The Archives
This is my personal collection of classic interviews, favorite photos, and memorable moments in radio history. With fifty years on-the-air at WNEW-FM, WFUV and SiriusXM I’ve worked with an amazing group of musicians, artists and friends. Take a look around, listen in and come back again to see what we’ve added.
In The Archives
Mick Jagger and The Rolling Stones
The Rolling Stones formed Rolling Stone Records in 1970 after leaving their original label Decca (London Records in the US.) They negotiated a deal with Atlantic Records to distribute the label and in 1978 they put-out only the second non-Stones related album Bush Doctor from Jamaican reggae artist Peter Tosh.
Atlantic asked me to write, produce, and voice a radio commercial to promote the album. I was happy to write and produce the spot, but suggested we might try having an additional announcer. “Why not ask Mick Jagger” I said half-jokingly. “After all it’s his record label.” To my total surprise and delight Mick agreed to it and what you’ll hear is some of what happened in the label’s mid-town Manhattan office as I attempted to coach Mick through the process.
The Who – Pete Townshend
Meeting Pete Townshend in the 1970’s, I was pleasantly surprised when he told me he often listened to my nighttime show. I wondered how that was possible, as he was living in England at the time. Pete explained that he had tapes of WNEW-FM sent to him regularly and that he often listened to my show while driving his daughter to school.
Being a huge Who fan, that was a great image to enjoy.
We’ve met up again several times since then and it was on his June 16, 1993 visit to promote his solo project Psychoderelict that he recalled his first NY appearance and the secret behind all those smashed guitars.
The Who – Roger Daltrey
Roger Daltrey was just 21 years old in 1965 when he sang “hope I die before I get old” on My Generation, one of the Who’s earliest signature songs. It didn’t take long for that lyric line to take on ironic significance as The Who continued to tour and record over the next five decades. Recently Roger released his autobiography Thanks a Lot Mr. Kibblewhite: My Story. It’s filled not only with all the wonderful rock ‘n roll and Who stories that you’d expect, but is also a very personal look back at Roger’s life. It’s his take on how the band was formed and grew and almost broke up more than once. We also get a close-up look at his life off the road away from the spotlight, and some of the personal challenges he faced. It was a delight to sit down with Roger in October 2018 to discuss his book and pick up where we left off twenty-three years ago.
The first time I spoke with Roger Daltrey was in 1985 for televsion’s PM Magazine while he was promoting his then newly released solo album Under a Raging Moon. It had been just three years since the Who had broken up (for the first time) and Roger was already reflecting back on “his generation” at the age of 42.
Joni Mitchell
For the generation that came of age during the emergence of the folk-rock singer-songwriters, Joni Mitchell has always been one of the most influential and admired performers. With legendary songs like “The Circle Game” and “Woodstock”, defining albums including Clouds, Blue, and Ladies of the Canyon, and genre breaking excursions into jazz and beyond, Joni has never stopped evolving as an artist.
We spoke in the fall of 1985 as she was promoting her latest album Dog Eat Dog. She was gracious and open and happily receptive to my questions regarding some earlier Joni classics including “Both Sides Now” and an obvious DJ favorite about the radio
Graham Nash
I didn’t realize that I was listening to Graham Nash when I first heard his voice coming out of my AM radio as part of The Hollies.
It was the mid 1960’s and his group was yet another one of those hit-making English bands that was part of the British Invasion. Their songs, including “Bus Stop,” “Look Through Any Window,” and “On a Carousel” stood out with their soaring harmonies and crisp production. However, just a few years later in 1969, I would become very familiar with Graham’s name as he joined with David Crosby and Stephen Stills to create an amazing debut album – Crosby, Stills and Nash. Its unique sound from a magical blend of voices and a diverse collection of original songs helped to define the new FM radio sensibilty and the beginnings of a musical genre.
Graham and his mates were joined within a year by Neil Young and over the next forty years they would continue to perform, record, break-up, and re-unite as a quartet, trio, duo, or solo act. Embracing political activism and making social commentary became an important part of their musical statement, but their songs never lost their universal appeal and timeless quality. Though each of the group’s members created a separate and strong individual profile, a CSNY identity remained and it was Graham that made sure they never drifted too far apart.
I sat down with Graham Nash in the summer of 2014 just shortly after he had overseen the production and release of CSNY 1974 – a beautiful audio/visual collection capturing the band during one of their most memorable tours. He had also recently completed his fascinating autobiography “Wild Tales” chronicling his historic musical and personal journey. We covered a lot of ground and began our conversation with the opening of his book.
Click here to listen to the full interview.
David Crosby
I sat down with David Crosby in early May 2015 during the final week of a spring tour with long-time band-mates Stephen Stills and Graham Nash. He was preparing to go out on a strictly solo tour: “no band” as he explained to me. It would be just him and his guitar without the “safety net” of CSN.
I had just seen Crosby Stills and Nash (CSN) a few nights earlier at a beautiful venue, the recently restored Kings Theatre in Brooklyn. The group was in top form, and the audience totally engaged. David was very enthusiastic about how it had all unfolded.
We had a great conversation touching on a myriad of subjects including the legacy of CSN and their fans, the recent controversy centered on David’s criticism of long time bandmate Neil Young’s girlfriend, his positive feelings about his time in The Byrds and his relationship with Roger McGuinn, and how pleased he was with his most recent solo album Croz. He was even quite open about giving up pot (at least for the time being) to meet the challenge of writing more new songs over the last few months as “the creative muse” was consistently paying him a visit.
Click here to listen to the full interview.
Crosby, Stills and Nash
These days it’s seems unlikely that we’ll ever see another CSN or CSNY reunion or album. Longtime friends David Crosby and Graham Nash haven’t spoken to each other since 2016 and Crosby and Neil Young had a falling out several years before that.
However back in 2009 CSN were talking about doing their first “covers” album with premiere producer Rick Rubin. I asked them about it on Oct 29th, 2009 backstage at the first night of the two-night 25th Anniversary Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Concert at Madison Square Garden.
They were planing on recording songs by everyone from Dylan to the Dead to the Stones. Click on the video below to see them tell me all the details.
In early January 2011 CSN announced they had parted ways with Rick Rubin (and Columbia Records) having grown impatient waiting for him to finish other projects and resume work with them. When I spoke with David Crosby in May 2015 he said it was still a possibility that they might release some of the songs they have since recorded, including a cover of Bob Dylan’s “Girl from the North Country”.
I wonder if we’ll hear any of those recordings.
Robert Plant – Led Zeppelin
Robert Plant keeps moving forward with his musical choices, without abandoning or ignoring his glorious past. Since Led Zeppelin ended in December 1980 (following the death of their drummer John Bonham) Plant has recorded numerous solo albums, reunited with Zeppelin’s Jimmy Page for several projects, and ventured into Americana and world music. He successfully and surprisingly teamed up with bluegrass star Alison Krauss in 2007 and then joined Patty Griffin and Buddy Miller for Band of Joy in 2010 and took up residence in Austin, Texas.
In 2014 Robert decided it was time to return home – the West Midlands region of England. His latest album lullaby and… The Ceaseless Roar was recorded there with his current band The Sensational Space Shifters. I spoke with him from a studio in the English countryside not far from where he grew up and currently lives. We talked about the new album, his upcoming shows in the area, his love for soccer and why despite all the musical and personal changes, there’s still a part of his song that remains the same.
Click here to listen to the full interview.
