OK let’s talk some sh**t!

Sorry for the potty mouth.  Just trying to introduce my next guest appropriately.

Red Shaydez is a Do it your-selfer whose name I have heard countless times over the past few years. She is a busy woman and talent. A hip-hop artist, producer, videographer, public speaker, educator, and youth mentor, Red has been nominated and/or won several Boston Music Awards including Breakthrough Artist of the Year, Album of the Year, 617 Session artist of the year and I am sure there are many more coming.

I had the opportunity to sit with her on a rainy day at The Record Co in their brand-new facility, which is gorgeous.

I was also fortunate to have a former guest - the awesome Brandie Blaze - join me as a cohost, which is why this episode is a two part-er.

I had a great time talking to Red and Brandie – The first episode is just Red and yours truly – part two is when Brandie Blaze enters the room and then we really start talking some sh**t.

Argh.  Sorry.  Potty mouth.

Musician Justine Covault had herself just started her band Justine and The Unclean.  She’s someone who gets stuff done.  From co-founding female-fronted rock festival

WhistleStop Rock to starting a monthly residency at The Plough And Stars with 'The Mess Around', Justine has ventured into new territory with her new label Red On Red Records.

Her support and enthusiasm for the Boston music community and for her roster of (mostly) Boston bands are infectious, so much so that the great Sir David Minehan of The Neighborhoods and Woolly Mammoth Sound is collaborating with her to offer Red Mammoth Concerts.

I’ll let her tell the story. I just wish she had an extra swizzle stick to give me.

Musicians are smart.  But some are smarter than others, especially when you get a Ph.D. in neuroscience from Brandeis University where Linnea studied how taste and spatial information are processed in the rodent hippocampus.  Linnea is actually our second musician/scientist we’ve spoken to at The Broad Institute.  A few years ago, we talked with Infectious Disease Expert, Professor at Harvard University, and musician Pardis Sabetti.

Anyways, Linnea is all punk and glam and a fearless rock star. Having got to the Rock and Roll Rumble finals in 2019 with her former band Powerslut, when the pandemic hit, she decided to go in a new direction with her new band Linnea’s Garden. Linnea is a do-it-yourselfer, and she certainly does it all.

Her debut EP, “Nowhere Friday Nights,” is out now on Red on Red Records and she is preparing to release a full length shortly.

I hoped to publish this episode before they played at The Sinclair in Cambridge, MA, but life got in the way a bit.  So while I missed the opportunity to plug her Sinclair show, she already has several more lined up this fall.  I was able to get a recording from the Sinclair show that you can hear at the end of this conversation, so make sure you stay for that!

Linnea was a great chat and I had a fantastic time talking to her.

But on the raised stage I saw the band, Dada. That was only the first time among many. Mostly I was there for the infamous Boston Emissions Rock and Roll Rumble, where the place transformed into a community of music fans and bands who supported each other and the music for which Boston is famous.

JJ Gonson saw the room not as a ballroom, but as an opportunity to share her love of music with the world. That may sound a bit cheesy, but JJ is all about the music.

Starting off as a rock photographer, (she is responsible for the Elliott Smith self-titled album cover as well as his Roman Candle album), she eventually began to manage Elliott’s band Heatmiser and then Elliott himself before he left us all too soon.

ONCE was to become a catering company but soon morphed into one of the great, unique independent venues in Boston. COVID hit hard, unfortunately, and ONCE had to close. But the community JJ worked so hard to pull together through music, well, pulled together to raise money to try and keep ONCE alive. And while the venue did eventually have to close, she was able to go virtual with the ONCE Virtual Venue to give musicians the ability to continue playing for people.

It also gave JJ the opportunity to search for another location, which she found at Boynton Yards. I’ll let her talk about that. But JJ continues to fight for venues, Boston music, and the musicians that make up this amazing city, through her incredible work with Save Our Stages and the National Independent Venue Association.

Suffice it to say that we are all fortunate to have our friend JJ Gonson on our side.

I took a trip out to western MA to chat with Matt in his recently almost finished studio to talk about, well, a whole bunch of things - his latest album The End is New, his upcoming show at the Sinclair in Cambridge MA on August 6th, his life before, during, and after COVID, and the difference between Doom Folk and Swamp Yankee Music, if there is one.

I even had my friend Eric Lineback ask a few questions that were more intelligent than mine.

Anyways, The End is New, produced by Steve Berlin of Los Lobos, is Matt’s sixth full-length album as The Suitcase Junket and his first for Renew Records/BMG.

I took a trip out to western MA to chat with Matt in his recently almost finished studio to talk about, well, a whole bunch of things - his latest album The End is New, his upcoming show at the Sinclair in Cambridge MA on August 6th, his life before, during, and after COVID, and the difference between Doom Folk and Swamp Yankee Music, if there is one.

I even had my friend Eric Lineback ask a few questions that were more intelligent than mine.

Anyways, The End is New, produced by Steve Berlin of Los Lobos, is Matt’s sixth full-length album as The Suitcase Junket and his first for Renew Records/BMG.

One of our guests on this program that we called #TogetherAtHome was the awesome Wolff Sisters.  These three sisters and musicians, who are also fellow 2020 Boston Music Award winners for Americana Artist of the Year, invited me into their home to chat about their last album Queendom of Nothing.

But their most recent release is a single called Boston Town and I immediately put it on my daily playlist.  These talented sisters, with Rebecca on acoustic guitar, Rachael on electric, and Kat on keys, along with their fantastic vocals and harmonies create a sound that The Boston Globe called one of the 15 Best Fall Albums of 2019.

They sound great, the harmonies are as wonderful as three sisters singing together can be, and they are looking forward to making more music and hitting the road to reach others in Boston Town and beyond.

Knar loves Boston, and like many of us, she wants to make sure people know how amazing and vibrant the Boston music scene is.  But even beyond that, as a proud Armenian-American, Knar is a tireless activist, working to draw attention to the terrible violence and oppression happening in her ancestral Armenia.  Sound of Boston has also been vocal about oppression here in Boston, as she recently wrote a great piece called A Musician’s Guide to Black Music History and Anti-Racism Resources, an anti-racism and music-focused educational resource to help create a more inclusive, safe, and just community (and music scene) for everyone.

We had a great conversation and I love the line they use on their site -

“While the world waits for a ‘Boston Sound,’ Sound of Boston is here to show you that it already exists—you just have to know where to look. 

Avi just released a new EP called Whatcha Looking For and we were fortunate enough to hear a few tunes from it. He has played music around the globe, from working with Israeli and Palestinian youth to develop creative nonviolent tools for social change with the Non Profit organization Heartbeat, to his travels to Standing Rock to unite with the native-led nonviolent movement to resist the construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline.  

Avi shows up.  

Not only does he show up, but he does so with some pretty incredible musicians, notably Tuareg guitar master, Bombino, and other renowned artists like Jack Johnson, Pete Seeger, Celia Woodsmith of Della Mae, and a slew of other Boston musicians who make this city a great place for the arts.  

His belief in the power of music to unite and face challenges is incredible and if we could all have his kind of optimism, the world would be a better place.

If you did not know, Juliana is a Boston native and still resides in the city. You may see her finishing up her 10…ok maybe 5k run if you can pick her out from the crowd of masked runners.  She likes the anonymity and this isolation in the time of COVID fit her very well – or at least it didn’t change much for her - as she is a restless artist and will always find something to do with her creativity.  

With 26 or so albums under her belt, 19 of those solo studio albums, as well as her latest album 'Blood', she is a terrifically prolific songwriter and artist. If you haven’t heard her Police and Olivia Newton-John cover albums, you are in for a treat.  

From her previous bands Blake Babies, Some Girls, The Lemonheads, and her own band The Juliana Hatfield Three, Juliana is a constant force. Her latest album 'Blood' is, and I quote, "...a brutal and critical look at modern human psychology and behavior; at personal and societal sickness." While that sounds pretty deep and dark, Juliana says, “But it is fun, musically”.  

So there you have it.  

You should check out her live performances streaming from Q-Division Studios she has been doing once a month.  

My co-host this week Ike Walker and I had a nice chat with her and she is really fantastic.  

Oedipus got his start as an intern in college radio in the 70’s and worked his way into the WBCN family, creating the Boston Radio powerhouse that BCN became.    

With his cutting-edge pink hair and his love of punk and new wave music, the musicians that made up the Boston bands like DMZ and The Real Kids, many of whom slept on his floor in his small Beacon Hill apartment, paved the way for other bands to break out.   WBCN introduced Boston and the world to The Police, The Clash, The Ramones, and U2 to name just a few.  

We don’t get to ask too many questions in this episode, which is fine with us.  Oedipus has enough stories to fill several episodes.  But we’ll keep it to just this one. 

These are the deep questions we dove into when talking with Jennifer D’Angora and Ed Valauskas. 

Plymouth native Jennifer D’Angora, also known as Jenny Dee, has been on the Boston music scene long enough to be in more bands than we can count. The Dents, Jenny Dee and the Deelinquents, The Downbeat 5, and the fantastic group of musicians that make up the equally fantastic Band of Their Own which performs mainly to support Hot Stove Cool Music, the annual benefit show supporting the Foundation to be Named Later.

Ed Valauskas is the studio manager of the infamous Q Division studios. Ed’s also an accomplished producer and bassist. He plays bass in The Gravel Pit, The Gentlemen, Jenny Dee & The Deelinquents, Abbie Barrett & The Last Date, The Prenups, and far too many other bands to count.  Chances are if you are a regular on the live music scene in Boston, one of these two musicians and great people were on the stage.

These are also only our second married couple to have on ATB.  We’ll let you listen to find out the first.

She appears in the upcoming film Free Guy with Ryan Reynolds and not too long ago was also in The Expecting with AnnaSophia Robb.  In addition, she was able to release her album Pretty to rave reviews.  Not bad for a COVID-filled 2020.

Her unique upbringing – being the first female born into her family in the past 25 years – reflects her name, which seems to indicate more great things ahead.

2021 looks to be a good year.

Like many, Paul and Tim, or Tim and Paul, depending on who you ask, began their musical journey by busking on the streets of Boston. They soon left the harsh Quincy Market streets for the road, which they now ride in luxury on The Spirit of Beverly, which you will hear about shortly.

These guys from Sturbridge – not to be confused with Stockbridge - are road warriors and luckily, they were able to almost finish a tour before COVID hit.  I talked with them about what they’ve been doing lately including their Tall Heights Backyard Tour, their fan sing-along, and a lot of other things.  We don’t want to ruin the surprise.

Fans of Phish, Pink Floyd, The Grateful Dead, these fans are all great. But nothing compares to the fans of the homegrown Boston band Neighbor.

Whether that is hyperbole or not (Ron will need to find the definition of that word in a dictionary), the fellas in Neighbor would argue that they do have the greatest fans in the world.

Neighbor is Richard James, Dan Kelly, Dean Johnston (aka The Dux), and Lyle Brewer. Four guys who serendipitously came together either as childhood friends or were dragged to their first early Neighbor show at the now (sadly closed) Thunder Road.

Their musicianship is off the charts, with epic solos and songs that seem to morph into other songs until you realize that they brought us on a different path, only to finish up with the popping of a confetti cannon, a familiar riff we heard 20 minutes ago and ending with a hug or a high five (once COVID is over of course) from your newly formed friend for life in the audience.

Does this make sense?

You gotta go see a Neighbor show to really get it. They are so great.

And ATB was there last summer to film one of these shows and it is coming soon on our BOSTON: LIVE concert films. But we digress.

We had a fantastic chat and talked about their great fans, how grassroots marketing and musical generosity, and the love of their fans have built the phenomenon the world will soon know – the band called Neighbor.

This is part two of two! So be sure to listen to both episodes.

Whether that is hyperbole or not (Ron you can find the definition of that word in a dictionary), The fellas in Neighbor would argue that they do have the greatest fans in the world.

Neighbor is Richard James, Dan Kelly, Dean Johnston (aka The Dux), and Lyle Brewer.  Four guys who serendipitously came together either as childhood friends or were dragged to their first early Neighbor show at the now sadly closed Thunder Road.

Their musicianship is off the charts, with epic solos and songs that seem to morph into other songs until you realize that they brought us on a different path, only to finish up with the popping of a confetti cannon, a familiar riff we heard 20 minutes ago and ending with a hug or a high five (once COVID is over of course) from your newly formed friend for life in the audience.  

Does this make sense?

You gotta go see a Neighbor show to really get it.  They are so great.

And ATB was there last summer to film one of these shows and it is coming soon on our BOSTON: LIVE concert films.  But we digress.

We had a fantastic chat and talked about their great fans, how grassroots marketing and musical generosity, and the love of their fans have built the phenomenon the world will soon know – the band called Neighbor.

This is part one of two!  So be sure to listen to both episodes.

That said we were lucky enough to have on Nicole Coogan and Jeremiah John Louf, as well as band members Ryan Manning, Eric Ortiz and Aitan Ben-Joseph.  These great people also have a great clan of fans called the 2Crew, of which I am proud to be a member – some of them even getting a 2 crew tattoo to support the band, which is what I hope Ronnie will do one of these days to support me by having my name tattooed on his chest.   

You should know, the first rule of the 2Crew is: You do not talk about 2Crew, Except you should talk about them all the time.    I will let you decide what that means, but I like it.  

They recorded their last album Bad Karma and have been releasing it a piece at a time, including some great videos that you can see on their website thedevilstwins.com.  Last year they had a fantastic show at GBH’s Fraser room that you can see at wgbh.org.  They are such a great live band and I have been encouraging them to get a graphic novel started with each of them a superhero character. 

This is probably the most raunchy episode we have ever done, which isn’t really saying much because, well, Ron and I are kinda like saints without the two required miracles.  But we do have some inappropriate language in this episode, so block your child's ears as you listen and make this episode go. crazy viral!

Danielle started Spark FM just this past year and she has been working hard to build a company that promotes the music and voices that should be heard.  Her own podcast called Henny and Hot Wings is not for the faint of heart as their very popular show is described as an “Exciting, exuberant, and sometimes x-rated personal lifestyle Podcast”.

We tried to keep up with the x-rated conversation to try and fit in.  We did our best. Either way, we had some great laughs with Danielle and we are glad you could join us.

U-Meleni spent her youth in Zimbabwe and she credits her late mother as well as her grandmother for her gift of empathy and expression.  Since Wally’s, she has gone on to perform internationally as a poet, singer, speaker, and educator. 

In addition to her artistic endeavors, she is also Adjunct Professor at Endicott College – Boston and was a Keynote at the Naturalization Ceremony at the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston in 2018 among many other accolades.   

She is a fearless powerhouse on stage.  Her critically praised book of poetry is called Soul Psalms. Her work has helped raise awareness for immigrant and women’s voices and her passion for the human spirit is exemplified in her dedication to the youth of this city as well as in her running marathons, most impressively the Boston marathon several times.  She also just won a Creative Entrepreneur Fellowship from the Arts & Business Council of Greater Boston. 

That iconic music (which you will hear on the episode) is embedded in our brains, and we are happy to say it is still being used to this day by GBH (formerly WGBH).  We had the great opportunity to speak with GBH President and CEO Jonathan Abbott. We caught up with Jon during a snow day and chatted about our memories of the early days, their current goals and projects, including their early transformation to digital platforms, their excellent Front Row Boston program, and all that they do to promote the arts and culture in Boston.

He sat with fiddle player Kathleen Parks, mandolin player Dan Bui and bassist Chris Sartori not too long ago. We missed Twisted Pine's newest addition, Anh Phung, who plays flute in the band, but she is safe at home in beautiful Canada. But we did get to talk about her behind her back - all nice things of course.  

Twisted Pine is one of the most acclaimed young string bands in the Northeast. These fine musicians bring their love of improvisation, rhythmic playing and even humor into their music that, while still rooted in bluegrass, bring in notes of pop, funk and jazz that, in addition to fantastic harmonies, make them unique.  

Their most recent album Right Now is a must listen, and although they had to put off touring due to COVID, they have plenty of material for you to watch on their website at twistedpineband.com and I highly recommend you do because their videos are fantastic.

We watched a music video that they put together and it blew our minds.  The song itself, "With Me," from STL GLD's 2019 album "The New Normal” is an amazing piece, made even more incredible by adding talent from some BSO musicians.

This project, called “Us: A Celebration of Community”, was a great idea imagined by Hip Hop artist and former guest on ATB Moe Pope, who felt that a collaboration with the Boston Symphony Orchestra would be a great way to reach out to the hip hop community. The BSO was all in, and they both decided to bring together these two entities, as well as other artists, and I quote, “to explore the synergy between artists of different genres, in pursuit of a new and inclusive artistic vocabulary.”  

In light of the COVID shutdown, they had to rethink the project. Instead of the live performances they envisioned, they introduced a series of zoom conversations, hosted by STL GLD member Timothy Hall, that would bring together musicians from STL GLD and the BSO to talk music, influences and other topics. These are available for free at https://stlgld.bso.org.

We were able to pull in saxophone player and Berklee College of Music Professor Timothy Hall as well as french horn player and the first female member of the BSO brass section in its history, as well as New England Conservatory faculty member, Rachel Childers to talk about the project and what they hope will continue to be a great Boston Collaboration.

Luckily, we were able to talk to the multi-talented Kemp Harris to bring a little light into this terrible year.  Kemp is a quintuple threat – actor, songwriter, composer, singer, storyteller – and we are probably missing a few other talents in there.  

Kemp was a teacher in Boston for 40 years and has gone on to be a powerful presence on the stage, from your local coffeeshop to the Boch Center stage, his open armed and vulnerable approach to his work make for must watch and must listen performances.  

Kemp and Chuck sat in an empty restaurant to talk about current events, storytelling, teaching, living and performing your beliefs rather than poking the bear.    

That will make more sense when you listen.  

As we were told by our friend Ralph Jaccodine, Kemp is the real deal. 

In 1979, bass player Clint Conley, along with guitarist Roger Miller, drummer Peter Prescott and the “visually unobtrusive” Martin Swope got together to create this seminal Boston band that was part of a post-punk rock scene that inspired so many. Famous for their live performance and ear piercing volume, the amazing part of the story is that they released only an EP called Signals, Calls, and Marches in 1981 which had the fantastic track Academy Fight Song that was covered by REM and then one full LP in 1982 called VS., then took a 22-year hiatus before releasing their later works. 

Clint did not rest on his laurels, although he may argue that he had no laurels to rest on. He went on to get a Masters degree in broadcast journalism and ended up at Boston’s newsmagazine program Chronicle as a producer.  He later formed his own band called Consonant and produced Yo La Tengo’s debut album, but lately has been focused on family, letting go of his vinyl collection, and enjoying life in the burbs.

Clint is a fantastic guy, funny, self-deprecating but very thoughtful and certainly seems very content.  We had a great conversation.

We were sad to miss their bandmates Emma Ayres and Abbie Duquette, but during the time of COVID, we are always happy to sit face to face albeit 10 feet away and masked to chat with talented musicians. 

We got heavy into their songwriting and their debut album Devil Told Me, which they just released in late October. Like so many musicians, they were unable to tour the album as planned but hope to hit the road as soon as it is safe to do so.

Previously called the Emma June Band, their playing and complementary harmonies are just beautiful. I’ll plagiarize here from their Youtube page just because it is so poetic -  

“Ruby Mack sings about the ways in which we build ourselves into empty factories of potential productivity & transform ourselves into lonely machines, like a dog howling at something you can't see but makes you bristle regardless.”

The Underground Music Collective website called Devil Told Me a Modern Folk Masterpiece and we absolutely agree.

OK enough of my plagiarism.  Enjoy the episode!

He had been in the biz since he was a kid, signing a who’s who of bands over the years including Beck, Jawbreaker, Elastica, Alabama 3.

When working for Geffen, he brought them Sonic Youth and also worked with Nirvana, Hole, Teenage Fanclub, XTC, Siouxsie and the Banshees, White Zombie. The list is CRAZY. 

Oh yeah, and he also ran the Beastie Boys record label Grand Royal Records. 

We could go on and on, but suffice it to say he has topped himself by sitting with Ronnie and I for a conversation that runs the gamut.

OK, she might not be our best friend, but we certainly wish she was.  Erin is a force of nature.  A persistent welcoming smile immediately put me at ease. So much so that we talked for almost two hours.  Which is why this episode is in two parts. 

We talk music, musical theater, writing, name dropping, COVID, hope, and other things too numerous to mention.

Over the last few decades Erin McKeown’s unique voice and guitar playing has garnered her a loyal fanbase, has grabbed the attention of Pulitzer Prize-winning playwrights, has been awarded several Drama Desk Award nominations for her musical Miss You Like Hell, numerous awards and residencies, a writing fellowship, and is now a Professor of the Practice at Brown University.

Her most recent event was a live stream celebrating the 20th anniversary of her first album Distillation, where she ceremoniously burned the dress she wore for the album cover and many promotional photos. The end of an era, but the beginning of another.

As we finished the conversation, a huge Blue Heron flew right by us. Erin said it was an omen. We looked it up. The heron symbolizes stillness and tranquility, and how these two things are needed to recognize opportunities. It also signifies determination, because there will be plenty of marshes and ponds that you will wade through in life as well.

A great way to end our conversation.

OK, she might not be our best friend, but we certainly wish she was.  Erin is a force of nature.  A persistent welcoming smile immediately put me at ease. So much so that we talked for almost two hours.  Which is why this episode is in two parts.  

We talk music, Musical theater, writing, name dropping, COVID, hope, and other things too numerous to mention.  Over the last few decades Erin McKeown’s unique voice and guitar playing has garnered her a loyal fanbase, has grabbed the attention of Pulitzer Prize-winning playwrights, has been awarded several Drama Desk Award nominations for her musical Miss You Like Hell, numerous awards and residencies, a writing fellowship, and is now a Professor of the Practice at Brown University.  

Her most recent event was a live stream celebrating the 20th anniversary of her first album Distillation, where she ceremoniously burned the dress she wore for the album cover and many promotional photos.   

The end of an era, but the beginning of another.  As we finished the conversation, a huge Blue Heron flew right by us.  Erin said it was an omen.  We looked it up. The heron symbolizes stillness and tranquility, and how these two things are needed to recognize opportunities. It also signifies determination, because there will be plenty of marshes and ponds that you will wade through in life as well.  

A great way to end our conversation. 

Brandie is nominated for Breakthrough Artist of the Year at the Boston Music Awards and is blazing (sorry) her own path with her powerful and energetic performances. Her on stage persona is fierce, with socially conscious but also unapologetically explicit lyrics.

She gives credit for her success to her mother, who she says raised her to be aware of the world she lives in, as well as other Boston Hip-Hop artists like Dutch Rebelle, Moe Pope, Oompa, and her collaborator in music Red Shaydez.  But she doesn’t seem like someone who needs a leg up. 

Brandie describes herself as a Trap Feminist, which she’ll explain in the conversation. She is devoted to her off stage work with The Dorchester Arts Project as well as being a program manager at Mission Safe.  

Her last album Late Bloomer got everyone’s attention. We can’t wait until she grabs our attention again with her next album coming out next spring.

Chris Smither is one of the most distinguished and authentic singer-songwriter/bluesmen over the past 50+ years. His soulful voice and excellent finger-style guitar playing is set to a heartbeat kept in time by his signature tapping feet.

Chris moved to Boston from New Orleans back in the mid 1960’s and within hours of arriving he was on stage with Eric von Schmidt in Harvard Square at Club ‘47 (now Club Passim).

Hanging out with his future producing partner Dick Waterman and blues musicians Son House and Fred McDowell, he began to hone his songwriting chops.

Also in that group of bluesmen was the incomparable Bonnie Raitt, who fell in love with his song Love You Like A Man and made it her own. His songs have since been recorded by EmmyLou Harris, Diana Krall, Josh Ritter, Loudon Wainwright III, Dave Alvin, Patty Larkin, Peter Case and Tim O'Brien.

He continued to write, perform and also overcome his personal struggles to be a musical road warrior. He has put out 18+ albums, his most recent More From The Levee - a compilation of songs that didn’t make it onto his 2014 album Still On The Levee retrospective that were so good they had to be released as well.

Chris is still on the road and has proven to be one of the greatest American Folk/Blues artists to grace the stage.

40 South Street is a vintage clothing store owned by musician, punk rocker, entrepreneur, aerobic instructor and all-around amazing person Hilken Mancini. We first saw Hilken on stage with her band of incredible women in Band Of Their Own at the Foundation To Be Named Later event at The Paradise a few years ago.  

But that is only one of her many musical endeavors. She was also in the great band Fuzzy, The Count Me Outs and currently plays in The Monsieurs and Shepherdess.  

But she is also the founder of Girls Rock Campaign Boston, which empowers girls, women, and youth and adults with marginalized gender identities to believe in themselves by providing a supportive community that fosters self-expression, confidence, and collaboration through musical education and performance.  

Finally, in 2000 she also founded Punk Rock Aerobics, the original DIY workout that rocks out - combining original punk dance moves with aerobic exercise.  

Hilken is awesome and we love her. 

Lisa’s latest album How We Want To Live is a beautiful record that reflects her many life changes over the past few years.  Her songs are a musical ‘thank you’ to her grandmother who introduced her to the guitar and to songwriting, as well as a message to those in her life. The album reached #1 in Contemporary Folk on Roots Music Report, she was nominated in 2019 for Folk Artist of the Year at the Boston Music Awards and was the 2019 Kerrville Folk Festival New Folk Winner.

Her honest and well crafted songwriting reflect her own personality. Lisa is a calming presence, thoughtful and very in the moment.

It was appropriate to be surrounded by the wonderful chaos of life - the joyful sounds of her kids, a crowing rooster and the arrival of the Amazon delivery truck, which she hopes, one day, will deliver ice cream.

The Grownup Noise website says their name represents something to rebel against, like fear, complacency, the closing of your heart, the stress of bills etc.

We can imagine the current state of affairs with COVID, the election and the financial and social hardships we are all experiencing, we would all like to rebel.

Paul is doing his own rebelling by incorporating some different instruments in his music, but it really all comes down to songwriting.

We sat with Paul last week to talk about his new instruments, his songwriting and how he can’t seem to get the smell of fried foods out of his clothes. That will make more sense if you listen to the entire conversation.

Which is an awesome word and we're not sure what it means, but we think we want to also be multihyphenates.  

Cliff also founded the media production company Hipstory, released a fantastic album last fall called Why The Wild Things Are, and was not too long ago was named 2019 Boston Magazine Best Musician as well as starting Boston Answering to highlight Boston artists in response to the Boston Calling music festival.  

So as we said, Cliff is a busy guy, and we had a great time chatting on the phone while a thunderstorm raged in the  distance.  

We first came to know Geoff at a book signing of his recent book Walk This Way - Run-DMC, Aerosmith, and the Song that Changed American Music Forever. Since then we kept seeing Geoff around town – at David Byrne's American Utopia show in Boston, in Quincy - the Quincy Jones documentary and once when he tried to steal my original pressing of The Kinks - Arthur (Or the Decline and Fall of the British Empire) LP.

That last one was a joke, but he is a huge Kinks fan and we are still hoping to watch his documentary about trying to reunite the Kinks called Do It Again. We sat in his backyard to talk current events, his continued hope for a Kinks reunion and his crazy awesome collection of tape decks, record players, 8 tracks and his personal favorite, his Welltron 2001.

We spoke with Ashleigh Gordon - violist, activist and Artistic Director of Castle of Our Skins, a Boston-based concert and educational series devoted to celebrating Black Artistry through music. We talked to Ashleigh about how she’s doing with life in the time of COVID as well as her thoughts on the recent protests stemming from the murder of George Floyd.

Hopefully we can change his mind about the tour, but at the very least we get to hear this beautiful album of songs that Ry gathered written by his late father George – also known as Bobby Pedd.

We were about to sit with Ry before the Pandemic hit, and while safety and health kept us from being in the same room, we were still able to chat virtually about his father, the new album called Time For This, and how Session Americana, featuring many of the great musicians in Boston, came to fruition.

Kristina Latino, our good friend from CornerScape, joins me this go round, so we’d like to thank her for joining us.

Chuck got a tattoo of a compass on the inside of my left arm. I think we can all agree that a compass is something that we as a country, as a society and as human beings need in our lives. We have all been struggling with life in the time of COVID, with many of us losing a friend or family member to this awful pandemic. Businesses have been greatly affected and certainly we all miss our social interaction – going to concerts and other gatherings.

And of course we recognize the terrible murder of George Floyd and the protests that have followed to call out, once again, racial injustice that needs to be addressed.

We know we all need to be better and need to work hard to make sure we are part of the solution in our words and actions.

So we think it is time to get back to what we do – promoting musicians and artists in the City of Boston.

Ben Reigal is a tattoo artist and musician who suffered a devastating stroke not too long ago and the road to health has taken him to a different place that you will soon learn through our conversation while he plunges a needle into my skin.  We hope you enjoy.

At one point, a lone musician with a guitar took the stage and began playing. Gianna Botticelli (aka Ghost GRL) stopped us in our tracks. With her haunting, ambient guitar and ethereal voice, the entire room paid attention.  

It took us a few years to finally get her on ATB, but we did it at the right time as she just released her third album Rewired and we’ve been listening to it ever since we first heard it.  Assuming this Corona Virus pandemic burns out and we survive the zombie apocalypse, Gianna is about to tour on the album.

So go to ghostgrlmusic.com to see where she will be over the next few months. (girl is spelled GRL with no 'i'). 

If embodying the great literary traditions of Boston means you are a rock star 2014 Individual World Poetry Slam Champion and 2015 National Poetry Slam Champion who is a writer, performer, educator and curator who uses afro-futurism and surrealism to examine historical and current issues in the Black, woman, and queer diasporas, then PorshaPorsha Olayiwola  fits the bill.

We’ve been hearing Porsha’s name over the past year or so and as far as poet laureates go she must be the most visible and active poet laureate we have ever had on ATB.

Porsha just released her first book I Shimmer Sometimes Too which has received rave reviews. 

We were fortunate to have former guest and hip-hop artist Moe Pope as our very special co-host this time around.

If you haven’t been to the FARHOF, you should check it out. You can visit FolkAmericanaRootsHallofFame.org for information, but basically The Hall is housed in the Wang Theatre in Boston and it celebrates the history of Folk, Americana and Roots music through displays, memorabilia, artifacts, multi-media, lectures and concerts.  

As much as any city in the country, Boston has been the musical birthplace for the styles and artists we celebrate, making it a fitting home.  While performing recently at the Wang Theatre, Neil Young said, “Boston is the Folk Music capital of North America.”  

And who are we to argue with a recently sworn in American Citizen.  

We were fortunate to talk with the wonderful Patty Griffin before her performance at Club Passim's 60th birthday event. We’d like to share this Hallways episode with you to introduce you to the new podcast and hope you will not only visit The Hall but also subscribe to Hallways on iTunes or wherever you get your podcasts and to follow us on our socials. 

 For that matter – do the same with ATB – visit abovethebasement.com to subscribe and follow us to.   

We can all follow each other.  

Thanks!  Here we go… 

David hails from Cleveland but has lived in Boston since he moved here to attend BU as a journalism major in 1968 – right at the beginning if the reign of WBCN.  From there he went on to work for WBCN, as well as WFNX, and The Boston Phoenix among others and through those many years gathered all the posters, magazines, photos, reel to reel tapes, LP’s and other ephemeral to fill enough tractor trailers to necessitate moving into an enormous warehouse in Norwood, Mass at the Norwood Space Center.

We were lucky enough to chat with David at The David Bieber Archives recently surrounded by piles of memorabilia and boxes upon boxes of awesomeness.

But this wonderful foundation is only one piece of the puzzle – just one beneficiary of many in Boston and Chicago under the umbrella of the Foundation To Be Named Later.

After Theo Epstein became the general manager of the Red Sox in 2002, being a guitar player himself, Peter Gammons asked Theo to join him onstage for the next Hot Stove event. 

And so the Foundation to be named later was born. The foundation – now celebrating its 20thyear, is dedicated to improving lives through education and leadership and works to raise funds and awareness for nonprofit agencies serving urban youth and families.  Funds would be raised through unique events focused on baseball and music, two of the twins’ passions.

This years events begin February 7th.  Get more info and purchase tickets at www.foundationtobenamedlater.org.

Business of Baseball Lunch – DEVELOPING PITCHING IN AN OFFENSIVE ERA presented by GIVING Grousbeck Fazzalari
February 7th — Seaport Hotel, 1 Seaport Lane Boston – 11:30 am – 1:30 pm Includes reception, lunch, panel with Q&A

Moderators: Peter Gammons, Alex Speier

Panelists:Tom Verducci, Analyst, MLB Network; Craig Breslow, Director of Pitching, Chicago Cubs; Rich Hill, Pitcher, Minnesota Twins; Aaron Civale, pitcher, Cleveland Indians; David Bush, Pitching Coach, Boston Red Sox; Matt Blake, Pitching Coach, New York Yankees; Ryan Dempster, Former Major League Pitcher and MLB Network Analyst

VIP TICKET: Hot Stove Cool Music 20th Presented by GIVING Grousbeck Fazzalari – celebrating music, baseball and giving–Buy Tickets $500
February 8th — Paradise Rock Club, 967 Commonwealth Ave. Boston – 5:30 pm

FEATURING: Letters To Cleo and Belly’s Tanya Donelly & Gail Greenwood and are joined by Peter Gammons, Theo Epstein and the Hot Stove Cool Music All Stars, BOTO. With Bill Janovitz, Bernie Williams, Kay Hanley, Tanya Donnelly, Jake Peavy, Lenny DiNardo and Will Dailey.

EMCEES:The Mike O’Malley and Kevin Youkilis, Red Sox Legend

April 3 – Off The Mound at Big Night Live Theatre at the Boston Garden
with Ryan Dempster, Pedro Martinez and Mike O’Malley

Titles include the film How Far Home about the dedication of th Vietnam Veterans Memorial in D.C., Birth of A Movement, Johnny Cash at Folsom Prison, Circus Without Borders and coming soon a documentary about American Blues harmonica player James Cotton.

We met with Bestor at The Better Sorts Social Club to talk about the great James Cotton, but also about another documentary - JFK: The Last Speech – the very last public speech John F. Kennedy gave before he was assassinated three weeks later. 

We were fortunate to have Roger Hirschberg, Amherst College Class of '64 join us who was actually present when JFK gave the speech.  

It made for a great discussion.

To that end in 2008, Chad and Sybil founded Calling All Crows, the social activist organization that brings their commitment to hands-on service and activism on the road. They work with musicians, fans, and nonprofits to better the lives of women locally and globally. Their current focus is preventing sexual violence at shows and festivals through their #HereForTheMusic campaign, which has trained over 1700 musicians, venue/festival staff, industry professionals, and fans to-date.

Chad and Sybil are about to celebrate their 12th annual benefit concert in support of Calling All Crows at the House of Blues on Saturday, December 21st, 2019.  Performing with his band the Pintos, money raised at the concert will help channel the power of live music toward community change for women and girls. Tickets for the concert are $36 and up and are available at LiveNation.com.

We got to sit down with both Sybil and Chadwick along with my guest co-host Kristina Latino at Woods Hill At Pier 4 in Boston where we had another amazing dinner. 

So we talked about their mission, how live-music venues should be a safe place for women and how we all share a responsibility in making changes to improve the lives of women and girls around the world. Oh and we also talked a little music and got a few live songs from Chadwick.

This just a week before Charles as well as Red Sox Hall of Fame pitcher Bill “Spaceman” Lee take the stage at The Wilbur Theater in Boston on Tuesday, December 10.  

So many of us listened to WBCN on our morning commute joining Charles on his program The Big Mattress. Charles was part of a family of DJ’s and personalities at BCN that created the radio renaissance in Boston with their groundbreaking irreverence and general hilarity that accompanied so many of us on our radios.

It was so great to sit with Charles and our only regret is that we only got an hour. But we discovered that Charles is as raw and honest as ever. We had so many questions and topics we wanted to cover. But fortunately, we really didn’t get to any of them.

Charles didn’t skip a beat. It was like listening to The Big Mattress all over again. We just let him riff, tell us some non PC ‘not for live radio’ stories, recall a regret or two, give a few anecdotes and even offer a haiku.

Hello, this is Chuck from Above the Basement Boston music and conversation. Hey, we have missed you all so much and hope to get back on a regular schedule. We are still working out some new projects and we will tell you about those very soon. But one thing we can tell you about something we are honored and excited to announce we have been nominated for a Boston Music Award for the 2019 Podcast of the Year and since I have personally never won a thing in my life, never mind a cool trophy. We would love for you to vote for us, or honestly whatever podcast you like and support as well as for you to vote for one of the many talented Boston artists nominated in their categories.

Go to Boston Music Awards. com forward slash vote to make your choices. And thank you as always for supporting the Boston music community.

This time around we finally got a chance to talk with singer songwriter and Boston native Matt York. Matt has been in the Boston music scene for quite a while now after stepping away from music to become aSecret Agent and family man Matt jumped back into music and has been quite prolific hitting the road often to perform and also released a few critically acclaimed albums, including Boston, Texas Between The Bars and just this month, his latest album Bruisable Heart. Right before we got a chance to see him play at lizard lounge and Cambridge with his talented wife on base for his CD release, we sat with him at Adelita's, his restaurant in West Concord, Massachusetts for a chat while the commuter rail would occasionally scream by us. We talked about his new album, his influences, the Boston music scene, and the dangers of mosquitoes.

So here is our conversation with Matt York, recorded at Adelitas in West Concord, Massachusetts.

They made bottled water illegal in Concord. It was like a big deal they have

Matt York  1:55  

Is Concord the town where they were talking about repealing it after they do cuz everybody saw like what a pain in the ass it was?

Chuck Clough  2:02  

I don't know maybe

Matt York  2:03  

it was a town do that I was just reading about in the Globe those that's trying to undo what they did because I

Chuck Clough  2:09  

look I'm all for not using plastic bottle but you can't make it illegal to use something a total legal product way they should have done is done a PSA to get people to get the stores to use give them the incentive to use this instead of making it illegal. . And you can have plastic bottles for Coke and Pepsi Yeah, it's just water bottled water. But you know, I mean, you know, we got over the hump and it's not really that big a deal anymore. And

Matt York  2:39  

I'll try to stop talking about this. But I'm not there yet.  what is it what is a what is a box of water cost?

Chuck Clough  2:47  

This was like $1 75 or something.

Matt York  2:50  

So my town they just got rid of plastic bags at the supermarket. And if I had a memory if I had the ability to remember to bring the ones that I have in the back of my car every time like The reusable ones. Yeah, it would be fine. But I just end up buying more and more and more reusable. That's what

Chuck Clough  3:06  

I was leaving the car and then

Matt York  3:10  

I'm all for the idea of it.

Chuck Clough  3:11  

So am I. But now I mean now that look it's it's, it's

Ronnie  3:15  

it looks like milk.

Chuck Clough  3:18  

Here comes a train. Box, a water box water is better.

Ronnie  3:21  

So, take it. You're from a town that doesn't care about box water.

Matt York  3:27  

I live in Pembroke Massachusetts. Yes. So Pembroke is the land locked town next to Duxbury and Marshfield on the South Shore?

Ronnie  3:34  

Really? You ever run into Steven Tyler when you go through there and I

Matt York  3:37  

No but I saw the drummer at breakfast maybe a year or two ago and he has like a Lamborghini or Ferrari or whatever. And we're like we're eating in Marshfield. And I like sound like they can only be a couple of guys in Marshfield that own that car.

Chuck Clough  3:50  

Well, you know it's also moving out there is Ari Hest you know already he's a great singer songwriter you interviewed him over the winter

we have to wait fort the train to go by. His wife's family's out there and he's I guess he's moving out there now. He's fantastic.

Ronnie  4:10  

And Steve Carell was there too.

Matt York  4:12  

Yep. I actually he was he just came to visit. He owns a general store there. Yeah. And so he like once a year, he does this little thing where you can meet and meet him and he just raises money for something.

Chuck Clough  4:24  

We try to get him on the show. I was all right, just for the hell of it. And you never get back to me. There was

Ronnie  4:30  

Oh, you emailed him. I didn't know that.

Chuck Clough  4:31  

I emailed his sister. Yeah. Who runs the general store.

Ronnie  4:38  

He's from Acton. I know. His dad lives in Acton. We could go to his house .  We did that with Gary Pihl So Gary peel. He is a guitarist for Boston. The band Boston. So he was a guitarist for them since 85. He lives in my neighborhood, And so I drove I sat in his driveway,

He was drive because I was going out to, you know, to the front door to knock on his door. I go in the car and he he pulls in slowly next to me he was out doing something.  I rolled down the window. And I'm like, you're probably wondering why I'm here. And you know, it was a little awkward. He humored us and came on. He came on one of our first like, first guest, I think, yeah,

Chuck Clough  5:22  

well, no, ever first, but he was in the first 50. I think he's very nice guy.

Matt York  5:28  

When did you start doing this? 2016?

Chuck Clough  5:30  

Yes, very good. Okay. Can you reached out to us pretty close to when we started

Matt York  5:34  

After after the globe article? When I saw the article on the globe, and then I started listening to it,

Chuck  5:39  

to be honest, you you're one of the first people to actually reach out to us to come on. . And so you've been on our list for forever. Yeah. And it's been like, I've been like, kind of putting, like all the people that we've been meaning that you have on there, like starred. You've been starred forever. So I'm so glad we finally got you, especially since we had booked Couple weeks ago and then I had some stuff to deal with and yeah so we did we can so I'm glad we it wasn't like another year so so it's happening right the sites have it's happening you've been started by Chuck more than once you were started here I am Here you are and we don't have enough you know white male singer songwriter zones yeah no that's that's a real major problem for us But but thank you for coming on and thank you for taking the trip I you know, I didn't realize you were from Pembroke that's a long

Matt York  6:32  

Yeah, no, I do a lot of driving my friends so let's

Chuck Clough  6:35  

I guess you used to it

Ronnie  6:36  

Want some bug spray stuff. I might put it right on your neck

Chuck Clough  6:39  

you guys getting a bit you get your hates that no, so far. I'm good. I'm not I saw a song right there but it's not gonna bite. Yeah, yeah, they're friendly around here. These are Concord mosquitoes.

Unknown Speaker  6:50  

The Sudbury mosquitoes only have to worry about with or with a AAA.

Ronnie  6:55  

AAA is bad.Have you ever heard of AAA?

Chuck Clough  6:59  

You can get sick from them but they're also change your tire.

Matt York  7:02  

So in our town like it all the other towns around us, they're all like banning swipe. Yeah, it's a sport like our town. It's like that hasn't reached that level. So they're still allowing it.

Chuck Clough  7:13  

Yeah, I think this is this is rock and roll right here. We are here. We're live surrounded by deadly mosquitoes. Okay, so let's actually talk about you. So well first of all you have your beautiful heart. Yeah, just came out. Yep. And you have a CD release coming up at the end of this month. Right? Correct. 28thof the lizard lounge. Right? Yeah, my favorite places to go.

Matt York  7:40  

Yeah, me too. It is. Yeah, I'm excited about it. My my wife and I actually met there 18 years ago. She wasn't musician and she's playing bass with me on the 28th

Chuck Clough  7:50  

what is what is her name? Her name is Beth. Her last name is York as well She's playing bass with me that night. We 18 years ago. We played a show together in a club in Worcester. I saw her and I was like, She's cute. I should invite her to open up for us at the lizard lounge. She came and did so. And we met that night. And, like, literally that weekend is the 18th anniversary of our first date.

Ronnie  8:17  

And what does she play other than she's now playing bass to play guitar before she blows us out?

Matt York  8:22  

Yes, she played bass years ago and, and she hadn't played in forever and I play probably 95% more than that of my shows just solo. I joke that it's too expensive to have her play bass because we have to get a babysitter every time. You know.

Chuck Clough  8:40  

It's it's sadly it's cheaper to get a bass player than it is to get a babysitter.

Matt York  8:44  

That's Amen. So do that every day. Yeah. So it'll be a rich

Chuck Clough  8:49  

it's a sad state of affairs. Yep. But at least you have a cute bass player that

Matt York  8:52  

that part is huge and and we get along

Chuck Clough  8:55  

How long you been playing in the Boston area for now.

Matt York  8:57  

So Chuck, this might be an interesting story. So I, I don't know if you know a guy named by the name of Rick Berlin who has been around forever. He was in a band called Berlin airlift. And yeah, I know that. I know the name of that. But yeah, so you had a hand in here recently many, many hands studio. Yeah. So I did an album with Dave and he did a bunch of Rick's albums and kind of back then in the 80s, late 80s and stuff Rick and Dave were in a lot of this that same circle. Rick wasn't really a punk though. He was more like talking heads. Lou Reed type world. Yeah. So I met him when I was in high school, and I started playing the clubs when I was a young kid, really young kid like 15. That's what many handed us playing when he was like, 15-16. Yep. So like places like the rat in the channel and been rowdies right when they were closing down. Yeah, I was like, the high school kid play in those places and played in a band called White Iris that was a popular indie punk band in the late 90s. For five or six years, we had a pretty good run. We played all over the East Coast, andAnd then I stopped forever. I stopped for 12 years. Yeah. And oh, and then I started back up four years ago. And I really didn't plan on doing much of anything more than just kind of recording and plan a couple songs in the studio. And this has been the third album now in four years. And I think I've played something like 13 states this year. So yeah, it's definitely not what I intended on doing. Yeah. But it kind of just took off. And really, when I was really young, my dad was just a huge, like, Lou Reed Bowie guy. And so I started off with that when I was like, seven, eight years old. And, you know, when I was a teenage kid, he was the one driving me to these clubs and, you know, unloaded my amp and stuff. And so he turned 70 a few years ago, and, you know, I think he was always a little bit bummed that I stopped doing music and so I really went in there to kind of record a couple songs for his birthday, and it just kind of happens, you know?

Ronnie  11:00  

It's very heartfelt to hear. And you could tell that that's important to you. And it's rare. My parents when it came to music were they're always supportive of music. But I think that getting back into it would have been tough, a tough sell. That's pretty noble that he feels that he wants you to be involved in that.

Matt York  11:19  

Yeah. And I think I mean, I, you know, I kind of went, I got away from music and was able to kind of, I have a regular job and I have a wife and kids and I have a mortgage and you know, I mean, I'm able to kind of balance the two things by not sleeping a hell of a lot, I guess.

Chuck Clough  11:35  

But what do you do for

Matt York  11:36  

it's a complicated job Chuck, but I worked for sprint.I worked for sprint, but I work I work in a fraud investigator. So I will stay companies that sell our product and try to defraud us and try to identify that and take action.

Chuck Clough  11:53  

That's pretty cool

Matt York  11:55  

Yeah, and I work from home so I'm able to kind of sit on my couch and do that and

Chuck  12:00  

Do undercover stuff and like, you know, it's more finance driven and kind of it's more spreadsheets and

Chuck Clough  12:09  

you know, I have a friend I went I grew up with actually he works for the FBI. Is that right? Yeah.

Matt York  12:15  

A few years ago, I was a licensed private investigator, but I let it lapse. So really, yeah, like somehow if you had been an investigator as long as I've been you qualified, and I went, and it was like so lame. I thought it was gonna be like a badge and they gave me like this Xerox piece of paper. Yeah, it was like faded and

Chuck Clough  12:31  

did you ever get into the the Spencer for hire books or ever be part?

Matt York  12:34  

Yeah, so I grew up like I loved Hawk.

Chuck Clough  12:36  

Yeah. And those are my books. I love I read every single one of those books. Yep. You read those books? No, Robert be Parker. Spencer for hire him a TV show.

Ronnie  12:46  

That's all I remember.

Chuck  12:47  

Based upon those books. Yeah, but the books were better. Yes.

Ronnie  12:51  

Maybe they can sponsor this podcast. This is this is

Matt York  12:55  

Yeah, we're merging with T Mobile. So Amanda, where are you? Really? Yeah.

Chuck Clough  12:59  

Is that Is that inside information? No, no, that's like, really?

Matt York  13:06  

I'm not smart enough to know,

Ronnie  13:08  

what type of fraud we talking about.

Chuck Clough  13:09  

And have you written a song about this?

Ronnie  13:11  

Let me answer the first question first. So yeah, is there a song about it? No,

Chuck  13:16  

my question was much better about it, right? Yes. But that my question was much better than your question. What would I say? You asked him. I like him about what he does for

Ronnie  13:25  

Well, I think it's interesting. I mean, like, I've never met anybody that does it. But your songs are a little deeper than that. They are. They're not just about iPhone fraud. No, you know, what i what i was taken by was some of the recent stuff you did the addiction song. It's not called that and you're going to tell me in a second what that is. But there's a few on the album, but I lost my baby to the needle to the needle, right? Yep.

you put a couple stats on there that are very sobering not to give upon, but that 72,000 people died in 2017. Yeah, we had actually talked about that on an episode we did write music and recovery

Matt York  14:32  

somebody I think, in fact, I think that's how we reconnected because I forget who it was that you had on was the Maureen Cavenaugh, Oh, yeah, yeah. Okay. The woman that's in the video for the last Yeah. She's very close with Maureen and really very responsible for

Ronnie  14:46  

because they're real people.

Matt York  14:47  

Yeah, so the people in the video are in both in recovery and they both run sober homes and there are a couple themselves now to me.

Ronnie  14:55  

That's amazing, because I think I saw it in Jed's article or was it Jed Gottlieb or something? Nobody wrote an article on you. Yep, that was really interesting. Because, you know, you can have these messages that are like really poignant. Yeah, about something as powerful as opiates and addiction, but at the same time, like you always think they're actors. And yeah, these people are like, a real real going through this real start how therapeutic it might, it must have been. I don't know. It was in the middle of that.

Matt York  15:22  

So a couple things is it was really funny because we literally met them in front of an Nantasket , the beach there. It was, like November. It's freezing cold in the morning. We met them in a parking lot. We spent maybe an hour and a half with them, and we've never seen them again. But we suddenly kind of created this thing together and that's evergreen. Yeah, totally. And you know, I sent them the song I actually just like put like a Craigslist I sent it a couple different spots trying to find people. And she the girl in the videos sent me the email saying listen, this I'm the person to do this. She had no acting experience. Right and I don't drink but my dad joined a when I was about eight, nine years old and, and he would take me to a meetings. So when I was like eight or nine I'd be hearing these people get up and tell these stories that I was like holy shit like Drinking crazy, right. And so I was kind of always aware of it. And, you know, I drank a little bit when I was in my 20s. But I was never a big drinker and ever, but I was, you know, if you do music long enough, you see this stuff, you know, you see addiction in all different forms. So the album that I put out before this was really about alcoholism, and just kind of having been away from the clubs for so long. And then going back in like, Oh, my God, like, I forgot how crazy this? Yes, yeah, every day, we recorded probably seven or eight songs that are really about addiction in that world. It's not a happy album by any stretch. But

Chuck Clough  16:48  

no, but I mean, you know, the thing is when you write when you go out to write songs about such a powerful topic, it can sometimes be contrived.You know, it's like the trying too hard to be, you know, to make this story into this song. I make one.

Matt York  17:07  

Just say one thing you said about how contrived. So I spent a lot of years away from music and literally years where I didn't pick up a guitar at all. Yeah. And my wife and kids and I were at the finish line during the marathon bombing. Yeah, we were able to kind of get out of there. And our kids were young, and whatever. That was six, six years ago.Again, and I remember, like, I went home, and like, within two or three days, I had a song about it like it all of a sudden, it just came out, you know, and it was such an interesting thing. And I had been away from music and Randy, who runs at woods and used to run TT to bears years ago. She was running Johnny DS at the time, and I was like, Listen, Randy, I don't do music anymore. I see you're doing a benefit. And I'd love to just come and play a couple. I want to play this song. So she was awesome. And let me do it. You know, it's kind of like the one time I started that I kind of came out and played in it. You know, I've never released it or recorded it or anything, butWas it made me realize I could still do it if I wanted to? Yeah. And

Ronnie  18:05  

so that was the trigger actually that part of it rushed back into music. Yep. Well, that's a powerful terrible thing that you know, it's always amazing to hear some of the little the silver lining come out of some of these awful things. Yeah, you know what I like about Matt's music is also the the harmonies that are double in some of the doubling that you do in the production of it. But I love the effect. I've always loved the effect in rock and and pop and others, similar genres. You connect the same melody and unison. Yeah. And the effect that that gives is really, it could be haunting, but it could also just be very cerebral and is very soothing. Is that something that you experimented with one day and said You liked it? Or have you always come from?

Matt York  18:52  

Well, it's funny because when I was younger, and I had a noisier band, we were just a three piece. There was no one else in my band that could sing So there really weren't harmonies in it. And then when I came back and started doing this, I didn't have anybody else to sing them. You know, like I was in the studio there was nobody else with me I was pretty much doing all the instruments. So I just kind of experimented with doing it myself and I would have preferred honestly to have had someone else do it. The album I did before this one I did with Dave Brophy, who's will Bailey's drummer and the Ruby Rose Fox album and he's done a bunch of stuff and so he and I have worked together on some of the harmonies I think, I can't remember he may have sang some of them actually, I love doing it and this is double though to you don't just do harmonies? Yeah, it's double vocal us in a lot of times. I'll split the harmony in parts. Yeah, yeah. No. And then it comes back to a unison Yeah, right. And then it's funny when I do them live because when I just have the one voice like it's, it's almost like you have two different melodies to choose from.

Chuck Clough  19:49  

So depending on how strong your voices at night, you can choose the lower one.

Matt York  19:51  

Yeah, exactly. I'm on the fourth night in a row then I'm going love the feeling.

Chuck Clough  19:56  

Yeah, you know, I always love to do this, but the whole Oh you sound like so and so. But and especially with I need my can reduce my readers.

Ronnie  20:08  

Those new again.

Chuck Clough  20:09  

Do you like them?

Ronnie  20:10  

You get new glasses every week?

Chuck  20:11  

Oh no cause I lose them. That's why I lose them and I

Ronnie  20:15  

just lost the $80 pair that you paid last night

Chuck Clough  20:17  

I lost these exact pair.

Ronnie  20:19  

No, they were tortoise shell type.

Chuck Clough  20:21  

That's what I have. I have those still.

Ronnie  20:24  

Those are great. Those last ones. Yeah. Glad you didn't lose those.

Chuck Clough  20:27  

I have those.

Ronnie  20:28  

But I really liked those and you look good in them.

Chuck Clough  20:30  

You don't like these?

Ronnie  20:31  

No.

Chuck Clough  20:31  

Why not?

Ronnie  20:32  

I don't like it as much as the other ones. Those are okay.

Chuck Clough  20:35  

Well, this is my Clark Kent. What do you think, Joe? No. Matt, what do you think?

Matt York  20:40  

I thought they looked fun. I'm not gonna lie.

Ronnie  20:43  

I think you're fine too. But the other ones he's he looks great. Like, yeah,

Chuck Clough  20:47  

so the

Ronnie  20:49  

know who he sounds like.

Chuck Clough  20:51  

Steve Earle, man, you've got that, especially especially that song a Permanent Crush. I really heard Steve

It's almost sounds like a first take of whatever song you saying. It's just very natural True, which is what I reminds me of Steve. Oh, it's very raw that

Matt York  22:03  

Yeah, so I had never listened to him when I was younger. And then I found him maybe 20 years ago. And I was like, wait, well, how did I miss? Yeah, I know I missed on. I didn't get into late recently to like that I missed him.

Chuck  22:15  

But it's not even. It's not even just the voice which you know, you can kind of get that low register voice too. But it's also the guitar playing it's the entire song. And not only that, there was also the other side actually in a previous album on my own. Yeah. Was it was it Boston, Texas. Is that the one or no? No. Between the Bars between the bar Yeah, yep. That was like a little little Elliott Smith in there, too. I don't know if you know Elliott Smith. Yeah. Oh, yeah. Yeah, but yeah, between the bars.Between the bars, Michael, I wonder if you did a cover.

Matt York  22:44  

I thought it was so clever. And then

Chuck Clough  22:47  

afterwards, but no, no, you know, Elliott Smith. Yeah, yeah. So I'm not well, he's a song calledbetween the bars, I guess you would say so I thought there was a reference to that bus. Different reference.

Matt York  22:58  

Yeah, it was just coincidence though, that I stole it by accident.

Chuck Clough  23:01  

He was such an influence on me. Yeah, he died. He was such a frickin talent. Yeah. Such a talent.

Ronnie  23:13  

So what is the story with Boston, Texas? So I'm just curious if it's not a town in Texas, right? Yeah, there is.

Matt York  23:19  

There is a tiny little town called Austin, Texas. But so when I was a kid, when I was about 10, we moved to Texas. We've grown up in Boston, and we moved to Texas as a family for about a year when I was down there briefly, I kind of got hints of, you know, back then there was no rock'n'roll music down there. And there was no country music back here. So, you know, I would start to hear like Willie and Waylon and people who I was, I was too young to know, but I just kind of would hear these influences. And then so as I got older and started writing, I kind of found that Boston music was was what I love the most. But I kept coming back to these kind of texts, influences kept kind of pulling on my songwriting like Steve Earle. And you know Townes, Van Zandt. People like that Billy Joe shaver so the songs that on that first album that Boston tech Selma really just kind of a mishmash. Yeah, Boston and Texas in

Ronnie  24:08  

that town is kind of very indicative of like that your whole experience with this song. September,

Matt York  24:15  

September is coming soon. Yep.

Ronnie  25:00  

It's one it's my it's my favorite month it's a tough month is some deaths in our in our my friends and family. But there's also some birthdays and some amazing celebrations too. Yep. So September is the start of school and just something about the, like just coming to America. Yeah. And actually I'm Jewish. So it's like, you know, Russia, China is the new year of September in October. Yep. And you celebrate the new year for that.

Matt York  25:23  

I feel like I'm a pretty normal person. Like I'm not a depressed person. I'm not an alcoholic. I don't have any of these types of issues. But I write about those things September's coming soon to me, just always many people are affected by the summer ending, especially here in New England, where you just prepare for kind of shutting down, you know, being stuck in the indoors for a few months. And

Ronnie  25:45  

I think it's a rebirth. Yeah, I like the weather too. Yep. I don't think his summer is that great. I mean, I think it's sometimes too hot. You know, like Chuck, don't you like like that make it start making that fire.

Chuck  25:55  

If I go on vacation in the summer, even if it's like for three days, like June I'm done. I'm done. I'm ready for fall so yeah falls in lov e the smell of like, yeah the smell the wood burning and and you wrote a song about that bring on the winter I did Yes, yes.

Ronnie  26:13  

he went past September and he wrote a song about bringing on the winter so you want

Chuck Clough  26:17  

I mean, I liked the winter but that was just really kind of I was looking for something that rhymed with splinter. I don't know.

Ronnie  26:26  

Sorry to Bring up the weather. But you know, I just like that freakin song.

Chuck Clough  26:29  

When you got back into playing music Did you get back into playing solo and doing acoustic guitar not getting back into a band? for a specific reason? Was it literally just now it's just gonna be easier to play by me. That's what I did. I mean, it was easier for me to play by myself. Pick up an acoustic guitar and try and get a band back together with two small kids, right?

Matt York  26:46  

Yeah, almost all of them I play solo. And if I had a bunch of guys that I was friends with that could just at the drop of a hat, play for next to nothing and just show up and be awesome. I would do that. I just don't you know, and so I mean, I Live on the south shore, my drummer lives in Manchester, New Hampshire, you know, so it's like, we're lucky to have a rehearsal before we play a gig. And I like to travel and obviously traveling on the road when you know, you're probably gonna lose money anyway. Yeah, to bring a band just ensures that you're not only going to lose money, but you're going to be very uncomfortable probably on the road,

Chuck Clough  27:21  

getting back into, or even starting for the first time being a solo artist. Yep. What was the most challenging thing for you? Because I started doing it myself. It was a learning experience trying to figure out where my strengths were. Yep. What did you do improve on, and plus my voice. And playing has changed since I was a kid, and especially my voice.

Matt York  27:39  

I don't have the higher range that I have when I was younger. But I was a big smoker when I was younger, and I don't smoke. So like I was just down in Nashville last week, and I did like four nights in a row. But that fourth night, I feel a little pull on my voice. But I feel like almost every time now I can go out and I'm going to give the same level of performance every time. So control to

Ronnie  28:00  

I've always been a piano player mostly and it's like I'm not going to lug around a piano and do a solo thing but I've always envied someone with it, you know a good command of their guitar and then they match their vocal to the chord the rhythm they're reading off the audience and

Matt York  28:16  

that's the biggest thing showing up in playing gigs and not knowing exactly what the audience is going to be especially like I opened up for a lot of national Acts where I joke all the time when I do that that I'm like there to just be like a good appetizer right you know like I'm if I'm a quality like clam chowder a buffalo wings to them then great right they're not there to see me they're there to have steak sometimes I'll come out and just based on the audience I can feel like you know I can do the kind of the listening room tender sad songs thing or they want more of an upbeat warm up and yeah, warm up the evening the ability to kind of just be solo and change on like, I don't write setlist I just will go out there and transition if I yeah.

Ronnie  28:56  

Well, do you find that like there's a part of you thatfeels that if someone's getting filled up on their clam chowder, they're going to taste it. It's going to be good. But if they if they find that they're like they don't need as much steak, because they filled up on the clam chowder, that's a goal of yours.

Chuck Clough  29:13  

This is right up Ron's alley. This whole food analogy. Yeah, he does this. Yes. With the ingredients. And the recipe. You're all you do all that.

Ronnie  29:22  

I think the fact that Matt came up with that analogy,

Chuck Clough  29:25  

I'm just saying it's right up your alley. You dont have to get defensive

Ronnie  29:28  

No, no, I'm not am I?

Matt York  30:16  

Well, you had Carissa Johnson on here at one point. We did yeah, rocks, man. She's insane. So we did the rumble together a few years ago and we played a few gigs together. That was when she won a couple years ago. I was in my band was in it that year. So I did the rumble in 2000. I did it in 2017. And oh, wow, really crazy. And Jed Gottlieb actually wrote this article with me and two or three others that had had this giant gap. Yeah, and yeah, what was crazy to me is when I think back, I was probably 20, early 20s. When I did it back then, the entire club was not only packed but it was packed with people in their early 20s. Oh, yeah. When I played it two years ago.

Chuck Clough  30:57  

These with you? Yeah.

Matt York  31:00  

like none you know and and even Krista who is that age? Yeah her fans Aren't you know i mean the show but they're telling that's it yeah they're people that love that Boston punk music that CO yeah she she's doing what we love, but it's not like you know a club full of 22 year olds You know,

Chuck Clough  31:18  

you're excited about your CD release I am and this came out just what August 4, right? It's just released.

Matt York  31:24  

Yeah. Yeah went up on Spotify. I think right around the time I wasn't sure what I was going to do for an actual release and that kind of fell in place to do the lizard Okay. Oh,

Chuck  31:33  

who's opening for you?

Matt York  31:34  

So we're actually starting the night because all of my friends are so old that I was like put us on early because Okay, the band old jack does they do a residency the last Saturday of every month so you opening for them? So they Yeah, they're playing in the middle slot and in a band called The I want your headline? The I want you I like those guys. Yeah, so that's good. That's cool. That's great. I ain't going to be my high school. 30th Reunion.

Chuck Clough  31:56  

Are you allowed back

Ronnie  31:58  

What's it? Yes, I am loud.

Butyou're gonna have your CDs out. And like an actual CD release physical artifact, I will give you a physical CD. And then do you do you have like downloads and stuff like that or how does that work? Yeah, so usually

Chuck Clough  32:13  

you new to this music business right now

Ronnie  32:15  

I'm wondering what Matt is,

Matt York  32:17  

what I usually do is, uh, you know, I sell t shirts and then I'll give a download code or I'll give a CD and I'm gonna download card with it. So I sell more t shirts

Chuck Clough  32:26  

Do you ever do  vinyl.

Matt York  32:27  

I just don't have enough people I care about the make it I can't justify the upfront costs,

Chuck Clough  32:34  

you know, we have an album that we're waiting to get out for dead. And I want even if I do like, hundred pressing Yeah. So you thinking you want to do vinyl? Well, just like 100 friends you're having to be expensive, but it'll just be something to have. I'm never going to put an album out like IL So why don't we do that? We should.

Ronnie  32:52  

Alright, so back to Matt. So

Matt York  32:53  

So can I just get one final thing? Yeah, so I was not this last time but one of the times I was down in Nashville, I went into jack White's thing.

Unknown Speaker  33:00  

Man, he's got that that that little like phone booth where you can record in and then it automatically produces a vinyl. Right? Neil Young made an album that way and stuff. little teeny vinyl. Within like an hour. Like no was like within five minutes like what just makes it it presses i

Chuck  33:16  

is it? 33 and a half 33 1/3?

Matt York  33:18  

No, it's like it's like a 4045 not a

Ronnie  33:21  

45 but the

Chuck Clough  33:21  

78?

Matt York  33:23  

I don't even know what it is.

Ronnie  33:24  

It's a 62

Chuck  33:26  

Well, it's got to be either 4578 or 33.

Matt York  33:28  

So I will send you I will text

Ronnie  33:31  

because you got to play it in your variable, but it's actually it's just it's a record. Yeah,

Chuck  33:35  

but you want to be able to listen to it so that

Matt York  33:37  

so I haven't been able to figure out how to listen to it on my record player, but I have friends. That is funny. No one can listen. No,

Chuck Clough  33:43  

but that's it's got to be one of those three. He wouldn't just make up. Yeah,

Matt York  33:47  

I'm sure it is. I just don't remember but well, we actually do young jack white went on I think Jimmy Fallon or Kimball and they brought the machine on the

Ronnie  34:00  

Fallon that's a Fallon thing.

Matt York  34:01  

Yeah, I'll send you the link to it. I have watched it but you have like two minutes and 20 seconds and then the machine shuts off. Like

Chuck Clough  34:09  

there's only one side to it. Yep.

Unknown Speaker  34:11  

That's so cool, man. Thank you for doing this.

Chuck Clough  34:15  

With us, and you play us a couple songs would be happening right. Cool. Hold on a second for a second. Yeah

Unknown Speaker  40:07  

We would like to thank Matt for his support of ATB over the years and for sitting with us you can check out Matt's music and get his latest album at Matt York music. com You should also check out the great food at Adelaide is in West Concord, Massachusetts Adelina is an organic and authentic Mexican restaurant brought to you from the team behind Woods Hill table much like their sister restaurant Adelina is pastured a plate serving only grass fed and organic meats from their own farm, the farm at Woods Hill for more information and for reservations, go to Adelaide a conquered.com. And one last plug for you to vote for a TB podcast of the year at the Boston Music Awards. Please go to Boston Music Awards. com forward slash vote and make your voice heard. Thank you very much. Finally, please go to above the basement calm where you can sign up for our newsletter. Listen and subscribe to our podcast later.\our Facebook page, follow us on Twitter and look at all the nice pictures we post on Instagram. We are everywhere. On behalf of Ronnie and myself. Thanks for listening. Tell your friends and remember Boston music like its history is unique.

Transcribed by https://otter.ai

The Stoughton, Mass. native is a multi grammy-winning singer songwriter and the first woman ever to win the Country Music Association’s Song of the Year two years running as well as Academy of Country Music’s first female Songwriter of the Year.

In addition to her own songs, she has written for Faith Hill, Keith Urban, Little Big Town and Tim McGraw to name just a few. And just this past week we were all able to watch her on the Americana Music Honors and Awards show where she, well as former ATB guest Mark Erelli were each nominated for Song of the Year.

Along with her incredible songwriting chops and beautiful voice, we discovered that Lori is truly one of the most down to earth and nicest person you could ever meet.

Catching a glimpse of Jimi Hendrix at Woodstock or Leonard Bernstein conducting at the Philharmonic, it’s as if you can see the music coming out of the page - the thoughts coming from the artist as they glance to the side, backstage. We can let our imagination come up with scenarios, like picturing a scene or portrait while we listen to the music itself.

Recently Ronnie was fortunate to be introduced to Mr. Jack Bradley at Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital on Cape Cod. Nancy, His wife of 48 years, who you just heard, spoke of the death of “Louie” in 1971. That man was legendary Jazz trumpeter, vocalist and composer Louis Armstrong, who from the 1920s-60s was the lead influencer of both structural and improvisational elements of instrumental and vocal jazz for decades to follow.

Ronnie's colleague Dr. Anne-Marie Thomas had known of Above The Basement and wanted to connect him with Mr. Bradley. At first glance, Jack is indeed a man who visited the emergency room after a fall and a man living with Parkinson’s Disease. But when he picked up the microphone to speak about his story of the love of music, which eventually led to a career as personal photographer for Mr. Armstrong, his face and body illuminated with excitement.

Jack took us on his journey as a kid with eyes and ears glued to the local bandstand, to his Merchant Marine work that took him to NYC, which led to the nightly discovery of jazz with a camera around his neck at all times.

Jake became an international sensation in 2006 when a YouTube video of him playing While My Guitar Gently Weeps in Central Park - without his knowledge - became one of the very first viral videos on that site with millions of views.

Jake plays the ukulele (which we also discovered can be pronounced "ookelele") - and has performed at numerous festivals including the Stockholm Jazz Festival and Blue Mountains Music Festival and has appeared on Late Night with Conan O’Brien, Jimmy Kimmel Live, A Prairie Home Companion, NPR’s Morning Edition and World Cafe, and has spoken at several TED conferences.

In 2012, an award-winning documentary was released tracking his life, career, and music, titled Jake Shimabukuro: Life on Four Strings.

Jake is the founder The Four Strings Foundation, which creates music education workshops nationwide and provides ukuleles and other materials and training tools to schools and music teachers.

Song List:

Song 1: While My Guitar Gently Weeps Song 2: Clip from the "Wow" kid - Courtesy of WCRB Classical Radio Boston & The Handel and Haydn Society Song 3: Bohemian Rhapsody Song 4: Chuck Minor (a brand new song!!!!) Song 5: The Greatest Day

They played three songs for us - two from their amazing album Sakura and a new one that we hope will be on their next album.

Please enjoy, share, and then purchase their music at circustrees.bandcamp.com.

You can listen to their great episode at www.abovethebasement.com.

Recorded on June 10, 2019 at Woods Hill Table, in Concord Massachusetts.

Song List:

Song 1: The Theft Song 2: Despondent Song 3: The OE (The Observer Expectancy Effect)

Three young women came on the stage in front of a full house. And once they began playing, everyone paid attention. They blew us away.

Finola, 15, Giuliana, 17 and Edmee, also known as Egg, 13, are sisters from Marlborough, MA. And they play sad music.

We love sad music. And by the time they finished their set we had already gone over to Robert McCarthy - their manager/dad and founder of Five By Two Records - and he kindly gave us some vinyl of their debut album Sakura.

Giving us free vinyl is a sure way to get on ATB, but in their case they did not need to bribe their way on.

We thoroughly enjoyed our conversation with Egg, Finola and Giuliana and talked influences, writing, rehearsing and how three sisters can get along, collaborate and create intelligent, amazingly sad, but gut-wrenchingly beautiful and emotional rock music in a band that is garnering a lot of attention in Boston.

Sadly, Mike passed in 2003 but the show continues in Mikey’s D’s name, broadcasting On the Town every Wednesday night, from 9PM to Midnight EST on Tufts University’s WMFO, 91.5 FM.

You can also hear it streaming at www.wmfo.org

Being on the other side of an interview reminds me of the movie The Jerk with Steve Martin when Navin Johnson worked at a carnival guessing people’s weight and a daredevil biker named Patty Bernstein says she would like to guess his weight and he says "Hey that would be interesting for me – no one has tried to guess my weight – this will give me a whole different perspective in this!"

Anyways – we digress – it was a lot of fun being on the other side of the mic.

We met Anngelle Wood at a State of Live Music event that she hosted at iZotope offices in Cambridge when we were trying to learn a bit more about – well – the current state of live music. Whatever your thoughts on the Boston music scene, Anngelle is doing her part to share the legacy and tell the story of Boston Rock and Roll that continues to inspire musicians young and old.

Anngelle began and is still passionate about radio and has worked at all the legendary Boston radio stations including WBCN, WFNX and WZLX. She is the host of Boston Emissions which began airing on WBCN back in the 80's and has been instrumental in introducing and establishing thousands of bands from Boston and New England and she also hosts and produces the great Rock and Roll Rumble that just celebrated their 40th Anniversary.

We plan on publishing a retrospective on the Rumble and its history in the next month or so.

But it was great to talk with Anngelle who works hard to promote and support great Boston Rock and Roll.

Note: Explicit Language

Song List:

Song 1: Cut from Boston Emissions, broadcast March 14th, 2019 Song 2: Suburban Murders – Brix n’ Mortar (Freshcut) Song 3: Still - Corner Soul (Instant Gratification) Song 4: Falling Backwards –Set Fire (Aura) Song 5: The Theft – Circus Trees (Sakura) Song 6: Smoke Rolls – Set Fire (Aura)

What began as an idea around a kitchen table has blossomed into a wonderful place for kids to create and learn. As you will hear from Madeleine, they are taught valuable skills to instill confidence, collaboration and creativity in music that will follow them their entire life.

Their core belief is that music is the most powerful means of developing adolescent self-identity. Their award-winning music and creative technology programming is designed to equip youth with the tools necessary to reach their full potential, while creating a safe space for youth to explore who they are and who they want to be.

Co-hosting this time around is Kristina Latino. Kristina is founder and owner of CornerScape - an independent artist management company.

Song List:

(All songs by Wild Painting, from their album Emotions (available on iTunes & Spotify). Members include ZUMIX participants Angelina Botticcelli, Mario Dueñas, Juan Gutierrez, and Mario Jarjour.)

Song 1: Within You Song 2: Voice Memo Song 3: Ride

Arielle has toured North America and the UK, opening for the likes of Eric Johnson, Greg Alman, Heart, Joan Jett and many others and none other than Brian May of Queen hand picked her for his production of We Will Rock You which was based on the songs of Queen.

She’s been on the cover of Guitar Player magazine and Vince Gill proclaimed her as one of the top 5 Best New Guitarists.

She has quite a story, and you should read her entire bio and hear her music at www.imarielle.com.

\We talked about guitars, lyrics and melody, and women in music and took questions from the cozy audience at Café 939 and then had the treat of watching her play for a house full of Arielle fans.

We had a great evening taking to this thoughtful and talented musician.

Song List:

Song 2: Magick Again Song 3: Devil's Disguise

Kabir also plays with hip-hop reggae band Krush Faktory and they appear often at local establishments like the Lizard Lounge, The Plough and Stars and Bull McCabes.

He’s gotten great reviews in Billboard, The New Yorker, Boston Globe, International Herald Tribune, Boston Herald, SPIN, VIBE, NPR and others.

We all met up in front of an intimate crowd at the Haymarket Lounge to talk hip-hop, education, lyrics and their message.

Billy got his start in Boston with the pop band Face To Face. And not to date ourselves but we totally remember their hit song and video 10-9-8.

He has worked over the years with Patty Griffin, Melissa Ferrick, Kris Delmhorst, the late Mark Sandman from the great Boston band Morphine, Rose Cousins, Lori McKenna and Kim Richey to name just a few.

Billy is part of the award-winning band Session Americana, and has toured extensively in the US and Europe and is another example of how he continues to draw amazing musicians together.

We just caught him recently at the Lizard Lounge playing with some of the same wonderful singer-songwriters with Sub Rosetta – a smaller version of the Sub Rosa collaboration with some of Boston’s great musicians. They will be at the Lizard Lounge every third Wednesday.

It is appropriate that Billy won a Boston Music Award for Unsung Hero in 2008 – in celebration of his hard work and commitment to the Boston music scene.

Our friend and drummer Jonathan Beakley joins us this time around a co-host.

Song List:

Song 1: Love Changes Everything - from Love and Dirt (Session Americana) Song 2: Around The Bend - from Into This World (Dennis Brennan) Song 3: 10-9-8 - from Face To Face (Face To Face) Song 4: Fallin’ - from Bitter Sweet (Kim Ritchey) Song 5: Little God - from Silver Bell (Patty Griffin) Song 6: Mighty Long Time - from Live at the Haybarn Theatre (Session Americana)

He led the Human Genome Project in the 1990's that resulted in the mapping of the entire human genome sequence in 2003.

In 2009 he was nominated by President Obama to be Director of the Nationals Institutes of Health, with unanimous confirmation by the Senate. Since that time, he has boosted research efforts in Alzheimer’s disease, innovative brain science, set the stage for precision medicine, and many other areas.

We had the great honor to sit down with Dr. Collins and talk about scientific surprises and musical exploration, about the importance of collaboration and listening, and about how music, family and spirituality seem to travel in similar circles.

Song List:

Song 1: Hallelujah / Leonard Cohen, performed by: Francis Collins, Renee Fleming and the National Symphony Orchestra - 2017 Song 2: New River Train / The Ward Family of Galax, performed by: The Monroe Brothers - 1936 Song 3: The Times They Are A Changin’ / Bob Dylan, performed by: Francis Collins, Joe Perry, Rudy Tanzi - 2009 Song 4: Symphony No. 3 in E flat, Op. 55 “Eroica” 2nd movement / Ludwig van Beethoven, Berlin Philharmonic with Herbert von Karajan - 1986 Song 5: The What Makes Scientist Cry Blues, performed by Francis Collins, Joe Perry, Rudy Tanzi - 2009 Song 6: Disease Don’t Care / Francis Collins, performed by Francis Collins - Live at the NIH - 2019

Recorded after our fourth ConcertCast - a conversation and performance in front of a live audience.

To listen to the entire conversation, go here: http://abovethwww.abovethebasement.com/131-a-far-cry

Johannes Brahms, Viola Quintet in G Major, Op. 111

Antonín Dvorák : The Terzetto in C, Op. 74 (B. 148)

Classical music is pretty much the only music in the world that still sounds beautiful when the musicians are tuning up. It sounded so great we decided to start the episode with a brief tuning session.

We were joined by Megumi Lewis, Omar Chen Guey, Caitlin Lynch, Jae Cosmos Lee, Michael Unterman and Jason Fisher, several of The Criers from the Boston based chamber orchestra A Far Cry.

We invited these fine musicians to City Winery Boston for another live ConcertCast.

Founded in 2007, A Far Cry has been nominated for three Grammys. Playing music from various time periods they incorporate both new and time tested works with the goal “to wrestle the music they love back from the cultural baggage it's accumulated”.

Throughout the episode you will hear movements of Dvorak’s Terzetto, played by Jae Cosmos Lee, Omar Chen Guey and Jason Fisher. Caitlyn Lynch then joins Jason and Jae for a conversation with us and they answer a few questions from the audience.

The final piece they play by Brahms is published separately as part of our In Concert Series above.

They both sound absolutely beautiful.

Pieces:

ConcertCast: Antonín Dvorák : The Terzetto in C, Op. 74 (B. 148)

In Concert Series: (separate episode) Johannes Brahms, Viola Quintet in G Major, Op. 111

With a distinctive voice and beautiful melodies, Ari Hest has carved out a diverse career as an independent artist. Several of his songs have appeared on TV and Film soundtracks, and 2014 collaboration with Judy Collins earned him his first Grammy nomination for their album Silver Skies Blue.

Now with a brand new baby in the mix, he and his wife, the very talented musician Chrissi Poland, have settled in the South Shore of Massachusetts.

We sat with him at of Lucky Finn Café overlooking the harbor in Scituate, Massachusetts. While sipping our espressos, we talked about how he started out in music, guitars, collaboration and babies.

Special guest co-host David Moore otherwise known as MALIN sits in for Ronnie Hirschberg this time around.

Song List:

Song 1: Bird Never Flies (The Break In) Song 2: Heart of a Lion (Natural) Song 3: I Choose Love (Silver Skies Blue with Judy Collins) Live Songs:

Song 1: Sato (Single) Song 2: Leaving Her Alone (The Break In)

Boston’s own Livingston Taylor is a musician, teacher and interested man. Yes – we said interestED, not interesting. Not that Livingston isn’t interesting, because he certainly is. This will all make sense in our conversation.

Liv is a full professor at Berklee College of Music where he teaches Stage Performance. He is currently celebrating a 50+ year career with a brand new album called "The Best of LIVe – 50 Years of Livingston Taylor Live". This album has 11 tracks from his upcoming box set of the same name featuring unreleased live performances spanning his career from 1969 through 2016.

There is also a fantastic documentary called "Livingston Taylor: Life Is Good” that won The Van Gogh Award for the Feature Documentary category at the Amsterdam International Film Festival and you can check that out on Amazon.

Livingston has played with Joni Mitchell, Linda Ronstadt, Fleetwood Mac, Jimmy Buffett, and Jethro Tull to name just a few and he continues to play and tour internationally.

Liv flew in from Martha’s Vineyard (and I mean he actually flew himself in as he is an instrument-rated pilot) to have a truly great conversation in his Watertown offices with us.

We talked about teaching, performance, learning and even about Steel manufacturing – he’s a man who has an insatiable thirst for being interested and he will tell you without asking that he loves you.

And he means it.

Song List: All songs from the album "The Best of LIVe – 50 Years of Livingston Taylor Live"

Song 1: Our Turn To Dance (From Snapshot) Song 2: I Ask You Once (Demo) Song 3: Get Out Of Bed (Live) Song 4: Good Friends (Live) Song 5: Sit On Back (Live)-

We hosted a conversation between the illustrious sports reporters Gordon Edes and Steve Buckley with arguably the most well know Presidential Historian in the world - Doris Kearns Goodwin.

With the 2018 Red Sox World Series Trophy in the room, we talked, sang and celebrated Red Sox Baseball while raising money for the amazing Pete Frates Family Foundation.

We would bet that most of you listening either participated in or at least heard of the Ice Bucket challenge. Started by Pete Frates who was struck with ALS a few years ago, with his parents John and Nancy and the millions of people who took part in the challenge, the foundation has raised a ¼ of a billion dollars to fight ALS, which is just astounding.

We were truly honored to have John and Nancy Frates join us on that Sunday evening to say a few words as well as Red Sox great Sam Horn, Red Sox Poet Laureate Dick Flavin and the Sox Fenway Park organist Josh Kantor.

It was a special night, made all the more wonderful not only by the money raised but the gathering of friends and family.

We took a ride early one morning to the WGBH studios in Brighton, Mass to sit with arts and entertainment reporter and Boston native Jared Bowen. Jared has talked with all sorts or amazing people.

Jared can be found, well – really everywhere. He is an Emmy award-winning host of the TV series, 'Open Studio with Jared Bowen', a contributor to the WGBH magazine program, 'Greater Boston” and you can also hear him the radio on 89.7, where he talks about what’s going on in Boston for the performing arts on WGBH’s 'Morning Edition' and 'Boston Public Radio'.

He is also a coach and judge on the choir competition show 'Sing That Thing!' These are only a few of the things Jared does. He is a busy guy and we were happy to get a chance to sit and talk Boston arts and culture.

Music and narration outtake courtesy of WGBH Boston from Open Studio with Jared Bowen

We first ran into Oompa at Boston One Night Band back in 2018 – listen to Episode 123 for our conversation with Richard Bouchard about that event - but Oompa immediately stood out to me and I quickly put her down as someone to reach out to.

Fast forward almost exactly a year later and we happily got a chance to sit with her and also guest host and Hip Hip know it all Ike Walker for a great conversation.

Oompa is fresh off her two Boston Music Awards for Best Unsigned Artist and 617 Sessions winner and is currently in the studio to release her next album.

We talk hip hop of course, but also touch on teaching, writing, and her being the gay auntie of Boston. Oompa is all energy and is passionate about her music, poetry and the City of Boston.

Song List:

Song 1:   Nicky’s Song (November 3rd) Song 2:   Say Her Name (November 3rd) Song 3:   Dear Mama (November 3rd) Song 4:   Dope Song 5:   Catch 22 (November 3rd)

As a Boston Red Sox fan living in the NY/NJ area back in the 90’s and early 2000’s, life as a Sox fan was...well...difficult. Especially after Game 7 of the ALCS when the New York Yankees walked off the Sox in 2003.

But that was just the beginning of a Red Sox renaissance that eventually brought the city of Boston 4 World Series Trophies since - including the recent 2018 championship. With 11 championships since 2001 – Boston fans really have nothing to complain about when it comes to sports.

But during that painful time of losing before all the winning, there were a few people we turned to for our Red Sox fix. Peter Gammons was number one on that list.

So what is a world class sportswriter and analyst doing on a music podcast?

Peter is also a songwriter and guitarist and has played with the likes of Eddie Vedder, Will Dailey, Buffalo Tom and many others. He also started Hot Stove, Cool Music – which is the signature fundraiser for The Foundation To Be Named Later started by Paul and Theo Epstein.

But Peter is much more than just a sportswriter and musician, he is also a humanitarian who works hard for the kids in the city of Boston. We spoke with Peter at his scholarship dinner for the Peter Gammons College Scholarship in Boston and got to talk with Chief Cook and Bottle Washer, CEO and Executive Director of The Foundation to Be Named Later Allyce Najimy, Scholar Program Manager Lesly Suriel, the Foundation's founder Paul Epstein and Boston musician Will Dailey.

Song List:

All songs from the album Never Slow Down, Never Grow Old

Song 1: Tanqueray Song 2: Come, Labor On Song 3: Model Citizen

We were especially lucky to have a conversation with the lovely Zina Ellis who plays the Fairy Godmother in Rodgers & Hammerstein’s CINDERELLA at the beautifully restored Emerson Colonial Theatre.

We saw the show the night before talking with Zina and had a fantastic time. The show is a fresh new take on the beloved tale of a young woman who is transformed from a chambermaid into a princess. Hilarious and romantic, CINDERELLA combines the story’s classic elements – glass slippers, a pumpkin and a beautiful ball along with some surprising twists.

But we aren’t going to give anything more away – you’ll just have to catch the show before it moves on to another town.

Cinderella runs in Boston through December 30th and you can get your tickets at www.emersoncolonialtheatre.com

Last year we went to our first One Night Band event at The Sinclair and left with a long list of possible guests – Thalia Zedek, Cliff Notez and Oompa to name just a few.

We thought we would get to the bottom of this by talking with the guy who started this unique event, Richard Bouchard.

We tend to run into Richard everywhere. He currently works with the band Sidewalk Driver and runs a business that supplies on demand management, booking and promotional campaigns for bands that need a hand with short or long term projects.

But the One Night Band is really different.

40 or so musicians are organized into bands (for one night – get it?)

Then the magic happens.

Song List:

Live songs recorded at The Sinclair - Boston One Night Band 2018

Song 2: Five Steps (Sidewalk Driver)

We are no longer surprised that our guests are much more than just musicians. Jenee Halstead is a great example.

In addition to being a singer-songwriter, Jenee is also a learner and teacher and recently started a new project called The Inner Song, where she is a holistic vocal and self-expression coach, spiritual teacher, and energy healer.

In her own journey through music, training and self discovery, Jenee now shares how people can safely and authentically discover their own true voice and power of expression.

She has a beautiful singing voice made all the more special by her songwriting skills. You only need to hear her sing to understand why Jed Gottlieb of The Boston Herald called her "a tremendous voice in an otherworldly, shadowy soundscape".

She also has her own podcast that she hosts with musician Danielle Miraglia called Let's Put It Off that we sincerely hope is resurrected, as - I am sure you all agree - we need more great podcasts in the world.

Song List:

Song 1: Sophia (Edge of the World) Song 2: Dusty Rose (The River Grace) Song 3: Bitten By The Night (Raised By Wolves)

Live Songs:

Song 1: Juarez (Edge of the World) Song 2: Disposable Love

Recorded after our Mike Block ConcertCast - a conversation and performance in front of a live audience.

To listen to the entire conversation, go here: http://abovetheb.libsyn.com/episode-121-mike-block

Song List:

Song 01: Slow Day At The Cafe Song 02: Sweet Tea On The Porch Song 03: Julienne Johnson Song 04: Courante 3 Song 05: Saygun’s Partita for Solo Cello Song 06: Can't Ya Hear Me Callin’ Song 07: The Blackest Crow Song 08: Cornelia’s Song Song 09: Prelude 6 Song 10: My Heart Goes ——— Song 01: Prelude 4 Song 02: Lay Down Your Weary Tune Song 03: The Chicken Song 04: Raghupati Ragava Raja Ram / Where The Soul Never Dies Song 05: Prelude to a Dream Song 06: Never again Song 07: “HAPPY” with Indian Hill Music students

He surprises you with music usually reserved for other instruments - his takes on classical, folk and pop songs are unique and his own compositions invigorated the crowd at Indian Hill Music.

This is another episode for our ConcertCast series – Mike Block, Live at Indian Hill Music, where we had a great conversation with Mike in front of a live, sold out crowd, followed by a two set performance that we will publish as a separate episode.

Mike is a member of The Silk Road Ensemble, founded by Yo Yo Ma, who called Mike “the ideal musician of the 21st-Century”.

As you will hear from our conversation and the concert that followed, Mike is committed to inspiring musicians and connecting communities through music. Full episode of the two part performance coming soon!

Song List:

Song 1: Can't You Hear Me Calling (Bill Monroe) Song 2: I Can Finally Breathe

We wanted to talk with the man who helped make this school the institution it is today so we jumped at the chance to speak with drummer, humanitarian, entrepreneur and Berklee president Roger Brown.

Roger has had a prolific career, including co-directing one famine relief program called Land Bridge on the Cambodia-Thailand border which was the largest emergency food distribution effort ever attempted and another called Save The Children in Sudan.

Later he co-founded Bright Horizons Family Solutions, which provided on-site child care for client-company employees and is also the founder of the Horizons Initiative, which provides services for homeless children, and the Bright Horizons Foundation for Children, which creates play spaces in homeless shelters.

Mr. Brown became president of Berklee College of Music in 2004.

We sat with Roger in a performance classroom at 1140 Boylston Street and talked about his humanitarian efforts, Berklee goals for its current and future students, how they prepare students for a successful career and why music is so important.

Song List:

Song one: Beautiful Ones (Roger Brown)

Dr. Sabeti completed her undergraduate degree at MIT, her graduate work at Oxford University as a Rhodes Scholar, got her medical degree from Harvard Medical School and she was named a TIME magazine ‘Person of the Year’ as one of the Ebola fighters.

But perhaps the coolest thing she does is perform as the lead singer and co-songwriter of the Boston based rock band Thousand Days.

Song List:

Song 1: Breathe In (Turkana Boy) Song 2: One Truth (Small Joys) Song 3: Phoenix (Single) Song 4: Neda (Radiate)

Song List:

Song 1:   Amazing Grace - Grace Kelly Song 2:   Otherside - Macklemore Song 3:   America the beautiful - Livingston Taylor Song 4:   More than just a dream - Fitz and the Tantrums Song 5:   Live my life - B-RAiN

Kara recently worked as the Director of Planning and Policy in the Arts cabinet for three years, implementing Boston’s cultural plan called Boston Creates.

We were also happy to have Communications Director Kristina Carroll join us.

We sat in a conference room overlooking Faneuil Hall and discussed how the Boston Red Sox duckboat victory parade will crawl through these historic streets once again this week.

Other than our recent World Series Championship, we talked about the current state of the arts in Boston and the work Kara’s team is doing to promote equity, diversity and inclusion in the Boston arts scene.

A musical theater grad from Syracuse University, she has appeared on stage in national tours of Mamma Mia, Rent and Rocky Horror Picture Show to name just a few and now returns to Boston as Sherrie Christian in the Broadway hit Rock Of Ages which opens next week at The Boch Centers Wang Theater from October 23rd to the 28th.

You can purchase tickets at bochcenter.org.

We met Katie across the street from the Wang at The Shubert Theater and had a great talk. We even belted out a few tunes.

Song List:

All songs courtesy of Rock of Ages 10th Anniversary Tour

Song 1: I Wanna Rock Song 2: The Final Countdown

Her songs are soothing yet at the same time catchy, and seem to draw from jazz, pop, folk with traditional Latin inspiration. Ceci is a graduate of Berklee College of Music with a degree in Music Therapy. She is an active Neurologic Music Therapist in her home country of Ecuador and serves as a true ambassador of this important field.

She is also a vocalist, pianist, guitarist and songwriter who holds the #1 hit song in Ecuador called Fantasmas.

Ronnie sat with Ceci between lectures at the annual American Congress of Rehab Medicine (ACRM), where music and the arts have come to play in the same space as treatment and science for people with neurodisabilty.

Song List:

Song 1: Ahora Se Song 2: Libre Song 3: Fantasmas

She currently has a trio called E with Gavin McCarthy and Jason Sanford, but focuses much of her energy on her solo work in the Thalia Zedek Band.

Her most recent release is called Fighting Season that is in my opinion a perfect fit for a Fall Season playlist. The album has a raw power that you hear not only through her guitar but also in her mournful and earnest voice – backed by a fantastic group of musicians that includes violist Dave Curry, bassist Winston Braman, pianist Mel Lederman, and drummer Jonathan Ulman.

Song List:

Song 1: Fighting Season (Fighting Season) Song 2: Bend Again (Fighting Season) Song 3: JJ85 (You're A Big Girl Now)

Live Songs:

Song 1: Of The Unknown Song 2: Ladder

But what many of you may not know is that Wyc is a lifelong drummer and plays in a Boston band called French Lick – named after Larry Bird’s home town.

We met with Wyc at their brand new gorgeous practice facility and after a tour got to talk about not only his passion for music and basketball, but the philanthropy and causes near and dear to his heart.

And while we touched on the banner raised in 2008 and the promise of another this year, he turned the tables and asked us all: “What banner are you going to raise?”

Rob has been a connoisseur of several genres of music since he was a kid, and they all share one common thread: Culture.

Rob entered the radio world with guns blazing, becoming an archivist for New Riders of the Purple Sage / NRPS​. In recent years he became producer of Pearl Jam Radio​ while sharing his ongoing expertise as host of Grateful Dead​ Radio, both on SiriusXM​.

Ronnie mentioned to his brother-in-law Cory that Mr. Bleetstein would be a guest on ATB, and Cory, being a Pearl Jam​ super-fan, simply stated, “Wow, you’re going to talk to The Rob.” That certainly set our expectations high for this conversation.

Rob highlighted his love for the live experience, and how the common thread of music fandom culture transcends genres. He also gave us a perspective on just how important Pearl Jam fans are to the musicians and how the fans in return emulate their missions and causes.

In November 2017, Kristen Williams-Haseotes created the Above The Noise Foundation – an organization that promotes awareness, education and advocacy for this addiction crisis that has touched so many lives.

Maureen Cavanagh is a mom, advocate and author of the recently published book If you love me: A Mother's Journey Through Her Daughter's Opioid Addiction.

They are both determined to wipe out stigma and proudly share this mission.

They were joined by a passionate team, coming together to give rise to the first large scale sober music festival - paying tribute and raising awareness to addiction and stigma and to honor and support those who have made to the “other side” - recovery.

We were honored to sit across from these women as we learned about their personal journeys, their message of recovery, and the road that led them to their wonderful event in Pawtucket, RI on 9/29/18 - Recovery Fest 2018 with Macklemore, Fitz & the Tantrums, & PVRIS.

We decided to find out for ourselves what all the hubbub was about.

Boston native Jimmy Connor is a talent. He now lives in Nashville and just released his first EP called It’s About Time. We talked about his roots, his ambitions, the challenge of making the grade in High School while at the same time starting a professional career in music, and his aspirations that include but are not limited to his own tour bus.

Song List:

Song 1: Party Girl Song 2: Nowhere's Where I Wanna Be

Live Songs: Song 1: It's About Time Song 2: Four Door

With his latest album Golden Walker Will wants you to turn off those distractions. To drop the needle on the album and listen. We loathe to place Will into a nice box by calling him a singer-songwriter, because somehow it is not quite so simple.

What we can say about him is that he is a very thoughtful guy and we really enjoyed spending time with him to talk about that missing connection, being an indie artist and having no regrets.

Song List:

Song 1: Bad Behavior (Golden Walker) Song 2: He Better be Alive (Golden Walker) Song 3: Up To Your Heart (Golden Walker) Song 4: Castle of Pretending (National Throat)

Live Song: It Already Would Have Not Worked Out By Now

Every summer, James Taylor and his wonderful band heads to Tanglewood for their yearly concert and we jumped at the opportunity to see if we could speak to someone we had just seen on our London trip last year when we caught Phil Collins on his Not Dead Yet tour at Royal Albert Hall.

We met up with Arnold in a town just outside of Tanglewood at his hotel over oysters and deviled eggs.

Arnold got his start in the original touring production of the iconic musical HAIR and from there he carved out an amazing collaborative and solo career – becoming the Zelig of featured vocalists, having performed with Phil Collins, James Taylor, Aretha Franklin, Linda Ronstadt and Bonnie Raitt to name just a few – while also touring on his solo work.

Arnold is a funny guy and we had a great and fairly hilarious conversation.

We think James Taylor said it best when he said “Arnold McCuller is what’s going on, that’s always been the case and it always will be.”

Song List:

Song 1: Daddy's All Gone Song 2: Nowhere To Run Song 3: Soul Searchin'

LUZIA by Cirque du Soleil, A Waking Dream of Mexico, is no different.

The creativity that is the genius of Cirque combines movement, music, color, light and the element of risk all in one show, and at the same time beautifully embeds culture. The audience can dream with these incredible performers as they navigate the story and flavor of Mexico.

Luzia is 2 1/2 years old and has been wowing audiences on its US tour. We sat with vocalist Majo Cornejo, acrobat Kelly McDonald, and football freestylers Laura Biondo and Abou Traore as they finish 2 more weeks in our neighborhood before moving on to Mexico for a 4 month tour.

And it was a special day at the Big Top / Suffolk Downs as the gang at Luzia was visited by Femi Hollinger-Janzen of the New England Revolution to share some soccer skills, learn and chat freestyle.

Song List:

Song 1: Adagio Song 2: Juggling Song 3: Football Dance

Recorded after our second ConcertCast - a conversation and performance in front of a live audience.

To listen to the entire conversation, go here: http://abovetheb.libsyn.com/episode-106-chris-trapper

Song List:

Song 1: Everything Shines Song 2: The Losing End Song 3: Don’t Let Your Monday Own Your Sunday Song 4: Gone Again Song 5: Into The bright Lights Song 6: This Time Song 7: Skin Song 8: Keg On My Coffin

So we decided to up our game.

Back in June we met at the beautiful City Winery in Boston in front of a sold out Haymarket Lounge for our second ConcertCast with prolific Singer-Songwriter and front man for Boston’s own The Push Stars Chris Trapper. And if we do say so ourselves it was a huge success!

It was through sitting with Chris for our conversation that we were really able to get an idea of what makes him tick – his love of the road, the importance of family and how gratitude has become a big part of who he is.

The entire live performance from this night will be available on our next In Concert Series episode by subscribing to our podcast which you can do at abovethebasement.com.

Song List: (all songs are LIVE)

Song 1: Living Downtown Song 2: Paint The Town Song 3: The Accident

We quickly went through all the annoying questions - where their name came from and what band do they sound like, and got to the important stuff - their appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live a year ago, what was the name of the recent Harrison Ford movie not named Star Wars or Regarding Henry, whether "Medieval" is a time period or a level of evilness, and what makes a good bachelor party.

All in all we had a great conversation.

Song List:

Song 1: Shadow (Telecoast) Song 2: Moniker (Moniker - Single) Song 3: Working Nights (Working Nights - Single) Song 4: Miracle Mile (Miracle Mile - Single)

It was evident that evening as well when they played for The Umbrella Community Arts Center event and had the crowd on their feet dancing the entire show.

These former buskers now have two Grammy Awards and their classic single, "Wagon Wheel" went Platinum in 2013 for selling over 1,000,000 copies. 

They received the honor of being inducted as members of the Grand Ole Opry, and they just released their latest album Volunteer.

Song List:

Song 1:   Flicker & Shine (Volunteer) Song 2:   Child of the Mississippi (Volunteer)

Live Song - Halifax Pier (A Capella)

Formerly with the Life Is Good Festival, James started Festival At The Farm in Canton, MA which will take place in September and features Amos Lee, Dawes, and former ATB guests Martin Sexton, Ali McGuirk and Jesse Dee as well as one of our upcoming guests Will Dailey among many others.

The music in this episode is from some of these artists. James has worked in all areas of music including artist management, but now devotes all his time to this amazing festival.

But the weekend is more than just music. It is a celebration that offers locally-sourced and inspired food vendors, a farmers market, non-profits, backyard games, a craft vendor marketplace and even includes music for the kids.

We also discovered that James is a wonderful guy.

Song List:

Song 1: Long Time (Ali McGuirk - Slow Burn) Song 2: On My Mind, In My Heart (Jesse Dee - On My Mind, In My Heart) Song 3: When It Dies (Will Dailey - Golden Walker)

We talked the ins and outs of working in a chorus, conducting 250 or so choral members, singing in different languages, the blending of the many different voices in a chorus and the wonders of being onstage with Pete Townsend during the epic production of Quadrephenia.

Song List:

Song 1: Thompson: Alleluia (James Burton: Schola Cantorum of Oxford) Song 2: Kaddish, Symphony No. 3 (BSO, Guerrero, Bernstein)

Join us on Above The Basement! Go to www.patreon.com/abovethebasement for more information.

He helped guide Signature Sounds through the internet era while fostering a community of musicians who not only have their own projects but have collaborated with other Signature artists to create 'supergroups' like Redbird, Barnstar! and The Pine Hill Project.

They run The Green River Festival which was named one of “fifty essential summer music festivals” by The New York Times and is celebrating it's 32nd year.

Song List:

Song 1: Leave The Light On - Chris Smither (Leave The Light On) Song 2: Stealing Kisses - Lori McKenna (Bittertown) Song 3: Bad Self Portraits - Lake Street Dive (Bad Self Portraits) Song 4: Hold On Me - Twisted Pine (Twisted Pine)

Join us at Above The Basement! Go to www.patreon.com/abovethebasement for more information.

He is a musicologist, a student of polyrhythms and a believer in the connections we all have to rhythm. Mickey has two Grammys and has collaborated with a Nobel Prize in Physics winner, stem-cell researchers and neuroscientists including the late, great Oliver Sacks.

He is a true supporter of music therapy and the mechanisms behind the healing power of music for not only the injured or neurologically changed, but for the well-being of people from all cultures.

In 1967 he was introduced to the newly formed Grateful Dead by drummer Bill Kreutzmann, and the Big Bang of the Jam Band was formed with Mr. Jerry Garcia at the helm.

His telepathic relationship on and off the stage with band members old and new has transcended decades, leading Mickey to the latest chapter: bringing three generations of fans together for this year’s tour with Dead and Company.

This is Part Two of Two...

Song List:

Song 1: Ripple (Studio version) Song 2: Not Fade Away (Winterland Arena, San Francisco, CA Oct.22, 1978) Song 3: The Music Never Stopped (Radio City Music Hall Oct 29, 1980)

Join us at Above The Basement! Go to www.patreon.com/abovethebasement for more information.

He is a musicologist, a student of polyrhythms and a believer in the connections we all have to rhythm.

Mickey has two Grammys and has collaborated with a Nobel Prize in Physics winner, stem-cell researchers and neuroscientists including the late, great Oliver Sacks.

He is a true supporter of music therapy and the mechanisms behind the healing power of music for not only the injured or neurologically changed, but for the well-being of people from all cultures.

In 1967 he was introduced to the newly formed Grateful Dead by drummer Bill Kreutzmann, and the Big Bang of the Jam Band was formed with Mr. Jerry Garcia at the helm.

His telepathic relationship on and off the stage with band members old and new has transcended decades, leading Mickey to the latest chapter: bringing three generations of fans together for this year’s tour with Dead and Company.

This is Part One of a Two Part episode

Song List:

Song 1: Scarlet Begonias (Studio version) Song 2: Truckin' (Live at Madison Square Garden, NY, Sept. 1990) Song 3: Jerry (RAMU)

Join us at Above The Basement!

Go to www.patreon.com/abovethebasement for more information.

Here is our final installment of Take 5 Tuesday where we offer you a snippet of the conversation with On Your Feet! band members Jorge Casas (bass) and Clay Ostwald (music director/keyboards), two of the original members of the Miami Sound Machine.

Above The Basement - Boston Music and Conversation podcast sat down with these fine musicians who helped bring their iconic songs to the Broadway stage.

We are pleased to share with you portions of that conversation with our Take 5 Tuesday episodes.

So, take 5 minutes and sit back and enjoy each “Take 5 Tuesday!”

Click here to listen to the entire episode: http://abovetheb.libsyn.com/episode-091-on-your-feet

Or go to www.abovethebasement.com.

Song List: All songs from On Your Feet - Original Broadway Cast Recording

Song 1: Get On Your Feet Song 2: Rhythm Is Gonna Get You

Angela has worked as a make-up artist in film and TV including Saturday Night Live and MTV and musicians including Dave Matthews Band, Duran Duran and Depeche Mode and is the author of several award winning children's books that include Say What, Some Bugs and Baby Love.

They are both amazing.

Song List:

A portion of The Spiderwick Chronicles audiobook (Tony DiTerlizzi/Holly Black)

Read by Mark Hamill

Join us at Above The Basement!

Go to www.patreon.com/abovethebasement for more information.

Here is our fourth installment of Take 5 Tuesday where we offer you a snippet of the conversation with On Your Feet! band members Jorge Casas (bass) and Clay Ostwald (music director/keyboards), two of the original members of the Miami Sound Machine.

Above The Basement - Boston Music and Conversation podcast sat down with these fine musicians who helped bring their iconic songs to the Broadway stage.

We are pleased to share with you portions of that conversation with our Take 5 Tuesday episodes.

So, take 5 minutes and sit back and enjoy each “Take 5 Tuesday!”

Click here to listen to the entire episode: http://abovetheb.libsyn.com/episode-091-on-your-feet

Or go to www.abovethebasement.com.

Song List: All songs from On Your Feet - Original Broadway Cast Recording

Song 1: Get On Your Feet Song 2: Rhythm Is Gonna Get You

She has become a voice for social change through her work as Artistic Director of Castle of our Skins – a Boston-based concert and educational series devoted to celebrating Black Artistry through music and is currently working with the Cross Cultural Collective a Black arts collaborative that elevates, celebrates, and promotes African diasporic arts and their creators in Boston and beyond.

Song List:

Song 1: Calvary String Quartet, Movement 3" by Coleridge Taylor-Perkinson (Olga Patramanskaya & James Dargan, violins; Ashe Gordon on viola; Javier Caballero on cello; performed by Castle of our Skins)

Song 2: Sanctum for Viola and Piano by Adolphus Hailstork (pianist Anthony Green)

Song 3: Through the Filtering Dawn of Spreading Daybright" by Jeffrey Mumford (Lizzie Burns, double bass; performed by Castle of our Skins)

Live Song: Angela Davis

Join us at Above The Basement! Go to www.patreon.com/abovethebasement for more information.

Here is our third installment of Take 5 Tuesday where we offer you a snippet of the conversation with On Your Feet! band members Jorge Casas (bass) and Clay Ostwald (music director/keyboards), two of the original members of the Miami Sound Machine.

Above The Basement - Boston Music and Conversation podcast sat down with these fine musicians who helped bring their iconic songs to the Broadway stage.

Every Tuesday for the next 3 weeks, we are pleased to share with you portions of that conversation with our Take 5 Tuesday episodes. So, take 5 minutes and sit back and enjoy each “Take 5 Tuesday!”

Click here to listen to the entire episode: http://abovetheb.libsyn.com/episode-091-on-your-feet

Or go to www.abovethebasement.com.

Song List: All songs from On Your Feet - Original Broadway Cast Recording

Song 1: Conga Song 2: Rhythm Is Gonna Get You

A lot has changed since those days, but the names and faces of the anchors who spoke to us every day are as familiar as they have ever been.

There was recently a reunion of sorts with the Boston WBZ team of Jack Williams, Liz Walker, Bob Lobel, Bruce Schwoegler and of course, Arts and Entertainment reporter Joyce Kulhawik, and it was as if no time had passed since we last saw them.

We ran into Joyce at a Yo Yo Ma Silkroad performance in Cambridge and immediately decided that she needed to come on the show.

Joyce continues to be an advocate for the arts in Boston and also offers her insight and Theater/Movie reviews through her Joyce’s Choices blog. She is a motivational speaker and as a 3 time cancer survivor she has become a tireless crusader against cancer and has raised millions in the support of American Cancer Society's Hope Lodge in Boston that provides cancer patients and their caregivers a free place to stay when their best hope for effective treatment may be in another city.

Here is our second installment of Take 5 Tuesday where we offer you a snippet of the conversation with On Your Feet! band members Jorge Casas (bass) and Clay Ostwald (music director/keyboards), two of the original members of the Miami Sound Machine.

Above The Basement - Boston Music and Conversation podcast sat down with these fine musicians who helped bring their iconic songs to the Broadway stage.

Every Tuesday for the next 3 weeks, we are pleased to share with you portions of that conversation with our Take 5 Tuesday episodes.

So, take 5 minutes and sit back and enjoy each “Take 5 Tuesday!”

Click here to listen to the entire episode:

http://abovetheb.libsyn.com/episode-091-on-your-feet or go to www.abovethebasement.com.

Song List: All songs from On Your Feet - Original Broadway Cast Recording

Song 1: Mi Tierra Song 2: Conga

In between several simultaneous conversations we talked tipping, harmonies, Lavar Burton, acoustic music, playing live for a guy and his dog, the meaning of the word Cajon, podcasts…we were all over the place.

But it was certainly a hoot.

These guys sound great and are amazing live. Enjoy!

Song List:

Song 1: Dirty Ol' Demon Song 2: Till I Die Song 3: In The Morning

Live Songs: Song 1: Till I Die Song 2: Trip Down West

Join us at Above The Basement! Go to www.patreon.com/abovethebasement for more information.

You can now hear about it from the perspective of On Your Feet! band members Jorge Casas (bass) and Clay Ostwald (music director/keyboards), two of the original members of the Miami Sound Machine.

Our friends at Above The Basement - Boston Music and Conversation podcast sat down with these fine musicians who helped bring their iconic songs to the Broadway stage.  Every Tuesday for the next 5 weeks, we are pleased to share with you portions of that conversation with our Take 5 Tuesday episodes. So, take 5 minutes and sit back and enjoy each “Take 5 Tuesday!”

Click here to listen to the entire episode or go to www.abovethebasement.com.

Recorded after our first ConcertCast - a conversation and performance in front of a live audience.

To listen to the entire conversation, go here: http://abovetheb.libsyn.com/episode-093-brent-shuttleworth

Song List:

Song 1: Black Swan Song 2: Doc Brown Song 3: This Must Be Love Song 4: Just You and Me Song 5: Where We Begin Song 6: She Was A Dancer Song 7: Money Ain't Everything

Join us at Above The Basement! Go to www.patreon.com/abovethebasement for more information.

We wanted to do something new so we gathered some ATB friends and fans together at Rapscallions Table and Tap in Acton, MA and did our first LIVE episode that we are calling a ConcertCast.

Brent immersed himself into the audience with his music and strong spirit. He worked his craft of combining a classic singer-songwriter vibe along with new beats and loops via a control surface called "Maschine".

We talked about his journey and method, his love for visual art and expression, and how his terrifying assault by several men that caused a head injury and almost killed him changed his perspective on life and his music forever.

This was also a sort of homecoming for Brent as he spent several years here as a kid and we were excited to invite him to the ConcertCast stage for music and conversation.

Song List:

Song 1: Helpless (Witness) Song 2: For You (Witness)

Live Songs:

Song 1: Say No Song 2: No Regrets

Check out the entire concert at www.abovethebasement.com!

Join us at Above The Basement! Go to www.patreon.com/abovethebasement for more information.

In 2014 she was named the Boston Music Awards “Best Hip-Hop Artist” and continues to make her mark in the fantastic Boston Hip-Hop scene.

We talk about her Haitian roots, food, her experience in the Congo and her foray from pre-law into a hip-hop force to be reckoned with.

Song List:

Song 1: I Can't Song 2: Sunday Morning (feat. Amandi) Song 3: No Less (ReBelle Diaries) Song 4: Stripper (feat. 6ixlayne & Prince Smooth)

Join us at Above The Basement! Go to www.patreon.com/abovethebasement for more information.

It covers the lives of Gloria Estefan and her husband Emilio Estefan to and through success, and tells a story of setbacks and love. The foundation is built upon music and at its core is the legendary Miami Sound Machine.

We sat down with Jorge Casas and Clay Ostwald of the original members of the Miami Sound Machine, who help bring all these iconic songs to the Broadway stage. We talk about the tour and the transition of pop-Latin-jazz to theater, the accident that changed everything, and the recovery and success of “cross over” Cuban American Music that Gloria, Emilio and the Miami Sound Machine brought to the world.

The show is currently playing at the Boston Opera House through April 29th, 2018.

Go to www.boston.broadway.com for more information.

Song List:

All songs from On Your Feet: Original Broadway Cast Recording

Song 1: Get On Your Feet Song 2: Conga Song 3 Rhythm Is Gonna Get You

Photo credit: 2480: ON YOUR FEET! Band featuring members of the Miami Sound Machine: Clay Ostwald (Music Director/Keyboard), Jorge Casas (bass), Edward Bonilla (percussion) and Theodore Mulet (trombone), (c) Matthew Murphy.

Join us at Above The Basement! Go to www.patreon.com/abovethebasement for more information.

When you think of the world around us, or a social issue - why does this song resonate?

These are the kinds of questions we asked the students at Cambridge Rindge and Latin High School as part of a music and society discussion. 

While we always look try to raise these important questions during our conversations, we can’t take credit for this one... it was senior Natalia Ruiz who spotted an ATB sticker somewhere in Cambridge, looked us up and proposed a collaboration.

We were honored to ask questions, facilitate discussion with, and most  importantly learn from these inspiring juniors and seniors about what music inspires them, why it moves them and what artists create the music and lyrics behind it all. 

Along with the students we were joined by two staff at Cambridge Latin, a teacher and the assistant principal, who is - fittingly - an accomplished jazz saxophonist himself. 

We talked the charisma of Kanye and the social responsibility of Kendrick and covered ground from hip hop to AC/DC to Eminem.

Join us at Above The Basement! Go to www.patreon.com/abovethebasement for more information

The singer-songwriter and bandleader has been a relentless road warrior. His last album called I Was Just Leaving is a bit more introspective than his previous but certainly shows off his songwriting chops. His most recent project is a duo with the wonderful Hayley Jane called Yes Darling.

Our occasional co-host Ike Walker joined us at our usual location in Concord, MA and we talked jury duty, moving, writing, dreams…uh…eggs…lots of stuff!

Song List:

Song 1: Moving Too Fast (I Was Just Leaving) Song 2: Fast Car (feat. Tall Heights - All Or Nothing) Song 3: Misplaced Anger (Yes Darling) Song 4: Eggs (Patience On Friday) Song 5: Bright Side (I Was Just Leaving)

Live Songs:

Song 1: Call Your Mother Song 2: Looking Glass

Join us at Above The Basement! Go to www.patreon.com/abovethebasement for more information.

In 1998 she was awarded The Bunting Fellowship at Harvard University and was the first Chinese traditional musician to receive The United States Artist Fellowship in 2008.

We caught up with her on tour with the Huayin Shadow Puppet Band at New England Conservatory's Jordan Hall and had a wonderful talk about Silkroad, the challenges of composing for different instruments and her association with Boston.

Song List:

Song 1: White Snow in a Sunny Spring (Wu Man and Friends) Song 2: Sound of a Voice Suite (Wu Man/Phillip Glass - Theater Music Vol. 1) Song 3: Four Chinese Paintings - Gobi Desert at Sunset Composed by Wu Man on pipa, arranged for string quartet by Danny Clay © 2016 Kronos Arts Publishing ℗ 2016 Kronos Performing Arts Association Commissioned for Fifty for the Future: The Kronos Learning Repertoire Produced by Kronos Quartet Recorded December 2015 at Women's Audio Mission, San Francisco, CA Engineered by Laura Dean and Terri Winston/Women's Audio Mission Assistant Engineers: Aimee Hamel, Maryam Qudus, Hayley Baysinger, Erin Baumann

Song 4: Huayin Shadow Puppet Band performance excerpt

Join us at Above The Basement! Go to www.patreon.com/abovethebasement for more information

Currently touring the US, this musical play explores her relationship with her mother who suffered the devastating effects of Alzheimer's.

We caught up with her just before she played a fantastic concert at City Winery Boston and talked first kisses (don’t worry we bleeped out names to protect the innocent), alternate tunings, Woody Guthrie poems and her new life in the theater.

Song List:

Song 1: So Much Mine (The Story - Angel In The House) Song 2: My Flowers Grow Green (Jonatha Brooke - The Works) Song 3: Where Were You (Jonatha Brooke - Plumb) Song 4: Wind (Jonatha Brooke - My Mother Has 4 Noses)

Live Song:

Song 1: Put The Gun Down

Join us at Above The Basement! Go to www.patreon.com/abovethebasement for more information.

We met Sir David Minehan when we walked up the stairs to the wonderful rooms of his recording studio Woolly Mammoth Sound to begin recording our Butler Frog EP.

David is in the seminal Boston band The Neighborhoods that won the very first WBCN Rock 'N' Roll Rumble in 1979 and has toured with David Bowie, The Ramones and Cheap Trick among others.

He has since been running Woolly Mammoth Sound for 20 years while also taking time to tour with Paul Westerberg and The Replacements as their lead guitarist.

The Neighborhoods just completed recording a new studio album, which should be released soon!

Listen to Part One at http://abovetheb.libsyn.com/episode-085-david-minehan-part-one

Song List:

Song 1:   Think It Over (The Last Rat - Live) Song 2:   Prettiest Girl

Join us at Above The Basement! Go to www.patreon.com/abovethebasement for more information.

David is in the seminal Boston band The Neighborhoods that won the very first WBCN Rock 'N' Roll Rumble in 1979 and has toured with David Bowie, The Ramones and Cheap Trick among others.

He has since been running Woolly Mammoth Sound for 20 years while also taking time to tour with Paul Westerberg and The Replacements as their lead guitarist.

The Neighborhoods just completed recording a new studio album, which should be released soon!

Listen to Part Two at http://abovetheb.libsyn.com/episode-086-david-minehan-part-two

Song List:

Song 1: Pure and Easy (The Last Rat - Live) Song 2: Prettiest Girl Song 3: Peeping Tom (The Last Rat - Live)

Join us at Above The Basement!   Learn more at patreon.com/AboveTheBasement

Coming out of Berklee College of Music, RIPE has been called many things - from neo-soul to funk/pop to jam band - but whatever genre they fall into, their infectious licks, lyrical grooves and high energy performances made us immediate fans.

We sat with 3/7ths of the band out in Allston, MA a week or so after seeing blow away the crowd a The Paradise. Singer Robbie Wulfsohn and guitarists Tory Geismar and Jon Becker joined us for a conversation about their roots, vision, and the love they have for the fans - which is a palpable entity if you have ever been to a RIPE show.

Song List:

Song 1: Goon Squad (Hey Hello) Song 2: Down With The Dark Side (Produce The Juice) Song 3: Caralee (Hey Hello)

Live Song: Goon Squad

Join us at Above The Basement!   Learn more at patreon.com/AboveTheBasement

We sat with 3/7ths of the band out in Allston, MA a week or so after seeing them blow away the crowd at The Paradise. Singer Robbie Wulfsohn and guitarists Tory Geismar and Jon Becker joined us for a conversation about their roots, vision, and the love they have for the fans - which is a palpable entity if you have ever been to a RIPE show.

This is part one of a two part conversation!

Song List:

Song 1: Little Lighter (upcoming release) Song 2: Downward (upcoming release) Song 3: Talk to the Moon (Hey Hello) Live Song: Little Lighter

Join us at Above The Basement!   Learn more at patreon.com/AboveTheBasement

We had a chance to sit at beautiful Boston Opera House and talk with conductor/pianist Jenny Cartney and cellist/guitarist Nick Anton to discuss the both the challenges and excitement of rising above the orchestra pit to perform on the stage with the actors, their diverse musical backgrounds and hitting the road with the other amazing musicians and actors.

Song List:

All songs from the album What's Inside - Songs From Waitress

Song 1: Lulu's Pie Song Song 2: Bad Idea Song 3: She Used To Be Mine Song 4: Lulu's Pie Song

We wanted to create a separate episode with the conversation we had afterwards with a US Marine, veteran Bill Auger, who shared the story of his first songwriting experience on the retreat with professional songwriter Darden Smith, and how the experience and the songs changed his life for the better.

Bill is joined by Songwriting with Soldiers co-founder Mary Judd, who talks about the genesis, growth and unique aspects of their mission.

Song List: All songs by Mary Gauthier from the album Rifles and Rosary Beads

Available at www.marygauthier.com

Song 1: Soldering On Song 2: Rifles and Rosary Beads

Mary has lived through some challenging experiences and now she shares the songwriting pen and paper with US Veterans to tell their own stories through the Songwriting With:Soldiers program. 

We talked with Mary prior to her acoustic show at Boston’s brand new City Winery.

Afterwards we were fortunate and thankful to meet with a US Marine, veteran Bill Auger, who shared the story of his first songwriting experience with professional songwriter Darden Smith, and how the experience and the songs changed his life for the better.

Bill is joined by Songwriting With:Soldiers co-founder Mary Judd, who talks about the genesis, growth and unique aspects of their mission.

Song List:

All songs off the Rifles and Rosary Beads album

Song 1: Soldering On Song 2: Bullet Holes in the Sky Song 3: Rifles and Rosary Beads

Whether you know Jay as a writer, poet, musician, philosopher or teacher, it’s clear when you talk with him there is a thirst for knowledge and true love of life.

Jay talked to us about his experience with a life changing event in 2014, when an accident left him without any movement of his extremities at the age of 79.

Defining resilience, Jay candidly reports on his incredible recovery, his difficult yet exciting new chapter in music and writing and also his relationship with his wonderful wife.

Song List:

All songs performed by the Aardvark Jazz Orchestra Composer Mark Sumner Harvey

Song 1: Spaceways (Passages) Song 2: March of the Booboisie (Exocations) Song 3: I Hear America Calling (Evocations)

Live Song:

Song 1: Sunny Side of the Street (music composed by Jimmy McHugh and lyrics by Dorothy Fields)

He just released Mixtape – a compilation of covers from musicians who inspire him.

We had a great conversation covering his high school bands, the link between science and music, his move from entomology to full time musician, his thoughts on collaboration in the writing process and also the importance of reading instructions on smoke machine use.

Song List

Song 1: Brokedown Palace (Mixtape) Song 2: Basement Days (Little Vigils) Song 3: French King (For a Song)

Live Songs

Song 1: Ophelia (Mixtape) Song 2: Against All Odds (Mixtape)

What do their Mom’s think of Above The Basement?

They decided to get to the bottom of it! After a lovely brunch at Woods Hill Table they sat with professional mothers Gloria Clough and Judy Hirschberg. They pestered them with questions and let them tell embarrassing stories about them - all the while fishing for compliments that only a mother could give.

Song List:

Song 1: Maggie (Ron Hirschberg - 1995) Song 2: Sometimes (After The Frost - Northern Point) - 2010) Song 3: This Time (Last Call For Opinions - The Butler Frogs)

They are on a 10 city tour as a duo - humming along the way with new creations of melodies and lyrics while at the same time teaching their kids a thing or two about language, culture and the road.

Their music will both soothe and surprise you, treating the ears with harmonies and often unexpected but pleasant repetitive lines and hooks - – it is an anthropological journey into their own Mexo-Americana connection.

This 2 piece is usually a 5 piece band and - spoiler alert - the upcoming touring show seems to be expanding to a 7 piece in a town near you soon.

Blindfolds optional...

Song List:

Song 1: Every Time Katie (Guesthouse) Song 2: Wheelbarrow Baby (Electric Artifacts) Song 3: Guesthouse (Guesthouse) Song 4: Harder Before It Gets Easier (Knock Knock Get Up) Live Song 1: Time Will Not Track us Down (Guesthouse) Live Song 2: Lavender Street (Everything is Saved)

We sat with BCC Founder Hubie Jones and a few board members, sponsors and supporters, including Joel and Sue Sherman, Meg Clough and Bob Rivers just before the Boston Children's Chorus Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration at Symphony Hall Boston.

We also had the unique opportunity to talk once again not only to current BCC singers, but a few alumni as well!

We got their thoughts on the event, the importance of such a wonderful program and the example the kids of the BCC sets for us all.

Song List: Song 1: A Change Is Gonna Come Song 2: Pride - In The Name Of Love Song 3: Before My Time Song 4: We Are One Song 5: Amazing Grace

The B-Movies showing on the TVs along with the psychedelic light show and animation coloring the band create a surreal environment – made all the more amazing by the fantastic instrumental mix of what has been called Acid Blues.

While he has two great solo albums under his belt - he just released his first self titled album with The Antiguas (called Matthew Stubbs and The Antiguas).

But you gotta hear these guys live to really appreciate the entire package.

Song List: All songs from their self titled album Matthew Stubbs and The Antiguas.

Song 1: Del Diablo Song 2: El Segundo Song 3: Unwinder

Hailing from Boston, Vancil is an award winning jazz drummer, producer and musical director. Vancil, or “Coop” talked with us at Charles Haynes’s studio about academic music, sharpening the tools and becoming a listener.

We spoke about his beginnings as an eager 4th grader in the Metco program in Wellesley, MA and his road to becoming a sought after professional musician embarking on a tour with the most talked about musical of our generation.

Song List: Song 1: Song For My Father (Vancil Cooper/Gabriela Martina) Song 2: Open (Lindsay Lucas)

We were thrilled to sit at Strongroom Studios in East London where he was putting the final touches on his latest album. The surrounding color and lighting around the instruments made up for the fact that I kicked over his tea and Ronnie left 2 very expensive microphones in the back seat of the Uber we took to get there – which we fortunately got back later that evening.

This was a special trip for us at Above The Basement as two Bostonians visiting England. There was a lot of healing that needed to happen following the Boston bombing in 2013 ¬- and it’s fitting that we sat in Strongroom Studios when Tom’s song Heal was featured in the movie Stronger.

To that end we would like to dedicate this episode and the inspiring music behind it to the healing victims, their families and caregivers throughout our Boston hospitals - in particular the amazing staff at Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital – whose motto is, appropriately enough - "Find Your Strength".

Song List:

Song 1: Concrete (Wrong Crowd) Song 2: Heal (Long Way Down) Song 3: Somehow (Wrong Crowd) Song 4: Constellations (Wrong Crowd) Song 5: Supposed To Be (Long Way Down)

From over 100 zip codes in the greater Boston area, this group of 450 young singers meet each week to learn, rehearse and perform under the guidance of artistic director Anthony Trecek-King and executive producer Ben Hires.

This is part two of our conversation as we invited some of the young singers to the conversation and got their thoughts on the wonderful experiences they’ve had with The Boston Children’s Chorus.

As Dr. Martin Luther King day approaches, the BCC not only prepares for their concert in Symphony Hall, they reflect on his legacy and the everyday impact of his message on their own lives and the city of Boston.

Song List:

Song 1: Pride (In the Name of Love) Song 2: I Will Sing

From over 100 zip codes in the greater Boston area, this group of 450 young singers meet each week to learn, rehearse and perform under the guidance of artistic director Anthony Trecek-King and executive producer Ben Hires.

In our two part conversation, Anthony, Ben and several members of this outstanding and creative chorus discuss the connections among new friends, and the power of harmony.

As Dr. Martin Luther King day approaches, the BCC not only prepares for their concert in Symphony Hall, they reflect on his legacy and the everyday impact of his message on their own lives and the city of Boston.

Song List:

Song 1: On My Way Song 2: Oh Canada Song 3: Pride (In the Name of Love) Song 4: I Will Sing

When you mix musical melodies and rhythm with movement and communication, a dose of humor and shared emotion, the result can be nothing short of magic.

The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, based in London, has been able to make this possible through the work of professional classical musicians along with music scholars, educators, therapists and healthcare providers.

They created this experience with amazing programs like Strokestra, and The Irene Taylor Trust 'Music in Prisons' through The Lullaby Project.

RPO continues to provide these special experiences to groups around the UK and beyond, as well as to schools with children with disabilities, centers for autism and more.

Check out our website for more information on both of these projects.

Song List:

Song 1: Troyte - Barry Wordsworth conducts Elgar Song 2: Dead Elvis - Charles Ullery (Michael Daugherty) Song 3: Lullaby Song 4: Strokestra Song 5: Nimrod - Barry Wordsworth conducts Elgar

We sat in his hotel room to talk music, politics (yes...politics), tv theme songs, writing, dirt, gear....the list was endless.

Special thanks to our very first guest, bassist Alison Keslow, for the introductions to this episode.

This is part two of two.

Song List: Song 1: Your Smiling Face - James Taylor Song 2: Don't Lose My Number - Phil Collins Song 3: In The Air Tonight - Phil Collins

We sat in his hotel room to talk music, politics (yes...politics), tv theme songs, writing, dirt, gear....the list was endless.

Special thanks to our very first guest, bassist Alison Keslow, for the introductions to this episode.

This is part one of two.

Song List:

Song 1: Stratus - Billy Cobham (off the album Spectrum) Song 2: The Rockford Files Theme - Mike Post

Carissa is nominated for three Boston Music Awards, including Rock Artist, New Artist and Unsigned Artist of the Year.

She was also the winner of the 2017 Boston Rock & Roll Rumble and has her own media label called Fuel Heart Productions. She is currently doing workshops on DIY touring with musician Vanessa Silberman of A Diamond Heart Production.

We were fortunate to have Vanessa as a special guest on this episode as well.

Song List:

Song 1: The Fool (Long Way Down) Song 2: Sinking, Flying (Long Way Down) Song 3: Only Roses (Long Way Down) Song 4: Deleria (Long Way Down)

Live songs: You Lost You and Cardinal (from the upcoming album Talk Talk Talk)

Vapors continues the story of the great Boston 'Low Rock' band Morphine through their music while creating their own unique sound.  Morphine disbanded after the sudden and tragic death of frontman, composer and bassist Mark Sandman in 1999.   They shared their thoughts last week and talked the new Morphine LP, how they all came together to form Vapors, their recent tour of Europe and what they are doing now.

Song List:

Song 1:  If (A New Low) Song 2:  Hurricaine (Members of Morphine w/ Jeremy Lyons) Song 3:  The Other Side (A New Low) Song 4:  Pulled Over The Car (Members of Morphine w/ Jeremy Lyons) Song 5:  Renouveau--Daman N'diaye (A New Low)

The Jamaican born performer has seven albums under his belt including Dreams of God and Complex Simplicity just released in 2016.

Song List:

Song 1:   Life's Good (from the album Complex Simplicity) Song 2:   Conversations (Complex Simplicity) Song 3:   Higher Power (from the album Dreams of a God) Song 4:   Complexity (Complex Simplicity)

CONTACT's sound blends infections hooks, hauntingly beautiful compositions, and stadium sized energy.

They just released the first single Gravekeeper off their upcoming album and they are nominated for two 2017 Boston Music Awards, including Electronic Artist of the Year' and Pop Artist of the Year.

Song List:

Song 1: DYK Song 2: Blood Drive Song 3: Killing Mine Song 4: Gravekeeper

The Fray’s debut album, How to Save a Life in 2005 was certified double platinum and they have had numerous other hits including Over My Head (Cable Car), You Found Me and enough other great songs to have them come out with a compilation album last year called Through the Years: The Best of the Fray.

We talked with Isaac Slade, Joe King, Dave Welsh and Ben Wysocki just before they went on stage for The Umbrella Community Arts Center concert series.

They are all really wonderful guys and we had a great talk.

Song List:

Song 1: How To Save A Life - from How To Save A Life Song 2: Over My Head (Cable Car) - from How To Save A Life Song 3: You Found Me - from The Fray

Her debut album Bound To Meet The Devil has garnered rave reviews for her beautiful, soulful voice and she has wowed enough people with her live performances to get 5 Boston Music award nominations, including Live Artist of the Year, Unsigned Artist of the Year, Americana Artist of the Year, Female Vocalist of the Year and a shared nomination for Music Video of the Year with STL GLD, Dutch ReBelle and Tigerman WOAH.

She also just received Musician of The Year for 2017 from Improper Bostonian Magazine, so she may need a bigger mantle to hold all her awards by the end of the year.

Song List: All songs from Bound To Meet The Devil

Song 1: Collector Man Song 2: Hey Stranger Song 3: Skyscraper Blues Song 4: Holes

Yup - we talked about that.

The wonderful Rose Polenzani co-hosted. Rose is a singer-songwriter as well and the host of the roving band of musicians Sub Rosa. She has also sung on some of Kris’s past recordings including a Cars cover album that Kris did back in 2011.

Song List:

Song 1: All The Way Around (The Wild) Song 2: Hollow (The Wild) Song 3: The Light In The Hall (The Wild) Song 4: You Might Think (Cars)

Live songs: I Don't need To Know It All and Lonely West (The Wild)

She then took the big leap to join the amazing music community of songwriters in Boston. A well respected songwriter with numerous awards for her music, her songs have been described as "New England Americana with a twang."

She has just released her latest album The Hammer and the Heart.

Jonathan Beakley guest hosts.

Song List: All songs from The Hammer & The Heart

Song 1: The River Always Wins (featuring Mark Erelli) Song 2: In The Grooves (featuring Bill Kirchen) Song 3: Fade To Blue (featuring Nancy Beaudette) Song 4: Work Hard Love Harder (live) Song 5: Field Of Stone (live)

This is the second year in a row she has been nominated for the Boston Music Awards Promoter of the Year. She also works for PledgeMusic - an online direct-to-fan music platform that helps connect musicians to their fanbase. She is the primary booker for The Plough and Stars in Cambridge and recently produced the Tremont Takeover event at The Wang Center and she currently has a fantastic roster of musicians, including Radclyffe Hall, Le Roxy Pro, Cruel Miracle and Ed Balloon.

Song List:

Song 1:   Cruel Miracle - Do You Owe Me from Manifesto Song 2:   Ed Ballon - Bounce Back from Yellow 20-Somethings Song 3:   Radclyff Hall - Rather Be from Ghosts Song 4:   Le Roxy Pro - Bushkill from the self titled Album

Maybe you ran into Ryan in an apple orchard in Vermont, or possibly downtown Burlington. Perhaps you’ve heard him on the radio as lead singer and guitarist in the acclaimed group Guster.

Ryan has built a career in scoring for film and also hosts a PBS TV show aptly called Makin' Friends with Ryan Miller, where he travels the state of Vermont speaking with “high functioning weirdos.”

We discovered that Ryan is a creative force in many ways when he kindly invited us to his home for a great conversation.

In this episode we include new songs from his upcoming film scores that are pretty amazing. See song list below:

Song one:     Moving In - Tig soundtrack Song two:     One Man Wrecking Machine - Guster Song three:   Road Trip - The Fundamentals of Caring soundtrack Song four:    Goodbyes - Tig soundtrack Song five:     This Is The Only Time We Have - The Fundamentals of Caring soundtrack

In three years he has produced thousands of unique records riding the vinyl wave in Burlington, VT.

The Burlington Record Plant is a labor of love and without any initial experience in production, Justin has become an innovator in the vinyl world, building on a foundation of hard work and determination.

Song One: What goes Up (Blowtorch) Song Two: Unwound (Blowtorch) Song Three: Running Colours (Sliding Spring)

Sixteen years later he emigrated to Boston, Massachusetts with his family to continue his pursuit of music academia at Boston University College of Fine Arts.

Mr. Plano has traveled the world and has won countless awards for his poetic musicianship and performances.

We sat with Roberto at Boston University to discuss food, family and his musical roots.

Music:

Musica Ricercata: No 7, Cantabile, molto legato - Inspiration - Paolo Paliaga and Roberto Plano

Hymne de L'enfant a' Son Reveil - Franz Liszt Harmonies Poetiques et Religieuses - Roberto Plano

Arvo's World - Inspiration - Paolo Paliaga and Roberto Plano

He is a solo artist that speaks a language we can all relate to, whether age 5 or 95, and he is a quintessential collaborator with fellow singer-songwriters in the studio and on the stage.

We sat with Alastair to talk about his career transformation from adult folk to family music, what parenting did for his music and what it's like to write songs with your 5 year old daughter at her hospital bedside.

01 - How are all you *** doin? 02 - ViktaGRAPH 03 - Devils In The Details 04 - Whole Way Down 05 - Old Skin 06 - Animals Like Me 07 - Dull Boy 08 - Cataclysm 09 - Hollow Points 10 - Witchcraft 11 - Come Black magic 12 - I Put A Spell On You

Walter Sickert - Vocals, Guitar, Piano Mary Widow – Vocals, Mandolin, Percussion Rachel Jayson – Viola, Vocals Matt Zappa – Drums, Percussion, Vocals Mike Leggio – Upright Bass, Electric Bass, Vocals jojo Lazar – Ukulele, Flute, Vocals Tee Jay – Percussion, Bunny Head Blake Girndt (aka Brother Bones) – Guitar, Skeleton Dance Edrie – Accordion, Broken Toys, Vocals

Photo by Jen Vesp

Produced and Engineered by Joel Simches

Recorded Live @ The Sinclair Cambridge on 8/26/17. Used with permission - Bowery Boston.

Additional Sonic Chocobliss™ by Joel Simches of Sonic Enchantment Specialists Ltd.

Formerly with Bay Area-based hip-hop band Mission he returned to Boston to form Electric (aka Electric Company) and later formed Project Move.

In 2010 with Boston producer Rain he released the critically acclaimed Life After God and is currently collaborating with 2016 BMA Producer of the Year The Arcitype with his project STL GLD.

We come in just as Jonathan walked into the room to join us about an hour into our talk.

Inspiring, brilliant and groundbreaking, the Blue Men - while not saying a word - celebrate life through connection, unique absurdity, visual art and of course, music. 

We spoke with Resident General Manager Jonathan Screnci, Blue Man Mike Brown, and drummers Kyle Harris and Kevin Asmus before a performance at The Charles Playhouse.

We talk about rehearsing, auditioning and the evergreen magic that is Blue Man Group.

Ruby pays homage to Leonard Cohen, Andy Warhol and Roy Orbison in our conversation about singing, acting, writing, learning and growing.

What an amazing year! We've been downloaded in all 50 states (again, a nice round number) and in over 50 countries (we sense a trend here...).

We can't say enough how much we appreciate our listeners and the positive feedback we've received. We've been fortunate to have some unbelievable talent on the show with unique stories and wonderful performances from all walks of music - classical, jazz, hip-hop, rock, singer-songwriter...it's becoming a long list.

We strive to introduce our listeners to local artists who have made their mark on the Boston music scene and at the same time bring nationally recognized artists to the conversation who have a connection to Boston in unique ways.

The rest of 2017 is filling up with more brilliant artists, performers and Boston movers and shakers - we hope you get a chance to discover what they have to offer.

Charles has toured with Ed Sheeran, Lady Gaga, Kanye West, MIA and Queen Latifah among many others and is the owner of Herd Studios – a boutique mixing, mastering and recording studio in Boston. You can read more about it at herdstudio.com 

In this episode we talk about importance of listening and trust and how allowing space between musicians on stage can create magic.

During college in the late 60s, it was Emerson's work that initially ignited Don Henley's songwriting interest. And it was Thoreau's political, environmental and social justice work that resonated with Don, influencing his life and music.

Whether he is known to you as the cofounder of The Eagles, singer, drummer or prolific songwriter, Don Henley is actively helping to carry Thoreau's messages forward to new generations through his work with the Thoreau Institute at Walden.

We spoke with him about this mission at The Walden Woods Project's Thoreau Institute at Walden Woods Library.

Songs or portions thereof included: Train in the Distance, Take a Picture of This and Praying for Rain off of his 2015 solo album Cass County.

Jeff is the Curator of Collections at the Walden Woods Project's Thoreau Institute at Walden Woods Library and is the editor of annotated editions of both Walden and The Maine Woods as well as the author of several other award winning books. His essays and other writings have appeared in The Massachusetts Review, The Literary Review, and The Christian Science Monitor among others. 

There is a quote on his website at jeffreyscramer.com from Jim Flemming, of Wisconsin Public Radio that says "Jeffrey Cramer lives and breathes Thoreau.  He may know more about the bard at Walden Pond than anyone else alive."

After seeing that what could we do but take advantage of this opportunity and pester him with questions.

We thought this might be an interesting one and we were not disappointed.

We had a really fun time with these wonderful people – and we mean that – these are great people.  With lots of cursing, laughing and crazy stories – we think you are going to enjoy this one.

As President of the Longwood Symphony Orchestra for 20 years, Lisa has performed in and managed the 90 piece multitalented group of healthcare worker / musicians, and during her tenure worked on countless concerts for causes that affect all of us.

Lisa has the ability to connect people through her own creativity and help make change happen through the arts.

Fellow Berklee College of Music grads Holly McGarry, Benjamin Burns and Chris 'Gooch' Bloniarz have a sound that is difficult to describe – it definitely has bluegrass roots but leans towards what we’ll call Porch Rock.

Playing guitar, banjo and mandolin, their voices are very distinct and blend together to build an ethereal landscape of sound that surrounds you.

Track 01 - Pigeons Track 02 - Canary Track 03 - Dog Song Track 04 - Large Regardless Track 05 - Constellations Track 06 - Beautiful Pain Track 07 - It's Getting Late Track 08 - Something Worth Having Track 09 - Board That Plane Track 10 - Green Line Track 11 - Catacombs Track 12 - Moonshiner

Their harmonies, musicianship and unexpected arrangements will blow you away. Playing guitar, banjo and mandolin - while their voices are very distinct they blend together to build an ethereal landscape of sound that surrounds you.

Her newest project is called Never Broken. It is a road map that helps people develop mindfulness, reduce anxiety and promote wellness. You can read all about it on her new website www.JewelNeverBroken.com. She also recently published the New York Times bestseller, Never Broken - songs are only half the story.

With her beautifully personal lyrics and haunting instrumentation, her latest album Avocet is something everyone should hear.

This album is wonderfully written and arranged and includes several incredible Boston musicians. It is directly because of these fine people that Jennifer began recording this album.

Andy is their bluegrass guitar and dreadnought specialist and is a part of the incredibly prodigious bluegrass music scene in Boston.

He is also a photographer and has shot numerous music videos for a number of musicians in the Boston area.

As talent booker for The Sinclair he is not only passionate about good music but also strives to provide a great listening experience.

In his 23rd year conducting the Boston Pops, Keith has made his own mark on a classic American institution. Unique collaborations with internationally acclaimed artists and communication with the city of Boston during times of celebration and times of hardship... these are Keith's strengths. 

We spoke about his years with the Pops, current plans and some ins and outs of conducting and directing this amazing ensemble. Ben Folds came to Symphony Hall during the week of our conversation and Keith spoke about this collaboration in particular.

We had a good chat and hope you enjoy listening and learning more about our city's Pops Maestro.

His great singing voice is complemented by his guitar riffs and a fantastic backing band.  We offer two songs off of his studio albums: Reap What You Sow from Bittersweet Batch and On my mInd, In My Heart from the album of the same name.

Bonnie Hayes is our guest host.

 Izotope is an audio technology company that's obsessed with great sound. Their award-winning software products are used by musicians, music producers, and audio post engineers to enhance the sound of everything from today's top music tracks to major motion pictures and TV shows. iZotope's audio repair suite, RX, even won an Emmy for engineering developments so significant that they fundamentally changed the way television is produced.

It’s a short one but Keith has some nice things to say about the great Ben Folds….

A Massachusetts native, Ashley's beautiful voice paired with her original and earnest songwriting has won her numerous accolades - including a first round Grammy nomination in 2015.

The talented and multifaceted Austin TX musician has the unique ability to bring out the creativity in anyone, and to harness a person's own story and meld it into their song. He is a veteran songwriter with 15 albums under his belt, with frequent touring, writing and performing his mix of Americana, country and rock.

Track 01 - Sierra Diablo Track 02 - Love Will Win The War Track 03 - Against The Grain Track 04 - Soul Searching Track 05 - Love Calling Track 06 - I Say A Little Prayer Track 07 - Can You See The Moon Track 08 - Angel Flight Track 09 - Nobody Knows Track 10 - Everything Track 11 - Midnight Train Track 12 - Loving Arms

His work has appeared in the New Line Cinema film Love Jones, based largely on events in his life. Regie works with world music band Atlas Soul, he is a former National Poetry Slam Individual Champion, has been regularly featured on N. P. R. and has appeared on HBO’s Def Poetry Jam.

He currently teaches and inspires through his unique project - Shakespeare to Hip-Hop.

In addition to his massive technical undertaking of managing the stage equipment on a BOSTON tour, including all of the back line and audio equipment, he plays with the band December People that play familiar holiday songs in the styles of the top bands of our time like Santana, The Who, BOSTON, ZZ Top, ELP, Journey, AC/DC, and Rush just to name a few.

Check out The Loop!

We thought this would be a great time for us to become guests and have our occasional host Mr. Jonathan Beakley talk to the entire band before the release.

Joining the conversation is lead guitarist David Moore who you have met before in episode 011, bassist Tim Fiehler who is an institution around these parts and drummer Greg Mara who also plays with the band Boatyard Resin.

In the late 1980’s he joined Mark Sandman and Dana Colley to form the great low rock band Morphine and he currently plays once again with Dana Colley and Jeremy Lyons with the band Vapors of Morphine.

This is Part Two.

Also she is awesome. This is part one of a two part episode.

Currently a piccolo player with the Indian Hill Symphony, she has also performed with the Boston Symphony Orchestra, Detroit Symphony, New World Symphony, Boston Lyric Opera and Lithuanian Opera.

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Ron and I are proud to call David our friend and we can’t say enough about his talents. We had a nice conversation where we talked about his history and thoughts on recording and we were fortunate to have him play a song at the conclusion of our conversation from his earlier album Never The First To Jump called Goodbye Before The Sun.

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Mr. Davies is also a pretty smart guy and he is currently getting his masters in psychotherapy. We had a great conversation with Will and we were also fortunate enough to have singer Andrea Kremer join us. Andrea is also the proprietor of a music-marketing agency called Shake and Howdy.

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Mr. Bakalos has been a great help to Ronnie and I trying to get our recording rig up to speed but his improvisational skills on the guitar are what really blow us away.

You can check out his music and all his other projects at www.perrybakalos.com.

You will hear a cut off of his Essential Hazzard album called Chasin’ Pigeons from his former band of the same name and at the end of the conversation we’ll play a cut from Atlas Soul’s Gypsy Wind called This Won’t Take Long.

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Our friend and sometime drummer Jonathan Beakley fills in for Ronnie Hirschberg this time around as Ronnie is in the studio working on a documentary soundtrack.

As you will soon hear, we met Siri under somewhat unusual circumstances at a Butler Frog gig. Our conversation covers a lot of ground – her upbringing in a very musical family, her thoughts on how she approaches music, art and life in a joyful way.

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Chuck Clough and guest host Jonathan Beakley (sitting in for Ronnie Hirschberg) spoke with Sam at Woods Hill Table in Concord Massachusetts to talk about her radio heritage, the state of terrestrial radio and other projects she plans on beginning this year.

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We sat with Flynn at Woods Hill Table in Concord, Massachusetts and discussed how he came to Boston, how he approaches writing and his many musical travels from Cleveland to Boston to Brattleboro, Vermont.

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Alison has two solo albums - "Between Earth and Sky" released in 2003 more recently in 2014 "Bass Dharma".

Alison is currently on the summer faculty at Berklee College of Music in Boston and is co-owner with her husband of Sudbury School of Music in Sudbury, Massachusetts.

When we began discussing who to have on as our first guest on Above The Basement we immediately thought of Alison.  Apart from being our friend, she is an amazingly impressive player and composer and is in high demand in the Boston music scene.  

During our conversation, we talked about her Boston Music Award nomination, how she came to Boston through Berklee College of Music, her past and current projects and her thoughts on writing, working and her musical meditation.

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