The Strange Brew - artist stories behind the greatest music ever recorded

Martin Barre is already playing when the evening begins. Recorded live at The CAT Club in December 2025, this is Barre in conversation with Jason Barnard. Hendrix turns up, and Jimmy Page, and a French chateau that put Jethro Tull in the bathroom for a week. So does a Grammy, won at home because the record label wouldn’t pay for flights. He also talks about his autobiography – wrote it four times. The first version was, by his own description, full of scores to settle. But he took all of it out. Further information martinbarre.com Support The Strange Brew Podcasts also available: Martin Barre – 50 Years of Jethro Tull, Ian Anderson, Greg Spawton – Big Big Train, Dave Pegg – Fairport Convention This podcast is also available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, Google apps and all usual platforms The post Martin Barre – live in conversation appeared first on The Strange Brew .

Anthony Phillips, founding Genesis guitarist, joins Jason Barnard to talk about the formation of Genesis, his departure, and his latest album, Gemini – Pieces For Piano. He traces the Genesis story back to Charterhouse and the summer of 1967, when he first heard a 12-string guitar. Peter Gabriel’s theatrical stage persona came about through necessity, filling dead time while Phillips and Mike Rutherford fought with temperamental instruments. The jump from From Genesis To Revelation to Trespass has always looked abrupt; Phillips explains it simply: he and Rutherford spent the eight months between recording and release writing constantly, with ‘Dusk,’ ‘White Mountain’ and ‘Stagnation’ sketched out before the debut had even flopped. Then there’s the stage fright. Not ordinary nerves but sudden mid-performance blanks that came on after glandular fever. He was eighteen and never told anyone. There’s also a brief exchange with Nick Drake, playing the same indifferent university crowds. When Drake learned Phillips had written ‘Let Us Now Make Love,’ he said one word back: “Dangerous.” The conversation also covers his classical studies, the troubled release of The Geese and the Ghost, and writing the title track of Gemini. Further information Anthony Phillips website, Gemini – Pieces For Piano Podcasts also available: Anthony Phillips (2019), Tony Banks (2024),  Tony Banks (2019), Steve Hackett (2022), Steve Hackett (2020), Bill Bruford, Chester Thompson This podcast is also available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, Google apps and all usual platforms If you like what I do please support me on Ko-fi The post Anthony Phillips, Genesis, A Life In Music appeared first on The Strange Brew .

John Helliwell of Supertramp returns to talk about Crime of the Century, the newly restored 1975 concert film shot at Hammersmith Odeon, and the years in which the band went from complete obscurity to one of the biggest acts in the world. He discusses the creative relationship between Rick Davies and Roger Hodgson, and how the tensions between them eventually broke the classic line-up apart. Helliwell also covers life after Supertramp, and what it means to keep performing as you get older. Further information Supertramp – Crime Of The Century: In Concert At Hammersmith Odeon – 1975 John Helliwell website Support The Strange Brew Podcasts also available: John Helliwell – 2019, Leslie Mandoki, Ken Scott, Jeff Wayne This podcast is also available on Apple Podcasts, YouTube, Spotify, Google apps and all usual platforms The post John Helliwell – Supertramp appeared first on The Strange Brew .

Mark Webber has been with Pulp for so long that his story and the group’s are almost the same thing. He started out as a teenager in Chesterfield with a fanzine called Cosmic Pig, booked Pulp at the local Conservative Club in 1986, became their tour manager with his dad’s old briefcase, and eventually found himself on stage with a Stylophone. Jason Barnard takes him through it all: the years of playing to twenty people outside Sheffield, the last minute Glastonbury headline, the Brit Awards controversy, recording Different Class,This Is Hardcore, Scott Walker producing We Love Life, and the chilly end in Rotherham in December 2002. Then there’s the return. The 2023 shows that were supposed to be just fourteen nights, More recorded in three weeks on a tight budget, and Mark’s daughter finally getting to see him play. Recorded live at The CAT Club on 23 October 2025. The audio is recovered and a bit muddy, but worth the effort. Further information I’m With Pulp, Are You? – Soft Cover welovepulp.info Support The Strange Brew Podcasts also available: Nick Banks – Pulp, Bee Gees’ Main Course with Bob Stanley, The Making of The Human League’s Dare, Stephen Street – producer, Artmagic: Richard Oakes of Suede and Sean McGhee This podcast is also available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, Google apps and all usual platforms If you like what I do please support me on Ko-fi The post Mark Webber – Pulp appeared first on The Strange Brew .

He wrote some of the greatest songs in American music, Dark End of the Street, Do Right Woman, I’m Your Puppet, and now, at 84, Dan Penn is back with an excellent new album, Smoke Filled Room. Penn got his first chart record while still a junior in high school, went on to produce The Box Tops, was in the room when Otis Redding recorded You Left the Water Running, and co-wrote Do Right Woman over a guitar in Chips Moman’s front room, only to watch Aretha Franklin walk out of the Muscle Shoals session, before Jerry Wexler finished it in New York. And that falsetto at the end of the James Carr recording of Dark End of the Street? That was him too. He still performs, occasionally writes, and picks up the phone to Jason Barnard. Further information Dan Penn – Smoke Filled Room Support The Strange Brew Dan Penn podcast tracks Podcasts also available: Steve Cropper, John Paul White, Bettye LaVette, John Mayall, Rita Coolidge This podcast is also available on Apple Podcasts, YouTube, Spotify, Google apps and all usual platforms The post Dan Penn appeared first on The Strange Brew .

In a market town seven miles south-east of Manchester, a recording studio opened above a shop in 1968 that became one of the most significant facilities in British music history. Strawberry Recording Studios in Stockport was where 10cc built their sound, where Paul McCartney brought Wings to record his brother Mike’s album, where Neil Sedaka revived his career, and where Joy Division and The Smiths made their early recordings. For a long time, much of this went unremarked. Peter Tattersall, the studio’s co-founder, and Peter Wadsworth, a music historian at the University of Manchester, discuss the history of Strawberry Studios. The soundproofing, Tattersall mentions, was worked out from books borrowed from Stockport Library. That detail tells you all you need to know. Further information strawberrynorth.co.uk Strawberry Studios Forever: Strawberry Studios, 10cc and the Birth of Manchester Music by Peter Tattersall with Peter Wadsworth is available in all good book shops Strawberry Studios Forever podcast tracks Support The Strange Brew Podcasts also available: Eric Stewart – Part 1, Eric Stewart – Part 2, Graham Gouldman, Kevin Godley, Harvey Lisberg, Mike McGear McCartney, Keith Hopwood – Herman’s Hermits This podcast is also available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, Google apps and all usual platforms If you like what I do please support me on Ko-fi The post Strawberry Studios Forever appeared first on The Strange Brew .

Duncan Mackay spent the 1970s at the keyboard of British popular and progressive music, often invisibly, yet seldom far from its most defining moments. MacKay first built a reputation in South Africa which brought him back to England where he joined Steve Harley and Cockney Rebel, just as ‘Make Me Smile (Come Up and See Me)’ reached number one, and it was at Abbey Road during those sessions that he first encountered producer Alan Parsons. That relationship drew him into the Alan Parsons Project and, through the same circle, into the studio with Kate Bush, on whose first three albums he played. He later joined 10cc after an impromptu jam with Rick Fenn led to an invitation to Strawberry Studios South, arriving in time for ‘Dreadlock Holiday’ and another number one. He also recorded with Camel and served as musical director for Elkie Brooks while maintaining a solo career. Now based in South Africa and working in his home studio he is free to undertake the most enjoyable recording project of his career, his new album with Mauritz Lotz, A Beautiful Madness. Further information Duncan Mackay & Mauritz Lotz – A Beautiful Madness Duncan Mackay podcast tracks Support The Strange Brew Podcasts also available: Alan Parsons, Steve Harley, Jim Cregan – Cockney Rebel, David Paton – Part 1, Eric Stewart – 10cc – Part 2, Graham Gouldman This podcast is also available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, Google apps and all usual platforms If you like what I do please support me on Ko-fi The post Duncan Mackay – Cockney Rebel, Alan Parsons Project, Kate Bush, 10cc appeared first on The Strange Brew .

Jason Barnard is joined by music writer and artist Chris Wade to talk about The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society. They discuss how the US tour ban pushed Ray Davies inward, the extraordinary run of Kinks singles, and what it means to preserve an England that probably never existed in the first place. Davies kept returning to the village green and its characters into the early 70s with the Preservation albums. The record’s influence spread slowly, and today it is treasured as one of the greatest British albums ever made. Further information Recorded at The CAT Club in July 2025 Chris Wade website Podcasts also available: The Kinks 1940-71, Shel Talmy, Bob Henrit – The Kinks, Argent, The Roulettes, The Kinks – Strange Brew tribute, Philip Norman on the Beatles, Bee Gees’ Main Course with Bob Stanley This podcast is also available on Apple Podcasts, YouTube, Spotify, Google apps and all usual platforms The post The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society appeared first on The Strange Brew .

Lou Gramm discusses his long-awaited album Released and how it brings unfinished songs back to life. Gramm also opens up about Foreigner’s induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, the politics that delayed their recognition, and the emotional moment of finally taking the stage to accept the honour. The podcast explores the rekindling of his relationship with Mick Jones, overlooked Foreigner albums such as Mr. Moonlight and the short-lived Shadow King project, both of which Gramm believes deserve far greater attention. Further information Lou Gramm – Released Lou Gramm podcast tracks Podcasts also available: Lou Gramm – 2022, Kelly Hansen – Foreigner, Michael Schenker, Bernie Marsden – Whitesnake, Mark Farner – Grand Funk Railroad, Barry Goudreau – Boston This podcast is also available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, Google apps and all usual platforms If you like what I do please support me on Ko-fi The post Lou Gramm on Foreigner appeared first on The Strange Brew .

If you’re a David Bowie fan, the names Earl Slick, Mike Garson, Tim Lefebvre, Gerry Leonard and Mark Plati will need no introduction. But KillerStar are not a Bowie tribute, and that’s what makes them so special. On this episode, KillerStar co-founder Rob Fleming explains how the whole thing started organically; a few demos, a call to vocalist Emm Gryner, and suddenly some of the most celebrated musicians of the past thirty years were playing original music together for the first time in years. Now, with new album The Afterglow, the collective grows with the Webb Sisters bringing their vocal talents to an already extraordinary lineup. Rob discusses five KillerStar tracks that demonstrate why they sound like no one else today. Further information killerstarband.com KillerStar podcast tracks Podcasts also available: Mike Garson, Gerry Leonard, Mark Plati, Earl Slick, Kevin Armstrong This podcast is also available on Apple Podcasts, YouTube, Spotify, Google apps and all usual platforms If you like what I do please support me on Ko-fi The post Rob Fleming – KillerStar appeared first on The Strange Brew .

Billy Sherwood discusses the upcoming YES UK tour featuring the complete Fragile album. He traces his path from drummer to bassist, learning the instrument by playing along to YES records, and development in groups Lodgic and World Trade. Sherwood details his first collaboration with Chris Squire in 1989, writing ‘The More We Live – Let Go,’ and his refusal to become YES’s lead singer during the Union era. The conversation centres on Squire’s final weeks, and Squire making Sherwood promise to stay with YES and keep the band moving forward. He also reflects on his extensive tribute album work, and YES’s current recording process for albums The Quest and Mirror to the Sky. Further information yesworld.com billysherwood.com Billy Sherwood podcast tracks Podcasts also available: Steve Howe (2025), Steve Howe (2023), Steve Howe (2019), Bill Bruford, Alan White, Trevor Horn, Geoff Downes, Tony Kaye, Rick Wakeman, Chester Thompson, Colin Moulding – part 2 This podcast is also available on Apple Podcasts, YouTube, Spotify, Google apps and all usual platforms If you like what I do please support me on Ko-fi The post Billy Sherwood – YES appeared first on The Strange Brew .

Across Big Big Train’s shifting line-ups, Greg Spawton’s songs connect the earliest records to their latest album, Woodcut. Greg selects eight tracks from Big Big Train’s catalogue that help tell their story; songs about Winchester Cathedral’s medieval foundations, record-breaking steam locomotives, and stories plucked from newspaper headlines, transforming historical curiosities into explorations of human endeavour. Further information bigbigtrain.com Greg Spawton podcast tracks Podcasts also available: Bruce Soord – The Pineapple Thief, Roine Stolt – The Flower Kings, Steve Hackett on Genesis Revisited and Hackett Highlights, Tony Banks, Steve Howe This podcast is also available on Apple Podcasts, YouTube, Spotify, Google apps and all usual platforms If you like what I do please support me on Ko-fi The post Greg Spawton – Big Big Train appeared first on The Strange Brew .

Ric Sanders, the fiddle player who has been an integral part of Fairport Convention for 40 years, takes us on a journey through his extraordinary musical life. From his early days discovering electric violin, to his simultaneous membership in both Soft Machine and the Albion Band, Sanders’ career reads like a who’s who of British jazz-fusion and folk-rock. Speaking with characteristic warmth, Sanders discusses the upcoming Fairport Spring 2026 UK Tour and provides insights into life on the road. Beyond Fairport, Sanders reveals the rich tapestry of collaborations that have shaped his musical journey: moments following Indian violin legend L. Shankar on stage, late-night jam sessions with Nigel Kennedy in Malvern pubs, and the influence of Ashley Hutchings. He also discusses his ongoing projects, from the Ric Sanders Trio to his recent work with Rosalie Cunningham. While Ric considers himself “a very lucky little fellow” it’s clear that luck has been matched by extraordinary talent and a passion for making music. Further information Fairport Convention Spring Tour 2026 Ric Sanders podcast tracks Podcasts also available: Ashley Hutchings, Rosalie Cunningham, Gordon Giltrap, Dave Mattacks, Chris Leslie, Simon Nicol (2023), Dave Pegg This podcast is also available on Apple Podcasts, YouTube, Spotify, Google apps and all usual platforms If you like what I do please support me on Ko-fi The post Ric Sanders – Fairport Convention appeared first on The Strange Brew .