Music In My Shoes

The holidays don’t just look a certain way—they sound a certain way. We dive into how a fragile cartoon tree, a swingy piano motif, and a handful of offbeat movie moments grew into the soundtrack of December. From the first Peanuts special to stop‑motion Santa to a green recluse in Whoville, we trace the songs, voices, and production choices that turned seasonal TV and film into enduring ritual.

• Charlie Brown Christmas a...

We roll into our 80s hard rock showdown, where we put ACDC’s Back in Black, Van Halen’s 1984, and Guns N’ Roses’ Appetite for Destruction under the brightest light we know: track-by-track comparison. Jump meets It’s So Easy; Panama squares off with Nightrain; Hot for Teacher tangles with Paradise City. The fun isn’t just the score—it’s how those matchups rewire your nostalgia.

From there, we zoom in on live recordings that...

A smiling John Lennon on Monday Night Football. A blunt 1970 interview that cut through the post‑Beatles haze. A late‑night Bermuda epiphany triggered by the B‑52s. We stitch together these scenes to tell a clear story of return, risk, and the ache of what never happened.

We revisit Lennon’s sharp takes on early solo albums, then jump to Howard Cosell’s halftime chat where “It’s always in the wind” floated a reunion hope. ...

Some years don’t just produce great records—they redraw the map of how we listen. We dive into 1970 as a living, breathing turning point, starting with the Velvet Underground’s Loaded to George Harrison’s All Things Must Pass, with detours into Derek and the Dominoes, CCR, and the Partridge Family. Stories of edits, covers, charts, lawsuits, and misheard lyrics tie together what makes songs endure.

• Velvet Underground’s L...

A fast-moving tour through concerts, songs, and stories that still echo: REM’s 1995 blowout, U2’s 2005 highs, a supergroup surprise with Darius Rucker, Mike Mills, and Steve Gorman and how a ballad helped change maritime safety. We end with a spirited look at 80s alt gems and one notorious number-one.

• deep dive into REM’s 1995 Omni shows and rare covers
• U2’s 2005 setlist peaks, “Miss Sarajevo,” and a proposal durin...

What if a tribute didn’t wait for the final chapter? We sit down with artist-producer Anna Jensen and songwriter Kevn Kinney to unpack Let’s Go Dancing, a 100-song, multi-year celebration that reimagines Kevn’s catalog—solo and with Drivin N Cryin—while pairing each release with original artwork. Born from a lockdown birthday idea, the project became a living archive where legends, locals, and rising voices reinterpret songs and, i...

The lights drop in Atlanta and Paul McCartney steps into a room full of memory—and invention. We unpack how an icon in his eighties still delivers a two-hour-forty marathon by leaning on tight harmonies, a punchy horn section, and the kind of live tech that lets Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite explode off a modern stage. The show’s emotional peak arrives when Paul sings I’ve Got a Feeling with John via Get Back footage, a moment ...

A leather jacket, an iconic eagle logo, and a three-chord blur that changed everything—tour manager Monte A. Melnick joins us to reveal how the Ramones became an institution without ever chasing the charts. From booking chaos and van miles to Sire Records deals and night-after-night precision, Monte shares the systems and scrapes that kept the band loud, fast, and on time. 

Talking about his book 'On the Road with the...

A band doesn’t thrive for thirty plus years by accident. Guitarist/Singer and cofounder Johnny Hickman opens up about the simple pact that kept Cracker alive—stay the course, skip the drama, and serve the song. We dig into how he and David Lowery decide who sings what, which ideas belong to Cracker versus solo projects, and how rotating players and richer arrangements kept the sound evolving without losing its soul.

Johnny...

A rush of tour news collides with ticket chaos, memories from Nassau in ’82, and why certain songs outlast the charts. We dig into supergroups, The Jam’s perfect demo, UK vs US tastes, and the small human moments that keep music personal.

• Rush 2026 reunion dates and presale chaos
• First Rush show memories at Nassau Coliseum
• The Jam’s Sound Affects and demo vs studio
• UK vs US charts and what sticks
• ...

A listener’s mailbag turns into a rapid-fire set of rock face-offs as we celebrate 100 episodes, relive moments from the show, and crack up at studio bloopers. We end with gratitude, a look at global listeners, and a simple truth: the music keeps us here.

• Stones over the Who for longevity and range
• Led Zeppelin’s blues power vs Aerosmith’s early punch
• Pink Floyd’s concept mastery vs Queen’s showmanship
• ...

We trace a loud, joyful route from under a bridge in Brooklyn to an Atlanta club, catching legends who still hit hard and a tight-knit indie circle that turns baseball into song. Small moments—an unexpected wave, a signed drumhead, a kind word—become the glue of a scene that endures.

• CBGB Festival under the K Bridge with Melvins, Lunachicks, Johnny Marr, The Damned, Jack White, and Iggy Pop
• the Damned’s stamina and...

Janis Joplin's untimely death on October 4, 1970, marked a profound loss for rock music just sixteen days after Jimi Hendrix's passing. We explore her remarkable legacy, breakthrough at the Monterey Pop Festival, and participation in the legendary Festival Express train tour across Canada.

• Janis Joplin died at age 27 with only four albums released, yet her impact remains enormous

• "Mercedes-Benz" was the last s...

Music shapes our memories and creates connections across generations, from legendary drummers who defined rock to the venues that launched careers and the songs that withstand time.

• John Bonham of Led Zeppelin died September 25, 1980, at age 32
• Exploration of the greatest drummers of all time across various lists
• Hal Blaine, session drummer extraordinaire, played on over 35,000 songs including hits by The Bea...

We remember Jimi Hendrix's final performances and lasting legacy as arguably the greatest guitarist of all time. From his final show in Germany where fans booed him for weather delays to his breakthrough at the 1967 Monterey Pop Festival, we trace the trajectory of this revolutionary musician.

• Examining Hendrix's final days, including his last performance at the Love and Peace Festival in Germany on September 6...

We dive into a musical time capsule exploring the Billboard Modern Rock tracks from September 16th, 1995, highlighting the songs that defined a generation and soundtracked a wedding day.

• Matthew Sweet's "Sick of Myself" featuring Television's Richard Lloyd on lead guitar
• Hole's "Softer, Softest" with Kurt Cobain on backing vocals, recorded in Marietta, Georgia
• Toadies' ...

The Rolling Stones' "Get Yer Ya-Ya's Out" changed rock history as the ultimate live album experience, capturing the raw energy of their November 1969 performances with new guitarist Mick Taylor delivering an unforgettable sound.

• Released September 4, 1970, it features definitive versions of classics like "Jumpin' Jack Flash," "Midnight Rambler," and "Sympathy for the Devi...

Journey back to the summer of 1970 as we explore the legendary Isle of Wight Festival, where music lovers converged on a small island off England's southern coast for five days of extraordinary performances. What makes this festival particularly special is how well it was documented – allowing us to experience these historic performances through recordings and film footage decades later.

From Chicago's early hits...

There's something magical about a determined paperboy chasing John Cusack down, saying "I want my two dollars!" That's the power of an unforgettable movie moment - it sticks with you for decades. In this episode, I dive into why Johnny the Paperboy from 1985's "Better Off Dead" created one of cinema's most quotable running gags despite being just a minor character in the film.

But th...