Podcast
Something About the Beatles
Hosted by Evergreen Podcasts · EN
Hosted by award-winning author Robert Rodriguez, Something About The Beatles is an intelligent but entertaining examination of The Beatles' music and career. Smart, funny and surprising - just like the Fab Four.
44episodes
Episodes
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SATB SPECIAL - JANE WIEDLIN
3d ago01:13:53Summary readyYou know her as a Rock and Roll Hall of Fame member as a co-founder of The Go-Go's, their rhythm guitarist/vocalist whose co-written "Our Lips Are Sealed" first out them on the map. Jane was one of the band's composing mainstays, and she went on to solo success in recording as well as acting. This year she has a topical record, I Protest, coming out, as well as her self-penned story, TMI: Memoirs of a Go-Go. In this talk with myself and mutual friend John Roecker, we discuss her punk roots as well as love of The Beatles. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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326: Beatles (Guitars) For Sale
2w ago01:07:38Summary readyIn recent years there have been a number of Beatle-owned guitars rediscovered (sometimes in someone's attic) and put up for auction; some ended up in the collection of the late Jim Irsay and others did not. But all of these instruments have something in common: they were in the hands of George or John once, and they (mostly) ended up being heard by millions on recordings we all love. My guest Sam Popkin (Gear, There and Everywhere podcast) and I sat down to discuss the backstories of 7 of these guitars. (One of them was used by both George and Badfinger's Pete Ham.) This isn't (just) a conversation for guitar nerds: it's the stories behind these guitars that live on through the music they made. These instruments were, for a time, loved by their owners who used them to explore a sonic landscape resulting in songs that live on in our hearts. Something About The Beatles is sponsored by DistroKid and Magical Mystery Camp. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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325: The Beatles Playing Live with Glenn Greenberg
4w ago01:14:00Summary readyTouring and performing live represented a challenge to The Beatles during their years of rapid artistic growth. Being a successful recording act necessitated touring to maintain one's status and to sell records, but when the infrastructure of the day was insufficient to support both the music they were making as well as serve the high demand for tickets in every corner of the country, the strain became too great. Still, they labored to find an alternative, first with an album that would "go on tour" (Sgt. Pepper) and later with the concept of a tightly-controlled live situation that facilitated the audience-artist interaction on a manageable scale (the "Get Back" project). My returning guest Glenn Greenberg has just published a bookazine on the three North American tours, Beatles in America: The Touring Years. See link below. We discuss the pros and cons of touring as well as The Beatles' efforts to move to an alternative path (and the what ifs). https://magazineshop.us/products/the-beatles-in-america-the-touring-years?srsltid=AfmBOoobBR-sIJ0RhyFc-4YABsH7BrEgM2keYi5wR-FcO17tWSQtTWFS&variant=41350579355706 Something About The Beatles is sponsored by DistroKid and Magical Mystery Camp. Go to www.distrokid.com/vip/satb for 30% off your annual membership. Go to magicalmysterycamp.com for details on the coming event in June 2026. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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SATB Special: Ivor Davis Remembered
Apr 2800:52:28Summary readySATB Special: Ivor Davis RememberedLondon-born journalist Ivor Davis holds a special place in the hearts of everyone lucky enough to speak with or spend time with him. He was a charming man who could make you feel like you were old friends in a manner of minutes; a raconteur full of tales from his rich life of the famous he'd crossed paths with and the history he'd witnessed. We came into each other's orbits when he penned his first Beatles memoir in 2014, The Beatles anf Me on Tour - recalling how as a journalist for the Daily Express he'd been assigned to cover the 1964 and 1965 Beatles North American tours for the folks back home. (He also ghost-wrote a column under George's name.) He naturally became a good friend to them, and later on was based in Los Angeles, where he found himself at the center of more history, this time tragic: the assassination of RFK in 1968 and the Tate-LaBianca murders a year later. But there was more pleasant history that he witnsessed, including the legendary meetings between The Beatles and Bob Dylan as well as with Elvis Presley. I hosted Ivor on the show three times: 130: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/130-the-beatles-and-charles-manson/id1483392342?i=1000453334078 174: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/174-once-upon-a-time-with-ivor-davis/id1483392342?i=1000453334001 284: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/sixty-years-on-with-ivor-davis/id1483392342?i=1000662038846 But this 2021 conversation was never heard on the podcast before and serves as a sort of Ivor's greatest hits. So if you never met Ivor, his stories will live on through his books and this is as good an introduction to a friend we'll miss as any. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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324: Recording with Ringo with Bruce Sugar
Apr 1801:07:12Summary readySince 2003, Ringo Starr has been producing an incredibly prolific run of releases: albums and EPs, plus live recordings. With him on this journey of multiple producers and supporting musicians has been engineer Bruce Sugar, the one constant. Bruce comes with stories and observations about working with the world's most beloved drummer, including alongside Sir Paul McCartney in the studio (including an upcoming duet), as well as on the "last Beatles song, "Now and Then." It's a delightful dose of positivity (as well as peace and love) to hear what Bruce has to say, including work on the upcoming Long, Long Road. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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SATB Special: Martin Sexton
Apr 900:39:35Summary readyHailing from Syracuse, NY, Martin Sexton has been a performer/singer-songwriter/recording artist for over thirty years now. Of late he's been touring with a one-man presentation of the complete Abbey Road album. I had a conversation with Martin to discuss The Beatles' impact on him, and what it means to get inside this most revered album and re-present it with a complete re-think of how the songs were put together, to showcase their essence. Martin will be guest at Magical Mystery Camp in June 2026 in Big Indian, New York. You can check out his works and touring dates at martinsexton.com and the event at magicalmysterycamp.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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323: Bob Dylan and The Beatles with Jim Windolf
Apr 101:27:56Summary readyIt may be beyond argument that the two most successful and influential pop/rock acts of the 1960s were The Beatles and Bob Dylan: one, an English ensemble from Liverpool who turned out evergreen standards and evolved seemingly without effort; the other an American from the upper midwest, initially cast as a vagabond folkie who constantly reinvented himself as he was anointed spokesman for a generation. For the most part, one could easily imagine the two acts operating in separate lanes, but Dylan and The Beatles had a much more significant and profound influence on each other that ran deeper than previously believed. Author Jim Windolf presents the results of his extensive research in Where The Music Had To Go: How Bob Dylan and The Beatles Changed The World - And Each Other. Even if you have read everything, there's plenty to learn when these two chronologies are presented side by side, revealing the ongoing dialogue between artists that shaped the cultural landscape ever onward. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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322: Evolver '62 with Chris Purcell and Simon Weitzman
Mar 1401:26:18Summary readyThe cinematic treatment of the 2022 Mark Lewisohn lectures on the first year of The Beatles' recording career has been given a terrific cinematic treatment (see it on Amazon Prime). This episode features my conversation with the film's director, Chris Purcell, and its producer, Simon Weitzman. BOTH filmmakers have produced other Beatle-themed films, including Miss O'Dell, A Love Letter To The Beatles, The Beatles and Us, and Why Don't We Do It In The Road?, as well as other non-Beatle projects. We discuss ALL of it (and the Dementia Choir as well) in this talk. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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321: Beatles Comic-Con with Glenn Greenberg and Stephen DeStefano
Feb 2801:34:23Summary readyOne doesn't immediately connect The Beatles with the world of comic books but there's plenty there. Besides musical references to Captain Marvel and "Magneto and Titanium Man," the group themselves have been regularly represented in the pages of comic books, beginning in 1964; sometimes as plot figures. Then we also have graphic novels and latter-day accounts of their history.To lead *me* in a discussion, SATB welcomes two award-winners from the world of comics, both of whom once worked for Marvel. Emmy-winning cartoonist Stephen DeStefano has been connected with works ranging from Popeye to Cuphead as well as his own 'Mazing Man and Hero Hotline. He also hosts a conversation show on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@S.DeStefano Glenn Greenberg (a previous guest) is a writer associated with Spider Man, Silver Surfer and Hulk, among others. He has also penned works for the Star Trek book series. He also has written several Beatles-related bookazines, with a new one about to be published. Together, they make the case for the affinity for this art form the Beatles demonstrably had, as well as how well (or not) they have been represented in works ranging from Marvel's 1978 The Beatles' Story to the more recent Fifth Beatle and Fab4Mania. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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320: "Our Guitarist George" with Sam Popkin
Feb 801:18:21Summary readyThis month George Harrison would've turned 83. The "quiet Beatle" holds the record for THE most streamed Beatles song, his 1969 composition, "Here Comes The Sun," but to the general public (and not the hardcores), he may remain in the shadow of Lennon and McCartney, despite his key contributions to songs bearing their names. Musician/podcaster Sam Popkin (Gear, There and Everywhere) joins the conversation for an examination/appreciation of what George brought to The Beatles, as well as his singular solo work. Sam also details the guitars and gear that facilitated George's evolution from a young rockabilly to a pioneer of world music and unique slide guitarist. This episode is brought to you by DistroKid and Magical Mystery Camp. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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