Sittin' in with the CAT

Adolfo "Fito" de la Parra has been the "classic" drummer for Canned Heat during the past 57 years.  Having played at Woodstock in 1969 ( Episodes 180 and 181 ) he has led a resurgence of the band during the past few years.  Their latest album Finyl Vinyl has garnered tremendous accolades and propelled them towards the top of the Blues Rock charts and album of the year mentions.  Multi-award winnin...

Barry Goudreau , was an original member of Boston , whose first album sold well over 20 million copies worldwide.  The band reached the pinnacle of the entire music industry shortly after the albums release.  After touring and two albums with the band, Barry recorded a solo album and then went on to form several other groups including Orion The Hunter and his current band - Barry Goudreau's Engine...

A tribute to Phil Lesh , founding member and bassist/vocalist for the Grateful Dead , who had a unique style of playing a six-string bass guitar.  His career kicked off when he joined his friend Jerry Garcia in The Warlocks, which ultimately morphed into the Grateful Dead in the mid-1960's.  Many consider Phil as an innovator on the bass.  Phil wrote or co-wrote many of the Grateful Dead's songs t...

Greg Kihn released over 20 albums during his career and landed 11 songs on the Top 100 and/or mainstream rock charts in the U.S.  Originally from Baltimore, MD, Greg moved to California in 1972 and laid the groundwork for his successful career.  You'd also find him on the airwaves hosting many radio shows.  Greg passed away on August 13, 2024, after a long illness.  Multi-award winning program dir...

Jeff Pilson , bassist and keyboardist for Foreigner , has been with the band for over 20 years.  The band was selected for induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2024.  During his music career you'll find Jeff was a member of numerous rock bands including Dio and Dokken .  Multi-award winning program director Ray White caught up with Jeff in August of 2024 to talk about the latest with For...

Drummer Donny Baldwin was a mainstay in the Elvin Bishop Group back in 1973.  In 1982, he started his days with Jefferson Starship .  Throughout his career you'd find Donny playing with Jerry Garcea Band, Eddie Money, Van Morrison, Paul Rodgers and Pablo Cruise.  Multi-award winning program director Ray White caught up with Donny in August of 2024 to get his insights on his days with Elvin and his...

John Ondrasik is Five For Fighting , which launched in 1995.  His first two albums went "Platinum."  During the early 2000's he was nominated for a Grammy and American Music Award.  Recently, John released a trio of songs about current geopolitical events and has dedicated time to philanthropy including the USO, MDA and his whatkindofworlddoyouwant.com organization.  Multi-award winning program di...

On part 2 of this special edition, featuring the 55th anniversary of Woodstock , we're joined once again, with the drummer of a band that performed at the iconic festival - Adolfo "Fito" de la Parra of Canned Heat .  Also the mastermind who produced the sound for 500,000 people at the event - Bill Hanley , "The Father of Festival Sound,"  joined by IES' Steve Almas .  You'll also hear the sounds o...

On this special edition, we celebrate the 55th Anniversary of the Woodstock Music and Arts Fair that took place August 15, 16 & 17, 1969 in Bethel, NY.  Joining us is the "Father of Festival Sound," Bill Hanley to talk about the behind-the-scenes activities providing the sound system for this momentous occasion with Steve Almas , CEO of Integrated Entertainment Services, who provides turn-key serv...

Jorma Kaukonen , guitarist/singer/songwriter, recorded with Janis Joplin in 1964.  In 1965, he joined Jefferson Airplane .  You'll find him on every album that they released.  In 1969, Jorma went on to form Hot Tuna with Jack Casady , who still performs today.  In 1974, he recorded his first solo album, of which there are over a dozen studio albums released today, with the latest titled One More L...

Joanne Shaw Taylor is a dynamic singer/guitarist/songwriter who has blazed a trail to the top of the Blues Rock genre.  Discovered by Dave Stewart of The Eurythmics at the age of 16, she's released 12 solo albums throughout her rising music career.  In 2021, she teamed up with guitar wizard Joe Bonamassa and started recording on his record label.  Among her accolades you'll find Joanne named Best...

Leon Medica , bassist and producer of LeRoux , co-founded the band in 1977.  Throughout the years the band was featured on music television shows including Solid Gold , The Midnight Special and Don Kirshner's Rock Concert .  They had 7 songs land on Billboard's Top 100 chart.  Leon won an American Music Award for producing a song from the movie "Dirty Dancing" and also is a Grammy nominated musici...

John Cafferty and the Beaver Brown Band hit their stride in the early and mid-1980's with four Top 10 songs.  Many people know the band from the tremendous success of the Eddie and The Cruisers movie soundtrack.  Throughout the years, that band had 11 singles land on the music charts.  Multi-award winning program director Ray White sat down with John in January of 2012, shortly after the passing o...

Franke Previte formed Franke and the Knockouts in 1980, who had three Top 40 singles and two Top 50 albums.  Franke co-wrote music for the hit soundtrack Dirty Dancing featuring the Academy Award winning "The Time of my Life."  He also co-wrote "Hungry Eyes," which was a #1 U.S. Adult Contemporary hit sung by Eric Carmen.  Franke and the Knockouts most recent album was titled The Complete Collecti...

In Part 2 of our interview and feature with the phenominal Jeff "Skunk" Baxter , we focus on his years with Steely Dan and talk about the multi-Grammy award winning album ( Minute by Minute ) by The Doobie Brothers .  We'll also get Jeff's insights on his awesome solo album Speed of Heat and dive into his thoughts on the music industry today.  Be sure to listen to our other shows featuring current...

Jai Johanny Johanson aka Jaimoe is the only living original member of the Allman Brothers Band , that was formed in 1969.  During his illustrious career he was also a member of Sea Level .  Jaimoe presently leads a jazz-rock group called Jaimoe's Jasssz Band .  In 1995, he was inducted in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of the Allman Brothers Band .  Award winning program director Ray W...

Don Dokken launched Dokken in 1978.  The Grammy nominated band has had three Platinum albums and ten Top 40 hits on Billboard's Mainstream Rock charts.  Their latest studio release is 2023's Heaven Comes Down .  Multi-award winning program director Ray White caught up with Don in November of 2012, in this legacy edition of the CAT , to talk about their Broken Bones album and other key insights int...

Paul Nelson , a guitarist/record producer/songwriter won a Grammy award for Best Blues Album in 2015 for Johnny Winter's Step Back release.  Paul's played with the elite guitarists in the world and was a phenomenal guitarist himself.  He produced albums and toured with Johnny Winter for several years until Johnny passed in 2014.  Working with many of the blues and rock greats, he also found time t...

Fred LeBlanc is a co-founder of Cowboy Mouth , a Louisiana band formed in 1990.  Along with drumming, he's the vocalist for the band too.  Throughout the years the band has performed for over 10 million people.  Before forming Cowboy Mouth , Fred was in the "cowpunk" band Dash Rip Rock .  Multi-award winning program director Ray White caught up with Fred on a windy oceanfront day to talk about the...

Better Than Ezra was formed in 1988 in Louisiana.  Their first major label album, Deluxe , went Platinum.  Throughout the years a dozen of their singles have landed on the charts.  Multi-award winning program director, Ray White , caught up with co-founders Kevin Griffin and Tom Drummond backstage at their show to talk about their All Together Now album, the early days of the band and their approa...

Russ Kunkel is one of the most sought after drummers in the world.  A renowned session player, he has recorded or performed for the likes of Jimmy Buffett, CS&N, Stevie Nicks, Carole King, Dan Fogelberg and many more superstars in the music industry.  He's produced nearly two dozen albums, too!  He started to make a name for himself at L.A.'s Whiskey a Go Go, in the late 1960's.  Multi award-winni...

Jeff "Skunk" Baxter is one of the elite guitarists today.  He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of The Doobie Brothers .  His career on the national scene was launched in 1968 as a member of Ultimate Spinach .  In 1972, Skunk became a founding member of Steely Dan , playing on their first three albums.  Joining the Doobies in 1974, after doing session work on several of...

Humble Pie came together in 1969 led by Steve Marriott and Peter Frampton.  Many regarded the band as the first supergroup in rock music.  Throughout the years the band has experienced numerous changes.  The current group is still led by originial member Jerry Shirley including members with impressive music resumes.  Multi award-winning program director Ray White caught up with Humble Pie bandmate...

Ivan Neville , son of Aaron Neville and nephew of the other Neville Brothers , has been on the national music scene since 1983.  You'll find him on albums by his band Dumpstaphunk , his Dad, The Neville Brothers , Bonnie Raitt, The Rolling Stones and many others.  Ivan is a multi-instrumentalist, singer and songwriter.  Multi-award winning program director Ray White , sat down backstage with Ivan...

Denny Tedesco is director of the films The Wrecking Crew and the brand new release Immediate Family .  Both of these documentary films are about world-class musicians that you'll find on hundreds of albums and thousands of songs by artists who are in numerous Hall of Fame's and won hundreds of Grammy awards.  Played in film festivals around the United States, Immediate Family has garnered well ove...