Let It Roll

As part of our Motown Roll series we're re-presenting Nate's 2019 conversation with Adam White, co-author with the late Barney Ales of "Motown: The Sound of Young America." The book is the definitive account of the business of Motown Records as told by the man who was Berry Gordon's business right-hand. Buy the book and support the show. CHECK OUT THE NEW LET IT ROLL WEB SITE -- We've got all 350+...

Host Nate Wilcox communes with the spirit of the late Ian MacDonald in a solo discussion of MacDonald's seminal "Revolution in the Head: The Beatles' Records and the Sixties." Buy the book and support the show. CHECK OUT THE NEW LET IT ROLL WEB SITE -- We've got all 350+ episodes listed, organized by mini-series, genre, era, co-host, guest and more. Please sign up for the email list on the site an...

In this encore presentation host Nate Wilcox welcomes Andrew Flory to discuss his book "I Hear a Symphony: Motown and Crossover R&B." Buy the book and support the show. CHECK OUT THE NEW LET IT ROLL WEB SITE -- We've got all 350+ episodes listed, organized by mini-series, genre, era, co-host, guest and more. Please sign up for the email list on the site and get music essays from Nate as well as (e...

Host Nate Wilcox welcomes Pat Blashill to discuss his book "Texas Is the Reason: The Mavericks of Lone Star Punk." Pat was part of the Austin, Texas punk scene that lured Nate to Austin and the two compare notes on their musical hometown. Buy the book and support the show. CHECK OUT THE NEW LET IT ROLL WEB SITE -- We've got all 350+ episodes listed, organized by mini-series, genre, era, co-host, g...

Hosts Nate Wilcox welcomes Peter Benjaminson to discuss his book "The Lost Supreme: The Life of Dreamgirl Florence Ballard." Peter opens up about Florence Ballard, her lead role in forming the Supremes, how she lost out to Diana Ross in the fight to be the lead vocalist, got pushed out of the group at the height of their fame and died young and broke in Detroit. Buy the book and support the show....

Hosts Nate Wilcox welcomes back JMR Higgs to discuss his book KLF: Chaos Magic Music Money. Buy the book and support the show. CHECK OUT THE NEW LET IT ROLL WEB SITE -- We've got all 350+ episodes listed, organized by mini-series, genre, era, co-host, guest and more. Please sign up for the email list on the site and get music essays from Nate as well as (eventually) transcriptions of every episode...

Hosts Nate Wilcox welcomes back Brooks Long to discuss David Ritz' oral history "The Brothers: An Autobiography" co-written with the Neville Brothers. Buy the book and support the show. CHECK OUT THE NEW LET IT ROLL WEB SITE -- We've got all 350+ episodes listed, organized by mini-series, genre, era, co-host, guest and more. Please sign up for the email list on the site and get music essays from N...

Hosts Nate Wilcox welcomes David Jacks to discuss his book "Peter Asher: A Life In Music." Buy the book and support the show. CHECK OUT THE NEW LET IT ROLL WEB SITE -- We've got all 350+ episodes listed, organized by mini-series, genre, era, co-host, guest and more. Please sign up for the email list on the site and get music essays from Nate as well as (eventually) transcriptions of every episode....

Hosts Nate Wilcox welcomes back Ned Sublette to continue the discussion about his book "Cuba and Its Music: From the First Drums to the Mambo." This episode looks at Louis Moreau Gottschalk, the most popular and important 19th Century American composer who connected New Orleans to Havana. Buy the book and support the show. CHECK OUT THE NEW LET IT ROLL WEB SITE -- We've got all 350+ episodes liste...

Hosts Nate Wilcox welcomes Norman Lebrecht author of "Why Beethoven: A Phenomenon in One Hundred Pieces." Nate asks Norman about Beethoven's innovative business practices, his conflicts with royalty, his opposition to the sexual mores of imperial Vienna and more. Buy the book and support the show. CHECK OUT THE NEW LET IT ROLL WEB SITE -- We've got all 350+ episodes listed, organized by mini-serie...

Hosts Nate Wilcox welcomes back Ned Sublette to continue the discussion about his book "Cuba and Its Music: From the First Drums to the Mambo." This episode looks at the musical developments in the colonial Caribbean as the Spanish, French and English found their culture influenced by the African diaspora. Buy the book and support the show. CHECK OUT THE NEW LET IT ROLL WEB SITE -- We've got all 3...

Hosts Nate Wilcox welcomes back Tony Fletcher to discuss the opening chapters of his book "All Hopped Up and Ready to Go: Music from the Streets of New York 1927–77." Buy the book and support the show. CHECK OUT THE NEW LET IT ROLL WEB SITE -- We've got all 350+ episodes listed, organized by mini-series, genre, era, co-host, guest and more. Please sign up for the email list on the site and get mus...

Hosts Nate Wilcox welcomes back Ned Sublette for the first of several conversations about his book "Cuba and Its Music: From the First Drums to the Mambo." Buy the book and support the show. CHECK OUT THE NEW LET IT ROLL WEB SITE -- We've got all 350+ episodes listed, organized by mini-series, genre, era, co-host, guest and more. Please sign up for the email list on the site and get music essays f...

Hosts Nate Wilcox welcomes Stephanie Stein Crease, the author of "Rhythm Man: Chick Webb and the Beat that Changed America" to discuss the great swing king, Ella Fitzgerald, Louis Jordan, Benny Goodman and Webb's impact on our culture. Buy the book and support the show. CHECK OUT THE NEW LET IT ROLL WEB SITE -- We've got all 350+ episodes listed, organized by mini-series, genre, era, co-host, gues...

Hosts Nate Wilcox and Ed Legge conclude their discussion of Michaelangelo Matos' "Can't Slow Down: How 1984 Became Pop's Blockbuster Year" with a look at the triumphs and tribulations of Live Aid. GO TO THE LET IT ROLL SUBSTACK TO HEAR THE FULL EPISODE⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ -- The final 15 minutes of this episode are exclusively for...

Host Nate Wilcox welcomes back Gary Giddins to discuss the opening section of his classic book "Visions of Jazz" including discussions of vaudeville greats Al Jolson and Bert Williams, Louis Armstrong's signifying takes on old time songs of slavery and some of the forgotten Black songwriters of 1920s Tin Pan Alley. Buy the book and support the show. CHECK OUT THE NEW LET IT ROLL WEB SITE -- We've...

Hosts Nate Wilcox and Ed Legge continue their discussion of Michaelangelo Matos' "Can't Slow Down: How 1984 Became Pop's Blockbuster Year" with a discussion of the composition and recording of "We Are The World." GO TO THE LET IT ROLL SUBSTACK TO HEAR THE FULL EPISODE⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ -- The final 15 minutes of this episode are...

Host Nate Wilcox welcomes Mike Stark to discuss his oral history of Black Sabbath. Nate and Mike discuss the two classic iterations of the definitive heavy metal band. CHECK OUT THE NEW LET IT ROLL WEB SITE -- We've got all 350+ episodes listed, organized by mini-series, genre, era, co-host, guest and more. Please sign up for the email list on the site and get music essays from Nate as well as (ev...

Hosts Nate Wilcox and Ed Legge continue their discussion of Michaelangelo Matos' "Can't Slow Down: How 1984 Became Pop's Blockbuster Year" with a discussion of the composition and recording of "Do They Know It's Christmas." GO TO THE LET IT ROLL SUBSTACK TO HEAR THE FULL EPISODE⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ -- The final 15 minutes of this...

Host Nate Wilcox welcomes author Mark Blake to discuss his book “Us and Them: The Authorised Story of Hipgnosis: The visionary artists behind Pink Floyd and more.” It's a fascinating look at the intersection of rock music and visual artists in the 60s and 70s and traces the evolution of the music business through that era. CHECK OUT THE NEW LET IT ROLL WEB SITE -- We've got all 350+ episodes liste...

Hosts Nate Wilcox and Ed Legge continue their discussion of Michaelangelo Matos' "Can't Slow Down: How 1984 Became Pop's Blockbuster Year" with a look at the surprisingly strong year had by older performers like Foreigner, Journey's Steve Perry, Don Henley and Hall & Oates. GO TO THE LET IT ROLL SUBSTACK TO HEAR THE FULL EPISODE⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠...

Host Nate Wilcox welcomes author Martin Popoff the author of "Bowie @ 75" a beautiful coffee table big summarizing Bowie's career and impact just in time for the 75th anniversary of his birth. CHECK OUT THE NEW LET IT ROLL WEB SITE -- We've got all 350+ episodes listed, organized by mini-series, genre, era, co-host, guest and more. Please sign up for the email list on the site and get music essays...

Hosts Nate Wilcox and Ed Legge continue their discussion of Michaelangelo Matos' "Can't Slow Down: How 1984 Became Pop's Blockbuster Year" with a look at Bruce Springsteen's breakthrough to national superstardom with Born in the USA. Nate struggles to maintain his official stance of aesthetic neutrality. GO TO THE LET IT ROLL SUBSTACK TO HEAR THE FULL EPISODE⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠...

Host Nate Wilcox welcomes author R.J. Smith to discuss his new book "Chuck Berry: An American Life." Nate and R.J. discuss Berry's creation of the rock 'n' roll myth, the dichotomy between Berry's middle class upbringing and his criminal conduct and much more. CHECK OUT THE NEW LET IT ROLL WEB SITE -- We've got all 350+ episodes listed, organized by mini-series, genre, era, co-host, guest and more...

Hosts Nate Wilcox and Ed Legge continue their discussion of Michaelangelo Matos' "Can't Slow Down: How 1984 Became Pop's Blockbuster Year" with a look at the 1984 inaugural MTV Awards and some of the artists who dominated the channel that year. GO TO THE LET IT ROLL SUBSTACK TO HEAR THE FULL EPISODE⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ -- The fina...