Follow Your Dream - Music And Much More!

“Rockin’ The Kremlin” is the new book by David Junk, Longtime former CEO of Universal Music Russia after the fall of Communism. He dealt with Putin, cronyism, oligarchs, corruption and violence as he introduced western stars and their music into Russia, including Sting, Metallica and Mariah Carey.  My featured song is “Get Out!” from the album PGS 7 by my band Project Grand Slam. Spotify link . --...

Augustin Hadelich is a World Famous Classical Violinist. And a Bluegrass Star too! He has performed as a soloist with major U.S. and international orchestras. He’s a Grammy winner and “Instrumentalist Of The Year” winner. I saw him perform recently and he left the audience speechless, particularly with his stunning bluegrass solo encore performance of “Orange Blossom Special”. His new album is cal...

Mandoki Soulmates is a European Supergroup led by Leslie Mandoki, who escaped from Communist Hungary to the West at a young age and formed the Soulmates over 30 years ago. Lineups have included Ian Anderson (Jethro Tull), Jack Bruce (Cream), David Clayton-Thomas (Blood Sweat & Tears) and many others. Leslie is joined on this show by Nick van Eede of Cutting Crew, another member of the Soulmates. T...

John Berry is a Grammy Award winning Country Music Star. He’s released 20 albums including a Platinum and two Gold records. He’s had 19 songs on the Billboard Hot Country Chart including the #1 single “Your Love Amazes Me” and 6 additional Top Ten Hits. My featured song is “My Love” from the album Bobby M and the Paisley Parade. Spotify link . --------------------------------------------- The Foll...

Steve Gadd is a World Class Drummer who has played and/or toured with a Who’s Who of Superstars including James Taylor, Paul Simon, Eric Clapton, Chick Corea, Frank Sinatra and Luciano Pavoratti. He’s played on countless hit records including Paul Simon’s “50 Ways To Leave Your Lover” and “Late In The Evening” and Steely Dan’s “Aja”.  My featured song is my version of Chick Corea’s “Sea Journey” f...

This is a Special Episode of the podcast that I call a Bass Summit. It features three of the world’s best bass players: Ron Carter is called the Maestro. He’s probably the most revered bassist of all time and certainly the most recorded jazz bassist. He’s a 3x Grammy winner. He was a member of Miles Davis’s groundbreaking quintet in the 1960s. He’s played with just about everyone and won numerous...

Antonio Farao is an Italian-born Internationally acclaimed Jazz Pianist. He has performed with Jack DeJohnette, Billy Cobham, John Abercrombie, Joe Lovano, Wayne Shorter, Christian McBride and John Patitucci among others. My featured song is my version of Miles Davis’s “Nardis” from my debut 1994 album Miles Behind. Spotify link . --------------------------------------------- The Follow Your Dream...

Chris Spedding is a Superstar British Guitarist. He’s played and/or recorded with Paul McCartney, Elton John, Jack Bruce, Roger Daltrey, Harry Nilsson, Art Garfunkel, on the Jesus Christ Superstar album, and many others. He also produced the Sex Pistols. My featured song is my reimagined version of Cream’s version of “I’m So Glad”. Spotify link . --------------------------------------------- The F...

John McEuen is a Banjo Star and an original member of The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, which had a big hit with “Mr. Bojangles”. He’s also a lifelong friend of Steve Martin and played on his hit song “King Tut” and also on their Grammy winning bluegrass album. He’s recorded over 40 albums including four that went Platinum and 5 Gold. His latest album is a spoken word record called “The Newsman”. And he...

This is a Special Episode of the podcast that I call a Rock Photographers Summit. It features five of the best rock n’ roll photographers of the era:  Ebet Roberts - Downtown NYC punk and New Wave scene. Television, Talking Heads, Blondie, Miles Davis. Bob Gruen - John Lennon, Yoko Ono, Tina Turner, Led Zeppelin, NY Dolls, The Clash, The Ramones. Jay Blakesberg - The Grateful Dead, Joni Mitchell,...

Joe “Bean” Esposito is an acclaimed singer/songwriter. He’s the lead singer with The Brooklyn Bridge, which had a huge hit in the 1960s with “The Worst That Could Happen” when Johnny Maestro was the lead singer. Joe has had hit songs in many movies including “Flashdance”, “The Karate Kid”, “Coming To America”, “Staying Alive” and “American Hot Wax”. And he’s sung with Donna Summer, Laura Branigan,...

Billy J. Kramer, of Billy J. Kramer and the Dakotas, was a huge Rock Star during the British Invasion era of the 1960s. They had massive hits with a string of songs written by John Lennon and Paul McCartney including “Do You Want To Know A Secret”, “Bad To Me”, “From A Window”, “I’ll Keep You Satisfied” and “I Call Your Name”. But their biggest hit was “Little Children”. They were managed by Brian...

David Amram is a National Treasure. He’s a Musical Giant in Classical, Jazz and Popular music. He’s performed with a Who’s Who in all three genres including Aaron Copeland, Thelonious Monk, Dizzy Gillespie, Bob Dylan, Willie Nelson and Judy Collins. Leonard Bernstein named him the first Composer-In-Residence for the New York Philharmonic. Joseph Papp hired him to compose scores for the New York Sh...

Livingston Taylor is a renowned singer/songwriter for over 50 years. He’s the brother of James and Kate Taylor. In this interview Liv discusses his family, opening for Joni Mitchell and Jethro Tull, collaborating with Carly Simon and much more. My featured song is “New York City Groove” from the album Made in New York by my band Project Grand Slam. Spotify link . ----------------------------------...

“It’s Alive” Again features four songs from Robert’s acclaimed “live” album: “Yeah Yeah”, “I Can’t Explain”, “The Queen’s Carnival” and “Redemption Road”. The album has been called “Magnificent!”, “Amazing!”, and “An Instant Classic!”. The album’s songs were recorded at festivals in Serbia and Pennsylvania and capture Robert’s band, Project Grand Slam, at the top of their game. -------------------...

Charlie Calello is called the “Hit Man” for good reason. He has arranged or produced over 100 Billboard Hits for dozens of major artists. His hits include “Sweet Caroline” (Neil Diamond), “My Heart Belongs To Me” (Barbra Streisand), “After The Lovin” (Englebert Humperdinck) and many hits for Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons including “Big Girls Don’t Cry”, “Walk Like A Man”, “Let’s Hang On” and...

Mark Horowitz is a Senior Music Specialist in the Music Division of the United States Library of Congress. He is in charge of the collections of Leonard Bernstein, Stephen Sondheim, Ella Fitzgerald, Leslie Bricusse, Richard Rodgers, Jonathan Larson and many more. He’s also written a book about Stephen Sondheim. This is a fascinating interview! My featured song is Judy Collins’s version of Stephen...

Adam Nussbaum is an extraordinary jazz drummer. He’s played on hundreds of recordings with a Who’s Who in the jazz world including John Abercrombie, Eliane Elias, Gil Evans, Stan Getz and John Scofield. My featured song is my version of Miles Davis’s “All Blues” sing by the late great Jon Lucien from my “lost” 1994 debut album Miles Behind. Spotify link . ------------------------------------------...

Ebet Roberts is an acclaimed photographer who captured the Punk and New Wave scene in New York City at CBGBs and Max’s Kansas City during the heyday of bands like Blondie, Talking Heads, Television, The Ramones and also Miles Davis, Bob Marley, Prince. Her photos have been in Rolling Stone, NY Times and Newsweek and are in the permanent collections of the Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame and the Grammy...

Peter Yarrow was a member of the iconic folk group Peter Paul and Mary, the trio which had so many hits in the 1960s including “Blowin In The Wind”, “Puff The Magic Dragon” (which Peter co-wrote), “Leaving On A Jet Plane”, “Lemon Tree”, “I Dig Rock And Roll Music” and many more. This wonderful episode is part interview and part concert, as Peter sings and talks about the group, Albert Grossman the...

Jesse Colin Young started out as a NYC folk musician playing at all the clubs in Greenwich Village, and then became a San Francisco-based Counterculture Hero during the 1967 Summer Of Love with his massive hit “Get Together” by his band The Youngbloods. The song became the anthem for the Woodstock generation. He’s a pioneer in folk and American roots music and an acclaimed singer, songwriter, and...

Judy Collins is an iconic Renaissance Artist and Grammy Winning Singer/Songwriter with 55 albums and hit singles including Joni Mitchell’s “Both Sides Now” and Stephen Sondheim’s “Send In The Clowns”. She has been a dominating force in social activism, as a filmmaker, author and as a keynote speaker. And she had one of the greatest songs of the rock era written about her - “Suite: Judy Blue Eyes”...

Brothers Joe, Pat and John La Barbera are legendary musicians. Joe is an acclaimed jazz drummer, Pat is a celebrated saxophonist, and John is a renowned arranger and composer. Together they have played with a Who’s Who in music including Bill Evans, Buddy Rich, Frank Sinatra, Tony Bennett, Woody Herman and many more. My featured song is “Easier Said” from my “lost” 1994 debut album Miles Behind. S...

Jay Siegel is the original lead singer of The Tokens, the ‘60s band that had a massive worldwide hit with “The Lion Sleeps Tonight” and a follow up hit with “Portrait Of My Love”. The group formed in Brooklyn, New York and Neil Sedaka was an original member. Jay also had a parallel career producing hits for other artists including Tony Orlando and Dawn, The Chiffons and The Happenings. My featured...

James Lee Stanley is an artist who has had a very eclectic career. As a musician he has produced 32 albums and has toured with Stephen Wright, Bonnie Raitt, Peter Tork and Robin Williams. As an actor he played the Singing Klingon on the “StarTrek Deep Space Nine” TV show for five years. And he is the subject of a documentary film called “The Opening Act” My featured song is “Riding The Berks” from...