Stay ConnectedThe Radio Ga Ga Podcast is a weekly album review podcast that explores why we like the music we like. Host Justine Piehowski dives into each album in depth, with artist backgrounds, song-by-song meanings, and notes from the recording studio. The goal of the Radio Ga Ga Podcast is to help you as the listener feel more knowledgeable and connected to the music you love, and maybe even music you didn’t know you would.
Available wherever you listen to podcasts.
https://radiogagapodcast.com/
I always thought of R.E.O. Speedwagon as an '80s band, but their breakthrough album, "Hi Infidelity" from 1980 was actually the band's ELEVENTH album. Formed in 1967, R.E.O. spent basically the first decade of their career struggling to expand past their Midwestern roots. We'll talk about their major change in sound over the years, and how the pressure to go pop worked really well…until it didn't. Also–the Bo Diddley beat, a Joe Cocker ripoff, and how Netflix's "Ozark" brought R.E.O. back from the dead.
Vince Guaraldi's soundtrack for "A Charlie Brown Christmas" was perfect for the animation of the Peanuts comics. It's not just jazz, it's what Charlie Brown sounds like. It's what Christmas sounds like. And it perfectly encapsulates that melancholic feeling that comes around this time each year. In this episode, we'll talk about how jazz came to define the Peanuts sound, depression and anxiety as tackled by Charlie Brown, and the little Christmas tree that could.
"Come On Over" is still the all-time best-selling country album, and one of the best-selling albums of all time in any genre. In this episode, we explore Shania Twain's rise to pop-country fame, from her early days as Eilleen Twain in Timmins, Ontario all the way to Nashville. Things were extremely difficult for Shania most of her life growing up, but she fought every step of the way to earn her spot in country music's storied history. Also: Mutt Lange, "shopping" for songs, and Tim the German Shepherd.
"Dig Me Out" is an album that feels harsh and feminine at the same time. It's not comfortable or nurturing, and in direct contrast with expectations of female vocals at the time. Guest Phoebe Reilly and I discuss Sleater-Kinney's role in the riot grrrl movement, what unique elements Corin, Carrie, and Janet bring to the table, and how Sleater-Kinney broke through walls constantly to create a space in music for themselves and for other women. Also - feminism, the concept of "selling out," and "Portlandia."
American composer Bernard Herrmann is most remembered for his spooky, suspenseful film scores in collaboration with directors including Alfred Hitchcock, Orson Welles, and Rod Serling. From the shower scene in "Psycho" to some of our favorite episodes of "The Twilight Zone," Herrmann was a master at creating dramatic tension and character development through music. We'll talk about some of his most memorable pieces, his early use of the theremin, and modern composers who still adapt Herrmann's work today.
"Hot Fuss" is one of my all-time favorite albums. In this episode, I'm diving in to the history of the album and how it came to be the Killers' signature work. My guest is Jon Landman of The Syndicate, who worked with the Killers in their earliest days to help promote the band and get "Hot Fuss" on American radio. We talk about the "Murder Trilogy," the Bruce Springsteen and Duran Duran comparisons, how to write a song about your former bully, and why we don't see a ton of bands coming out of Las Vegas.
Musically and lyrically, "Dirt" was far more sinister than anything that had come before it in grunge music. Nearly half of the album's songs are explicitly about heroin addiction, which we'll find is the one true villain in the Alice In Chains story. In this episode, we talk about how metal impacted the earliest days of Seattle grunge, the vocal harmonies between Layne Staley and Jerry Cantrell, who "Rooster" is, and how drug abuse brought one of the best bands of the early '90s to a screeching halt.
"Take On Me" by Norwegian trio A-Ha is one of the greatest pop songs ever made. We'll talk about the history of the song, Morten Harket's vocal gymnastics, and all the '80s instruments they used including the LinnDrum and the Roland Juno 60 synthesizer. "Take On Me" also had one of the greatest music videos ever made. We'll talk about how the video's animation was created, and how it gave new life to the song for American audiences.
Listening to Halsey is like touching a wire you know is going to give you a shock. But you touch it anyway, letting little sparks of electricity bolt through you. She's an artist who has grown on me over the past few years, and her story is wild. The road was difficult for Halsey, then her entire life changed basically overnight. From the release of "Manic", to her openness about her life and struggles, she's setting the bar for what it means to be a pop star in 2020.
We conclude the story of Jimi Hendrix starting with "Axis" Side 2, which has one of the most beautiful songs Jimi ever wrote, "Castles Made of Sand." We talk about the techniques and gear Jimi used, what it was that made him such a good guitarist, and how things took a turn for The Jimi Hendrix Experience after the release of "Axis" in the U.S. We'll also talk about Jimi's drug use, downward spiral, his untimely death in 1970, and the legacy of the world's greatest guitarist five decades later.
Our TOPPODCAST Picks 
