No Sleep 'til Sudbury with Brent Jensen

In NSTS episode 020, I'm joined by New York filmmaker Chris Cassidy to talk about his upcoming documentary Dennis and Lois , which chronicles the fascinating story of a couple who have lived out their rock and roll dreams for more than 30 years. Chris' playlist is centred around the film's soundtrack, featuring an assortment of bands that interacted with Dennis and Lois. As we discuss the songs, C...

Killer Dwarfs singer Russ Dwarf and I get his birthday festivities started a day early in Episode 019 of No Sleep Til Sudbury , as Russ takes me through the playlist of songs that make his skin vibrate over a few Sapporos. All the important stuff gets covered - classic Sudbury landmarks like The Coulson and the Brockdan, opening for Iron Maiden at Wembley and Hammersmith, The Dwarfs' very first gi...

Look who's back! The Pink Chief, Chris Long, makes his triumphant return to the No Sleep Til Sudbury podcast. In this episode, The Chief completely flouts my format and does something completely different - no playlist in favour of his confession of a guilty pleasure. And it wouldn't be Chris Long if there wasn't some controversy. Fun episode. I love this lunatic.        

Canadian kid and fleet-fingered guitarist for hot new heavy blues band Crown Lands Kevin Comeau brings his guitar into the studio for Canada Day, replacing my usual intro music with some tasty slide guitar. He even plays us out with a little bit of Rush in the spirit of the day.  Kev's band Crown Lands just won the 97.7 HTZ-FM 2017 Rock Search and their new album, called Rise Over Run , drops shor...

Canadian TV personality and MuchMusic alum Bill Welychka finally gets his invite to guest on NSTS Episode 16, fresh off of my appearance on his morning show on CKWS TV. During our chat Bill touches on The Hip's take on Jacques Cartier, his Aerosmith backstage listening experience, Liam Gallagher always being on his best behaviour in his presence, and just how expensive Justin Bieber's time can be....

Following in the footsteps of his childhood Scarborough bestie, my old dorm brother Brad 'Jammer' Jemmett drops by with his own hip hop playlist, and trash talks his old mate Kent Bailey (whom you'll remember from Episode 10) and his rap preferences.    I personally learned a lot in this episode, albeit things I should have probably already known. But I refuse to embarrass myself in text - you'll...

In Episode 14 my homegirl from the South, Jo Watson, joins me to discuss the songs that make her skin vibrate, and to hack on each other a bit as we always do. Listen as Watson confesses her love for sexy women and her crush on Tom Petty, props up the Zac Brown Band, and pulls one of my favourite songs from the Stones' Exile On Main Street out of her playlist hat.   Watson's playlist: Bruce Spring...

In Episode 13 leading Canadian music correspondent, public relations wizard, and Sirius XM radio host Eric Alper joins me via Skype. Among other things, we discuss the Genesis gateway between Peter Gabriel and Phil Collins, the jazz inflections that can be found Talk Talk's "Life's What You Make It", and the importance of Jerry Lee Lewis and Buddy Holly. We also count the number of genres Sheena E...

It was my privilege to host the legendary Alan Cross in Episode 12, voice of that iconic Canadian music doc we've all listened to at some point in our lives - The Ongoing History of New Music . As Alan and I talk about the songs that make his skin vibrate, he tells some incredible stories about the things he touched in Abbey Road Studios, how he perplexed Paul McCartney, and his hilarious discussi...

Whoa!!! My man Jamie Blaine takes over the show all the way from Nashville and plays the role of host, allowing me to get in on the fun and talk a little bit about the songs that make MY skin vibrate. Jamie does an outstanding hosting job, taking me through that very wide spectrum of emotions that all my songs conjure up - the cocaine, the Quaaludes, and everything in between.   My playlist: AC/DC...

No Sleep Til Sudbury takes a complete left turn in Episode 10 as my close pal Kent Bailey drops by to give me a tutorial on the history of Hip Hop. Even if he was a suburban white kid, dude knows his stuff.   Listen along as Bailey discusses his traumatic introduction to music, his resemblance to Canadian rapper Kish, the Funky Drummer sampling phenomenon, and so much more. He even namechecks a Sl...

My old promo tour buddy from Florida Chris Long, also known as The Pink Chief, joins me in Episode 9 to riff on music like no one else can. This dude is a lunatic, and I love him for it. During our chat, Long calls out the sterility of New Country, wonders what Keith Richards is whispering in Mick Jagger's ear, comes clean about his fantasies, and turns the tables on me with some questions of his...

My brother from Tennessee, Jamie Blaine, writes for like 70 different magazines and still has time to drop by the show for a few laughs, bless his heart. Listen in as we talk about the peculiarity that is Krokus, what it must have been like for Gene and Paul to hear Ace's solo album for the first time, Lemmy's beautiful ugliness, and Jamie's woeful Rush experiment. Turns out he does some great imp...

Learning design specialist and close friend Rachel Sumner drops by in Episode 7 with a highly inspiring and very interesting spin on the No Sleep Til Sudbury playlist concept, as she presents a collection of British female songwriters that taught her how to 'feel' as a British woman in her formative years. And, she scores additional points for being a Joni Mitchell fan.   Sumner's playlist: Kristy...

In Episode 6, Robin Washington's love of music is only slightly eclipsed by her gift for being a wisecracking smartass. Listen as she discusses her grandfather's pimp tendencies, her hilarious account of listening to The Black Crowes' Amorica record on Spotify, her adoration of Prince, and her complete disdain for me.   Washington's playlist: Stacey Q - Two of Hearts Stevie Wonder - Sir Duke Micha...

Prolific UK author, respected music journalist, and all-around great guy Joel McIver joins me via Skype from across the pond to discuss all manner of things, including the dark details inside Soft Cell's lyrics, a Ronnie James Dio children's song (seriously!), and the curious punk rock absurdity behind Kim Wilde's "Kids in America". All this and Cannibal Corpse and The Beatles too!   McIver's play...

Psychologist and distinguished music freak Dr. Liam Ennis joins me via Skype to chat about things like the goings-on inside Al Green's crazy church in Memphis, why certain Beatles fans want to spit in his face, his favourite Tragically Hip lyric, and who has the absolute best rock and roll scream in the history of the genre.        The Good Doctor's playlist: The Who - Young Man's Blues The Tragic...

In episode 3 my pally from the valley, longtime New York radio and entertainment personality Ian O'Malley, joins me over Skype from Connecticut to talk about the songs that represent the incredible adventures he's had during his 35 years in the business. O'Malley's stories are always epic, and he shares a few of them with us during our chat - a hilarious encounter with Judas Priest's Rob Halford d...

My favourite on-air personality in the Greater Toronto Area, Lee Eckley from 94.9 The Rock, brings over some beers and a great list of classic rock and jazz songs to discuss.  And you're gonna love the Rick James story he tells at the end of the episode.      Eckley's playlist:   Big Star - Thirteen Todd Rundgren - I Can't Stop Running Chris Squire - Hold Out Your Hand  Mick Taylor - Giddy Up Mile...

A brief introduction of the series with clips from upcoming episodes.