A never before heard interview with Shannon Hoon of the band Blind Melon from 1995 one month before he died.

Shannon Hoon transcript can be found here.

When I spoke to Shannon Hoon in September 1995, he and his band, Blind Melon, were on the verge of stardom. Their first album yielded the massive hit single “No Rain,” they had played Woodstock ’94, and they were excited about their new album, “Soup.”

We talked about the new album and how different it was from the band’s debut, about his growing up in Lafayette, Indiana, and about parenthood. His girlfriend Lisa Crouse had just given birth to their daughter, Nico Blue, two months earlier. 

About a month after this interview, Hoon was dead, victim of a cocaine overdose. He was 28.

It was hard to understand his death then, and it’s still difficult today—especially after listening to this conversation again. In 1995, Hoon had a great life to look forward to. He was upbeat, funny, and enjoying his family life.

Now it’s 2019, and he’s been dead almost as long as he was alive.

A few notes:

-We discuss Hoon’s friend and fellow musician Mike Kelsey, a great guitarist whose work has long deserved a much wider audience. Check him out at https://www.michaelkelsey.com/

-At one point, Hoon brings up a negative review of Soup that appeared in the Indianapolis Star. The reviewer wrote: “With a better singer, this band could have some staying power.”

-Hoon references the morning radio team Bob & Tom, which at the time were heard only in the Indianapolis area. Since then, the show has expanded nationally to more than 100 stations.

-Blind Melon continued on without Hoon until 1999, when the group disbanded. After an eight-year hiatus, it teamed up with singer Travis Warren for the album “For My Friends.” Over the next 10 years, the band performed occasionally, and in 2018 they decided to get back together permanently.  

More about Blind Melon is at blindmelon.com.

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