Music

Professor of Rock

The ultimate rock music history podcast for fans of the greatest era of music. If you’ve ever wondered about the true stories behind your favorite songs, or wanted to hear directly from the legends who made them, Professor of Rock is your new go-to podcast. Hosted by music historian and superfan Adam Reader, this show brings the golden era of music back to life with exclusive interviews, behind-the-scenes stories, and deep dives into the songs that shaped our lives. This podcast uncovers how timeless tracks were made, the creative breakthroughs, the near-breakups, and the powerful moments that defined music history. Each episode is a masterclass in rock culture and nostalgia—whether it’s a chart-topping ‘80s anthem, a one-hit wonder with a wild backstory, or a candid conversation with the legends themselves. Hear the Stories. Relive the Music. Only on Professor of Rock.

Latest Episodes:

How “Love Is a Battlefield” Was Rewritten and Became an ’80s Anthem Aug 14, 2025

Show notes

Coming up, an interview with Neil Giraldo, one of the best guitarists and producers of the 80s, on a true classic from the decade. Here's how it went... Two of the best hitmakers of the time, Mike Chapman and Holly Knight, wrote a song they knew would be a smash: Love Is a Battlefield. They knew the perfect person to record it would be a legendary female rocker, Pat Benatar, who was married to Neil Giraldo, who produced and co-wrote her biggest hits. It was supposed to be the slow, methodical ballad. Neil listened to the song and, of course, he heard its hit potential. But he thought it was a little boring. So Neil decided to speed it up and turn it into an anthem… The original songwriters were pissed… They hated it at first. But I also have one of those famous songwriters, Holly Knight, here in the interview today, and we’ll find out what changed their minds. Coming up next, the story of an 80s anthem that broke MTV.

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FROM THE VAULT: Randy Bachman on How “You Ain’t Seen Nothing Yet” Became an Accidental #1 Hit Aug 13, 2025

Show notes

On this day in 1977, Bachman-Turner Overdrive announced their breakup, marking the end of a remarkable run by one of the most powerful rock acts of the '70s.

In this classic interview, Professor of Rock sits down with legendary guitarist and songwriter Randy Bachman, the force behind not one but two iconic bands: The Guess Who and Bachman-Turner Overdrive. One of only a handful of artists to score #1 hits with two different bands (a feat matched only by Paul McCartney), Randy shares unforgettable stories from his career.

He reveals how one of BTO’s biggest hits was never meant to be a hit at all—it started as a joke to tease his brother. But when their label didn’t hear a single on the new album, a bandmate convinced them to play the joke song... and the exec immediately knew it was gold. The only person who didn’t want to release it? Randy himself.

Hear the hilarious and surprising origin of a classic rock anthem, straight from the man who wrote it—only on Professor of Rock.

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7 Hilarious Non-Parody Rock Songs You Won’t Believe Aren’t Jokes Aug 12, 2025

Show notes

In a world that is way too serious, we all need a lot more humor in our lives. In this episode, we’re going to spotlight 7 of the funniest non-parody songs of the Rock Era, including a Flaming Lips song about a woman who cooks with nothing but vaseline, as well as an unhinged rant about modern life that became a hilarious and accidental protest song for Gen X, plus the classic song Mellow Yellow that we’ve all been singing along to for years that has a chorus that we all thought was silly but is actually about a female uh…a word I can say on here. But you’ll find out next. And on the opposite end of the spectrum is a song by Kip Addotta that seems really dirty at first listen but is actually about FISHES. And finally, a classic song by the most underrated metal band of all time that borrowed every cliche in the book to create a song that makes us bust a gut, every time we hear it, or… even when we don’t… It’s our countdown of the Funniest Non-Parody Songs of the Rock Era, NEXT, on Professor of Rock.

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FROM THE VAULT: How George Harrison Inspired Led Zeppelin to Write The Rain Song Aug 11, 2025

Show notes

Known to many as hard and heavy rockers, Led Zeppelin has written some of the greatest pulse-pounding classics of the past half-century. But at one point they were actually called out by George Harrison for rocking too much. Challenged to bring it down a few notches, guitar virtuoso Jimmy Page composed a sonic soundscape so lush and surreal that one of rock’s premiere producers said it defied classification.

WHEN Jimmy Page, Robert Plant, John Paul Jones and John Bohnam wrote the 70s album track The Rain Song, they put the greatest poets on notice.

Next on Professor of Rock!

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1993’s Top Songs: R.E.M., Billy Joel, Duran Duran, Whitney Houston & Blind Melon Aug 10, 2025

Show notes

Coming up…What may be the last good year for mainstream music…There were about 10 crappy songs for every great one. But don’t worry, the 11 good ones in today’s countdown could compete with most any year... including one song that one of rock’s greatest lyricists, REM's Michael Stipe, could not figure out. The music was perfect, the melody was there, but he was fighting horrible writer’s block until he walked into the studio and came to him right then... Man on the Moon. Stipe recorded it seconds after in 1 take, and it became a classic. Then there was River of Dreams, the last big hit by Billy Joel, who at the age of 44 swore he was done with music. Sadly, it would turn out to be true. River of Dreams came in a dream and was written in the shower. Then there was the massive 80s band Duran Duran that was written off by everyone in the new decade; in fact, their record label wouldn’t even fully fund their album, but in the middle of grunge, they created Ordinary World, a song so personal it hit the top of the charts and still brings a tear to the eye. Plus Whitney Houston, who had recorded her greatest vocals even though she was sick as a dog, and Blind Melon's No Rain, a deceptively happy-go-lucky sing-along song that had a devastating secret that no one understood till it was too late. It’s all next on POR.

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5 Unsolved Rock Mysteries: The Strangest Lost Songs Ever Found Aug 09, 2025

Show notes

Coming up, we’re counting down 5 of the most compelling cold cases in rock… songs that were recorded back in the day, but then fell into obscurity… only to resurface online decades later. But without a name or band attached to them. No one really knows where these songs came from. Among them is a mysterious banger that was found on a mysterious documentary, that was hidden on a Little Rascals VHS tape that a girl found in a thrift store. Seriously. Then there’s a sultry pop number that soundtracks a forgotten adult film… but the singer refuses to come forward and identify herself. There’s also a haunting ballad that some say is a lost track by George Harrison. Only the subject matter is a little too provocative. Plus, the most mysterious heavy metal song ever that even the greatest rock historians can’t identify. This one’s going to be crazy. Will these lost tracks ever be ID’d? Let’s solve these whodunnits? Let’s dive headfirst into the strange sonic rabbit holes… NEXT on the Professor of Rock.

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Nick Kershaw’s “Wouldn’t It Be Good”: The 80s Anthem That Live Aid and Pretty in Pink Reimagined Aug 08, 2025

Show notes

In 1984, a rookie named Nick Kershaw put out a song that became a teenage anthem called Wouldn’t It Be Good for the outcasts and the have-nots, and it earned him a ticket to play one of the biggest gigs ever. LIVE AID, which put him in front of 2 billion fans. Then the next year, one of the biggest movies of the year, Pretty In Pink, used the song but had it re-recorded by another band that included a lead from the classic rock band Three Dog Night: Danny Hutton Hitters from 20 years before… We find out why next, as we have both the original singer and the legend who remade it. It’s the story of an underappreciated song that every 80s kid adores next on Professor of Rock.

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Styx's “Renegade”: The Accidental Hit That Made Tommy Shaw a Rock Legend Aug 07, 2025

Show notes

Coming up an interview with one of the defining voices of 70s and 80s rock: Tommy Shaw. He joined Styx after they already had a couple of hits, but they weren’t exactly established. But after Tommy came aboard, they were unstoppable with a two-singer attack that made them twice the threat... especially with today’s song Renegade... an all-time classic rock magnum opus. It came from images in the singer’s head from old westerns he watched as a kid, and he came up with a famous a cappella part that wasn’t planned. The producer just pulled the music out after it had been recorded, and the band all looked at each other in disbelief. Then Renegade was tacked on as the B-side to a song the label thought would do well, but DJs loved Renegade and turned it over and made it a classic. Up next, Tommy Shaw breaks down his most famous song.

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Improv Magic: The Untold Stories Behind Pink Floyd, The Who, and More Aug 06, 2025

Show notes

Improvisation is the X factor behind some of the greatest tracks of the Rock Era—moments of spontaneous genius nborn from gifted talent and instinct. On this episode, we’ll get ninto the captivating stories of how a teenager walking down the street decided to visit a studio that caught his eye. His name was Barrett Strong and he laid down a scratch vocal on a song he improvised… That scratch vocal became Money (That's What I Want), the first big hit for a label that npretty much became it’s own genre… Then a fiddle player got a random invite to a session and the band, The Who, had no idea who he was but he started playing and it was so powerful it put the finishing touches on 1 of the greatest rock anthems ever... Baba O'Riley. Plus the 16 year old opera singer who was supposed to sing a small part in a lower octave but decided to sing it much higher and it became thedefining vocal of the famous hit The Lion Sleeps Tonight… Plus the unknown singer Clare Torry who was supposed to sing a couple of notes over a musical bed but just belted out a wordless display of sounds that astonished Pink Floyd and became a crucial part of The Dark Side of the Moon, an album that spent 18 and a half years on the charts. Improv Magic…Part 2, is NEXT on Professor of Rock!

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FROM THE VAULT: How David Gilmour’s Voice Elevated Pink Floyd’s Greatest Songs Aug 05, 2025

Show notes

FROM THE VAULT: David Gilmour’s Most Powerful Vocal Performances with Pink Floyd

In this special vault episode, we shine a spotlight on one of rock’s most iconic yet often underrated voices: David Gilmour of Pink Floyd. While his guitar solos are legendary, it’s his soaring, soulful vocals that gave depth and emotion to some of the band’s most powerful songs.

From the haunting beauty of Comfortably Numb to the raw emotion of Dogsand the melancholy ache of Wish You Were Here, Gilmour’s voice helped define the Pink Floyd sound. Professor of Rock breaks down the vocal highlights that made Gilmour not just a guitar god, but one of the great vocalists of the rock era.

Also, on this day in rock history, Pink Floyd released their groundbreaking debut album The Piper at the Gates of Dawn, which reached number 6 on the UK charts and marked the beginning of one of rock’s most legendary journeys.

Hear the Stories. Relive the Music. Only on Professor of Rock.

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