Strong Songs

In this Patreon-funded special episode, Kirk sits down with his former high school band director Janis Stockhouse to talk about her life as a music educator. Janis started teaching at North high school in Bloomington, Indiana, in the early 1980s. It was a time when "jazz education" as a concept was still a relatively new thing. She retired 38 years later, having grown the North band program into a...

Let's go back, let's go back, let's go way on back to that time Aretha Franklin recorded one of her best songs. On this episode, Kirk dives into two different versions of Franklin's classic tune "Think." First it's the laid back groove and roomy mix of the 1968 original, then it's time to fast-forward 12 years for the juiced-up arrangement she recorded with the Blues Brothers band in 1980. It's a...

Life is a mystery, everyone must stand alone... except for everyone listening to this episode, because we're traveling together through doubt and deliverance with Madonna's "Like a Prayer." Kirk takes a look at the high-contrast drama of the megastar's 1989 megahit, with its cathedral-like verses, bus-driving guitar rhythms, bouncy basslines, and perfectly placed Latin percussion flourishes. The m...

Kirk opens up the Strong Songs mailbag to answer your questions about Marty McFly's musical instructions, Ian Anderson's flute style, Kurt Cobain's guitar tone, how to count songs by P!nk and Radiohead, and what to do if you play an "unsexy" instrument. REFERENCED/DISCUSSED: Back to the Future , a 1985 movie that you've probably seen "Johnny B. Goode" by Chuck Berry, 1958 "Walk Me Home" by P!nk "W...

It's time for something a little different, as Kirk takes a look at the theme songs from some of the most beloved animated TV shows of all time. This super-sized episode focuses on five different pieces of music, each of which is the theme for a different animated show. It's a ton of music in a variety of styles, full of frantic key shifts, earwormy melodies, bodacious drum fills, and a surprising...

Brace for a pressurized descent, as Kirk braves the undercurrents of Radiohead's alt-rock masterpiece "Paranoid Android." It's a structurally distinct, sonically adventurous, harmonically varied, and unexpectedly Bohemian Rhapsodyesque journey into the human psyche as Thom Yorke, Jonny Greenwood, and the rest of their not-so-merry band plumb the depths of 90s alienation. Band/Artist: Radiohead Alb...

It's time for the hardest rocking song ever written about sea life, as Kirk takes a deep dive into Heart's 1977 body-shaker "Barracuda." A deceptively complex song written around a deceptively straightforward riff, "Barracuda" opens the door for a discussion of the particulars of guitar tone, stompbox effects, the long history of the "galloping groove," why Ann Wilson's vocals rock as hard as they...

Whether you're high or low, you got to tip on the tightrope... and Kirk's got to tip right into a Strong Songs analysis of "Tightrope" by Janelle Monáe. It's time for some thump, some pop, and some sizzle, along with some clever rap phrasing, phrygian harmonies, surprise ukulele, and the funkiest horn section in Metropolis. Band/Artist: Janelle Monáe Album: The ArchAndroid , 2010 Composed by: Jane...

Elton John and his lyricist Bernie Taupin wrote so many great songs over the years that it was impossible to pick a single one for Strong Songs. So, why not do two? Kirk dives into a pair of classics by the storied songwriting duo, talking about Elton's chameleon-like voice, his love of pedal tones and embrace of the circle of fourths, the fascinating relationship between lyricist and songwriter,...

Mailbag May returns for round two, as Kirk continues catching up on listener questions. The Strong Songs mailbag continues to overflow. This week we've got some follow-ups on Hamilton as well as questions about Mariah's whistle register, vocal multiphonics, rhythmic misdirection, the lydian mode, and the differences between a sequencer, a sampler, and a synthesizer.  REFERENCED/DISCUSSED: Various...

It's time for Mailbag May, a long-running (aka brand new) Strong Songs tradition where Kirk spends the month of May catching up on listener questions. The Strong Songs mailbag overfloweth, and Kirk's got enough material recorded for two Q&A episodes. For this first part, we've got questions about chords, Tool, fire extinguishers, perfect pitch, Avengers and Game of Thrones music, the popularity of...

Kirk gets his Patreon pitch out of the way up front, then lists five albums that have shaped him as a musician over the years, talking a little bit about why each one is great. There could've been like a hundred different albums on this episode, but hey, let's start with five. Those albums are: -- Frank Zappa, The Best Band You Never Heard In Your Life , 1991 Listen/Buy via Album. Link -- The Card...

A toast to the groom! To the bride! To knowing you'll always regret the sacrifice you made for your sister! Kirk takes an overdue dive into Lin-Manuel Miranda's epic Broadway musical Hamilton , focusing on Renée Elise Goldsberry's first act showstopper, "Satisfied." Regret tinges an otherwise joyous day as Angelica Schuyler remembers the night she met Alexander Hamilton, fell in love with him, and...

Today's forecast calls for blue skies, and today's Strong Songs calls for an in-depth analysis of Electric Light Orchestra's "Mr. Blue Sky." It's time to welcome all our pretty faces to the human race, thanks to ELO's most enduring concert-rock classic. Kirk goes for a sunny stroll on a beautiful musical day full of layered vocals, fire extinguisher drumming, time-tested chords, Les Paul solos, vo...

Dust off your head charts and brush up your best licks, cause it's time to wade into the warm, welcoming waters of jazz. This episode's Strong Song is Bobby Timmons' gospel-tinged "Moanin'," from Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers' 1959 album of the same name. Kirk zooms out a bit more than usual to talk about jazz small-group arranging, how a great solo is constructed, how jazz song-form works, a...

The Strong Songs mailbag is overflowing, so it's time to dive in and answer some listener questions. Kirk digs into creative subdivision, syncopated melodies, major 9th chords, famous drum fills, chiptunes, "bad" singing that's actually good, jazz chords, Indian drum languages, and how to be a better music listener. Update 12/23/2020: Kirk has traveled back in time to correct this episode's errone...

What happens when you put a straight-up power ballad in the middle of a Disney movie? "Let it Go" happens, that's what. On this episode, Kirk climbs to the top of a snowy peak and summons all his magical powers to figure out why Elsa of Arendelle's self-coronation song rocks as hard as it does, and what it says about the evolution of Disney musical numbers over the past 30 years. Band/Artist:  Idi...

Is this the real life? Is this just fantasy? Well, either way, this is definitely an episode of Strong Songs about Queen's genre-blending rock saga "Bohemian Rhapsody." Kirk dives into Freddie Mercury's operatic opus and learns a lot about vocal technique, piano motifs, harmonic easter eggs, studio production, Strategic Brian May Deployment™, and all the ways doubling a track can make your voice s...

It's time to get lost in the bittersweet beats of ABBA's 1976 hit "Dancing Queen." On this longer-than-usual episode, Kirk tries to tease out some of the things that make this song so iconic and enduring, from its lush arrangement to its clever harmonies, repeating melodic motifs, and maximalist audio production. Band/Artist:  ABBA Album: Arrival,  1976 Composed by: Benny Anderson, Björn Ulvaeus,...

It's time for an extra-long episode as Kirk answers your questions about Phil Collins drum solos, musical Wilhelm screams, odd time signatures, Beatles instrumentation, drop-tuned guitars, Bond music, and much more. REFERENCED/DISCUSSED: "In the Air Tonight" by Phil Collins from  Face Value , 1981 Jennifer Hudson sings "The Star Spangled Banner"  by Frances Scott Key and John Stafford Smith at Sup...

Darkness falls across the land, and it's the right time for Michael Jackson's "Thriller." Kirk picks apart Rod Temperton's dance floor classic in all its groovy, corny, sound effect-y glory. Band/Artist:  Michael Jackson Album: Thriller,  1982 Composed by:  Rod Temperton Produced by: Quincy Jones Listen/Buy via Album. Link ------ A NOTE FROM KIRK: It’s been a couple months since I produced this ep...

Ever wish you could just be a kid again? Stevie does. Kirk breaks out the bass and digs into what makes Stevie Wonder's "I Wish" swing like it does, then looks back to some earlier Wonder tunes to guess at why his funkiest stuff tended to be in E-flat. Band/Artist:  Stevie Wonder Album: Songs in the Key of Life,  1976 Composed by:  Stevie Wonder Listen/Buy via Album. Link ALSO REFERENCED/DISCUSSED...

On this episode, Kirk dives into one of the greatest pop songs of all time. Beyoncé's "Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It)" is arguably the defining song of the last decade, but it's far from your average pop tune. With its unusual tensions and unstoppable groove, it defies safe harmony and resolution, and its composers were more than happy to flip the beat and leave their audience searching for the...

This week, Kirk breaks down one of his favorite songs from one of his favorite albums. Paul Simon's "You Can Call Me Al" was a single from his incredible 1986 album Graceland , and its music video introduced a generation to the wonders of goofy lip-synching and fretless bass solos. It's a harmonically simple tune with a cleverly dense arrangement, and brilliantly uses musical layering. Band/Artist...

On the first episode of Strong Songs, Kirk breaks down Toto's hit song "Africa," a single so good that it still lights up the Internet today. Band/Artist:  Toto Album: Toto IV , 1982 Composed by: David Paich and Jeff Porcaro Listen/Buy via Album. Link -------------------- 💃STRONG SONGS LIVE!🕺 July 11, 2026 | Portland, OR Buy Tickets Here (Livestream Tix Now Available!) ----LINKS----- 💰 SUPPORT...