In this episode: The Beatles Unadorned, Tom Petty x Eddie Vedder, and a Rare Steely Dan Demo

Now Hear This

Get Rhythm

“Sultans of Swing” Stripped Down, Chicago Live in Japan (and in Japanese) and Eddie Van Halen on acoustic.

Strange Magic

Hypnotized

The Featured Track is “What I Really Want for Christmas” by Brian Wilson • Hear it on our just-posted Christmas 2020 playlist on NOW HEAR THIS, the music podcast hosted by Rock Stamberg & John Stix

Christmas 2020

The Featured Track is “Ace in the Hole” by Paul Simon • Hear it on our just-posted “Ace in the Hole” playlist on NOW HEAR THIS, the music podcast hosted by Rock Stamberg & John Stix

Ace in the Hole

Today’s Featured Track is “Gotta Get Up” by Harry Nilsson • Nilsson’s first “rock” song • What a voice! • Hear it on our just-posted “Gotta Get Up” playlist on NOW HEAR THIS, the music podcast hosted by Rock Stamberg & John Stix

Gotta Get Up

Listen to The Who masterpiece that didn't make Who's Next, Simon & Garfunkel's spoken-word "Breakup," a cool Jackson 5 remix, and much more.

Pure and Easy

Tracklist: Like what you hear? Let us know by LEAVING A COMMENT! Note: The “Play this track” cues below may be off by several seconds on mobile devices. BLOOD, SWEAT AND TEARS: “Smiling Phases” This is one of my favorite tracks from one of my favorite jazz rock albums. I rank the first two BST […]

Ain’t Had Enough Fun

In the world of Jeff Beck fans, Truth and Blow by Blow are the universal keystones. To a much smaller cadre of fans, Rough and Ready completes the pyramid

Got the Feeling

Tracklist: Like what you hear? Let us know by LEAVING A COMMENT! Note: The “Play this track” cues below may be off by several seconds on mobile devices. John Stix’s Song Notes: JAMES TAYLOR: “Go Tell It on the Mountain” JT has done a good amount of Christmas music. Much of it is too slick […]

So This Is Christmas

Tracklist: Like what you hear? Let us know by LEAVING A COMMENT! Note: The “Play this track” cues below may be off by several seconds on mobile devices. Song Notes: JONI MITCHELL & TOM SCOTT AND THE L.A. EXPRESS: “Big Yellow Taxi” Tom Scott and the L.A. Express were Joni Mitchell’s touring band in 1974 […]

Join the Band

SEATRAIN: “I'm Willing” Back in the early 1970s, Singer Sewing Centers sponsored live radio broadcasts. They did this because they wanted you to know they had large record departments in their retail sewing centers. One of these broadcasts, which I still have on cassette tape, was by the group Seatrain. I was sold by that radio concert.

A Tribute to George Martin

FLEETWOOD MAC: “Second Hand News” What a great album opener. Rumours was *the big one* for Fleetwood Mac and it’s fitting they led it off with this amazing Lindsey Buckingham song. Deceptively bouncy and even fun, performance-wise, its stealth personal lyrics foreshadowed Buckingham’s increasing position in the Mac and subsequent reputation as a musical eccentric to be reckoned with.

Now Hear This: Episode 7

BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN & THE E STREET BAND: “10th Avenue Freeze-Out (Ballad Version)” Bruce Springsteen has always been at ease changing up the recorded version of a song for the stage. It’s a Dylanesque trait that has served him well. I spent months searching for his live ballad version of “For You.” And man is that good. But this masterful remake of “Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out” is hands-down my favorite Springsteen track that has yet to be officially released. The original is a great “strut rocking song.” This ballad spotlights the power of the lyric, the image of the night. It’s absolutely cinematic. —John Stix

Now Hear This: Episode 6

STEELY DAN: “Instrumental Overture” 1993 was the year Steely Dan became a touring band after a 20-year layoff. When they recorded their first album, Can't Buy a Thrill, in 1972, leaders Donald Fagen and Walter Becker were surprised when their record company asked them to tour to support it. They were songwriters, not performers, and Fagen certainly didn’t see himself as a front man. The road provided no second takes, shoddy sound reinforcement and no particular allure for the band. But 1993 introduced a great band with a great sound able to project their great songs. Like the old Motown reviews, the backing band would come out and play ahead of the duo’s arrival on stage. All the nuance, dynamics, and deep colors of each song were performed flawlessly. This version of “Bad Sneakers” was not officially released and its inclusion would have enhanced the Dan’s surprisingly unimpressive Alive in America live album released in 1995. —John Stix

hubhopper

Now Hear This

hubhopper