My Rock Moment

David Leaf is an award winning writer, producer and director and the creative visionary behind such critically acclaimed films as The U.S. vs. John Lennon, The Bee Gees: This Is Where I Came In and Beautiful Dreamer: Brian Wilson and the Story of SMiLE. But he’s also a dear friend of Brian Wilson’s. This was a friendship crafted through David's work on the 1978 book "The Beach Boys and the California Myth." David moved to LA in the mid-70s with the intention of writing a book that told the real story of Brian Wilson at a time of much public misunderstanding for the Beach Boy. The 3rd edition of the book titled "God Only Knows: The Story of Brian Wilson, The Beach Boys and the California Myth" is now available and it celebrates the close friendship David and Brian have cultivated since the first edition, the music Brian created as a solo artist, and it provides that happy ending that the 1st edition could not. 

We deep dive into Brian Wilson’s solo career and the making and much-anticipated release of the album SMiLE. We’ll also talk about some of his favorite rock moments throughout the years with The Bee Gees, Yoko Ono and Frank Sinatra.

To buy "God Only Knows: The Story of Brian Wilson, The Beach Boys and the California Myth" click here:

https://amzn.to/3zNkbbp

My Rock Moment is a proud member of the Pantheon network. http://pantheonpodcasts.com/

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Harvey Kubernik has been a noted author, popular music journalist, and record producer for more than forty years. He is the author of several books, including Canyon of Dreams: The Magic and the Music of Laurel Canyon, A Perfect Haze: The Illustrated History of the Monterey International Pop Festival, It Was 50 Years Ago Today: The Beatles Invade America and Hollywood, and Turn Up the Radio! Rock, Pop, and Roll in Los Angeles 1956–1972.

In today's episode Harvey and I discuss what it was like to grow up as an LA kid in the 60s & 70s, experiencing the west coast rock revolution as it happened. He'll share stories of being on the set of The Monkees TV show, his friendships with Andrew Loog Oldham and Charlie Watts of the Rolling Stones, and he'll recount one memorable night with his dear friend Brian Wilson of The Beach Boys. He’ll also explain the cultural shift that was happening in LA in the late 50s and how major league sports played a big role. 

Check out just some of Harvey Kubernik's books with the links below:

Turn Up the Radio! Rock, Pop, and Roll in Los Angeles 1956–1972

Jimi Hendrix: Voodoo Child

1967: A Complete Rock Music History of the Summer of Love

The Doors Summer's Gone

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Val Garay is a Grammy winning producer and engineer with a legendary career. He’s garnered 5 Grammy wins, over 100 gold and platinum records, an Emmy nomination, and over 125 million worldwide record sales.

He’s worked with legendary artists such as Linda Ronstadt, James Taylor, The Motels, Kim Carnes, Mr. Big, Eric Burdon, Queensryche, Santana, Jackson Browne, Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons, Dolly Parton, Bonnie Raitt and the list goes on!

On today’s episode Val talks about his early days as a musician in LA, getting signed by Lou Adler, becoming an engineer at the well known Sound Factory under legendary engineer / producer, David Hassinger, and eventually owning the premiere recording studio in the 80s.

We’ll also discuss the making of such iconic albums as Linda Ronstadt’s Heart Like a Wheel, James Taylor’s JT and Kim Carnes’ Mistaken Identity…as well as his recent album with Richie Furay, In the Country.

To learn more about Val Garay check out his website here: http://www.valgaray.com/

Find Richie Furay’s new album, In the Country, here: https://www.richiefuray.com/music

Don't forget to follow LA Woman Rocks on Instagram for classic rock photos and stories as well as info on upcoming My Rock moment episodes: https://www.instagram.com/la_woman_rocks/

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Today we’ll be hopping across the pond to discuss The Rolling Stones with journalist, broadcaster and best-selling biographer, Lesley Ann Jones. Jones is the author of The Search for John Lennon; Bohemian Rhapsody: The Definitive Biography of Freddie Mercury; and Hero: David Bowie. A childhood friend of David Bowie, Lesley-Ann has interviewed many of the world's most-loved artists, including Mick Jagger, Paul McCartney, Madonna, and Prince, often forming lifelong friendships with her subjects.

Jones has written a new book: The Stone Age: Sixty Years of The Rolling Stones, and we discuss the book’s fresh perspective on the band. The Stones are bigger than a band, they are a brand – and their reputation has somehow survived the rumors, indiscretions and drug fueled tales that might bring down lesser known bands. The book aims to look at these seemingly infallible men with the lens of today.

You can find information on the book as well as Lesley-Ann’s other books with the links below:

Lesley-Ann Jones' Website: https://www.lesleyannjones.com/

The Stone Age: Sixty Years of the Rolling Stones: https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/The-Stone-Age/Lesley-Ann-Jones/9781639362073

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Jon Scott is the man credited with making Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers one of the biggest bands in the world. One serendipitous day, as a promo man for ABC Records, a little known album by a little known band landed in his lap…and the rest is rock ‘n’ roll history.

In today’s episode we discuss Jon’s book, “Tom Petty and Me,” where Jon recounts his journey with the band and his friendship with Tom Petty. And as we approach the 5 year anniversary of Tom’s passing, the book is a beautiful tribute to who Tom Petty was behind the scenes - his humor, his generosity, his musical genius…his obsession with fax machines!

We’ll also touch on the last concert of Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers’ 40th anniversary tour at The Hollywood Bowl, September 25th, 2017, where Tom pays an emotional tribute to Jon. For those of you that were there - you may have heard it! For those of you who weren’t, we’ve provided audio of that moment in the episode. It’s truly incredible!

You can purchase an autographed copy of the book, with the foreward written by John Mellencamp, here: https://tompettyandme.com

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My Rock Moment sits down with the legendary Danny "Kootch" Kortchmar. Originally from New York, Danny moved to LA in the 60s, settled in Laurel Canyon and made his mark in the LA music scene. Even if you aren't familiar with his name, chances are his work has had a prominent place in your rock playlists.

Danny Kortchmar’s credits as guitarist, producer, songwriter, and session musician include work with James Taylor, Don Henley, Carole King, Linda Ronstadt, Jackson Browne and Billy Joel, among many others. As a songwriter, Kortchmar has both written alone or collaborated with numerous artists, penning indelible tracks such as Don Henley’s “Dirty Laundry,” “All She Wants to Do Is Dance,” and “New York Minute,” as well as Jackson Browne’s “Somebody’s Baby” and “Shaky Town,” to name a few. 

Danny is now with The Immediate Family (the modern iteration of a legendary studio ensemble known as “The Section”), a rock and roll band composed of four of the most recorded, respected and sought-after players in modern music: Danny Kortchmar (guitar and vocals), Waddy Wachtel (guitar and vocals), Leland Sklar (bass), Russ Kunkel (drums) and the addition of prominent touring, session guitarist and songwriter Steve Postell (guitar and vocals).

The Immediate Family had a new EP Live From Telefunken Soundstage come out on May 13. This is a bridge release to the band’s forthcoming second full-length studio album and anticipated documentary, directed by Danny Tedesco (The Wrecking Crew). The film is expected to be released later this year.  

We cover quite a bit of ground in this episode, but check out their website below to learn more about this iconic band of musicians, listen to their latest work and get information on show dates later in the year:

https://www.immediatefamilyband.com/

Please don't forget to RATE and SUBSCRIBE anywhere you listen to podcasts. And if you're a fan of Instagram, follow me @la_woman_rocks for rarely seen classic rock photography and info on upcoming episodes!

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Richie Furay is one of the most well known musicians of our time. As a Rock & Roll Hall of Famer, he is the co-founder of notable bands such as Buffalo Springfield, Poco and Souther-Hillman-Furay Band, and has penned classics like "Kind Woman" and "Pickin' Up the Pieces." He's had quite a successful solo career as well and will be coming out with a new album July 8th called In The Country. The new album pays homage to some of the greatest country and country rock songs of our time.

In this episode we'll discuss the new album and its legendary songs as well as hear stories about the serendipitous moments that lead to the formation of Buffalo Springfield. We'll discuss the move to country rock with Poco and he'll reveal the two famous guitarists who almost joined the band...potentially changing the course of rock as we know it!

Richie's lead a storied life and we'll discuss it all in this episode!

To check out the single from the album, Somebody Like You - click here:

https://richiefuray.lnk.to/SomebodyLikeYou

And for those of you on the east coast this summer, I've provided a list of concert dates. Hope to see you there!

Richie Furay on Tour 2022 (more dates to be announced) 

June 12 – South Orange, NJ @ South Orange Performing Arts Center  

June 16 – Nashville, TN @ City Winery 

June 24 – New York, NY @ City Winery 

July 6 – Washington, D.C. @ City Winery 

July 8 – Philadelphia, PA @ City Winery 

August 12 – Boston, MA @ City Winery 

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Alison Ellwood is an Oscar nominated Director and Producer and her list of documentaries include "American Jihad, Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room" and "Gonzo: The Life and Work of Dr. Hunter S. Thompson." But in this episode we focus on her well known music docs including "History of the Eagles, Laurel Canyon - A place In time, Magic Trip: Ken Kesey’ Search for a Kool Place" (which was a 5 year undertaking) and most recently "The Go-Go's." Alison will share some behind the scenes stories and memorable moments including how the Eagles and Go-Go's documentaries mended some broken relationships within the bands. We'll also talk about Alison’s next documentary…as a hint, this artist was known as being “so unusual” in the 80s!

You can find Alison Ellwood's music documentaries on Amazon Prime!

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Peter M. Bernstein has composed, orchestrated and conducted some of the most well known movies of our time (Ghostbusters & Trading Places among them), including other incredible pieces of work like 21 Jump Street and Michael Jackson’s Thriller. 

He’s also the son of Elmer Bernstein, the Academy Award winning film composer whose credits include The Man With the Golden Arm, The Ten Commandments, The Magnificent Seven, To Kill a Mockingbird and Ghostbusters, among others!

But in 1964, when Peter was a young teen, The Beatles and Bob Dylan entered the scene and for Peter his “whole world changed overnight"...and he decided he wanted to be a bass player.

In this episode we discuss his work as a composer, conductor and orchestrator but we also talk about his time as a bass player in LA. As a young musician in the late 60s and early 70s he was part of that famous Laurel Canyon and Hoot Night Troubadour scene, so he has an interesting perspective on that notable time and many stories to share. 

If you want to know a bit more about Peter and his work, check out his website here: https://petermbernstein.com/

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My Rock Moment chats with rock journalist Jude Warne. Jude wrote the authorized biography on the band America. We'll discuss their meteoric rise, the move from England to LA in the 70s and how they stay one of the most relevant classic rock bands today. If you're a fan of the mellow, California classic rock sound, you'll want to give this one a listen.

Information on Jude Warne and where to buy the book can be found here: https://judewarne.com

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