Rock School

"This is our second show celebrating the anniversaries you'll hear about during 2025. Throughout the show we will have some predictions about music from websites and a few from the Rock School hosts."

"Welcome to 2025! Here is the first of two shows where we look at many of the big music anniversaries of the year ahead."

"Every year we take the last full week of the year and offer a tip of the hat and a raise of the glass to those in the music world who left us. Here are the names from 2024."

"This is our second Christmas show of 2024. We asked AI to tell us the No 1 Christmas song and Christmas movie each year right up until this current year. Mariah Carey might show up."

"Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays. We have a two part Christmas offering this year. We are counting down both the No 1 Christmas song and the No 1 Christmas movie for every year starting in 1950 through 2024."

"It had to happen. The Grammys have changed their ruling that music can only be made by humans. The Beatles changed their minds but this is no where near the first time The Grammys have had to accept machine and computer generated music. We have a timeline."

"This is one of the oddest topics we have done in a while. There are Guinness World Records in music. They are easy to find. However many of them are disputed as someone now believes he or she owns the record. It is fascinating."

"Here is a sampling of some important music events that happened on Thanksgiving Day. I think it would be the best day to have a concert. Everyone is off work."

"An album can go Gold, then Platinum, then multiplatinum and then Diamond for ten million in sales. However, there have been 13 albums that have gone Diamond twice, the Double Diamonds. Here they are."

"Usually when you hear about a musician being sued it comes from their label or a venue but seldom the fans. However it does happen. Here is a list of some of the more interesting suits over the years."

"I read an opinion that asked if this was the last year for Classic Rock. The Stones are still out there. Paul McCartney as well. But it seems this year has a lot of the genre retiring. We have a list for you."

"On September 13, Janes Addiction was performing in Boston when singer Perry Farrell showed and punched guitarist Dave Navarro. The band is now on a hiatus. However this is no where near the first time band members have fought on stage. We have a list for you."

"This is our 2024 Halloween show. I read an article explaining John Carpenters theme to Halloween and it got me interested in other famous horror movie themes. Here are all the facts I found."

"Two members of Journey have settled a lawsuit over money and are back out on tour. It seems one of them was spending too much. This is often a problem for a band. The money. We have some examples of poor management and some tips about how bands have handled their income."

"We are once again in a presidential election season and musicians are once again angry when Donald Trump uses their songs. I was asked to lecture on the laws of a candidate using a song at a rally so I thought I would do them for you here as well."

"In honor of Tammy and my 36th wedding anniversary this week, we are offering up a list of the shortest musician marriages on record. Those crazy kids."

"Taylor Swift canceled three shows in Vienna due to a terrorist threat. However she lost no money as she had purchased terrorism insurance. What other policies does or should a musician have. We have a list"

"Choose the song you would like played at your funeral. I asked Tammy and she had an answer right away. You would think I did too but no. I had to really think about it. I came up with one to end the show."

"A large copyright lawsuit is being brought by the RIAA against a couple AI song generators. In order to do this show, I signed up for one of the generators and made songs. It was so easy it shocked me. I'll play what I created."

"In the music business, the cost people spend to go to concerts is tracked. That cost is trending up sharply. It has been termed Tourflation. We will discuss why and what can be done about it."

"Here is another interesting party question. What band missed putting out a live album at the height of their popularity. Many are releasing live material in their later years but which would have been great to hear at the height of their fame."

"We all know Americas Got Talent and The Voice but there have been so many more music competition shows. Most ran a season or two but looking back I would love to see some of these return."

"In the 1990s Jock Jams were everywhere. I owned a couple CDs myself. Here is the interesting and wildly profitable history of Jock Jams."

"Bands that have a main singer or two main singers will now and again let another person in the band step up and sing. This is a fun party question to ask people for examples. We have a long list for you."

"I was taught from early in my career to not bring sorrows in my personal life to the show. Do not bring the audience down. I have always followed rule that until now. My father died in December and my mother died in May. This show is about and for them."