Strong Songs Season Seven kicks off with two of the most famous songs ever recorded, from one of the biggest bands in the world. U2's "Where the Streets Have No Name" and "With or Without You" make up two-thirds of the three-song "suite" of hit singles that kicked off their 1987 album The Joshua Tree. As it turns out, the two songs have a lot to say to one another! They also have a lot to say about how U2 wrote music, and about the beautiful, messy human process of collaborative creativity. Writ...
Mar 07, 2025•59 min•Ep 1•Transcript available on Metacast Strong Songs Season Seven is now underway! You can listen to the season premiere right now on Patreon, or here in the main feed in two weeks, on March 7. For those next two weeks, sign up to become a patron of the show and use the code "STRONG" and you'll get 80% off your first month. So basically, you can listen to the premiere right now for one dollar. Or just wait, that's fine too. The promo ends on March 7. ----LINKS----- MUSIC RECOMMENDATION: "Up From A Dream" by HAIM from Women in Music, P...
Feb 21, 2025•5 min•Transcript available on Metacast In between seasons, Kirk re-ran a bunch of old episodes and prefaced each one with a new music recommendation. He's taking those down recasts in preparation for season seven, but it seemed like a good idea to put all the music recommendations in one place. So that's what this episode is! DISCUSSED AND RECOMMENDED: "The Meadow" by Nickel Creek from Celebrants , 2023 "Chip Monkey" by Kick the Cat from Weirdo , 2002 "Fade to Black" by Howard Levy and Chris Siebold from Art + Adrenaline , 2018 "Disc...
Jan 31, 2025•36 min•Transcript available on Metacast In light of Janis Stockhouse's unexpected death at the tail end of 2024, we're re-posting Kirk's 2019 interview with her for anyone who might want to listen to it. Janis started teaching at North high school in Bloomington, Indiana, in the early 1980s. It was a time when "jazz education" as a concept was still a relatively new thing. She retired 38 years later, having grown the North band program into a well-known Midwest institution, winning countless awards at festivals around the world and re...
Jan 03, 2025•57 min•Transcript available on Metacast Kirk talks with Wesley Morris and Josh Gwynn about the endless world of Stevie Wonder. Morris and Gwynn are host and producer, respectively, of the brilliant new six-part podcast series The Wonder of Stevie . Check out Josh Gwynn's terrific pop culture podcast Back Issue , Wesley Morris's culture podcast Still Processing , and Morris' essential writing on Aretha Franklin , Jam & Lewis , Meshell Ndegeocello , and his mustache , as well as his 2019 essay about Black American Music . REFERENCED ON ...
Oct 04, 2024•1 hr 19 min•Transcript available on Metacast A cross-post of the first episode of "The Wonder of Stevie," a new six-part podcast series from Higher Ground and Pineapple Street Studios. It's a great show - find it on Apple , Amazon , Spotify ... it's a podcast, you know the deal. Next week, we'll run a conversation between Kirk, host Wesley Morris, and producer Josh Gwynn all about what they learned making the show, and how they've come to think about Stevie and his music. In the meantime, check out some of Wesley Morris's writing on Aretha...
Sep 27, 2024•1 hr 2 min•Transcript available on Metacast Back in August, Kirk went on Dave Hamilton's music podcast "Gig Gab" to talk about music, Strong Songs, podcasting, and life. It was a fun conversation, and seemed worth republishing here. You can find the full show notes here , watch a video version here , and can check out Gig Gab at giggabpodcast.com or anywhere you get podcasts....
Sep 13, 2024•1 hr 9 min•Transcript available on Metacast An update on what's next now that Season Six is complete, along with some book and music recommendations! BOOK RECOMMENDATIONS The History of Jazz by Ted Gioia, 3rd edition - 1997, revised 2021 Guitar Zero: The New Musician and the Science of Learning by Gary Marcus, 2012 MUSIC RECOMMENDATION LINKS Steve Pardo - DOS - (also in Video Game form on Steam ) Completions - I Needed Help Ruth Moody - Wanderer The Onesies - The Onesies Dig With the Wrong Foot Sheena Ringo - Hiizurutokoro Adi Oasis - Lot...
Jul 12, 2024•31 min•Transcript available on Metacast In the season six finale, Kirk takes a deep dive into Bruce Springsteen's signature song, 1975's "Born to Run." It's all here: tremolo guitar riffs, glockenspiel arpeggios, endless sus chords, and a sax solo for the ages. Baby, we were born for it. Written by: Bruce Springsteen Produced by: Springsteen, John Landau, and Mike Appel Album: Born to Run , 1975 Listen/Buy via Lynkify ALSO REFERENCED/DISCUSSED: "Tenth Avenue Freeze Out" and "Thunder Road" from Born to Run, 1975 Born to Run live at Mad...
Jun 28, 2024•1 hr•Ep 10•Transcript available on Metacast As Season Six draws to a close, Kirk opens up the Strong Songs mailbag to answer a bunch of listener questions on topics ranging from Diablo's use of lydian to what he means when he talks about "transcribing." REFERENCED/DISCUSSED: "Tristram" by Matt Uelman from Diablo , 1997 "Blast Inc. (feat. Jorgen Munkeby)" by Haunted Shores from Viscera, 2015 "One Down, One Up" by John Coltrane from New Thing at Newport, 1965 "Heart of Glass" by Debbie Harry and Chris Stein as recorded by Miley Cyrus in 202...
Jun 14, 2024•1 hr 5 min•Ep 9•Transcript available on Metacast Stage left! It's time for Strong Songs to talk about XTC. Stage right! Now the song is picked, analysis can begin. Stand up! If we listen close, we'll hear some lovely notes... On this episode, Kirk takes the stage alongside "Easter Theatre," the first single off of XTC's 1999 experimental symphono-pop album Apple Venus: Vol. 1 . Bring on the bassoons and power up the mellotron; we've got some shapes to stack. Written by: Andy Partridge Produced by: Haydn Bendall & Nick Davies Album: Apple Venus...
May 31, 2024•57 min•Ep 8•Transcript available on Metacast Phish may be known for their 30-minute live jams, but turns out you can distill their best qualities into a song one-tenth that length. To that end, Kirk picks apart and reassembles their 1998 studio recording of "Limb By Limb" in all its polyrhythmic, guitarpeggiated glory. Music by: Trey Anastasio, with Page McConnell, Mike Gordon & Jon Fishman Lyrics by: Tom Marshall & Scott Herman Album: The Story of the Ghost (1998) Listen/Buy via Songwhip ALSO REFERENCED/DISCUSSED: "You Enjoy Myself" by Tr...
May 17, 2024•59 min•Ep 7•Transcript available on Metacast You came, you saw, you voted, and you picked Blondie as Strong Songs' first listener-selected artist! After weighing a number of possible songs to focus on, Kirk decided to go with the 1978 hit that took them from the punk clubs of New York to dance floors around the world. Wanna pick an artist for Season Seven? Go join the Patreon ! Written by: Deborah Harry and Chris Stein Produced by: Mike Chapman Album: Parallel Lines (1978) Listen/Buy via Songwhip Special Guests: Katelyn and Laurie Shook, a...
May 03, 2024•56 min•Ep 6•Transcript available on Metacast Meshell Ndegeocello is: a fearless songwriter, an outrageously funky bassist, and a groundbreaking producer who knows just how to get the most out of each musician she hires. On this episode, Kirk takes a deep dive into "The Way," the second track off of her 1996 record Peace Beyond Passion , and shines a light on some of the things that make her one of the greats. Written by: Meshell Ndegeocello Album: Peace Beyond Passion (1996) Special Guest: Sam Howard Listen/Buy via Songwhip ALSO DISCUSSED:...
Apr 19, 2024•58 min•Ep 5•Transcript available on Metacast For the third edition of Strong Covers, Kirk takes on two famous covers of two equally famous songs: Jimi Hendrix's 1968 cover of Bob Dylan's "All Along the Watchtower," and The White Stripes' early 2000s cover of Dolly Parton's "Jolene." Written by: Bob Dylan & Dolly Parton Albums: Bob Dylan: John Wesley Harding , 1967 — Jimi Hendrix: Electric Ladyland , 1968 Dolly Parton: Jolene , 1973 — White Stripes: Live Under Blackpool Lights , 2004 Listen/Buy : Watchtower Original | Cover — Jolene Origina...
Apr 05, 2024•57 min•Ep 4•Transcript available on Metacast Kirk digs into the work of master composer Antônio Carlos Jobim via his timeless 1974 duet with Elis Regina on his song "Águas de Marçco," known Stateside as "The Waters of March." He's joined by special guest Frederico Barros, Professor of Musicology at Federal University of Rio De Janeiro. Written by: Antônio Carlos Jobim Performed by: Jobim and Elis Regina Album: Elis & Tom (1974) Listen/Buy via Songwhip ALSO DISCUSSED: "The Girl From Ipamena" and "Desefinado" by Tom Jobim from Getz/Gilberto,...
Mar 22, 2024•56 min•Ep 3•Transcript available on Metacast Turns out some songs stand on their own, however memorable-slash-horrifying their music video might have been. Written by: Chris Cornell Produced by: Michael Beinhorn Album: Superunknown (1994) Listen/Buy via Songwhip ALSO DISCUSSED: "Spoonman" and "The Day I Tried to Live" by Chris Cornell and Soundgarden from Superunknown , 1994 Kim Thayil interview at Songfacts Norah Jones' cover of "Black Hole Sun," Live in 2021 "In My Life" by Lennon/McCartney from Rubber Soul , 1965 The 2021 Strong Songs i...
Mar 08, 2024•57 min•Ep 2•Transcript available on Metacast Strong Songs Season Six kicks off with a widely requested classic: Peter Gabriel's 1986 yearner "In Your Eyes." Because why hire one rhythm section when you can hire two for twice the price? Written by: Peter Gabriel Produced by: Daniel Lanois Album: So (1986) Listen/Buy via Songwhip ALSO DISCUSSED: Rick Beato's Interview with So producer Daniel Lanois "DIY" by Peter Gabriel from Peter Gabriel 2: Scratch, 1978 "Sledgehammer," "Don't Give Up," and "Big Time" by Gabriel from So , 1986 Kwame Ansah-...
Feb 23, 2024•54 min•Ep 1•Transcript available on Metacast On this bonus episode from May 2022, Kirk goes through a handful of other covers of the three Beatles songs he recently discussed on the show. "Gotta Get You Into My Life" by Paul McCartney/Lennon-McCartney as covered by Cliff Bennett and the Rebel Rousers (1966) and Blood, Sweat & Tears (1975) "Eleanor Rigby" by Paul McCartney/Lennon-McCartney as covered by Aretha Franklin (1968), Cody Fry (2021), Joshua Bell and Frankie Moreno (2009) and Zoot (1970) "Blackbird" by Paul McCartney/Lennon-McCartn...
Feb 09, 2024•28 min•Transcript available on Metacast 
