Podcast
The Bad Piano Player
Hosted by John Wing Jr. · EN
A weekly musical podcast diving into popular music of the 20s, 30s, and 40s.
27episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
Lew Brown
2w ago00:33:04Tap to summarizeSend us Fan MailThis week the bad piano player features lyricist Lew Brown, born Louis Brownstein in Odessa , Russia in 1893. He estimated that he had collaborated on more than seven thousand songs in his career. We’re learning a small percentage of those for this episode. Tune in!
Transcribe →Gus Kahn II
4w ago00:38:28Tap to summarizeSend us Fan MailThis week the bad piano player rights a great wrong and finally does a second Gus Kahn episode. The lyricist extraordinaire, who worked with literally every major popular song composer from 1915 to the early 1940s. First featured in season 1, episode 11, he makes his encore appearance now in season 7, episode 186. Words for the tunes, my friends.
Transcribe →Clarence Williams -Blues 2
Apr 2800:37:22Tap to summarizeSend us Fan MailThis week, the bad piano player does his second-ever Blues episode, featuring composer Clarence Williams, 1893-1965. Six of his best, five provided by our special friend Norman. Tune in for some blues history and some great blues played by a bad pianist!
Transcribe →Cy Coleman On Broadway
Apr 1400:37:52Tap to summarizeSend us Fan MailThis Fortnight Tuesday, the bad piano player returns to Broadway to feature a great composer who was active on the Great White Way for more than forty years. Tune in for the Cy Coleman story and stay for the songs.
Transcribe →Grab Bag IIII
Mar 3100:33:56Tap to summarizeSend us Fan MailThis week, the bad piano player pulls together six songs from the (kind of) miscellaneous file and makes a wonderful episode out of them. We call it Grab Bag Four. Tune in and see if you can spot your favorite!
Transcribe →George Meyer
Mar 1700:37:52Tap to summarizeSend us Fan MailThis week, the bad piano player goes even further back into obscure composers of the American songbook, to find George Meyer 1884-1959, born in Boston and wrote a lot of music, including the classic For Me And My Gal, which, you guessed it, we won't be doing. Tune in for the tunes, stay for the lyrics!
Transcribe →Tom Waits 4 No Man
Mar 300:38:12Tap to summarizeSend us Fan MailThis week, the bad piano player finally gives a songwriter a rare fourth episode. We had to find six really depressing Tom Waits songs, but luckily, he wrote a lot for us to choose from. No repeats fourth T Waits. Tune in and wallow in the Brechtian mood swings on this one, kids.
Transcribe →Gordon & Revel 2 (3)
Feb 1700:38:51Tap to summarizeSend us Fan MailThis week the Bad Piano Player revisits Mack Gordon, the cigar chomping, fun loving American lyricist, and Harry Revel, the reserved British composer, for the third time. Are all the songs classics? Well if they aren't, kids, they OUGHT to be. Tune in for the sparkling gems of yesteryear!
Transcribe →The Boswell Sisters
Feb 300:34:46Tap to summarizeSend us Fan MailThis week, the bad piano player features another famous sister act, the New Orleans close-harmony trio of Vet, Connie and Martha, the Boswell Sisters. Their unique sound - well, we won't be able to reproduce that - had a profound effect on the music of the 30's and 40's, and their influence as singers continues to this day. Tune in and hear their songs and story.
Transcribe →Pete Wendling
Jan 2000:35:20Tap to summarizeSend us Fan MailTo open Season 7, (!!!) The bad piano player and the improving singer brings you songs by the great unknown American composer Pete Wendling. Composer of Yacka Hula Hickey Dula. Which means, Tune In! in Hawaiian. Welcome one, welcome all! See you around the piano.
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