On one of my laptops I have a folder where I toss in any cover versions that I think could possibly include in a Ledge episode. Once that folder has a sufficient number of songs I know it’s time to do a covers show.

This is that time. The folder is full. Overloaded, in fact. So tonight is nothing but remakes of great tunes. Some of them are well-known songs by the likes of Tom Petty, John Lennon, and The Rolling Stones, and The Ramones. Others may not be so obvious, such as Freddie Dilevi’s version of “Johnny Remember Me”, a 1961 UK number one hit song by John Leyton. It’s a fun show that’s perfect for this time of endless political turmoil.

After listening, please go purchase those tracks you enjoy! These great artists deserve to be compensated for their hard work, and every purchase surely helps not only pay their bills but fund their next set of wonderful songs.

Due to Gorman Bechard’s appearance last week, this month’s new release episode was bumped back a week. But this delay turned out to be for the benefit of the show, as it allowed for me to include some brand new tracks by The Replacements. Well, not brand new, of course, as they’re defunct but today marked the release of the Deluxe Edition box set of Pleased To Meet Me. Along with a remaster of the original record, this box set is full of demos and outtakes, and tonight’s show kicks off with a handful of songs that didn’t originally make the cut.

After that it’s the typical collection of great new punk, indie, garage, and Americana releases. Some of the highlights include new albums by the likes of Lydia Loveless, Drive-By Truckers, and Bob Mould. There’s also the usual lengthy section devoted to new music from Rum Bar Records. How does Lou keep finding these great new bands?

After listening, please go purchase those tracks you enjoy! These great artists deserve to be compensated for their hard work, and every purchase surely helps not only pay their bills but fund their next set of wonderful songs

It’s always a lot of fun when Gorman Bechard appears on The Ledge, and this week was no exception. He’s got two brand new documentaries that were released this past Tuesday, and both are pretty fantastic. Pizza: A Love Story is all about the legendary New Haven pizza, and the award-winning trio of family businesses that created the edible delights that I’ve personally heard Gorman ramble on and on about for well over a decade. New Haven historian Colin M. Caplan sits in on this portion of the show to talk about the research that went into the creation of this film.

The other film, Seniors: A Dogumentary is as perfect of a feel-good story as one can possibly make. How can you not love a film that collects a number of tales involving such amazing elderly dogs? Much of the film centers around the Old Friends Senior Dog Sanctuary, an organization that houses and fosters elderly dogs, but there’s other fabulous dog tales such as the heartwarming tale of Chaser, who proves why he is generally considered the smartest dog in the world. Dean Falcone, who created the music on both films, also chats about his innovative idea to use nothing but toy instruments on the film soundtrack.

As always, Gorman is also giving the key to the Ledge soundtrack this week, and his choices not only includes some of Falcone’s soundtrack work but recent releases by Lydia Loveless, Todd May, Soccer Mommy, and S.G. Goodman.

The last few months have seen a ton of great compilation records come out. Some have been all covers. Many have been label or genre samplers. Others have been benefits for great causes. What unites them all is that so many of them have been full of great tunes.

Today sees the release of one of those records. Stardumb Records is celebrating their 20th anniversary this year, and they have just released a compilaton consisting of 28 artists covering another of the great bands that have been on the label over the last two decades. This is a comp all Ledge fans should own!

After listening, please go purchase those tracks you enjoy! These great artists deserve to be compensated for their hard work, and every purchase surely helps not only pay their bills but fund their next set of wonderful songs.

As it’s my birthday today it’s only fitting that I put together another in my series of favorite songs of all time. This time around, it’s primarily songs from the 90’s, although a handful of songs actually come from records released in the next decade.

After listening, please go purchase those tracks you enjoy! These great artists deserve to be compensated for their hard work, and every purchase surely helps not only pay their bills but fund their next set of wonderful songs.

It’s another great month of new releases. I know I say that every month but we are living in a time where somehow artists are still creating fabulous, vital music. Just take a listen to this two hours of rock, folk, punk, surf, indie, and a few other genres. You just can’t say rock and roll is dead.

After listening, please go purchase those tracks you enjoy! These great artists deserve to be compensated for their hard work, and every purchase surely helps not only pay their bills but fund their next set of wonderful songs.

The calendar may have a different definition, but summer to me has always been the months of June, July, and August. With that in mind, since tonight was my last show for August I decided to put together a show of nothing but my favorite new records from the summer of 2020.

And as I tend to always say, it’s been a fabulous period for new tunes. There’s all kinds of stuff guaranteed for any type of rock and roll fan. From elderly artists such as Bob Dylan to the teen rock of Hinds, it’s a summer of punk, garage, indie, power pop, post-punk, and Americana. In other words, Ledge music.

After listening, please go purchase those tracks you enjoy! These great artists deserve to be compensated for their hard work, and every purchase surely helps not only pay their bills but fund their next set of wonderful songs.

This may be a second part of a new release series, but there’s certainly no drop in quality. How could it be when the beginning of the show features a sneak peak of the upcoming Replacements’ “Pleased to Meet Me Deluxe Edition” set? Tonight I played the already-released teasers from that box set, and also celebrated former guitarist Slim Dunlap’s birthday with a trio of tracks from the brand new “Thank You Dancers” live album.

Adding to the greatness of the show is the advance I recently received from my friend Greg Lonesome of his new “Rock N Roll Manifest 7″ Single Series, Vol. 1”. Of course I played all four tracks from that great single which Greg says will be available September 1. Click here for more info!

After listening, please go purchase those tracks you enjoy! These great artists deserve to be compensated for their hard work, and every purchase surely helps not only pay their bills but fund their next set of wonderful songs.

It’s another super-busy month of new music. In fact, once again the new release series has to be split into a two-part extravaganza.

Part one features previews of new records by Ledge favorites such as Son Volt and Lydia Loveless. There’s the surprising returns of The Psychedelic Furs and The Go-Go’s. Great returns by young acts such as Public Eye, Paint, and Dehd. And finally there’s a full 30 minutes of great new rock and roll from Rum Bar Records!

After listening, please go purchase those tracks you enjoy! These great artists deserve to be compensated for their hard work, and every purchase surely helps not only pay their bills but fund their next set of wonderful songs.

What is power pop? According to the dictionary, it’s “a style of pop music characterized by a strong melody line, heavy use of guitars, and simple rhythm”. Yeah, that works. I prefer to just call it “revved up pop music”.

Tonight’s show features over 50 years of power pop, from The Who single “Pictures of Lily” that Pete Townshend described as “power pop” to some great new bands that are powering that sound into the future. Lou from Rum Bar Records even helped us out with some great gems from the early days of his label.

After listening, please go purchase those tracks you enjoy! These great artists deserve to be compensated for their hard work, and every purchase surely helps not only pay their bills but fund their next set of wonderful songs.