Famous Lost Words

What is the greatest year in music history?  Christopher and Tom weigh in and, not surprisingly, their answers are very different.  It prompts a rather lively and contentious discussion.           Plus we pay tribute to the many artists we lost in 2022. But don’t expect this to be a mournful show.  Think of it more as a celebration of these artists.   Included this week: Olivia Newton-John talks a...

          This week, a relaxed and very interesting chat with The Tragically Hip circa 1991.  Gord Downie and the band are promoting their second album, “Road Apples”. They talk about working in New Orleans, road testing their new songs and how many chances a song gets in the studio before they toss it out. They also talk about the time they were booked into a hip hop club as well as the time they...

This week – a 2005 interview with Madonna as she promotes her album “Confessions On A Dance Floor”.  Madonna is predictably smart and passionate about her music, but she can also be a bit cranky.   WARNING – this interview contains perhaps the most awkward moment in FLW history.             Then, a wonderful ‘80s interview with Chrissie Hynde of The Pretenders. Chrissie talks about the influences...

This week: an extraordinary 1989 interview with the legendary Tina Turner. Tina talks about her rise to fame, how her stage act was her own personal fitness routine, how she chooses her songs and whether or not she considers herself sexy.             Then, a fun 2003 chat with Cher during her first farewell tour. Cher discusses the highlights of her stage show, what she loves about her fans… and w...

            This week – the finale of our epic 3-part series on The ‘60s!  It’s a show chock full of highlights… Van Morrison explains how “Brown Eyed Girl” almost got banned from the radio Neil Sedaka talks about the creation of “Breaking Up Is Hard To Do” Gene Pitney on writing one of the ‘60s biggest hits, touring with the Dick Clark Caravan of Stars and hanging with The Stones Dick Clark talks...

In part 2 of our ‘60s series, Christopher and Tom try to choose the ultimate ‘60s all-star band. Christopher puts together a great line-up, but Tom’s choices raise a few eyebrows!            Other highlights this week: Art Garfunkel tells the story behind Simon & Garfunkel’s last (and most contentious) hit, “Bridge Over Troubled Water” The wild history of The Mamas & The Papas – as told by...

This week, The ‘60s! In what promises to be an amazing series of shows, we present some of the biggest artists from music’s most impactful decade. We hear about the genius of Brian Wilson and the creation of the classic, “Good Vibrations”. The moment that the Righteous Brothers got their name and how they ended up recording two of the biggest songs in music history Aretha Franklin explains how suc...

        This week: an amazing 1993 backstage chat with Keith Richards. Keith is in his glory fronting The Expensive Winos. In fact, you can almost hear the dread at the prospect of returning to The Stones!  Keith talks about the joy of touring, how “God joins the band” at outdoor concerts and the time he taught Mick how to play “Gimme Shelter”.  He also talks about his history in Toronto, includin...

          FLW is back with Season 8!  We begin an epic season with an in-depth 2003 interview with Sting. This is Sting at his Sting-iest, in conversation with the incomparable Marilyn Denis. He’s funny and self-deprecating, charming and a tad insufferable.  He talks about his childhood, why his grandmother called his early work “Broken Music”, the longevity of his marriage, and how the events of...

We're excited to announce the launch of Season 8 of Famous Lost Words.  Coming this season: Sting in a long-form 2003 interview with Marilyn Denis - featuring a moment that makes Tom laugh, but makes Christopher cringe. Keith Richards in a backstage chat in 1993.  Keef is talking about his touring band "The Expensive Winos". Tina Turner in conversation with Christopher in 1989. Great chat with a t...

Lamont Dozier was one of the giants of songwriting. Known mostly for his work with the Holland brothers at Motown, Lamont was not only a gifted writer, but a wonderful storyteller.       In this tribute, we revisit Christopher's chat with Lamont in his home studio, plus we replay some highlights from our 2021 Motown specials as Dozier talks about creating some of the biggest hits of the '60s.    ...

Upon hearing the news of the passing of Olivia Newton-John, we want to revisit an entertaining 1978 chat with her. Olivia talks about her breakout as a country artist, her place in the music world, and working with John Travolta in her new movie, "Grease". Olivia Newton-John passed away August 8, 2022 at the age of 73.

When we learned about the passing of Andy “Fletch” Fletcher from Depeche Mode, we agreed that it would be a good idea to go back into the archives and revisit an interview from 2005.  It’s only 9 minutes long, but it covers a lot of ground… In the interview, Fletch talks about: their breakout in the early ‘80s – and why their style and sound pissed off som...

As we wind up our tribute to the recent Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame inductees, we present an excellent series of interview clips with Carly Simon.  Just as she is in her songwriting, Carly is direct, honest and sensitive. She talks about how critics can be terribly hurtful (and how one review set her off), her inspiration for writing, her relationship with then-husband James Taylor and why s...

This week, we’re honouring the newest inductees into the R&R Hall Of Fame.  This time, it’s Lionel Richie.  This chat is from 2001 and it’s Lionel in conversation with Marilyn Denis.  He talks about his favourite songs from his solo career and The Commodores – and his biggest regret. He also talks about working with Quincy Jones and Michael Jackson and mu...

The latest in our series of Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame inductees is Pat Benatar. We have two interviews with Pat, both from the '80s, with broadcasters Elaine McDonald and Rick Ringer.  Benatar talks about her desire to be a mom, her tough image, her androgynous look, why performing live is a sensual (but not sexual) experience and why record companies kept turning her down, even when she b...

Today, we continue with our deep dive into the FLW archives to present a series of specials to honour some of the latest inductees into the R&R Hall Of Fame.                This time around, it’s Duran Duran.  Our first set of clips come from the early ‘80s, as the guys are just on the cusp of their incredib...

Today, we begin a series of special episodes honouring some of the 2022 inductees into the Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame. First up is Eurythmics. We've gone back into the archives for two extensive interviews with Dave Stewart as he discusses his partnership with Annie Lennox.  Dave talks about their memorable first appearance on The Grammys, working with Aretha Franklin, producing other artis...

Hearing the news about Meatloaf's passing reminded us of this fascinating chat with Meatloaf and Tom Jokic from 2006. He is promoting an upcoming live appearance in Toronto. We talked about the power of his "Bat Out Of Hell" albums and he explains his definition of success. He also talks about his acting career. Embarrassingly, Tom's cell phone rings near the end of the interview, and Meatloaf ans...

We made it!  It’s the 100th episode of Famous Lost Words and our Season 7 finale. This week – some of our favourite stories ever! Roland Orzabal of Tears For Fears talks about his first hilarious meeting with our favourite Beatle. Ed Robertson explains how Barenaked Ladies made the cheapest music video in history – which ended up in high rotation at MuchMusic Christopher reg...

First up this week is a new interview with Nick Rhodes of Duran Duran as he talks about their new album – as well as the deep history of the band… from being banned by MTV to being influenced by David Bowie – just a few years before they became friends with Bowie – plus the importance of fashion to the overall image. This interview is from 2021 – from “Marilyn...

This week, we have a 2014 chat with a very enthusiastic Taylor Swift, who is happily promoting her first pure pop album, 1989. It’s a brief but very entertaining chat as Taylor riffs about her fans and her new sound.           We also have a 2020 chat between Peter Frampton and Marilyn Denis (courtesy of her show, “Marilyn Denis Does A Podca...

As Peter Jackson’s highly anticipated “Get Back” film finally gets released, we celebrate with our own Beatles special.  In this episode, we focus in on the final years of The Fab Four with some incredible Beatles audio -  stuff that would definitely make Peter Jackson envious!  Joining us this week is Beatles nut Jay Michaels of Newstalk 1010 in Toronto. Among the...

This week – one of the biggest rock bands of the ‘80s, plus a guy who had one of the greatest award show performances ever – and then a band that defined the early new wave movement. And whaddya know...They’re all Canadian! We start with a 1986 interview with Mike Reno of Loverboy. This was a band at the peak of their game and their fame. Mike talks about touring with Van H...

This week: a brand-new interview with the legendary Randy Bachman, who talks about the early days of The Guess Who and BTO, as well as his complicated relationship with Burton Cummings. Randy also tells the very funny story about the time his own father called the cops on him.  The amazing 7-disc “Bachman Cummings collection” is now available. We also have an entertaining 1986 cha...