Today, we’re celebrating what would have been the 90th birthday of Elvis Presley.  There’s been a lot written and said about The King over the years, but in this episode, we’re going to let Elvis do a lot of the talking.  We have some amazing audio from the early years.  Most of these clips are from the mid to late ‘50s – and they capture a lot of the excitement – and the freshness of Elvis

Plus we have clips from the people who were there…

-        his label mate Carl Perkins talks about touring with Elvis and Johnny Cash before any of them were well known. 

-        Dick Clark describes how Elvis was seen as a sort of villain compared to the likes of Pat Boone

-        Ed Sullivan explains why Elvis could only be shown from the waist up on his third visit to his show.

-        His collaborators in the late ‘60s explain the stories behind his comeback hits.

All of these clips are from around the time that these events happened – so they capture history as history was being made. Plus, we’ll hear from some of the people who worked with Elvis over the years who will tell the stories behind some of his biggest songs.

     Also, Tom asks Christopher to explain how a trip to Graceland in 1987 with a bunch of Elvis fans led to the creation of “Black Velvet”, which of course was a massive worldwide hit for his musical partner and friend Alannah Myles. 

     And best of all, we hear from the two people who knew Elvis best – his daughter Lisa Marie (in a 2005 chat) and his widow Priscilla (from 2006).

 

Famous Lost Words, hosted by Christopher Ward and Tom Jokic, is heard in more than 100 countries worldwide and on radio stations across Canada, including Newstalk 1010 Toronto, CJAD 800 Montreal, 580 CFRA Ottawa, AM 800 CKLW Windsor, 610 CKTB St Catharines, CFAX Victoria, AM1150 Kelowna and 91x in Belleville.  It is in the Top 20% of worldwide podcasts based on the number of listeners in the first week.

This week, part three of our celebration of ‘70s rock!

Our previous two episodes consisted of interviews that, for the most part, had not been heard on our show before.  But we realized that there were also a number of artists that people were asking about… like Aerosmith, Heart, April Wine… and to the chagrin of Christopher and the joy of Tom… KISS!

What we’re going to do is take highlights from those previous episodes and play the best parts. And we’ll tell you where you can find the original interviews.  It’s a continuation of the ‘70s rock series but almost like a greatest hits package.

Included in this episode is the brutal rivalry between Aersomith and KISS, which at times got pretty ugly.  Plus we have Steve Miller from his heyday and Tom Petty from around the time of his breakout album, Damn The Torpedoes.

Lost Words, hosted by Christopher Ward and Tom Jokic, is heard in more than 100 countries worldwide and on radio stations across Canada, including Newstalk 1010 Toronto, CJAD 800 Montreal, 580 CFRA Ottawa, AM 800 CKLW Windsor, 610 CKTB St Catharines, CFAX Victoria, AM1150 Kelowna and 91x in Belleville.  It is in the Top 20% of worldwide podcasts based on the number of listeners in the first week.

          We start this episode with Tom telling the story of how he almost got fired from his job – and how it almost meant the end of Famous Lost Words before it even started!

Then we continue with our series on ‘70s Rock.  Last week we featured Boston, The Doobie Brothers, Jethro Tull, BTO and others. 

This week, more from that era, including a great series of interview clips with Mick Jones and Lou Gramm of Foreigner, with the latter taking a big swing at the former’s dictatorial ways.

          Then a very interesting interview with Journey, right from the time when they are about to take off – but haven’t yet had a major hit.

          We also have another early career interview with ELO – and the struggle to marry classical and rock and make it work in a live setting.

          Plus, Dennis DeYoung from Styx explains how a Chicago disc jockey changed the fortunes of that band.

          Then, in a clip from the mid ‘70s, Steve Priest of Sweet tells us how they changed their image before they hit North America – and explains the story behind Ballroom Blitz.

          And for Canadian rock fans, we have Prism and Trooper telling us about ambitious plans, their biggest hits, and the toughest Canadian audience to play for.

Lost Words, hosted by Christopher Ward and Tom Jokic, is heard in more than 100 countries worldwide and on radio stations across Canada, including Newstalk 1010 Toronto, CJAD 800 Montreal, 580 CFRA Ottawa, AM 800 CKLW Windsor, 610 CKTB St Catharines, CFAX Victoria, AM1150 Kelowna and 91x in Belleville.  It is in the Top 20% of worldwide podcasts based on the number of listeners in the first week.

We’ve been doing this show for almost 7 years and we’re finally doing series of episodes on that much maligned and much beloved genre… ‘70s rock!

This week, we have classic interviews with the likes of Brad Delp, the phenomenal lead singer of Boston, who we lost far too soon.  Delp talks about his humble beginnings as well as the obsessive leader of the group, Tom Scholz.

We also have some great clips from the Doobie Brothers.  One is from their mid-‘70s heyday, one is with Michael McDonald – and then we have Tom’s 2018 conversation with guitarist Patrick Simmons.  And there’s a very good reason you haven’t heard this interview sooner… but it’s an embarrassing one (for Tom)!

Also, Ian Anderson from Jethro Tull talks about the very funny origin of the band’s name and the story behind their first hit

And we take care of business with one of the most popular bands in Canadian history - BTO!

And Christopher talks about one of the greatest musical experiences of his life – and it happened just a few weeks ago! 

Lost Words, hosted by Christopher Ward and Tom Jokic, is heard in more than 100 countries worldwide and on radio stations across Canada, including Newstalk 1010 Toronto, CJAD 800 Montreal, 580 CFRA Ottawa, AM 800 CKLW Windsor, 610 CKTB St Catharines, CFAX Victoria, AM1150 Kelowna and 91x in Belleville.  It is in the Top 20% of worldwide podcasts based on the number of listeners in the first week.

This week, an excellent 2005 interview with Roger Hodgson, as he reflects on the glory days of Supertramp, his post-breakup years and his relationship with his former bandmates.  Roger also tells the very entertaining stories behind two of Supertramp’s biggest hits.
            We also have Tom’s chat with the wonderful Natasha Bedingfield from the early 2000s.  Natasha is a very good singer and songwriter – and we do a pretty deep dive in a very short time.  And at least once per show, we usually mention how likeable an artist is – and Natasha is this week’s MLA – Most Likeable Artist.
            Last season, we did a couple of in-depth episodes about Soul & R&B music – and they were a lot of fun.  Since then, we have discovered another half-dozen soul artists that had massive hits in the ‘70s – and so we’ve put a bit of a highlight reel together to put the spotlight on these artists that no longer get the attention they deserve.
            And finally… what was it like to live in the shadow of a Beatle?  We have two fascinating interviews – one with Yoko Ono – talking specifically about the haunting song that she and John Lennon were working on the night of his death.  And we have Julian Lennon talking about the complicated relationship he had with his dad, and how he and Yoko finally managed to make peace.  These are short clips, but very revealing.

 

Famous Lost Words, hosted by Christopher Ward and Tom Jokic, is heard in more than 100 countries worldwide and on radio stations across Canada, including Newstalk 1010 Toronto, CJAD 800 Montreal, 580 CFRA Ottawa, AM 800 CKLW Windsor, 610 CKTB St Catharines, CFAX Victoria, AM1150 Kelowna and 91x in Belleville.  It is in the Top 20% of worldwide podcasts based on the number of listeners in the first week.

First up this week is an extraordinary 1992 interview with Lindsey Buckingham.  Lindsey recently turned 75 and is still creating music, but it’s so interesting to hear him more than 30 years ago. Although the interview was ostensibly to promote his solo work, Lindsey talks a lot about Fleetwood Mac – from the early days all the way through to Tango In The Night.  And we even have a bonus clip of Stevie Nicks talking about her frustration with Lindsey when he spent two years working on the Tusk album.

            We also have the incredible story of the making of a hit.  In this case, the hit is “Beth” by KISS – The story is incredible because the star is an eleven year old girl – and even though she’s a little older now, her tale of how she helped make Beth a hit is very entertaining.

            Plus, we talk about one of the most influential women in music.  She not only had a couple of hits herself, she’s also responsible for three of the most important and influential hip hop singles ever made.  Her name is Sylvia Robinson, and we’ll hear a classic clip from her and we'll discuss her legacy!

            And finally, we close out the show with an interview with Eric Carmen, who passed away in May of this year.  Eric was the lead singer of the Raspberries and then had a very successful solo career.  Eric was very strongly opinionated – and you can hear his drive and determination in the clips that we found. 

 

Famous Lost Words, hosted by Christopher Ward and Tom Jokic, is heard in more than 100 countries worldwide and on radio stations across Canada, including Newstalk 1010 Toronto, CJAD 800 Montreal, 580 CFRA Ottawa, AM 800 CKLW Windsor, 610 CKTB St Catharines, CFAX Victoria, AM1150 Kelowna and 91x in Belleville.  It is in the Top 20% of worldwide podcasts based on the number of listeners in the first week.

 

          We are back with Season Ten! 

Christopher and Tom begin by talking about their favourite interviews ever. 

          Then, we launch into one of the best interviews you’ll ever hear with one the most reluctant rock stars ever – Robert Plant.  This 2005 interview with our friend Bill Welychka is very revealing.  And within that interview is three episodes of “When Rock Stars attack… which are all pretty funny.

          Then, we talk about the making of the film, album and song “Purple Rain”, which came out 40 years ago.  And we’ll talk to the author of a book about that movie – and all the stories behind that.  (By the way, you can also hear the long version of that Purple Rain chat in the Famous Lost Words podcast feed, including how Stevie Nicks almost got involved and why Prince decided to call up the guys from Journey.)

          And we have a wonderful segment with the legendary BB King – which includes one of my favourite stories – about how he used to quiet down an unruly audience. 

          All that, plus some Music News about the very contentious lawsuit over who gets to use the name The Guess Who.  And that story has a very good ending if you’re a fan of Burton Cummings and Randy Bachman.

Famous Lost Words, hosted by Christopher Ward and Tom Jokic, is heard in more than 100 countries worldwide and on radio stations across Canada, including Newstalk 1010 Toronto, CJAD 800 Montreal, 580 CFRA Ottawa, AM 800 CKLW Windsor, 610 CKTB St Catharines, CFAX Victoria, AM1150 Kelowna and 91x in Belleville.  It is in the Top 20% of worldwide podcasts based on the number of listeners in the first week.

Season Ten of Famous Lost Words is coming soon!

- You’re days away from hearing Robert Plant take pot shots at just about everyone, including himself.  

- You’ll hear the unusual story of how an 11-year-old was directly responsible for the first big hit by Tom's favourite band.

 – We have Lindsey Buckingham talking about his solo career, Fleetwood Mac, and Stevie Nicks

 – A blues legend reveals his ingenious strategy in dealing with an unruly crowd.

 – Roger Hodgson remembers the height of Supertramp’s popularity and the pain of their breakup

 – You’ll hear Gordon Lightfoot in the feistiest interview from the archives.

– We’ll also have Cool Song Facts, plus a two-part special on ‘70s rock, featuring the likes of Foreigner, Styx, Boston, ELO, Pink Floyd and many more.

– And of course, we can’t forget about “When Rock Stars Attack”, when ego-driven musicians rail at the unfairness of being popular and well-paid.

- We’ll also celebrate the 40th anniversary of MuchMusic – which is pretty handy since Christopher is the original Much VeeJay!  And we'll recruit at least one Much veteran to help us out!

Famous Lost Words, hosted by Christopher Ward and Tom Jokic, is heard in more than 100 countries worldwide and on radio stations across Canada, including Newstalk 1010 Toronto, CJAD 800 Montreal, 580 CFRA Ottawa, AM 800 CKLW Windsor, 610 CKTB St Catharines, CFAX Victoria, AM1150 Kelowna and 91x in Belleville.  It is in the Top 20% of worldwide podcasts based on the number of listeners in the first week.

 

FLW Special - Purple Rain at 40

          In this very special episode, we celebrate the 40th anniversary of the release of the film “Purple Rain”.  The overwhelming success of the movie made Prince the first artist in history to have the same project simultaneously #1 on the singles, albums, and movie charts in the United States.

          We speak to one of the foremost Prince experts; author and podcaster Alan Light.  Alan talks about the creation of Purple Rain the song, the album and the movie.  He also reveals…

• How the version of the title track that we’re all familiar with was recorded in one take at a fundraiser. It was also the first time that 19-year-old Wendy Melvoin had played with the band.
• Movie executives didn’t want to cast Prince in the lead role, and suggested much more famous star (who would have been badly miscast!)
• How Prince tried to recruit Stevie Nicks to help with the lyrics for “Purple Rain” - and why she said no.
• How the movie has held up well (for its live performances) and been held up to ridicule (for its acting performances and misogyny).
• Prince’s tenuous relationship with Morris Day & The Time – and his greatest musical regret.

Alan Light is the prolific author of many music biographies, including his books about Tupac Shakur, Nina Simone and The Beastie Boys.  He also collaborated on “My Cross To Bear”, the Gregg Allman autobiography and Peter Frampton's “Do You Feel Like I Do”.  Other books include “The Holy Or The Broken” – a great history of the Leonard Cohen masterpiece “Hallelujah”; and of course, “Let’s Go Crazy: Prince and the making of Purple Rain”.   Alan is also the co-host of the “Sound Up” podcast with his good friend Marc Goodman.

With Taylor Swift being a big part of the pop culture conversation lately, we thought we’d present three Taylor interviews from our archives, one that has never been heard on FLW.

• From 2019 – a great chat with Taylor and broadcaster Shannon Burns, talking about Swift’s album “Lover” and how it reflects a more positive outlook than the moodier “Reputation”. She also talks about putting “Easter Eggs” in her work as part of a fun dialogue with her fans. (Bonus content for Swifties: Taylor talks about her first meeting with her cat, “Benjamin Button”)
• From 2014 – Taylor joins Roger Ashby and Marilyn Denis to promote “1989”, her first pure pop album. Swift explains why she needed to be honest with her fans about the new direction of her sound. She also talks about the big house party she threw for Swifties. 
• From 2010 – our earliest TS interview in which she tells interviewer Richie Favalaro about her album “Speak Now” and what that album means to her. She also explains how she was surprised that fans could relate to her songs even when they were specifically written for one person. She also talks about performing onstage with Katy Perry.
• Plus, we have some Cool Taylor Facts!

Famous Lost Words, hosted by Christopher Ward and Tom Jokic, is heard in more than 100 countries worldwide and on radio stations across Canada, including Newstalk 1010 Toronto, CJAD 800 Montreal, 580 CFRA Ottawa, AM 800 CKLW Windsor, 610 CKTB St Catharines, CFAX Victoria, AM1150 Kelowna and 91x in Belleville.  It is in the Top 20% of worldwide podcasts based on the number of listeners in the first week.