The Hustle

John Kalodner, famous for his long beard, white suit and magic ears, is one of the most famous and influential non-musicians in music history. He's the famous A&R man that brought us groups like Foreigner, Asia and Survivor and guided the rebirth of legends like Aerosmith, Whitesnake, Journey and Cher (which he has some salty feelings about). Maybe only Clive Davis has brought bigger songs and careers to life over the last 50 years. John joins us this week to spill on dozens of the artists he's worked with including Heart, Wang Chung, Kenny Loggins, REO Speedwagon, XTC, Billy Idol, Berlin, Madness, GnR and tons more. We didn't even bother including music this time - just let the stories flow. It's an instant classic! 

www.johnkalodner.com
www.patreon.com/c/thehustlepod

You may not know the name Barry Eastmond, but chances are good if you were paying attention to r&b hits in the 80s that you know a bunch of his songs. He started out as a session keyboardist playing with greats like Change and Starpoint, but his big breakthrough was when he penned "You Are My Lady" for Freddie Jackson and watched it climb the pop and r&b charts. He went on to have a long and fruitful partnership with Freddie and Billy Ocean, who he continues to work with on new material right now. For Billy he wrote hits like "When The Going Gets Tough" and "There'll be Sad Songs". We also hear about Anita Baker, Jeffrey Osborne, The Temptations, Aretha, Al Jarreau, James Ingram, Diana Ross, Steve Perry, Britney Spears and tons more. It's rare we get to go deep on soul music on the podcast, so we're especially grateful to hear from Barry. Enjoy! 

www.barryeastmond.com

www.patreon.com/c/thehustlepod

Gary Daly of China Crisis joins us this week to discuss the band's wild history. They began as an artier synthpop band - not quite as hooky as Human League, but not as adventurous as Japan. On their third album they began working with off-and-on collaborator Walter Becker of Steely Dan and they morphed into something entirely different. This pairing, odd as it sounds, worked wonders and separated China Crisis from their peers. Maybe chart toppers weren't in their future, but a career of high quality was. Gary connects these dots for us and also discusses their future plans which, in the short-term, include touring the US with the Lost 80s Live tour that kicks off in a couple weeks. Gary's as much a comedian as he is a musician, you'll love this! 

www.chinacrisismusic.com

www.patreon.com/c/thehustlepod

This week is a punk rock legend. As Bad Brains bassist Darryl Jenifer says in here, their band was a "revolutionary act". Having four black men perform hardcore punk mixed with reggae at that time in America's musical history was completely unheard of. Their impact was felt deeply by bands that went on to make their own impact, changing the face of punk, what it could be, and who could do it, in the process. Bad Brains have recorded incredible albums over the years and much has been made of frontman H.R. and his journey through life, but this week we're celebrating Darryl's new solo album, The Weather Channel. It's a straight up jazz album (almost smooth jazz in some spots, but maintains some funk and groove. We discuss this ragged, but important history with the man himself. Enjoy! 

www.badbrains.com

www.patreon.com/c/thehustlepod

For most of us, singer/songwriter Donna Lewis appeared out of nowhere in 1996 when her smash hit "I Love You Always Forever" got to #2 on the charts and seemed to never go away. What was strange is she kind of disappeared almost as fast, with further singles and albums not making the same impact. You may be surprised to find out Donna's never stopped working and even has a new album, Wanderlust, her seventh, with collaborator David Lowe and it's just as strong as the rest. Get to know an artist you remember, but probably don't know that much about! 

www.patreon.com/c/thehustlepod
www.donnalewis.com