Coming up, Queen's classic rock standard Killer Queen, a song that will certainly rearrange your mind, or most likely it already has. But here’s the thing, it’s a song story that got taken down by the powers that be. In fact, I tried to do this video a few times, and because I use a word that... isn’t really a bad word per se… but because I used that word from a story told by Freddie Mercury, I got in trouble. So I’m going to try this again and use a replacement word to tell this story, cuz Killer Queen is a great song from a legendary band. So when Queen put this song out, they didn’t have anything to show for their efforts. They had put out two albums, but almost nobody knew who they were outside of their native UK. They had toured across America to try and break through, but their famous guitarist, Brian May, had to be hospitalized, not once but twice. And it stopped all their momentum. They desperately needed a hit song. So Freddie Mercury wrote one in the bathtub. He was bathing, and it just fell into his lap. Freddie was trying to put pen to paper with soapy suds everywhere. And he wrote the song to prove that classy people can be… This is where I got in trouble last time. How do I say this? Freddie wrote it to prove that classic people can be… Uh… Let’s try to explain it next on Professor of Rock.

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Coming up… We’ve covered the Greatest IMPROV songs that became Magic. Well, today we're doing a sister series… We're counting down the Top 7 Mistakes That Turned into Gold. Screw ups that actually resulted in TRUE GREATNESS. We’re exposing songs that didn’t fail—they exploded after a stumble, a split-second miscue that stuck and became iconic. You’ll hear about a Kinks guitarist, Dave Davies, who blew up his amp and it resulted in the first hard rock Song, and invented Guitar Distortion. Then there was Ozzy Osbourne, who laughed through a botched intro to his anthem Crazy Train and let out the most famous three-letter word in rock history, and Ritchie Blackmore, who played a wrong note that sounded like a classical music piece that he turned into the most played riff by those first learning guitar. And then, of course, Paul McCartney, who sang the wrong lyrics and created a classic! The anxious moments that made these tracks legendary on the Top 7 Mistakes that Turned to Gold, NEXT… on Professor of Rock.

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We lost legendary singer-songwriter JD Souther a while back, and it didn’t make the news. It was extremely frustrating because he wrote some of the biggest hits of the 70s and 80s, even into the 90s. He truly deserved better. I was so grateful I got to interview him. In fact, it was the last in-depth interview he ever did. It was an honor. Well, next we have that interview, and he tells us the story behind one of the biggest hits of the early 80s, Heartache Tonight. A #1 smash for the Eagles, a band that was about to destroy each other. Today’s classic song came out of a jam session with the Eagles, and they knew they had a smash hit, but they couldn’t figure out the chorus. Later on, one of the lead singers of the band happened to be on the phone with a famous buddy who gave them the line to finish the chorus right then and there. The music of the song came from a strange use of an instrument, and it sounded like a brawl, which was appropriate because the band would get in a brawl soon enough that would nuke the band for good. Coming up I’m hoping to get through this one without a certain band member taking this down. Let’s see how we do next on Professor of Rock.

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Today, we have a special episode about Pat Benatar's We Belong that has always been a favorite. One of the catchiest songs of the 80s. If you don’t feel great after listening to it, you may need to seek serious therapy. Just kidding. But seriously, it’s quintessential 80s with one of the best female rock voices shepherding it. Today, we have Neil Giraldo, the man who made it so catchy and undeniable. An iconic guitarist and producer who pulled off some crazy acrobatics to achieve the percussion that is the driving force of this song. Neil nearly moved space and time, having the kick drum suspended in the air, and made the drummer twist into a pretzel to get the perfect sound. 

He shares the story next on the Professor of Rock.

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Coming up, we’re cracking open a special edition of Bottled Lightning — and we’ve never done anything quite like this before. We’re counting down the Top 10 one-hit Wonders who left powerhouse bands to go it alone. These were musicians who already had it made in the shade, already had a ton of hits with their band, but when they went solo… it turns out lightning only struck once. And the stories are wild. Like Limahl who was FIRED from his band Kajagoogoo over the phone, right after he took them to #1, but later found redemption with one of the catchiest movie themes of the 80s: The Neverending Story. Or how about the sugary 70s pop star Frida, who got salty on her solo debut — thanks to producer Phil Collins, who sounded like he was drumming with sledgehammers. And then there’s the cool, unshakable voice behind some of power pop’s biggest hits: Benjamin Orr, who had no idea how to write lyrics. So he had his rookie songwriting girlfriend pen his one solo smash. We’ve got the most unforgettable “one and done” solo hits from artists that were larger than life… NEXT on the Professor of Rock.

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Coming up, we’re diving into ten unforgettable rock classics from 1976 that never cracked the Hot 100’s Top 40 — songs you know by heart, but were never “hit singles.” And most of these are better than some of the biggest smash hits of their day. You’ll hear the story of a Robert Plant who was confined to a wheelchair after a serious car crash. And his band named the title Achilles Last Stand after his injury. Then there’s the tale of Boston's sonic genius Tom Scholz, who preferred working in his basement over the recording studio. So when his label tried to get him into the studio, he ran an elaborate scheme to trick them… using his bandmates as decoys. And we’ll unpack a tabloid takedown that Debbie Harry wrote to call out how women were chewed up by the media… and then her own label turned around and used her song to exploit her with a crass ad campaign.

Killer stories, legendary tracks—NEXT on Professor of Rock.

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Coming up next today's Chrissie Hynde went through the most trying time of her life. One day, she had to fire bassist Pete Farndon, one of the co-founders of her band, and then 2 days later, she faced the death of her right-hand man, James Honeyman-Scott, one of the greatest guitarists of his time. To top it all off, Chrissie was pregnant and going through a breakup with her iconic husband Ray Davies. Up next, the story of a true rock and roll warrior who rose from the ashes of losing her bandmates and created Back on the Chain Gang, a song that could make the most heartless person break down. It has become a beacon of the 80s. Coming up next the story of true rock and roll resilience, next on Professor of Rock.

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Coming up, we tell the incredible, outrageous stories of 5 acts that were LEGENDARY for being downright awful, and yet they managed to become cult heroes. Some people actually worshipped them, including some true legends of music. There’s the story of The Shaggs, 3 sisters who were forced to be a trio by their domineering father... because his mother had a dream that his daughters were going to be singing stars. They HATED every second of it and were so bad they got stuff thrown at them when they performed. But they became one of the most influential bands of their time. Then there was Lady Florence, the artist who was so bad, people actually paid top dollar just to make fun of her in concert. Plus Stardust Cowboy, a terrible novelty cowboy that inspired David Bowie to create Ziggy Stardust, as well as a shock singer, Tiny Tim, who actually died while performing his dreadful signature song.

The 5 Worst Acts of the Rock Era is NEXT… on Professor of Rock.

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Coming up… Bad to the Bone, it may be the most recognizable guitar riff ever. George Thorogood, the famous guitarist who wrote it, is with us today. He actually wrote it for his hero, but it was rejected. So he did it himself. And he added a snarling stutter to its chorus that made it a classic. But it wasn’t a hit when it was released in 1982; instead, it ramped up every year after that, becoming more and more prolific. In fact, it became so memorable. It became the signature song for every rebel or bad boy in films and TV, and then became the most famous ringtone for years. Coming up, the story of a riff and a stutter that became the stuff of legend, and took an unknown guitarist who was the opening act for his heroes, and then passed ‘em up with this one. The story is next on Professor of Rock.

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Coming up next, the story of a perfect pop song, Chicago's Hard Habit to Break... In fact, it may be the 80s' greatest pocket symphony that hearkens back to heavenly vocal harmonies of the Beach Boys and the Beatles at their peak. Hard Habit has one of the most powerful and enduring vocal duets of all time, with Peter Cetera and Bill Champlin, who somehow blended perfectly even though they were so different. And we have Bill with us today to recount the hilarious session that birthed this barn burner. In fact, during the recording, the legendary producer and Peter played a practical joke on Bill that saw him recording one line dozens of times, and it was the punchline to their joke… all these years later, he admits it was a brilliant send-up. Plus the at the last second, they needed another verse, and the original writer was off the grid on vacation… When they finally got hold of him, he wrote it over a pay phone in seconds.. Coming up with the story of an 80s classic on Professor of Rock.

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