Archive for category: Medium Rare

Rare musician interviews by Redbeard not part of the weekly radio series .

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Southside Johnny & the Asbury Jukes- Better Days 35th Anniversary

Southside Johnny Lyon visited my Q102/ Dallas radio show in October 1991 to discuss his tenth (!) album "Better Days", as well as the Jukes' 1976 "I Don't Want to Go Home" debut containing the Bruce Springsteen chestnut "The Fever"; 1977's "This Time It's for Real";   the essential 4.5 star "Hearts of Stone" in 1978; the instant classic "It's Been a Long Time" featuring Johnny with producer/ songwriter/ running buddies  Steven Van Zandt and Bruce Springsteen...
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John Mellencamp- Whenever We Wanted 35th Anniversary

By the time John Mellencamp released October 1991's "Whenever We Wanted" , containing the hits "Get a Leg Up" and "Again Tonight", his record-making not only made him one of the Eighties' most popular singer/ songwriters, he had already influenced the sound of his peers...twice. John Mellencamp is my guest In the Studio.
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Loverboy- Get Lucky 45th Anniversary- Mike Reno, Paul Dean

Canadian rockers Loverboy were the right band at the right time forty-five years ago. North American rock radio was waiting in anticipation for “Turn Me Loose”, “The Kid is Hot Tonight”, Working for the Weekend", along with "When It's Over", "Jump" co-written by fellow countryman Bryan Adams, "Gangs in the Street", and "Take Me to the Top". Lead singer Mike Reno and guitarist Paul Dean recall how nice guys don't finish last in this  In The Studio  classic rock interview.
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Billy Idol- Don’t Stop 45th Anniversary

It's the all-important 1981 "Don't Stop"  EP by Billy Idol. In the last spasms of the London Punk Rock scene circa 1980, Generation X and their front man Billy Broad had the career arc of a bottle rocket, briefly filling English dance floors with the celebratory single "Dancing with Myself"and a cover of "Mony Mony". But Punk Rock's purpose of being a disruptive force to reset all the tumblers of popular music was practically fulfilled by then, and had no second act, so Billy Idol needed a new start. Billy Idol is my guest In the Studio.

Tom Cochrane- Mad Mad World 35th Anniversary

The tumblers all clicked for Tom Cochrane with the September 1991 (2/92 in the US) release of "Mad Mad World" containing the Billboard #6 earworm "Life is a Highway", driving initial sales of over 500,000 copies in the US alone. Tom Cochrane is my guest In the Studio on the thirty-fifth anniversary of "Mad Mad World".

YES- Magnification @25- Jon Anderson, Steve Howe,the late Chris Squire & Alan White

It's the 25th anniversary of YES releasing their 21st century chestnut "Magnification" in September 2001, with Jon Anderson, Trevor Rabin, the late Alan White, Steve Howe, Tony Kaye, and the late Chris Squire ALL In the Studio.

Kansas- The Prelude Implicit 10th- Phil Ehart, Rich Williams, Ronnie Platt, David Ragsdale

In 2016 the first new original studio album in sixteen years, "The Prelude Implicit",  from all-American progressive rockers Kansas, was one of the most pleasant musical surprises in 2016...like discovering the "lost"  album which would have fit naturally between early mid-Seventies efforts "Song for America"  and "Masque". Lifers drummer Phil Ehart and guitarist Richard Williams are joined here In the Studio  by violinist David Ragsdale and impressive veteran lead singer Ronnie Platt.

Dire Straits- On Every Street 35th Anniversary- Mark Knopfler

When the song "Money for Nothing" by Dire Straits became a worldwide hit in Summer 1985, the album Brothers in Arms spent a stunning nine weeks as the #1-seller in the US in 1985, eventually selling a staggering 26,000,000  copies worldwide. This kind of celebrity could not have happened to a more reluctant rock star than Dire Straits leader Mark Knopfler, and trust me, there is absolutely no way to prepare for what comes next.

Triumph- Allied Forces 45th- Rik Emmett, Gil Moore, Mike Levine

If you've ever been in a band, you need to listen to this honest, heartwarming, hysterically funny interview with Triumph ... 1979 breakthrough "Just a Gam"e with the songs "Hold On" and "Lay It on the Line", plus the even bigger seller "Allied Forces" forty years ago with "Magic Power" and "Fight the Good Fight".

Bob Seger- The Fire Inside

August 26, 1991 I had the great honor and pleasure of co-hosting the world premiere radio broadcast  with Bob Seger of "The Fire Inside". His fourteenth (!) studio album, it came a long five years after Seger and the Silver Bullet Band's "Like a Rock", the Detroit rocker's fifth multi-million seller in a row.