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

Gary Talley was 19 when The Box Tops scored a number one hit with ‘The Letter.’ Alex Chilton was 16, had been up all night before the session, and came from the kind of household where that sort of thing wasn’t questioned. What followed was two and a half years of relentless touring, five albums, and a management which took advantage of them. Talley talks about growing up in Memphis during the birth of rock and roll, the story behind some of pop’s most enduring records, and what it’s like keeping The Box Tops on the road more than six decades on. Further information boxtops.com garytalley.com Support The Strange Brew Podcasts also available: Al Jardine – The Beach Boys, Daryl Hooper – The Seeds, Richard Orange – Zuider Zee, Richie Furay – Buffalo Springfield, Larry Tamblyn – The Standells 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 Gary Talley – The Box Tops appeared first on The Strange Brew .

Few works of musical theatre receive the recognition they deserve, and The Kibbo Kift is a prime example. Written by Judge Smith, co-founder of Van der Graaf Generator, and composer Maxwell Hutchinson, this ambitious rock musical told the stranger-than-fiction story of a breakaway anti-war scouting movement in 1920 that transformed, over two turbulent decades, from idealistic woodland campers into uniformed street-fighters for an alternative economic theory. It played Edinburgh’s Traverse Theatre and reached Sheffield’s Crucible in 1977 under director Mel Smith, then slipped into the margins of rock history. The recordings had a precarious existence. Union rules blocked a proper studio cast album, leaving only a patchwork of demo tapes and studio cuts. For decades these circulated in rough form, hardly doing justice to the material. Now, thanks to Think Like a Key, who tracked down, restored and remastered all surviving recordings,The Kibbo Kift can finally be heard as it deserves. In this interview, Judge Smith talks about the history of this remarkable lost musical, and why its strange subject matter resonates today. Further information The Kibbo Kift: The 1976 Rock Musical Judge Smith website Support The Strange Brew The Kibbo Kift podcast tracks Podcasts also available: Peter Hammill, The Genesis That Time Forgot, Tony Banks, Hawkwind’s Days of the Underground This podcast is also available on Apple Podcasts, YouTube, Spotify, Google apps and all usual platforms The post The Kibbo Kift: The Lost Rock Musical appeared first on The Strange Brew .

Rat Scabies needs little introduction as the thunderous drummer of The Damned. His collaborator in One Thousand Motels, Chris Constantinou, has had a career that has taken him from the studio with Chas Chandler, to the Live Aid stage at Wembley with Adam Ant, and into the recording booth with Sinéad O’Connor. Rat and Chris describe how they first met through The Mutants, a collaborative project that assembled an unlikely roll-call of rock veterans including Wilco Johnson, Wayne Kramer and Norman Watt-Roy. That project proved too unwieldy to tour so they stripped it back, formed a two-man core, and called it One Thousand Motels. The result was 2% Out of Sync, an album that has taken almost six years to find its way onto vinyl, and into listeners’ hands. Further information One Thousand Motels – 2% Out of Sync – vinyl Rat Scabies and Chris Constantinou podcast tracks Support The Strange Brew Podcasts also available: Rat Scabies, Paul Cook – Sex Pistols, Don Powell – Slade, Jim Lea – Slade Part 1, Jim Lea – Slade Part 2 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 Rat Scabies and Chris Constantinou appeared first on The Strange Brew .

Andrew Sandoval talks about THE KINKS – ALL DAY AND ALL OF THE NIGHT, The Day-By-Day Story Pt 1: 1940-1971, the new book he co-authored with the Doug Hinman. This is the most comprehensive record of the Kinks’ early career ever assembled. Andrew and Jason Barnard cover what it actually took to document The Kinks, from chasing down Shel Talmy’s original studio invoices (Pye Records kept almost no paperwork). They dig into Ray Davies’ songwriting arc, the commercial failure of Village Green Preservation Society and Arthur, the on-stage fight in Cardiff that nearly ended the band in 1965, and the years of visa problems that kept the Kinks out of America. There’s also a discussion of Ray’s unreleased material that were better than most bands’ released work, why Ray refused to release ‘Pictures in the Sand’ for decades, and how the Granada Television deal that funded Arthur eventually fell apart. Further information beatlandbooks.com Podcasts also available: 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 1940 to 1971 appeared first on The Strange Brew .

Tom Doyle digs into the remarkable, and surprisingly chaotic, story of Paul McCartney’s post-Beatles decade. Tom’s book Man on the Run, reissued to coincide with the official documentary of the same name, charts McCartney’s journey from 1969 to 1981: from morning drinking on a Scottish farm to headlining Madison Square Garden. Tom covers Linda’s role in keeping Paul from the brink, the brotherly war-and-reconciliation with John Lennon, the near-collaboration that almost happened in New Orleans in 1975, Denny Laine’s loyal lieutenancy, the extraordinary circumstances behind Band on the Run, the rise and fall of Wings, and the moment John Lennon’s murder brought the freewheeling seventies era to a sudden stop. Further information Man on the Run and Ringo: A Fab Life by Tom Doyle are available now. (Ringo: A Fab Life, US release May 2026). Podcasts also available: Denny Seiwell, Howie Casey – Paul McCartney and Wings, Mike McCartney’s Early Liverpool, Eric Stewart – 10cc/Paul McCartney, solo, Dave Mattacks 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 Man on the Run: Paul McCartney in the 1970s appeared first on The Strange Brew .

It’s been over a decade since I last spoke to Steve Ellis, and it felt like no time had passed at all. That’s the thing about Steve, he just pulls you straight back in. The prompt for this catch-up was his latest release, Love Affair – Edinburgh Live 1995. The story of how it came to exist, a phone call at 7pm asking if they could record a live album that same night, is pure Steve Ellis. From there we tumbled into his soul and Motown roots, the mod scene, and his deep connection with Steve Marriott and the Small Faces. Then there’s the legendary Eros fountain stunt – the arrest and how it helped send ‘Everlasting Love’ to number one. On the solo front, we cover his friendship and collaborations with Paul Weller and Roger Daltrey. And as a parting shot, Steve reveals a new album is in the bag, and by the sound of it, well worth the wait. Further information Steve Ellis – Facebook Mod Music: The London years 1963 – 1966 – Brian Carroll Steve Ellis podcast tracks Podcasts also available: Steve Ellis – 2015, Morgan Fisher – Love Affair, Steve Cradock, Steve Cropper, Phill Brown on Small Faces – Ogdens’ Nut Gone Flake 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 Steve Ellis – The Soul Survivor appeared first on The Strange Brew .

The guitar player who helped define pub rock in the 1970s is still making records. Brinsley Schwarz’s latest album, Shouting at the Moon, asks the same question that runs through much of his recent work: why can’t we get it together before it’s too late? The podcast then moves back to when his eponymous band became accidental pioneers of a movement they never quite intended to lead. There’s the infamous 1970 trip to New York’s Fillmore East that went spectacularly wrong, the moment Van Morrison left him “completely dumbstruck”, and the five years that followed when the band decided to simply get good. Between stories about Dave Edmunds’ backhanded compliments and 45-minute versions of ‘Niki Hoeky’, Schwarz reveals a musician who found his sound early and never saw much reason to abandon it. He remembers Bob Andrews with genuine affection and admits he didn’t write much during the Brinsleys because Nick Lowe was better at it. Further information Brinsley Schwarz – Shouting At The Moon Brinsley Schwarz podcast tracks Podcasts also available: Graham Parker, Mark Wirtz, Pub rock and the birth of new wave, Bruce Thomas – Elvis Costello and The Attractions 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 Brinsley Schwarz appeared first on The Strange Brew .

Mike Garson traces his extraordinary creative relationship with David Bowie from the Ziggy Stardust era through to his final live dates. Garson reflects on how his classical and jazz background allowed him to follow Bowie’s restless stylistic shifts, and how reinvention sat at the heart of their collaboration. Along the way, he revisits key moments including working on Aladdin Sane, Young Americans, The Buddha of Suburbia, Outside, Heathen and Toy, plus stories of Mick Ronson and the Bowie Band alumni. Further information Dublin Bowie Festival 2026 – 24 February to 1 March mikegarson.com Mike Garson podcast tracks Podcasts also available: Gerry Leonard, Mark Plati, Earl Slick, Carlos Alomar, Kevin Armstrong, Tony Fox Sales, Ken Scott, Woody Woodmansey, John Cambridge, John ‘Hutch’ Hutchinson 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 Mike Garson remembers David Bowie appeared first on The Strange Brew .

Steve Berlin revisits Los Angeles during its most volatile creative period, the late 1970s and early 1980s, when rent was $170 a month and sewage regularly seeped into the Cathay de Grande, the basement club where Top Jimmy and the Rhythm Pigs held their Monday night residency. Berlin recalls producing and playing on their newly reissued album Pigus Drinkus Maximus and joining Los Lobos after they’d spent years developing east of the LA River, completely off the west side scene’s radar. He also addresses the Graceland controversy head-on: Paul Simon’s failure to credit Los Lobos for writing the music to ‘All Around the World or The Myth of Fingerprints.’ Berlin also discusses his work with REM, producing Faith No More, and offers a moving tribute to Mavericks frontman Raul Malo. Further information Pigus Drunkus Maximus Steve Berlin podcast tracks Podcasts also available: Steve Wynn – The Dream Syndicate, Matt Piucci – Rain Parade, John Cowsill and Vicki Peterson, Harold Bronson – founder of Rhino Records This podcast is also available on Apple Podcasts, YouTube, Google apps and all usual platforms If you like what I do please support me on Ko-fi The post Gods Walking the Earth: Steve Berlin Remembers the LA Music Scene That Made Los Lobos and Top Jimmy appeared first on The Strange Brew .

Damon Minchella, founding bassist and songwriter of Ocean Colour Scene, and longtime collaborator with Paul Weller and Richard Ashcroft, talks about his time in music. Damon reflects on a remarkable career spanning Britpop’s rise, creative battles with major labels, his friendship with Oasis, and performing with The Who for Live 8 and Paul McCartney for War Child. He also discusses his autobiography You’d Look Good on a Donkey, the realities behind Ocean Colour Scene’s success, and how a life-changing injury led him into academia while continuing to tour at the highest level. Further information Damon Minchella: You’d Look Good On A Donkey: Britpop, Basslines & Bad(Ish) Decisions Podcasts also available: Steve Cradock, Stephen Street, Billy Bragg, Lynval Golding, Bruce Foxton 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 Damon Minchella – Ocean Colour Scene appeared first on The Strange Brew .

James Warren joins us to talk through a life in songs, from the playful invention of Stackridge to the studio-bound success of The Korgis. James reflects on writing Everybody’s Got to Learn Sometime, why its acoustic reworking finally restored a lost verse, and how choices around touring shaped the band’s fate. Along the way he discusses working with George Martin, later reformations, and highlights from recent Korgis releases. Further information thekorgis.com James Warren podcast tracks Podcasts also available: James Warren (2017), Chris Difford, Gordon Haskell, Steve Harley, Karl Wallinger 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 James Warren – Stackridge, The Korgis appeared first on The Strange Brew .

Matt Piucci joins us for a journey through Rain Parade’s story from the early 1980s Los Angeles music scene to the present day. Across a hand-picked set of tracks, Matt looks back at the group’s earliest recordings, the friendships that grew out of the Paisley Underground, and the way their influences found their way into Emergency Third Rail Power Trip and Explosions in the Glass Palace LPs. The conversation follows Rain Parade into their Island years and the projects that kept Matt and Steven Roback writing. Matt closes by reflecting on the rediscovery of their music by a new wave of groups and the run of new releases that has carried them to today. Further information Rain Parade website Matt Piucci podcast tracks Podcasts also available: Steve Wynn – The Dream Syndicate, John Cowsill and Vicki Peterson, Iain Matthews, Will Sergeant – Echo & the Bunnymen 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 Matt Piucci – Rain Parade appeared first on The Strange Brew .

Graham Parker reveals the story behind his debut album Howlin’ Wind. Parker recalls his journey from suburban Surrey to the London music scene, his early jobs, and the moment he found his sound – a mix of soul, R&B and sharp songwriting. He looks back at the formation of The Rumour, his partnership with Dave Robinson, and the whirlwind that led to Howlin’ Wind and Heat Treatment being released within months of each other. Parker also reflects on his later work, collaborations, and enduring independence as an artist. Throughout, we hear why his debut stands as one of the strongest opening statements in British rock. Further information Graham Parker’s Howlin’ Wind by Jay Nachman The Official Graham Parker website Podcasts also available: Bruce Thomas – Elvis Costello and The Attractions, Clem Burke – Blondie, Pete Briquette – The Boomtown Rats, Pub rock and the birth of new wave This podcast is also available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube and all usual platforms If you like what I do please support me on Ko-fi The post Graham Parker appeared first on The Strange Brew .