Today’s guest makes me feel old fashioned. Or maybe I want to drink an Old Fashioned. Either way I am fortunate enough to have Stella Cole on the podcast! She blew up TikTok with her faithful renditions of the Great American Songbook. She tells me about how she became obsessed with old music and musicals from an early age. But she was always cautio…

Today’s guest makes me feel blessed. Her name is Miist. She’s a singer/songwriter with an incredible story. She grew up in China and had no ambitions of being a musician. She would sing songs with her father as a kid but that was really the extent of her musical experience. She moved to Canada where she was an accountant. But a startling cancer mis…

Today’s guest is Dave Trumfio and he makes me feel empathetic…towards robots. Dave and his brother Harry have been in bands together since Dave was 8 years old. Their first band started then and lasted through high school! In fact, at their high school talent show, they managed to snag the final spot so they could play the entire first side of Rush…

Today’s guest makes me happy. It’s legendary drummer, Chris Slade. From his humble beginnings, he became the go-to drummer for some of the biggest names in rock. He tells me about the entertainment gene that runs through his family, buying his way out of school so he could play drums, and how working in a show shop got him a gig with Tom Jones. And…

This episode of Side Projects honors the legacy of the late, great, legendary keyboardist Bernie Worrell. His friend and colleague Evan Taylor talks about the posthumous album he produced called Wave From The WOOniverse. It contains 12 previously unfinished Bernie Worrell compositions and 1 unreleased Funkadelic song. It’s been a two year labor of …

Today’s guest has done so many things that I would like to do. And he tells us all about it. Welcome bassist and founding member of A Monkey Shine, George Tolias. George joins us from Athens…Greece, not Georgia. He got a late start in music. He didn’t start playing until his wife bought him a bass about 20 years ago! But he’s a quick study. Once he…

Today’s guest makes me feel a little bit country AND a little bit rock and roll. Welcome singer/songwriter Pamela McNeill to the podcast. She has accomplished so much in her career. But it all started in Winona, MN. She talks to me about the music scene there and what event set her mind on being a musician. She talks about some unusual things about…

Today’s guest should probably do his own podcast. Welcome John Ford Coley to the show. He’s a great storyteller with a lifetime of stories to share. He grew up outside of Dallas where he was classically trained on piano as a kid. He grew up on opera, show tunes, and church music. But rock and roll wormed its way into his soul and he struck a deal w…

This is such a cool episode. We’re talking all things theremin with Nick Kizirnis and Pamelia Stickney. This episode has been a long time in the making and well worth the wait. There’s some theremin history and some rumors about the inventor. Nick and Pam discuss how the instrument works and what weird things affect the sound and performance. I lea…

Today’s guest is literally progressive. Let’s welcome Corey Schenck of the band Pangaea to the podcast. Corey was a late-bloomer, musically speaking. He didn’t pick up an instrument until late into high school. But it was such a deep connection that he went to college and received several degrees in it. He talks about how his love of music pushed h…

Today’s guest really brings back some memories. Please welcome Sheila Shukla from Magnolia Street String Band. Sheila and I go way back. Like WAAAAAY back, all the way to elementary school. There’s a little bit of catching up in this episode, sprinkled throughout Sheila’s story. She talks about how she used to force her sister, Rita, to help her fi…

Today’s guest exemplifies perseverance; and not just with his music but with this podcast. There were a few technical issues which have, hopefully, been overcome with clever editing. Welcome the one and only Robyn Hitchcock. He’s written a memoir about his life in 1967. In fact, it’s called 1967, How I Got There And Why I Never Left. It’s a very un…

Today’s guest has been through it. But he hasn’t let it stop him.Welcome T Bear to the show. Born Richard Gerstein, he grew up spending time in both New York City and the Caribbean. He was playing pretty early on. In fact, he was invited to his first studio session at the age of just 17…by Richie Havens! Soon after, he was discovered by the KISS ca…

This episode of Side Projects sees the return of Steve Dawson and Mark Mallman. They join me to discuss song structure. We go over some basic terms and structures that are typical and atypical. We talk about songs like The Wreck Of The Edmunds Fitzgerald by Gordon Lightfoot, Don’t Stop Believin’ by Journey, Stairway To Heaven by Led Zeppelin, and o…

Today’s guests made me laugh. A lot. I’d like to welcome Jake Zavracky and Elizabeth LeBaron to the show. Together they make up The Dream Eaters. And this entire episode could have gone off the rails at any moment. From the very beginning things were different than just about any other show. For example, doing the actual podcast took Elizabeth by s…

Today’s guest makes me feel so excited and I just can’t hide it. It’s The Pointer Sisters. No. No it’s not. Please welcome David Hakopyan of Antenna The End. And I have to thank Jamie Park and Teen Cancer America for connecting us. David grew up in one of the biggest Armenian communities in the world outside of Armenia, itself. He was influenced eq…

The Side Projects series of this podcast gives me a lot of latitude regarding subject matter. Occasionally, I like to go down a rabbit hole on a specific band. But I think this is the first time I’ve been able to do that with band members, themselves. Please welcome Robert Poss and Karen Haglof of Band Of Susans. They’ve both been on the podcast. I…

Today’s guest reminds me that there is some amazing talent out there that needs to be heard. Welcome Jackie Popovec from Youngstown, Ohio’s own The Vindys. She’s a powerhouse vocalist whose voice is a Venn Diagram of some heavy hitters like Amy Winehouse, Christina Aguilera, & Carrie Underwood. And the rest of the band ain’t so bad either. They roc…

Today’s guest proves that hard work and patience will pay off. Welcome Tom Kanach of KANAK to the podcast. Tom is from New Jersey, so naturally we start razzing each other almost from the start. Tom talks about manipulating his situation so his brother would get an unwanted plastic drum set in order to start his first band. But he would really get …

Today’s guest makes me feel inspired. I welcome Lex Borrero to the program. He’s the very definition of rags-to-riches. Born in Bogota, Colombia, he emigrated with his mother to the US to start a new life from scratch. His first taste of success came after selling candy and burned CD’s to buy a pair of Jordans when he was a kid. But Lex wasn’t (and…

Today’s guest embodies retro in the most fun ways possible. Welcome Chelsea Nenni of Late Slip to the show. She grew up with music all around. Her dad worked in rock radio since the 70’s. He even gave Carson Daly his first shot. In fact, Carson would often come over to Chelsea’s house for spaghetti. But her lifelong obsession with oldies, Elvis in …

Today’s guest makes me feel exotic. Welcome David Nagler to the show. David grew up in a very musical house. In fact, his first performance was at age 1 or 2 in a stage production of The King And I. But that was just the beginning. A very early beginning. He began taking piano lessons a few years later. He began his musical career with the band Str…

My guest today is just fun to talk with. It’s Jeff Fielder. I first heard Jeff when researching for Mark Lanegan’s episode. He’s worked with so many people and made so much great music that it’s almost unbelievable. But he started off admiring rock before playing any. He grew up in Alaska with much older brothers. Long haired, Les Paul playing, Bar…

Today’s guest makes me feel grateful in many different ways. One person I’m grateful to is Ryan Smith for introducing me to Mark Mallman. Mark’s story is incredible. But the recurring theme is victory. He’s overcome so much throughout his life and it all boils down to his mother’s message: It’s going to be OK. He grew up with music all around. It w…

Today’s guest is truly multi-talented. Welcome modern renaissance man Eerie Von to the podcast. Eerie talks about his varied creative talents. Whether it’s drums, bass, singing, photography, painting, or whatever he sets his mind to, Eerie is a force to be reckoned with. He’s also one of the most down-to-earth people I’ve ever had on the show. He’s…