Wind of Change

Chapter 1: Bug’s Plan. It’s 2014. Adelanto is a bankrupt city in the California desert known for its massive detention centers and not much else. Then, a stranger comes to town with a wild idea to make Adelanto great again: Become the first city in Southern California to legalize commercial weed cultivation. Subscribe to Dreamtown to hear episode two right now, wherever you get your podcasts.

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When Patrick Radden Keefe heard that the Scorpions were coming to town last month, he knew he had to go to the show. So he called his friend Michael, his source for the original CIA conspiracy theory, and they headed to UBS Arena on Long Island, microphones in hand. Ever since Russia invaded Ukraine earlier this year, the song Wind of Change has taken on new meaning -- and new lyrics, courtesy of lead-singer Klaus Meine. Patrick wanted to feel first hand how the powerful ballad of hope sounded in this new context of Russian aggression. 

We're also raising funds for medical supplies in Ukraine and encourage you to join us in giving to United24. The link is here:  https://u24.gov.ua/

This episode was recorded in late September. Given the recent attacks in Ukraine we especially encourage you to donate.

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Patrick has a new book that's just out, Rogues: True Stories of Grifters, Killers, Rebels and Crooks. It's twelve strange but true stories of skulduggery and intrigue. Listen to an exclusive excerpt from the audiobook, narrated by Patrick, about the flamboyant, un-catchable arms trafficker known as the Prince of Marbella.

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Everything was going great for Jason Rezaian. He was The Washington Post’s correspondent in Tehran. He had just gotten married. Then, in July of 2014, Jason and his wife were arrested and thrown in Iran’s notorious Evin prison.

This is the first episode of 544 Days, a new podcast from Gimlet, Crooked Media, and A24. Find the rest of story for free at gimlet.media/544days.

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While he was working on Wind of Change, Patrick Radden Keefe was also researching and writing a new book, a sweeping investigative chronicle about the billionaire Sackler family, famed for their philanthropy, whose fortune was built by Valium and whose reputation was ruined by OxyContin. This excerpt from the audiobook, narrated by Keefe, tells the little known story of a massive chemical explosion at a plant owned by the Sacklers. Already hailed as one of the most anticipated nonfiction books of 2021, Empire of Pain has just been released and is now available for purchase, as a book or audiobook. More information, and links to buy, here: 

https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/612861/empire-of-pain-by-patrick-radden-keefe/

Audio excerpted courtesy Penguin Random House Audio from Empire of Pain by Patrick Radden Keefe, read by the author and available wherever audiobooks are sold.

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It’s 1987, and the Chippendales dancers are packing nightclubs across America with their sold-out male exotic dance shows. As crowds of women scream for the mullets, the spandex, and the tans … a shocking event about to change the course of the brand and its booming business forever. 

This is a sneak peek of Episode 1 of Welcome to Your Fantasy. To hear full episodes, every week, follow and listen for free at spoti.fi/WelcomeToYourFantasy.

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Thanks for listening to Wind of Change. We’ve made two additional episodes of the show — a pair of stories that we couldn’t fit into the main season of the podcast, but are so wild we had to share them with you. Both episodes are only available exclusively on Spotify.

The first one is available right now. It’s called "The Love Song of Joanna Stingray." And next Monday, July 13, we’ll drop another episode, called "Rocking Venezuela."

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HANOVER, GERMANY, 2020: There is one last person Patrick needs to ask about “Wind of Change.” At a small hotel in sleepy Hanover, Germany, it is time to confront Klaus Meine about his biggest hit.

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MOSCOW, RUSSIA, 2019: On a boat ride down the Moskva River, Patrick starts to fear that this entire podcast could itself be CIA propaganda. Or worse, Ksenia, his Russian fixer points out: propaganda by the successors to the KGB.

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CAYMAN ISLANDS, 1982: The Scorpions’ manager Doc McGhee has a secret past: he played a role in one of the largest drug busts in U.S. history, working with a smuggling ring that included CIA asset (and Panamanian dictator) Manuel Noriega. Nearly everyone went to prison. But Doc didn’t serve a day. Patrick heads to Naples, Florida, to find out why Doc threw a rock festival in Moscow instead of going to prison.

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