After breaking out as a member of Rick Springfield's band in the early 80s, guitarist Tim Pierce went on to become one of the most sought after session guys in the business. He has literally played on over 1000 recordings in his long career. Some of the big collaborations that we talk about in here are Bon Jovi, John Waite, Crowded House, Michael Jackson, Kenny Loggins, Bruce Springsteen, Seal, Roger Waters, Meat Loaf, and Rod Stewart. But, what's more interesting is the online guitar instructio...
May 11, 2019•1 hr 10 min•Ep. 181
We're turning four this week! And to celebrate we present this very rare interview with one of our most requested guests, Sandi Saraya! Saraya were an excellent, but short-lived hard rock band that only released two albums - the self-titled in 1989 featuring the mild hit "Love Has Taken Its Toll" and the much heavier and darker follow up, When The Blackbird Sings in 1991 - before mysteriously disappearing. Fans have wondered for years where Sandi went and why. We answer those questions here whic...
May 08, 2019•1 hr 19 min•Ep. 180
Oscar-winner Franke Previte basically won the lottery in 1987. He first rose to mild fame fronting the early 80s melodic rock band Franke and the Knockouts where he recorded three great albums and scored three top 40 hits you may remember like "Sweetheart" and "You're My Girl." While their "Foreginer by way of Jersey" sound was solid, it wasn't taking over the world. And then everything changed. Franke was asked to contribute a couple songs to a movie called Dirty Dancing (he worried it was a po...
Apr 30, 2019•1 hr 19 min•Ep. 179
The release of Dare by the newly reconstituted Human League in 1981 changed everything. Suddenly, synthesizers weren't just these cold machines producing frosty sounds from the back of the room. Phil Oakey and company showed how they could be used to create pop songs with hooks and choruses that sounded great on the radio, something no one else had done as well to that point. In this month's Deep Dive, Human Leaguer and former guest Ian Burden (ep 194) returns to talk about the creation and reco...
Apr 26, 2019•1 hr 36 min•Ep. 178
Remember that 2002 movie starring Hugh Grant called About A Boy? You know, the one where he plays a bachelor able to live comfortably on royalties he receives from a single Christmas song? Just wait till you hear the story on "Christmas Wrapping"! Meet Chris Butler, guitarist and primary songwriter for The Waitresses. Chris is just your run-of-the-mill artist who…wrote his biggest hits from a woman’s perspective, records music without the benefit of electricity and lives in a serial killer’s hou...
Apr 23, 2019•1 hr 20 min•Ep. 177
The 90s were good to Royston Langdon. His band hit it big in 1996 with their #1 smash "In The Meantime" off their debut album Resident Alien. He also married actress Liv Tyler. But after two more Spacehog albums, the band came apart and was never the same. Over the years there have been a couple reunions, but today Royston is focusing on his solo career and released his first solo album Everything's Dandy under the moniker LEEDS (the album we be re-released under his own name soon). And, congrat...
Apr 17, 2019•1 hr 21 min•Ep. 176
Noel and Jon had so much fun counting down their Top 10 soundtrack songs of the 80s, and so many leftovers, that they decided to do a part 2! This is us counting down another 10 songs - call them top 11-20, top honorable mentions, top obscure tracks, or whatever you want, as long as you listen, enjoy, and speak up! https://www.facebook.com/RelivingMyYouth/
Apr 12, 2019•1 hr 59 min•Ep. 175
Imagine you have Ronnie DeVoe's life. You're plucked in your early teens to round out New Edition and you never look back. Then, after several huge hits, you veer off with Ricky and Mike and invent New Jack Swing (and eclipse the success of New Edition) with Bell Biv DeVoe. Hits like "Poison" and "Do Me" were revolutionary. The core of New Edition - Ronnie, Ricky, Mike, Ralph Tresvant, Bobby Brown, and Johnny Gill - has never changed even if the guys float in and out depending on availability an...
Apr 09, 2019•1 hr 9 min•Ep. 174
We've all seen Back to the Future multiple times, but have you ever watched Marty McFly singing "Johnny B. Goode" at the dance and wondered whose voice was actually coming out of Michael J. Fox's mouth? Well, it was none other than Mark Campbell, front man for the excellent soul outfit Jack Mack & the Heart Attack! Here we go deep on all the minutia you could want regarding his involvement in that movie. 1985 was a big year for Mark as Jack Mack also appeared in the teen angst drama Tuff Tur...
Apr 03, 2019•1 hr 7 min•Ep. 173
We've got some big news to share! Plus, Jon and Jan recap the episodes of 2019 so far including MJ controversies, more rock star deaths, why 90s artists under-perform, and what's the deal with so many bassists lately. We also answer a few listener questions. Links to our listener-recorded song. Diamond Field feat Bob Haro - iTunes Diamond Field feat Bob Haro - Spotify...
Mar 30, 2019•1 hr 41 min•Ep. 172
The Fabulous Poodles were a band that merged humor with rock n' roll at a time when all bets were off. Part pub rock, part new wave, part power pop and part comedy act, the Fab Poos may not have earned major hits, but they had a blast trying during their short existence. They recorded three albums during the late 70s (their '77 debut was produced by the Who's John Entwistle), toured the states with Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers and the Ramones, and backed up Chuck Berry. But, when it ended fro...
Mar 27, 2019•1 hr 25 min•Ep. 171
In 1969 alone, Creedence Clearwater Revival released three of the greatest rock albums in history. The third, and arguably the best, was Willy and the Poor Boys. Landmark hits like "Down on the Corner" and " Fortunate Son" have cemented its place on pretty much every list of the best albums ever, deservedly so. This month we bring back one of our favorite guests ever, CCR bassist and Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Stu Cook (ep100) to discuss the making of the album, his favorite moments, and the dy...
Mar 24, 2019•1 hr 31 min•Ep. 170
You can certainly be forgiven if all you know about today’s guest is that he was the "Bourgeois" in Bourgeois Tagg and they had that great song “I Don’t Mind At All”. Surprisingly, Brent Bourgeois is fine with that too. In fact, he gets much more excited these days talking about his work behind the mixing board than those days spent in front of it. His career has taken more turns than Lombard Street and in doing so, has intersected with an odd variety of fame. How odd? Well, allow me to name-dro...
Mar 19, 2019•1 hr 29 min•Ep. 169
Michael Jackson is once again a very hot topic. In the recent documentary "Leaving Neverland" Wade Robson and James Safechuck make very serious claims that Michael sexually abused them for many years when they were young. If you've seen the movie, you no doubt have very strong feelings about it. Brad Sundberg worked alongside Michael for 18 years, including technical direction and being part of the engineering team on the Bad, Dangerous, HIStory and Blood on the Dance Floor albums, and these acc...
Mar 16, 2019•1 hr 26 min•Ep. 168
Producer Michael Beinhorn has worked the boards for some of the biggest albums of the last 30 years. Just look at this list - the Red Hot Chili Pepper's Mother's Milk, Soul Asylum's Grave Dancer's Union, Soundgarden's Superunknown (which just turned 25 last week), Marilyn Manson's Mechanical Animals, and Hole's Celebrity Skin. And there are many others where that came from (the Violent Femmes, Ozzy Osbourne, Social Distortion, and the Verve Pipe are some of the others we talk about). But, did yo...
Mar 13, 2019•2 hr 9 min•Ep. 167
Have you heard the news? Rock legends Styx are about to embark on a mini-tour with comedian Larry the Cable Guy as the opener (begins March 21st in Fargo, ND). What a unique pairing! It's being billed as the "Laugh. Rock. Seriously." tour and is expected to bring smiles to all in attendance at a time when we all need them. Lead singer Lawrence Gowan and I discuss how this happened as well as the band's most recent album, 2017's The Mission, which is the best Styx album released since their imper...
Mar 09, 2019•36 min•Ep. 166
This week we celebrate our 200th episode with the immortal Marco Pirroni! His partnership with Adam Ant created some of the most unique, catchy and enduring hits of the 80s. Smashes like "Stand and Deliver," "Prince Charming," "Goody Two Shoes," and "Strip" have never been equaled and sound as fresh today as the day they were recorded. These days Marco and Adam aren't on speaking terms, but Marco's kind-hearted, jovial nature makes him a fun conversationalist and he shares stories of their time ...
Mar 06, 2019•1 hr 37 min•Ep. 165
Canadian power pop legends The Kings have just released an excellent new single called "Circle of Friends/Man That I Am" that calls upon perhaps their greatest musical legacy, "This Beat Goes On/Switching to Glide." With help from old compadre, the legendary Bob Ezrin, the band polished off a nugget they've had in the vaults for many years and proven they haven't lost a step. Guitarist Mr. Zero discusses the potential for a new Kings album, the challenges of releasing new music in this day and a...
Mar 03, 2019•38 min•Ep. 164
Phil's journey through the music industry has been one for the ages. At just 21 years old, Phil was brought in to produce The Cure's Pornography album in 1982. That even lead to an 18 month stint as their touring bassist. What it also lead to was a partnership with the late-great producer Alex Sadkin, which had him producing some major albums of the era like Duran Duran's Seven and the Ragged Tiger and the Thompson Twins' Into the Gap (which got him a Grammy nom). We also discuss his work with f...
Feb 27, 2019•2 hr 14 min•Ep. 163
In 1986 this sophisticated pop group with the weird name scored a huge worldwide hit with "Digging Your Scene." Listening to just that song, you probably thought you knew what this band was all about - slick production, loungy horns, and a fey lead singer. But, when you listened to Animal Magic as a whole you heard blues and country guitar licks covered in bongos, saxophones a plenty, and beautiful ladies singing backup. Over the years, Animal Magic has become one of my favorite albums of all ti...
Feb 23, 2019•1 hr 31 min•Ep. 162
In my opinion, no group in the history of pop music went on as drastic a journey as the band Talk Talk. Beginning in the early 80s as an excellent and capable synth-pop group in a similar mold as Human League and Duran Duran, Mark Hollis, Lee Harris and Paul Webb's style changed over the course of five albums into something that stymied critics resolved to calling "post-rock." In the beginning of the 90s, the band called it quits with lead singer Hollis retiring into complete anonymity. In 2002 ...
Feb 19, 2019•1 hr 11 min•Ep. 161
It seemed fitting to kick off a new series on The Hustle with the man that kicked off the podcast back in May of 2015. Starbuck mastermind Bruce Blackman was our very first guest and still one of the best. His knack for telling stories infused with southern charm is unparalleled. It's what made Starbuck's music so good and what makes his new memoir The Road to Moonlight Feels Right so entertaining. Bruce has a Faulkner-esque knack for bringing color to his childhood in Mississippi and the many c...
Feb 15, 2019•33 min•Ep. 160
If there was ever a time to bring back the chill 90’s, it’s now. You saw it in the loose fitting clothes, and you definitely heard it in the music. It was just a laid back time. A calm before the storm, if you will. Duncan Sheik’s blockbuster hit personified that era. With well over a million radio plays, it followed you everywhere; inside your Toyota Camry, on VH1, aisle 7 at Costco and the changing room at Structure. Perhaps today, as you sang along to it on Nineties On 9, you felt a tinge of ...
Feb 12, 2019•1 hr 29 min•Ep. 159
British rock band Embrace may have come out in the wake of Oasis and Blur during the second British Invasion of the late 90s, but they had a sound that separated them greatly from the pack. Rarely has a Brit-pop group concocted grandiose rockers and epic ballads with more heart, inspiration and beauty. allmusic.com called them the "Orson Welles of rock" which is about right. While they've had a few #1 albums in the UK, their road to success in the States has been rocked with some of the worst lu...
Feb 06, 2019•1 hr 26 min•Ep. 158
Despite being a critically acclaimed singer/songwriter in his own right, Don Dixon's legacy as an important figure in American rock was cemented when he co-produced the first two albums by R.E.M. (Murmer and Reckoning) with Mitch Easter. Helping to bring their sound to the world changed everything. He would go on to produce other excellent artists like Guadalcanal Diary, the Smithereens, Marshall Crenshaw and Matthew Sweet, while also forging his own solo path with excellent tunes like "Praying ...
Jan 30, 2019•2 hr•Ep. 157
In part one of our new series Deep Dive, we've invited back former guest, Matthew Seligman to discuss the recording of Thomas Dolby's underappreciated masterpiece, 1984's The Flat Earth. At a time when listeners were expecting "She Blinded Me With Science Part 2", Dolby delivered a challenging piece of art that still doesn't get enough attention. Matthew played bass on the record and shares his stories and recollections of the era.
Jan 26, 2019•1 hr 26 min•Ep. 156
Ian Burden was a key member of the revolutionary new wave band the Human League during their imperial 80s period. Philip Oakey was desperate to find band members during the lead-up to the creation of 1981's game-changing album Dare! and called upon Burden to bring his musicianship to the group, which lead to classic singles like "The Sound of the Crowd," "Love Action," and "Mirror Man." After the unpleasant experience of recording 1986's Crash with Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, Ian decided to leave...
Jan 22, 2019•1 hr 33 min•Ep. 155
Once again Jon teams up with Noel Fogelman from Reliving My Youth for another music-related topic close to his heart: Top 10 soundtrack songs from the 80s! We discuss our lists and defend our picks. But, we ask you, dear listener, who wins? Good news - no metronome this time! Look for a Part 2 in the near future.
Jan 18, 2019•2 hr 34 min•Ep. 154
After building a devoted fanbase in their native Michigan in the early 90s, the Verve Pipe struck gold in 1996 when a song they'd been playing for years called "The Freshman" totally changed the game, catapulting their third album (first on a major label) Villains into platinum territory. The world was their oyster. Unfortunately, the follow-up tanked on an epic level and they never quite regained their footing. Since then their songcraft has only improved over the years, including 2017's excell...
Jan 15, 2019•1 hr 4 min•Ep. 153
Jon and Jan recap the episodes from November and December and countdown their top 10 episodes of the year, as well as the listener's top 5. We also answer some listener questions AND we announce a new sidecast for 2019 that listeners should really love. 2018 turned out to be a great year for us thanks to all of you. Hopefully we can keep it going!
Jan 12, 2019•2 hr 33 min•Ep. 152
