in great health at age 82, Johnny Rivers has lived many lives as one of the groundbreaking musicians in the LA music scene since the early sixties. From session man to Sunset Strip headliner to #1 recording artist to the Monterey Pop Festival, record label owner and publishing mogul and beyond, Johnny Rivers has met and worked with everybody. From Alan Freed to Elvis Presley, from Roger Miller to PF Sloan, from Rickey Nelson to John Phillips, Johnny Rivers knew everyone. Michael was kind enough to join us as a guest today to give us a first-hand look into his father as both a dad and a celebrity. From having a charge account at the flagship Sunset Strip Tower Records to falling asleep in a booth at the ultra-exclusive On The Rox club above the famed Roxy nightclub on the Strip, Michael went with his dad everywhere. From recording sessions on Hollywood Blvd. to dinners at the Strip's most iconic vegetarian restaurant The Source, Michael was taken everywhere with his divorced dad, even places kids couldn't usually go. Not many of us remember the smell of the AMPEX tape machine at United Western Recorders in Hollywood like it was yesterday, but Michael can. We discuss how Johnny Rivers biggest hit, the theme song to the aforementioned “Secret Agent Man” came about to what it was like touring with his dad as first a tour manager and then a drummer in the 80s on Summer break. We also hear about how Johnny was a prudent businessman who bought property in Beverly Hills and Big Sur in the 1960s which he still owns to this day. If Gazzari's on the Sunset Strip, The Whisky A Go-Go and an unmade sequel to Easy Rider are up your alley, hang on, this episode is just around the corner. This is the Rarified Heir Podcast and everyone has a story.  

Chris Akin sits down with guitar sensation Sophie Lloyd to discuss her new single "Do Or Die," her Whisky A Go Go debut, and her path from YouTube to rock stardom with Machine Gun Kelly. They also delve into the complexities of being a woman in rock and how Sophie has embraced her sexuality.NOTE: Everything said here, and on every episode of all of our shows, are 100% the opinions of the hosts. Nothing is stated as fact. Do your own research to see if their opinions are true or notWatch or Listen now!#SophieLloyd #MachineGunKelly #RockMusic #GuitarVirtuoso #WomenInRock

Rhythm Tribe is no ordinary band; they are a family rooted in tradition and innovation, weaving together Neo Soul, Latin Fusion, and Afro beats to create a sound that's both timeless and cutting-edge. As they gear up for live shows at iconic venues like the Viper Room and Whisky A-Go-Go, their music continues to push boundaries and connect with audiences on a deep, emotional level. In this interview, the Guzman-Sanchez family opens up about their creative journey, the power of familial bonds, and their vision for the future. This feature is published in 'The Forward Edition' of AwareNow Magazine: awarenowmagazine.com Featuring: Rhythm Tribe Interviewed by: Allié McGuire Music by: Rhythm Tribe Produced by: AwareNow Media --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/awarenow/support

Drowning Pool guitarist CJ Pierce and singer Ryan McCombs zoomed in to talk about their upcoming show at the Whisky in Hollywood on 10/8 as well as their new single: Revolution (The Final Amen). Here's what we talked about: Football and the call to Ryan McCombs (0-6) New Music (6-7) "Revolution (The Final Amen) (7-17) 10/8/24 @The Whisky A Go Go (17-20) Mandatory Metallica (20-end)

Cleveland, Ohio-based singer, songwriter, guitar player who has released two singles so far this year, the latest being in mid-July, one week before performing at the famous Whisky-A-Go-Go in Hollywood, also performing at The Viper Room and the House of Blues while she was out west. She was also in Nashville in early June, performing in conjunction with CMA Fest. She will be back in both Hollywood and Nashville before this year is over and she will have one more song release this year in addition to having a music video coming out. Presently her YouTube channel has a combined total of more than 1.6 million video views, and her top five songs on Spotify alone have a combined total of close to three hundred thousand streams.

In 2006 the former member of the Dio era Black Sabbath reunited as Heaven and Hell and recorded 3 new songs to be included in a Black Sabbath Dio Years compilation. That led to a tour and then a full album. The subsequent tour would be Ronnie's last as he was diagnosed with stomach cancer shortly thereafter and passed away on May 16, 2010. About a year and half later, the original Black Sabbath convened at the famed Whisky A Go-Go to announce they would be reuniting with plans to record a new album and tour. 13 was released in 2013 and their final tour followed. On this episode, the guys pit the final albums of these two bands careers to see which one we think is the better album. They also give you their BIG 4 Ronnie James Dio Songs. So sit back, relax, turn it up to 11 and let the debate begin. Hosted by - Kenneth Dean, the Dean of Metal and Chris Kaye Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/debatingmetalpodcast Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/debatingmetal/ X - https://twitter.com/debatingmtlpod email - debatingmetal@gmail.com

Thanks for watching and listening! In this episode, legendary rocker, Ron Keel (Steeler, Keel, Ron Keel Band, IronHorse, Black Sabbath) returns for a record 3rd time. Ron shares the story of his career-spanning, celebratory, and top 90 charting new release "Keelworld". He shares stories of the new album's creation, his recent show at the Whisky A Go Go, and how his recent Steeler video "Give Me Guitars or Give Me Death" came together. If you would like to keep up with Ron, you can do so at KEELWORLD (ronkeel.com) https://ronkeel.com/ Ron Keel | creating Exclusive Fan Experiences, Music, Video & Audio Content | Patreon Thanks as always for listening and watching! --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/thisisgonnahurt/support

The boys play some "Rapid Fire" and "Six N 30" before Mark gives his KK's Priest/Accept show review from the Whisky A Go Go in Los Angeles.  The Hard Rocking Trivia Show is sponsored by just us and only us. Listen, Like and or subscribe on youtube or your favorite podcast platform.HRTS YouTube Channel:https://www.youtube.com/@hardrockingtriviashow667Hard Rocking Trivia Show T-Shirtshttps://www.teepublic.com/t-shirt/468040-hard-rocking-trivia-showHere are the links for our free Spotify playlists:Hard Rocking 80'shttps://open.spotify.com/playlist/3ACMIc6UsL8LUtj4SZ5LSCHRTS Rock Playlisthttps://open.spotify.com/playlist/6fHGHPVMlWj23StoQuY9WyHard Rocking 70'shttps://open.spotify.com/playlist/0Lh2hRgqS2DRQUISuJY5BuHairnation XTRAhttps://open.spotify.com/playlist/1N8zUNfNQKup2tTozyUWBZ

8/22/2024 Returning guest Neska Rose joined Mike and cohost, actress Isabelle Anaya on ConversationsRadio Ep.184 Neska is an 18-year-old singer/songwriter and actress based in Los Angeles. She last joined us on ConversationsRadio Ep.97 in 2021.​ Neska performs with Libi as a musical act. While Neska writes and creates music, playing the guitar. Libi joins in as a harmonist and pianist. They perform at many venues in LA, including The Hotel Cafe, Hotel Ziggy, Whisky A Go Go, and more. In addition to music, the sisters also pursue acting and screenwriting. Together, they wrote and performed in the Nickelodeon sketch show 'Nick Shorts.' Neska recently appeared in the Apple TV series 'Extrapolations' opposite David Schwimmer and Daveed Diggs, and also acted in Nickelodeon's 'Drama Club' as Gertie. Neska and Libi post "Tiny Desk"-styled videos of their original songs on their YouTube channel to showcase their passion for performing.​ Neska has released an EP, including the single "Epithets", which was produced by six-time Grammy-winning producer David Greenbaum, known for his work with Beck, Tom Morello, and Beabadobee. The other two tracks off the EP, "Shelly" and "The Pit", were produced by Neska, Noam Fainer, and her twin sister Libi Rose.​ ​Neska's music and new EP is available on Spotify! Support this amazing Indie Artist!​ You can follow Neska on Instagram @iamneska Enjoy the Podcast!

In this episode, the ZappaCast team takes a DEEP DISH dive into the new Frank Zappa album, Whisky A Go Go, 1968! This is a HUGE release, packed with interesting and unique events. We go inside the making of the album with Vaultmeister Joe Travers, and Joe takes some questions from you, our amazing listeners! Hoopla in every little sip!

Rhythm Tribe, the electrifying family band known for their vibrant Neo Soul and Latin Fusion rock sound is poised to set the music scene ablaze with their latest releases and upcoming live shows, including concerts at two of Los Angeles' most iconic venues, the Viper Room and Whisky A-Go-Go this summer! Comprised of the dynamic trio Thomas Guzman-Sanchez, Mason Guzman-Sanchez, and Brisa Guzman-Sanchez, along with other close family friends rounding out the ensemble, Rhythm Tribe is more than just a band – they are a musical legacy. This summer, Rhythm Tribe will unveil their much-anticipated new music, a collection that promises to push the boundaries of Latin rock with infectious rhythms, heartfelt lyrics, and an unmistakable familial synergy. Beginning with their first single “You'll Be There / Estaras Alli,” which is a fusion of Puerto Rican Aguinaldo, Martillo, Bomba, and Neo Soul. This single is now competing for “Song of the Year” and “Best Tropical Song” in the 2025 Latin Grammy's. The vocalist Brisa Guzman-Sanchez takes both Spanish and English lyrics creating something emotional and heart throbbing. “You'll Be There / Estaras Alli” encapsulates that unexpected last shared moment with a loved one. Each track is a testament to their unique sound, blending traditional influences with contemporary flair. Their music is a celebration of cultural heritage and modern innovation, designed to resonate with audiences of all ages. Their new sound combines the unique guitar artistry of Thomas and Mason Guzman-Sanchez, held together with the insatiable rhythms of Esau Garcia. Rhythm Tribe has added Karthik Suresh on both Upright and Electric Bass and Drummer, Louie Pereira, to make a powerful musical sextet. Rhythm Tribe is not just another band; they are a living, breathing embodiment of musical evolution. Their performances are a family affair, filled with genuine emotion, tight harmonies, and an undeniable chemistry that can only come from shared blood and shared passion. As they gear up for their summer and fall shows, Rhythm Tribe invites you to experience the raw, authentic power of a family united.   Want to watch: YouTube Meisterkhan Pod (Please Subscribe)    

Adema leader Tim Fluckey zoomed in to talk about their upcoming shows at the Whisky A Go Go on 7/11/24 and Parish Room inside House Of Blues Anaheim on 7/13/24. Here's what we talked about: Ryan Shuck (0-3) New Music (3-10) 25th anniversary tour (10-12) meeting Sebastian Bach (12-17) 7/11/24 at Whisky and 7/13/24 at HOB (17-21) Mandatory Metallica (21-end)

The Dead Daisies lead guitarist Doug Aldrich zoomed in to talk about their new song "Light Em Up" and tour coming to the Whisky A Go Go in Hollywood on June 20. Here's what we talked about: "Light Em Up" single and new album (0-6) 6/20/24 at the Whisky A Go Go (6-7) new bassist and drummer (7-8) David Lowy (8-11) Glenn Hughes (11-17) Dio (17-23) Whitesnake (23-25) Mandatory Metallica (25-end)

Hello there. This time we're taking a look at the week of May 6th to 10th. One of the tunes that's a staple of the Rolling Stones setlist came to life this week in 1965 Bono and Edge as the bombs fall appear in Kyiv in 2022 and in 1966 The Doors audition as the house band of the Whisky A Go Go in LA All that and loads more in less than 10 minutes. Marty

Pop Art Painter Jamie Roxx (www.JamieRoxx.us) welcomes Michael Isaak, (Indie Folk) to the Show!  (Click to go there) ● WEB: www.michaelisaak.us ● IG: @michaelisaakk ● TK: @michaelisaaktunes ● YT: @michaelisaaktunes ● SC: @michaelisaak Los Angeles singer-songwriter Michael Isaak fuses dreamy indie pop with intimate acoustic folk on his journey through a world that is ever-changing and tragically beautiful. The former Princeton neuroscience student draws audiences into his deepest cerebral spaces, showcasing music as a profound tool for healing. As a first-generation Egyptian-American, Michael offers an ethnic twist to his genre, having grown up on Arabic music. He learned to play piano and ukulele from an early age and later taught himself how to play guitar and use digital audio workstations, receiving his first production credit at 15. Taking inspiration from artists like Phoebe Bridgers and Sufjan Stevens, he went on to put out his first single “Don't Like Being Lonely” in 2022. Since then, Michael has grossed nearly 100,000 streams across platforms. He headlined his first show at The Hotel Cafe in December 2022, and has played on some of LA's most iconic stages including The Whisky A Go Go. ● Media Inquiries: Rachel Rossen Associate Director of Publicity TREND: PR, Branding, and Social Media www.trendpr.com

Taproot singer Stephen Richards called in to talk about their new album Scissrs (out now) and their upcomming concert at the Whisky A Go Go on 4/24. Here's what we talked about: Reunion and new album (0-3) "Favourite Song" w/Elias Soriano (3-4) "Love Without You" w/Audrey Reay (4-6) 4/24/24 at the Whisky A Go Go (6-7) Sick New World (7-9) Ozzfest 2000 & 2001 (9-10) Pantera (10-11) Mandatory Metallica (11-end)

Firewind guitarist Gus G zoomed in to talk about their new album "Stand United" (out now) and their tour coming to So Cal on 4/26 at House of Blues Anaheim and 4/27 at the Whisky A Go Go. Here's what we talked about: "Stand United" album (0-6) So Cal Tour 4/26 & 4/37 (6-9) Ozzy Osbourne (9-14) Mandatory Metallica (14-end)

This week we continue recounting the history of Night Demon's North American Tour in 2014 opening for the mighty Raven.  This week's episode focuses on the historic Whisky A Go Go show in Hollywood, California, with Jarvis and Dusty both stressing how it was the first time they had ever performed at this landmark venue.  We bring you extensive audio from the show, as well as band commentary about how important this gig was, how it honed their perspective to a razor-sharp edge, and how they look back on the experience a decade later.Become a subscriber today at nightdemon.net/subscriber. This week, subscribers have access to the bonus content below:Streaming Video: Full Show:  Whisky A Go Go - October 20, 2014Show Poster Photo Gallery Listen at nightdemon.net/podcast or anywhere you listen to podcasts! Follow us on Instagram Like us on Facebook

New York Rocker Returns With Hot New Album!#newmusic #newalbum #newyorkmusic #bobdeewithpetro #violetta Bob Dee with Petro New York City's premier rock band with a sound reminiscent of Cheap Trick, has developed a significant worldwide fan base, as well as selling CDs & Video's on all major internet sites worldwide. Bob Dee's New York City band consists of Bob Dee (singer/guitarist), TJ Jordan (guitar)  Alison Jones (bass) and Scott Campbell (drums). The band never sleeps with their tireless touring schedule worldwide. Bob Dee billed as "The International Pop-Star", has toured Japan, Europe and several east and west coast tours including SXSW music festival in Austin,Texas and The Kansai Music Festival in Osaka, Japan, Canadian Music Week featured artist performance. Bob Dee just completed a rocking West Coast Tour support for "Enuff Z'Nuff" playing the World Famous "Whisky A Go Go". Bob Dee's UK tour from Newcastle to London playing support for former Wasp guitarist "Chris Holmes". The band's hard driven melodic pop resonates well with fans worldwide.Bob Dee with Petro: new EP “Violetta” features the new single “Breathe You In” released through AMG and SONY records. The EP features Bob Dee vocals guitars, Jack Daley ( Lenny Kravitz), Matt Starr (Ace Frehley), Fred Coury ( Cinderella), Ivan the funkboy Bodley( Humble Pie), Jakeim Hart (Alicia Keys)The EP was mixed by Platinum Producer Lou Giordano ( Goo Goo Dolls, The Ataris) and When The Sky Falls mixed by Platinum recording artist Fred Coury (Cinderella)Website: https://www.bobdeewithpetro.com/https://www.reverbnation.com/bobdeewithpetroInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/bobdeewithpetroFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/bob.dee.14X: https://twitter.com/bobdeewithpetroYoutube: https://www.youtube.com/user/bobdeewithpetroThanks for tuning in, please be sure to click that subscribe button and give this a thumbs up!!Email: thevibesbroadcast@gmail.comInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/listen_to_the_vibes_/Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thevibesbroadcastnetworkLinktree: https://linktr.ee/the_vibes_broadcastTikTok: https://vm.tiktok.com/ZMeuTVRv2/Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheVibesBrdcstTruth: https://truthsocial.com/@KoyoteI'm Sorry Zero Points ~ Eurovision podcast with Adrian & Seamus.It's season 3 of I'm Sorry Zero Points. Adrian & Seamus bring...Listen on: Apple Podcasts SpotifyFor all our social media and other links, go to: Linktree: https://linktr.ee/the_vibes_broadcastPlease subscribe, like, and share!

Pamela Des Barres—proud rock and roll groupie, accomplished writer, musician, and raconteur—joins Staci on this episode of the Rock & Roll Nightmares podcast. She of course talks about her bestselling memoir, I'm with the Band: Confessions of a Groupie, which details her experiences in the L.A. music scene of the 1960s 70s, when she frolicked with the likes of Mick Jagger, Jim Morrison, Keith Moon, and Jimmy Page… but she also gives us a glimpse into her next book, which is bound to be a doozy. Miss Pamela shares her own personal “rock and roll nightmare” (another one involving Led Zeppelin! There are so many now…) and tells us about her upcoming appearance at the Whisky A Go Go in Hollywood, and beyond!

ABOUT ART ALEXAKIS: Three decades into a career filled with hits behind songs fueled with impactful messages, Everclear refuses to let time define them….Having recently released their in concert album Live at the Whisky A Go Go and new video for the song "Sing Away”. In this episode we are joined by lead singer, songwriter and guitar player Art Alexakis.  ABOUT THE PODCAST:  Candid discussions with and about those behind the scenes in the music business including industry veterans representing the segments of: Musician, Design & Live ABOUT THE HOSTS: All three Music Buzzz Podcast hosts (Dane Clark, Hugh Syme and Andy Wilson) have spent their careers working with the biggest names in entertainment and have been, and still are, a fly on the wall. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

ABOUT ART ALEXAKIS: Three decades into a career filled with hits behind songs fueled with impactful messages, Everclear refuses to let time define them….Having recently released their in concert album Live at the Whisky A Go Go and new video for the song "Sing Away”. In this episode we are joined by lead singer, songwriter and guitar player Art Alexakis.  ABOUT THE PODCAST:  Candid discussions with and about those behind the scenes in the music business including industry veterans representing the segments of: Musician, Design & Live ABOUT THE HOSTS: All three Music Buzzz Podcast hosts (Dane Clark, Hugh Syme and Andy Wilson) have spent their careers working with the biggest names in entertainment and have been, and still are, a fly on the wall. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For those who haven't heard the announcement I just posted , songs from this point on will sometimes be split among multiple episodes, so this is the first part of a multi-episode look at the Byrds in 1966-69 and the birth of country rock. Click the full post to read liner notes, links to more information, and a transcript of the episode. Patreon backers also have a half-hour bonus episode on "My World Fell Down" by Sagittarius. 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/ Resources No Mixcloud at this time as there are too many Byrds songs in this chunk, but I will try to put together a multi-part Mixcloud when all the episodes for this song are up. My main source for the Byrds is Timeless Flight Revisited by Johnny Rogan, I also used Chris Hillman's autobiography, the 331/3 books on The Notorious Byrd Brothers and The Gilded Palace of Sin, For future parts of this multi-episode story I used Barney Hoskyns' Hotel California and John Einarson's Desperadoes as general background on Californian country-rock, Calling Me Hone, Gram Parsons and the Roots of Country Rock by Bob Kealing for information on Parsons, and Requiem For The Timeless Vol 2 by Johnny Rogan for information about the post-Byrds careers of many members. Information on Gary Usher comes from The California Sound by Stephen McParland. And this three-CD set is a reasonable way of getting most of the Byrds' important recordings. Patreon This podcast is brought to you by the generosity of my backers on Patreon. Why not join them? Transcript When we left the Byrds at the end of the episode on "Eight Miles High", they had just released that single, which combined folk-rock with their new influences from John Coltrane and Ravi Shankar, and which was a group composition but mostly written by the group's lead singer, Gene Clark. And also, as we mentioned right at the end of the episode, Clark had left the group. There had been many, many factors leading to Clark's departure. Clark was writing *far* more material than the other band members, of whom only Roger McGuinn had been a writer when the group started, and as a result was making far more money than them, especially with songs like "She Don't Care About Time", which had been the B-side to their number one single "Turn! Turn! Turn!" [Excerpt: The Byrds, "She Don't Care About Time"] Clark's extra income was making the rest of the group jealous, and they also didn't think his songs were particularly good, though many of his songs on the early Byrds albums are now considered classics. Jim Dickson, the group's co-manager, said "Gene would write fifteen to twenty songs a week and you had to find a good one whenever it came along because there were lots of them that you couldn't make head or tail of.  They didn't mean anything. We all knew that. Gene would write a good one at a rate of just about one per girlfriend." Chris Hillman meanwhile later said more simply "Gene didn't really add that much." That is, frankly, hard to square with the facts. There are ten original songs on the group's first two albums, plus one original non-album B-side. Of those eleven songs, Clark wrote seven on his own and co-wrote two with McGuinn. But as the other band members were starting to realise that they had the possibility of extra royalties -- and at least to some extent were starting to get artistic ambitions as far as writing goes -- they were starting to disparage Clark's work as a result, calling it immature. Clark had, of course, been the principal writer for "Eight Miles High", the group's most experimental record to date: [Excerpt: The Byrds, "Eight Miles High"] But there he'd shared co-writing credit with David Crosby and Roger McGuinn, in part because that was the only way he could be sure they would agree to release it as a single. There were also internal rivalries within the band unrelated to songwriting -- as we've touched on, Crosby had already essentially bullied Clark off the guitar and into just playing tambourine (and McGuinn would be dismissive even of Clark's tambourine abilities). Crosby's inability to get on with any other member of any band he was in would later become legendary, but at this point Clark was the major victim of his bullying. According to Dickson "David understood when Gene left that ninety-five percent of why Gene left could be brought back to him." The other five percent, though, came from Clark's fear of flying. Clark had apparently witnessed a plane crash in his youth and been traumatised by it, and he had a general terror of flying and planes -- something McGuinn would mock him for a little, as McGuinn was an aviation buff. Eventually, Clark had a near-breakdown boarding a plane from California to New York for a promotional appearance with Murray the K, and ended up getting off the plane. McGuinn and Michael Clarke almost did the same, but in the end they decided to stay on, and the other four Byrds did the press conference without Gene. When asked where Gene was, they said he'd "broken a wing". He was also increasingly having mental health and substance abuse problems, which were exacerbated by his fear, and in the end he decided he just couldn't be a Byrd any more. Oddly, of all the band members, it was David Crosby who was most concerned about Clark's departure, and who did the most to try to persuade him to stay, but he still didn't do much, and the group decided to carry on as a four-piece and not even make a proper announcement of Clark's departure -- they just started putting out photos with four people instead of five. The main change as far as the group were concerned was that Hillman was now covering Clark's old vocal parts, and so Crosby moved to Clark's old centre mic while Hillman moved from his position at the back of the stage with Michael Clarke to take over Crosby's mic. The group now had three singer-instrumentalists in front, two of whom, Crosby and McGuinn, now thought of themselves as songwriters. So despite the loss of their singer/songwriter/frontman, they moved on to their new single, the guaranteed hit follow-up to "Eight Miles High": [Excerpt: The Byrds, "5D (Fifth Dimension)"] "5D" was written by McGuinn, inspired by a book of cartoons called 1-2-3-4 More More More More by Don Landis, which I haven't been able to track down a copy of, but which seems to have been an attempt to explain the mathematical concept of higher dimensions in cartoon form. McGuinn was inspired by this and by Einstein's theory of relativity -- or at least by his understanding of relativity, which does not seem to have been the most informed take on the topic. McGuinn has said in the past that the single should really have come with a copy of Landis' booklet, so people could understand it. Sadly, without the benefit of the booklet we only have the lyrics plus McGuinn's interviews to go on to try to figure out what he means. As far as I'm able to understand, McGuinn believed -- completely erroneously -- that Einstein had proved that along with the four dimensions of spacetime there is also a fifth dimension which McGuinn refers to as a "mesh", and that "the reason for the speed of light being what it is is because of that mesh." McGuinn then went on to identify this mesh with his own conception of God, influenced by his belief in Subud, and with a Bergsonian idea of a life force. He would talk about how most people are stuck in a materialist scientific paradigm which only admits to  the existence of three dimensions, and how there are people out there advocating for a five-dimensional view of the world. To go along with this mystic view of the universe, McGuinn wanted some music inspired by the greatest composer of sacred music, and he asked Van Dyke Parks, who was brought in to add keyboards on the session, to play something influenced by Bach -- and Parks obliged, having been thinking along the same lines himself: [Excerpt: The Byrds, "5D (Fifth Dimension)"] Unfortunately for the group, McGuinn's lyrical intention wasn't clear enough and the song was assumed to be about drugs, and was banned by many radio stations. That plus the track's basically uncommercial nature meant that it reached no higher than number forty-four in the charts. Jim Dickson, the group's co-manager, pointed to a simpler factor in the record's failure, saying that if the organ outro to the track had instead been the intro, to set a mood for the track rather than starting with a cold vocal open, it would have had more success. The single was followed by an album, called Fifth Dimension, which was not particularly successful. Of the album's eleven songs, two were traditional folk songs, one was an instrumental -- a jam called "Captain Soul" which was a version of Lee Dorsey's "Get Out My Life Woman" credited to the four remaining Byrds, though Gene Clark is very audible on it playing harmonica -- and one more was a jam whose only lyrics were "gonna ride a Lear jet, baby", repeated over and over. There was also "Eight Miles High" and the group's inept and slightly-too-late take on "Hey Joe". It also included a third single, a country track titled "Mr. Spaceman": [Excerpt: The Byrds, "Mr. Spaceman"] McGuinn and, particularly, Hillman, had some country music background, and both were starting to think about incorporating country sounds into the group's style, as after Clark's departure from the group they were moving away from the style that had characterised their first two albums. But the interest in "Mr. Spaceman" was less about the musical style than about the lyrics. McGuinn had written the song in the hopes of contacting extraterrestrial life -- sending them a message in his lyrics so that any aliens listening to Earth radio would come and visit, though he was later disappointed to realise that the inverse-square law means that the signals would be too faint to make out after a relatively short distance: [Excerpt: The Byrds, "Mr. Spaceman"] "Mr. Spaceman" did better on the charts than its predecessor, scraping the lower reaches of the top forty, but it hardly set the world alight, and neither did the album -- a typical review was the one by Jon Landau, which said in part "This album then cannot be considered up to the standards set by the Byrds' first two and basically demonstrates that they should be thinking in terms of replacing Gene Clark, instead of just carrying on without him." Fifth Dimension would be the only album that Allen Stanton would produce for the Byrds, and his replacement had actually just produced an album that was a Byrds record by any other name: [Excerpt: Gene Clark, "So You Say You've Lost Your Baby"] We've looked at Gary Usher before, but not for some time, and not in much detail. Usher was one of several people who were involved in the scene loosely centred on the Beach Boys and Jan and Dean, though he never had much time for Jan Berry and he had got his own start in the music business slightly before the Beach Boys. As a songwriter, his first big successes had come with his collaborations with Brian Wilson -- he had co-written "409" for the Beach Boys, and had also collaborated with Wilson on some of his earliest more introspective songs, like "The Lonely Sea" and "In My Room", for which Usher had written the lyrics: [Excerpt: The Beach Boys, "In My Room"] Usher had built a career as a producer and writer for hire, often in collaboration with Roger Christian, who also wrote with Brian Wilson and Jan Berry. Usher, usually with Christian, and very occasionally Wilson wrote the songs for several of American International Pictures' Beach Party films: [Excerpt: Donna Loren, "Muscle Bustle"] And Usher and Christian had also had bit parts in some of the films, like Bikini Beach, and Usher had produced records for Annette Funicello, the star of the films, often with the Honeys (a group consisting of Brian Wilson's future wife Marilyn plus her sister and cousin) on backing vocals. He had also produced records for the Surfaris, as well as a whole host of studio-only groups like the Four Speeds, the Super Stocks, and Mr. Gasser and the Weirdoes, most of whom were Usher and the same small group of vocalist friends along with various selections of Wrecking Crew musicians making quick themed albums. One of these studio groups, the Hondells, went on to be a real group of sorts, after Usher and the Beach Boys worked together on a film, The Girls on the Beach. Usher liked a song that Wilson and Mike Love had written for the Beach Boys to perform in the film, "Little Honda", and after discovering that the Beach Boys weren't going to release their version as a single, he put together a group to record a soundalike version: [Excerpt: The Hondells, "Little Honda"] "Little Honda" made the top ten, and Usher produced two albums for the Hondells, who had one other minor hit with a cover version of the Lovin' Spoonful's "Younger Girl". Oddly, Usher's friend Terry Melcher, who would shortly produce the Byrds' first few hits, had also latched on to "Little Honda", and produced his own version of the track, sung by Pat Boone of all people, with future Beach Boy Bruce Johnston on backing vocals: [Excerpt: Pat Boone, "Little Honda"] But when Usher had got his version out first, Boone's was relegated to a B-side. When the Byrds had hit, and folk-rock had started to take over from surf rock, Usher had gone with the flow and produced records like the Surfaris' album It Ain't Me Babe, with Usher and his usual gang of backing vocalists augmenting the Surfaris as they covered hits by Dylan, the Turtles, the Beach Boys and the Byrds: [Excerpt: The Surfaris, "All I Really Want to Do"] Usher was also responsible for the Surfaris being the first group to release a version of "Hey Joe" on a major label, as we heard in the episode on that song: [Excerpt: The Surfaris, "Hey Joe"] After moving between Capitol, Mercury, and Decca Records, Usher had left Decca after a round of corporate restructuring and been recommended for a job at Columbia by his friend Melcher, who at that point was producing Paul Revere and the Raiders and the Rip Chords and had just finished his time as the Byrds' producer. Usher's first work at Columbia was actually to prepare new stereo mixes of some Byrds tracks that had up to that point only been issued in mono, but his first interaction with the Byrds themselves came via Gene Clark: [Excerpt: Gene Clark, "So You Say You've Lost Your Baby"] On leaving the Byrds, Clark had briefly tried to make a success of himself as a songwriter-for-hire in much the same mould as Usher, attempting to write and produce a single for two Byrds fans using the group name The Cookie Fairies, while spending much of his time romancing Michelle Phillips, as we talked about in the episode on "San Francisco". When the Cookie Fairies single didn't get picked up by a label, Clark had put together a group with Bill Rinehart from the Leaves, Chip Douglas of the Modern Folk Quartet, and Joel Larson of the Grass Roots. Just called Gene Clark & The Group, they'd played around the clubs in LA and cut about half an album's worth of demos produced by Jim Dickson and Ed Tickner, the Byrds' management team, before Clark had fired first Douglas and then the rest of the group. Clark's association with Douglas did go on to benefit him though -- Douglas went on, as we've seen in other episodes, to produce hits for the Turtles and the Monkees, and he later remembered an old song by Clark and McGuinn that the Byrds had demoed but never released, "You Showed Me", and produced a top ten hit version of it for the Turtles: [Excerpt: The Turtles, "You Showed Me"] Clark had instead started working with two country singers, Vern and Rex Gosdin, who had previously been with Chris Hillman in the country band The Hillmen. When that band had split up, the Gosdin Brothers had started to perform together as a duo, and in 1967 they would have a major country hit with "Hangin' On": [Excerpt: The Gosdin Brothers, "Hangin' On"] At this point though, they were just Gene Clark's backing vocalists, on an album that had been started with producer Larry Marks, who left Columbia half way through the sessions, at which point Usher took over. The album, titled Gene Clark with the Gosdin Brothers, featured a mix of musicians from different backgrounds. There were Larson and Rinehart from Gene Clark and the Group, there were country musicians -- a guitarist named Clarence White and the banjo player Doug Dillard. Hillman and Michael Clarke, the Byrds' rhythm section, played on much of the album as a way of keeping a united front, Glen Campbell, Jerry Cole, Leon Russell and Jim Gordon of the Wrecking Crew contributed, and Van Dyke Parks played most of the keyboards. The lead-off single for Gene Clark with the Gosdin Brothers, "Echoes", is one of the tracks produced by Marks, but in truth the real producer of that track is Leon Russell, who wrote the orchestral arrangement that turned Clark's rough demo into a baroque pop masterpiece: [Excerpt: Gene Clark, "Echoes"] Despite Clark having quit the band, relations between him and the rest were still good enough that in September 1966 he temporarily rejoined the band after Crosby lost his voice, though he was gone again as soon as Crosby was well. But that didn't stop the next Byrds album, which Usher went on to produce straight after finishing work on Clark's record, coming out almost simultaneously with Clark's and, according to Clark, killing its commercial potential. Upon starting to work with the group, Usher quickly came to the conclusion that Chris Hillman was in many ways the most important member of the band. According to Usher "There was also quite a divisive element within the band at that stage which often prevented them working well together. Sometimes everything would go smoothly, but other times it was a hard road. McGuinn and Hillman were often more together on musical ideas. This left Crosby to fend for himself, which I might add he did very well." Usher also said "I quickly came to understand that Hillman was a good stabilising force within the Byrds (when he wanted to be). It was around the time that I began working with them that Chris also became more involved in the songwriting. I think part of that was the fact that he realised how much more money was involved if you actually wrote the songs yourself. And he was a good songwriter." The first single to be released from the new sessions was one that was largely Hillman's work. Hillman and Crosby had been invited by the great South African jazz trumpeter Hugh Masekela to play on some demos for another South African jazzer, singer Letta Mbulu. Details are sparse, but one presumes this was for what became her 1967 album Letta Mbulu Sings, produced by David Axelrod: [Excerpt: Letta Mbulu, "Zola (MRA)"] According to Hillman, that session was an epiphany for him, and he went home and started writing his own songs for the first time. He took one of the riffs he came up with to McGuinn, who came up with a bridge inspired by a song by yet another South African musician, Miriam Makeba, who at the time was married to Masekela, and the two wrote a lyric inspired by what they saw as the cynical manipulation of the music industry in creating manufactured bands like the Monkees -- though they have both been very eager to say that they were criticising the industry, not the Monkees themselves, with whom they were friendly. As Hillman says in his autobiography, "Some people interpreted it as a jab at The Monkees. In reality, we had immense respect for all of them as singers and musicians. We weren't skewering the members of the Monkees, but we were taking a shot at the cynical nature of the entertainment business that will try to manufacture a group like The Monkees as a marketing strategy. For us, it was all about the music, and we were commenting on the pitfalls of the industry rather than on any of our fellow musicians." [Excerpt: The Byrds, "So You Want to be a Rock 'n' Roll Star?"] The track continued the experimentation with sound effects that they had started with the Lear jet song on the previous album. That had featured recordings of a Lear jet, and "So You Want to be a Rock 'n' Roll Star?" featured recordings of audience screams. Those screams were, according to most sources, recorded by Derek Taylor at a Byrds gig in Bournemouth in 1965, but given reports of the tepid response the group got on that tour, that doesn't seem to make sense. Other sources say they're recordings of a *Beatles* audience in Bournemouth in *1963*, the shows that had been shown in the first US broadcast of Beatles footage, and the author of a book on links between the Beatles and Bournemouth says on his blog "In the course of researching Yeah Yeah Yeah: The Beatles & Bournemouth I spoke to two people who saw The Byrds at the Gaumont that August and neither recalled any screaming at all, let alone the wall of noise that can be heard on So You Want To Be A Rock 'n' Roll Star." So it seems likely that screaming isn't for the Byrds, but of course Taylor had also worked for the Beatles. According to Usher "The crowd sound effects were from a live concert that Derek Taylor had taped with a little tape recorder in London. It was some outrageous crowd, something like 20,000 to 30,000 people. He brought the tape in, ran it off onto a big tape, re- EQ'd it, echoed it, cleaned it up and looped it." So my guess is that the audience screams in the Byrds song about the Monkees are for the Beatles, but we'll probably never know for sure: [Excerpt: The Byrds, "So You Want to be a Rock 'n' Roll Star?"] The track also featured an appearance by Hugh Masekela, the jazz trumpeter whose invitation to take part in a session had inspired the song: [Excerpt: The Byrds, "So You Want to be a Rock 'n' Roll Star?"] While Hillman was starting to lean more towards folk and country music -- he had always been the member of the band least interested in rock music -- and McGuinn was most interested in exploring electronic sounds, Crosby was still pushing the band more in the direction of the jazz experimentation they'd tried on "Eight Miles High", and one of the tracks they started working on soon after "So You Want to be a Rock 'n' Roll Star?" was inspired by another jazz trumpet great. Miles Davis had been partly responsible for getting the Byrds signed to Columbia, as we talked about in the episode on "Mr. Tambourine Man", and so the group wanted to pay him tribute, and they started working on a version of his classic instrumental "Milestones": [Excerpt: Miles Davis, "Milestones"] Sadly, while the group worked on their version for several days -- spurred on primarily by Crosby -- they eventually chose to drop the track, and it has never seen release or even been bootlegged, though there is a tiny clip of it that was used in a contemporaneous documentary, with a commentator talking over it: [Excerpt: The Byrds, "Milestones (TV)"] It was apparently Crosby who decided to stop work on the track, just as working on it was also apparently his idea. Indeed, while the biggest change on the album that would become Younger Than Yesterday was that for the first time Chris Hillman was writing songs and taking lead vocals, Crosby was also writing more than before. Hillman wrote four of the songs on the album, plus his co-write with McGuinn on "So You Want to be a Rock 'n' Roll Star?", but Crosby also supplied two new solo compositions, plus a cowrite with McGuinn, and Crosby and McGuinn's "Why?", the B-side to "Eight Miles High", was also dug up and rerecorded for the album. Indeed, Gary Usher would later say "The album was probably 60% Crosby. McGuinn was not that involved, nor was Chris; at least as far as performing was concerned." McGuinn's only composition on the album other than the co-writes with Crosby and Hillman was another song about contacting aliens, "CTA-102", a song about a quasar which at the time some people were speculating might have been evidence of alien life. That song sounds to my ears like it's had some influence from Joe Meek's similar records, though I've never seen McGuinn mention Meek as an influence: [Excerpt: The Byrds, "CTA-102"] Crosby's growing dominance in the studio was starting to rankle with the other members. In particular two tracks were the cause of conflict. One was Crosby's song "Mind Gardens", an example of his increasing experimentation, a freeform song that ignores conventional song structure, and which he insisted on including on the album despite the rest of the group's objections: [Excerpt: The Byrds, "Mind Gardens"] The other was the track that directly followed "Mind Gardens" on the album. "My Back Pages" was a song from Dylan's album Another Side of Bob Dylan, a song many have seen as Dylan announcing his break with the folk-song and protest movements he'd been associated with up to that point, and his intention to move on in a new direction: [Excerpt: Bob Dylan, "My Back Pages"] Jim Dickson, the Byrds' co-manager, was no longer on speaking terms with the band and wasn't involved in their day-to-day recording as he had been, but he'd encountered McGuinn on the street and rolled down his car window and suggested that the group do the song. Crosby was aghast. They'd already recorded several songs from Another Side of Bob Dylan, and Fifth Dimension had been their first album not to include any Dylan covers. Doing a jangly cover of a Dylan song with a McGuinn lead vocal was something they'd moved on from, and he didn't want to go back to 1964 at the end of 1966. He was overruled, and the group recorded their version, a track that signified something very different for the Byrds than the original had for Dylan: [Excerpt: The Byrds, "My Back Pages"] It was released as the second single from the album, and made number thirty. It was the last Byrds single to make the top forty. While he was working with the Byrds, Usher continued his work in the pop field, though as chart pop moved on so did Usher, who was now making records in a psychedelic sunshine pop style with acts like the Peanut Butter Conspiracy: [Excerpt: The Peanut Butter Conspiracy, "It's a Happening Thing"] and he produced Chad and Jeremy's massive concept album Of Cabbages and Kings, which included a five-song "Progress Suite" illustrating history from the start of creation until the end of the world: [Excerpt: Chad and Jeremy, "Editorial"] But one of the oddest projects he was involved in was indirectly inspired by Roger McGuinn. According to Usher "McGuinn and I had a lot in common. Roger would always say that he was "out of his head," which he thought was good, because he felt you had to go out of your head before you could really find your head! That sums up McGuinn perfectly! He was also one of the first people to introduce me to metaphysics, and from that point on I started reading everything I could get my hands on. His viewpoints on metaphysics were interesting, and, at the time, useful. He was also into Marshall McLuhan; very much into the effects of electronics and the electronic transformation. He was into certain metaphysical concepts before I was, but I was able to turn him onto some abstract concepts as well" These metaphysical discussions led to Usher producing an album titled The Astrology Album, with discussions of the meaning of different star signs over musical backing: [Excerpt: Gary Usher, "Leo"] And with interviews with various of the artists he was working with talking about astrology. He apparently interviewed Art Garfunkel -- Usher was doing some uncredited production work on Simon and Garfunkel's Bookends album at the time -- but Garfunkel declined permission for the interview to be used. But he did get both Chad and Jeremy to talk, along with John Merrill of the Peanut Butter Conspiracy -- and David Crosby: [Excerpt: Gary Usher, "Leo"] One of the tracks from that album, "Libra", became the B-side of a single by a group of studio musicians Usher put together, with Glen Campbell on lead vocals and featuring Bruce Johnston of the Beach Boys prominently on backing vocals. "My World Fell Down" was credited to Sagittarius, again a sign of Usher's current interest in astrology, and featured some experimental sound effects that are very similar to the things that McGuinn had been doing on recent Byrds albums: [Excerpt: Sagittarius, "My World Fell Down"] While Usher was continuing with his studio experimentation, the Byrds were back playing live -- and they were not going down well at all. They did a UK tour where they refused to play most of their old hits and went down as poorly as on their previous tour, and they were no longer the kings of LA. In large part this was down to David Crosby, whose ego was by this point known to *everybody*, and who was becoming hugely unpopular on the LA scene even as he was starting to dominate the band. Crosby was now the de facto lead vocalist on stage, with McGuinn being relegated to one or two songs per set, and he was the one who would insist that they not play their older hit singles live. He was dominating the stage, leading to sarcastic comments from the normally placid Hillman like "Ladies and gentlemen, the David Crosby show!", and he was known to do things like start playing a song then stop part way through a verse to spend five minutes tuning up before restarting. After a residency at the Whisky A-Go-Go where the group were blown off the stage by their support act, the Doors, their publicist Derek Taylor quit, and he was soon followed by the group's co-managers Jim Dickson and Eddie Tickner, who were replaced by Crosby's friend Larry Spector, who had no experience in rock management but did represent Peter Fonda and Dennis Hopper, two young film stars Crosby was hanging round with. The group were particularly annoyed by Crosby when they played the Monterey Pop Festival. Crosby took most lead vocals in that set, and the group didn't go down well, though instrumentally the worst performer was Michael Clarke, who unlike the rest of the band had never become particularly proficient on his instrument: [Excerpt: The Byrds, "So You Want to be a Rock 'n' Roll Star (live at Monterey)"] But Crosby also insisted on making announcements from the stage advocating LSD use and describing conspiracy theories about the Kennedy assassination: [Excerpt: David Crosby on the Warren Commission, from the end of "Hey Joe" Monterey] But even though Crosby was trying to be the Byrds' leader on stage, he was also starting to think that they maybe didn't deserve to have him as their leader. He'd recently been spending a lot of time hanging out with Stephen Stills of the Buffalo Springfield, and McGuinn talks about one occasion where Crosby and Stills were jamming together, Stills played a blues lick and said to McGuinn "Can you play that?" and when McGuinn, who was not a blues musician, said he couldn't, Stills looked at him with contempt. McGuinn was sure that Stills was trying to poach Crosby, and Crosby apparently wanted to be poached. The group had rehearsed intensely for Monterey, aware that they'd been performing poorly and not wanting to show themselves up in front of the new San Francisco bands, but Crosby had told them during rehearsals that they weren't good enough to play with him. McGuinn's suspicions about Stills wanting to poach Crosby seemed to be confirmed during Monterey when Crosby joined Buffalo Springfield on stage, filling in for Neil Young during the period when Young had temporarily quit the group, and performing a song he'd helped Stills write about Grace Slick: [Excerpt: Buffalo Springfield, "Rock 'n' Roll Woman (live at Monterey)"] Crosby was getting tired not only of the Byrds but of the LA scene in general. He saw the new San Francisco bands as being infinitely cooler than the Hollywood plastic scene that was LA -- even though Crosby was possibly the single most Hollywood person on that scene, being the son of an Oscar-winning cinematographer and someone who hung out with film stars. At Monterey, the group had debuted their next single, the first one with an A-side written by Crosby, "Lady Friend": [Excerpt: The Byrds, "Lady Friend"] Crosby had thought of that as a masterpiece, but when it was released as a single, it flopped badly, and the rest of the group weren't even keen on the track being included on the next album. To add insult to injury as far as Crosby was concerned, at the same time as the single was released, a new album came out -- the Byrds' Greatest Hits, full of all those singles he was refusing to play live, and it made the top ten, becoming far and away the group's most successful album. But despite all this, the biggest conflict between band members when they came to start sessions for their next album wasn't over Crosby, but over Michael Clarke. Clarke had never been a particularly good drummer, and while that had been OK at the start of the Byrds' career, when none of them had been very proficient on their instruments, he was barely any better at a time when both McGuinn and Hillman were being regarded as unique stylists, while Crosby was writing metrically and harmonically interesting material. Many Byrds fans appreciate Clarke's drumming nonetheless, saying he was an inventive and distinctive player in much the same way as the similarly unskilled Micky Dolenz, but on any measure of technical ability he was far behind his bandmates. Clarke didn't like the new material and wasn't capable of playing it the way his bandmates wanted. He was popular with the rest of the band as a person, but simply wasn't playing well, and it led to a massive row in the first session: [Excerpt: The Byrds, "Universal Mind Decoder (alternate backing track)"] At one point they joke that they'll bring in Hal Blaine instead -- a reference to the recording of "Mr. Tambourine Man", when Clarke and Hillman had been replaced by Blaine and Larry Knechtel -- and Clarke says "Do it. I don't mind, I really don't." And so that ended up happening. Clarke was still a member of the band -- and he would end up playing on half the album's tracks -- but for the next few sessions the group brought in session drummers Hal Blaine and Jim Gordon to play the parts they actually wanted. But that wasn't going to stop the bigger problem in the group, and that problem was David Crosby's relationship with the rest of the band. Crosby was still at this point thinking of himself as having a future in the group, even as he was increasingly convinced that the group themselves were bad, and embarrassed by their live sound. He even, in a show of unity, decided to ask McGuinn and Hillman to collaborate on a couple of songs with him so they would share the royalties equally. But there were two flash-points in the studio. The first was Crosby's song "Triad", a song about what we would now call polyamory, partly inspired by Robert Heinlein's counterculture science fiction novel Stranger in a Strange Land. The song was meant to portray a progressive, utopian, view of free love, but has dated very badly -- the idea that the *only* reason a woman might be unhappy with her partner sleeping with another woman is because of her mother's disapproval possibly reveals more about the mindset of hippie idealists than was intended. The group recorded Crosby's song, but refused to allow it to be released, and Crosby instead gave it to his friends Jefferson Airplane, whose version, by having Grace Slick sing it, at least reverses the dynamics of the relationship: [Excerpt: Jefferson Airplane, "Triad"] The other was a song that Gary Usher had brought to the group and suggested they record, a Goffin and King song released the previous year by Dusty Springfield: [Excerpt: Dusty Springfield, "Goin' Back"] Crosby was incandescent. The group wanted to do this Brill Building pap?! Hell, Gary Usher had originally thought that *Chad and Jeremy* should do it, before deciding to get the Byrds to do it instead. Did they really want to be doing Chad and Jeremy cast-offs when they could be doing his brilliant science-fiction inspired songs about alternative relationship structures? *Really*? They did, and after a first session, where Crosby reluctantly joined in, when they came to recut the track Crosby flat-out refused to take part, leading to a furious row with McGuinn. Since they were already replacing Michael Clarke with session drummers, that meant the only Byrds on "Goin' Back", the group's next single, were McGuinn and Hillman: [Excerpt: The Byrds, "Goin' Back"] That came out in late October 1967, and shortly before it came out, McGuinn and Hillman had driven to Crosby's home. They told him they'd had enough. He was out of the band. They were buying him out of his contract. Despite everything, Crosby was astonished. They were a *group*. They fought, but only the way brothers fight. But McGuinn and Hillman were adamant. Crosby ended up begging them, saying "We could make great music together." Their response was just "And we can make great music without you." We'll find out whether they could or not in two weeks' time.

Be sure to head to the Whisky for some great music!The legendary rock-n-roll hall of fame club "The Whisky a Go Go" in Hollywood, CA is turning 60.Come celebrate with the Strawberry Alarm Clock on Saturday, January 13, 2024. This show is all ages too!Saturday, January 13, 20248901 Sunset Boulevard WestHollywood, CA 90069(310) 652-4202All Ages, $25.00Doors at 6:00pm, show at 6:30pmGroovy Judy performs at 8:00pm

Art Alexakis of Everclear joins me for a special episode of Car Con Carne.   Everclear returns to the greater Chicago area for two shows at the end of January: Thursday, January 25:  Des Plaines Theatre Friday, January 26:  Arcada Theatre   I've interviewed Art a handful of times since my early Q101 days, dating back to the “Sparkle and Fade” era. What I've always appreciated about talking with Art is that he's candid, honest and authentically “him.”   Discussed in this episode: ”Sing Away” (from “Live at the Whisky A Go Go”) - addressing the topics of suicide and bullying, and the emotional response parents have. Why I think Art is an eternal optimist. Art's lyrics can be categorized in three distinct buckets. Everclear's first record deal in the 1990s. Everclear at the Double Door in 1994. Art's guitar room. The adorable bicycles Everclear rides while on the road. Do full-length albums matter anymore? The best way to support Everclear (and other bands). Performing, touring and living with Multiple Sclerosis. See you at the Everclear shows!   __  Car Con Carne is a nominee for “Best Music Podcast” in the Chicago Reader's “Best of 2023” issue! Voting only lasts for a couple more weeks … please support the podcast by clicking https://bit.ly/votecarconcarne    __ Car Con Carne is presented by Alex Ross Art. Visit Alex Ross on YouTube to keep up to date with one of the comics industry's most important and celebrated creators.   __   Car Con Carne is also sponsored by Easy Automation: easy-automation.net   Transform your living space with cutting-edge home automation. Experience seamless control over audio/video, lighting, climate, security, and more. Embrace the future of smart living – your home, your rules.   Get a quote by visiting Easy-automation.net, or call at 630.730.3728  

On this episode of March Forth with Mike Bauman, Mike chats with Ali Slater! Based in LA via NYC, Ali is a singer-songwriter who has been into music since she was a child. Following the deaths of a coworker and her high school music teacher Joe Carbone during the pandemic, Ali has kickstarted her music dreams in a big way. On 4/8/22, Ali released her debut EP entitled LUS!D. Fueled by catchy, well-written anthems like "Over It" (featuring Jacky Vincent) and the title track, the five-track EP showed off Ali's melodic and songwriting abilities, putting her on the radar of pop-punk and emo fans. On September 29th, Ali dropped her cover of Hilary Duff's "Come Clean" as part of Ghost Killer Entertainment's Pop Goes Hardcore Volume 2 compilation. The cover is the first of more covers to come from Ali, in addition to a new EP. In this conversation, Ali speaks with Mike about what she's been up to since the last time they spoke, including playing her first show ever at the Whisky A Go Go on November 9th, her cover of "Come Clean" and its accompanying music video, her mental health journey, using her music and social platforms to shed more light on mental health to help lift the stigma that often comes with it, her forthcoming new music, and more. This episode of March Forth with Mike Bauman also features Ali Slater's cover of "Come Clean" from Hilary Duff, available where you get your music! Follow Ali on Instagram @alislaterofficial. To stay up-to-date with Ali, visit https://linktr.ee/alislater. Follow Mike on Instagram @marchforthpod. To stay up-to-date on the podcast and learn more about Mike, visit https://linktr.ee/marchforthpod. To help support the post-tornado rebuild of Hendersonville Barbers, please visit: https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-hendersonville-barbers. If you or someone you know needs mental health support, please visit https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/therapists. Thanks for listening! If ya dug the show, like it, share it, tell a friend, subscribe, and above all, keep the faith and be kind to one another.

Hello! Welcome to the FOLLOWING FILMS podcast! Every week, we explore the creative minds behind the arts. I'm Chris Maynard, your host, and today we have a special guest with us - Art Alexakis from the band Everclear. We're going to discuss their latest release, "Live At The Whisky A Go Go".  Before we jump into the interview, I'd like to take a moment to thank to our sponsor, Bookmans. Bookmans is an independent bookstore that provides a vast range of options for books, movies, music, and more. They strongly believe in the power of storytelling and the magic of creative arts. So, if you wish to enhance your music, film, or book collection, make sure to visit your nearest Bookmans as there are always incredible discoveries to be made. Have you already followed the Following Films Podcast on Spotify? If you have, we appreciate your support! If you haven't, just go to Spotify and search for Following Films, then click the follow button. It would mean a lot to us and help the show grow.  As a bonus, we have a giveaway for the new Christopher Nolan hit film, Oppenheimer. Two lucky winners will receive digital codes from Universal Pictures. To join the contest, all you have to do is follow the FOLLOWING FILMS podcast on Spotify, take a screenshot, and send it to chris@followingfilms.com. So, don't miss the chance and follow us now! Live At The Whisky A Go Go is available where you buy or stream music! Enjoy the show. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/followingfilms/message Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/followingfilms/support

Episode 170 of A History of Rock Music in Five Hundred Songs looks at "Astral Weeks", the early solo career of Van Morrison, and the death of Bert Berns.  Click the full post to read liner notes, links to more information, and a transcript of the episode. Patreon backers also have a forty-minute bonus episode available, on "Stoned Soul Picnic" by Laura Nyro. 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/ Errata At one point I, ridiculously, misspeak the name of Charles Mingus' classic album. Black Saint and the Sinner Lady is not about dinner ladies. Also, I say Warren Smith Jr is on "Slim Slow Slider" when I meant to say Richard Davis (Smith is credited in some sources, but I only hear acoustic guitar, bass, and soprano sax on the finished track). Resources As usual, I've created Mixcloud playlists, with full versions of all the songs excerpted in this episode. As there are so many Van Morrison songs in this episode, the Mixcloud is split into three parts, one, two, and three. The information about Bert Berns comes from Here Comes the Night: The Dark Soul of Bert Berns and the Dirty Business of Rhythm and Blues by Joel Selvin. I've used several biographies of Van Morrison. Van Morrison: Into the Music by Ritchie Yorke is so sycophantic towards Morrison that the word “hagiography” would be, if anything, an understatement. Van Morrison: No Surrender by Johnny Rogan, on the other hand, is the kind of book that talks in the introduction about how the author has had to avoid discussing certain topics because of legal threats from the subject. Howard deWitt's Van Morrison: Astral Weeks to Stardom is over-thorough in the way some self-published books are, while Clinton Heylin's Can You Feel the Silence? is probably the best single volume on the artist. Information on Woodstock comes from Small Town Talk by Barney Hoskyns. Ryan Walsh's Astral Weeks: A Secret History of 1968 is about more than Astral Weeks, but does cover Morrison's period in and around Boston in more detail than anything else. The album Astral Weeks is worth hearing in its entirety. Not all of the music on The Authorized Bang Collection is as listenable, but it's the most complete collection available of everything Morrison recorded for Bang. Patreon This podcast is brought to you by the generosity of my backers on Patreon. Why not join them? Transcript Before we start, a quick warning -- this episode contains discussion of organised crime activity, and of sudden death. It also contains excerpts of songs which hint at attraction to underage girls and discuss terminal illness. If those subjects might upset you, you might want to read the transcript rather than listen to the episode. Anyway, on with the show. Van Morrison could have been the co-writer of "Piece of My Heart". Bert Berns was one of the great collaborators in the music business, and almost every hit he ever had was co-written, and he was always on the lookout for new collaborators, and in 1967 he was once again working with Van Morrison, who he'd worked with a couple of years earlier when Morrison was still the lead singer of Them. Towards the beginning of 1967 he had come up with a chorus, but no verse. He had the hook, "Take another little piece of my heart" -- Berns was writing a lot of songs with "heart" in the title at the time -- and wanted Morrison to come up with a verse to go with it. Van Morrison declined. He wasn't interested in writing pop songs, or in collaborating with other writers, and so Berns turned to one of his regular collaborators, Jerry Ragavoy, and it was Ragavoy who added the verses to one of the biggest successes of Berns' career: [Excerpt: Erma Franklin, "Piece of My Heart"] The story of how Van Morrison came to make the album that's often considered his masterpiece is intimately tied up with the story we've been telling in the background for several episodes now, the story of Atlantic Records' sale to Warners, and the story of Bert Berns' departure from Atlantic. For that reason, some parts of the story I'm about to tell will be familiar to those of you who've been paying close attention to the earlier episodes, but as always I'm going to take you from there to somewhere we've never been before. In 1962, Bert Berns was a moderately successful songwriter, who had written or co-written songs for many artists, especially for artists on Atlantic Records. He'd written songs for Atlantic artists like LaVern Baker, and when Atlantic's top pop producers Leiber and Stoller started to distance themselves from the label in the early sixties, he had moved into production as well, writing and producing Solomon Burke's big hit "Cry to Me": [Excerpt: Solomon Burke, "Cry to Me"] He was the producer and writer or co-writer of most of Burke's hits from that point forward, but at first he was still a freelance producer, and also produced records for Scepter Records, like the Isley Brothers' version of "Twist and Shout", another song he'd co-written, that one with Phil Medley. And as a jobbing songwriter, of course his songs were picked up by other producers, so Leiber and Stoller produced a version of his song "Tell Him" for the Exciters on United Artists: [Excerpt: The Exciters, "Tell Him"] Berns did freelance work for Leiber and Stoller as well as the other people he was working for. For example, when their former protege Phil Spector released his hit version of "Zip-a-Dee-Do-Dah", they got Berns to come up with a knockoff arrangement of "How Much is that Doggie in the Window?", released as by Baby Jane and the Rockabyes, with a production credit "Produced by Leiber and Stoller, directed by Bert Berns": [Excerpt: Baby Jane and the Rockabyes, "How Much is that Doggie in the Window?"] And when Leiber and Stoller stopped producing work for United Artists, Berns took over some of the artists they'd been producing for the label, like Marv Johnson, as well as producing his own new artists, like Garnet Mimms and the Enchanters, who had been discovered by Berns' friend Jerry Ragovoy, with whom he co-wrote their "Cry Baby": [Excerpt: Garnet Mimms and the Enchanters, "Cry Baby"] Berns was an inveterate collaborator. He was one of the few people to get co-writing credits with Leiber and Stoller, and he would collaborate seemingly with everyone who spoke to him for five minutes. He would also routinely reuse material, cutting the same songs time and again with different artists, knowing that a song must be a hit for *someone*. One of his closest collaborators was Jerry Wexler, who also became one of his best friends, even though one of their earliest interactions had been when Wexler had supervised Phil Spector's production of Berns' "Twist and Shout" for the Top Notes, a record that Berns had thought had butchered the song. Berns was, in his deepest bones, a record man. Listening to the records that Berns made, there's a strong continuity in everything he does. There's a love there of simplicity -- almost none of his records have more than three chords. He loved Latin sounds and rhythms -- a love he shared with other people working in Brill Building R&B at the time, like Leiber and Stoller and Spector -- and great voices in emotional distress. There's a reason that the records he produced for Solomon Burke were the first R&B records to be labelled "soul". Berns was one of those people for whom feel and commercial success are inextricable. He was an artist -- the records he made were powerfully expressive -- but he was an artist for whom the biggest validation was *getting a hit*. Only a small proportion of the records he made became hits, but enough did that in the early sixties he was a name that could be spoken of in the same breath as Leiber and Stoller, Spector, and Bacharach and David. And Atlantic needed a record man. The only people producing hits for the label at this point were Leiber and Stoller, and they were in the process of stopping doing freelance work and setting up their own label, Red Bird, as we talked about in the episode on the Shangri-Las. And anyway, they wanted more money than they were getting, and Jerry Wexler was never very keen on producers wanting money that could have gone to the record label. Wexler decided to sign Bert Berns up as a staff producer for Atlantic towards the end of 1963, and by May 1964 it was paying off. Atlantic hadn't been having hits, and now Berns had four tracks he wrote and produced for Atlantic on the Hot One Hundred, of which the highest charting was "My Girl Sloopy" by the Vibrations: [Excerpt: The Vibrations, "My Girl Sloopy"] Even higher on the charts though was the Beatles' version of "Twist and Shout". That record, indeed, had been successful enough in the UK that Berns had already made exploratory trips to the UK and produced records for Dick Rowe at Decca, a partnership we heard about in the episode on "Here Comes the Night". Berns had made partnerships there which would have vast repercussions for the music industry in both countries, and one of them was with the arranger Mike Leander, who was the uncredited arranger for the Drifters session for "Under the Boardwalk", a song written by Artie Resnick and Kenny Young and produced by Berns, recorded the day after the group's lead singer Rudy Lewis died of an overdose: [Excerpt: The Drifters, "Under the Boardwalk"] Berns was making hits on a regular basis by mid-1964, and the income from the label's new success allowed Jerry Wexler and the Ertegun brothers to buy out their other partners -- Ahmet Ertegun's old dentist, who had put up some of the initial money, and Miriam Bienstock, the ex-wife of their initial partner Herb Abramson, who'd got Abramson's share in the company after the divorce, and who was now married to Freddie Bienstock of Hill and Range publishing. Wexler and the Erteguns now owned the whole label. Berns also made regular trips to the UK to keep up his work with British musicians, and in one of those trips, as we heard in the episode on "Here Comes the Night", he produced several tracks for the group Them, including that track, written by Berns: [Excerpt: Them, "Here Comes the Night"] And a song written by the group's lead singer Van Morrison, "Gloria": [Excerpt: Them, "Gloria"] But Berns hadn't done much other work with them, because he had a new project. Part of the reason that Wexler and the Erteguns had gained total control of Atlantic was because, in a move pushed primarily by Wexler, they were looking at selling it. They'd already tried to merge with Leiber and Stoller's Red Bird Records, but lost the opportunity after a disastrous meeting, but they were in negotiations with several other labels, negotiations which would take another couple of years to bear fruit. But they weren't planning on getting out of the record business altogether. Whatever deal they made, they'd remain with Atlantic, but they were also planning on starting another label. Bert Berns had seen how successful Leiber and Stoller were with Red Bird, and wanted something similar. Wexler and the Erteguns didn't want to lose their one hit-maker, so they came up with an offer that would benefit all of them. Berns' publishing contract had just ended, so they would set up a new publishing company, WEB IV, named after the initials Wexler, Ertegun, and Berns, and the fact that there were four of them. Berns would own fifty percent of that, and the other three would own the other half. And they were going to start up a new label, with seventeen thousand dollars of the Atlantic partners' money. That label would be called Bang -- for Bert, Ahmet, Neshui, and Gerald -- and would be a separate company from Atlantic, so not affected by any sale. Berns would continue as a staff producer for Atlantic for now, but he'd have "his own" label, which he'd have a proper share in, and whether he was making hits for Atlantic or Bang, his partners would have a share of the profits. The first two records on Bang were "Shake and Jerk" by Billy Lamont, a track that they licensed from elsewhere and which didn't do much, and a more interesting track co-written by Berns. Bob Feldman, Richard Gottehrer, and Jerry Goldstein were Brill Building songwriters who had become known for writing "My Boyfriend's Back", a hit for the Angels, a couple of years earlier: [Excerpt: The Angels, "My Boyfriend's Back"] With the British invasion, the three of them had decided to create their own foreign beat group. As they couldn't do British accents, they pretended to be Australian, and as the Strangeloves -- named after the Stanley Kubrick film Dr  Strangelove -- they released one flop single. They cut another single, a version of "Bo Diddley", but the label they released their initial record through didn't want it. They then took the record to Atlantic, where Jerry Wexler said that they weren't interested in releasing some white men singing "Bo Diddley". But Ahmet Ertegun suggested they bring the track to Bert Berns to see what he thought. Berns pointed out that if they changed the lyrics and melody, but kept the same backing track, they could claim the copyright in the resulting song themselves. He worked with them on a new lyric, inspired by the novel Candy, a satirical pornographic novel co-written by Terry Southern, who had also co-written the screenplay to Dr Strangelove. Berns supervised some guitar overdubs, and the result went to number eleven: [Excerpt: The Strangeloves, "I Want Candy"] Berns had two other songs on the hot one hundred when that charted, too -- Them's version of "Here Comes the Night", and the version of Van McCoy's song "Baby I'm Yours" he'd produced for Barbara Lewis. Three records on the charts on three different labels. But despite the sheer number of charting records he'd had, he'd never had a number one, until the Strangeloves went on tour. Before the tour they'd cut a version of "My Girl Sloopy" for their album -- Berns always liked to reuse material -- and they started performing the song on the tour. The Dave Clark Five, who they were supporting, told them it sounded like a hit and they were going to do their own version when they got home. Feldman, Gottehrer, and Goldstein decided *they* might as well have the hit with it as anyone else. Rather than put it out as a Strangeloves record -- their own record was still rising up the charts, and there's no reason to be your own competition -- they decided to get a group of teenage musicians who supported them on the last date of the tour to sing new vocals to the backing track from the Strangeloves album. The group had been called Rick and the Raiders, but they argued so much that the Strangeloves nicknamed them the Hatfields and the McCoys, and when their version of "My Girl Sloopy", retitled "Hang on Sloopy", came out, it was under the band name The McCoys: [Excerpt: The McCoys, "Hang on Sloopy"] Berns was becoming a major success, and with major success in the New York music industry in the 1960s came Mafia involvement. We've talked a fair bit about Morris Levy's connection with the mob in many previous episodes, but mob influence was utterly pervasive throughout the New York part of the industry, and so for example Richard Gottehrer of the Strangeloves used to call Sonny Franzese of the Colombo crime family "Uncle John", they were so close. Franzese was big in the record business too, even after his conviction for bank robbery. Berns, unlike many of the other people in the industry, had no scruples at all about hanging out with Mafiosi. indeed his best friend in the mid sixties was Tommy Eboli, a member of the Genovese crime family who had been in the mob since the twenties, starting out working for "Lucky" Luciano. Berns was not himself a violent man, as far as anyone can tell, but he liked the glamour of hanging out with organised crime figures, and they liked hanging out with someone who was making so many hit records. And so while Leiber and Stoller, for example, ended up selling Red Bird Records to George Goldner for a single dollar in order to get away from the Mafiosi who were slowly muscling in on the label, Berns had no problems at all in keeping his own label going. Indeed, he would soon be doing so without the involvement of Atlantic Records. Berns' final work for Atlantic was in June 1966, when he cut a song he had co-written with Jeff Barry for the Drifters, inspired by the woman who would soon become Atlantic's biggest star: [Excerpt: The Drifters, "Aretha"] The way Berns told the story in public, there was no real bad blood between him, Wexler, and the Erteguns -- he'd just decided to go his own way, and he said “I will always be grateful to them for the help they've given me in getting Bang started,” The way Berns' wife would later tell the story, Jerry Wexler had suggested that rather than Berns owning fifty percent of Web IV, they should start to split everything four ways, and she had been horrified by this suggestion, kicked up a stink about it, and Wexler had then said that either Berns needed to buy the other three out, or quit and give them everything, and demanded Berns pay them three hundred thousand dollars. According to other people, Berns decided he wanted one hundred percent control of Web IV, and raised a breach of contract lawsuit against Atlantic, over the usual royalty non-payments that were endemic in the industry at that point. When Atlantic decided to fight the lawsuit rather than settle, Berns' mob friends got involved and threatened to break the legs of Wexler's fourteen-year-old daughter, and the mob ended up with full control of Bang records, while Berns had full control of his publishing company. Given later events, and in particular given the way Wexler talked about Berns until the day he died, with a vitriol that he never used about any of the other people he had business disputes with, it seems likely to me that the latter story is closer to the truth than the former. But most people involved weren't talking about the details of what went on, and so Berns still retained his relationships with many of the people in the business, not least of them Jeff Barry, so when Barry and Ellie Greenwich had a new potential star, it was Berns they thought to bring him to, even though the artist was white and Berns had recently given an interview saying that he wanted to work with more Black artists, because white artists simply didn't have soul. Barry and Greenwich's marriage was breaking up at the time, but they were still working together professionally, as we discussed in the episode on "River Deep, Mountain High", and they had been the main production team at Red Bird. But with Red Bird in terminal decline, they turned elsewhere when they found a potential major star after Greenwich was asked to sing backing vocals on one of his songwriting demos. They'd signed the new songwriter, Neil Diamond, to Leiber and Stoller's company Trio Music at first, but they soon started up their own company, Tallyrand Music, and signed Diamond to that, giving Diamond fifty percent of the company and keeping twenty-five percent each for themselves, and placed one of his songs with Jay and the Americans in 1965: [Excerpt: Jay and the Americans, "Sunday and Me"] That record made the top twenty, and had established Diamond as a songwriter, but he was still not a major performer -- he'd released one flop single on Columbia Records before meeting Barry and Greenwich. But they thought he had something, and Bert Berns agreed. Diamond was signed to Bang records, and Berns had a series of pre-production meetings with Barry and Greenwich before they took Diamond into the studio -- Barry and Greenwich were going to produce Diamond for Bang, as they had previously produced tracks for Red Bird, but they were going to shape the records according to Berns' aesthetic. The first single released from Diamond's first session, "Solitary Man", only made number fifty-five, but it was the first thing Diamond had recorded to make the Hot One Hundred at all: [Excerpt: Neil Diamond, "Solitary Man"] The second single, though, was much more Bert Berns' sort of thing -- a three-chord song that sounded like it could have been written by Berns himself, especially after Barry and Greenwich had added the Latin-style horns that Berns loved so much. Indeed according to some sources, Berns did make a songwriting suggestion -- Diamond's song had apparently been called "Money Money", and Berns had thought that was a ridiculous title, and suggested calling it "Cherry Cherry" instead: [Excerpt: Neil Diamond, "Cherry Cherry"] That became Diamond's first top ten hit. While Greenwich had been the one who had discovered Diamond, and Barry and Greenwich were the credited producers on all Diamond's records  as a result, Diamond soon found himself collaborating far more with Barry than with Greenwich, so for example the first number one he wrote, for the Monkees rather than himself, ended up having its production just credited to Barry. That record used a backing track recorded in New York by the same set of musicians used on most Bang records, like Al Gorgoni on lead guitar and Russ Savakus on bass: [Excerpt: The Monkees, "I'm a Believer"] Neil Diamond was becoming a solid hit-maker, but he started rubbing up badly against Berns. Berns wanted hits and only hits, and Diamond thought of himself as a serious artist. The crisis came when two songs were under contention for Diamond's next single in late 1967, after he'd had a whole run of hits for the label. The song Diamond wanted to release, "Shilo", was deeply personal to him: [Excerpt: Neil Diamond, "Shilo"] But Bert Berns had other ideas. "Shilo" didn't sound like a hit, and he knew a hit when he heard one. No, the clear next single, the only choice, was "Kentucky Woman": [Excerpt: Neil Diamond, "Kentucky Woman"] But Berns tried to compromise as best he could. Diamond's contract was up for renewal, and you don't want to lose someone who has had, as Diamond had at that point, five top twenty hits in a row, and who was also writing songs like "I'm a Believer" and "Red Red Wine". He told Diamond that he'd let "Shilo" come out as a single if Diamond signed an extension to his contract. Diamond said that not only was he not going to do that, he'd taken legal advice and discovered that there were problems with his contract which let him record for other labels -- the word "exclusive" had been missed out of the text, among other things. He wasn't going to be recording for Bang at all any more. The lawsuits over this would stretch out for a decade, and Diamond would eventually win, but the first few months were very, very difficult for Diamond. When he played the Bitter End, a club in New York, stink bombs were thrown into the audience. The Bitter End's manager was assaulted and severely beaten. Diamond moved his wife and child out of Manhattan, borrowed a gun, and after his last business meeting with Berns was heard talking about how he needed to contact the District Attorney and hire a bodyguard. Of the many threats that were issued against Diamond, though, the least disturbing was probably the threat Berns made to Diamond's career. Berns pointed out to Diamond in no uncertain terms that he didn't need Diamond anyway -- he already had someone he could replace Diamond with, another white male solo singer with a guitar who could churn out guaranteed hits. He had Van Morrison: [Excerpt: Van Morrison, "Brown-Eyed Girl"] When we left Van Morrison, Them had just split up due to the problems they had been having with their management team. Indeed, the problems Morrison was having with his managers seem curiously similar to the issues that Diamond was having with Bert Berns -- something that could possibly have been a warning sign to everyone involved, if any of them had known the full details of everyone else's situation. Sadly for all of them, none of them did. Them had had some early singles success, notably with the tracks Berns had produced for them, but Morrison's opinion of their second album, Them Again, was less than complimentary, and in general that album is mostly only remembered for the version of Bob Dylan's "It's All Over Now, Baby Blue", which is one of those cover versions that inspires subsequent covers more than the original ever did: [Excerpt: Them, "It's All Over Now, Baby Blue"] Them had toured the US around the time of the release of that album, but that tour had been a disaster. The group had gained a reputation for incredible live shows, including performances at the Whisky A-Go-Go with the Doors and Captain Beefheart as their support acts, but during the tour Van Morrison had decided that Phil Solomon, the group's manager, was getting too much money -- Morrison had agreed to do the tour on a salary, rather than a percentage, but the tour had been more successful than he'd expected, and Solomon was making a great deal of money off the tour, money that Morrison believed rightfully belonged to him. The group started collecting the money directly from promoters, and got into legal trouble with Solomon as a result. The tour ended with the group having ten thousand dollars that Solomon believed -- quite possibly correctly -- that he was owed. Various gangsters whose acquaintance the group had made offered to have the problem taken care of, but they decided instead to come to a legal agreement -- they would keep the money, and in return Solomon, whose production company the group were signed to, would get to keep all future royalties from the Them tracks. This probably seemed a good idea at the time, when the idea of records earning royalties for sixty or more years into the future seemed ridiculous, but Morrison in particular came to regret the decision bitterly. The group played one final gig when they got back to Belfast, but then split up, though a version of the group led by the bass player Alan Henderson continued performing for a few years to no success. Morrison put together a band that played a handful of gigs under the name Them Again, with little success, but he already had his eyes set on a return to the US. In Morrison's eyes, Bert Berns had been the only person in the music industry who had really understood him, and the two worked well together. He had also fallen in love with an American woman, Janet Planet, and wanted to find some way to be with her. As Morrison said later “I had a couple of other offers but I thought this was the best one, seeing as I wanted to come to America anyway. I can't remember the exact details of the deal. It wasn't really that spectacular, money-wise, I don't think. But it was pretty hard to refuse from the point of view that I really respected Bert as a producer. I'd rather have worked with Bert than some other guy with a bigger record company. From that angle, it was spectacular because Bert was somebody that I wanted to work with.” There's little evidence that Morrison did have other offers -- he was already getting a reputation as someone who it was difficult to work with -- but he and Berns had a mutual respect, and on January the ninth, 1967, he signed a contract with Bang records. That contract has come in for a lot of criticism over the years, but it was actually, *by the standards in operation in the music business in 1967*, a reasonably fair one. The contract provided that, for a $2,500 a year advance, Bang would record twelve sides in the first year, with an option for up to fifty more that year, and options for up to four more years on the same terms. Bang had the full ownership of the masters and the right to do what they wanted with them. According to at least one biographer, Morrison added clauses requiring Bang to actually record the twelve sides a year, and to put out at least three singles and one album per year while the contract was in operation. He also added one other clause which seems telling -- "Company agrees that Company will not make any reference to the name THEM on phonograph records, or in advertising copy in connection with the recording of Artist." Morrison was, at first, extremely happy with Berns. The problems started with their first session: [Excerpt: Van Morrison, "Brown-Eyed Girl (takes 1-6)"] When Morrison had played the songs he was working on for Berns, Berns had remarked that they sounded great with just Morrison and his guitar, so Morrison was surprised when he got into the studio to find the whole standard New York session crew there -- the same group of session players who were playing for everyone from the Monkees to Laura Nyro, from Neil Diamond to the Shangri-Las -- along with the Sweet Inspirations to provide backing vocals. As he described it later "This fellow Bert, he made it the way he wanted to, and I accepted that he was producing it... I'd write a song and bring it into the group and we'd sit there and bash it around and that's all it was -- they weren't playing the songs, they were just playing whatever it was. They'd say 'OK, we got drums so let's put drums on it,' and they weren't thinking about the song, all they were thinking about was putting drums on it... But it was my song, and I had to watch it go down." The first song they cut was "Brown-Eyed Girl", a song which Morrison has said was originally a calypso, and was originally titled "Brown-skinned Girl", though he's differed in interviews as to whether Berns changed the lyric or if he just decided to sing it differently without thinking about it in the session. Berns turned "Brown-Eyed Girl" into a hit single, because that was what he tended to do with songs, and the result sounds a lot like the kind of record that Bang were releasing for Neil Diamond: [Excerpt: Van Morrison, "Brown-Eyed Girl"] Morrison has, in later years, expressed his distaste for what was done to the song, and in particular he's said that the backing vocal part by the Sweet Inspirations was added by Berns and he disliked it: [Excerpt: Van Morrison, "Brown-Eyed Girl"] Morrison has been very dismissive of "Brown-Eyed Girl" over the years, but he seems not to have disliked it at the time, and the song itself is one that has stood the test of time, and is often pointed to by other songwriters as a great example of the writer's craft. I remember reading one interview with Randy Newman -- sadly, while I thought it was in Paul Zollo's "Songwriters on Songwriting" I just checked that and it's not, so I can't quote it precisely -- in which he says that he often points to the line "behind the stadium with you" as a perfect piece of writing, because it's such a strangely specific detail that it convinces you that it actually happened, and that means you implicitly believe the rest of the song. Though it should be made very clear here that Morrison has always said, over and over again, that nothing in his songs is based directly on his own experiences, and that they're all products of his imagination and composites of people he's known. This is very important to note before we go any further, because "Brown-Eyed Girl" is one of many songs from this period in Morrison's career which imply that their narrator has an attraction to underage girls -- in this case he remembers "making love in the green grass" in the distant past, while he also says "saw you just the other day, my how you have grown", and that particular combination is not perhaps one that should be dwelt on too closely. But there is of course a very big difference between a songwriter treating a subject as something that is worth thinking about in the course of a song and writing about their own lives, and that can be seen on one of the other songs that Morrison recorded in these sessions, "T.B. Sheets": [Excerpt: Van Morrison, "T.B. Sheets"] It seems very unlikely indeed that Van Morrison actually had a lover die of tuberculosis, as the lover in the song does, and while a lot of people seem convinced that it's autobiographical, simply because of the intensity of the performance (Morrison apparently broke down in tears after recording it), nobody has ever found anyone in Morrison's life who fits the story in the song, and he's always ridiculed such suggestions. What is true though is that "T.B. Sheets" is evidence against another claim that Morrison has made in the past - that on these initial sessions the eight songs recorded were meant to be the A and B sides of four singles and there was no plan of making an album. It is simply not plausible at all to suggest that "T.B. Sheets" -- a slow blues about terminal illness, that lasts nearly ten minutes -- was ever intended as a single. It wouldn't have even come close to fitting on one side of a forty-five. It was also presumably at this time that Berns brought up the topic of "Piece of My Heart". When Berns signed Erma Franklin, it was as a way of getting at Jerry Wexler, who had gone from being his closest friend to someone he wasn't on speaking terms with, by signing the sister of his new signing Aretha. Morrison, of course, didn't co-write it -- he'd already decided that he didn't play well with others -- but it's tempting to think about how the song might have been different had Morrison written it. The song in some ways seems a message to Wexler -- haven't you had enough from me already? -- but it's also notable how many songs Berns was writing with the word "heart" in the chorus, given that Berns knew he was on borrowed time from his own heart condition. As an example, around the same time he and Jerry Ragavoy co-wrote "Piece of My Heart", they also co-wrote another song, "Heart Be Still", a flagrant lift from "Peace Be Still" by Aretha Franklin's old mentor Rev. James Cleveland, which they cut with Lorraine Ellison: [Excerpt: Lorraine Ellison, "Heart Be Still"] Berns' heart condition had got much worse as a result of the stress from splitting with Atlantic, and he had started talking about maybe getting open-heart surgery, though that was still very new and experimental. One wonders how he must have felt listening to Morrison singing about watching someone slowly dying. Morrison has since had nothing but negative things to say about the sessions in March 1967, but at the time he seemed happy. He returned to Belfast almost straight away after the sessions, on the understanding that he'd be back in the US if "Brown-Eyed Girl" was a success. He wrote to Janet Planet in San Francisco telling her to listen to the radio -- she'd know if she heard "Brown-Eyed Girl" that he would be back on his way to see her. She soon did hear the song, and he was soon back in the US: [Excerpt: Van Morrison, "Brown-Eyed Girl"] By August, "Brown-Eyed Girl" had become a substantial hit, making the top ten, and Morrison was back in the States. He was starting to get less happy with Berns though. Bang had put out the eight tracks he'd recorded in March as an album, titled Blowin' Your Mind, and Morrison thought that the crass pseudo-psychedelia of the title, liner notes, and cover was very inappropriate -- Morrison has never been a heavy user of any drugs other than alcohol, and didn't particularly want to be associated with them. He also seems to have not realised that every track he recorded in those initial sessions would be on the album, which many people have called one of the great one-sided albums of all time -- side A, with "Brown-Eyed Girl", "He Ain't Give You None" and the extended "T.B. Sheets" tends to get far more love than side B, with five much lesser songs on it. Berns held a party for Morrison on a cruise around Manhattan, but it didn't go well -- when the performer Tiny Tim tried to get on board, Carmine "Wassel" DeNoia, a mobster friend of Berns' who was Berns' partner in a studio they'd managed to get from Atlantic as part of the settlement when Berns left, was so offended by Tim's long hair and effeminate voice and mannerisms that he threw him overboard into the harbour. DeNoia was meant to be Morrison's manager in the US, working with Berns, but he and Morrison didn't get on at all -- at one point DeNoia smashed Morrison's acoustic guitar over his head, and only later regretted the damage he'd done to a nice guitar. And Morrison and Berns weren't getting on either. Morrison went back into the studio to record four more songs for a follow-up to "Brown-Eyed Girl", but there was again a misunderstanding. Morrison thought he'd been promised that this time he could do his songs the way he wanted, but Berns was just frustrated that he wasn't coming up with another "Brown-Eyed Girl", but was instead coming up with slow songs about trans women. Berns overdubbed party noises and soul backing vocals onto "Madame George", possibly in an attempt to copy the Beach Boys' Party! album with its similar feel, but it was never going to be a "Barbara Ann": [Excerpt: Van Morrison, "Madame George (Bang version)"] In the end, Berns released one of the filler tracks from Blowin' Your Mind, "Ro Ro Rosey", as the next single, and it flopped. On December the twenty-ninth, Berns had a meeting with Neil Diamond, the meeting after which Diamond decided he needed to get a bodyguard. After that, he had a screaming row over the phone with Van Morrison, which made Berns ill with stress. The next day, he died of a heart attack. Berns' widow Ilene, who had only just given birth to a baby a couple of weeks earlier, would always blame Morrison for pushing her husband over the edge. Neither Van Morrison nor Jerry Wexler went to the funeral, but Neil Diamond did -- he went to try to persuade Ilene to let him out of his contract now Berns was dead. According to Janet Planet later, "We were at the hotel when we learned that Bert had died. We were just mortified, because things had been going really badly, and Van felt really bad, because I guess they'd parted having had some big fight or something... Even though he did love Bert, it was a strange relationship that lived and died in the studio... I remember we didn't go to the funeral, which probably was a mistake... I think [Van] had a really bad feeling about what was going to happen." But Morrison has later mostly talked about the more practical concerns that came up, which were largely the same as the ones Neil Diamond had, saying in 1997 "I'd signed a contract with Bert Berns for management, production, agency and record company,  publishing, the whole lot -- which was professional suicide as any lawyer will tell you now... Then the whole thing blew up. Bert Berns died and I was left broke." This was the same mistake, essentially, that he'd made with Phil Solomon, and in order to get out of it, it turned out he was going to have to do much the same for a third time.  But it was the experience with Berns specifically that traumatised Morrison enough that twenty-five years later he would still be writing songs about it, like "Big Time Operators": [Excerpt: Van Morrison, "Big Time Operators"] The option to renew Morrison's contracts with Berns' companies came on the ninth of January 1968, less than two weeks after Berns' death. After his death, Berns' share of ownership in his companies had passed to his widow, who was in a quandary. She had two young children, one of whom was only a few weeks old, and she needed an income after their father had died. She was also not well disposed at all towards Morrison, who she blamed for causing her husband's death. By all accounts the amazing thing is that Berns lived as long as he did given his heart condition and the state of medical science at the time, but it's easy to understand her thinking. She wanted nothing to do with Morrison, and wanted to punish him. On the other hand, her late husband's silent partners didn't want to let their cash cow go. And so Morrison came under a huge amount of pressure in very different directions. From one side, Carmine DiNoia was determined to make more money off Morrison, and Morrison has since talked about signing further contracts at this point with a gun literally to his head, and his hotel room being shot up. But on the other side, Ilene Berns wanted to destroy Morrison's career altogether. She found out that Bert Berns hadn't got Morrison the proper work permits and reported him to the immigration authorities. Morrison came very close to being deported, but in the end he managed to escape deportation by marrying Janet Planet. The newly-married couple moved to Cambridge, Massachusetts, to get away from New York and the mobsters, and to try to figure out the next steps in Morrison's career. Morrison started putting together a band, which he called The Van Morrison Controversy, and working on new songs. One of his earliest connections in Massachusetts was the lead singer of a band called the Hallucinations, who he met in a bar where he was trying to get a gig: [Excerpt: The Hallucinations, "Messin' With the Kid"] The Hallucinations' lead singer was called Peter Wolf, and would much later go on to become well-known as the singer with the J. Geils Band. He and Morrison became acquaintances, and later became closer friends when they realised they had another connection -- Wolf had a late-night radio show under the name Woofa Goofa, and he'd been receiving anonymous requests for obscure blues records from a fan of the show. Morrison had been the one sending in the requests, not realising his acquaintance was the DJ. Before he got his own band together, Morrison actually guested with the Hallucinations at one show they did in May 1968, supporting John Lee Hooker. The Hallucinations had been performing "Gloria" since Them's single had come out, and they invited Morrison to join them to perform it on stage. According to Wolf, Morrison was very drunk and ranted in cod-Japanese for thirty-five minutes, and tried to sing a different song while the band played "Gloria". The audience were apparently unimpressed, even though Wolf shouted at them “Don't you know who this man is? He wrote the song!” But in truth, Morrison was sick of "Gloria" and his earlier work, and was trying to push his music in a new direction. He would later talk about having had an epiphany after hearing one particular track on the radio: [Excerpt: The Band, "I Shall Be Released"] Like almost every musician in 1968, Morrison was hit like a lightning bolt by Music From Big Pink, and he decided that he needed to turn his music in the same direction. He started writing the song "Brand New Day", which would later appear on his album Moondance, inspired by the music on the album. The Van Morrison Controversy started out as a fairly straightforward rock band, with guitarist John Sheldon, bass player Tom Kielbania, and drummer Joey Bebo. Sheldon was a novice, though his first guitar teacher was the singer James Taylor, but the other two were students at Berklee, and very serious musicians. Morrison seems to have had various managers involved in rapid succession in 1968, including one who was himself a mobster, and another who was only known as Frank, but one of these managers advanced enough money that the musicians got paid every gig. These musicians were all interested in kinds of music other than just straight rock music, and as well as rehearsing up Morrison's hits and his new songs, they would also jam with him on songs from all sorts of other genres, particularly jazz and blues. The band worked up the song that would become "Domino" based on Sheldon jamming on a Bo Diddley riff, and another time the group were rehearsing a Grant Green jazz piece, "Lazy Afternoon": [Excerpt: Grant Green, "Lazy Afternoon"] Morrison started messing with the melody, and that became his classic song "Moondance": [Excerpt: Van Morrison, "Moondance"] No recordings of this electric lineup of the group are known to exist, though the backing musicians remember going to a recording studio called Ace recordings at one point and cutting some demos, which don't seem to circulate. Ace was a small studio which, according to all the published sources I've read, was best known for creating song poems, though it was a minor studio even in the song-poem world. For those who don't know, song poems were essentially a con aimed at wannabe songwriters who knew nothing about the business -- companies would advertise you too could become a successful, rich, songwriter if you sent in your "song poems", because anyone who knew the term "lyric" could be presumed to know too much about the music business to be useful. When people sent in their lyrics, they'd then be charged a fee to have them put out on their very own record -- with tracks made more or less on a conveyor belt with quick head arrangements, sung by session singers who were just handed a lyric sheet and told to get on with it. And thus were created such classics prized by collectors as "I Like Yellow Things", "Jimmy Carter Says 'Yes'", and "Listen Mister Hat". Obviously, for the most part these song poems did not lead to the customers becoming the next Ira Gershwin, but oddly even though Ace recordings is not one of the better-known song poem studios, it seems to have produced an actual hit song poem -- one that I don't think has ever before been identified as such until I made a connection, hence me going on this little tangent. Because in researching this episode I noticed something about its co-owner, Milton Yakus', main claim to fame. He co-wrote the song "Old Cape Cod", and to quote that song's Wikipedia page "The nucleus of the song was a poem written by Boston-area housewife Claire Rothrock, for whom Cape Cod was a favorite vacation spot. "Old Cape Cod" and its derivatives would be Rothrock's sole evident songwriting credit. She brought her poem to Ace Studios, a Boston recording studio owned by Milton Yakus, who adapted the poem into the song's lyrics." And while Yakus had written other songs, including songs for Patti Page who had the hit with "Old Cape Cod", apparently Page recorded that song after Rothrock brought her the demo after a gig, rather than getting it through any formal channels. It sounds to me like the massive hit and classic of the American songbook "Old Cape Cod" started life as a song-poem -- and if you're familiar with the form, it fits the genre perfectly: [Excerpt: Patti Page, "Old Cape Cod"] The studio was not the classiest of places, even if you discount the song-poems. Its main source of income was from cutting private records with mobsters' wives and mistresses singing (and dealing with the problems that came along when those records weren't successful) and it also had a sideline in bugging people's cars to see if their spouses were cheating, though Milton Yakus' son Shelly, who got his start at his dad's studio, later became one of the most respected recording engineers in the industry -- and indeed had already worked as assistant engineer on Music From Big Pink. And there was actually another distant connection to Morrison's new favourite band on these sessions. For some reason -- reports differ -- Bebo wasn't considered suitable for the session, and in his place was the one-handed drummer Victor "Moulty" Moulton, who had played with the Barbarians, who'd had a minor hit with "Are You a Boy or Are You a Girl?" a couple of years earlier: [Excerpt: The Barbarians, "Are You a Boy or Are You a Girl?"] A later Barbarians single, in early 1966, had featured Moulty telling his life story, punctuated by the kind of three-chord chorus that would have been at home on a Bert Berns single: [Excerpt: The Barbarians, "Moulty"] But while that record was credited to the Barbarians, Moulton was the only Barbarian on the track, with the instruments and backing vocals instead being provided by Levon and the Hawks. Shortly after the Ace sessions, the Van Morrison Controversy fell apart, though nobody seems to know why. Depending on which musician's story you listen to, either Morrison had a dream that he should get rid of all electric instruments and only use acoustic players, or there was talk of a record deal but the musicians weren't good enough, or the money from the mysterious manager (who may or may not have been the one who was a mobster) ran out. Bebo went back to university, and Sheldon left soon after, though Sheldon would remain in the music business in one form or another. His most prominent credit has been writing a couple of songs for his old friend James Taylor, including the song "Bittersweet" on Taylor's platinum-selling best-of, on which Sheldon also played guitar: [Excerpt: James Taylor, "Bittersweet"] Morrison and Kielbania continued for a while as a duo, with Morrison on acoustic guitar and Kielbania on double bass, but they were making very different music. Morrison's biggest influence at this point, other than The Band, was King Pleasure, a jazz singer who sang in the vocalese style we've talked about before -- the style where singers would sing lyrics to melodies that had previously been improvised by jazz musicians: [Excerpt: King Pleasure, "Moody's Mood for Love"] Morrison and Kielbania soon decided that to make the more improvisatory music they were interested in playing, they wanted another musician who could play solos. They ended up with John Payne, a jazz flute and saxophone player whose biggest inspiration was Charles Lloyd. This new lineup of the Van Morrison Controversy -- acoustic guitar, double bass, and jazz flute -- kept gigging around Boston, though the sound they were creating was hardly what the audiences coming to see the man who'd had that "Brown-Eyed Girl" hit the year before would have expected -- even when they did "Brown-Eyed Girl", as the one live recording of that line-up, made by Peter Wolf, shows: [Excerpt: The Van Morrison Controversy, "Brown-Eyed Girl (live in Boston 1968)"] That new style, with melodic bass underpinning freely extemporising jazz flute and soulful vocals, would become the basis of the album that to this day is usually considered Morrison's best. But before that could happen, there was the matter of the contracts to be sorted out. Warner-Reprise Records were definitely interested. Warners had spent the last few years buying up smaller companies like Atlantic, Autumn Records, and Reprise, and the label was building a reputation as the major label that would give artists the space and funding they needed to make the music they wanted to make. Idiosyncratic artists with difficult reputations (deserved or otherwise), like Neil Young, Randy Newman, Van Dyke Parks, the Grateful Dead, and Joni Mitchell, had all found homes on the label, which was soon also to start distributing Frank Zappa, the Beach Boys, and Captain Beefheart. A surly artist who wants to make mystical acoustic songs with jazz flute accompaniment was nothing unusual for them, and once Joe Smith, the man who had signed the Grateful Dead, was pointed in Morrison's direction by Andy Wickham, an A&R man working for the label, everyone knew that Morrison would be a perfect fit. But Morrison was still under contract to Bang records and Web IV, and those contracts said, among other things, that any other label that negotiated with Morrison would be held liable for breach of contract. Warners didn't want to show their interest in Morrison, because a major label wanting to sign him would cause Bang to raise the price of buying him out of his contract. Instead they got an independent production company to sign him, with a nod-and-wink understanding that they would then license the records to Warners. The company they chose was Inherit Productions, the production arm of Schwaid-Merenstein, a management company set up by Bob Schwaid, who had previously worked in Warners' publishing department, and record producer Lewis Merenstein. Merenstein came to another demo session at Ace Recordings, where he fell in love with the new music that Morrison was playing, and determined he would do everything in his power to make the record into the masterpiece it deserved to be. He and Morrison were, at least at this point, on exactly the same page, and bonded over their mutual love of King Pleasure. Morrison signed to Schwaid-Merenstein, just as he had with Bert Berns and before him Phil Solomon, for management, record production, and publishing. Schwaid-Merenstein were funded by Warners, and would license any recordings they made to Warners, once the contractual situation had been sorted out. The first thing to do was to negotiate the release from Web IV, the publishing company owned by Ilene Berns. Schwaid negotiated that, and Morrison got released on four conditions -- he had to make a substantial payment to Web IV, if he released a single within a year he had to give Web IV the publishing, any album he released in the next year had to contain at least two songs published by Web IV, and he had to give Web IV at least thirty-six new songs to publish within the next year. The first two conditions were no problem at all -- Warners had the money to buy the contract out, and Merenstein's plans for the first album didn't involve a single anyway. It wouldn't be too much of a hardship to include a couple of Web IV-published tracks on the album -- Morrison had written two songs, "Beside You" and "Madame George", that had already been published and that he was regularly including in his live sets. As for the thirty-six new songs... well, that all depended on what you called a song, didn't it? [Excerpt: Van Morrison, "Ring Worm"] Morrison went into a recording studio and recorded thirty-one ostensible songs, most of them lasting one minute to within a few seconds either way, in which he strummed one or two chords and spoke-sang whatever words came into his head -- for example one song, "Here Comes Dumb George", just consists of the words "Here Comes Dumb George" repeated over and over. Some of the 'songs', like "Twist and Shake" and "Hang on Groovy", are parodying Bert Berns' songwriting style; others, like "Waiting for My Royalty Check", "Blowin' Your Nose", and "Nose in Your Blow", are attacks on Bang's business practices. Several of the songs, like "Hold on George", "Here Comes Dumb George", "Dum Dum George", and "Goodbye George" are about a man called George who seems to have come to Boston to try and fail to make a record with Morrison. And “Want a Danish” is about wanting a Danish pastry. But in truth, this description is still making these "songs" sound more coherent than they are. The whole recording is of no musical merit whatsoever, and has absolutely nothing in it which could be considered to have any commercial potential at all. Which is of course the point -- just to show utter contempt to Ilene Berns and her company. The other problem that needed to be solved was Bang Records itself, which was now largely under the control of the mob. That was solved by Joe Smith. As Smith told the story "A friend of mine who knew some people said I could buy the contract for $20,000. I had to meet somebody in a warehouse on the third floor on Ninth Avenue in New York. I walked up there with twenty thousand-dollar bills -- and I was terrified. I was terrified I was going to give them the money, get a belt on the head and still not wind up with the contract. And there were two guys in the room. They looked out of central casting -- a big wide guy and  a tall, thin guy. They were wearing suits and hats and stuff. I said 'I'm here with the money. You got the contract?' I remember I took that contract and ran out the door and jumped from the third floor to the second floor, and almost broke my leg to get on the street, where I could get a cab and put the contract in a safe place back at Warner Brothers." But the problem was solved, and Lewis Merenstein could get to work translating the music he'd heard Morrison playing into a record. He decided that Kielbania and Payne were not suitable for the kind of recording he wanted -- though they were welcome to attend the sessions in case the musicians had any questions about the songs, and thus they would get session pay. Kielbania was, at first, upset by this, but he soon changed his mind when he realised who Merenstein was bringing in to replace him on bass for the session. Richard Davis, the bass player -- who sadly died two months ago as I write this -- would later go on to play on many classic rock records by people like Bruce Springsteen and Laura Nyro, largely as a result of his work for Morrison, but at the time he was known as one of the great jazz bass players, most notably having played on Eric Dolphy's Out to Lunch: [Excerpt: Eric Dolphy, "Hat and Beard"] Kielbania could see the wisdom of getting in one of the truly great players for the album, and he was happy to show Davis the parts he'd been playing on the songs live, which Davis could then embellish -- Davis later always denied this, but it's obvious when listening to the live recordings that Kielbania played on before these sessions that Davis is playing very similar lines. Warren Smith Jr, the vibraphone player, had played with great jazz musicians like Charles Mingus and Herbie Mann, as well as backing Lloyd Price, Aretha Franklin, and Janis Joplin. Connie Kay, the drummer, was the drummer for the Modern Jazz Quartet and had also played sessions with everyone from Ruth Brown to Miles Davis. And Jay Berliner, the guitarist, had played on records like Charles Mingus' classic The Black Saint and the Sinner Lady: [Excerpt: Charles Mingus: "Mode D - Trio and Group Dancers, Mode F - Single Solos & Group Dance"] There was also a flute player whose name nobody now remembers. Although all of these musicians were jobbing session musicians -- Berliner came to the first session for the album that became Astral Weeks straight from a session recording a jingle for Pringles potato chips -- they were all very capable of taking a simple song and using it as an opportunity for jazz improvisation. And that was what Merenstein asked them to do. The songs that Morrison was writing were lyrically oblique, but structurally they were very simple -- surprisingly so when one is used to listening to the finished album. Most of the songs were, harmonically, variants of the standard blues and R&B changes that Morrison was used to playing. "Cyprus Avenue" and "The Way Young Lovers Do", for example, are both basically twelve-bar blueses -- neither is *exactly* a standard twelve-bar blues, but both are close enough that they can be considered to fit the form. Other than what Kielbania and Payne showed the musicians, they received no guidance from Morrison, who came in, ran through the songs once for them, and then headed to the vocal booth. None of the musicians had much memory of Morrison at all -- Jay Berliner said “This little guy walks in, past everybody, disappears into the vocal booth, and almost never comes out, even on the playbacks, he stayed in there." While Richard Davis later said “Well, I was with three of my favorite fellas to play with, so that's what made it beautiful. We were not concerned with Van at all, he never spoke to us.” The sound of the basic tracks on Astral Weeks is not the sound of a single auteur, as one might expect given its reputation, it's the sound of extremely good jazz musicians improvising based on the instructions given by Lewis Merenstein, who was trying to capture the feeling he'd got from listening to Morrison's live performances and demos. And because these were extremely good musicians, the album was recorded extremely quickly. In the first session, they cut four songs. Two of those were songs that Morrison was contractually obliged to record because of his agreement with Web IV -- "Beside You" and "Madame George", two songs that Bert Berns had produced, now in radically different versions: [Excerpt: Van Morrison, "Madame George"] The third song, "Cyprus Avenue", is the song that has caused most controversy over the years, as it's another of the songs that Morrison wrote around this time that relate to a sexual or romantic interest in underage girls. In this case, the reasoning might have been as simple as that the song is a blues, and Morrison may have been thinking about a tradition of lyrics like this in blues songs like "Good Morning, Little Schoolgirl". Whatever the cause though, the lyrics have, to put it mildly, not aged well at all: [Excerpt: Van Morrison, "Cyprus Avenue"] That song would be his standard set-closer for live performances for much of the seventies. For the fourth and final song, though, they chose to record what would become the title track for the album, "Astral Weeks", a song that was a lot more elliptical, and which seems in part to be about Morrison's longing for Janet Planet from afar, but also about memories of childhood, and also one of the first songs to bring in Morrison's fascination with the occult and spirituality,  something that would be a recurring theme throughout his work, as the song was partly inspired by paintings by a friend of Morrison's which suggested to him the concept of astral travel: [Excerpt: Van Morrison, "Astral Weeks"] Morrison had a fascination with the idea of astral travel, as he had apparently had several out-of-body experiences as a child, and wanted to find some kind of explanation for them. Most of the songs on the album came, by Morrison's own account, as a kind of automatic writing, coming through him rather than being consciously written, and there's a fascination throughout with, to use the phrase from "Madame George", "childhood visions". The song is also one of the first songs in Morrison's repertoire to deliberately namecheck one of his idols, something else he would do often in future, when he talks about "talking to Huddie Leadbelly". "Astral Weeks" was a song that Morrison had been performing live for some time, and Payne had always enjoyed doing it. Unlike Kielbania he had no compunction about insisting that he was good enough to play on the record, and he eventually persuaded the session flute player to let him borrow his instrument, and Payne was allowed to play on the track: [Excerpt: Van Morrison, "Astral Weeks"] Or at least that's how the story is usually told -- Payne is usually credited for playing on "Madame George" too, even though everyone agrees that "Astral Weeks" was the last song of the night, but people's memories can fade over time. Either way, Payne's interplay with Jay Berliner on the guitar became such a strong point of the track that there was no question of bringing the unknown session player back -- Payne was going to be the woodwind player for the rest of the album: [Excerpt: Van Morrison, "Astral Weeks"] There was then a six-day break between sessions, during which time Payne and Kielbania went to get initiated into Scientology -- a religion with which Morrison himself would experiment a little over a decade later -- though they soon decided that it wasn't worth the cost of the courses they'd have to take, and gave up on the idea the same week. The next session didn't go so well. Jay Berliner was unavailable, and so Barry Kornfeld, a folkie who played with people like Dave Van Ronk, was brought in to replace him. Kornfeld was perfectly decent in the role, but they'd also brought in a string section, with the idea of recording some of the songs which needed string parts live. But the string players they brought in were incapable of improvising, coming from a classical rather than jazz tradition, and the only track that got used on the finished album was "The Way Young Lovers Do", by far the most conventional song on the album, a three-minute soul ballad structured as a waltz twelve-bar blues, where the strings are essentially playing the same parts that a horn section would play on a record by someone like Solomon Burke: [Excerpt: Van Morrison, "The Way Young Lovers Do"] It was decided that any string or horn parts on the rest of the album would just be done as overdubs. It was two weeks before the next and final session for the album, and that featured the return of Jay Berliner on guitar. The session started with "Sweet Thing" and "Ballerina", two songs that Morrison had been playing live for some time, and which were cut in relatively quick order.  They then made attempts at two more songs that didn't get very far, "Royalty", and "Going Around With Jesse James", before Morrison, stuck for something to record, pulled out a new lyric he'd never performed live, "Slim Slow Slider". The whole band ran through the song once, but then Merenstein decided to pare the arrangement down to just Morrison, Payne (on soprano sax rather than on flute), and Warren Smith Jr: [Excerpt: Van Morrison, "Slim Slow Slider"] That track was the only one where, after the recording, Merenstein didn't compliment the performance, remaining silent instead – Payne said “Maybe everyone was just tired, or maybe they were moved by it.” It seems likely it was the latter. The track eventually got chosen as the final track of the album, because Merenstein felt that it didn't fit conceptually with anything else -- and it's definitely a more negative track than the oth

Wednesday 13 zoomed into talk about his special Murderdolls concert on 10/20 at the Whisky A Go Go. Here's what we talked about: 10/20/23 "Murderdolls" set at Whisky a Go Go (0-4) "Grave Robbing U.S.A." (4-7) "Women and Children Last" album (7-19) new solo album? (19-23) Danzig 1 vs. Danzig 2 (23-end)

The newly established Broadwest Entertainment has announced programming for their inaugural 2023—2024 season. Led by Artistic Director Pablo Rossil, the new Los Angeles-based production collective will stage four productions featuring some Broadway and Hollywood favorites, all in California. Next, Harmonies on Shakespeare: A Choral Celebration will present Shakespeare's prose in original choral renditions written by Michael Sobie, set to a 16-piece choir. Two performances will be held on November 18 at the Will Geer Theatricum Botanicum in Topanga. Kicking off the new year January 5, 2024 will be The Best of Evan and Zane, a musical duo comprised of Evan Rachel Wood and Zane Carney. Alongside a 30-piece orchestra, they will bring their greatest arrangements to the Alex Theatre in Glendale for one night only. Next, City on Fire: A Rockin' Broadway Revue will bring a rock twist on Broadway classics to the West Coast, featuring an electrifying band and guest vocalists, to be announced at a later date. Two performances will be held February 29 at Whisky A Go Go in West Hollywood. Click Here for Tickets and More Information. Contact Ray at Green Room on Air: greenroomonair@gmail.com Leave a review on Apple Podcasts (iTunes) Visit Green Room On Air website: http://greenroomonair.com Connect with us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/raysgreenroom/

Introducing Steven Rosen, author of Tonechaser, a book about the late Edward Van Halen culled from interviews and experiences across their 25+ year friendship. Steven has written for Guitar Player, Guitar World and many other Rock publications. He has authored numerous books about rock legends Jeff Beck, Prince, Bruce Springsteen, Black Sabbath, Free/Bad Company and Randy Rhoads.  We dive deep into Steven's rich relationship with arguably the Greatest guitarist of ALL-TIME, Edward Van Halen! PART 1 starts with Steven's introduction to Eddie at the legendary Whisky-A-Go-Go in December of 1977 and runs through the departure of David Lee Roth in 1985! We discuss Eddie the man and his relationships with Steven, his brother Alex Van Halen, and his relationship to music. Lots of great personal stories here from Steven. This is a very special episode for me personally as Van Halen was the band that kickstarted my lifelong love for music! This interview and the stories and ideas I share during the conversation are my love letter to Van Halen! Enjoy! - Ilan Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Introducing Steven Rosen, author of Tonechaser, a book about the late Edward Van Halen culled from interviews and experiences across their 25+ year friendship. Steven has written for Guitar Player, Guitar World and many other Rock publications. He has authored numerous books about rock legends Jeff Beck, Prince, Bruce Springsteen, Black Sabbath, Free/Bad Company and Randy Rhoads.  We dive deep into Steven's rich relationship with arguably the Greatest guitarist of ALL-TIME, Edward Van Halen! PART 1 starts with Steven's introduction to Eddie at the legendary Whisky-A-Go-Go in December of 1977 and runs through the departure of David Lee Roth in 1985! We discuss Eddie the man and his relationships with Steven, his brother Alex Van Halen, and his relationship to music. Lots of great personal stories here from Steven. This is a very special episode for me personally as Van Halen was the band that kickstarted my lifelong love for music! This interview and the stories and ideas I share during the conversation are my love letter to Van Halen! Enjoy! - Ilan Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Clay Melton They live and breathe the fiery swagger of electric guitars and the irresistible allure of rhythm-soaked sounds. That's Clay Melton's musical calling in a nutshell. At only 29, the Louisiana-born and Texas-based rocker has already spent 14 years performing live. His powerfully raspy voice and wicked guitar licks leave no doubt he's grown up in the school of barroom blues-rock. Clay's 2022 release, Live in Texas, which includes ten original songs and one cover, was spun on more than 160 radio stations in the U.S. and abroad. His riveting cover of ZZ Top's Jesus Just Left Chicago, climbed to the #1 song in the world on the Roots Music Blues Rock chart in June 2022. The album boasts production and engineering credits by 5-time Grammy winner Malcolm Harper (The Black Keys, Mary J. Blige, Keith Urban and many others) as well as Clay himself. Live in Texas is Melton's follow-up to 2021's critically acclaimed release, Back to Blue, where the title track also climbed to the # 1 song in the world on Roots Music Blues Rock chart, and the album climbed to #9. Clay Melton is quickly establishing himself as a rising star, having played world-famous venues such as Whisky A Go Go in Hollywood, opening for Grand Funk Railroad on the Chevrolet Main Stage at the State Fair of Texas, and sharing the stage with Sir Earl Toon, of Kool & The Gang fame. Past credits also include opening for blues-legend Robert Cray and platinum-selling artists Chris Daughtry and Night Ranger. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Valley Of Grey,” lyric video, YouTube:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pTH8HInSlOQ&list=RDEM2j5zYj0ZckOgskA4lgRsEw&index=1Music Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NUg56nAAJfsRadio EPK: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SW9-2KebO1I&list=PLrqqU5xLSq9Nr8qMPWdVJMEMz_JZ_MW_N&index=42YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCUjIjKvgHzGYRaA0n0WQVGQSpotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/778FSoIJKAfHSZRTcOQ575Website: https://sensaroundmusic.comFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/SensaroundInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/sensaroundband/With Valley of Grey, their latest poetic pop-rock anthem with driving rhythms, soaring guitar licks, groove-orienteddrums and rocking bass lines, the four-member band Sensaround has announced it is coming out to play. “Literally, all together, with real instruments, in front of the biggest and/or smallest audiences we can find. If they're breathing... count us in.”We like to think of Valley of Grey as your quintessential pop-rock song,” said Bob Dougherty, co-founder of the bandand co-writer of the band's music. “It's a soaring anthem. It's got riveting solos, infectious hooks but enough heavyguitars to make you tingle in your nether regions.”The band has been together for several years and had released 18 songs on their YouTube channel and all streaming platforms before the pandemic put plans to launch their live show on hold. Along with all the world-wide releases and official lyric videos to all the songs, they released an official music video shot at the famous beachesin Malibu with gorgeous views of the Pacific Ocean. Where Are You Tonight, featuring actress Rai Quartley, includes intriguing studio-shot scenes to go along with an enticing story line. Already reaching over half-million views, the video can be seen on YouTube at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NUg56nAAJfs. The song has also been in regular rotation on nine national radio stations.The band's catalog, written by Dougherty and Track, was mostly recorded during a period of several years leading up to 2020 at which time Sensaround was gearing up for live performances.Then the pandemic hit, and the strategy, said Bob, was to “just hole myself up seven days a week and practice mychops on rhythm guitar. We felt it would be as practical as it would be commercially-viable adding the singer-songwriter look to the band. A lead singer without an instrument in his hand seemed outdated to us. We saw achance to turn a negative into a positive. It felt as though the universe hit pause on life, so I resolved to come out of itwith a new skill and we felt that the band would make a better impression with the lead singer handling electricrhythm guitar parts.”Since the pandemic ended, “The priority of the last couple of years has been to get the live show tight,” said Alex Track, co-founder, co-writer and drummer of the band. “It's a blessing to be in a band with such incredible players. It's a gift, not only to be in a band with zero egos, but to have the members be such great friends and great people ingeneral. If this project was any more fun, I wouldn't be able to stand it.”Bob got into music and guitar through a youthful infatuation with U2, REM and Oasis, but didn't become an actual performer until he left a career in video editing and was hired onto the Disney Wonder Cruise ship. After that, he tookthe job of entertainer at the Club Med vacation village in Cancun, which involved physical comedy but also solo acoustic guitar sets at the main bar. “It sharpened my skills and flamed my passion for music,” he said. Club Med is where he met Alex, and that introduction was the genesis of Sensaround. With world-renowned symphony and choral conductor Gerhard Track and Beethoven Piano Competition winnerMicaela Maihart-Track as parents, it was no surprise that Alex Track grew up performing in a number of orchestras, choirs and bands. Taking first place at the Tri-State Music Festival piano competition, Track's passion turned todrums and percussion. Graduating with honors with a Masters of Music Degree from the Academy of Music and Performing Arts in Vienna, Austria, Alex went on to become CEO of Track Entertainment in Los Angeles. Afterattending MIT in Hollywood, Track has been involved in all aspects of the music industry in Los Angeles from scoring pictures to composing, arranging, recording, mixing, mastering and producing records. Track's exceptional skills wererecognized when he won a Grammy Award in 2007. “My grandfather was a very popular entertainer. The Bob Hopeof Europe, if you will and my father was an expert at winning crowds over with intermittent humor during breaksbetween classical pieces at concerts he conducted throughout his career. Taking advantage of Bob's natural sense ofhumor and likability, it's heart-warming for me to see that spirit of entertainment included in our show. For my part, it feels like we're carrying on a family tradition.”Nate Gignac, guitar and vocals, won many competitions at piano festivals in Canada, then, according to his bio, as a teenager “picked up guitar and never looked back.” He studied at the Musicians Institute in Hollywood. He has touredwith various rock bands over most of the United States and Mexico.Max Pierce, bass and vocals, has 20 years' experience as a professional bass player, playing in live band situations, doing session work at recording studios, and performing in musical theater. He performs for the Los Angeles theatercompany For The Record, and music that he wrote has been featured on the NBC show Parenthood. The band sums up all that passion, talent, skill and experience in its official bio. Their music, it says, comes “from aplace of earnest, raw sincerity for people who long for the return of real instruments and hand-carved music that is meant to inspire and take the listener through every possible emotion.”As far as the name of the band is concerned, Bob and Alex came up with a plan to write down names that would fit the band. Bob had already written down dozens of names while Alex hadn't come up with one. One day, out of theblue, Alex excitedly told Bob that he had a name for the band. His first and only name for the list, but explained that he saw the name in a dream, up in lights like on a big venue. Alex immediately researched the name. The name “Sensurround” was the patented name for the surround sound system built to shake seats in a movie theater back inthe day. When articles were written on the subject, people inadvertently spelled it “Sensaround.” The slogan was: Sound so powerful that you not only hear it, you feel it. Being that's how Alex felt the listener will feel when hearingtheir music, the name made “sense”. Randomly seeing it in a dream, that vividly, they didn't want to challenge fate. Sensaround was born.The focus now is on live performances. They made their debut in May this year and have two more shows scheduled for September on the L.A. club venue circuit: September 7th at The Universal Bar and Grill on Lankershim Blvd. in Universal City and September 22nd at The Mint on Pico Blvd. in Mid City Los Angeles. They are also working out the details to perform at other famous LA venues, the Whisky A Go Go, The Roxy Theatre, the Troubadour and The Viper Room to start. “We have a strong catalogue,” said Bob. “We've got over 20 songs thatare radio ready. The hope is to build a fan base by playing out consistently. First and foremost, it will be interesting to see the response of a crowd at a live venue. I am excited to find out if they will be throwing their underwear on stageor fire rotten tomatoes at us.”Connect with Sensaround on all platforms for new music, videos, and social posts.“Valley Of Grey,” Spotify:https://open.spotify.com/track/6j7sQM4pO8iYK92TlS0Jw8?si=81c823897f044c45&nd=1“

 It's time for the Comic Talk Headlines with Generally Nerdy! Apparently the upload got missed last week, MY MOST EPIC APOLOGIES! The episode exists, and I can upload it if the community so demands... just let me know.THIS week though we have ANOTHER strike special! Epic animated metal band RETURNS, plus the return of a community favorite actor might be in jeopardy, and SO MUCH more.Tune in Wednesdays for the regular show and Saturdays for the re-post of the Friday night LIVE SHOW. Plus, don't forget to subscribe for more fresh content.    MusicFollow-ups/CorrectionsZZ Top - New music will feature both Dusty Hill pre-recorded tracks, as well as contributions from current bass player Elwood Francis.New Music/VideoDethklok - Aortic Desecration https://youtu.be/R8r2heCJAUU August 25th. Production feels different on this one.Everclear - Heroin Girl https://youtu.be/Rj68atiZnDs the album that will feature the Year of the Tiger track they released a few months ago will be a live album. Live at the Whisky A Go Go, out Friday Sept 8th. The sound mix here is incredible.Tours/FestivalsBorn Dead Fest - Albany New York's first annual Born Dead Fest from Born Dead Clothing is Sept 2&3. Hatebreed, Bleeding Through, Madball, Vein.fm, Jesus Piece. https://blabbermouth.net/news/hatebreed-bleeding-through-integrity-madball-confirmed-for-albanys-inaugural-born-dead-fest Hell's Heroes - March 21-23 in Houston Texas. Sodom, Queensryche, Candlemass, Rotting Christ.https://www.ticketmaster.com/event/3A005EAF38049DF4 Alice in Chains - Touring with GnR. Starts Sept 23 in Kansas City, MO, through Oct 18 in Vancouver BCAvatar - Chimp Mosh Pit with Orbit Culture and The Native Howl. Starts Sept 10 in Alton VA through Oct 8 in San Louis Obispo CA. https://avatarmetal.com/#tour SuggestsEverclear “Sparkle and Fade”Gaming/TechFollow-ups/CorrectionsBatman: Arkham Trilogy - Physical release on the Switch will be glorified digital download, only with added requirement of having the cart in the console in order to play.Mortal Kombat 1 - Stress Test happened!Nintendo Direct - - Super Mario Bros. Wonder - A new 2D Mario game coming to Switch on October 20, 2023.- Super Mario RPG Remake - A remake of the classic Super Nintendo game, coming to Switch in 2023.- Detective Pikachu 2 - A sequel to the 2016 game, coming to Switch in October 2023.- WarioWare: Move It! - A new WarioWare game, coming to Switch in December 2023.- Metal Gear Solid Collection Vol. 1 - A collection of the first three Metal Gear Solid games, coming to Switch in November 2023.- The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom's Zelda and Ganondorf to Get amiibo - Amiibo figures of Zelda and Ganondorf from the upcoming game The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom will be released later this year.- New Pikmin 4 Details and Gameplay Revealed - New details and gameplay footage of Pikmin 4 were revealed. The game is still in development, but it is expected to be released in 2024.- Pokemon Scarlet and Violet Hidden Treasure of Area Zero Expansions Get a New Look - The Hidden Treasure of Area Zero expansions for Pokemon Scarlet and Violet were given a new look. The expansions will be released in December 2023.- Mario Kart 8 Deluxe Adds a New Course Alongside Petey Piranha, Wiggler, and Kamek - A new course, Shroom Ridge, was added to Mario Kart 8 Deluxe. The course is based on the Mushroom Kingdom from Super Mario Bros. 3. Petey Piranha, Wiggler, and Kamek were also added as playable characters.- Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon Remaster Announced Along With Princess Peach Game - A remaster of Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon was announced. The remaster will be released in November 2023. A new game starring Princess Peach was also announced. The game is still in development, but it is expected to be released in 2024.https://www.ign.com/articles/nintendo-direct-june-2023-everything-announced TrailersFort Solis - https://youtu.be/OBcZGqXv6lE Haven't heard much since the reveal at last year's summer games fest. Troy Baker! August 22.Transformers: EarthSpark - https://youtu.be/2gQn3jP8O3o Oct. 20th for current AND previous gen consoles.Reg ‘ol NewsAmazon - Amazon, our future tech overlords, are enlisting the help of local businesses for delivery. The only requirements are that the business have a certain amount of physical storage and that they deliver 30 packages a day (minus holidays). The TYPE of business is not taken into consideration. Estimations have the per package monetary benefit for the delivery company at about $2.50 per package.https://www.engadget.com/amazon-will-use-small-businesses-to-help-deliver-packages-in-the-us-132503498.html YouTube - AI dubbing is now a thing. YouTube has plans to go beyond translated subtitles by allowing creators to dub videos into other spoken languages. The company announced that it's testing an AI-powered dubbing service called Aloud, developed at Google's Area 120 incubator. The service assists creators by transcribing, translating, and narrating their videos from English to either Spanish or Portuguese. The service is still in testing phase and is not yet available for all languages.https://www.engadget.com/youtubes-new-tool-can-automatically-dub-videos-into-other-languages-093624288.html SuggestsBatman: Arkham trilogyComic Books/BooksFollow-ups/CorrectionsG.I. Joe - Following up on the Transformers joint universe from last week, we now know that G.I. Joe is an image title thanks to Robert Kirkman and his Skybound imprint. Longtime writer Larry Hama and fan-favorite artist Chris Mooneyham and colorist Francesco Segala breathing new life into the iconic characters, with covers by the incomparable Andy Kubert.TrailersFall of X - https://youtu.be/dq9xp_dCa2o Reg ‘ol NewsSpider-Boy - Spider-Boy is a teenage hero who claims to be the webhead's sidekick. He made his first appearance in Spider-Man #7 and was introduced in the finale of "The End of the Spider-Verse" arc in Dan Slott and Mark Bagley's Spider-Man comic. Some of Spider-Boy's secrets were peeled back in Edge of Spider-Verse #3, but Marvel will continue his adventures in a solo series from Spider-Boy's co-creator Dan Slott and artist Paco Medina, with covers by Spider-Boy co-creator Humberto Ramos¹. The series is set to be released on November 1st.https://comicbook.com/comics/news/spider-man-sidekick-spider-boy-marvel-series-dan-slott-paco-medina/ Firefly - Boom! Studios has announced Firefly: The Fall Guys, its first Firefly series starring the original Firefly cast since All-New Firefly concluded. The series will be a six-part miniseries and is set to be released in September. Sam Humphries (W), teaming with artist Jordi Pérez, and colorist Francesco Segalahttps://comicbook.com/comics/news/firefly-series-new-the-fall-guys-serenity/ Batman Beyond - DC Comics is returning to the Batman Beyond future for a new series this summer. The last story to feature Terry McGinnis' version of the Dark Knight was Batman Beyond: Neo-Year. The new series is called Batman Beyond: Neo-Gothic and will feature Terry McGinnis looking for lost children. A search that brings him to old Gotham after teaming up with a mysterious splicer named Kyle the Catboi. Now without Bruce, how will the new hero do against this deadly threat? The series will be written by Collin Kelly and Jackson Lanzing and illustrated by Max Dunbar. It will feature covers by Dunbar, Christian Ward, Ejikure, Belén Ortega, and Dike Ruan. The first issue will be released on July 25th.https://comicbook.com/comics/news/dc-announces-new-batman-beyond-series/#1 TMNT: Saturday Morning Adventures Continued - writer Erik Burnham and artist Tim Lattie will be returning for MORE of this comic book series from IDW.https://www.cbr.com/tmnt-saturday-morning-adventures-continued-writer-discusses-the-return-of-turtlemania/ SuggestsX-Men anything from Chris Claremont's late 80s through 90s run!TV ShowsTrailersFuturama - https://youtu.be/aWmtcYvhj68 New Season July 24 on Hulu. Second reboot?Superpowered - https://youtu.be/NtOcOLUg9wg DC Story on Max. July 20Reg ‘ol NewsParamount+ -  Star Trek: Prodigy has been canceled and will be removed from Paramount+ next week. The show was canceled as part of Paramount+'s merger with Showtime, which will happen at the end of June. The show has completed its run on Paramount+ and will not be returning to the service.https://www.engadget.com/star-trek-prodigy-will-be-pulled-from-paramount-next-week-191704393.html Among Us - An animated series based on the hugely-popular video game Among Us is reportedly in development at CBS Studios. The studio, via CBS Eye Animation Productions, has partnered with Innersloth, the independent game developer behind Among Us. Owen Dennis is poised to serve as the creator and executive producer of the series at CBS Studios and will work in tandem with Titmouse, who is the animation company behind the project. Here are some additional details from the article:The series will be 10 episodes long.It will be targeted at a young adult audience.The animation style will be inspired by the art of the Among Us game.The series will feature a new original story that is not based on any of the existing Among Us content.https://comicbook.com/gaming/news/among-us-animated-series-cbs/ SuggestsTHE BEAR!!MoviesFollow-ups/CorrectionsShrunk - Josh Gad has cast doubt on the Lega-sequel that is supposed to bring Rick Moranis back to the acting business. https://comicbook.com/movies/news/josh-gad-reveals-surprising-update-on-honey-i-shrunk-the-kids-reboot-with-rick-moranis/ TrailersDrive Away Dolls - https://youtu.be/Oy0RYiQRWUk Coen Brothers… not doin much for me.Five Nights at Freddy's - https://youtu.be/MKNl7ZDQmvk Oct 27 in theaters AND on Peacock.Reg ‘ol NewsChadwick Boseman - Posthumus star on the Walk of Fame. https://fandomwire.com/black-panther-star-chadwick-boseman-to-be-honored-by-hollywood-with-an-award-that-was-refused-by-clint-eastwood/Superman: Legacy - David Cornswet and Rachel Brosnahan have been cast as Clark Kent and Lois Lanehttps://deadline.com/2023/06/superman-legacy-david-corenswet-rachel-brosnahan-cast-1235420180/ SuggestsHoney I Shrunk the KidsRumor MillNew RumorsStar Wars the Acolyte - Cancelled? Also Leslye Headland (director) fired?Deadpool - Ben Affleck's Daredevil said to have a cameo.The Marvels - Plot leak and post credits scenes leaked. Plot revolves around an incursion and Monica Rambeau getting stuck in a different universe. First post credit scene sets up Young Avengers. Second post credit scene sets up a Maria Rambeau from 838 universe feeding into other rumors saying that 838 and 616 are leading up for a major conflict in the Secret Wars movie.Metal Gear - Metal Gear Solid IV: Guns of the Patriots is supposed to have been leaked as the next remake on Konami's docket.You can support this show by visiting our merch store, or by leaving us an Apple Podcasts review.

 It's time for the Comic Talk Headlines with Generally Nerdy! Apparently the upload got missed last week, MY MOST EPIC APOLOGIES! The episode exists, and I can upload it if the community so demands... just let me know.THIS week though we have ANOTHER strike special! Epic animated metal band RETURNS, plus the return of a community favorite actor might be in jeopardy, and SO MUCH more.Tune in Wednesdays for the regular show and Saturdays for the re-post of the Friday night LIVE SHOW. Plus, don't forget to subscribe for more fresh content.    MusicFollow-ups/CorrectionsZZ Top - New music will feature both Dusty Hill pre-recorded tracks, as well as contributions from current bass player Elwood Francis.New Music/VideoDethklok - Aortic Desecration https://youtu.be/R8r2heCJAUU August 25th. Production feels different on this one.Everclear - Heroin Girl https://youtu.be/Rj68atiZnDs the album that will feature the Year of the Tiger track they released a few months ago will be a live album. Live at the Whisky A Go Go, out Friday Sept 8th. The sound mix here is incredible.Tours/FestivalsBorn Dead Fest - Albany New York's first annual Born Dead Fest from Born Dead Clothing is Sept 2&3. Hatebreed, Bleeding Through, Madball, Vein.fm, Jesus Piece. https://blabbermouth.net/news/hatebreed-bleeding-through-integrity-madball-confirmed-for-albanys-inaugural-born-dead-fest Hell's Heroes - March 21-23 in Houston Texas. Sodom, Queensryche, Candlemass, Rotting Christ.https://www.ticketmaster.com/event/3A005EAF38049DF4 Alice in Chains - Touring with GnR. Starts Sept 23 in Kansas City, MO, through Oct 18 in Vancouver BCAvatar - Chimp Mosh Pit with Orbit Culture and The Native Howl. Starts Sept 10 in Alton VA through Oct 8 in San Louis Obispo CA. https://avatarmetal.com/#tour SuggestsEverclear “Sparkle and Fade”Gaming/TechFollow-ups/CorrectionsBatman: Arkham Trilogy - Physical release on the Switch will be glorified digital download, only with added requirement of having the cart in the console in order to play.Mortal Kombat 1 - Stress Test happened!Nintendo Direct - - Super Mario Bros. Wonder - A new 2D Mario game coming to Switch on October 20, 2023.- Super Mario RPG Remake - A remake of the classic Super Nintendo game, coming to Switch in 2023.- Detective Pikachu 2 - A sequel to the 2016 game, coming to Switch in October 2023.- WarioWare: Move It! - A new WarioWare game, coming to Switch in December 2023.- Metal Gear Solid Collection Vol. 1 - A collection of the first three Metal Gear Solid games, coming to Switch in November 2023.- The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom's Zelda and Ganondorf to Get amiibo - Amiibo figures of Zelda and Ganondorf from the upcoming game The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom will be released later this year.- New Pikmin 4 Details and Gameplay Revealed - New details and gameplay footage of Pikmin 4 were revealed. The game is still in development, but it is expected to be released in 2024.- Pokemon Scarlet and Violet Hidden Treasure of Area Zero Expansions Get a New Look - The Hidden Treasure of Area Zero expansions for Pokemon Scarlet and Violet were given a new look. The expansions will be released in December 2023.- Mario Kart 8 Deluxe Adds a New Course Alongside Petey Piranha, Wiggler, and Kamek - A new course, Shroom Ridge, was added to Mario Kart 8 Deluxe. The course is based on the Mushroom Kingdom from Super Mario Bros. 3. Petey Piranha, Wiggler, and Kamek were also added as playable characters.- Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon Remaster Announced Along With Princess Peach Game - A remaster of Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon was announced. The remaster will be released in November 2023. A new game starring Princess Peach was also announced. The game is still in development, but it is expected to be released in 2024.https://www.ign.com/articles/nintendo-direct-june-2023-everything-announced TrailersFort Solis - https://youtu.be/OBcZGqXv6lE Haven't heard much since the reveal at last year's summer games fest. Troy Baker! August 22.Transformers: EarthSpark - https://youtu.be/2gQn3jP8O3o Oct. 20th for current AND previous gen consoles.Reg ‘ol NewsAmazon - Amazon, our future tech overlords, are enlisting the help of local businesses for delivery. The only requirements are that the business have a certain amount of physical storage and that they deliver 30 packages a day (minus holidays). The TYPE of business is not taken into consideration. Estimations have the per package monetary benefit for the delivery company at about $2.50 per package.https://www.engadget.com/amazon-will-use-small-businesses-to-help-deliver-packages-in-the-us-132503498.html YouTube - AI dubbing is now a thing. YouTube has plans to go beyond translated subtitles by allowing creators to dub videos into other spoken languages. The company announced that it's testing an AI-powered dubbing service called Aloud, developed at Google's Area 120 incubator. The service assists creators by transcribing, translating, and narrating their videos from English to either Spanish or Portuguese. The service is still in testing phase and is not yet available for all languages.https://www.engadget.com/youtubes-new-tool-can-automatically-dub-videos-into-other-languages-093624288.html SuggestsBatman: Arkham trilogyComic Books/BooksFollow-ups/CorrectionsG.I. Joe - Following up on the Transformers joint universe from last week, we now know that G.I. Joe is an image title thanks to Robert Kirkman and his Skybound imprint. Longtime writer Larry Hama and fan-favorite artist Chris Mooneyham and colorist Francesco Segala breathing new life into the iconic characters, with covers by the incomparable Andy Kubert.TrailersFall of X - https://youtu.be/dq9xp_dCa2o Reg ‘ol NewsSpider-Boy - Spider-Boy is a teenage hero who claims to be the webhead's sidekick. He made his first appearance in Spider-Man #7 and was introduced in the finale of "The End of the Spider-Verse" arc in Dan Slott and Mark Bagley's Spider-Man comic. Some of Spider-Boy's secrets were peeled back in Edge of Spider-Verse #3, but Marvel will continue his adventures in a solo series from Spider-Boy's co-creator Dan Slott and artist Paco Medina, with covers by Spider-Boy co-creator Humberto Ramos¹. The series is set to be released on November 1st.https://comicbook.com/comics/news/spider-man-sidekick-spider-boy-marvel-series-dan-slott-paco-medina/ Firefly - Boom! Studios has announced Firefly: The Fall Guys, its first Firefly series starring the original Firefly cast since All-New Firefly concluded. The series will be a six-part miniseries and is set to be released in September. Sam Humphries (W), teaming with artist Jordi Pérez, and colorist Francesco Segalahttps://comicbook.com/comics/news/firefly-series-new-the-fall-guys-serenity/ Batman Beyond - DC Comics is returning to the Batman Beyond future for a new series this summer. The last story to feature Terry McGinnis' version of the Dark Knight was Batman Beyond: Neo-Year. The new series is called Batman Beyond: Neo-Gothic and will feature Terry McGinnis looking for lost children. A search that brings him to old Gotham after teaming up with a mysterious splicer named Kyle the Catboi. Now without Bruce, how will the new hero do against this deadly threat? The series will be written by Collin Kelly and Jackson Lanzing and illustrated by Max Dunbar. It will feature covers by Dunbar, Christian Ward, Ejikure, Belén Ortega, and Dike Ruan. The first issue will be released on July 25th.https://comicbook.com/comics/news/dc-announces-new-batman-beyond-series/#1 TMNT: Saturday Morning Adventures Continued - writer Erik Burnham and artist Tim Lattie will be returning for MORE of this comic book series from IDW.https://www.cbr.com/tmnt-saturday-morning-adventures-continued-writer-discusses-the-return-of-turtlemania/ SuggestsX-Men anything from Chris Claremont's late 80s through 90s run!TV ShowsTrailersFuturama - https://youtu.be/aWmtcYvhj68 New Season July 24 on Hulu. Second reboot?Superpowered - https://youtu.be/NtOcOLUg9wg DC Story on Max. July 20Reg ‘ol NewsParamount+ -  Star Trek: Prodigy has been canceled and will be removed from Paramount+ next week. The show was canceled as part of Paramount+'s merger with Showtime, which will happen at the end of June. The show has completed its run on Paramount+ and will not be returning to the service.https://www.engadget.com/star-trek-prodigy-will-be-pulled-from-paramount-next-week-191704393.html Among Us - An animated series based on the hugely-popular video game Among Us is reportedly in development at CBS Studios. The studio, via CBS Eye Animation Productions, has partnered with Innersloth, the independent game developer behind Among Us. Owen Dennis is poised to serve as the creator and executive producer of the series at CBS Studios and will work in tandem with Titmouse, who is the animation company behind the project. Here are some additional details from the article:The series will be 10 episodes long.It will be targeted at a young adult audience.The animation style will be inspired by the art of the Among Us game.The series will feature a new original story that is not based on any of the existing Among Us content.https://comicbook.com/gaming/news/among-us-animated-series-cbs/ SuggestsTHE BEAR!!MoviesFollow-ups/CorrectionsShrunk - Josh Gad has cast doubt on the Lega-sequel that is supposed to bring Rick Moranis back to the acting business. https://comicbook.com/movies/news/josh-gad-reveals-surprising-update-on-honey-i-shrunk-the-kids-reboot-with-rick-moranis/ TrailersDrive Away Dolls - https://youtu.be/Oy0RYiQRWUk Coen Brothers… not doin much for me.Five Nights at Freddy's - https://youtu.be/MKNl7ZDQmvk Oct 27 in theaters AND on Peacock.Reg ‘ol NewsChadwick Boseman - Posthumus star on the Walk of Fame. https://fandomwire.com/black-panther-star-chadwick-boseman-to-be-honored-by-hollywood-with-an-award-that-was-refused-by-clint-eastwood/Superman: Legacy - David Cornswet and Rachel Brosnahan have been cast as Clark Kent and Lois Lanehttps://deadline.com/2023/06/superman-legacy-david-corenswet-rachel-brosnahan-cast-1235420180/ SuggestsHoney I Shrunk the KidsRumor MillNew RumorsStar Wars the Acolyte - Cancelled? Also Leslye Headland (director) fired?Deadpool - Ben Affleck's Daredevil said to have a cameo.The Marvels - Plot leak and post credits scenes leaked. Plot revolves around an incursion and Monica Rambeau getting stuck in a different universe. First post credit scene sets up Young Avengers. Second post credit scene sets up a Maria Rambeau from 838 universe feeding into other rumors saying that 838 and 616 are leading up for a major conflict in the Secret Wars movie.Metal Gear - Metal Gear Solid IV: Guns of the Patriots is supposed to have been leaked as the next remake on Konami's docket.You can support this show by visiting our merch store, or by leaving us an Apple Podcasts review.

Dave LaGreca, Bully Ray, Mark Henry, Tommy Dreamer, Thunder Rosa, and Mickie James bring you Busted Open LIVE from the Whisky A Go Go in Hollywood, for this year's WrestleMania Party!! Special guests include David Arquette, RJ City, GLOW's Hollywood, Diane Franklin, Dalton Castle, and Ron Funches. 

Episode 163 of A History of Rock Music in Five Hundred Songs looks at “(Sittin' on) The Dock of the Bay", Stax Records, and the short, tragic, life of Otis Redding. 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 "Soul Man" by Sam and Dave. 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/ Resources No Mixcloud this week, as there are too many songs by Redding, even if I split into multiple parts. The main resource I used for the biographical details of Redding was Dreams to Remember: Otis Redding, Stax Records, and the Transformation of Southern Soul by Mark Ribowsky. Ribowsky is usually a very good, reliable, writer, but in this case there are a couple of lapses in editing which make it not a book I can wholeheartedly recommend, but the research on the biographical details of Redding seems to be the best. Information about Stax comes primarily from two books: Soulsville USA: The Story of Stax by Rob Bowman, and Respect Yourself: Stax Records and the Soul Explosion by Robert Gordon. Country Soul by Charles L Hughes is a great overview of the soul music made in Muscle Shoals, Memphis, and Nashville in the sixties. There are two Original Album Series box sets which between them contain all the albums Redding released in his life plus his first few posthumous albums, for a low price. Volume 1, volume 2. Patreon This podcast is brought to you by the generosity of my backers on Patreon. Why not join them? Transcript A quick note before I begin -- this episode ends with a description of a plane crash, which some people may find upsetting. There's also a mention of gun violence. In 2019 the film Summer of Soul came out. If you're unfamiliar with this film, it's a documentary of an event, the Harlem Cultural Festival, which gets called the "Black Woodstock" because it took place in the summer of 1969, overlapping the weekend that Woodstock happened. That event was a series of weekend free concerts in New York, performed by many of the greatest acts in Black music at that time -- people like Stevie Wonder, David Ruffin, Mahalia Jackson, B.B. King, the Staple Singers, Sly and the Family Stone, Nina Simone, and the Fifth Dimension. One thing that that film did was to throw into sharp relief a lot of the performances we've seen over the years by legends of white rock music of the same time. If you watch the film of Woodstock, or the earlier Monterey Pop festival, it's apparent that a lot of the musicians are quite sloppy. This is easy to dismiss as being a product of the situation -- they're playing outdoor venues, with no opportunity to soundcheck, using primitive PA systems, and often without monitors. Anyone would sound a bit sloppy in that situation, right? That is until you listen to the performances on the Summer of Soul soundtrack. The performers on those shows are playing in the same kind of circumstances, and in the case of Woodstock literally at the same time, so it's a fair comparison, and there really is no comparison. Whatever you think of the quality of the *music* (and some of my very favourite artists played at Monterey and Woodstock), the *musicianship* is orders of magnitude better at the Harlem Cultural Festival [Excerpt: Gladys Knight and the Pips “I Heard it Through the Grapevine (live)”] And of course there's a reason for this. Most of the people who played at those big hippie festivals had not had the same experiences as the Black musicians. The Black players were mostly veterans of the chitlin' circuit, where you had to play multiple shows a day, in front of demanding crowds who wanted their money's worth, and who wanted you to be able to play and also put on a show at the same time. When you're playing for crowds of working people who have spent a significant proportion of their money to go to the show, and on a bill with a dozen other acts who are competing for that audience's attention, you are going to get good or stop working. The guitar bands at Woodstock and Monterey, though, hadn't had the same kind of pressure. Their audiences were much more forgiving, much more willing to go with the musicians, view themselves as part of a community with them. And they had to play far fewer shows than the chitlin' circuit veterans, so they simply didn't develop the same chops before becoming famous (the best of them did after fame, of course). And so it's no surprise that while a lot of bands became more famous as a result of the Monterey Pop Festival, only three really became breakout stars in America as a direct result of it. One of those was the Who, who were already the third or fourth biggest band in the UK by that point, either just behind or just ahead of the Kinks, and so the surprise is more that it took them that long to become big in America. But the other two were themselves veterans of the chitlin' circuit. If you buy the Criterion Collection Blu-Ray of Monterey Pop, you get two extra discs along with the disc with the film of the full festival on it -- the only two performances that were thought worth turning into their own short mini-films. One of them is Jimi Hendrix's performance, and we will talk about that in a future episode. The other is titled Shake! Otis at Monterey: [Excerpt: Otis Redding, "Shake! (live at Monterey Pop Festival)"] Otis Redding came from Macon, Georgia, the home town of Little Richard, who became one of his biggest early influences, and like Richard he was torn in his early years between religion and secular music -- though in most other ways he was very different from Richard, and in particular he came from a much more supportive family. While his father, Otis senior, was a deacon in the church, and didn't approve much of blues, R&B, or jazz music or listen to it himself, he didn't prevent his son from listening to it, so young Otis grew up listening to records by Richard -- of whom he later said "If it hadn't been for Little Richard I would not be here... Richard has soul too. My present music has a lot of him in it" -- and another favourite, Clyde McPhatter: [Excerpt: Billy Ward and the Dominoes, "Have Mercy Baby"] Indeed, it's unclear exactly how much Otis senior *did* disapprove of those supposedly-sinful kinds of music. The biography I used as a source for this, and which says that Otis senior wouldn't listen to blues or jazz music at all, also quotes his son as saying that when he was a child his mother and father used to play him "a calypso song out then called 'Run Joe'" That will of course be this one: [Excerpt: Louis Jordan, "Run Joe"] I find it hard to reconcile the idea of someone who refused to listen to the blues or jazz listening to Louis Jordan, but then people are complex. Whatever Otis senior's feelings about secular music, he recognised from a very early age that his son had a special talent, and encouraged him to become a gospel singer. And at the same time he was listening to Little Richard, young Otis was also listening to gospel singers. One particular influence was a blind street singer, Reverend Pearly Brown: [Excerpt: Reverend Pearly Brown, "Ninety Nine and a Half Won't Do"] Redding was someone who cared deeply about his father's opinion, and it might well have been that he would eventually have become a gospel performer, because he started his career with a foot in both camps. What seems to have made the difference is that when he was sixteen, his father came down with tuberculosis. Even a few years earlier this would have been a terminal diagnosis, but thankfully by this point antibiotics had been invented, and the deacon eventually recovered. But it did mean that Otis junior had to become the family breadwinner while his father was sick, and so he turned decisively towards the kind of music that could make more money. He'd already started performing secular music. He'd joined a band led by Gladys Williams, who was the first female bandleader in the area. Williams sadly doesn't seem to have recorded anything -- discogs has a listing of a funk single by a Gladys Williams on a tiny label which may or may not be the same person, but in general she avoided recording studios, only wanting to play live -- but she was a very influential figure in Georgia music. According to her former trumpeter Newton Collier, who later went on to play with Redding and others, she trained both Fats Gonder and Lewis Hamlin, who went on to join the lineup of James Brown's band that made Live at the Apollo, and Collier says that Hamlin's arrangements for that album, and the way the band would segue from one track to another, were all things he'd been taught by Miss Gladys. Redding sang with Gladys Williams for a while, and she took him under her wing, trained him, and became his de facto first manager. She got him to perform at local talent shows, where he won fifteen weeks in a row, before he got banned from performing to give everyone else a chance. At all of these shows, the song he performed was one that Miss Gladys had rehearsed with him, Little Richard's "Heeby Jeebies": [Excerpt: Little Richard, "Heeby Jeebies"] At this time, Redding's repertoire was largely made up of songs by the two greats of fifties Georgia R&B -- Little Richard and James Brown -- plus some by his other idol Sam Cooke, and those singers would remain his greatest influences throughout his career. After his stint with Williams, Redding went on to join another band, Pat T Cake and the Mighty Panthers, whose guitarist Johnny Jenkins would be a major presence in his life for several years. The Mighty Panthers were soon giving Redding top billing, and advertising gigs as featuring Otis "Rockin' Robin" Redding -- presumably that was another song in his live repertoire. By this time Redding was sounding enough like Little Richard that when Richard's old backing band, The Upsetters, were looking for a new singer after Richard quit rock and roll for the ministry, they took Redding on as their vocalist for a tour. Once that tour had ended, Redding returned home to find that Johnny Jenkins had quit the Mighty Panthers and formed a new band, the Pinetoppers. Redding joined that band, who were managed by a white teenager named Phil Walden, who soon became Redding's personal manager as well. Walden and Redding developed a very strong bond, to the extent that Walden, who was studying at university, spent all his tuition money promoting Redding and almost got kicked out. When Redding found this out, he actually went round to everyone he knew and got loans from everyone until he had enough to pay for Walden's tuition -- much of it paid in coins. They had a strong enough bond that Walden would remain his manager for the rest of Redding's life, and even when Walden had to do two years in the Army in Germany, he managed Redding long-distance, with his brother looking after things at home. But of course, there wasn't much of a music industry in Georgia, and so with Walden's blessing and support, he moved to LA in 1960 to try to become a star. Just before he left, his girlfriend Zelma told him she was pregnant. He assured her that he was only going to be away for a few months, and that he would be back in time for the birth, and that he intended to come back to Georgia rich and marry her. Her response was "Sure you is". In LA, Redding met up with a local record producer, James "Jimmy Mack" McEachin, who would later go on to become an actor, appearing in several films with Clint Eastwood. McEachin produced a session for Redding at Gold Star studios, with arrangements by Rene Hall and using several of the musicians who later became the Wrecking Crew. "She's All Right", the first single that came from that session, was intended to sound as much like Jackie Wilson as possible, and was released under the name of The Shooters, the vocal group who provided the backing vocals: [Excerpt: The Shooters, "She's All Right"] "She's All Right" was released on Trans World, a small label owned by Morris Bernstein, who also owned Finer Arts records (and "She's All Right" seems to have been released on both labels). Neither of Bernstein's labels had any great success -- the biggest record they put out was a single by the Hollywood Argyles that came out after they'd stopped having hits -- and they didn't have any connection to the R&B market. Redding and McEachin couldn't find any R&B labels that wanted to pick up their recordings, and so Redding did return to Georgia and marry Zelma a few days before the birth of their son Dexter. Back in Georgia, he hooked up again with the Pinetoppers, and he and Jenkins started trying local record labels, attempting to get records put out by either of them. Redding was the first, and Otis Redding and the Pinetoppers put out a single, "Shout Bamalama", a slight reworking of a song that he'd recorded as "Gamma Lamma" for McEachin, which was obviously heavily influenced by Little Richard: [Excerpt: Otis Redding and the Pinetoppers, "Shout Bamalama"] That single was produced by a local record company owner, Bobby Smith, who signed Redding to a contract which Redding didn't read, but which turned out to be a management contract as well as a record contract. This would later be a problem, as Redding didn't have an actual contract with Phil Walden -- one thing that comes up time and again in stories about music in the Deep South at this time is people operating on handshake deals and presuming good faith on the part of each other. There was a problem with the record which nobody had foreseen though -- Redding was the first Black artist signed to Smith's label, which was called Confederate Records, and its logo was the Southern Cross. Now Smith, by all accounts, was less personally racist than most white men in Georgia at the time, and hadn't intended that as any kind of statement of white supremacy -- he'd just used a popular local symbol, without thinking through the implications. But as the phrase goes, intent isn't magic, and while Smith didn't intend it as racist, rather unsurprisingly Black DJs and record shops didn't see things in the same light. Smith was told by several DJs that they wouldn't play the record while it was on that label, and he started up a new subsidiary label, Orbit, and put the record out on that label. Redding and Smith continued collaborating, and there were plans for Redding to put out a second single on Orbit. That single was going to be "These Arms of Mine", a song Redding had originally given to another Confederate artist, a rockabilly performer called Buddy Leach (who doesn't seem to be the same Buddy Leach as the Democratic politician from Louisiana, or the saxophone player with George Thorogood and the Destroyers). Leach had recorded it as a B-side, with the slightly altered title "These Arms Are Mine". Sadly I can't provide an excerpt of that, as the record is so rare that even websites I've found by rockabilly collectors who are trying to get everything on Confederate Records haven't managed to get hold of copies. Meanwhile, Johnny Jenkins had been recording on another label, Tifco, and had put out a single called "Pinetop": [Excerpt: Johnny Jenkins and the Pinetoppers, "Pinetop"] That record had attracted the attention of Joe Galkin. Galkin was a semi-independent record promoter, who had worked for Atlantic in New York before moving back to his home town of Macon. Galkin had proved himself as a promoter by being responsible for the massive amounts of airplay given to Solomon Burke's "Just Out of Reach (of My Two Open Arms)": [Excerpt: Solomon Burke, "Just Out of Reach (of My Two Open Arms)"] After that, Jerry Wexler had given Galkin fifty dollars a week and an expense account, and Galkin would drive to all the Black radio stations in the South and pitch Atlantic's records to them. But Galkin also had his own record label, Gerald Records, and when he went to those stations and heard them playing something from a smaller label, he would quickly negotiate with that smaller label, buy the master and the artist's contract, and put the record out on Gerald Records -- and then he would sell the track and the artist on to Atlantic, taking ten percent of the record's future earnings and a finder's fee. This is what happened with Johnny Jenkins' single, which was reissued on Gerald and then on Atlantic. Galkin signed Jenkins to a contract -- another of those contracts which also made him Jenkins' manager, and indeed the manager of the Pinetops. Jenkins' record ended up selling about twenty-five thousand records, but when Galkin saw the Pinetoppers performing live, he realised that Otis Redding was the real star. Since he had a contract with Jenkins, he came to an agreement with Walden, who was still Jenkins' manager as well as Redding's -- Walden would get fifty percent of Jenkins' publishing and they would be co-managers of Jenkins. But Galkin had plans for Redding, which he didn't tell anyone about, not even Redding himself. The one person he did tell was Jerry Wexler, who he phoned up and asked for two thousand dollars, explaining that he wanted to record Jenkins' follow-up single at Stax, and he also wanted to bring along a singer he'd discovered, who sang with Jenkins' band. Wexler agreed -- Atlantic had recently started distributing Stax's records on a handshake deal of much the same kind that Redding had with Walden. As far as everyone else was concerned, though, the session was just for Johnny Jenkins, the known quantity who'd already released a single for Atlantic. Otis Redding, meanwhile, was having to work a lot of odd jobs to feed his rapidly growing family, and one of those jobs was to work as Johnny Jenkins' driver, as Jenkins didn't have a driving license. So Galkin suggested that, given that Memphis was quite a long drive, Redding should drive Galkin and Jenkins to Stax, and carry the equipment for them. Bobby Smith, who still thought of himself as Redding's manager, was eager to help his friend's bandmate with his big break (and to help Galkin, in the hope that maybe Atlantic would start distributing Confederate too), and so he lent Redding the company station wagon to drive them to the session.The other Pinetoppers wouldn't be going -- Jenkins was going to be backed by Booker T and the MGs, the normal Stax backing band. Phil Walden, though, had told Redding that he should try to take the opportunity to get himself heard by Stax, and he pestered the musicians as they recorded Jenkins' "Spunky": [Excerpt: Johnny Jenkins, "Spunky"] Cropper later remembered “During the session, Al Jackson says to me, ‘The big tall guy that was driving Johnny, he's been bugging me to death, wanting me to hear him sing,' Al said, ‘Would you take some time and get this guy off of my back and listen to him?' And I said, ‘After the session I'll try to do it,' and then I just forgot about it.” What Redding didn't know, though Walden might have, is that Galkin had planned all along to get Redding to record while he was there. Galkin claimed to be Redding's manager, and told Jim Stewart, the co-owner of Stax who acted as main engineer and supervising producer on the sessions at this point, that Wexler had only funded the session on the basis that Redding would also get a shot at recording. Stewart was unimpressed -- Jenkins' session had not gone well, and it had taken them more than two hours to get two tracks down, but Galkin offered Stewart a trade -- Galkin, as Redding's manager, would take half of Stax's mechanical royalties for the records (which wouldn't be much) but in turn would give Stewart half the publishing on Redding's songs. That was enough to make Stewart interested, but by this point Booker T. Jones had already left the studio, so Steve Cropper moved to the piano for the forty minutes that was left of the session, with Jenkins remaining on guitar, and they tried to get two sides of a single cut. The first track they cut was "Hey Hey Baby", which didn't impress Stewart much -- he simply said that the world didn't need another Little Richard -- and so with time running out they cut another track, the ballad Redding had already given to Buddy Leach. He asked Cropper, who didn't play piano well, to play "church chords", by which he meant triplets, and Cropper said "he started singing ‘These Arms of Mine' and I know my hair lifted about three inches and I couldn't believe this guy's voice": [Excerpt: Otis Redding, "These Arms of Mine"] That was more impressive, though Stewart carefully feigned disinterest. Stewart and Galkin put together a contract which signed Redding to Stax -- though they put the single out on the less-important Volt subsidiary, as they did for much of Redding's subsequent output -- and gave Galkin and Stewart fifty percent each of the publishing rights to Redding's songs. Redding signed it, not even realising he was signing a proper contract rather than just one for a single record, because he was just used to signing whatever bit of paper was put in front of him at the time. This one was slightly different though, because Redding had had his twenty-first birthday since the last time he'd signed a contract, and so Galkin assumed that that meant all his other contracts were invalid -- not realising that Redding's contract with Bobby Smith had been countersigned by Redding's mother, and so was also legal. Walden also didn't realise that, but *did* realise that Galkin representing himself as Redding's manager to Stax might be a problem, so he quickly got Redding to sign a proper contract, formalising the handshake basis they'd been operating on up to that point. Walden was at this point in the middle of his Army service, but got the signature while he was home on leave. Walden then signed a deal with Galkin, giving Walden half of Galkin's fifty percent cut of Redding's publishing in return for Galkin getting a share of Walden's management proceeds. By this point everyone was on the same page -- Otis Redding was going to be a big star, and he became everyone's prime focus. Johnny Jenkins remained signed to Walden's agency -- which quickly grew to represent almost every big soul star that wasn't signed to Motown -- but he was regarded as a footnote. His record came out eventually on Volt, almost two years later, but he didn't release another record until 1968. Jenkins did, though, go on to have some influence. In 1970 he was given the opportunity to sing lead on an album backed by Duane Allman and the members of the Muscle Shoals studio band, many of whom went on to form the Allman Brothers Band. That record contained a cover of Dr. John's "I Walk on Guilded Splinters" which was later sampled by Beck for "Loser", the Wu-Tang Clan for "Gun Will Go" and Oasis for their hit "Go Let it Out": [Excerpt: Johnny Jenkins, "I Walk on Guilded Splinters"] Jenkins would play guitar on several future Otis Redding sessions, but would hold a grudge against Redding for the rest of his life for taking the stardom he thought was rightfully his, and would be one of the few people to have anything negative to say about Redding after his early death. When Bobby Smith heard about the release of "These Arms of Mine", he was furious, as his contract with Redding *was* in fact legally valid, and he'd been intending to get Redding to record the song himself. However, he realised that Stax could call on the resources of Atlantic Records, and Joe Galkin also hinted that if he played nice Atlantic might start distributing Confederate, too. Smith signed away all his rights to Redding -- again, thinking that he was only signing away the rights to a single record and song, and not reading the contract closely enough. In this case, Smith only had one working eye, and that wasn't good enough to see clearly -- he had to hold paper right up to his face to read anything on it -- and he simply couldn't read the small print on the contract, and so signed over Otis Redding's management, record contract, and publishing, for a flat seven hundred dollars. Now everything was legally -- if perhaps not ethically -- in the clear. Phil Walden was Otis Redding's manager, Stax was his record label, Joe Galkin got a cut off the top, and Walden, Galkin, and Jim Stewart all shared Redding's publishing. Although, to make it a hit, one more thing had to happen, and one more person had to get a cut of the song: [Excerpt: Otis Redding, "These Arms of Mine"] That sound was becoming out of fashion among Black listeners at the time. It was considered passe, and even though the Stax musicians loved the record, Jim Stewart didn't, and put it out not because he believed in Otis Redding, but because he believed in Joe Galkin. As Stewart later said “The Black radio stations were getting out of that Black country sound, we put it out to appease and please Joe.” For the most part DJs ignored the record, despite Galkin pushing it -- it was released in October 1962, that month which we have already pinpointed as the start of the sixties, and came out at the same time as a couple of other Stax releases, and the one they were really pushing was Carla Thomas' "I'll Bring it Home to You", an answer record to Sam Cooke's "Bring it On Home to Me": [Excerpt: Carla Thomas, "I'll Bring it Home to You"] "These Arms of Mine" wasn't even released as the A-side -- that was "Hey Hey Baby" -- until John R came along. John R was a Nashville DJ, and in fact he was the reason that Bobby Smith even knew that Redding had signed to Stax. R had heard Buddy Leach's version of the song, and called Smith, who was a friend of his, to tell him that his record had been covered, and that was the first Smith had heard of the matter. But R also called Jim Stewart at Stax, and told him that he was promoting the wrong side, and that if they started promoting "These Arms of Mine", R would play the record on his radio show, which could be heard in twenty-eight states. And, as a gesture of thanks for this suggestion -- and definitely not as payola, which would be very illegal -- Stewart gave R his share of the publishing rights to the song, which eventually made the top twenty on the R&B charts, and slipped into the lower end of the Hot One Hundred. "These Arms of Mine" was actually recorded at a turning point for Stax as an organisation. By the time it was released, Booker T Jones had left Memphis to go to university in Indiana to study music, with his tuition being paid for by his share of the royalties for "Green Onions", which hit the charts around the same time as Redding's first session: [Excerpt: Booker T. and the MGs, "Green Onions"] Most of Stax's most important sessions were recorded at weekends -- Jim Stewart still had a day job as a bank manager at this point, and he supervised the records that were likely to be hits -- so Jones could often commute back to the studio for session work, and could play sessions during his holidays. The rest of the time, other people would cover the piano parts, often Cropper, who played piano on Redding's next sessions, with Jenkins once again on guitar. As "These Arms of Mine" didn't start to become a hit until March, Redding didn't go into the studio again until June, when he cut the follow-up, "That's What My Heart Needs", with the MGs, Jenkins, and the horn section of the Mar-Keys. That made number twenty-seven on the Cashbox R&B chart -- this was in the period when Billboard had stopped having one. The follow-up, "Pain in My Heart", was cut in September and did even better, making number eleven on the Cashbox R&B chart: [Excerpt: Otis Redding, "Pain in My Heart"] It did well enough in fact that the Rolling Stones cut a cover version of the track: [Excerpt: The Rolling Stones, "Pain in My Heart"] Though Redding didn't get the songwriting royalties -- by that point Allen Toussaint had noticed how closely it resembled a song he'd written for Irma Thomas, "Ruler of My Heart": [Excerpt: Irma Thomas, "Ruler of My Heart"] And so the writing credit was changed to be Naomi Neville, one of the pseudonyms Toussaint used. By this point Redding was getting steady work, and becoming a popular live act. He'd put together his own band, and had asked Jenkins to join, but Jenkins didn't want to play second fiddle to him, and refused, and soon stopped being invited to the recording sessions as well. Indeed, Redding was *eager* to get as many of his old friends working with him as he could. For his second and third sessions, as well as bringing Jenkins, he'd brought along a whole gang of musicians from his touring show, and persuaded Stax to put out records by them, too. At those sessions, as well as Redding's singles, they also cut records by his valet (which was the term R&B performers in those years used for what we'd now call a gofer or roadie) Oscar Mack: [Excerpt: Oscar Mack, "Don't Be Afraid of Love"] For Eddie Kirkland, the guitarist in his touring band, who had previously played with John Lee Hooker and whose single was released under the name "Eddie Kirk": [Excerpt: Eddie Kirk, "The Hawg, Part 1"] And Bobby Marchan, a singer and female impersonator from New Orleans who had had some massive hits a few years earlier both on his own and as the singer with Huey "Piano" Smith and the Clowns, but had ended up in Macon without a record deal and been taken under Redding's wing: [Excerpt: Bobby Marchan, "What Can I Do?"] Redding would continue, throughout his life, to be someone who tried to build musical careers for his friends, though none of those singles was successful. The changes in Stax continued. In late autumn 1963, Atlantic got worried by the lack of new product coming from Stax. Carla Thomas had had a couple of R&B hits, and they were expecting a new single, but every time Jerry Wexler phoned Stax asking where the new single was, he was told it would be coming soon but the equipment was broken. After a couple of weeks of this, Wexler decided something fishy was going on, and sent Tom Dowd, his genius engineer, down to Stax to investigate. Dowd found when he got there that the equipment *was* broken, and had been for weeks, and was a simple fix. When Dowd spoke to Stewart, though, he discovered that they didn't know where to source replacement parts from. Dowd phoned his assistant in New York, and told him to go to the electronics shop and get the parts he needed. Then, as there were no next-day courier services at that time, Dowd's assistant went to the airport, found a flight attendant who was flying to Memphis, and gave her the parts and twenty-five dollars, with a promise of twenty-five more if she gave them to Dowd at the other end. The next morning, Dowd had the equipment fixed, and everyone involved became convinced that Dowd was a miracle worker, especially after he showed Steve Cropper some rudimentary tape-manipulation techniques that Cropper had never encountered before. Dowd had to wait around in Memphis for his flight, so he went to play golf with the musicians for a bit, and then they thought they might as well pop back to the studio and test the equipment out. When they did, Rufus Thomas -- Carla Thomas' father, who had also had a number of hits himself on Stax and Sun -- popped his head round the door to see if the equipment was working now. They told him it was, and he said he had a song if they were up for a spot of recording. They were, and so when Dowd flew back that night, he was able to tell Wexler not only that the next Carla Thomas single would soon be on its way, but that he had the tapes of a big hit single with him right there: [Excerpt: Rufus Thomas, "Walking the Dog"] "Walking the Dog" was a sensation. Jim Stewart later said “I remember our first order out of Chicago. I was in New York in Jerry Wexler's office at the time and Paul Glass, who was our distributor in Chicago, called in an order for sixty-five thousand records. I said to Jerry, ‘Do you mean sixty-five hundred?' And he said, ‘Hell no, he wants sixty-five thousand.' That was the first order! He believed in the record so much that we ended up selling about two hundred thousand in Chicago alone.” The record made the top ten on the pop charts, but that wasn't the biggest thing that Dowd had taken away from the session. He came back raving to Wexler about the way they made records in Memphis, and how different it was from the New York way. In New York, there was a strict separation between the people in the control room and the musicians in the studio, the musicians were playing from written charts, and everyone had a job and did just that job. In Memphis, the musicians were making up the arrangements as they went, and everyone was producing or engineering all at the same time. Dowd, as someone with more technical ability than anyone at Stax, and who was also a trained musician who could make musical suggestions, was soon regularly commuting down to Memphis to be part of the production team, and Jerry Wexler was soon going down to record with other Atlantic artists there, as we heard about in the episode on "Midnight Hour". Shortly after Dowd's first visit to Memphis, another key member of the Stax team entered the picture. Right at the end of 1963, Floyd Newman recorded a track called "Frog Stomp", on which he used his own band rather than the MGs and Mar-Keys: [Excerpt: Floyd Newman, "Frog Stomp"] The piano player and co-writer on that track was a young man named Isaac Hayes, who had been trying to get work at Stax for some time. He'd started out as a singer, and had made a record, "Laura, We're On Our Last Go-Round", at American Sound, the studio run by the former Stax engineer and musician Chips Moman: [Excerpt: Isaac Hayes, "Laura, We're On Our Last Go-Round"] But that hadn't been a success, and Hayes had continued working a day job at a slaughterhouse -- and would continue doing so for much of the next few years, even after he started working at Stax (it's truly amazing how many of the people involved in Stax were making music as what we would now call a side-hustle). Hayes had become a piano player as a way of getting a little extra money -- he'd been offered a job as a fill-in when someone else had pulled out at the last minute on a gig on New Year's Eve, and took it even though he couldn't actually play piano, and spent his first show desperately vamping with two fingers, and was just lucky the audience was too drunk to care. But he had a remarkable facility for the instrument, and while unlike Booker T Jones he would never gain a great deal of technical knowledge, and was embarrassed for the rest of his life by both his playing ability and his lack of theory knowledge, he was as great as they come at soul, at playing with feel, and at inventing new harmonies on the fly. They still didn't have a musician at Stax that could replace Booker T, who was still off at university, so Isaac Hayes was taken on as a second session keyboard player, to cover for Jones when Jones was in Indiana -- though Hayes himself also had to work his own sessions around his dayjob, so didn't end up playing on "In the Midnight Hour", for example, because he was at the slaughterhouse. The first recording session that Hayes played on as a session player was an Otis Redding single, either his fourth single for Stax, "Come to Me", or his fifth, "Security": [Excerpt: Otis Redding, "Security"] "Security" is usually pointed to by fans as the point at which Redding really comes into his own, and started directing the musicians more. There's a distinct difference, in particular, in the interplay between Cropper's guitar, the Mar-Keys' horns, and Redding's voice. Where previously the horns had tended to play mostly pads, just holding chords under Redding's voice, now they were starting to do answering phrases. Jim Stewart always said that the only reason Stax used a horn section at all was because he'd been unable to find a decent group of backing vocalists, and the function the horns played on most of the early Stax recordings was somewhat similar to the one that the Jordanaires had played for Elvis, or the Picks for Buddy Holly, basically doing "oooh" sounds to fatten out the sound, plus the odd sax solo or simple riff. The way Redding used the horns, though, was more like the way Ray Charles used the Raelettes, or the interplay of a doo-wop vocal group, with call and response, interjections, and asides. He also did something in "Security" that would become a hallmark of records made at Stax -- instead of a solo, the instrumental break is played by the horns as an ensemble: [Excerpt: Otis Redding, "Security"] According to Wayne Jackson, the Mar-Keys' trumpeter, Redding was the one who had the idea of doing these horn ensemble sections, and the musicians liked them enough that they continued doing them on all the future sessions, no matter who with. The last Stax single of 1964 took the "Security" sound and refined it, and became the template for every big Stax hit to follow. "Mr. Pitiful" was the first collaboration between Redding and Steve Cropper, and was primarily Cropper's idea. Cropper later remembered “There was a disc jockey here named Moohah. He started calling Otis ‘Mr. Pitiful' 'cause he sounded so pitiful singing his ballads. So I said, ‘Great idea for a song!' I got the idea for writing about it in the shower. I was on my way down to pick up Otis. I got down there and I was humming it in the car. I said, ‘Hey, what do you think about this?' We just wrote the song on the way to the studio, just slapping our hands on our legs. We wrote it in about ten minutes, went in, showed it to the guys, he hummed a horn line, boom—we had it. When Jim Stewart walked in we had it all worked up. Two or three cuts later, there it was.” [Excerpt: Otis Redding, "Mr. Pitiful"] Cropper would often note later that Redding would never write about himself, but that Cropper would put details of Redding's life and persona into the songs, from "Mr. Pitiful" right up to their final collaboration, in which Cropper came up with lines about leaving home in Georgia. "Mr Pitiful" went to number ten on the R&B chart and peaked at number forty-one on the hot one hundred, and its B-side, "That's How Strong My Love Is", also made the R&B top twenty. Cropper and Redding soon settled into a fruitful writing partnership, to the extent that Cropper even kept a guitar permanently tuned to an open chord so that Redding could use it. Redding couldn't play the guitar, but liked to use one as a songwriting tool. When a guitar is tuned in standard tuning, you have to be able to make chord shapes to play it, because the sound of the open strings is a discord: [demonstrates] But you can tune a guitar so all the strings are the notes of a single chord, so they sound good together even when you don't make a chord shape: [demonstrates open-E tuning] With one of these open tunings, you can play chords with just a single finger barring a fret, and so they're very popular with, for example, slide guitarists who use a metal slide to play, or someone like Dolly Parton who has such long fingernails it's difficult to form chord shapes. Someone like Parton is of course an accomplished player, but open tunings also mean that someone who can't play well can just put their finger down on a fret and have it be a chord, so you can write songs just by running one finger up and down the fretboard: [demonstrates] So Redding could write, and even play acoustic rhythm guitar on some songs, which he did quite a lot in later years, without ever learning how to make chords. Now, there's a downside to this -- which is why standard tuning is still standard. If you tune to an open major chord, you can play major chords easily but minor chords become far more difficult. Handily, that wasn't a problem at Stax, because according to Isaac Hayes, Jim Stewart banned minor chords from being played at Stax. Hayes said “We'd play a chord in a session, and Jim would say, ‘I don't want to hear that chord.' Jim's ears were just tuned into one, four, and five. I mean, just simple changes. He said they were the breadwinners. He didn't like minor chords. Marvell and I always would try to put that pretty stuff in there. Jim didn't like that. We'd bump heads about that stuff. Me and Marvell fought all the time that. Booker wanted change as well. As time progressed, I was able to sneak a few in.” Of course, minor chords weren't *completely* banned from Stax, and some did sneak through, but even ballads would often have only major chords -- like Redding's next single, "I've Been Loving You Too Long". That track had its origins with Jerry Butler, the singer who had been lead vocalist of the Impressions before starting a solo career and having success with tracks like "For Your Precious Love": [Excerpt: Jerry Butler, "For Your Precious Love"] Redding liked that song, and covered it himself on his second album, and he had become friendly with Butler. Butler had half-written a song, and played it for Redding, who told him he'd like to fiddle with it, see what he could do. Butler forgot about the conversation, until he got a phone call from Redding, telling him that he'd recorded the song. Butler was confused, and also a little upset -- he'd been planning to finish the song himself, and record it. But then Redding played him the track, and Butler decided that doing so would be pointless -- it was Redding's song now: [Excerpt: Otis Redding, "I've Been Loving You Too Long"] "I've Been Loving You Too Long" became Redding's first really big hit, making number two on the R&B chart and twenty-one on the Hot One Hundred. It was soon being covered by the Rolling Stones and Ike & Tina Turner, and while Redding was still not really known to the white pop market, he was quickly becoming one of the biggest stars on the R&B scene. His record sales were still not matching his live performances -- he would always make far more money from appearances than from records -- but he was by now the performer that every other soul singer wanted to copy. "I've Been Loving You Too Long" came out just after Redding's second album, The Great Otis Redding Sings Soul Ballads, which happened to be the first album released on Volt Records. Before that, while Stax and Volt had released the singles, they'd licensed all the album tracks to Atlantic's Atco subsidiary, which had released the small number of albums put out by Stax artists. But times were changing and the LP market was becoming bigger. And more importantly, the *stereo* LP market was becoming bigger. Singles were still only released in mono, and would be for the next few years, but the album market had a substantial number of audiophiles, and they wanted stereo. This was a problem for Stax, because they only had a mono tape recorder, and they were scared of changing anything about their setup in case it destroyed their sound. Tom Dowd, who had been recording in eight track for years, was appalled by the technical limitations at the McLemore Ave studio, but eventually managed to get Jim Stewart, who despite -- or possibly because of -- being a white country musician was the most concerned that they keep their Black soul sound, to agree to a compromise. They would keep everything hooked up exactly the same -- the same primitive mixers, the same mono tape recorder -- and Stax would continue doing their mixes for mono, and all their singles would come directly off that mono tape. But at the same time, they would *also* have a two-track tape recorder plugged in to the mixer, with half the channels going on one track and half on the other. So while they were making the mix, they'd *also* be getting a stereo dump of that mix. The limitations of the situation meant that they might end up with drums and vocals in one channel and everything else in the other -- although as the musicians cut everything together in the studio, which had a lot of natural echo, leakage meant there was a *bit* of everything on every track -- but it would still be stereo. Redding's next album, Otis Blue, was recorded on this new equipment, with Dowd travelling down from New York to operate it. Dowd was so keen on making the album stereo that during that session, they rerecorded Redding's two most recent singles, "I've Been Loving You Too Long" and "Respect" (which hadn't yet come out but was in the process of being released) in soundalike versions so there would be stereo versions of the songs on the album -- so the stereo and mono versions of Otis Blue actually have different performances of those songs on them. It shows how intense the work rate was at Stax -- and how good they were at their jobs -- that apart from the opening track "Ole Man Trouble", which had already been recorded as a B-side, all of Otis Blue, which is often considered the greatest soul album in history, was recorded in a twenty-eight hour period, and it would have been shorter but there was a four-hour break in the middle, from 10PM to 2AM, so that the musicians on the session could play their regular local club gigs. And then after the album was finished, Otis left the session to perform a gig that evening. Tom Dowd, in particular, was astonished by the way Redding took charge in the studio, and how even though he had no technical musical knowledge, he would direct the musicians. Dowd called Redding a genius and told Phil Walden that the only two other artists he'd worked with who had as much ability in the studio were Bobby Darin and Ray Charles. Other than those singles and "Ole Man Trouble", Otis Blue was made up entirely of cover versions. There were three versions of songs by Sam Cooke, who had died just a few months earlier, and whose death had hit Redding hard -- for all that he styled himself on Little Richard vocally, he was also in awe of Cooke as a singer and stage presence. There were also covers of songs by The Temptations, William Bell, and B.B. King. And there was also an odd choice -- Steve Cropper suggested that Redding cut a cover of a song by a white band that was in the charts at the time: [Excerpt: The Rolling Stones, "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction"] Redding had never heard the song before -- he was not paying attention to the white pop scene at the time, just to his competition on the R&B charts -- but he was interested in doing it. Cropper sat by the turntable, scribbling down what he thought the lyrics Jagger was singing were, and they cut the track. Redding starts out more or less singing the right words: [Excerpt: Otis Redding, "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction"] But quickly ends up just ad-libbing random exclamations in the same way that he would in many of his live performances: [Excerpt: Otis Redding, "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction"] Otis Blue made number one on the R&B album chart, and also made number six on the UK album chart -- Redding, like many soul artists, was far more popular in the UK than in the US. It only made number seventy-five on the pop album charts in the US, but it did a remarkable thing as far as Stax was concerned -- it *stayed* in the lower reaches of the charts, and on the R&B album charts, for a long time. Redding had become what is known as a "catalogue artist", something that was almost unknown in rock and soul music at this time, but which was just starting to appear. Up to 1965, the interlinked genres that we now think of as rock and roll, rock, pop, blues, R&B, and soul, had all operated on the basis that singles were where the money was, and that singles should be treated like periodicals -- they go on the shelves, stay there for a few weeks, get replaced by the new thing, and nobody's interested any more. This had contributed to the explosive rate of change in pop music between about 1954 and 1968. You'd package old singles up into albums, and stick some filler tracks on there as a way of making a tiny bit of money from tracks which weren't good enough to release as singles, but that was just squeezing the last few drops of juice out of the orange, it wasn't really where the money was. The only exceptions were those artists like Ray Charles who crossed over into the jazz and adult pop markets. But in general, your record sales in the first few weeks and months *were* your record sales. But by the mid-sixties, as album sales started to take off more, things started to change. And Otis Redding was one of the first artists to really benefit from that. He wasn't having huge hit singles, and his albums weren't making the pop top forty, but they *kept selling*. Redding wouldn't have an album make the top forty in his lifetime, but they sold consistently, and everything from Otis Blue onward sold two hundred thousand or so copies -- a massive number in the much smaller album market of the time. These sales gave Redding some leverage. His contract with Stax was coming to an end in a few months, and he was getting offers from other companies. As part of his contract renegotiation, he got Jim Stewart -- who like so many people in this story including Redding himself liked to operate on handshake deals and assumptions of good faith on the part of everyone else, and who prided himself on being totally fair and not driving hard bargains -- to rework his publishing deal. Now Redding's music was going to be published by Redwal Music -- named after Redding and Phil Walden -- which was owned as a four-way split between Redding, Walden, Stewart, and Joe Galkin. Redding also got the right as part of his contract negotiations to record other artists using Stax's facilities and musicians. He set up his own label, Jotis Records -- a portmanteau of Joe and Otis, for Joe Galkin and himself, and put out records by Arthur Conley: [Excerpt: Arthur Conley, "Who's Fooling Who?"] Loretta Williams [Excerpt: Loretta Williams, "I'm Missing You"] and Billy Young [Excerpt: Billy Young, "The Sloopy"] None of these was a success, but it was another example of how Redding was trying to use his success to boost others. There were other changes going on at Stax as well. The company was becoming more tightly integrated with Atlantic Records -- Tom Dowd had started engineering more sessions, Jerry Wexler was turning up all the time, and they were starting to make records for Atlantic, as we discussed in the episode on "In the Midnight Hour". Atlantic were also loaning Stax Sam and Dave, who were contracted to Atlantic but treated as Stax artists, and whose hits were written by the new Stax songwriting team of Isaac Hayes and David Porter: [Excerpt: Sam and Dave, "Soul Man"] Redding was not hugely impressed by Sam and Dave, once saying in an interview "When I first heard the Righteous Brothers, I thought they were colored. I think they sing better than Sam and Dave", but they were having more and bigger chart hits than him, though they didn't have the same level of album sales. Also, by now Booker T and the MGs had a new bass player. Donald "Duck" Dunn had always been the "other" bass player at Stax, ever since he'd started with the Mar-Keys, and he'd played on many of Redding's recordings, as had Lewie Steinberg, the original bass player with the MGs. But in early 1965, the Stax studio musicians had cut a record originally intending it to be a Mar-Keys record, but decided to put it out as by Booker T and the MGs, even though Booker T wasn't there at the time -- Isaac Hayes played keyboards on the track: [Excerpt: Booker T and the MGs, "Boot-Leg"] Booker T Jones would always have a place at Stax, and would soon be back full time as he finished his degree, but from that point on Duck Dunn, not Lewie Steinberg, was the bass player for the MGs. Another change in 1965 was that Stax got serious about promotion. Up to this point, they'd just relied on Atlantic to promote their records, but obviously Atlantic put more effort into promoting records on which it made all the money than ones it just distributed. But as part of the deal to make records with Sam and Dave and Wilson Pickett, Atlantic had finally put their arrangement with Stax on a contractual footing, rather than their previous handshake deal, and they'd agreed to pay half the salary of a publicity person for Stax. Stax brought in Al Bell, who made a huge impression. Bell had been a DJ in Memphis, who had gone off to work with Martin Luther King for a while, before leaving after a year because, as he put it "I was not about passive resistance. I was about economic development, economic empowerment.” He'd returned to DJing, first in Memphis, then in Washington DC, where he'd been one of the biggest boosters of Stax records in the area. While he was in Washington, he'd also started making records himself. He'd produced several singles for Grover Mitchell on Decca: [Excerpt: Grover Mitchell, "Midnight Tears"] Those records were supervised by Milt Gabler, the same Milt Gabler who produced Louis Jordan's records and "Rock Around the Clock", and Bell co-produced them with Eddie Floyd, who wrote that song, and Chester Simmons, formerly of the Moonglows, and the three of them started their own label, Safice, which had put out a few records by Floyd and others, on the same kind of deal with Atlantic that Stax had: [Excerpt: Eddie Floyd, "Make Up Your Mind"] Floyd would himself soon become a staff songwriter at Stax. As with almost every decision at Stax, the decision to hire Bell was a cause of disagreement between Jim Stewart and his sister Estelle Axton, the "Ax" in Stax, who wasn't as involved in the day-to-day studio operations as her brother, but who was often regarded by the musicians as at least as important to the spirit of the label, and who tended to disagree with her brother on pretty much everything. Stewart didn't want to hire Bell, but according to Cropper “Estelle and I said, ‘Hey, we need somebody that can liaison between the disc jockeys and he's the man to do it. Atlantic's going into a radio station with six Atlantic records and one Stax record. We're not getting our due.' We knew that. We needed more promotion and he had all the pull with all those disc jockeys. He knew E. Rodney Jones and all the big cats, the Montagues and so on. He knew every one of them.” Many people at Stax will say that the label didn't even really start until Bell joined -- and he became so important to the label that he would eventually take it over from Stewart and Axton. Bell came in every day and immediately started phoning DJs, all day every day, starting in the morning with the drivetime East Coast DJs, and working his way across the US, ending up at midnight phoning the evening DJs in California. Booker T Jones said of him “He had energy like Otis Redding, except he wasn't a singer. He had the same type of energy. He'd come in the room, pull up his shoulders and that energy would start. He would start talking about the music business or what was going on and he energized everywhere he was. He was our Otis for promotion. It was the same type of energy charisma.” Meanwhile, of course, Redding was constantly releasing singles. Two more singles were released from Otis Blue -- his versions of "My Girl" and "Satisfaction", and he also released "I Can't Turn You Loose", which was originally the B-side to "Just One More Day" but ended up charting higher than its original A-side. It's around this time that Redding did something which seems completely out of character, but which really must be mentioned given that with very few exceptions everyone in his life talks about him as some kind of saint. One of Redding's friends was beaten up, and Redding, the friend, and another friend drove to the assailant's house and started shooting through the windows, starting a gun battle in which Redding got grazed. His friend got convicted of attempted murder, and got two years' probation, while Redding himself didn't face any criminal charges but did get sued by the victims, and settled out of court for a few hundred dollars. By this point Redding was becoming hugely rich from his concert appearances and album sales, but he still hadn't had a top twenty pop hit. He needed to break the white market. And so in April 1966, Redding went to LA, to play the Sunset Strip: [Excerpt: Otis Redding, "Respect (live at the Whisky A-Go-Go)"] Redding's performance at the Whisky A-Go-Go, a venue which otherwise hosted bands like the Doors, the Byrds, the Mothers of Invention, and Love, was his first real interaction with the white rock scene, part of a process that had started with his recording of "Satisfaction". The three-day residency got rave reviews, though the plans to release a live album of the shows were scuppered when Jim Stewart listened back to the tapes and decided that Redding's horn players were often out of tune. But almost everyone on the LA scene came out to see the shows, and Redding blew them away. According to one biography of Redding I used, it was seeing how Redding tuned his guitar that inspired the guitarist from the support band, the Rising Sons, to start playing in the same tuning -- though I can't believe for a moment that Ry Cooder, one of the greatest slide guitarists of his generation, didn't already know about open tunings. But Redding definitely impressed that band -- Taj Mahal, their lead singer, later said it was "one of the most amazing performances I'd ever seen". Also at the gigs was Bob Dylan, who played Redding a song he'd just recorded but not yet released: [Excerpt: Bob Dylan, "Just Like a Woman"] Redding agreed that the song sounded perfect for him, and said he would record it. He apparently made some attempts at rehearsing it at least, but never ended up recording it. He thought the first verse and chorus were great, but had problems with the second verse: [Excerpt: Bob Dylan, "Just Like a Woman"] Those lyrics were just too abstract for him to find a way to connect with them emotionally, and as a result he found himself completely unable to sing them. But like his recording of "Satisfaction", this was another clue to him that he should start paying more attention to what was going on in the white music industry, and that there might be things he could incorporate into his own style. As a result of the LA gigs, Bill Graham booked Redding for the Fillmore in San Francisco. Redding was at first cautious, thinking this might be a step too far, and that he wouldn't go down well with the hippie crowd, but Graham persuaded him, saying that whenever he asked any of the people who the San Francisco crowds most loved -- Jerry Garcia or Paul Butterfield or Mike Bloomfield -- who *they* most wanted to see play there, they all said Otis Redding. Redding reluctantly agreed, but before he took a trip to San Francisco, there was somewhere even further out for him to go. Redding was about to head to England but before he did there was another album to make, and this one would see even more of a push for the white market, though still trying to keep everything soulful. As well as Redding originals, including "Fa-Fa-Fa-Fa (Sad Song)", another song in the mould of "Mr. Pitiful", there was another cover of a contemporary hit by a guitar band -- this time a version of the Beatles' "Day Tripper" -- and two covers of old standards; the country song "Tennessee Waltz", which had recently been covered by Sam Cooke, and a song made famous by Bing Crosby, "Try a Little Tenderness". That song almost certainly came to mind because it had recently been used in the film Dr. Strangelove, but it had also been covered relatively recently by two soul greats, Aretha Franklin: [Excerpt: Aretha Franklin, "Try a Little Tenderness"] And Sam Cooke: [Excerpt: Sam Cooke, "Live Medley: I Love You For Sentimental Reasons/Try a Little Tenderness/You Send Me"] This version had horn parts arranged by Isaac Hayes, who by this point had been elevated to be considered one of the "Big Six" at Stax records -- Hayes, his songwriting partner David Porter, Steve Cropper, Duck Dunn, Booker T. Jones, and Al Jackson, were all given special status at the company, and treated as co-producers on every record -- all the records were now credited as produced by "staff", but it was the Big Six who split the royalties. Hayes came up with a horn part that was inspired by Sam Cooke's "A Change is Gonna Come", and which dominated the early part of the track: [Excerpt: Otis Redding, "Try a Little Tenderness"] Then the band came in, slowly at first: [Excerpt: Otis Redding, "Try a Little Tenderness"] But Al Jackson surprised them when they ran through the track by deciding that after the main song had been played, he'd kick the track into double-time, and give Redding a chance to stretch out and do his trademark grunts and "got-ta"s. The single version faded out shortly after that, but the version on the album kept going for an extra thirty seconds: [Excerpt: Otis Redding, "Try a Little Tenderness"] As Booker T. Jones said “Al came up with the idea of breaking up the rhythm, and Otis just took that and ran with it. He really got excited once he found out what Al was going to do on the drums. He realized how he could finish the song. That he could start it like a ballad and finish it full of emotion. That's how a lot of our arrangements would come together. Somebody would come up with something totally outrageous.” And it would have lasted longer but Jim Stewart pushed the faders down, realising the track was an uncommercial length even as it was. Live, the track could often stretch out to seven minutes or longer, as Redding drove the crowd into a frenzy, and it soon became one of the highlights of his live set, and a signature song for him: [Excerpt: Otis Redding, "Try a Little Tenderness (live in London)"] In September 1966, Redding went on his first tour outside the US. His records had all done much better in the UK than they had in America, and they were huge favourites of everyone on the Mod scene, and when he arrived in the UK he had a limo sent by Brian Epstein to meet him at the airport. The tour was an odd one, with multiple London shows, shows in a couple of big cities like Manchester and Bristol, and shows in smallish towns in Hampshire and Lincolnshire. Apparently the shows outside London weren't particularly well attended, but the London shows were all packed to overflowing. Redding also got his own episode of Ready! Steady! Go!, on which he performed solo as well as with guest stars Eric Burdon and Chris Farlowe: [Excerpt: Otis Redding, Chris Farlowe and Eric Burdon, "Shake/Land of a Thousand Dances"] After the UK tour, he went on a short tour of the Eastern US with Sam and Dave as his support act, and then headed west to the Fillmore for his three day residency there, introducing him to the San Francisco music scene. His first night at the venue was supported by the Grateful Dead, the second by Johnny Talbot and De Thangs and the third by Country Joe and the Fish, but there was no question that it was Otis Redding that everyone was coming to see. Janis Joplin turned up at the Fillmore every day at 3PM, to make sure she could be right at the front for Redding's shows that night, and Bill Graham said, decades later, "By far, Otis Redding was the single most extraordinary talent I had ever seen. There was no comparison. Then or now." However, after the Fillmore gigs, for the first time ever he started missing shows. The Sentinel, a Black newspaper in LA, reported a few days later "Otis Redding, the rock singer, failed to make many friends here the other day when he was slated to appear on the Christmas Eve show[...] Failed to draw well, and Redding reportedly would not go on." The Sentinel seem to think that Redding was just being a diva, but it's likely that this was the first sign of a problem that would change everything about his career -- he was developing vocal polyps that were making singing painful. It's notable though that the Sentinel refers to Redding as a "rock" singer, and shows again how different genres appeared in the mid-sixties to how they appear today. In that light, it's interesting to look at a quote from Redding from a few months later -- "Everybody thinks that all songs by colored people are rhythm and blues, but that's not true. Johnny Taylor, Muddy Waters, and B.B. King are blues singers. James Brown is not a blues singer. He has a rock and roll beat and he can sing slow pop songs. My own songs "Respect" and "Mr Pitiful" aren't blues songs. I'm speaking in terms of the beat and structure of the music. A blues is a song that goes twelve bars all the way through. Most of my songs are soul songs." So in Redding's eyes, neither he nor James Brown were R&B -- he was soul, which was a different thing from R&B, while Brown was rock and roll and pop, not soul, but journalists thought that Redding was rock. But while the lines between these things were far less distinct than they are today, and Redding was trying to cross over to the white audience, he knew what genre he was in, and celebrated that in a song he wrote with his friend Art

Adore Delano steps Behind The Rope. About to embark on the US leg of her World Tour, Adore is here to mention it all. Adore starts at the beginning of how the world first came to know her as Danny Noriega, semi finalist on Season Seven of American Idol. Adore chats Paula Abdul, Randy Jackson, the Idol experience and what it was like to have been on the receiving end of a typical day for Mr. Simon Cowell. Adore talks life after Idol - appearing on the Ellen DeGeneres show, being hired by Rosie O'Donnell to perform on her legendary “Rosie” cruises and the birth, as we know her, of Adore Delano. Adore talks about Drag Race - joining, finishing second, returning for All Stars, Mama Ru, guest judge Khloe Kardashian and the state of the show today which has traditionally come under scrutiny for its inclusion, or lack thereof, of all aspects of the LGBTQIA+ rainbow. Speaking of that World Tour, Adore talks musical influences, rock and roll and just what one can expect from an Adore Delano show which starts later this month at the famed Whisky A Go Go in Downtown LA! We cannot wait! To Purchase Tickets to See Adore Head To adoredelano.com/pages/north-america-tour-dates @adoredelano @obsessedintl @behindvelvetrope @davidyontef BONUS & AD FREE EPISODES Available at - www.patreon.com/behindthevelvetrope BROUGHT TO YOU BY: PELOTON  - onepeloton.com/home-trial (Try Peloton Tread Risk Free With a 30 Day Home Trial) RELIEFBAND - reliefband.com (20% Off Plus Free Shipping. Use Code VELVET) ADVERTISING INQUIRIES - Please contact David@advertising-execs.com MERCH Available at - https://www.teepublic.com/stores/behind-the-velvet-rope?ref_id=13198 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Gen X Brothers talk with Hollywood 90's Glam Band Foxy Roxx about their humble past to their charging resurgence. They will also be playing a show with Peppermint Creeps on Dec 17th 2022 at the Whisky A Go Go. We talk about the old times and how shows like Peacemaker on HBO are bringing back the Glam Scene with bands like Pretty Boy Floyd featured in their soundtrack.Erik and Glenn celebrate their 40th show by discussing the disaster that is "Ye" or Kanye West. The only man that could make Alex Jones feel uncomfortable.The brothers also review the New Metallica Song - Lux ÆternalAnd Erik talks about his experience watching Steve Vai live in concert.Intro Music by Foxy Roxx: Hangin' Out and Mixed Up WorldMentioned in this episode:Edge of Life Designswww.edgeoflifedesigns.com Edge of Life Designswww.edgeoflifedesigns.com