The Hustle

This week I had a chat with four of our newer podcasting friends, all of which have started their own pods fairly recently. There's Alex Alt of the Sly Dog Music-Cast, Mike Wiles of Retro Rock Roundup, Patrick Dupuis of EETF and Nick Bambach of Rock in Retrospect. Each host brings with them stories about what it takes to start and maintain a podcast, what have we learned, what were expectations go...

Our good friend Brent Zius (Podcast Rock City) has a unique and ambitious music project we wanted to tell you about. With the help of musician Zoog Von Rock of Angelspit, they've created an epic vinyl sci-fi concept album called Sequence One: Glass Jar. It's a space fantasy audio journey unlike anything you've seen before. The project is in the kickstarter stage, so if you like what you hear, plea...

Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Tony Kaye does what he wants. As a founding member of Yes, he helped build the band into legends, but left after three albums when it stopped being fun. After spurts in bands like Detective and Badfinger and touring with Bowie, he came back to Yes for their 80s heyday, but eventually left again, when it stopped being fun. In fact, he's been known to leave music altogeth...

This week we welcome back more of our best buddies - Joy Royland of Sit and Spin with Joe, Ben Montgomery of Records Revisited and, the Podfather himself, Ken Mills to discuss again our impressions of the Get Back documentary. What did we learn, what would we change, etc. This leads to a second discussion on musical wormholes we went on this year. Again, this was recorded live and then released -...

When you think about all the classic synth pop duos of the 80s (Erasure, Pet Shop Boys, OMD, etc) Naked Eyes are right up there too. Rob Fisher and Pete Byrne only managed two albums in their heyday, but scored four top 40 hits like "Always Something There to Remind Me" and "Promises Promises" that have remained evergreen. After Rob's death, Pete IS Naked Eyes these days and put out a brand new al...

Today we recorded a live round table with some of our best friends - Brad Page of the I'm In Love With That Song podcast, BJ Kramp from Rock and/or Roll, and Eric Miller of the Pods & Sods Network. The point of the discussion was to countdown our top three TV shows of the year, which we do, but before that we spend a lot of time discussing Get Back, whether BJ and Eric are even still in podcasting...

When singer/songwriter Jude Cole was on the scene from the mid 80s to the mid 90s you knew you were listening to someone special. His ability to marry hooks and harmonies in a rock, bordering on Americana, tradition (think of someone like Aimee Mann) put him above the rest. But, after four strong albums and some moderate hits, he decided to change his focus to artist management, even discovering s...

Noted audio engineer/producer Susan Rogers began her unique career in the late 70s, but she really earned her bona fides when she moved to Minneapolis to assist Prince. She was right by his side during those peak Purple Rain to Sign O the Times years, helping him create, record, log, and document his every creative impulse (she created his famous "Vault"). She shares stories of her experiences tha...

Unless you live in Ohio or Pennsylvania, you may not have heard from the great Donnie Iris for a while. Many of us fans probably even carry some regret that he wasn't a bigger star when he was active back in the 80s. Well, there's no need to worry! Donnie has been living the life for many years now, playing a few shows a year along the Rust Belt, putting out an album or two here and there, and enj...

Jon and Jan recap the last three months of episodes, including a few behind the scenes stories. While they're at it they get into death, work, travel, and life in general. Join us!    www.patreon.com/thehustlepod

This week is a special two-fer, two legendary producers in one shot! First up is the legend himself, Alan Parsons! If you think about it, even with all the iconic albums he's worked on like Dark Side and Abbey Road, his main focus has largely been his Alan Parsons Project. In fact, they are releasing a brand new live CD/DVD called The Neverending Show: Live in the Netherlands on Nov. 5th. We discu...

Midge Ure has done so many amazing things, been in so many amazing bands, and recorded so much amazing music that you could fill several books! From Slik to the Rich Kids to Thin Lizzy to Visage and finally Ultavox, he was a pioneer in the sound that synths and guitars could make together, creating some of the most enduring music ever. We touch on just about all of this, as well as his solo career...

This week we are honored to welcome Amy Ray of the Indigo Girls! Any conversation with a citizen as solid as Amy is going to include the current state of the world, but her empathetic and wise view of it all may surprise you. She's seen it all and knows firsthand that positive change happens slowly. We also discuss fun stuff like her excellent solo career, her memories of Lilith Fair (they've evol...

In this edition of Book Club we welcome seasoned rock writer Mike Evans to discuss his new book, The Who: Much Too Much. Mike's book tells us the whole Who story, from beginning to end, while also reviewing every Who album and song. Plus, it features scores of never before seen photos. It's the perfect starter guide for the band. Jon and Dave discuss Mike's history with the band, his feelings are...

Drummer Bermuda Schwartz has been by "Weird" Al's side since that fateful day when they recorded "Another One Rides the Bus" for Dr. Demento. In all these years, he's watched as new generations discover Al at just the right time and remain devoted fans over the decades (bringing their kids and grandkids along for the ride). While helping Al fulfill his comedic and creative vision, Bermuda has also...

Last year, drummer Chris Frantz released his excellent memoir "Remain in Love", a sincerely wonderful and unique rock bio. This week he joins us to discuss his life before, during and after Talking Heads, but also the central relationship in his life, his marriage with the great Tina Weymouth. He also share stories how the band's sound evolved over time, his production work with Happy Mondays and...

Singer/Songwriter Martin Briley's solo career may have been brief, but he isn't bothered about it. Best known for the 1983 hit "The Salt in My Tears", Martin has always been way more comfortable working behind the scenes. He has been a session guy for artists like Ellen Foley, Ian Hunter, Julian Lennon and Bonnie Tyler (he even plays on "Total Eclipse of the Heart"), but his focus has always been...

Whether you're aware of it or not, you've heard Tessa Niles' voice on dozens of beloved songs. She was one of Britain's most in demand backup singers for more than 20 years appearing with artists like ABC, Duran Duran, Tina Turner, Steve Winwood, Tears For Fears. In addition she toured with Eric Clapton, the Police, Robbie Williams and performed at Live Aid with David Bowie. She's written her enti...

Esteemed music writer John Aizlewood returns to the podcast to discuss his new book Joy Division + New Order: Decades. The book is a fantastic distillation of the band's story along with beautiful never before seen photos and reviews of every album, written in that intelligent and entertaining way that only John can do. We also discuss the band's place in history, it's current dysfunction and favo...

Can you imagine what it must have been like to actually work with Queen on "Bohemian Rhapsody"? Producer Gary Langan can say he was there! Gary's done a lot, but his career really started to take off in the early 80s when he was a member of Trevor Horn's production team. That connection had him working on landmark albums by Yes, ABC and Malcolm McLaren. He went on to do his own work with artists l...

This week is one of the best sidemen in the business, Kasim Sulton! Kasim hit the big leagues when he joined Utopia in the mid-70s where he stayed for about a decade. Of course this formed the bond with Todd Rundgren that has remained to this day. In addition there have been stints with Meat Loaf, Joan Jett, Hall and Oates, Blue Oyster Cult, the Indigo Girls and many more. When he has the time, he...

As great as the Icicle Works were, they will forever be remembered for one perfect moment, the still gorgeous "Birds Fly (Whisper to a Scream)". After that one hit in the States (and a few more in the UK), the band called it quits in the 90s and lead singer Ian McNabb has been going strong ever since. He's been on an especially epic hot streak the last few years with several exceptional albums in...

The duo of Difford and Tillbrook are up there with Jagger/Richards, Lennon/McCartney, John/Taupin and Holland/Dozier/Holland as one of history's greatest songwriting teams. Glenn's knack for a melody has always provided the perfect space for Chris's intelligent lyrics. Today, Squeeze is as busy as ever. They're currently on tour (some dates as openers for Hall & Oates), and Glenn continues to rele...

From out of nowhere, former guest Ellen Foley has released one of the best rock albums of 2021. Her latest work (and only her second in 40 years), Fighting Words hearkens back to her glam rock beginnings when she was a beautiful instrument in the hands of legends like Ian Hunter and Mick Ronson. This is why, in addition to discussing the new album, we deep dive her debut album Nightout that featur...

These days Guy Pratt might be best known as the co-host of the second best (😉) music podcast in the world: Rockonteurs, which he does with his buddy Gary Kemp of Spandau Ballet. They bring so many years of experience and music love to every conversation, it's just about the best thing out there. Guy's experience includes some of everything. He started out with Icehouse in the early 80s, toured wi...