Tenor Sam Moore and baritone David Prater Jr. made beautiful music together, but they fought like cats and dogs. Still, they had more success as a duo than they did when they went their separate ways as solo artists. As Sam & Dave, they had 10 consecutive Top 20 R&B hits and two Top 10 Billboard Hot 100 hits.

In this tribute to Moore, you can learn the story behind the Sam & Dave partnership including how they decided to form a duo, their turbulent professional relationship and their personal demons. Known as the "sultans of sweat," they were known for their over-the-top performances and recorded successfully at Stax Records in Memphis with Isaac Hayes and Booker T. & the M.G.'s. In fact, Hayes co-wrote Sam & Dave's hit "Soul Man." How did Hayes and his co-writer, David Porter, get inspired to write "Soul Man"? You'll learn that in this episode too.

The black and white photo in the thumbnail is a publicity shot of Sam & Dave taken for a Stax trade ad in Billboard in 1967 to publicize their single "When Something Is Wrong With My Babe." Moore is on the left. The artwork framing two sides of the photo was created by Bob Jones.

Song of the Day creator Sheldon Zoldan researched, wrote and narrated this short story, one of 35 tributes to music stars who passed away in 2025. Song of the Day used to be a daily feature delivered to an email list of subscribers. Sheldon ended it in early 2026 which, I suppose, means that Song of the Day deserves a tribute of its own. The good thing is that the tributes to music makers live on.

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This is Kate Jones. Thank you for listening to Everyday Creation®, available on YouTube and in major podcast directories including Apple, Spotify, iHeart and Audible.

Lenny Lipton was studying electrical engineering at Cornell University when he wrote a poem that turned into a song. That song eventually became a hit, thanks to Lipton's roommate who later became Peter in Peter, Paul and Mary. Find out how all that came about in this short story by Sheldon Zoldan. 

The thumbnail photo of Lipton is a self-portrait that Lipton shot with a Pixel 3 phone in 2021. It's available on Wikimedia under the license CC BY-SA 4.0. The artwork framing two sides of the photo was created by Bob Jones.

Song of the Day creator Sheldon Zoldan researched, wrote and narrated this short story, one of 35 tributes to music stars who passed away in 2025. Song of the Day used to be a daily feature delivered to an email list of subscribers. Sheldon ended it in early 2026 which, I suppose, means that Song of the Day also deserves a tribute. The good thing is that the tributes live on.

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This is Kate Jones. Thank you for listening to Everyday Creation®, available on YouTube and in major podcast directories including Apple, Spotify, iHeart and Audible.

Human beings are complicated and, as a result, life stories can include some not-so-shining moments. This is certainly true of this obituary for Peter Yarrow of Peter, Paul and Mary fame. 

Sheldon Zoldan's story about Yarrow covers the highs and lows of the singer's career. Yarrow was a member of 1960s folk trio Peter, Paul and Mary, who were the voices of the civil rights and anti-war movements. They had 11 top 40 singles, multiple Top 10 hits, one No. 1 single and two No. 1 albums.

The trio split in 1969 to pursue solo careers and also because Yarrow was accused of assaulting a 14-year-old girl.

Yarrow's notable songs include "Puff the Magic Dragon," based on a poem by former roommate Lenny Lipton. Sheldon wrote a tribute to Lipton, who died in 2022. Recently re-released as Episode 138, the episode is titled This Engineer's Inspiration to Write a Poem Led to "Puff the Magic Dragon" Becoming a Hit Song. 

Yarrow also wrote "Day Is Done," which was Peter, Paul and Mary's last single, peaking at No. 21 on the Billboard Hot 100. In the chapters, you'll see a promotional photo of the trio in 1968. Pictured from left to right: Paul Stookey, Yarrow and Mary Travers. There's also a shot of the "Day Is Done" album cover.

The thumbnail photo, which appears in the chapters as well, was taken of Yarrow in 2008 in San Diego by Phil Konstantin and is available for use on Creative Commons under the license CC BY-SA 3.0.

The art that frames two sides of the photo was created by Bob Jones.

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This is Kate Jones. Thank you for listening to Everyday Creation®, available on YouTube and in major podcast directories including Apple, Spotify, iHeart and Audible.

Courtesy of a friend, a few words of encouragement serve as a mantra for coping with this year of change and chaos. In this video, I share them with you along with a bit of info on the Year of the Horse designation in Chinese astrology. 

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This is Kate Jones. Thank you for listening to Everyday Creation®, available on YouTube and in major podcast directories including Apple, Spotify, iHeart and Audible.

Brenton Wood offered these final words to his fans: "Catch you on the rebound," referencing one of his songs.

Brenton Wood wasn't his given name. In this episode, learn the inspiration behind the stage name, and also the moment that piqued his interest in pursuing a musical career.

In 1967, after a career peak with three hits: "Gimme Little Sign," "The Oogum Boogum Song" and "Baby You Got It," he continued writing, recording and performing nearly until his death.

The thumbnail image of Wood was a promo shot for "The Oogum Boogum Song." Credited to Double Shot Records, it appeared in Billboard on April 29, 1967. The art that frames the photo on two sides was created by Bob Jones. 

Song of the Day creator Sheldon Zoldan researched, wrote and narrated this short story, one of 35 tributes to music stars who passed away in 2025. Song of the Day used to be a daily feature delivered to an email list of subscribers. Sheldon ended it in early 2026 which, I suppose, means that Song of the Day also deserves a tribute. The good thing is that the tributes live on.

Send us Fan Mail

This is Kate Jones. Thank you for listening to Everyday Creation®, available on YouTube and in major podcast directories including Apple, Spotify, iHeart and Audible.

What began as a book about the Vietnam War evolved into a candid memoir about a self-centered life of thrill-seeking adventure transformed into one focused on service and meaning.

"Quest: Risk, Adventure and the Search for Meaning" by John Graham is available in print, on Kindle and as an audio book. To watch a brief video that promotes the book, go here.

In this episode, you'll hear about John's close brushes with death; one long-ago personal failing that still weighs on him; life-changing mystical experiences; and struggles to shift from an adrenaline-fueled life to service-oriented work that includes his involvement with the Giraffe Heroes Project for nearly 45 years. 

Founded by his wife Ann Medlock, the Giraffe Heroes Project highlights individuals who "stick their necks out" for public good. You can learn more on the project's website. 

The black and white photo in the thumbnail is of a young John during a death-defying climb in Alaska. The picture is one of many in his new book, "Denali Diaries," which is available to access for free on John's site.

John's short-form video series "Badass Granddad," on TikTok, Instagram and YouTube, is his way to reach a younger demographic. The "Badass" episode about the war in Iran, mentioned in this conversation, was published on March 24. Here's a link. One of my favorite "Badass" episodes is the latest as of today. It's Ep. 70 about taking smart risks vs. stupid ones.

Underlying each of John's projects is this message: Pursue meaning through giving back, use your personal skills to serve, and be willing to take risks for the public good. 

"Quest" is a well-told story about John's remarkable life. I recommend it highly.

Also want to mention that the artwork framing the photos in the thumbnail is by my brother-in-law, Bob Jones, a prolific creator in his own right. 

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This is Kate Jones. Thank you for listening to Everyday Creation®, available on YouTube and in major podcast directories including Apple, Spotify, iHeart and Audible.

Garth Hudson agreed to join the Hawks, a precursor to The Band, on two conditions: that he'd be paid a little extra to be the group's music teacher, and that he'd have a Lowery organ to play. 

This tribute to Hudson includes a reference to The Band's song "Chest Fever." Hudson wasn't a singer or a songwriter, but he contributed mightily to the song's success with an intro based on J.S. Bach's Toccata and Fugue in D minor. You can hear "Chest Fever (remastered 2000) here. 

To listen to the Bach piece, head to YouTube where you'll have choices. Here's a link to one cool version and to another. 

The public domain photo of The Band in this episode's thumbnail was taken by Elliott Landy in 1969 for Capitol Records. Pictured from left: Richard Manuel,  Hudson, Levon Helm, Robbie Robertson, Rick Danko. The photo was used for a trade ad in Billboard for the single "Time To Kill" / "The Shape I'm In." If you want to download your own copy, you can find it on Wikimedia.

In the chapters, there's a photo of Hudson in May 1971 during a performance with The Band in Hamburg. It was taken by Heinrich Klaffs and is available for reuse under the license CC BY-SA 2.0 on Wikimedia.

The artwork framing the top and bottom of the photo was created by Bob Jones.

Song of the Day creator Sheldon Zoldan researched, wrote and narrated this short story, one of 35 tributes to music stars who passed away in 2025. Song of the Day used to be a daily feature delivered to an email list of subscribers. Sheldon ended it in early 2026 which, I suppose, means that Song of the Day deserves a tribute of its own. The good thing is that the tributes to music makers live on.

Send us Fan Mail

This is Kate Jones. Thank you for listening to Everyday Creation®, available on YouTube and in major podcast directories including Apple, Spotify, iHeart and Audible.

For fans of historical fiction and anyone who loves a great story, here's a recommendation: Maria Tureaud's gothic novel "This House Will Feed." It's set during Ireland's Great Hunger, also known by its Irish name, An Gorta Mór. 

The author was born and raised in a part of Ireland that was devastated by the Great Hunger during the mid-1800s, yet she barely learned anything about the area's tragic history when she was growing up. She says it wasn't taught in school. Then she left Ireland to spend her junior year in college as an exchange student in the United States. She signed up for an Irish history class, expecting it to be an easy A. Instead, her eyes were opened to the atrocities that were committed during that terrible time. 

In this episode, Tureaud talks about why she didn't really want to tackle the subject of the Great Hunger yet felt compelled to write about it. She also discusses why she chose to make it a gothic story; how she developed her main character, Maggie O'Shaughnessy, and how the process affected Tureaud's personal life. Other topics include the urge to someday move back to her home country, as well as her own path to becoming published with some advice for others wanting the same. 

"This House Will Feed" came out at the end of January 2026. Tureaud's next Irish gothic historical novel, "Beneath It Sleeps," will be published in January of 2027. Also, before she entered the realm of adult books, she wrote a middle-grade paranormal novel titled "The Last Hope in Hopetown," which was published in 2022.

You'll hear about all this and much more (for example, the difference between masculine rage and feminine rage, revenge vs. vengeance). Please join us for an illuminating — and fun — conversation.

This is such a good book. Hope you're inspired to read it. 

Also, if you like the thumbnail for this episode, please let me know. The artwork behind the book cover is by my brother-in-law, Bob Jones, a prolific creator in his own right. 

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This is Kate Jones. Thank you for listening to Everyday Creation®, available on YouTube and in major podcast directories including Apple, Spotify, iHeart and Audible.

For these two calming techniques, all that's involved is breathing in and out and focusing one's mind. They take maybe a minute or so to do both of them. I've found that they help me a lot when I'm feeling stressed, and I really like doing them proactively too — just to get into the right mindset at the beginning of the day or anytime. 

Please try them out to see whether they also help you manage stress and feel more clearheaded, and let me know by using the text link below. 

Credit and gratitude go to Bob Jones of Wyoming who created the artwork in the thumbnail. 

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This is Kate Jones. Thank you for listening to Everyday Creation®, available on YouTube and in major podcast directories including Apple, Spotify, iHeart and Audible.

I recorded this short video after the fatal shooting of U.S. citizen Renée Nicole Good, a mother and poet, and before Veterans Administration nurse and U.S. citizen Alex Jeffrey Pretti died, also at the hands of ICE. Each was shot at what has been reported as a peaceful protest.

These are tense times and, more than ever, we need to follow the examples set by Good and Pretti by being more kind, not less so. Kindness is a form of love and, ultimately, love is far stronger and more resilient than the hate of bullies. In honor of all those who have been harmed by hate, let's spread love and lots of it.

The vibrant artwork in the thumbnail is by Wyoming artist Bob Jones. Art is subjective, of course. To me, the angles capture the edginess of the moment.

And, by the way, "For What It's Worth" by Buffalo Springfield made VegOut newsletter's list of "8 songs boomers still love because it reminds them who they were before responsibilities." Check out the entire list by searching "vegoutmag.com/lifestyle/k-bt-8-songs-boomers-still-love."

Here's a link to the official Buffalo Springfield video.

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This is Kate Jones. Thank you for listening to Everyday Creation®, available on YouTube and in major podcast directories including Apple, Spotify, iHeart and Audible.