TW: Suicide Today, celebrated author Ken Womack joins me to unpack his extraordinary new definitive biography of Beatles road manager Mal Evans, 'Living the Beatles Legend'. Ken talks about the incredible access given to him by the Evans family, including Mal's unpublished memoirs and diaries, the digital warehouse he built to sort through the incr…

Today we bring you a (if you can believe it) new perspective on the Beatles story, as Dierdre Kelly joins me to discuss her fascinating book 'Fashioning The Beatles: The Looks That Shook The World', in which she unpacks the journey of the Fab Four's style across their careers, how they influenced and were influenced by fashion and the culture at la…

Today I'm joined by songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and co-founder of The Lumineers, Jeremiah Fraites, to wax rhapsodic on Radiohead's iconic 1997 album 'OK Computer'. We talk about Jeremiah's journey from hating to loving Radiohead as a teenager, the album's diverse but coherent sound, the album's sonic easter eggs, the balance of performed and …

Today I'm joined by Ed Nash, bassist of UK indie heroes Bombay Bicycle Club, down the line from North London to chat about Kurt Vile's modern classic 2011 album, 'Smoke Ring for My Halo'. Ed talks about discovering the album on tour in Australia, how it became the soundtrack of BBC's breakthrough period, listening to it on repeat on tour, the sonic…

We kick off our tenth anniversary year with ARIA-winner Mia Dyson, who joins me to talk about the soundtrack of the iconic Talking Heads concert film 'Stop Making Sense'. We talk about wearing out VHS tapes in the pre-streaming era, the contrast between the band's musical eccentricity and austere aesthetic, why the film is the perfect entry point f…

It's that time of the year again.... we are signing off for 2023 with a blockbuster episode celebrating the best movies to hit cinema screens in the past 12 months. Joining me as usual are filmmaker Charles Hood and film journalist Drew Taylor, hosts of the legendary Light the Fuse podcast. Strap in a for an epic celebration / discussion / fight ab…

Today it's My Favorite ALbum, as Melbourne singer-songwriter Al Matcott is bringing it all back to Bob Dylan and his underrated (?) 1978 album 'Street Legal'. We talk about how he found an emotional connection with the album around his mother's passing, how it inspired him to seek out a tarot reading, how the album bridges Dylan's confessional and …

Today we present a fun and rollicking chat with Gareth Liddiard, frontman of Tropical Fuck Storm and the Drones and master anecdotalist. Gareth joins me to bring some sunshine to a brilliant and under-appreciated record by Spencer P Jones, the legendary guitarist and singer/songwriter originally from NZ who made Australia his home for most of his c…

Today ARIA winning singer-songwriter Fanny Lumsden joins me to delve into a seminal record of both our youths - The Chicks’ final country album, 2002’s ‘Home’. We talk about the album’s forgotten origins in the midst of a legal battle with the band’s record label, how they fused their bluegrass background with contemporary country and pop songwriti…

One of this year’s most pleasant surprises has been the first album of original material since 2005 from The Rolling Stones - Mick, Keith, Ronnie, Steve and on this album, Charlie and even Bill. Producer/songwriter/musician and friend of the show Michael Carpenter has spent a long time dissecting the Stones recorded catalogue and joins me today to …

Comedian, actor, writer, dancer, singer and most importantly previous guest on this podcast Elouise Eftos returns to the podcast today to celebrate the 20th anniversary of Britney Spears’ classic 2003 album ‘In the Zone’. We talk about the background of the album, how it saw Britney taking the most creative control she ever had (and tragically woul…

Today on the show I’m joined by the legendary Jeff Trott - songwriter, producer and guitarist - for a deep dive into the making of a classic record he produced and largely co-wrote, Sheryl Crow’s 1997 self-titled album. Jeff opens up about writing If It Makes You Happy, getting drafted in last minute to salvage the production of the record after th…

On today's episode, one of Australia's most acclaimed singer-songwriters, Cash Savage, joins me on the show to put some respect onto Salt-N-Pepa's landmark classic album 'Very Necessary'. Cash talks about discovering the album as a twelve year old and then returning to it with a new perspective as an adult, the pioneering sexual politics of the rec…

Today polymath, singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, producer and all around Renaissance woman Georgia Mooney joins me for a deep dive into the making of her glorious debut solo album 'Full of Moon', a month after it's release. We talk about the concept of authenticity, the strange intricacies of recording an entire album with rich orchestrati…

Australian singer-songwriter Hayley Marsten joins me to talk about the seminal album that soundtracked her journey into adulthood, Taylor Swift's seminal 2012 album 'Red'. Now that this album has finally been chosen for an episode, we make a real meal out of it, getting into how the album marked a fork in the road that forecasted the second half of…

Today legendary sound engineer Pete Keppler joins me for another look behind the scenes at David Byrne's American Utopia (check out episode 376 of this podcast for our audio documentary on the show), from conception to the world tour to Broadway, dealing with the technical and creative challenges inherent in reinventing the whole idea of a rock'n'r…

One of today’s most renowned and skilful Americana singer-songwriters, Jason Isbell, talks about the classic record that helped inspire the genre - The Rolling Stones 1971 LP ‘Sticky Fingers’. We talk about how growing up around Muscle Shoals Alabama got Jason into the record as a child, how the album shows the Stones maturing as a band as they ent…

Billions creator Brian Koppelman is one of our most loved returning champions and he joins me once again today to bring things full circle by discussing the album that was the subject of his first ever appearance on the podcast - Jason Isbell's 'Southeastern' - to celebrate it's ten year anniversary. The album that turned Isbell from a cult hero to…

Today, author, music journalist and podcaster James Campion joins me to delve into one of the most iconic and enduring songs in the history of popular music as he gives a taste of his book Take A Sad Song: The Emotional Currency of Hey Jude. We talk about how McCartney took a song inspired by John Lennon's son Julian's feelings about his parents di…

A fun change of pace this week on the show. Earlier this year, I co-produced a tribute album to Americana icon Jim Lauderdale, featuring an eclectic group of incredible Australian artists reinterpreting Jim's incredible songbook. Today, Michael Carpenter, who co-produced the record and played the bulk of the music you hear on the album, as well as …

Today ARIA-winning singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and producer of this podcast Georgia Mooney joins me for a delightful delve into Martha Wainwright’s self-titled debut album. We dig into the Wainwright clan and how they explore their relationships through each other’s music, seeing Martha play outside a prison and falling in love with h…

Today legendary singer-songwriter and founder of iconic band The Go-Betweens, Robert Forster, joins me to pay tribute to the legendary Texan troubadour Guy Clark and his debut album Old No. 1. We revisit the fateful night in Santa Monica on the promo tour for 16 Lovers Lane where Robert saw Guy play live and had a damascene conversion to his music,…

Today legendary Australian actor and comedy renaissance man Francis Greenslade joins me to talk about Paul Kelly’s classic album Comedy. We talk about how Francis discovered the record when he was performing with Paul in an Adelaide theatre show, how Paul leaves space in his lyrics for audience interpretation, how his vocals serve the lyrics and he…

Returning champion Eves Karydas (aka Hannah Karydas) joins me for round three as we finally talk about Carole King’s iconic album Tapestry. We talk about the Laurel Canyon scene of the early 70s and the involvement of James Taylor and Joni Mitchell, Carole’s history as a hit successful songwriter in her teens and early 20s, the lost idea of musical…