Word In Your Ear

There are broadly three Ian Broudies in the public imagination. One is the songwriter with a catalogue of softly psychedelic left-field pop tunes. The second is the record producer behind Echo & the Bunnymen, the Fall, the Coral and Terry Hall. The third is the co-composer of our new national anthem. He talks here about early life in Liverpool and the records that enthralled him (See Emily Play, Autobahn), what he learned from his mentor Roger Eagle (who ran Eric's Club), a life-shifting moment with Steve Wright, what matters most in production, the disastrous time he introduced the Spice Girls on Top of the Pops and why the FA rejected the original version of Three Lions, wanted a new title and asked him to drop Skinner and Baddiel. He's funny, outspoken, candid, modest and affectionate and movingly philosophical on the rigours of composition: "as soon as you finish a song it becomes something - but it loses 90% of what it could have become".This podcast was recorded in front of a live audience at 21Soho in London on October 30th, 2023 and Ian's new memoir is just out - 'Tomorrow's Here Today: Lightning Seeds, Football and Post-Punk'.Order Ian's book here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Tomorrows-Here-Today-Lightning-Post-Punk/dp/178870902021Soho: https://www.21-soho.com/Tickets for Word In Your Ear live at 21Soho on November 27th here: https://www.tickettext.co.uk/ZOthfatjxiSubscribe to Word In Your Ear on Patreon for early - and ad-free! - access to all of our content: https://www.patreon.com/wordinyourear Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Billy Sloan, Glaswegian broadcaster and music columnist, has written his memoir, ‘One Love, One Life’, about a career that’s allowed him to point his microphone at an astonishing array of musicians and started back in the old analogue world of tight-deadline newspaper journalism where you hammered out your Chuck Berry interview as the rolls of film were biked back to the office to be processed. This covers a lot of ground including … … the moment that changed his life. … why the London Press Corps were “a pack of hyenas”. … Rod Stewart v Michelle Mone – a classic revenge saga that ticked every box. … interviewing a naked Grace Jones (and how Dame Edna got involved). … the exquisitely “horrible” Chuck Berry. … queuing all night for 85p Who tickets, aged 15. … the Sensational Alex Harvey Band, “boo-ed onstage, roared off”.   … a trip to the Reeperbahn via Rory Gallagher. … life at the Sunday Mail and the Daily Record. … the great Scottish rock boom of the early ‘80s “when if you had a floppy fringe and desert boots you’d expect to be flagged down by an A&R man with a chequebook”. … and the star that made him feel and “you’re only one duff question away from getting a right hook”. Order Billy’s book here …https://www.amazon.co.uk/One-Love-Life-Stories-Stars/dp/178530481XTickets for Word In Your Ear live at 21 Soho on November 27th here: https://www.tickettext.co.uk/ZOthfatjxiSubscribe to Word In Your Ear for early - and ad-free! - access to all of our content: https://www.patreon.com/wordinyourear Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We spin the reels of the rock and roll fruit machine this week and get the following pay-outs … … the preposterous present they gave Bobby Charlton when he retired. ... “the leaning man from Alabam”. … ‘Skinny Minnie Shimmy’ by Lattie Moore And The Emperors and other apparently fictitious rock and roll hits. … a Radio One DJ who was also an actor, erotic sculptor, travel writer, sheep farmer, flamenco guitarist and ballet dancer. Why has no-one made a film of the life of Mike Raven? … why Born To Run was “a quantum leap”, the record where Springsteen wanted “to sing like Roy Orbison and write like Bob Dylan on an album that sounded like it was produced by Phil Spector”. … a leaked 1982 Radio One memo of ground rules for DJs! “Don’t resort to ‘common talk’ in a pathetic attempt at humour.” “You can say Cornflakes but not Shredded Wheat …” … how rock is adopting the Gilbert & Sullivan business model.   … Richard Thompson, Steve Cropper, John Fahey, Hubert Sumlin … : who’s the greatest guitarist of all time? … the story-spinning genius of John Prine. … the afterlife of the Love Affair. … Ernest ‘Boom’ Carter’s brief but marvellous moment of glory.… and birthday guest Giles Fraser wonders at what point a band shouldn’t use their original name.Rolling Stone’s top 250 guitarists …http://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-lists/best-guitarists-1234814010/nile-rodgers-5-1234814197/ The amazing story of Mike Raven …http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mike_Raven Everybody’s in the Mood by Howlin’ Wolf …https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XV0gDlzEnYUGet your exclusive Nord VPN deal here: https://nordvpn.com/yourearIt's risk-free with Nord's 30-day-money-back guarantee!Tickets for Word In Your Ear live at 21 Soho on November 27th here: https://www.tickettext.co.uk/ZOthfatjxiSubscribe to Word In Your Ear on Patreon for early - and ad-free! - access to all of our content: https://www.patreon.com/wordinyourear Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Toothsome hors d’ouvres, mains and ‘items from the trolley’ on the rock and roll menu this week include … … Bowie’s Pin-Ups v Ferry’s These Foolish Things: who won?… the worst band name in history and why. … the fan who hired a plane to fly a message past Morrissey’s record label. … the Stones’ Hackney Diamonds: best album since Black And Blue or tedious riff-less dirge? … why only solo acts can tell stories onstage.   … why the Dutch love the Byrds. … things we never imagined 50 years ago. … Spanky McFarlane, Gloria Salt … country music siren or twinkle-eyed PG Wodehouse dame? … the two main topics the Stones write songs about. … how modern fandom is expressed. … who ever thought they’d hear Dylan say the word ‘Wikipedia’ onstage? … and has anyone got a copy of ‘Darker Than Blue: Soul From Jamtown’ on Mick Hucknall’s Blood And Fire label? And who remembers the ‘Hard-Up Heroes’ album? Plus cycling with an umbrella, Barbra Streisand’s autocue and birthday guest Cathal Chu on the best and worst onstage banter.Tickets for Word In Your Ear live at 21 Soho on October 30th here: https://www.tickettext.co.uk/ysY3FvyFaeSubscribe to Word In Your Ear on Patreon for early - and ad-free! - access to all of our content!: https://www.patreon.com/wordinyourear Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The godfather of British independent labels, Immediate, was started in 1965 by the Stones’ manager Andrew Oldham and Tony Calder, its winning slogan: “happy to be part of the industry of human happiness”. As Simon Spence correctly puts it, “it all got very messy”. Oldham tended to fall out with people and then threaten to kill them. Simon’s excellent book, ‘Immediate: the Rise And Fall of the UK’s First Independent Record Label’ has the details (he also co-authored Oldham’s two memoirs, ‘Stoned’ and ‘2Stoned’). Immediate has been a touchstone ever since and their roster included the Small Faces, PP Arnold, the Nice, the Who, Fleetwood Mac, Twinkle, Scott Walker and various others discussed here. Also includes … … “no Andrew Oldham, no Rolling Stones.” … the part played by Tony Hancock’s doctor. … “if you didn’t want to be ripped off, why are you in the music business?” … the range of Immediate’s catalogue from Nico and Rod Stewart to the Turtles and Jimmy Tarbuck. … an advert for the Nice involving three assassinated politicians.   … the time Oldham left his hairdresser in charge of A&R. … Don Arden, the Small Faces and £25,000 in a paper bag. … a secretly recorded blues album and why Eric Clapton and Jimmy Page fell out. … why Oldham wanted to poison the Nice and murder Amen Corner. … invaluable advice from Phil Spector. … and why Immediate finally fell apart. Order Simon’s book here …https://www.backstage-books.co.uk/Tickets for Word In Your Ear live at 21 Soho on Oct 30th: https://www.tickettext.co.uk/ysY3FvyFaeSubscribe to Word In Your Ear on Patreon for early - and ad-free! - access to all of our content: https://www.patreon.com/wordinyourear Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

As it emerges from the upheaval of Cross Rail, music historian Peter Watts looks at this densely-packed thoroughfare between Charing Cross Road and Covent Garden, which started off selling sheet music, grew into the place where many writers sold their tunes for a few quid while a wise minority hung on and made fortunes, a street that continues to provide a home for music businesses to this day. Includes.......the Victorian "rookeries" of St Giles...how a coal mining accident made the street's first big hit...the true meaning of the Old Grey Whistle Test...when every office boy played the piano...how the Beatles changed music publishing ...how the Rolling Stones made their first (and best ?) album...how the Sex Pistols and the Stones made their first music yards from each other...what exactly are they doing with Denmark Street today?Buy Denmark Street - London's Street Of Sound here: https://www.paradiseroad.co.uk/denmark-street-londons-street-of-soundTickets for Word In Your Ear live at 21 Soho on Oct 30th here: https://www.tickettext.co.uk/ysY3FvyFaeSubscribe to Word In Your Ear on Patreon for early - and ad-free! - access to all of our content here: https://www.patreon.com/wordinyourear Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Spicy and nutritious items in the rock and roll bouillabaisse this week include … … Roger Waters at the Palladium: a masterclass in how to insult an audience. … “without Andrew Loog Oldham, the Stones would have been Manfred Mann.” … the only rock star who can tell a story onstage. … Nempnett Thrubwell, Hinton Blewett, Glaister Fagan … Leafy Somerset hamlet or venerable reggae dubmeister? … the money Dave Grohl made from Nirvana (and it’s less than you’d imagine). … why Barry McGuire’s Eve Of Destruction was so terrifying. … please, someone, stage an exhibition of original paintings used on album sleeves! … the rise and rise of the rock spectacle. … Hogg, Fat Grapple, Makin’ Bacon? Real or fictitious pork-related acts from the Melody Maker Club Calendar 1971. … has social media taken the place of protest music? Why has no-one made a statement the Israel/Hamas war? … more smoking-themed album covers. … what, in her darkest hour, Madonna must think about Taylor Swift’s movie triumph. … and In The Court of the Crimson King and other albums that sound like their covers.Tickets for Word In Your Ear live at 21 Soho on October 30th here: https://www.tickettext.co.uk/ysY3FvyFaeTickets for Word In Your Ear live at 21 Soho on November 27th here: https://www.tickettext.co.uk/ZOthfatjxiSubscribe to Word In Your Ear on Patreon for early - and ad-free! - access to all of our content and more!: https://www.patreon.com/wordinyourear Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Nick Banks - nephew of the great Gordon Banks – saw a note pinned by his favourite band to a wall in 1986, his Sliding Doors moment: ‘Pulp Want Drummer. Call Russell or Jarvis’. What happened next he records in his memoir ‘It Started There: From Punk To Pulp’. We talk to him about life in Sheffield in the ‘70s and ‘80 and why it took 15 long years for Pulp to crack it. Among the highlights … … why punk rock was like “Harry Potter’s Sorting Hat”. … what drummers bring to groups. … Pulp’s stage act in 1982 – “trombones, backing singers, orange paper fish”. … being denied a Number One by Robson & Jerome. … the band’s response to Jarvis Cocker’s brave new direction – “Barry White meets the Pet Shop Boys”. … what happened at the BRITS and who’s to blame. … real life in what promised to be “the gilded palace of stardom with limousines and dancing girls”. … the moment that caused “the raised eyebrows of disdain” in the Pulp story. … and his first sighting of “that mesmerising, bespectacled, lanky streak of piss”. Order Nick’s memoir here …https://www.amazon.co.uk/So-Started-There-Punk-Pulp/dp/1915841100Get your exclusive NordVPN deal here: https://nordvpn.com/yourearIt's risk-free with Nord's 30-day money-back guarantee!Tickets for Word In Your Ear live at 21Soho on October 30th here: https://www.tickettext.co.uk/ZOthfatjxiSubscribe to Word In Your Ear on Patreon for early - and ad-free! - access to all of our content!: https://www.patreon.com/wordinyourear Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Engaging blips on the rock and roll radar this week include:- … Iron Maiden album title or novel by Jeffrey Archer? … selling Ringo’s ashtray. … the Blood Doner: the Hancock script that keeps on giving. … “Terrible album title. Terrible album cover, too.” The start of Rolling Stone’s review of which immortal record? … how come acting runs in families but writing and music don’t? … Smash Hits: the Musical - you heard it here first. And why the Live Aid musical will work. … A Salty Dog, Shades, Smokin’ OP’s – album sleeves based on fag packets. … the curious tale of the Equinox and the imposters on their album cover. … which pop stars are in the Barbie doll range? … why smoking is part of the DNA of rock and roll. And who smoked what? Bob Hope (Chesterfield), Lennon (Woodbines), Bowie (Gauloises) … … the significance of Weaver D’s Delicious Fine Foods of Atlanta, Georgia. … and musicians who outsold their famous parents. Plus birthday guests: Matthew Elliott on records you own but have never played, and Phil Turner “the Elton John album so bad it put me off him for 20 years.”Tickets for Word In Your Ear live at 21 Soho on October 30th here: https://www.tickettext.co.uk/ysY3FvyFaeSubscribe to Word In Your Ear on Patreon for early - and ad-free! - access to all of our content: https://www.patreon.com/wordinyourear Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Will Sergeant’s just put out the second volume of his memoirs, both of them Sunday Times best-sellers, Echoes and the first edition, Bunnyman. Here he revisits the Liverpool of the ‘60s and ‘70s in extraordinary detail - the clothes, the records, the gangs, the school days, the early shows he saw - and the many reasons he wanted to form a band. On the agenda … … ‘rockist’ cliches the Bunnymen detested.   … why America loved early ‘80s British groups. … the powerful appeal of Jethro Tull, Status Quo, Slade, Roxy Music, the Sensational Alex Harvey Band and rock and roll theatre. … clothes bought from NME small ads in the ‘70s. … absurd rivalries with Simple Minds and the Jesus & Mary Chain. … fond memories of David Thomas of Pere Ubu smashing a pig iron spike with a lump hammer. … the ‘Porcupine’ cover shoot in Iceland.   … the charisma of the teenage Mac McCulloch. … bands that borrowed from the Bunnymen. … why the Ramones were “Status Quo with drainpipes”. … and the magic ingredient that held Mac’s hair aloft. Order Bunnyman here …https://www.amazon.co.uk/Bunnyman-Memoir-Sunday-Times-bestseller/dp/1472135032 And Echoes here …https://www.amazon.co.uk/Echoes-memoir-continued/dp/1408719304Tickets for Word In Your Ear live at 21 Soho on October 30th here: https://www.tickettext.co.uk/ysY3FvyFaeSubscribe to Word In Your Ear on Patreon for early - and ad-free! - access to all of our content here: https://www.patreon.com/wordinyourear Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.