Music Talks

This time of year isn’t just the season of goodwill it’s also the season of “Best Of” lists and it’s part of the musical year that I love. It’s always good to know that things you like are also enjoyed by others but the real joy for me is gaining new insight into albums I’ve enjoyed or discovering albums that I have missed. My hope is that this episode will do some of that for you. As in previous...

This time of year isn’t just the season of goodwill it’s also the season of “Best Of” lists and it’s part of the musical year that I love. It’s always good to know that things you like are also enjoyed by others but the real joy for me is gaining new insight into albums I’ve enjoyed or discovering albums that I have missed. My hope is that this episode will do some of that for you. As in previous...

This is part 2 of my chat with Dermot McCormack which was an absolute delight to do and so much fun.  As was the case in Pt.1 the episode has some great music choices and a wealth of fantastic stories including Dermot :  Running the Digital business at MTV  Breaking the world record for most concerts in 24 hours with The Flaming Lips  Almost becoming CEO of Fender Guitars  Getting 1 million concur...

My guest in this episode is Dermot McCormack.  Given his name it will be no surprise to hear that Dermot was born in Dublin in 1969 and grew up in the working-class area of Ballyfermot in the city. In the early 90’s, after a formative year in France and a summer spent in the US, he emigrated to the US which is still home to him today. For a long time, he lived in New York, but he recently moved wi...

This is Part 2 of my Music Talks chat with Geoff Sutton. If you enjoyed Part 1 you will be delighted to hear that the stories and music just ‘keep on coming’ (as they used to say on the radio!)  In this episode Geoff talks about a whole host of things including:   ·         His time at The Daily Mirror, The Sunday Express and Today  ·         Visiting Cuba  ·         Becoming a father to his two c...

My guest in this episode is Geoff Sutton.  The stereotype of a Microsoft employee is a Computer Sciences nerd in a check shirt and chinos. Whilst they do exist Geoff is a great example of the diversity of background and experience that existed in the company as was my previous guest Neil Jordan (7 years as a Choirister at Windsor Castle) and indeed myself with my English Lit Degree (specialist sub...

Neil is a 30-year I.T. veteran, the last 23 years of which have been spent at Microsoft where today he is the WW General Manager for Retail & Health Innovation. Born in Bristol he now lives in Kirkland, WA with his wife Ciara and their three young children Oliver, Archie and Ophelia, and their cat Boris.  Despite a love of technology, that started at a young age, Neil’s story at its core is a...

My guest in this episode is Michael Elliott a DJ, radio exec, writer and a man who has overcome a lot of adversity to get to a better place today. He lives in Raleigh NC and is a southerner born and bred with all the challenges and contradictions that brings. An only child he was born with cataracts in both eyes and was partially blind until the age of 50. He grew up surrounded by a music loving f...

This is Part 2 of my chat with Ian Rogers .There were simply too many good stories to keep this to a single episode . Ian , in his own words:  Is a skateboarder from Northern Indiana  Has been a record collector since the age of 5 Started programming a few years later  Became a father at 17 and a grandfather at 50  Dropped out of Grad School in 1995 to go on tour with Beastie Boys  Spent 20 years...

My guest in this episode is Ian Rogers who (in his own words):  Is a skateboarder from Northern Indiana  Has been a record collector since the age of 5 Started programming a few years later  Became a father at 17 and a grandfather at 50  Dropped out of Grad School in 1995 to go on tour with Beastie Boys  Spent 20 years building digital music with Winamp, Yahoo!, Beats, & then Apple Music.  Mov...

A MILESTONE COMPILATION Recently Music Talks has passed several significant milestones:     ·        It’s Third Anniversary  ·        20,000 downloads  ·        500 Followers on Facebook  ·        75 Episodes I have done celebratory episodes at 25 and 50 episodes, and this felt like a good opportunity to look back over the past year and choose some of my favourite moments.  I have chosen a differe...

My guest in this episode is Jeff Smith, MP.  A recent press article highlighted that the number of ‘career politicians’ in Westminster who have never had what most of us would recognise as ‘a proper job’. It also said working class politicians were ‘an endangered species. I’m delighted to say that Jeff bucks both of those trends.  Whilst Jeff grew up in a political household and studied  Politics...

My guest in this episode is Randy Brown who is another introduction from my dear friend Jesse Jackson at the Set Lusting Bruce Podcast.  Randy has two major passions in his life, Basketball and Music. The former was his career for over 20 years and is the reason for the title of the episode as he was a College Basketball Coach at seven different Universities across America.  As for music, it’s bee...

My guest in this episode is Kirsten Walker who I got to know and work with during my last few years in Seattle. Since then, we have kept in touch, our friendship has grown, and I am delighted to have finally got Kirsten on the show.  In this episode we discuss a wide range of topics including   ·        Being born in Copenhagen and a rather unusual claim to fame  ·        Being raised by a single...

My guest in this episode is Beth Collier, a notoriously curious person who loves storytelling, pop culture and learning.  Originally from Indiana, USA, Beth has lived abroad for the last 17 years. That means she knows how to drink tea with milk, but still appreciates it over ice. Over her career she’s worked in the entertainment and travel industries in the US, the government in New Zealand, and f...

My guest is this episode is my friend Kevin Ackhurst.    Kevin was born in South Africa but spent his early years in Zimbabwe and that is where he feels 'he comes from' and 'that's his origin’. As is always his way Kevin talks openly and honestly about growing up in a white and segregated world and how strange that feels to him now looking back.  He also talks about developing...

This is the second part of my conversation with Malcolm Garrett.  It really is more of the same in a good way. The opinions are as strong, the energy is as high, the connections are great, and the stories are fascinating.  In between a set of eclectic and considered song choices we cover a lot of topics including:   Malcolm’s love of Sigue Sigue Sputnik and how influential and prescient they were....

My guest in this episode is Malcolm Garrett MBE who rather modestly describes himself as ‘a UK-based graphic designer working across a variety of disciplines and media.’ Malcolm has a global reputation for his influence on graphic design and popular culture, both through his landmark designs for clients including Buzzcocks, Duran Duran, Boy George, Simple Minds and Peter Gabriel, and through his p...

My guest in this episode is David Wilner who was born in Dover, New Hampshire in 1963 on the day Dion was recording ‘Drip Drop’!  His formative years were spent between New Hampshire and Washington State, but he has subsequently lived In Ohio, Tucson, Boston, and Minneapolis as well as spending four years in the UK, indulging his Anglophilia, in the Noughties. He now resides in Prague and is adama...

In a first for Music Talks my guest in this episode is Rachel King who is married to my previous guest Harris King, 'the love of her life'. They share a deep love and passion for music and as per the title of the episode they live in 'A House of Music' .     Rachel was born in Chattanooga, a couple of hours from Nashville but is not a great lover of country music. She has a mus...

My guest in this episode is Harris King.  Harris was introduced to Music Talks by previous guests Steven Routledge and Justin Steiner who are fellow members of the brilliant community that has grown up around the Rockin’ The Suburbs Podcast and now Radio Station -   suburbspod.com Like many of my guests Harris isn’t just a music lover he’s a music scholar who immerses himself in the music he liste...

My guest is Julie Simpson, a delightful, fun lady who I met in the late 90’s and I have always viewed as ‘a force of nature’ and you will hear a lot of her energy, enthusiasm, and humour in this episode  Julie is the youngest of 9 children and was born in Germany but grew up in Basingstoke. Her story is an inspirational one of starting with little and triumphing over adversity.  This started at 14...

In this episode my guest is Mat Bancroft, Independent Curator, Archivist and Art Director specialising in 20th Century Pop Culture.  Mat has many strings to his bow but the first thing that will pop for any music fan is that he has been Johnny Marr’s Art Director since 2012 and has produced a distinct and impressive body of work over that period.  Mat was born in Nottingham in 1979 but very delibe...

My guest in this episode is Justin Steiner who comes to Music Talks through his friendship with Music Talks regular and long-time supporter, Steven Routledge.  They describe themselves as ‘mind meld musical brothers’ but the interesting thing about their friendship is that, to date, they have not actually met face to face as Justin lives near Chicago and Steven near Stirling, in Scotland.  They me...

My guest in this episode is Dave Cronen who like many of my guests has an encyclopaedic knowledge of music and pop culture. What makes Dave unique is that he has spent all 37 years of his working life in the music industry and I saw little sign of him stopping any time soon. Interestingly , he doesn't play an instrument or a note of music and is fiercely proud of that fact.  Today Dave is an...