Professor of Rock

Coming up, it’s the most played song by an Australian act and if you took 100 guesses you get it wrong. It’s not a song from Men At Work or AC/DC or INXS, it’s by Little River Band that had many hits in the 70s and 80s on the American charts, but "Reminiscing" was their biggest... It went to #3 and since then it’s been played over 6 million times on American radio and the song was almost thrown away. As the band was recording it, they couldn’t get the arrangement right so they decided to nix it after trying to record it 2 separate times … today’s guest, the writer of the song, talked them into trying it just one more time and someone who wasn’t even in the band is the one who figured out how to make it work… It’s a great story and it’s coming up next on Professor of Rock. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Coming up I’m gonna take you back to the 80s as we count down five Phenomenal songs from the decade that are severely underplayed..maximum velocity tracks that were hits in their day but for whatever reason have gotten lost in the shuffle as the years have gone by. when you hear them, you’ll wonder why you don’t listen to them more often including One that was written by an 80s rocker for a big name 70s band, but they passed on it…So the songwriter recorded it himself and after it became a hit the band who passed said they never actually heard the demo, apparently their label passed and didn’t tell them. Then there’s another song that was written about the singer’s old high school girlfriend. The song inspired him to go track her down decades later… but it didn’t go so well plus another song that has become a lost art!. plus I’m including my favorite song of all time in this countdown. Find out… NEXT on the Professor of Rock. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Coming up, we’ve got another great countdown, spotlighting songs that brought some of music’s biggest legends back into the spotlight— it's the top comeback songs of all time including one that came when the singer Tina Turner was playing half-empty ballrooms on the oldies circuit. When it hit #1 it made her the oldest singer to have a #1 at almost 45… Another was from former teen idol Donny Osmond who was so uncool radio wouldn’t touch him so a fans sent new song on a blank cassette. When it was played everyone loved it but nobody knew who it was… eventually it became a smash… And then one where Elvis Presley was walking down the hall of a recording studio and heard an anonymous song being performed in a studio by girl singers, it was so good he pointed to them and said I want that song and I want those girls… He got both and it hit #1… So many great stories next on our countdown of the Top 5 Comeback Songs…. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Coming up, a tale of twin brothers of The Proclaimers who were told by all the tastemakers that if they wanted to make it in music they should learn to sing without an accent. Their thick accents stopped many labels from giving them a chance and they were so original that a famous TV host called them weird on live TV… But this only motivated them and eventually, they had a massive hit all over the world in 1988 well everywhere but America… I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles). They couldn’t understand why it didn’t take off in the US. But then in a stroke of good luck, a famous actress made the director use the song in her scene in a movie, and it blew up 5 years after it was a hit everywhere else. 500 Miles hit #1 here, but even then some radio stations wouldn’t play it because of a misheard lyric that they found offensive. The story is next on Professor of Rock. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

1965 was a landmark year in music because it marked a moment when creativity, experimentation, and cultural change collided. It was the year rock music found its voice as a serious art form. Bob Dylan went electric and proved that lyrics could be as profound as poetry. The Beatles and the Beach Boys were showcasing their evolution from pop idols to groundbreaking artists, while The Byrds an Americana supergroup merged folk and rock with biblical proportions, introducing the world to the jangle of the 12-string Rickenbacker and then you had a legendary artist write one of the greatest songs ever only to give it to a rival band! So many great stories are included and so many legends are here to help me count down the 10 greatest songs of 1965. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Coming up, an interview with the greatest rock impersonator ever, Jess Harnell, and one of the funniest most entertaining stars in the business. He’s become a dear friend and you’ll love this interview. Jess has done something incredibly unique in rock and roll where he combines some of the biggest rock songs ever in a fresh and exciting way and he’s so great at it, that one of rock’s all-time greatest frontmen actually sued him for sounding too much like him. His talent for rock impressions has made him the best voice actor on the planet and one of the coolest singers out there. He has a new project out that you’ll love and next, we get the story of it and how he had fooled some of the most famous people into thinking he’s Gene Simmons of Kiss. You’ll love this! Coming up next on Professor of Rock. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Today it’s the origin story of rock’s greatest drummer Neil Peart and how a failed pilgrimage to England brought him face-to-face with his destiny. Namely, a force of nature that defined classic rock excellence forever... Rush. After returning to his Canadian hometown, Neil auditioned for Rush, but he felt his tryout was a complete disaster. It’s proof that 1st impressions aren’t always accurate, especially in rock and roll. Not only did he step into Rush as the final piece to their musical puzzle he also became the most compelling drummer lyricist on the planet. Coming up, the story of the rise of the great ones and the song that is now a 70s standard Fly Ny Night, that paid tribute to his struggle to find his place. The high school dropout who became the smartest lyrics in rock and the backbeat of rock’s most complex band… one who the Rock Hall of Fame passed over for 14 years even though they are the epitome of musical perfecto. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Is this the most hated genre on the Professor of Rock channel? I don’t know. You tell me. Whenever I release videos from this genre I never know what’s going to happen. Some episodes have blown up, getting phenomenal feedback. And others have been torn to shreds. I might be taking a risk with this one, but I’ve gotta confess that I love this genre. So today I’m giving you my top 5 songs that I hope will win you over to this genre. Including one that was created in a cramped closet for an imaginary album. Another that is the definition of schizophrenic. And one that the band refused to release as a single, but it got picked up by radio and became their most iconic track. five songs from the last great rock revolution of the rock era… and they’re coming your way NEXT on the Professor of Rock. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Get ready to rewind more unforgettable sounds of the '80s as we count down the Top Cover Songs of a decade full of them. From unexpected twists on classics to fresh takes that outshone the originals, these songs left an indelible mark on the music world... including one where The Bangles transformed a Simon and Garfunkel folk song into a driving rocker and another where the wailing banshee from Led Zeppelin had a smash hit by crooning a 50s tune that to this day most people have no clue it’s him, and another one by Paul Young became one of the funniest misheard lyrics of the decade and a Los Lobos cover that was first all Spanish song to hit #1 in the rock era. We break down the stories behind these iconic covers, the magic they brought to the table, and how they became monster hits in their own right. The countdown is NEXT on Professor of Rock. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In the 60s The Beatles threw away the rule book. They were used to writing catchy #1 hits but with today’s brilliant concept album Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, they shattered the boundaries of song arrangement and forever changed the art of recorded music. And during the time they were creating this masterpiece they were in a race with another progressive band the Beach Boys, with a goal to create the greatest record ever. And it was only recorded on a 4-track machine. The last cut on their ground-breaking record A Day in the Life was a mind-altering composition inspired by the death of a notorious socialite, and may have invented a whole new genre… it had an accidental bridge that started out as its own song and only meant to be filler but in this song it became a revelation. A Day in the Life would’ve been a surefire #1 hit, but the Beatles never put it out. But it was so exceptional it put them in a class all their own and became the greatest album closer ever. We raise the curtain on this fantastic voyage across the perils of stone-cold realism.. and the fantasy of lysergic imagination….NEXT on Professor of Rock." Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.