Today, we are featuring “The Voice of Christmas,” Mr. Johnny Mathis. Over the years, Mr. Mathis has released six Christmas albums. His iconic first holiday record, Merry Christmas, is a tribute to his mother and father and still stands as one of the most beloved collections of Christmas music ever. Now 87 years-old, Johnny is celebrating his 66th year as a recording artist. And he’s still performing. In fact, we only had a brief 30 minutes to speak with him because he needs to save his voice for his rigorous performing schedule.
On today's episode, Justin Richmond talks to Johnny about his illustrious career, and performing with greats like Duke Ellington and Nat King Cole. And Johnny shares the story about how he turned down the opportunity to qualify for the 1956 Olympics to launch his music career.
You can hear a playlist of some of our favorite Johnny Mathis songs HERE. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Johnny Mathis

From Rick Rubin, Malcolm Gladwell, Bruce Headlam, and Justin Richmond. The musicians you love talk about their life, inspiration, and craft. Then play. iHeartMedia is the exclusive podcast partner of Pushkin Industries.

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Ann Wilson is the powerhouse lead singer of the band Heart, whose celebrated classic debut album, Dreamboat Annie, came out nearly 50 years ago. Last week we featured an interview with her sister and longtime bandmate Nancy Wilson, so make sure to check that out if you haven’t already.
Today we’ll hear from Ann, who’s responsible for belting out and co-writing some of Heart’s most iconic early hits, like “Magic Man,” “Barracuda,” and “Crazy On You.” Four years older than Nancy, Ann was the first Wilson sister to join Heart, a band that started out as a cabaret cover band. Despite undergoing multiple lineup changes since the '70s, Heart has released top 10 albums in nearly every decade in the last 50 years, and sold over 20 million albums worldwide.
Outside of Heart, Ann has also released solo material, including an album in 2023 with her band, Tripsitter.
On today’s episode Leah Rose talks to Ann Wilson about Heart’s current world tour, and the Elton John album she sings before every show to warm up her voice. Ann also explains how she would strategically place guitars around her house when having parties at her Seattle home in the '90s to encourage jam sessions with guests like Lane Staley and Chris Cornell. And she remembers singing on stage with Grace Slick and Stevie Nicks, who Ann says really is a good witch.
You can hear a playlist of some of our favorite Heart songs HERE. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Heart's Ann Wilson

Guitarist and songwriter Nancy Wilson is one half of the rock band Heart, along with her older sister Ann Wilson. Nancy and Ann have been the face of the band since the mid-70s. Heart’s first album, Dreamboat Annie, was released in 1976 right as the band was making traction opening for big acts like Rod Stewart and The Bee Gees. Soon their songs, like “Magic Man” and “Crazy On You,” started to take off in the States, and Heart quickly became a headlining act.
Nearly 50 years since their debut album, Heart has experienced career highs—like a string of chart-topping hits and an induction into the Rock N Roll Hall Of Fame—as well as their fair share of personal and professional adversity. Today Ann and Nancy remain steadfast in continuing Heart’s legacy. This month they embarked on a world tour—their first in five years.
To celebrate Ann and Nancy Wilson’s massive contribution to rock n roll history, we will feature conversations with both sisters over the next two weeks. Today we’ll hear Leah Rose talk to Nancy about how the popular drugs of the ‘70s and ‘80s influenced Heart’s sound. She also describes how being accepted by the musicians of Seattle’s grunge scene helped her overcome Heart’s fraught experience recording power ballads in the ‘80s. And she describes the lo-fi setup she used to score the soundtracks of her ex-husband Cameron Crowe’s hit movies: Almost Famous, Vanilla Sky, and Jerry McGuire.
You can hear a playlist of some of our favorite Heart songs HERE. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Heart's Nancy Wilson

Stone Gossard and Jeff Ament are two of the Seattle scene’s most foundational musicians from the 80’s and 90’s. Stone and Jeff started playing together in 1984 as members of Green River, which eventually dissolved, leading singer Mark Arm to form Mudhoney.
Later, Jeff played bass and Stone played guitar in Mother Love Bone until their lead singer Andrew Wood died of an overdose just days before their major label debut in March of 1990. Reeling from Andy’s death, Jeff and Stone started recording with Soundgarden’s Chris Cornell on a side project called Temple Of The Dog that featured vocals from a then unknown singer from San Diego named Eddie Vedder.
Later that year, Jeff and Stone asked Eddie to join their new band with guitarist Mike McCready. As Pearl Jam, they released their debut album Ten in August of ‘91—the album went 13 times platinum and charted on Billboard for nearly five years.
Since then, Pearl Jam have released 11 more albums and built a die-hard fan base thanks in part to their outstanding live shows. Last week they released their latest album, Dark Matter, which was produced by Andrew Watt, who's recently worked with Miley Cyrus, Iggy Pop, Post Malone and Ozzy Osborne.
On today’s episode Leah Rose talks to Stone Gossard and Jeff Ament about how Andrew Watt’s encyclopedic knowledge of Pearl Jam helped inspire some of their best performances to date. Stone and Jeff also open up about the inner-workings of their professional relationship, and Stone remembers the first time he met Eddie Vedder, who marked the occasion by passing him a hand-written poem.
You can hear a playlist of some of our favorite Pearl Jam songs HERE. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Pearl Jam's Stone Gossard and Jeff Ament

16 years have passed since The Black Crowes released an album of new material. The world has changed a lot since then—and so have the Robinson brothers. Chris and Rich Robinson are, of course, the backbone of the band. They started playing together back in Georgia in 1984 as Mr. Crowe’s Garden before moving to NYC, signing to Def American, and changing their name to The Black Crowes.
The band’s debut album, Shake Your Money Maker, set them up as the torchbearers of Southern rock for the '90s and beyond. As you’ll hear in today's conversation, the brothers Robinson have had a competitive relationship for a long time. Their ups and downs have meant hiatuses for the band over the years. But now they’re back united and seemingly in it for the long haul with their new album, Happiness Bastards.
On today’s episode Justin Richmond talks to Chris Robinson about his growing up in Georgia with Rich, their dad’s rockabilly career, and how his road habits have changed from indulging in champagne and other substances to reading Herman Melville.
You can hear a playlist of some of our favorite songs from Chris Robinson & The Black Crowes HERE. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Chris Robinson

Famed drummer for the Police and composer Stewart Copeland has one of the more fascinating bios in modern music. His father was a founding member of the CIA and his mom worked in British Intelligence.
After playing in the successful UK prog rock band Curved Air in the mid 70s, Stewart started a new band called the Police with bassist and lead singer, Sting—and eventually guitarist Andy Summers. Over the next decade the Police would go on to become one of the top-selling rock bands of all time, selling over 75 million records.
Last year Stewart released the book, “Stewart Copeland’s Police Diaries,” which includes his personal notes dating back to the band’s formation in 1976 through 1978, when they started to take off.
On today’s episode Bruce Headlam talks to Stewart Copeland about the first time he saw Sting play and how he was able to successfully lure him into his then non-existent band. Stewart also explains why he and Sting eventually had a musical falling out, and how the Arabic rhythms he heard growing up influenced his highly lauded drumming style.
You can hear a playlist of some of our favorite songs from Stewart Copeland and The Police HERE. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Johnny Mathis

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