Bill and Frank’s Guilt-Free Pleasures
There’s no shame in the music you love. Join us as we celebrate the open-hearted songs of the past 50 years (with a focus on the songs that shaped us from the 70s, 80s, and 90s).
Episodes
In this episode, we record in the early morning to celebrate a song that embodies both power and vulnerability: ‘A Little Respect’ by Erasure. Join us as we embrace the early hour to discuss the profound nature of Erasure's anthemic ode to love, vulnerability, and acceptance. The dynamic between Bell and Clarke, with Clarke’s meticulous compositions (and impressive previous history) complemented by Bell’s soaring vocals (and soulfu...
Our friend Kahlin passed away this week and we are heartbroken. To honour her memory, we wanted to do our small part and re-post the episode she did with us from December 2023. This episode was a ton of fun and we hope you can feel it when you listen, too. We also hope you can hear the joy in Kahlin's voice and the laughter that fills the room as she reminisces about what Sugar Ray meant to her grade 6 heart in the late 90s. We lov...
We discuss Pat Benatar's memorable anthem "Hit Me With Your Best Shot" and it's unlikely beginnings - at a pillow punching therapy session in Toronto. We also discuss our own misadventures with punching and what it means to be in the cultural zeitgeist.
Thank you for listening! You can find us on Instagram, Facebook, and our website. You can email us at BandFGuiltFree@gmail.com, too. We'd love to hear from you. Please rate and rev...
"There are two types of people in this world: Those who like Neil Diamond, and those who don't." - Dr. Bob Wiley, author of the renowned memoir Death Therapy.
As Dr. Bob suggests, you can divide the world into two (hopefully unequal) parts. You’ll find Bill and Frank on the bright side of the world where Neil Diamond is adored. This episode sees the return of Dan Ducroix, who fell in love with the music of Neil Diamond over 25 year...
“Sweet City Woman” is a quintessential Canadian song - it contains both English and French lyrics and it celebrates Toronto while using the language of the countryside. In this week’s episode, Frank attempts (and fails) to rename the podcast, we bring back Mel Bourque to help us understand the French version of the song, and we determine if we have Canadian accents
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It's hard to believe that this is a song from 1989 as Roy Orbison is an icon from the early days of Rock n' Roll, and his voice sounds just as powerful as it did 30 years before. We are glad to bring this song to you. We hope you (like us) are transcended to a higher plain when you hear his voice!
Clips of the recording process of You Got It
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There is something thrilling about a long-established band having a hit late in their career. They say pop music is for the youth of the day, so seeing a group of 40-year-olds continue to run with the wildebeests warms the heart. The Whispers proved that they can certainly “Rock Steady” with their younger peers. It also certainly didn’t hurt to be gifted an incredible jam by the soon-to-be legendary songwriting team of Babyface and...
In today’s milestone episode, we celebrate Dave Kitchen's 20th appearance on Bill and Frank's Guilt-Free Pleasures, featuring The Cure’s iconic “Friday I’m in Love.” We recall the polarizing debates amongst our peers at the high school cafeteria over whether The Cure sold out (they didn't!), and Kitch brings us back to recognizing the unique duality of The Cure, reminding us how the band has regularly oscillated between pop eleganc...
In today’s episode, we revisit the 80s pop sensation Taylor Dane and her iconic hit "Love Will Lead You Back." We delve into Dane’s overlooked legacy (seven top 10 hits over two albums!) and explore the emotional power of Frank’s favourite Taylor Dayne song. Even though Bill would have preferred to discuss “Tell it To My Heart” instead, he shares his evolving appreciation for today’s song, while Frank highlights its themes of hope ...
In this week’s episode, we jump into a song that's more than just a nostalgic tune—it's a fascinating slice of pop culture with an equally intriguing backstory. Prepare to delve into “Nothing’s Gonna Change My Love For You,” a hit brought to life by Glenn Medeiros, whose music video might just be one of the most dangerous ever made—a song that sends us spiraling into conversations about love, nostalgia, and the odd memories we have...
In this episode we explore the sultry magic of Barry White, focusing on his iconic track "You're the First, the Last, My Everything." We discuss Barry's rise from the streets of Watts to his status as a soul legend, we unravel themes of love and seduction, we dive into the passionate lyrics and lush arrangements that define White’s sound, and we celebrate his artistry as both a vocalist and innovative producer. Prepare yourself for...
It's hard to believe that it's taken us this long to do "Karma Chameleon," but maybe we needed to be at our A-game to handle a song this amazing. If you were alive in 1983, you would have heard this tune everywhere and you would have loved it! We go deep into the background of the band and the song, and we find out that it's a lot darker than we realized. Nevertheless, the joys of the song endure as our memories of 1983 come and go...
We explore the DNA remix of Suzanne Vega's "Tom's Diner" by taking a deep dive into the song's history and cultural significance, particularly how the original version became an integral part of the MP3 narrative. We also discuss the themes embedded within the lyrics - a stream-of-consciousness portrayal of someone experiencing life through a pane of glass, which gives us not only a time capsule of 1980s New York City, but also tri...
From Rad to Knuckles, Real Life’s “Send Me An Angel” sets a perfect t scene. We hope you enjoy our discussion of the history and analysis of an 80s classic!
Helpful Links
You can find us on Instagram, Facebook, and our website. You can email us at BandFGuiltFree@gmail.com, too. We'd love to hear from you. Please rate and review us wherever you listen!
Our theme music is by the incredibly talented Ian McGlynn...
The Human League's "Human" is both irresistible and ridiculous. Despite the reprehensible content, Terry Lewis and Jimmy Jam create an earworm of a melody, and when combined with the not-quite-as-robotic-as-before vocals of Philip Oakey (which we continually mispronounce as "Oakley"), we can't help but return repeatedly to the tune. We discuss the history of the band, the song, and whether we can ever deem this to be a "guilt-free ...
An incredible song with an absolutely ridiculous video, "The Warrior" is pure guilt-free pleasure. Besides discussing the history of the band, the song, and the video, we also explore Knuckles from Sonic The Hedgehog and its significance in Bill's life. And most importantly, we examine what it means to be a warrior in the world of love.
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We can't think of many songs with as much purity of heart than Faith Hill's "This Kiss." All the joy of early and enduring love is found here, as well as a remarkable story about how this song came together. We have a dearth of episodes on country music, but we hope this marks the beginning of more steel guitar days in the Guilt-Free Pleasureverse!
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1998 Country Music Awards performance
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The story of Alias is the story of tenacity. Coming out of the ashes of Sheriff, Freddy Curci and Steve DeMarchi were couriers by day and hard-working rockers by night as they honed their craft and waited for an opportunity to get back on the scene. The serendipitous resurrection of "When I'm With You" (check our previous episode) on the Billboard Hot 100 gave them the chance to get a record deal, which resulted in the release of t...
One of the most unlikely success stories in Billboard Hot 100 history is Canada’s Sheriff. Despite having broken up years before, their ballad ascended to the peak of the charts to the chagrin of the record execs. The listening public will not be denied! Join us as we discuss the history of the song (a Valentine’s gift!) and the longest note in #1 pop history!
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When you send us requests, we do listen! This episode was recommended by frequent listener Jake Wiebe, who feels that Michael McDonald's "Sweet Freedom" is an essential guilt-free pleasure. We agree.
Running Scared Montage Sequence
Toad the Wet Sprocket and Michael McDonald
You can find us on Instagram, Facebook, and our website. You can email us at BandFGuiltFree@gmail.com, too. We'd love to ...
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