The Hardest Podcast to Podcast

Jack and Meg loved Bob Dylan. And with the White Stripes' future still unknown when they recorded their first album in 1999, it made perfect sense to include a Dylan cover on the record.

Jack Riedy and Ryan discuss this early White Stripes track, which was being performed live as far back as the summer of 1998. They explore Dylan's impact on music and on the band, and trace how the song evolved live throughout the White Stripes' entire tenure.

Jack Riedy is an excellent artist out of Chicago, Illinois and you should stream his great single "My Friends Were Right." Check him out performing live around Chicago in October and November.

Hosted and produced by Ryan Schaap

Artwork: Catlin Likely

Assistant Editorial Producer: Amanda Schultz

Looking for more content? Check out our new segment "Any Fan with a Microphone" coming out Friday, the Dublin/London vlog, and all our previous bonus content, available only on our Patreon: Patreon.com/hardestpodtopod

Buy me a coffee: buymeacoffee.com/hardestpodtopod

Are you finding it harder to be a gentleman every day? That's okay, it happens to the best of us!

Ryan is joined by Toronto musician Marlon Chaplin to discuss one of the countless standout tracks off 2001's White Blood Cells. They dive deep into Jack White's lyrics and word play, and Marlon points out how Meg White's unique drumming gave the song a whole new life and vibe.

Marlon Chaplin performs in The Brokes - a fantastic band paying tribute to the legendary Strokes at a much friendlier price point. He is also a solo artist and you can pre-save his new single Porcelain, which is available October 16!

Hosted and produced by Ryan Schaap

Artwork: Catlin Likely

Assistant Editorial Producer: Amanda Schultz

Check out our upcoming Dublin/London vlog showcasing all the Jack White/TMR stops on our trip and all our previous bonus content, available only on our Patreon: Patreon.com/hardestpodtopod

Buy me a coffee: buymeacoffee.com/hardestpodtopod

Ryan starts and ends the episode recording live from Third Man Records London!

300 M.P.H. Torrential Outpour Blues perfectly encapsulates the White Stripes and the chaos of their final album, 2007's Icky Thump.

Brett and Ryan sit down to discuss one of Jack and Meg's loudest tracks, and really look at how differently Jack White approaches the acoustic guitar compared to the electric. They chat about the band's goal to incorporate as many variations of the blues as possible into one song, and look at how much more comfortable playing the blues the band became compared to their early years.

Brett performs in the great band The Vidos, perfecting the art of sludge pop, check out their new EP Gimme Some Sugar, Babe featuring the great track We Wont Waste Whine!

Hosted and produced by Ryan Schaap

Artwork: Catlin Likely

Assistant Editorial Producer: Amanda Schultz

Check out our upcoming vlog of Dublin and London, and all our previous bonus content, available only on our Patreon: Patreon.com/hardestpodtopod

Buy me a coffee: buymeacoffee.com/hardestpodtopod

The White Stripes recorded and released their cover of "Walking with a Ghost" in December 2005, fourteen months after Tegan and Sara's 2004 album So Jealous was released, with the song chosen as the album's first single.

Ryan chats with Sara Quin about the origin of her song, the inspiration behind it, and how it became one of their biggest songs to date. They also discuss the direction the band was heading in as they prepared to record their fourth studio album, how they learned the White Stripes were covering their song live, and how Meg White met Tegan and Sara after a Detroit show to play them their cover. And then they hit the bowling alley.

Sara Quin is one half of the iconic indie pop duo Tegan and Sara. She co-authored their beautiful memoir 'High School' and co-founded the Tegan and Sara Foundation, which continues to invest in the potential of 2S LGBTQ+ communities.

Hosted and produced by Ryan Schaap

Artwork: Catlin Likely

Assistant Editorial Producer: Amanda Schultz

Hey! Check out my review of Jack White's seventh solo album "Frozen Charlotte" and take a tour of my personal White Stripes' vinyl collection, available only on our Patreon: Patreon.com/hardestpodtopod

Buy me a coffee: buymeacoffee.com/hardestpodtopod

Effect and Cause is the final song on the White Stripes' album Icky Thump and, subsequently, the final song of the band's album discography.

Ryan and Discord discuss the song's clever wordplay and the underlying story Jack is trying to tell about being in a relationship where two people are not at their best, though one person possesses some self-awareness. They also discuss the parallels between the White Stripes, the characters Jack and Meg created, and the world of drag.

How does this song serve as the band's post-meal palate cleanser? They discuss!

Discord Addams recently competed in 18th season of the iconic RuPaul's Drag Race, and you can watch her webseries FUCK THIS on WOWPresents' YouTube channel.

Hosted and produced by Ryan Schaap

Artwork: Catlin Likely

Assistant Editorial Producer: Amanda Schultz

Hey! Check out my review of Jack White's seventh solo album "Frozen Charlotte" and take a tour of my personal White Stripes' vinyl collection, available only on our Patreon: Patreon.com/hardestpodtopod

Buy me a coffee: buymeacoffee.com/hardestpodtopod

"Nobody sang the blues like Blind Willie McTell." Jack White said it best, and in late 2000, the White Stripes released an amalgamation of two of McTell's songs, "Lord, Send Me an Angel" and "Ticket Agent Blues."

Ryan and Courtney discuss the song, Blind Willie McTell's influence on Jack and Meg's music, and the White Stripes' ambitious tour of Japan, New Zealand, and Australia. Courtney also provides tremendous analysis of the White Stripes' album artwork, including a deep dive into the artwork for this single.

Courtney Presto is a branding director whose incredible content explores the visual language of music through colour and design. Follow her on Instagram.

Hosted and produced by Ryan Schaap

Artwork: Catlin Likely

Assistant Editorial Producer: Amanda Schultz

Hey! Check out my review of Jack White's seventh solo album "Frozen Charlotte" and take a tour of my personal White Stripes' vinyl collection, available only on our Patreon: Patreon.com/hardestpodtopod

Buy me a coffee: buymeacoffee.com/hardestpodtopod

After receiving an invitation to an exclusive event featuring Jack White at Reverb in Chicago, Ryan hopped aboard a red-eye flight, made his way to Goose Island, and did what we've all been waiting more than a year for him to do: ask Jack White to be a guest on the podcast.

Ryan is joined by the podcast's assistant editorial producer, and his wife, Amanda, to talk about the whirlwind trip to Chicago, meeting Jack White, and finding a way into his sold-out show at The Salt Shed.

Hosted and produced by Ryan Schaap

Artwork: Catlin Likely

Assistant Editorial Producer: Amanda Schultz

Hey! Check out my review of Jack's new album 'Frozen Charlotte' and a tour of my personal White Stripes' vinyl collection, available only on our Patreon: Patreon.com/hardestpodtopod

Buy me a coffee: buymeacoffee.com/hardestpodtopod

The Denial Twist was the third and final single from 2005's Get Behind Me Satan and the final White Stripes music video directed by Michel Gondry.

Ryan and Josh discuss the demo recordings of the melody and piano riff captured on Jack White's handheld tape recorder, whether the song felt incomplete according to Pitchfork's review, and how the music video sparked the next chapter in the friendship between Jack, Meg, and Conan O'Brien.

Josh Custodio is the host of the fantastic Wrestling Brain Twitch stream. His Patreon does not disappoint either.

Hosted and produced by Ryan Schaap

Artwork: Catlin Likely

Assistant Editorial Producer: Amanda Schultz

Hey! Check out my personal White Stripes' vinyl collection, available only on our Patreon: Patreon.com/hardestpodtopod

Buy me a coffee: buymeacoffee.com/hardestpodtopod

An interesting track off 2001's White Blood Cells, "Offend In Every Way" tells the akward teenage story of not being able to fit in anywhere while battling with imposter syndrome.

Ryan and Kyle have a lively discussion about the themes of this song, how it works more as a diary entry of Jack White's younger life, and not a tale written in retrospect.

Kyle Rosse is the host of the 'Hey Smiling Strange' podcast and created Klubhouse - the version of fantasy football built around more trades, more decisions, more reasons to keep playing in October.

Hosted and produced by Ryan Schaap

Artwork: Catlin Likely

Assistant Editorial Producer: Amanda Schultz

Hey! Check out my personal White Stripes' vinyl collection, available only on our Patreon: Patreon.com/hardestpodtopod

Buy me a coffee: buymeacoffee.com/hardestpodtopod

One of the biggest and loudest White Stripes songs, and its about slowly becoming more and more like your partner!

Ryan and Mike discuss this fantastic track off 2007's Icky Thump that took more than 15 tracks to record the album version. It immediately took on a life of it's own live, and both the White Stripes and Jack as a solo artist loved playing this song.

Mike Noble plays bass in Hotel Mira. Listen to their latest album "Pity Party" and check them out this summer at a one of their festival gigs in western Canada and the western United States!

Hosted and produced by Ryan Schaap

Artwork: Catlin Likely

Assistant Editorial Producer: Amanda Schultz

Bonus content is available to our monthly backers at Patreon.com/hardestpodtopod

Buy me a coffee: buymeacoffee.com/hardestpodtopod