Professor of Rock

Coming up, we’re counting down the Top 10 television theme songs from the 80s... Songs that were at the top of their game back in the day, and still hit you in the gut with a potent punch of nostalgia whenever you hear them. Some of these you’ll recognize from the radio like the theme from The Greatest American Hero (Believe It or Not) because they became major hit singles. Others like As Long As We've Got Each Other sparked some behind-the-scenes drama and were almost axed before they got the green light. And a story that will blow your Mind… one of the most beloved TV Themes Ever, The A-Team, used an intentionally ripped-off riff from Cream’s Epic Rock Classic Sunshine of Your Love, with the composer freely admitting it. Find out what song and if it landed him in hot water. What will be #1…Let’s take a time machine through the golden age of television when theme songs were still king. It’s the ultimate trip down memory lane… 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 we go back to a strange year in music that was equal parts wild & unpredictable: 1989. A true transitional year that was stuck between the past and the future and it wasn’t really sure of its identity... where rock, pop, and R&B collided in the most unforgettable way. Where one metal band had such an epic drum sound that an elder statesman of 60s rock was a surprise fan…Wait till you hear this story. Also, Tears For Fears copped a Beatles record so blatantly that Paul McCartney joked he should be in line for Royalties. Plus teen sensation Markita, who released one of the darkest songs of the year and then disappeared. As well as legendary rocker Tom Petty who sang a bunch of hilarious one-liners as a joke to get his famous producer to laugh… It worked but the producer actually made him turn the running joke into a song and it became his biggest hit. We count down the top 10 songs of an eclectic year in music. See if you can guess it before we announce it! 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 next, an interview with one of rock’s greatest storytellers… Randy Bachman. Randy has accomplished the rare feat of having a number-one hit with two different bands: the Guess Who and Bachman Turner Overdrive. In fact, he got very sick and needed to take some time off and his first band moved on without him. So he eventually formed another BTO and ended up outselling them... but today’s classic song Let It Ride actually came when he was on tour with the Doobie Brothers. BTO was on the way to a gig when they got pinned in a traffic jam. A truck driver with his rig had boxed their tour bus in and they couldn’t move. So after a frustrating wait, this rock legend confronted the trucker at a rest stop.. It was about to get ugly as a fight was about to break out… Just when all hell was about to break loose this trucker said something in anger that inspired a rock classic. Find out what it was 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 this episode, we’re gonna turn up the heat and count down the Top 5 Carnal Songs of all time. These are tracks that pushed boundaries, raised eyebrows, made people blush, and sent the morality police into a frenzy. These songs weren’t just hits; they were bold, seductive, and unapologetically raw. A few were straight-up banned like the biggest hit ever from the golden gods of rock, Whole Lotta Love, whose lead singer mimicked the sounds of carnality so vividly it cost the band a #1 hit. And then there was the music video by Van Halen that was so bad Friday Night Videos had to put black bars over the screen to cover some naughty parts. And you’ll be shocked to find out that the most famous song about getting it on, called Let's Get It On, is actually about praying to overcome substance abuse? All 5 of these classic songs left their mark on rock history. The countdown of the Top 5 Carnal Songs of the rock era 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.

Coming up an interview with Steven Page a former member of Barenaked Ladies one of the most interesting bands of the last 35 years. He was a co-writer and co-vocalist on many of this iconic band's biggest this. Including a poignant song that he wrote about his hero, Brian Wilson a legendary figure of rock history… Then amazingly, years after he released the song Brian Wilson invited him to his concert and played the song with him in the front row. He also tells the story of his former band’s most iconic hit, If I Had a Million Dollars, it happened to be the very first song he ever wrote with his frequent collaborator in the band… They were camp counselors together and on a bus ride home from camp they wrote the song in a few minutes… It was a silly song but it ended up helping them sell millions of records and get pelted with Mac and cheese whenever they played it live. the interview is 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, John Mellencamp, a man who had to change his stage name so many times... to this day some are confused about what to call him and it all started with his label. We’ve talked about some really boneheaded decisions that the execs, and the suits have made in the history of rock... but this may be the winner. Even though he was a midwestern rocker with a chip on his shoulder, his label wanted to groom him to be the next Neil Diamond. They said his 1982 album American Fool was garbage. They said it was unlistenable and would ruin his career. It got so bad he got into a shoving match with one of the suits. In the end, his record became a smash selling 5 million copies and hitting #1 and giving him enough success to use his real name instead of the cheesy one the label forced him to use. Up next, the story of Jack and Diane, a song that John hated because it had handclaps and he felt it was too easy to singalong to. But he put it out because his wife made him. It’s a funny story 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.

Back in the day if your song wasn’t under 4 minutes, it wouldn’t get played. In fact, if it was over 3 and half minutes it was a gamble. coming up next we are telling the stories of 5 songs that defied the odds and at over 7 minutes long made it to the Top 40. in fact a few of them became the biggest hits of the year they were released in. One by the Moody Blues may have invented prog rock and it was inspired by bed sheets. It failed when it was first released not even hitting the top 100 but then it went straight to the top of the charts 5 years later when a DJ played it so he could go take a long smoke break…and another by Iron Butterfly that came from the singer drunkenly slurring the words… They were written down incorrectly and people had no clue what he was saying so naturally it became a smash. And one from The Beatles where their singer dropped the F-bomb when he screwed up a line and it got left in and still went to #1 60 years ago! Stay tuned! 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 travel back to 1979, a year packed with iconic moments in music! From a Disco song that Blondie wrote as a joke that pissed off their fans when it went to #1, to a song by Journey that Steve Perry wrote right after he watched his girlfriend cheating right in front of him, to the Knack, a rookie rock band that Killed Disco Dead when the biggest hit of the year but fell flat on their face soon after... never heard from again, to a song by ELO that contains one of the greatest misheard lyrics ever and it came from the genius singer shouting nonsense as a filler word only to find out later that it was a real word and had deep meaning. Up next ground-breaking hits from punk & new wave pioneers, and tracks that are still classic rock radio staples today. It was an eclectic year in rock history and we're putting it under the microscope next with special guests 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 next. An insane 80s rock story about everything but the kitchen sink. It is the story of Here I Go Again, a song that today’s sensational rock singer Devid Coverdale felt would be a hit when his band put it out in 1982. Instead, it became the spark that started a chain of events that nearly killed his career and that of his band. The song failed, but David went back to the drawing board and was on the cusp of a major breakthrough record when he lost his voice and had to have voice surgery. He was told he would NEVER sing again. He would beat the odds and get his voice in shape but at this point he was destitute… he had to sing ad jingles just to make rent. He was 3 million in debt and it got so bad his label wouldn’t give him the cash to make a music video to promote the song… yet somehow he overcame…he dug up his failed 1982 recording of Here I Go Again and did it again… In fact, he had to record it 3 times with 3 different bands because he fired his entire band before the album came out. But the song and its music video would dominate the late 80s with one of the hottest video vixens in history. You’ll love this story coming up next. 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.

Some songs were always destined to make millions, usually through chart dominance and endless airplay. But sometimes, the biggest paydays come from the most unexpected places. Some songs have made their creators absolute fortunes in ways no one saw coming or could ever predict, including the artists themselves. Today we’re counting down five songs no one expected to win the lottery… including the story of one songwriter who unwittingly missed millions in royalties because he thought the song Happy Together was dumb and rejected a writing credit. And another that was a forgotten album cut by Devo until it hit pay dirt and now the author of it makes a million a year off it and it’s become the most played song in MTV history... even though the song has no actual music video! Their stories are coming up… 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.