It's the Sweet 16 in our March MASTAS tournament to choose the all-time best teen idol. This live episode features analysis, predictions, and dancing to New Edition. Go vote at patreon.com/mastas . (You only need a free Patreon account to vote.) Our intro is by Andrew Byrne, and our outro is by The Partridge Family. To contact us or buy our books, visit MarkAndSarahTalkAboutSongs.com . To become a patron of the show, visit patreon.com/mastas . See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and ...
Mar 08, 2021•49 min•Ep. 248
It's the Round of 32 in our March MASTAS tournament to determine the all-time best teen idol. This live episode features our analysis and predictions for every match-up, plus impassioned comments from our patrons. Go vote at patreon.com/mastas . (You just need a free Patreon account to vote.) Our intro is by Andrew Byrne, and our outro is by the Spice Girls. To contact us or buy our books, visit MarkAndSarahTalkAboutSongs.com . To become a patron of the show, visit patreon.com/mastas . See Priva...
Mar 01, 2021•1 hr 2 min•Ep. 247
It's the Round of 64 in our March MASTAS tournament to determine the all-time best teen idol! Listen for our analysis and predictions for every match-up, and then go vote at patreon.com/mastas . (You can vote even if you aren't a patron!) Our intro is by Andrew Byrne, and our outro is by Rick Springfield. To contact us or buy our books, visit MarkAndSarahTalkAboutSongs.com . To become a patron of the show, visit patreon.com/mastas . See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California ...
Feb 22, 2021•1 hr 46 min•Ep. 246
In Part 2 of our two-part ranking of Simon and Garfunkel's album "Bridge Over Troubled Water," we're discussing the mysteries of "The Boxer," tidal waves of tears, and the great relief of the occasional uptempo song. Our intro is by Andrew Byrne, and our outro is by Simon & Garfunkel. To contact us or buy our books, visit MarkAndSarahTalkAboutSongs.com . To become a patron of the show, visit patreon.com/mastas . See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at...
Feb 18, 2021•52 min•Ep. 245
In Part 1 of our two-part ranking of Simon and Garfunkel's album "Bridge Over Troubled Water," we're discussing songs of friendship, tales of traveling salesmen, and the music you can make at a Staples. Our intro is by Andrew Byrne, and our outro is by Paul Simon. To contact us or buy our books, visit MarkAndSarahTalkAboutSongs.com . To become a patron of the show, visit patreon.com/mastas . See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privac...
Feb 15, 2021•51 min•Ep. 220
Alicia Keys' mega-hit "No One" has us talking about distracting beauty, essential hype men, and the music you need when you're at an outdoor party. Our intro is by David Gregory Byrne, and our outro is by Dusty Springfield. To contact us or buy our books, visit MarkAndSarahTalkAboutSongs.com . To become a patron of the show, visit patreon.com/mastas . See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info ....
Feb 08, 2021•22 min•Ep. 219
The aggressive "okay-ness" of Charley Pride's "Kiss An Angel Good Mornin'" sends us down weird byways involving Twitty City, the Apple Music algorithm, and the way bland hits obscure better songs. Our intro is by Laura Barger and Jack Baldelli, and our outro is by Elton John. To contact us or buy our books, visit MarkAndSarahTalkAboutSongs.com . To become a patron of the show, visit patreon.com/mastas . See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art1...
Feb 01, 2021•28 min•Ep. 218
Mark and Sarah don't agree about Fiona Apple's "Heavy Balloon," but the reasons they disagree may delight you! Stick around for talk of overabundant metaphors, wild musical experiments, and the sweaters worn by phantoms. Our intro is by David Gregory Byrne, and our outro is by The Sundays. To contact us or buy our books, visit MarkAndSarahTalkAboutSongs.com . To become a patron of the show, visit patreon.com/mastas . See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice a...
Jan 25, 2021•23 min•Ep. 217
We aren't IN a cult -- that's another Mark and Sarah -- but we are LISTENING to The Cult! Their song "She Sells Sanctuary" has us talking about glam rockers in alt-rock drag, good songs we struggle to remember, and the preponderance of Jennifers. Our intro is by Andrew Byrne, and our outro is by The Verve. To contact us or buy our books, visit MarkAndSarahTalkAboutSongs.com . To become a patron of the show, visit patreon.com/mastas . See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California...
Jan 18, 2021•19 min•Ep. 216
We're ranking songs of self-pleasure, which means that along with making terrible onanism puns, we're (ahem) giving a hand to songs by Cyndi Lauper, Billy Idol, the Divinyls, and more. Our intro is by Andrew Byrne, and our outro is by De La Soul. To contact us or buy our books, visit MarkAndSarahTalkAboutSongs.com . To become a patron of the show, visit patreon.com/mastas . See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-i...
Jan 11, 2021•54 min•Ep. 215
We're celebrating 2021 by sharing the Patreon-only Single of the same number! Back in October of 2018, we talked about and ranked the #1 videos from Total Request Live 's first year, 1998 -- "the first year the show was on the air. This means we are professionally obligated to describe *NSYNC's Christmas video to you in exacting detail." Enjoy our thoughts on JT, Carson, and geometric facial hair...and for more exclusive content, join us at patreon.com/mastas! See Privacy Policy at https://art19...
Jan 04, 2021•40 min
Thanks to a listener request, we're talking about "Enter Sandman," Metallica's hard rock hall-of-famer. And because it's RIGHT THERE in the song, we're also talking about Snow White, Tori Amos, and the wendigo. Our intro is by Laura Barger and Jack Baldelli, and our outro is by Queens of the Stone Age. To contact us or buy our books, visit MarkAndSarahTalkAboutSongs.com . To become a patron of the show, visit patreon.com/mastas . See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Pri...
Dec 21, 2020•25 min•Ep. 214
Mark has finally selected a song from a musical -- "Ring of Keys" from Fun Home -- and it's got us talking about child actors, the adults we want to become, and the reason Sarah's books are color-coded. Our intro is by David Gregory Byrne, and our outro is by Booker T. To contact us or buy our pop music books, visit MarkAndSarahTalkAboutSongs.com . To become a patron of the show, visit patreon.com/mastas . See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://a...
Dec 14, 2020•28 min•Ep. 213
We're confronting the fact that Leonard Nimoy covered "Proud Mary," and it's got us talking about blithe confidence, celebrity side projects, and the profound confusion caused by terrible art. Our intro is by Andrew Byrne, and our outro is by Carl Sagan and Stephen Hawking. To contact us or buy our pop music books, visit MarkAndSarahTalkAboutSongs.com . To become a patron of the show, visit patreon.com/mastas . See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at http...
Dec 07, 2020•26 min•Ep. 212
In this MASTAS Single, we’re riffing on the K chapter of our Madonna book and picking the artists we think should cover Madonna’s hits, misses, and overlooked gems. We draft Alison Krauss, of course, and we also make room for Beyoncé, Dolly, and Harry Styles! For more Madge, you can read our new book, Madonna: A to Z . It’s available at MarkAndSarahTalkAboutSongs.com . See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info ....
Nov 30, 2020•24 min•Ep. 234
Because we wrote a Madonna book (available now!), we're talking about Madonna's first single ("Everybody") and one of her most recent ("Medellin"). Get ready for a wild ride through almost 40 years of dance music! Our intro is by Andrew Byrne, and our outro is by Madonna. To contact us or buy our pop music books, visit MarkAndSarahTalkAboutSongs.com . To become a patron of the show, visit patreon.com/mastas . See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https:...
Nov 23, 2020•29 min•Ep. 211
We're thrilled 4 the opportunity 2 rank the songs on Purple Rain. As we choose our favorites from the album, we talk about everything from instrumental breaks to terrible movies we love to the best way to pleasure oneself with a magazine. Our intro is by David Gregory Byrne (with an assist from The Purple One), and our outro is by Luscious Jackson. You can email us at talkaboutsongs@gmail.com , tweet us at @talksongs, or Facebook us at facebook.com/mastas.podcast . To access bonus content (and v...
Nov 16, 2020•1 hr•Ep. 210
Those high notes and those cheekbones clearly mean we're discussing "Take On Me," the swoon-inducer by a-ha. We're also talking about perfect riffs, the value of just doing your job, and the songs that Sarah thought were by Simple Minds. Our intro is by David Gregory Byrne, and our outro is by Simple Minds (we double-checked). Want to leave us a voicemail? Just call 646-389-0767! You can email us at talkaboutsongs@gmail.com , tweet us at @talksongs, or Facebook us at facebook.com/mastas.podcast ...
Nov 09, 2020•21 min•Ep. 231
Christina Aguilera's "Ain't No Other Man" gets us to consider the right time to holler, the best time to have a musical personality, and the perfect time to reference Project Runway. Our intro is by Laura Barger and Jack Baldelli, and our outro is by Etta James. Want to leave us a voicemail? Just call 646-389-0767! You can email us at talkaboutsongs@gmail.com, tweet us at @talksongs, or Facebook us at facebook.com/mastas.podcast . To get access to bonus content (and vote in ranking episodes), be...
Nov 02, 2020•23 min•Ep. 230
Special guest Clinton Sparks joins us to talk about "Breakin'... There's No Stopping Us," an all-time breakdance classic. We also get around to stories about Michael Jackson, VHS tapes, and things that should be more dope. Our intro is by Andrew Byrne, and our outro is by Clinton (the band, not our guest!) Want to leave us a voicemail? Just call 646-389-0767! You can email us at talkaboutsongs@gmail.com , tweet us at @talksongs, or Facebook us at facebook.com/mastas.podcast . To get access to bo...
Oct 26, 2020•28 min•Ep. 229
Listening to "Crash Into Me" by Dave Matthews Band gets us worked up, okay? And maybe we shout and curse and talk about Ted Hughes and reminisce about the mall. But it's the process we need to face these feelings. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info .
Oct 19, 2020•32 min•Ep. 228
It's an all listener-request special! We're talking about seven songs that our listeners crave, so get ready for Missy Elliott, Sheila E, Weird Al, The Mountain Goats, The Pretenders, Bowie and Queen, and the Tootsie love theme. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info .
Oct 12, 2020•1 hr 6 min•Ep. 227
Special guest Kevin Smokler joins us to discuss Living Colour's bouncy rocker "Glamour Boys," which gets us talking about joyful political protest, Black artists who make hard rock, and the real meaning of TCBY. Our intro is by Andrew Byrne and our outro is by Rick Springfield. Want to leave us a voicemail? Just call 646-389-0767! You can email us at talkaboutsongs@gmail.com, tweet us at @talksongs, or Facebook us at facebook.com/mastas.podcast. To get access to bonus content (and vote in rankin...
Sep 28, 2020•46 min•Ep. 226
We love Lady Gaga's song "Bad Romance," and we want to tell you why. Hint: Our reasons include dope beats, the French language, the dismantling of social armor, and the legacy of Freddie Mercury. Meanwhile, a listener request has us talking about a classic B-52s video! Our intro is by David Gregory Byrne, and our outro is by Queen. Want to leave us a voicemail? Just call 646-389-0767! You can email us at talkaboutsongs@gmail.com, tweet us at @talksongs, or Facebook us at facebook.com/mastas.podc...
Sep 21, 2020•36 min•Ep. 225
Sarah's dream of a graduate degree in funk may have to wait, but at least we can talk about "Give Up The Funk" by Parliament! That also gets us talking about musical languages we may not speak, grooves we cannot deny, and Russian gossip we can't resist. Our intro is by David Gregory Byrne, and our outro is by James Brown. Want to leave us a voicemail? Just call 646-389-0767! You can email us at talkaboutsongs@gmail.com, tweet us at @talksongs, or Facebook us at facebook.com/mastas.podcast. To ge...
Sep 14, 2020•25 min•Ep. 224
What starts as a simple discussion of Belinda Carlisle's "Heaven is a Place on Earth" evolves into a deeper (and weirder) chat about girl groups, terrible French, and the perfect time to be perfectly adequate. Our intro is by Andrew Byrne, and our outro is by The Motels. Want to leave us a voicemail? Just call 646-389-0767! You can email us at talkaboutsongs@gmail.com, tweet us at @talksongs, or Facebook us at facebook.com/mastas.podcast. To get access to bonus content (and vote in ranking episo...
Aug 31, 2020•35 min•Ep. 223
To celebrate our 200th episode (!!), we're ranking Cher's 10 most popular songs. That means we get to talk about everything from her dark-and-stormy story songs to her trendsetting dance classics to the fur-vest-wearing fellow who used to stand beside her. Our intro is by David Gregory Byrne, and our outro is by Dubstar. Want to leave us a voicemail? Just call 646-389-0767! You can email us at talkaboutsongs@gmail.com, tweet us at @talksongs, or Facebook us at facebook.com/mastas.podcast. To get...
Aug 24, 2020•1 hr 19 min•Ep. 222
We have a jones for U2's "One," a deeply moving song that helps us get past some of the things we find exhausting about Bono. After talking about the song's history and its ability to sustain multiple interpretations, we also talk about why Mary J. Blige is a genius. Our intro is by Andrew Byrne, and our outro is by The Stone Roses. Want to leave us a voicemail? Just call 646-389-0767! You can email us at talkaboutsongs@gmail.com, tweet us at @talksongs, or Facebook us at facebook.com/mastas.pod...
Aug 17, 2020•37 min•Ep. 221
We feel like VERY cool cats as we discuss Dean Martin's "Ain't That a Kick in Head.. We also feel like discussing masculine archetypes, cummerbunds, and whoever the hell Peter Lawford might be. Our intro is by Laura Barger and Jack Baldelli, and our outro is by Sarah Vaughn. Want to leave us a voicemail? Just call 646-389-0767! You can email us at talkaboutsongs@gmail.com, tweet us at @talksongs, or Facebook us at facebook.com/mastas.podcast. To get access to bonus content (and vote in ranking e...
Aug 10, 2020•28 min•Ep. 220
Welcome to the first episode of our new music game show, Mark and Sarah Quiz About Songs! Play along with three of our listeners as they try to guess the hits of 1991. We also save plenty of time to talk about chart facts, musical obsessions, and the pins you should wear on a jean jacket. Our intro is by David Gregory Byrne. Want to leave us a voicemail? Just call 646-389-0767! You can email us at talkaboutsongs@gmail.com, tweet us at @talksongs, or Facebook us at facebook.com/mastas.podcast. To...
Aug 03, 2020•49 min•Ep. 219
