My Favorite Album With Jeremy Dylan

Reposting this episode in memory of Peter Cooper, who we sadly lost today. After crouching to fit under the doorway, singer/songwriter/journalist and gentle giant Peter Cooper steps into the portable pod booth to chat with host Jeremy Dylan about a classic from one of the classiest songwriters in country music - Tom T Hall’s 1971 album “In Search of a Song”. Along the way, they break down tracks including “The Year Clayton Delany Died”, “Trip to Hyden” and “A Million Miles to the City” and talk about Hall’s songwriting research trips, how he broke his own songwriting rules, the difference between poetry and song lyrics and why you shouldn’t waste time complaining about music you hate.

Reposting a classic episode while we take a few weeks off to take a breath and record. Former Deputy Prime Minister, long-serving parliamentarian and occasional DJ Anthony Albanese MP joins me on the show to talk about his favorite album by one of his favorite artists - “The Good Son” (1990) by Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds. We talk about the origins of his Nick Cave fandom, seeing him live with the Birthday Party and later with the Bad Seeds, how this album represents a period of Cave in transition, why ‘The Ship Song’ ended up on his playlist when he guest hosted Rage and which Nick Cave song got people moving in his recent DJ set. Also, we talk about why his electorate has Australia’s best concert venue (the Enmore), the advantages of going to gigs in Canberra, why bad governments breed good music, protest songs and the Reclink Community Cup.

Today we celebrate out milestone 400th episode with a special tribute to one of the all time great TV dramas, which recently concluded it's brilliant run. Better Call Saul is the rare spinoff that not only lived up to its parent show, it actually surpassed it. Today I'm joined by writer/director/executive producer Thomas Schnauz, actors Patrick Fabian (Howard Hamlin) and Peter Diseth (Bill Oakley), casting director Sharon Bialy and journalist and cultural critic Carrie Wittmer, plus I revisit my 2020 conversation with Jimmy McGill himself, Bob Odenkirk. Thanks for everyone who joined us today, producer Georgia Mooney for helping pull this together and to everyone who has joined me for the past eight years and 400 episodes, either as guest or listener. We're just getting started!

Author Bradley Morgan joins me to dive into his fascinating book 'U2's The Joshua Tree: Planting Roots in Mythic America'. We unpack the political underpinnings of the album, how the album has been recontextualised by the political environment of today, resisting nostalgia, how the members of U2 embraced the myth of America and then dissected it, the anti-cynicism of U2's music, how U2 appeals across political divides while foregrounding politics in their own music, their surprising late awakening to American roots music, the story behind One Tree Hill and Bradley’s pilgrimage to the site of the album cover photo.

Today Better Call Saul writer, director and executive producer Tom Schnauz joins our rare three timer club as he returns to the show to talk about the legendary Monkees. We talk about the false perception of the Monkees as a ‘fake band’, the Monkees TV show and how it introduced Tom to their music, Tom’s friendship with Micky Dolenz, the original audition notice that led to the band’s formation, how and why Tom used two deeper cut Monkees tracks for montages in Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul and some Monkees trivia direct from Micky himself.

After eight years and almost four hundred episodes, we finally talk about Rush! Better Call Saul Star Patrick Fabian joins me to preach the Canadian gospel as we chat Geddy, Neil and Alex’s classic 1980 album 'Permanent Waves'. We talk about Patrick discovering Rush as a high schooler in Pennsylvania, taking the ‘magic bus’ to see the band at his first ever arena show, ‘growing old’ with the band as he’s gone to see them over four decades, the skewed gender balance of Rush fandom, how Patrick ended up with a pair of Neil Peart’s drumsticks and that time he met Def Leppard.

Today singer-songwriter and actor Lola Kirke joins for a rollercoaster of a conversation about Joni Mitchell’s classic Hejira album and a lot more besides. We talk about how Lola was turned on to Joni by her then boyfriend, only for listening to the music to inspire her to leave him, Joni’s cross-country road trips and how they inspired the songwriting, whether people can write music like this in the ‘content’ era, how Lola forced her way into a Last Waltz tribute where she performed ‘Coyote’, Joni’s social media presence, celebrity autographs and how this record inspired Lola’s latest single ‘All I Had To Do’.

Empire Film Magazine and Fade to Black's Amon Warmann joins me to try and answer one of the great nerd questions of all time: Is a 75 minute animated film from 1993 actually the best Batman film ever made? Warning: This is a spoiler-filled conversation after the first ten minutes. Amon and I go for broke digging into a film we both love dearly covering topics including: - Best Batman film vs best film starring Batman - The love story that drives the film - How the film and its parent show Batman: The Animated Series took key inspiration from classic Hollywood films of the 30s, 40s and 50s. - Why this 'kids' film is one of the most emotionally mature superhero films ever made. - How the film finds a unique way to tell Batman's origin story - Kevin Conroy's definitive and multi-pronged take on Batman - The strategic use of the Joker and how it parallels The Silence of the Lambs and Sexy Beast. - How to go dark without slipping into pretension or self-parody. - Vengance vs Justice. - Shirley Walker's incredible

Today Sam Tsang aka Congee joins me down the line from London, as we look back on one of the iconic records of the last decade - Frank Ocean’s 'Blonde'. We talk about how Frank Ocean builds a new world with each album, and makes the release an event. We talk about the detail of the production, the care put into every choice, stories from the making of the record and speculate on the practical concerns of making a record where every song went through so many iterations. We talk about the guest cameos from everyone from Beyoncé to Radiohead’s Johnny Greenwood, the rock influence on the record and what we think Ocean has up his sleeve for the next album.

Eddie Hamilton is one of the greatest filmmakers working in mass entertainment today. A genius editor whose resume stretches from the KINGSMAN franchise to X-MEN: FIRST CLASS and the two best MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE films (Rogue Nation and Fallout), he spent two years working on what has become the cinematic event of 2022 - TOP GUN: MAVERICK. Today, Eddie takes us a journey through the film, using the expertly chosen needle drops - from Hank Williams to T Rex to Lady Gaga - to explore the relentless rigour and refinement that goes into creating a truly epic piece of cinema. Topics covered include: Striking the perfect balance between 80s nostalgia and creating a new timeless classic. Why specially written songs by Kenny Loggins, One Republic and Post Malone, and even a still unreleased Rolling Stones song, didn’t make the finished film. Creating a modern version of the original film’s opening sequence, down to the fonts in the title cards. The long theatrical run and incredible box office success of the film. A n

Instead of watching a three hour movie about Elvis Presley, hit play on today’s episode for a shorter but no less exhaustive deep dive on the real Elvis, Elvis Costello, as actor/comedian and host of the great Dead Eyes podcast Connor Ratliff joins me to make the case for what he considers the ultimate Elvis album, 1991's 'Mighty Like a Rose'. We talk about the album’s underrated place in the Costello canon, I check in with the album’s producer Mitchell Froom for his memories of making the record, Elvis’s dramatic change of look and how it impacted the way the record was received, how the album showcases every string on Costello’s bow, the Costello/McCartney that never was and more.

Today, Californian singer-songwriter Charlie Hickey joins me to celebrate the National’s 2013 album ‘Trouble Will Find Me’. We delve into Charlie’s childhood relationship with the band, the simple and sparse lyrics and how their affect lets them get away with potentially cheesy earnestness, coming back to the record as an adult, songs about feeling like shit and more. Plus, we talk about Charlie’s fantastic new record ‘Nervous at Night’, recording at producer Marshall Vore’s home studio, how you know when a record is finished and more.

Today I’m joined by songwriter, guitarist, producer, singer, designer and more Annie Hamilton, to delve into the eclectic and inspiring world of Björk’s classic 1995 album ‘Post’. We talk about how Björk fused and collided different genres to create her own unique world and style, how she had to prove herself as a producer against skepticism and sexism, how the intervening years have evolved the perception of Björk beyond the mystical pixie archetype, how the album was influenced by her move to London, her use of costuming and visuals to compliment the music and more.

Today writer/director/producer Thomas Schnauz (Better Call Saul, Breaking Bad, The X Files) returns to the show for another dive into an iconic Pink Floyd album, this time ‘Wish You Were Here’. We talk about the different eras of the band, how their post - Dark Side of the Moon fame and success influenced the lyrics of this album, the story of original frontman Syd Barrett and how it inspired ‘Shine On You Crazy Diamond’, the abandoned Household Objects album and how elements were salvaged for this record, the balance between organic instruments and synthesizers, the Live 8 reunion set and more. Plus, Tom indulges my love for Better Call Saul with a mini-chat about the recent devastating mid-season finale that he wrote and directed. Anyone looking to avoid BCS spoilers should jump straight to 09:10.

As day turns to night and the sun rises and sets, we return to talking about the Beatles. Surprisingly there is something new to say on this subject, as proven by today’s guest, Dr. Christine Feldman-Barrett. She joins me to delve into her brilliant book ‘A Women’s History of the Beatles’, why it was important to write, compensating for male narratives and perspectives on the Fab Four, the all female rock band from Liverpool the Beatles inspired, how the band went from feminine to masculine coded, how the aspirational nature of the band spoke to women breaking out of traditional gender roles in society, the importance of Astrid Kirchherr, and the Beatles influence of female musicians in the decades since.

Today I’m joined by actor/comedian/filmmaker/singer/dancer and more, Elouise Eftos, to talk about the classic Funkadelic album ‘Maggot Brain’. We talk about Elouise’s days fronting a funk band, the lineage of this record to 60s psychedelia, the difference between good and bad drug influenced music, reading your own emotions into instrumental music, what makes Funkadelic unique as a band, the album only having seven songs, plus some rants about how movies these days are way too long and an unexpected impression from Elouise to close out the conversation.

Today Australian singer/songwriter and returning friend of the show Charlie Collins joins us to discuss a future classic album, the recently released masterpiece from Gang of Youths ‘Angel in Realtime’. As a longtime friend of the band, Charlie delves into the background of the record and how the passing of frontman David Le’aupepe’s father inspired the album, how the addition of new member Tom Hobden shifted the dynamics within the band, the global recording process that stretched from Auckland to London to Copenhagen, creating beauty out of grief, why this is the record and band we all need right now, what it was like to see these songs connect with audiences when Charlie recently opened for Gangs’ UK tour, being baffled by sports references, the incredible and diverse contributions from each band member and why this record would make a great Broadway musical.

We're back baby