Author: General Manager

An interview with Greg Anton — a veteran drummer, composer, author and lawyer whose career bridges music and literature — was featured on the Sept. 20 edition of Greasy Tracks.

Here’s the archive, while a playlist is here.

Best known as co-founder of the Bay Area band Zero with guitarist Steve Kimock, Anton’s drumming anchored the group’s improvisational blend of rock, jazz and psychedelia, making them a fixture of the jam-band scene.

Recently, he released It’s About Time (Rare Bird Books), his second novel.

Despite being a work of fiction — Anton brings his experiences in music, from writing and playing to the oft-tricky and complex inner band workings — the book reads like a real-life account of the cut-throat side of the music industry, especially when it comes to publishing.

A Hunter S. Thompson quote at the start of the book could serve as a cautionary indicator of the drama that will unfold throughout the ensuing pages: “The music business is a cruel and shallow money trench, a long plastic hallway where thieves and pimps run free and good men die like dogs. There’s also a negative side.”

The latest saga is a follow-up to his debut foray into authorship, Face The Music in 2014. Anton says he’s already working on a continuation of the tale.

Anton was a long-time collaborator with Grateful Dead lyricist Robert Hunter who co-wrote many of the 50-plus songs Anton has published.

Hunter once said of Anton as a writer: “Greg exposes the insularity of the pop-music business with stunning veracity. It’s an insider’s look at its highs, lows, and a whiff of the steaming guts, delivered with style and verve. . . not incidentally featuring an unforgettable leading lady. Good sh*t!”

A native of Hartford, Anton is now based in Sonoma County, Calif., where he’s been a practicing attorney for many decades. He’s long championed medical marijuana rights and in 2015 he achieved a landmark federal court decision which allowed medical marijuana to be distributed in California free of federal interference.

The paths of Anton and Kimock first crossed when they connected with keyboardist Keith Godchaux and his vocalist wife, Donna Jean Godchaux, following their exit from the Grateful Dead in 1978. Initially calling their new band Ghosts, they became the Heart of Gold Band, but only played one gig before Keith Godchaux died in an auto accident. It would only be a matter of time before Anton and Kimock formed Zero.

An interview with Boston rocker Tad Overbaugh was featured on the Sept. 15 edition of The Devo Rock Show.

Tracks from Overbaugh’s latest release, Farther From Near (Rum Bar Records) as well as material from his previous band, The Kickbacks were spotlighted.

A native of Swampscott, Mass., Overbaugh got his start in the late 1990s with The Kickbacks, a Boston-based country rock band. They released five records between 1997-2008.

In 2008, Overbaugh opted to go solo and formed Late Arrivals, featuring Kickbacks’ bassist Matthew Arnold and drummer Jon Burton.

On his latest release — the second on Rum Bar Records along with two EPs —
Overbaugh is joined by David Minehan (The Neighborhoods, Paul Westerburg, The Replacements) and former Kickbacks guitarist Shawn Byrne. The record features a mix of country rock songs about the ups and downs of love.

Overbaugh and Minehan co-produced the album, which was recorded at Minehan’s studio, Woolly Mammoth Sound, in Waltham, Mass.

It’s been 55 years since the Atlanta Rhythm Section was formed, essentially to be the house band at Studio One, a then-yet-to-be-completed recording facility in a nondescript strip mall in Doraville, a town outside of Atlanta.

An interview with vocalist Rodney Justo, one of the founding members of ARS, was part of the Sept. 13 edition of Greasy Tracks which included a deep dive into the band’s catalog.

Here’s the archive, while a playlist is here.

ARS appears Sept. 19 at the Katharine Hepburn Cultural Arts Center in Old Saybrook and Sept. 21 at Infinity Music Hall in Hartford.

Studio One and the formation of ARS was the brainchild of engineer Rodney Mills and songwriter/producer/music publisher Buddy Buie. The musicians he selected had roots with The Candymen, an Alabama-based group that had backed Roy Oribison and Florida outfits, The Classics IV and Noah’s Ark.

Justo, who did spells with The Candymen and Noah’s Ark, was one of those musicians tabbed by Buie for the new band. Buie had gained a reputation for his songwriting and production prowess, especially with the chart-friendly Classics IV.

Despite his admiration for Buie and tight kinship with his bandmates, Justo left ARS shortly after their self-titled debut was released in 1972, citing the financial strain due to lack of traction on the charts.

Justo suggested that ARS bring in vocalist Ronnie Hammond — who had been working as an engineering assistant at Studio One — as his replacement which the band did. Despite a number of critically well received albums, the band still wasn’t burning up the charts over the next few years, but that would eventually change.

The band would become FM staples thanks to a number of Top 10 singles, including “So Into You” from A Rock and Roll Alternative (1976) and “Imaginary Lover” from Champagne Jam (1978).

Justo made a number of returns to the band, the first in 1983 and another 25 years later. Since 2011, he’s been fronting ARS, his soulful vocals providing a connection to the band’s roots and signature sound.

Internationally renowned piano virtuoso Jorge Luis Pacheco was featured on the Sept. 11 edition of Fifty Shades of Jazz.

Here’s the archive.

Along with playing a wide range of Pacheo’s music, host Lou Pomales aired an interview that he recently did with Pacheco who appears at Jorgensen Center For The Performing Arts on Sept. 18.

The UConn performance marks the start of the Jorgensen’s 70th anniversary season.

A native of Havana, Cuba, Pacheco leads a trio, including percussionist Reinier Mendoza and bassist Geron Lazo-Quiroga. In addition to performing his own material, he’ll play selections to honor the Buena Vista Social Club.

The Sept. 5 edition of Crashing The Ether featured a spotlight on Elvis Costello who brings his Radio Soul!: The Early Songs Of Elvis Costello tour to the Bushnell Center for the Performing Arts on Sept. 24.

Here’s the archive.

Costello turns back the clock this time around by featuring material ranging from his 1977 debut, My Aim Is True through 1986’s Blood & Chocolate.

He’ll be joined by his band, The Imposters, featuring Steve Nieve (keyboards), Pete Thomas (drums) and Davey Faragher (bass) along with ace guitarist Charlie Sexton who has been working with Costello since 2021.

The Aug. 30 edition of Greasy Tracks featured an interview with author Dennis McNally who discussed his recently published The Last Great Dream: How Bohemians Became Hippies and Created the Sixties (Da Capo).

Here’s the archive, while a playlist is here.

Coinciding with the holiday weekend, there was a variety of work-themed music threaded throughout McNally’s insight on the cultural transformation from the bohemian movement of the early 20th century to the rise of the hippie counterculture that defined the 1960s with San Francisco literally ground zero.

Drawing on his expertise in history and the music of the era, McNally examines how key figures from the beat generation, jazz/rock musicians and artists helped lay the foundation for the social revolution that followed.

The book highlights the intertwining of radical politics, alternative lifestyles and musical innovation that shaped the spirit of the 60s.

McNally also delves into the personal stories of key players, offering a narrative that blends history, biography, and cultural analysis. Each chapter, says McNally, could be the basis for a book.

The book could well be the “missing link” to a pair of McNally’s earlier works: his debut, Desolate Angel: Jack Kerouac, The Beat Generation, and America (1979) and A Long Strange Trip: The Inside History of the Grateful Dead (2003).

McNally also wrote On Highway 61: Music, Race and the Evolution of Cultural Freedom (2014) and was responsible for Jerry on Jerry: The Unpublished Jerry Garcia Interviews (2015).

There was a special edition of The Soul Express on Aug. 27 as Dean Farrell presented a three-hour chronology of New Orleans rhythm and blues with a focus on a timeline running from 1949 through the early 60s.

If you missed it, here’s the archive, while a playlist is here.

Featured acts included Johnny Adams, Dave Bartholomew, Roy Brown, Cookie & The Cupcakes, Lee Dorsey, Fats Domino, Frankie Ford, Barbara George, Guitar Slim, Clarence “Frogman” Henry, Jessie Hill, Ernie K-Doe, Chris Kenner, Smiley Lewis, Little Richard, Barbara Lynn, Bobby Marchan, Art and Aaron Neville, Lloyd Price, Professor Longhair, Tommy Ridgeley, Huey “Piano” Smith, Benny Spellman, Irma Thomas, Big Joe Turner and many more!

The Aug. 13 edition of Reynard’s Department Store featured an in-studio visit by Michael Fling, associate artistic director at Goodspeed Musicals as the program focused on the historic “Broadway-to-Jazz” pipeline and why it’s still going strong after nearly a century.

If you missed it, here’s the archive.

Fling oversees Goodspeed’s extensive New Works initiatives including the Festival of New Musicals, Johnny Mercer Foundation Writers Grove and the GoodWorks Commissioning Program. Performances are held at the Goodspeed Opera House in Haddam and The Norma Terris Theatre in Chester.

From the 1930s to the 60s, Broadway songs were a major part of the pop music scene. With the advent of rock-and-roll, that changed, but Broadway material remains a dependable go-to for jazz performers.

Fling also provided insight on upcoming shows as well as song- and artist-specific news and notes.

Mention Richard Manuel and the average person would probably shrug their shoulders for the enigmatic member of The Band is hardly a household name.

The Aug. 16 edition of Greasy Tracks hopefully started to change that as we dedicated the program to the incredibly gifted, yet tragic figure that was Manuel.

Here’s the archive, while a playlist is here.

There’s an interview with author Stephen T. Lewis who discusses his recently published Richard Manuel: His Life and Music, from the Hawks and Bob Dylan to The Band (Schiffer Publishing).

Insight was also provided into the brilliant, yet complicated Manuel from former Band guitarist Jim Weider, ex-Band tour manager Jonathan Taplin and John Simon who produced the Band’s influential 1968 debut, Music from Big Pink and renowned self-titled follow-up — nicknamed The Brown Album — a year later.

Along with Rick Danko and Levon Helm, Manuel was of the three vocalists in the group and sang lead on some of their most memorable tracks, including: Tears of Rage, King Harvest (Has Surely Come),” “Whispering Pines,” “Chest Fever,” “The Shape I’m In” and a majestic cover of Bob Dylan’s “I Shall Be Released here.”

Coinciding with the recent publishing of the Manuel bio, the on-going Live From Upstate series continues Aug. 23 at the Orpheum Theater in Saugerties, N.Y., with I Shall Be Released: A Tribute to Richard Manuel.

Author Peter Aaron leads at panel discussion with Lewis along with Weider and veteran producer/engineer Rob Fraboni who worked with a veritable who’s who in the music world, including numerous Band projects. The event starts at 4 p.m.

In addition to the discussion, there will be rare film clips of Manuel as well as a performance of classic Manuel-related tracks by Weider and keyboardist Matt Zeiner who is plays with Weider in The Weight Band.

The just-released Puff of Smoke (Honey Jar/Thirty Tigers) by The Wood Brothers was featured on the Aug. 9 edition of Greasy Tracks.

Here’s the archive, while a playlist is here.

In addition to tracking through the album, there was an interview with guitarist/vocalist Oliver Wood who provided insight on the latest project by the group — its ninth studio effort and first since 2023’s Heart Is The Hero.

There was also a tribute to Terry Reid who passed away Aug. 4 at the age of 75.

Renowned for his powerful voice — Reid’s nickname was “Superlungs” — he sadly is best known for his decision to focus on his solo career and being part of the then-looming 1969 U.S. tour by the Rolling Stones.

He turned down an offer first to join Jimmy Page in the post-Yardbirds band he was forming and later saying “no thanks” to becoming Deep Purple’s vocalist following the firing of Rod Evans.

Reid recommended Page bring in the vocalist and drummer from Band of Joy: Robert Plant and John Bonham. Ian Gillan eventually filled the opening for Purple.

Equally adept as a guitarist, Reid released a handful of critically acclaimed albums that were not chart friendly. His first two: Bang, Bang You’re Terry Reid (1968) and Terry Reid (1969) featured Reid in a trio format with Mickie Most producing.

Having moved to the U.S., Reid’s third album, River (1973), had Tom Dowd producing and David Lindley — who had played in Reid’s touring band for a number of years — on guitar. Graham Nash produced the following Seed of Memory (1976) with a handful of top studio players in for the sessions.

While a solid writer, Reid would often include an interesting cover or two on some of his studio releases.

Highly regarded by his peers, Aretha Franklin once said of Reid: “The three biggest things coming out of England were The Beatles, The Rolling Stones and Terry Reid.”