Radio Richard | Richard Niles Podcast

My 4-Part BBC documentary on the life of legendary actress and singer Doris Day, whose compassion led her to become one of the world’s foremost animal rights activists. I feature rare interviews with Doris Day and interviews with her friends and colleagues, Andy Williams, Les Brown Jr., Kay Ballard, Stumpy Brown, and arranger Frank Comstock. For the whole story, watch all 4 Episodes. Subscribe to...

It’s Grammy season, and Composer/producer Richard Niles reacts to the latest issue of Billboard. Listen to him rant about the music business and let us know what you think! Radio Richard loves ideas because IDEAS MAKE YOU BETTER! Billboard Gives us the Business by Richard Niles Watch this episode in video HERE #billboard #richardniles #radiorichard #musicbusiness #aandr #newartists #corruption #ro...

My 2002 BBC Radio 2 documentary series, “The Arrangers”, featured this documentary and my exclusive interview with Composer/Arranger PETE RUGOLO. He studied with Darius Milhaud, and had a long association with the STAN KENTON orchestra, becoming one of the most influential composers in modern jazz. He went on to produce and arrange for stars such as June Christy, The Four Freshmen and Nat King Col...

I am SO happy to be bringing you this interview with RUPERT HOLMES Composer for Films & TV, singer/songwriter of many albums including the hits HIM and ESCAPE, the Piña Colada Song, Producer and Composer for Barbara Streisand, The Strawbs, John Miles, award winning author of books, plays and musicals. The interview was done for a BBC Radio 2 series called MANHATTAN, The most Musical Island on Eart...

Gary Burton, the multiple-Grammy-winning jazz vibraphonist has been an influential force on the vibraphone — the Burton grip, the technique he invented to play pianistically with 4-mallets, bears his name. He is also an important figure in jazz education, through a 33-year affiliation with the Berklee College of Music in Boston. As a bandleader he made what is arguably the first jazz fusion album,...

Trumpet ace Wayne Jackson is an icon of American Soul. From Stax to Atlantic to Hi Records, with his friend Andrew Love, Charlie Chalmers and Bowlegs Miller, the Memphis Horns played on over 300 hits for Wilson Pickett’, Sam & Dave, Aretha Franklin, Otis Redding, Isaac Hayes, Al Green, Elvis Presley, Neil Diamond, James Taylor, Steve Winwood, U2, Peter Gabriel, Rod Stewart, the Doobie Brothers, St...

Film composer, arranger, producer and performer, Anne Dudley is a multi-talented and critically acclaimed musician. This interview was originally recorded for Niles’ BBC Radio 2 documentary, “Richard Niles’ History of Pop Arranging”. Beginning as a session musician and arranger for Producer Trevor Horn she worked with him on hits for ABC, Frankie Goes to Hollywood, and Malcolm McClaren. She was a...

In 2003 I interviewed Dave Weckl, a drummer whose unique talent and fire had won him induction into the Modern Drummer Hall of Fame in 2000. His performances with Paul Simon, George Benson, Michel Camilo, Robert Plant, Dave Grusin, Mike Stern and Anthony Jackson brought him public acclaim. But with his dynamic contribution to the Chick Corea Elektric Band and the Akoustic Band (1985 to 1991) Weckl...

Dave Brubeck, designated a “Living Legend” by the Library of Congress, was one of the most active and popular musicians in both the jazz and classical worlds. With a career that spanned over six decades, his experiments in odd time signatures, improvised counterpoint, polyrhythm and polytonality remain hallmarks of innovation. When I heard Brubeck would be in London for a series of concerts, I imm...

From the ARCHIVE, Richard Niles’ documentary on Progressive Jazz bandleader STAN KENTON. Not only is there a rare interview with Kenton himself but Niles interviews his daughter, acclaimed author LESLIE KENTON who discusses her father’s concepts. Kenton was a committed innovator who, for forty years, pushed jazz forward in harmony, composition, orchestration, and featured the work of gifted arrang...

My 2002 BBC Radio 2 documentary from my series, “The Arrangers”, featured mood music king PAUL WESTON and his wife, singer JO STAFFORD talking about their career and working with JOHNNY MERCER, MARGARET WHITING, and a special feature on their comedy duo Jonathan & Darlene Edwards. Don’t miss this rare opportunity to hear these unique interviews! If you enjoy these shows, please SUBSCRIBE so we can...

ROBERT FARNON is considered the greatest orchestral composer and arranger. In this rare 2001 interview, Richard Niles speaks to him about his career, his work with Tony Bennett, Singers Unlimited, and Frank Sinatra. A host of musical concepts from the man they called “the Governor”. If you enjoy these shows, please follow us so we can keep bringing you this high quality content. ROBERT FARNON - Ra...

My 2002 BBC Radio 2 documentary from my series, “The Arrangers”, featured QUINCY JONES himself, talking about his early life, Ray Charles, Dizzy Gillespie, Charlie Parker, Count Basie, Nadia Boulanger, Frank Sinatra, and “We Are the World”! Don’t miss this opportunity to hear it from Quincy himself! And if you recognize the song at the start, from "Austin Power" franchise, it is Quincy Jones' "Sou...

Between 1998 and 2003 composer Richard Niles wrote and hosted the series “New Jazz Standards” for BBC Radio 2. This interview features ‘smooth jazz’ icons, saxist Boney James and trumpeter Rick Braun in conversation and performance- playing a duet on Horace Silver’s “Song For My Father”. In it, James says, “Smooth Jazz isn’t a style – it’s a radio format!” BONEY JAMES & RICK BRAUN – Exclusive Arch...

In this unique interview, composer Richard Niles asks GRAMMY® Award-winning legend MELISSA MANCHESTER about her vocal techniques and her songwriting with hitmakers Paul Williams, Carole Bayer Sager, Kenny Loggins, and Bernie Taupin. She also speaks warmly of Barry Manilow, how the began their careers together with Bette Midler and formed a lifetime friendship. This video is a MUST for any professi...

Billy May was Frank Sinatra’s swingin’est arranger. In this RARE INTERVIEW Billy May speaks about his amazing career, from his earliest studies, through arranging for Charlie Barnet, Glenn MILLER, having hits with children’s music and Tweety and Sylvester cartoons to writing groovy albums for Sinatra like Come Fly With Me. Please tell us what you think in the COMMENTS! BILLY MAY – Billy SPEAKS of...

Jimmy Rushing was best known as the bluesy vocalist of Count Basie's Orchestra from 1935 to 1948. In fact, as you will hear, Basie originally started it as Rushing’s backing group. Their swingin’ friendship resulted in the longest partnership of a singer with a big band! I made this documentary in 2002 for BBC Radio 2. The story is told by “Mr. Five By Five”, Rushing himself in a rare interview -...

UK Songwriting Contest Best Original Song Winner “You Can’t Hide the Light” JOHNNY SCHAEFER tells of the creation of the award-winning duet with GRAMMY® Award-winning legend MELISSA MANCHESTER and Producer/Arranger Stephan Oberhof at Creation Station. How the song was conceived, written, produced – with the epic sound of 55 vocal tracks! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ScFPN... WINNER! UKSC BEST S...

Featuring a rare interview with PEGGY LEE herself, we learn how she got her start UPFRONT with the King of Swing, BENNY GOODMAN at the age of 19. And in this POT-CAST, she tells why their big hit “Why Don’t You Do Right” was actually about Marijuana! Also interviewed in my 2002 documentary, her daughter, Nicky LEE Foster, friend Phoebe Jacobs, authors Stephanie Stien Crease, David Hajdu, Will Frie...

I wrote and hosted a series called “Upfront” for BBC Radio 2 in 2002. At the end of the 1940s, the musical world was changing. Bebop was growing and the big bands only had a few years to live. But the rich baritone of Billy Eckstine met the divine alto of Sarah Vaughan and stars were born! Here is the story of how Vaughan got her start at 19 from Eckstine, told by Sarah Vaughan herself, critic Ste...

In 2002, I wrote and hosted a series of documentaries called “Upfront” – about singers who made their names upfront with the big-bands. Here, I present the hippest of all singers Mel Tormé making his name with the most intellectual of bandleaders, Artie Shaw. Uber-talented Tormé was an actor, author, pianist, guitarist, arranger, songwriter (“The Christmas Song”), and drummer! He was singing with...

In 2001 I wrote and presented two series of “The Arrangers” for BBC Radio 2, examining the creators of iconic sounds in jazz & pop. The fascinating story of HERB ALPERT & the Tijuana Brass is told in interviews with Alpert and his musicians, John Pisano, Bob Edmondson, and Pat Senatore. The music is sometimes dismissed, but the band had fifteen #1 albums, many hit singles and became the 4th bigges...

In 2001, I wrote and presented a documentary series for BBC Radio 2, “The Arrangers” produced by @elizabethclark. It featured Robert Farnon, Neal Hefti, Herb Alpert, Stan Kenton, Quincy Jones, Pete Rugolo and Mexican arranger/composer JUAN GARCIA ESQUIVEL. His daring, explosive, utterly original arrangements fueled by jazz, pop, film and loaded with instrumental effects, led to a new style in the...

PIR (Philadelphia International Records) took over from Motown as the preeminent black music label of the Seventies. I interviewed producer, songwriter, guitarist, and arranger BOBBY ELI for the BBC and for my book, “The Invisible Artist” in 2008. Bobby was a member of Mother Father Sister Brother playing guitar on many of the most successful PIR hits of the 1970s, working with their biggest artis...

BOB MALONE is the kind of party your neighbors come upstairs to tell to turn down, and then enjoy the music so much they stay all night dancing, getting high and plooking your Auntie!  Malone, armed only with a pillaged and deflowered piano, has thrown that party for Ringo Starr, John Fogerty, Bruce Springsteen, and Bob Seger. The singer/songwriter brings that same bacchanalian revelry to all of h...