Professor of Rock

Many called Bonnie Raitt an overnight success when she swept the Grammys in 1989… but today’s guitar-toting songstress was actually two decades and ten studio albums in the making. Without a doubt, it was a long, hard road to get there. Dropped by her label, written off by critics, and getting loaded after every show, it seemed like Bonnie's career was over. But Raitt’s comeback was oh so sweet when she hit #1 in 1989 and swept the Grammys. Her legend was etched in stone when she covered a former NFL football player's song I Can't Make You Love Me that was so heart-wrenching she could barely get through it because she was sobbing over the entire recording. Today’s song is definitely a candidate for the saddest ever written. It’s one you can only listen to a few times a year... and it was inspired by something a man said to a judge when he was being sentenced for shooting up his girlfriend’s car. With an amazing guest instrumentalist, the story 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, we're celebrating 10 songs from one of the greatest years in music, 1973. It was a year when we were gifted with songs that rejuvenated our souls like few others. There were iconic guitar riffs and solos that were considered the best of the Rock Era... including a song called D’yer Mak’er that was so hard to say DJ’s and fans still mispronounce it 50 years later even though it’s played all the time. Then there was the Reelin' in the Years guitar solo that was perfectly executed on its first take, everyone in the room was astonished… problem was the engineer forgot to record it. As well as a song that a legendary guitarist helped write but out of the goodness of his heart gave full credit to the drummer who helped write it… That kindness cost him millions. We have legendary guests here to help us countdown the Top 10 Songs of 1973... 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 next an interview with a true legend… Smokey Robinson. I’ve been wanting to talk to him for a long time because he has one the greatest voices of any era, not to mention he's one of the greatest lyricists and producers…and he has some legendary stories behind today’s songs… one he started singing in the middle of a concert as his group was ending a song, he got caught up in the moment and started belting out an entry new song on the spot… It would later become a #1 hit. Then another one that he recorded as a slow bluesy number. It got released and was played on the radio… Then one night he got a phone call at 3 in the morning… It was the head of the label who said I just figured out that you need to re-record your new song with a faster tempo. problem was he wanted him to come into the studio that minute to do it. So he did and sure enough, the song became a smash. The interview is 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.

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.