The Questlove Show - Cameron Crowe

Episode Date: November 12, 2025

The Questlove Show kicks off with Academy Award–winning filmmaker and legendary music journalist Cameron Crowe in a captivating conversation that spans decades of music, movies, and cultural change in celebration of his new memoir, The Uncool. Crowe reflects on his early Rolling Stone interviews, his transition to Hollywood with classics such as Fast Times at Ridgemont High and Say Anything, and what it takes to tell an artist’s story both in print and on screen. Hear behind-the-scenes stories of working with icons like Joni Mitchell and Neil Young, insights into crafting great biopics, and reflections on how live music has evolved. It is an intimate, wide-ranging exploration of creativity, memory, and the moments that shape our cultural history, only on The Questlove Show.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is an I-heart podcast. Guaranteed human. A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what you're saying. Yep, that's me. Clifford Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits,

my basketball and college football journey, or my career in sports media. Well, now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, the Clifford Show. This is a place for raw, unfills of conversations with athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated.

So let's get to it. Listen to The Clifford Show on the IHeard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok podcast network on TikTok. When a group of women discover they've all dated the same prolific con artist, they take matters into their own hands. I bowed. I will be his last target. He is not going to get away with this. He's going to get what he deserves. We always say that trust your girlfriends.

Listen to the girlfriends. Trust me, babe. On the Iheart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. This week on the Sports Slice podcast, it's all about the NFL draft. And we've got a special guest. The director of the NFL's East West Shrine Bowl, Eric Galco, joins the Sports Slice podcast to break down what really matters when evaluating draft prospects. From hidden traits teams look for to the biggest mistakes franchises make to the players

flying under the radar. This is the insight you won't hear anywhere else. If you want to understand the draft like an insider, you don't want to miss this episode. Listen to the Sports Slice podcast on the Iheart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more, follow Timbo Slica Life 12 and TikTok podcast network on TikTok. In 2023, Bachelor star Clayton Eckerd was accused of fathering twins. But the pregnancy appeared to be a hoax. You doctored this particular a test twice in so-ins, correct? I doctored the test once. It took an army of internet detectives

to uncover a disturbing pattern. Two more men who'd been through the same thing. Greg a lesbian. Michael Ranjini. My mind was blown. I'm Stephanie Young. This is Love Trapped. Laura, Scottsdale Police.

As the season continues, Laura Owens finally faces consequences. Listen to Love Trapped podcast on the IHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. What's up, everyone? I'm Ago Vodam. My next guest, it's Will Ferrell. Woo, woo, woo, woo, woo. My dad gave me the best advice ever. He goes, just give it a shot. But if you ever reach a point where you're banging your head against the wall and it doesn't feel fun anymore, it's okay to quit. If you saw it written down, it would not be an inspiration. It would not be on a calendar of, you know, the cat. Just hang in there. Yeah, it would not be.

Right, it wouldn't be that. There's a lot in luck. Listen to Thanks, Dad, on the Iheart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. The Questlove Show is a production of IHeart Radio. Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the Quest Love Show. What can I say? In 1972, at the ripe age of 15, our guest today, took my dream job. Being as though I was just a year old and unable to read or write or form sentences or thoughts,

I'm willing to forgive him this one time only. Thank you. But I will say during this period, he will have conducted career defining, both for him and the artist, career defining interviews at Rolling Stone magazine with the likes of Bob Dylan, David Bowie, Elton John, Neil Young, Joni Mitchell, Led Zapplin, the Eagles, Fleetwood Mac, The Who, and so on and so on and so forth. As a filmmaker, I mean, he's pretty much, I believe, giving us the definitive movies of our day, be it Fast Times of Richmond High, say anything, singles, Jerry McGuire, Vanilla Sky, and for Almost Famous, of which he is an Academy Award recipient for Best Screenplay. I mean, the list goes on and on. He's currently right now working on a film based on the life of Joni Mitchell.

Right now, he is promoting his memoir of his time as a music critic called The Uncool. Please, please, welcome to the Questleff show, QLS, Cameron Crow. How you doing right now? I'm good. I'm psyched to be talking with you again. It's one of my favorite things. Thank you. Thank you.

Yeah. I appreciate this. So I had a situation last week. I was hanging with John Mayer. And I believe that there's the idea of Questlove. And then I also believe there's the actual Questlove. So one of the most disappointing true quirks about me, kind of in a Larry David way, is that I normally don't talk shop with my peers. Of course, on social media and books and films everywhere, my entire career is a giant platform for me to spew out my unsolicited thoughts about music. But I noticed that I tend to back off and talking about music. However, being as though, this is our second conversation with each other, you gave me the honor of doing a live Q&A with you some time ago. and when I walked away, I was like, wow, like, okay, so maybe I have to rewrite that narrative and say that I enjoy talking shop with other musicians. It's just that sometimes, for instance,

like, I was at a party like three weeks ago, and then someone just came up to me and said, Questlove, real quick, the most important line that Curtis Mayfield's ever, you know, ever said. And I'm like eating shrimp. I'm like, mm-hmm. And I know that's my fault because I've led people to believe that I'm open to all music discussion. But in this particular case, I would imagine had I been born a decade and a half earlier, I would have probably wound up on your path or some sort of level to that. It's the crime of you knowing so many different corners of culture. You know, it's like, yeah, they'll ask you about music.

They probably checked out what the gifts you were giving during COVID, which was very music-centric. Right. But you're like a film guy beyond many, if not most. So your knowledge of film is so particular and also wide. I don't know, there are many avenues to take. Well, I'll ask you, because I'm using no format today, no notes or whatever. I love it. So I'll just, we're just having a conversation.

Yeah, yeah. How did you know that you were a film guy? Because I loved film always. As a kid, my mom and sometimes my mom and dad would sneak me into R-rated movies just because Mike Nichols, I should know about Mike Nichols, stuff like that. You know, David Lean and all kinds of stuff. It just seemed like no man's land in terms of a dream. Like, I never went to film school, obviously. Maybe not obviously.

but I never thought that that was accessible to a guy from San Diego who wasn't connected in any way. But for some reason, I had no problem walking into a dressing room and asking a band that I loved, like questions that I wanted answers to. Maybe it's because rock was a little less huge then, and film was always huge and still is huge.

But once I got a taste of it, you know, it's like, it's a rush like no other. And particularly when you show something that's been in your head for a long time and you've written it, you've edited it, you know this well. When you finally put it in front of people and the shit that they pick up on, sometimes it's the smallest thing and they're all over it. That's a thrill. It's a different kind of thrill than writing, rock writing, particularly. But I don't know. It's like collect as many experiences as you can, was kind of my thing.

How long was it to the lead-up of you getting the green light to do fast times? What was the seed that was planted that said, you know what? After this last article, I turned in. Yeah. I'm going to pursue film. Did you have any imposter syndrome or any of those things? Like, can I do this? I started asking for film assignments from Rolling Stone

towards the end of like a big run that I had from 15 to 22. I started asking for film stories. Richard Dreyfus was the first one that I did. And Dreyfus, fantastic and so different from the musicians, you know, like just wondrously narcissistic and fun. Like he was at the peak of his kind of like close encounters phase and everything. Jaws to close encounters, like biggest star going, right? And he said, you know, if I do the Rolling Stone interview,

I'd like to do it differently. Like, what if you ask a lot of people who've worked with me what they think of me? And then bring that back to me. He wanted an oral history? Yeah. But he was like, bring me the oral history of what people have said about me and I'll respond to it, which was wild.

And so I talked to a whole bunch of people about Richard Dreyfus and did this interview where I basically threw stuff to him about things people were about him, good or bad. And he was fucking forroof. about it. It was amazing. And the next assignment I got that was film-centric was Sissy Space Inc.

And that lit a fire. Was this for Cole Miner's daughter? It was before Cole Miner's daughter. She had done Carrie and Badlands and three women with Altman and you'll love this. So they say Annie Leibowitz is going to come with you

to Quitman, Texas. You're going to see Sissy in Quipment, Texas, where she's visiting her hometown and her mother. And so I get there with Annie, who is, you know, a titan of photography. So that was a big deal to be hanging with Annie in Texas. And we show up to see Sissy, and Sissy goes, I got to ask you to come with me. I got a little adventure. I have to go on. They're trying to get me to play Loretta Lynn in this movie called Coal Miner's Daughter.

And I just, I can't do it, you know. I'm not going to do it. It's just, it doesn't feel right to me. But can you come with me to, I think, New Orleans maybe? And we're going to go to a Loretta Lynn concert. And it's going to be a little rough for me because I'm going to have to, you know, turn her down. But we'll go. We want to go with me?

And so we all went to a Loretta show. Yeah. And Amir, I got to tell you, Sissy boards the bus where Loretta is with her husband, Dues, brings Annie and me with her. I think Loretta Lynn closed Sissy Spaceic in a little bit. about 12 minutes. She was so classic and big and a big character and so warm. And then she goes on stage and starts doing this show. And Sissy is like already putting the performance together. And so she left committing to the part that night. She started back out of it.

So excited. And that rhythm of how it worked. And it was so hands on with material and discussing characters and all that stuff, the fuse was lit. And then I found somebody who I knew who was a rock manager, Art Linson. I don't know if you ever met him. He managed Nils Lofgren and Nils's group Grin. And the label was called Spin Dizzy that art ran. So I knew art. And art started to be a presence in the movie business producing Jonathan Demi. And they, the universal, like, kind of picked up an option on Fast Times the book and gave it to like their role. resident rock-ish guy, Art. And Art loved the book and said, you know what?

I'm going to teach you how to write a screenplay. You're the cheapest person we could find to do this. And if we make it cheaply, we might be able to sneak this movie through. And that was Fast Times. Wow. I know. So it really was all because of rock journalism in a way that Art said, I'm going to teach you. I will say that coal miners' daughters probably, it made an impression on me.

Like, I didn't hear of Loretta Lynn, but since that moment, now I became very familiar with her and her music and all that stuff. And so to hear that you were there at the impetus of it, then, I mean, you know, she was still at the height of Carrie and all that stuff. But when you saw the end result, like, did it make an impression on you as far as music films are concerned? Big time. I loved it. And I thought Sissy deserved the Academy Award.

She's amazing in it. She's not pushing. She's not trying. She just is it. And I went back and checked that movie out not too long ago, just kind of wanting to look at the so-called biopic. I liked. And that was definitely top five and Buddy Holly's story and stuff. But check it out.

Check out coal miner's daughter sometime. It is the slowest, easiest wayed into telling the story. It just is character. It's time and place, which you crush in the sly lives. Time and place is like so important. And I saw it and I was just like, you know, the whole drive to have like, montage, here's the person that you're going to see the life of. It's like, man, you don't need it with the right pace.

It's like an invisible gas that just pulls you in. And that's coal miner's daughter. For you, though, with biopics, and personally, I always thought there's a danger in telling the soup to nuts story of a life where it's hard to really cover it all. And I always thought that, man, why doesn't someone just talk about a very, very specific time period? Like when they were first talking about the James Brown biopic, I said, man, you could probably get the essence of who James Brown is if you talk about April 4th, 1968, which I would think this is on the fourth. It might be the fifth the day after, but this is right after Martin Luther King is assassinated. James Brown fans know that there was a concert schedule in Boston, Massachusetts, and every city in America. in civil unrest and there's riots everywhere. And the mayor of Boston's like, Mr. Brown,

if you give us permission to broadcast this on television, I think this will keep people in the house and watching you instead of destroying Boston. And sure enough, James Brown saved Boston because there were no riots that night because everyone was in watching. And, you know, he had his concerns too. Like, wait a minute. So I got to give. a twice as long performance, you're broadcasting me, you're not paying me extra money. Like, he's the business part of James Brown's at work. Like, I know, like, what's in this for me? Like, I'm giving the, the cow for free. But I always thought, man, if you told the story, like very specific stories instead of the entire biopic. Right. When it's a history lesson,

you lose me. If it's characters that are not cut out human type people that say things, you know, that are completely dealing with the Wikipedia issues of the artist. It's like you lose, I don't know, you can do soup to nuts if you have a reason to do soup to nuts. As soon as they tell you soup to nuts can't be done, someone will pull it off. But yeah, most of the time you want that sweet spot. Because it's filled with story. And you don't need to.

You're right. I mean, James Brown in Boston, you get it all. You get the music. You get time and place. You get it all. I guess it's case by case. Gotcha. No, Citizen Kane is soup to nuts.

Is it a biopic? Kind of. But it tells us a greater story than sit down. I'm going to tell you about a life with sepia-toned glimpses of my childhood, you know. But that's also like. a first of its kind. So I could imagine, I wanted to know, like, if that were to come out in the mid-aughts,

and it would have just been the office, you know? Wow. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Well, I mean. That's funny. A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what I'm saying.

Yep, that's me, Cliver Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits, the reactions, my journey from basketball to college football, or my career in sports media. Well, somewhere along the way, this platform became bigger than I ever imagined. And now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifford Show. This is a place for raw, unfiltered conversations with some of your favorite athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated.

One week, I'll take you behind the scenes of the biggest moments in sports and entertainment, and the next we'll talk about life, mental health, purpose, and even music. The Clifford Show isn't just a podcast. It's a space for honest conversations, stories that don't always get told, and for people who are chasing something bigger. So, if you've ever supported me, or you're just chasing down a dream,

this is right where you need to be. Listen to The Clifford show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok Podcast Network on TikTok. There's two golden rules that any man should live by. Rule one, never mess with a country girl. You play stupid games, you get stupid prizes.

Emerald 2, never mess with her friends either. We always say that trust your girlfriends. I'm Anna Sinfield, and in this new season of the girlfriends... Oh my God, this is the same man. A group of women discover they've all dated the same prolific con artist. I felt like I got hit by a truck. I thought, how could this happen to me? The cops didn't seem to care.

So they take matters into their own hands. I said, oh, hell no. I vowed. I will be his life. player's target. He's going to get what he deserves. Listen to the girlfriends. Trust me, babe. On the Iheart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. What's up, everyone? I'm Ego Wodom. My next guest, you know from Step Brothers Anchorman, Saturday

Night Live and the Big Money Players Network. It's Will Ferrell. My dad gave me the best advice ever. I went and had lunch with him one day, and I I was like, and dad, I think I want to really give this a shot. I don't know what that means, but I just know the groundlings. I'm working my way up through, and I know it's a place that come look for up and coming talent. He said, if it was based solely on talent, I wouldn't worry about you, which is really sweet. Yeah. He goes, but there's so much luck involved.

And he's like, just give it a shot. He goes, but if you ever reach a point where you're banging your head against the wall and it doesn't feel fun anymore, it's okay to quit. If you saw it written down, it would not be an inspiration. It would not be on a calendar of, you know, the cat. Just hang in there. Yeah, it would not be. Right, it wouldn't be that. There's a lot of luck.

Listen to Thanks, Dad, on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. This week on the Sports Slice podcast, it's all about the NFL draft. And we've got a special guest, the director of the NFL's East West Shrine Bowl, Eric Galco joins the Sports Slice podcast to break down what really matters when evaluating draft prospects. From hidden traits teams look for to the biggest mistakes franchises make to the players flying under the radar. This is the insight you won't hear anywhere else. If you want to understand the draft like an insider, you don't want to miss this episode. Listen to the Sports Slice podcast on the IHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more,

follow Timbo Slical Life 12 and TikTok podcast network on TikTok. In 2023, former bachelor star Clayton Eckerd found himself at the center of a paternity scandal. The family court hearings that followed revealed glaring inconsistencies in her story. This began a years-long court battle to prove the truth. You doctored this particular test twice in silence, correct? I doctored the test once. It took an army of internet detectives to crack the case. I wanted people to be able to see what their tax dollars were being used for.

Sunlight's the greatest disinfected. They would uncover a disturbing pattern. Two more men who'd been through the same thing. Gregalespian and Michael Marantini. My mind was blown. I'm Stephanie Young. This is Love Trap. Laura, Scottsdale Police.

As the season continues, Laura Owens finally faces consequences. Ladies and gentlemen, breaking news at Americopa County as Laura Owens has been indicted on fraud charges. This isn't over until justice is served in Arizona. Listen to Love Trapped podcast on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Are you telling the entire story of Joni Mitchell?

Is this a very specific part of her life that you're focusing on? It's chunks. It's not one slice. It's some slices. And it's in a context that I think it holds together for a bigger story to be slightly vague. but there's a way to tell her story, which is why I called up, you know, her place and just said, like, I have a take on this. You know, whenever you're interested in anything like this, just come to me and I'll pitch it out and see what you think. And they're like, now,

get over here. How easy was it to convince her? Because right now, the most frustrating, frustrating part of this whole process that I'm in right now is conveying to my subjects or my dream subjects the urgency

of time running on the clock right now. And for a lot of people sharing their story, rappers especially, you know, this means that oh, the second I start looking in the rearview mirror that now,

now that means my career is over. This is not just with film, like trying to get rappers to do memoirs, to keep a track of thing. It's almost like there's this rule, like if I look back, then I'm dead already, which I don't believe in. Just what I've learned in slide and the Earth Went and Fire doc is memory fades, you know, for a lot of these things. Yes, and turns into anecdotes with cute little punchlines.

Right. And there's the whole kind of revisionist history thing, like your version of how it happened. And it's such a dangerous spot. And I can't convey to people enough the importance of pictures, writing things down, saving posters. Yes. You can taste it when you have that stuff from the day. And it's a souvenir from the day. It's important.

So this wasn't a hard pitch to convince her. Like, now's the time to tell your story. No, because there were a lot of people that had been coming before me with really bad ideas. And so I had the benefit of their failures in probably not knowing her well enough. So a few of them, I think, came in not really knowing her history. It's like the Barry Gordy thing. You know, if you send me a letter and it's B-A-R-R-R-Y, you didn't take the time to know how my name was spelled, and I can't take the time to know what you want from me.

Goodbye. You know, I love that. This is what's interesting. Tell me if you've run across this. Success creates eight different viewpoints and people raising their hands and say it was me. It was me. It was me. It was me.

And the memory does morph into a different thing. And it's everybody kind of disagrees because they're trying to take credit for a success. A failed project, the memories are perfect because they're all about who to blame for it. Point the finger. Right. memories are dead on. You know, there's not, it's not Rashomon. It's like they pretty much figure that it's one person and one decision and they're really clear about it. So success breeds all the conflicting accounts unless you have the stuff from the day. Like, do you know when you're

being talked to by someone well-trained in media that says the right things and whatnot? And like, how do you know you're getting the right story? And was your young. age a part of the dismantling or the putting my guard down and revealing to you because, you know, you're getting major stories out of these acts and, you know, who otherwise would probably be guarded with anyone else. I never had the feeling that like, oh, it's a plus that I'm 15 or 16. I was always kind of like hoping I didn't get asked how old I was and hoping that I could seem adult-like, but not in a precocious way. Nobody really busted me on my age, no once, but to me, I had no choice in it. I just had to do it. I just couldn't not do it.

I loved some of the stories that I'd read. I loved Ben Fong Torres doing these interviews with Marvin Gay, with David Crosby, and Yon Winner's interview with John Lennon. It's like, wow, this is really revealing and confessional. And that made me want to collect stories like that. Like, I just wanted to be the person who could say the right thing and get people to talk. Like Dick Cabot on TV was one of my favorite.

So I didn't have a choice. I just did it. And it wasn't until later that I kind of hit a wall and took on so many assignments. that I just felt like I was starting to take a long time to turn stories in. I started Chuck Young at Rolling Stone, started doing the stories that I would have done really well in a first person way that was kind of gregarious and amazing. And he wrote about the sex pistols.

And I just felt like I'm washed up, you know. And that was when I went home and decided to start writing. this story that ended up being fast times at Ridgemont High. At the age of 20, you already felt that you were a veteran, a washed-up veteran? Yeah. When I first came to Rolling Stone, there were people that were at the end of their run, and I remember what it looked like. I remember what it sounded like.

I remember there was one guy who had written epic stories, and the thing that they whispered about him behind his back was he's so fucked up on writer's block now. He can't be in a room with a typewriter. He starts melting down with anxiety. I'm like, that'll never be me. And then I never became that guy, but I started to just freeze up about deadlines, which was very scary. And so it was time to kind of move on. I know the exact moment had happened. There were two things that happened in one day. There was a Neil Young cover story, and I'd gone on the bus with Neil Young and Joel Bernstein, my pal, the photographer, we had toured with Neil, and it was great stuff.

I mean, he canceled a three-album set that had already been printed up and pressed and stuff, and the Warner Brothers guys came out and said, you can't cancel decade? And he's like, I can't. I got new music that I'm doing with Emmy Lou Harris and stuff, and it's just, I've moved on. These guys are like, it's going to cost us half a million dollars. like, I can't help it, man. You know? And it was like, it was the greatest story. And Elliot Roberts called up, his manager called me up and said, you know what?

Neil doesn't want the story to come out. He's not going to pose for the cover. And Neil, he's just not into it. He's just, he's moved on. It's like, moved on. It was 10 days ago, you know. He's like, no, no, he's a different guy now. Wait, can you give a backstory?

So this is, what year is this? It's 77. I know it's exactly 77. For a couple different reasons. He had fallen in love with the Sweet Home Alabama, the Leonard Skinner song that was kind of a call-out, supposedly. So it was, anyway, Amir, it was a great story. He liked it? He loved it.

He gave me a cassette to give to them because I had written about them of three songs, Powderfinger, Captain Kennedy, and I forget the third one. But he gave me a cassette, which I gave to Leonard Skinner. What was their response? Fuck yeah. was their response. They loved Neil. It was, it was like, I don't know, it's like one of those kind of showbiz feuds that was, it wasn't really true. It was just kind of, it wasn't drinking Kinsuilar, I get it, okay. It wasn't, it wasn't. It was like secretly crushing out on each other.

So I had that story, and it was kind of like I knew I was going to make that deadline, and it would be good, and though I'd been missing deadlines lately at Rolling Stone. So anyway, Elliot, the manager calls me up and says, cancel the story. Neil wants it canceled. Won't post for the cover. It doesn't approve anything. It's canceled. And I'm like, I'm going to get fired.

I'm going to lose everything. I'm going to lose everything. And Elliot Roberts, classic, funny guy. He had a line that I will never forget. He's like, yeah, I know. I got to get rid of that kid. And I'm like, you're fucking making jokes and I'm losing. And he called back two days later and said,

I talked to Neil. Go ahead and go with the story. he doesn't want you to get in trouble, which was cool of him. But the other thing that happened on that first day was John Belushi called out of nowhere, the Rolling Stone office, and asked to talk to me. And I had met him, I think, twice. Mitch Glazer took me to the blues bar, and I had met him there, told me an amazing drummer joke.

Who was it? It was like Buddy Rid about Buddy Rich. I don't know. He was very cool. Right. But I hardly knew him. He said, look, hey, man, I'm just calling you. because, like, they're going to put me on the cover of Rolling Stone,

and I asked for you to be the writer, and they said, no, he takes too long. And so they gave it to Chuck Young. But I just wanted you to know, like, I asked for you. I was like, I'm washed up. I'm washed up. They're telling artists that I'm not efficient with deadlines. This is bad. How common was...

accessibility to artists in the 70s. Like, how often would you get unsolicited phone calls? You'd get a phone call or two before the article was published. Like, they would be up late staring at the ceiling and going, why did I say this and that? So you'd get calls to clarify. Like, I just want to, can I redo my talk about Leonard Skinner? You know, like, you'd get that call.

Right. But then no calls after the story came out. I mean, I think Sissy Spaceac called and said, I liked the story you wrote, but that was the only time that happened. Sometimes you might run into them later and get a comment, but mostly that would happen only, like, social calls from somebody who's in the sphere, the actual entertainment sphere. I think Yon Wanner would get those calls because I remember sitting at the Rolling Stone office as a little guy and it'd be like, fucking John Lennon on one, Jan. And I'm like, what? And then you'd hear him going like, John, how are you doing? I'm like, whoa.

So he, okay. Would you often wonder what they thought about it or even parts that you might have to keep in that could be seen as a problem in the future or anything like that? That's a really good question. Sometimes you have to fight for the thing that they made off the record. Okay. And if you're on the road for a couple days at least, you know, you're in these situations where you're not always just a guy in a hotel room with pointing a microphone at them. You're sometimes in the back of a car or backstage.

And they're like, you know, that guy that just came in, let me tell you about that guy, you know, and it's like an amazing story. It's like, right. That's off the record, of course. You're like, of course. But then you could come back later and say, you know what, that story you told me backstage. Here's why I think it works. Because it's blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, and like eight times out of ten, they'd say, okay, you got it. Use it. But that collaboration

doesn't happen so much anymore because you don't have the time with the person you do, because you have a creative experience with, I would imagine, quite a few of your heroes. That's a different thing. This is a negotiation sometimes. A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what I'm saying. Yep, that's me, Clivert Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits, the reactions,

my journey from basketball to college football, or my career in sports media. Well, somewhere along the way, this platform became bigger than I ever imagined. And now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifford Show. This is a place for raw, unfiltered conversations with some of your favorite athletes,

creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. One week I'll take you behind the scenes of the biggest moments in sports and entertainment, and the next we'll talk about life, mental health, purpose, and even music. The Clifford Show isn't just a podcast, it's a space for honest conversations, stories that don't always get told, and for people who are chasing something bigger. So, if you've ever supported me, or you're just chasing down a dream, this is right where you need to be.

Listen to the Clifford Show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at the time. TikTok Podcast Network on TikTok. There's two golden rules that any man should live by. Rule one, never mess with a country girl. You play stupid games, you get stupid prizes. And rule two, never mess with her friends either. We always say that trust your girlfriends.

I'm Anna Sinnfield, and in this new season of the girlfriends... Oh my God, this is the same man. A group of women discover they've all dated the same prolific. con artist. I felt like I got hit by a truck. I thought, how could this happen to me? The cops didn't seem to care. So they take matters into their own hands. I said, oh, hell no. I vowed. I will be his last target. He's going to get what he deserves. Listen to the girlfriends. Trust me, babe. On the Iheart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. What's up, everyone? I'm Ego Wode. My next guest, you know from Stepbrothers, Anchorman,

Saturday Night Live and the Big Money Players Network. It's Will Ferrell. Woo. Woo. My dad gave me the best advice ever. I went and had lunch with them one day. And I was like, and Dad, I think I want to really give this a shot. I don't know what that means, but I just know the groundlings.

I'm working my way up through and I know it's a place they come look for up and coming talent. He said, if it was based solely on talent, I wouldn't worry about you. Which is really sweet. Yeah. He goes, but there's so much luck involved. And he's like, just give it a shot. He goes, but if you ever reach a point where you're banging your head against the wall and it doesn't feel fun anymore, it's okay to quit.

If you saw it written down, it would not be an inspiration. It would not be on a calendar of, you know, the cat. Just hang in there. Yeah, it would not be. Right, it wouldn't be that. There's a lot of luck. Listen to Thanks, Dad, on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. This week on the Sports Slice podcast, it's all about the NFL draft.

And we've got a special guest. The director of the NFL's East West Shrine Bowl, Eric Galko, joins the Sports Slice podcast to break down what really matters when evaluating draft prospects. From hidden traits teams look for to the biggest mistakes franchises make, to the players flying under the radar. This is the insight you won't hear anywhere else. If you want to understand the draft like an insider, you don't want to miss this episode.

Listen to the Sports Slice podcast on the Iheart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more, follow Timbo Slica Life 12 and TikTok podcast network on TikTok. In 2023, former bachelor star Clayton Eckerd found himself at the center of a paternity scandal. The family court hearings that followed revealed glaring inconsistencies in her story. This began a years-long court battle to prove the truth. You doctored this particular test twice in someone's, right? I doctored the test ones. It took an army of internet detectives to crack the case.

I wanted people to be able to see what their tax dollars were being used for. Sunlight's the greatest disinfected. They would uncover a disturbing pattern. Two more men who'd been through the same thing. Greg Lepin and Michael Maranini. My mind was blown. I'm Stephanie Young. This is Love Trap.

Laura, Scottsdale Police. As the season continues, Laura Owens finally faces consequences. Ladies and gentlemen, breaking news at Americopa County as Laura Owens has been indicted on fraud charges. This isn't over until justice is served in Arizona. Listen to Love Trapped podcast on the Iheart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. My obsession with Rolling Stone really stemmed from, well, one, we had a subscription to the house. I lived in a billboard cash box rolling stone. cream subscription household.

Like any music magazine always came to my parents' crib. You know, for the most part, I would be fascinated with the lead review. Because I love the idea of like an illustration and then seeing the star rating and stuff. And so I started adorning the walls in my house with those lead reviews. And by the time I'm 15. Yeah, I mean, that's pretty much like how I know. You know, when you talk about past the original generation of Rolling Stone, like, I'll say that his name is Ken Tucker. Yeah, Ken Tucker.

So I knew besides Stevie Wonder's songs in the Key of Life, it was very rare to see a black lead review. And it was the police issue of Rolling Stone. I believe that this is when Zanietta Mandata came out and they had the cover. Ken Tucker gave Prince's dirty mind the lead review in Rolling Stone. And at that time, Prince was just one of the artists that would adorn my older sister's walls. So I kind of had Prince and the write-on teen beat thing. Not that I knew the difference between like critical writing of music and fanzines. But even I knew that team beat and write-on were like frothy articles.

and you weren't going to get anything deep as opposed to Rolling Stone. Yeah. And I remember like, wait a minute, they're treating this guy like he's a real serious person. You know, at the time, only knew like the singles. And it was because of the pun. The pun was, someday our prince will come. Wow. Which, you know, even at nine, I was like, wow, that's a hell of a reference.

And I had never even heard dirty mine or anything about it. but it made an impression on me. And suddenly I started getting obsessed with leave reviews only. Wow. Could you, at least during that time period, could you tell me what the modus operandi was in terms of how records were assigned to writers to review them how long they had to sit with it, who assigns the stars, those things,

things. That I did not know a lot about. There was some mystery to it. I know that there were people that had dibs on upcoming records. They were regular reviewers that would have dibs on it and features, too, like Bob Dylan. But when I first started, John Landau was still the music editor. And John Landau would make a lot of these decisions. And John Landau was a huge force at Rolling Stone. When I was doing that almond brother's story, they said, you need to talk to the king because the king knows Phil Walden and Capricorn records. And the king will just help you a little bit knowing how the ropes go. And I was like, who's the king? They're like, John Landau. That's the king. The Duke is Dave Marsh. And I'm like, okay, right. Okay, so the king is Landau. The Duke is

Dave Marsh. So the king is just like, here's the call the king. Here's his phone number. So you weren't a, you weren't a staff writer. You were still freelancing. No, I was freelancing and I was coming into the feature division. But John Landau even had, you know, like even even had a say in some of the features and everything. So it was almost like, it was somewhere between a hazing and an education because I called Landau and he was like, this is the king like okay what do you what it

how does this work and he was like well you know you got to dig deep and you got to do this and you you got to do that you got to know that like southern music is born in like this and Otis Redding and so that's what you're waiting into and Dwayne Allman you know Dwayne

Dwayne worked with blah blah blah so he was he was amazing and uh you know this is pre Bruce and stuff So he was the king. So I don't know if he's still the king. I think Bruce probably calls him John. But, you know, maybe he calls him the king.

I just think so clubby. And to answer your question is like, John Landau protected the club that was the music reviews. Got it. So I'm leaving this up to the old guard's disdain for Led Zeppelin. Yeah. Clearly you were a fan of these guys. Definitely.

And of course, I guess their hesitancy was like, well, you know, they're still in the blues from black artists and reserving it and washing it down. And there's no integrity behind that. Let me ask you, do you believe in the theory that 50 million Elvis fans can't be wrong? No. No. I think... I mean, does taste still matter? Of course they can be wrong. You know, it's like, it's such a fluid thing.

Everything changes. Like, as you were talking about Led Zeppelin, I wish it ran as deep as, you know, misappropriation and all that stuff. That all came later. The big thing that they were against Led Zeppelin for, I think, was that they came out of a fad, which was supergroups. Blind Faith was a supergroups. You know, it had Clapton and Stevie Winwood and stuff.

That had some integrity. But I think there was some cheesy superficial supergroups, so-called supergroups that were around. And then here comes Led Zeppelin, which is the guy from the yard birds and the other guys weren't that well known, but it was perceived as a supergroup and not taking that seriously. I think it was the fans that said, No, this is a real group. This is a real, real group. And by the time Led Zeppelin, too, came out, it was, you didn't hear that anymore. It was a strange thing that I remember of the time.

And then it became about, you know, the Lemon Song and all that stuff and, like, stealing a little bit and that they came after. But mostly, they just didn't take them seriously at the beginning. It was felt like a commercial venture by somebody who had done, you know, more legit work elsewhere, like with the yardbirds. So, you know, it's that caddy, really. And so we're supergroup seen as cheating, if you will? Yeah, yeah, totally, totally. Like too easy. It's like, this is not born, you know, out of passion, heart, and soul.

This is born out of a Petrie Dish for success, man. Come on. Well, if that's the case, then did they take Banned of Gypsies seriously? Kind of not. Is that why the Banda Gypsy's album really isn't considered? in the Hendricks canon of it kind of is now but at the time less than now for sure for sure it's like oh

you missed the white hot cannonball that's over now it's like he's gonna go go play jazz with buddy miles and this is not going to go anywhere great was kind of the vibe of it wow I know but it's like all of that stuff changes people reinvent and all that stuff and it's just fun to watch it all happen but

when there were that many people focused on one of the few music outlets out there, you know, there's a lot of serious, you're in, you're out of the club stuff going on. They don't have a lot of power. Cream even had a lot of power. I love that you had a subscription to Cream. Cream was fun. Cream took fun into the sphere of music journalism, much more than Rolling Stone. Doesn't get enough credit.

Lisa Robinson was talking about, you know, know, eleganza and making fun. And, you know, she was always running around with these pink little notebooks that she got from the Beverly Hills Hotel. She would only take notes on this pink Beverly Hills Hotel notebook. And she was friends with all of these guys. I remember she would, you know, George Harrison would show up at a Led Zeppelin show. And she'd be like, honey, can you believe?

Look, can we just dish? And she was amazing. She kind of brought fun into it. But it was all kind of getting a candy store for me because the bylines were coming to life all around me and it was the coolest. Like you, I mean, I was studying the bylines. I loved those bylines. Okay. Was Lester Bings the epicenter of critical writing for music?

Because I also believe there's writers that write for each other as well. Yeah. You know, there's certain pitchfork writers now. that when they're going to roast an album, it's almost like, hey, y'all, check what I'm about to do. And they'll just, and I can tell, it's almost like their version of the aristocrats for comedians. Yeah, yeah, yeah, totally, totally.

But it is, is. He was a court jester. Okay. He was kind of the guy. Lester was a little bit more of a heckler than he became more, He became more of an oracle, but he was kind of the heckler. He gotten fired from Rolling Stone. He was a big character.

And then the offshoot of Lester was Richard Meltzer, who was not as talented and kind of more of a legitimate pretender to the crown. Did he truly love music or did he love the art of the takedown, the art of the snark? Lester legitimately cared about the music. And I know this because I read the unpublished stuff that he wrote on the back of record company bios and sent to my little underground newspaper, The Door. And much more, never had any assignments. He just had written for the door a little bit and wrote so much that he would just send

them reviews. And they didn't know what to do with it. They just put it in this green file cabinet. And when I first had a meeting at the door, I was like, Lester Banks. I love Lester Banks. He wrote for you guys. And he goes, the cartoonist guy who looked like an R. Crum comic, I remember. Oh, my God.

He won't stop writing for us. He keeps sending all this stuff. And it's like, we can't. It's long. We can't publish it. It's over in that green file cabinet. And I was like. So you own his original writings?

I didn't take them foolishly. I bet they got thrown away because I don't think they were even fully read. But Amir, you would get like, I don't know, I don't have a bioish thing around here. but like it was coffee stained and beer stained and it was single draft like X, X, X, X, X. He would just do like backspace on the typewriter and it was like X, X, X, X, X, X, X, X, X, X, X, so you could see what he didn't want us to publish.

It was beautiful writing. And I don't know what happened to it. But it was this idea that like there's a guy in Birmingham, Michigan, kind of expelled from California and the Rolling Stone culture, But he's like a Vesuvius out there, like writing about music because he couldn't not write about music. What was his outlet if there's not substack? Cream. So cream would just take everything.

I think he wrote for the Village Voice, too. Okay. He wrote the thing about Elvis at the Village Voice, dying. That was amazing. So he had outlets were starting to come up, maybe Trousder Press and stuff. But Lester's main thing was Cream, and a lot of his great stuff was in Cream. but a lot of his great stuff is nowhere now, sadly. And that was a real lesson to me that's like,

you don't have to write to be published. You can actually write to write, which I tried to emulate doing this book The Uncool. That was like, that was for me, that was my version of beer-stained writing on the back of a bio. It was just stuff for me, just because I loved writing And I felt kind of after the almost famous musical,

I was like, God, I wasn't directing. I wasn't writing in my first language. Like, I got to go back to that thing that I love, which is, you know, this stuff, yellow legal tablet stuff. And that was the Lester vibe to me, super analog. Then they invented the display writer. And they also did the IBM Selectric, which you could automatically backspace on,

which is really good. display writer, John Hughes got a display writer and he was working in the building where I was working and so I saw like what he wrote on, which was like, you know, the NASA, to me that looked like the NASA stage at, you know, Houston. He fucking doesn't write. He like beams in a script from somewhere. I don't know. Lester, all beat up typewriter work though.

could tell. A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what I'm saying. Yep, that's me, Clifford Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits, the reactions, my journey from basketball to college football, or my career in sports media. Well, somewhere along the way, this platform became bigger than I ever imagined.

And now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifford Show. This is a place for raw, unfiltered conversations with some of your favorite athletes, creators and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. One week I'll take you behind the scenes of the biggest moments in sports and entertainment, and the next we'll talk about life, mental health, purpose, and even music. The Clifford Show isn't just a podcast, it's a space for honest conversations, stories that don't always get told, and for people who are chasing something bigger. So if you've ever supported me or you're just chasing down a dream,

this is right where you need to be. Listen to the Clifford Show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or where wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok Podcast Network on TikTok. There's two golden rules

that any man should live by. Rule one, never mess with a country girl. You play stupid games, you get stupid prizes. And rule two, never mess with her friends either. We always say that trust your girlfriends.

I'm Anna Sinfield. And in this new season of the girlfriends, oh my God, this is the same man. A group of women discover they've all dated the same prolific con artist. I felt like I got hit by a truck. I thought, how could this happen to me? The cops didn't seem to care.

So they take matters into their own hands. I said, oh, hell no. I vowed. I will be his last target. He's going to get what he deserves. Listen to the girlfriends. Trust me, babe. On the Iheart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. What's up, everyone?

I'm Ego Wood. Next guest, you know from Step Brothers Anchorman, Saturday Night Live, and the Big Money Players Network. It's Will Ferrell. Woo, woo, woo, woo. My dad gave me the best advice ever. I went and had lunch with them one day, and I was like, and dad, I think I want to really give this a shot. I don't know what that means, but I just know the groundlings. I'm working my way up through, and I know it's a place that come look for up and coming talent.

He said, if it was based solely on talent, I wouldn't worry about you. which is really sweet. Yeah. He goes, but there's so much luck involved. And he's like, just give it a shot. He goes, but if you ever reach a point where you're banging your head against the wall and it doesn't feel fun anymore, it's okay to quit. If you saw it written down, it would not be an inspiration.

It would not be on a calendar of, you know, the cat. Just hang in there. Yeah, it would not be. Right, it wouldn't be that. There's a lot of luck. Listen to Thanks, Dad, on the IHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. This week on the Sports Slice podcast, it's all about the NFL draft, and we've got a special guest. The director of the NFL's East-West Shrine Bowl, Eric Galco, joins the Sports Slice podcast

to break down what really matters when evaluating draft prospects. From hidden traits teams look for to the biggest mistakes franchises make, to the players flying under the radar. This is the insight you won't hear anywhere else. If you want to understand the draft like an insider, you don't want to miss this episode. Listen to the Sports Slice Podcasts on the IHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more, follow Timbo Slica Life 12

and TikTok podcast network on TikTok. In 2023, former bachelor star Clayton Eckerd found himself at the center of a paternity scandal. The family court hearings that followed revealed glaring inconsistencies in her story. This began a years-long court battle to prove the truth. You doctored this particular test twice in so-ins, correct?

I doctored the test ones. It took an army of internet detectives to crack the case. I wanted people to be able to see what their tax dollars were being used for. Sunlight's the greatest disinfected. They would uncover a disturbing pattern. Two more men who'd been through the same thing. Greg Alespie and Michael Marantini. My mind was blown.

I'm Stephanie Young. This is Love Trap. Laura, Scottsdale Police. As the season continues, Laura Owens finally faces consequences. Ladies and gentlemen, breaking news at Americopa County as Laura Owens has been indicted on fraud charges. This isn't over until justice is served in Arizona. Listen to Love Trapped podcast on the Iheart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. What was your first musical memory?

It was my mom taking us to see Bob Dylan in 19. My sister and me in a gymnasium in Riverside, California. And there was a long time before we were ever going to concerts or that I was ever allowed to go to a concert. But that was a protest movement thing for her. It was like there's a protest singer. I'm going to take you to him because Republicans are going to burn down everything. And we liked the protest singers.

That was her thing. The other thing was Elvis. I won tickets. Two things. I'm going to over-answer. your question. I figured I would win concert tickets and the thrill of victory would cause my parents to let me go to the shows. So I won, I had a trick way of winning be the third caller type contests on the radio. So I won. Those things were real? Yeah, they were real. But I had two

phones. I would work it. I'd be on the phone already dialing them. And then I'd have another phone all but one, you know, digit pressed. So it'd be like, the guy would be like, you're the first caller. And I'd be like, you're the second color. You're the third caller. And I'm like, hey. And I win these tickets. And I won tickets to go see the Buffalo Springfield and Iron Butterfly at the Coachella,

at what is now the Coachella festival fairgrounds. It was actually the Indio Date Festival fairgrounds where nothing ever happened, except once a year there was a, you know, like a fair. But anyway, I won tickets. I went to see the Iron Butterfifference. They were headlining in Buffalo Springfield that was opening up. And Buffalo Springfield were terrible because they'd already broken up. Neil Young and Stephen Stills were not the band.

It was the drummer and four other guys that hadn't even rehearsed. It was terrible. But Iron Butterfly were coming on next. And I was standing by the soundboard. The guy at the soundboard were playing like the walk-in or pre-performance music puts on in a god of divita before Iron Butterfly comes on. And this is my first taste of like a rock manager. Some guy comes screaming down the aisle and comes to the guy who's like, take that fucking thing off.

You think they're going to come on and they're going to duplicate that on stage? That's never going to happen. Take that fucking thing off, you idiot. And it would be like, did he even know? She just got fucking ripped off. And then they came on. And they were really great. I thought they were great, Iron Butterfly.

Sonically speaking, did you really get a. satisfaction when you're going to these concerts. Like when you're seeing Zeppelin in 73, does it sound like a sports stadium sound where it's like the worst speakers ever? And like James Brown, when I watch these 1967 shows or whatever, it sounds like he's singing from a megaphone. A megaphone, almost.

Yeah. Have you ever witnessed a conversation? in the 60s and the 70s from the nosebleed? Did the sound reach up there? Yeah, not well. A lot of it was born in, like, gymnasiums with no sound systems and a few amps and stuff. So, like, concerts, they were really tinny

and didn't actually feel, they felt like souvenirs more than performances. Like, you get to breathe the air of Bobby Sherman or even the Jackson 5 at the forum. I mean, that record sounds much better than they sounded live. That's what I was going to say. Like, even when watching the Jackson's perform in the 70s,

and I'm like, wait, with Ronnie and Johnny as their band in Tito and Germain, it sounds, when I listen to live records, like, it sounds so sonically full. Like, another example is James Brown live at the Apollo 1, 2, and 3. Right. On record, it's like, wow. But somehow get the feeling that in concert, they're not. using, like maybe the first 12 roads can really feel it. And then...

I saw James Brown in the middle 70s, and it was not that as the Apollo records. It was not. It was basically a tinny fan, you know, like a half gift. So sound is coming from like the actual guitar amp? Yes. Yes. And not from the house speakers? No, not that I remember.

Drums are coming live from the stage and not from... Absolutely, yes. Yes is the answer to that. And you know what? Because there weren't a million concerts in San Diego, you're good with that. You're breathing the same air. It's like you're in the room with James Brown or BB King or Fleetwood Mac,

you know, like one of the early Fleetwood Macs. And it just incrementally got better. So you mentioned Zeppelin. Yeah, Zeppelin improved the Sebel. I was going to say, what was the first paradigm shift of concerts in which, like, it's like, whoa, it's loud in here. And I think I've seen an article, too, about them being so loud that it caused a ride or something. I barely remember it, but.

That was one of my first concerts, too, The Who. And I got nosebleed seats and, like, wandered down close to the floor from the bleak. and then the lights came down with the Who were coming on and I raced onto the floor and got sucked into like what would be 12th row type distance from the band. But yes, the volume was immediately so loud and they had those Marshall stacks and stuff that everybody, you're right. That sound was a call to like recklessness and abandoned and I got sucked into being. being almost pressed against the barrier when the who came on. And I thought I was going to get stampeded. I couldn't breathe.

And it was there like six feet away looking up. And it was amazing. And then I got pulled down and like spit out to the side. But for like, I can't explain, they were right in front of me. And Keith Moon and just I'll never forget it. It was Townsend in a silver jumpsuit. and he had a crown on his head and he said,

what a pleasure it is to be here playing in your trash can. Because the San Diego Sports Arena is like a trash can, you know, so he knows where he is. Right. Ripping on our arena and they're fucking amazing.

And that was when I felt like, okay, this is beyond sitting in a gymnasium and listening to like a tinny stereo. Great question. Do you miss the day your element of rock and roll or what it's supposed to represent? Yeah, the sound was a call to violence.

The sound was a call that said, you're with us. It's us. It's us now. And that was like, fuck yeah. That feeling I haven't felt. Felt it in Seattle when everything was firing with Pearl Jam. And I didn't see Nirvana ever live. but like Allison Chains and some of those bands,

like that had that feeling, which had disappeared in L.A. So being in Seattle, I was really excited about it. But that, I haven't seen it a while. Like I saw the Stones on the last tour. It was super loud and it sounded really great, but it wasn't a call to, it was a call to luxury, really,

because it was the, you know, the big stadium and the sound was great. And, you know, it was a lifestyle experience. And so, but it was way, different. So I have a general theory, especially with music, that often when something arrives, in hindsight, it's really the end of the sentence. I would imagine that for those that had the Woodstock experience, that that was an arrival of our generation, our voices. And it turned out to be the end of it. Some could say the mass success of Saturday Night fever was,

is, all right, this is the true flag planning arrival of disco. And it wound up being the end of it. Right now, I probably am the only human being on earth that might have thriller regret. You know, at the time, it seemed like, oh, my God, this is the arrival of Michael Jackson, all the exciting things that my 11-year-old self got to witness during that time period. But now I could probably name 40 things that throw up. has caused, including the end of Michael Jackson, that would make me, if asked, did Thriller do more harm than good? I might have some notes for you. That's Elton John's theory. The Thriller killed him.

At the end of the day, if there's one thing I can say about Thriller, when we talked about off the wall, it was quality. Yes. How great this record sounds. And now there's a new Q word, quantity. How many awards did it do? How much money he made? How many records he broke? That's right. And when you start chasing that dragon, there's no place to go but leave, you know. Yeah, because a lot of times the person who establishes, who finds that kind of success that they sought for a long time, freezes at that moment.

And that's why the album after, which usually is huge because of the album that came before, and it's not a good at the album before. So they get a claim on the album that is not as good. Michael was able to fucking really top off the wall. Where many artists would just do like a fucking level of a cover record. Or what do you call it, a departure album? Yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah, and it would be huge, but it wouldn't be their best. Right.

So that was an interesting thing that happened. And yes, it did. It brought a lot of rain. This is the best thing. I mean, to have a conversation like this is the best. That's the fan experience that you can. enough to do it, to have it. Well, let me ask you, at the time when Runge is really planning its flag and making itself

known and, you know, all the group, like everything that's happening in Seattle, did you at the time feel like, okay, like Integrities, Integrities back in rock and roll, and now we're here only to realize that, oh, Not only, it wound up being the end of rock and roll, in my opinion. That's a really valid theory. When it gets to a certain size, thriller size or Vogue calls because they're going to do a grunge cover and stuff, you know that's the end. You know that's the end.

And I think very few people are able to step back seeing that coming. I really admire Harry Stiles because Harry Stiles reached. a certain point and then pulled back, you know, you don't hear about him so much. Right. He was smart. He didn't overdo the brew, you know? It was like, he was like, okay, I'm going to step back and try and keep it contained to a certain degree, I think. So I admire that.

But that doesn't happen very often. And, yeah, it floats up into this, like, high end of the mainstream where everybody is a carnivore kind of. for that thing, and then it's terrible. Worse than terrible, it's over. It's exactly what you're saying. But it felt like an integrity flag had been planted for sure in Seattle at that time. So what were your real-time thoughts of the 80s? You know, what was it like to hear Neil Young's trans record?

Were you breathing a side of relief when infidels came out after the Christian period? Did you feel like a stranger in a lost land? I was excited. I remember when Don Kirsner's rock concert came out, and a lot of bands were on that. You could see bands playing. The beginning of MTV was really exciting because that's like 81 or 82, something like that,

maybe 83. So that defines the 80s. And it was really, all of a sudden, you couldn't just be Tom. Petty making those great records, you had to have like that incredible, don't come around here, no more video. So you needed to add another superpower. And that was interesting to see who failed and who made it.

And I mean, it's a point to be debated, like who was able to survive and who wasn't and how Craven was the MTV thing. But for a long time, I loved having that kind of access. then of course the hair bands kind of started to take over and that seemed really cheesy in LA to LA and that kind of spun me up to Seattle where I loved hearing like the radio station up there that would combine like all kinds of genres and everything and yes I did love infidels that that pivot was really sweet and a great album cover but I didn't hate the 80s until the 80s started to hate itself.

And then I was kind of ready to move on. I mean, I liked Peter Gabriel, and I thought he used the forum really well. He was a great visual artist, too. You could say David Byrne, maybe, too. Speaking of Gabriel, of course, you know, it's impossible to, you know, hear the So record or in your eyes without thinking of say anything.

But is it true that initially you guys, were using a fishbone song in place of the Yeah, I think it was famous radio scene. Poning in the Boneyard was like what he was playing. From truth and soul? Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. He's wearing a fishbone shirt in the movie. And yeah, but when you look at that in the editing room,

it truly does look like he's, you know, stalking and heckling her with, you know, and she doesn't look too entranced by it all either. With the wrong music, it looks like she's, just annoyed. But in your eyes was the only song where you got like all the texture. And then it was a quest to get, you know, that song, which was not easy. So you had him play it live from that boombox? He's playing Bonin in the Boneyard when we film. Oh, I thought you would have just done it in post and add the song later. But we did add the song later, but he's actually, we used music for music live. And got it. Always have music playing in the takes and stuff. That,

I don't know. I mean, Cusack really loved Fishbone, and I believed that maybe that worked. That's who he was. That's who he is. But it really didn't. But Gabriel did. And the problem was he didn't want to give anybody that song. So there was a, oh, man, there was a whole thing about he didn't even want to take the phone call. And so he got talked to having a phone call with me by David Geffen. And then when I talked to him, they, said you're going to get a phone call. Like, you're going to call him in Germany at such and such an hour early in the morning and he's going to talk to you. And so I talked to him and he in this really small voice, he told me the song was too personal, couldn't let us have it. We'd send him a video, you know, VHS of the movie. And I asked Stevie Ray Vaughn to score say anything too.

I was really on a quest to get really good music in there. But Gabriel said no. How did you bend him? Well, I was putting the phone down and I was so heartbroken that I went fully junior high and I pulled the phone back up, not even knowing if he'd be on the phone still. And I just said, but why? And he said, well, you know, I just didn't think it worked when he took the overdose. And I'm like, took the overdose.

He goes, this isn't the John Belushi movie? And I go, oh, my God. No, no. And he goes, oh, this is the teenage movie. And I go, yeah. And he goes, I haven't watched that yet. You're envisioning the John Belushi movie within your eyes playing when he ODs.

Me too. For like 30 years, I've been wondering. That would have been weird, but okay. I'm dealing with a, so I got my first major rejection like a week ago. And I don't know how to take it. Like, I'm taking it so personal, man, because this is a denial

from a hero and it hurts. It hurts. It hurts. It may not be over. Dude, on the real, you and I are really a podcast, but maybe we should discuss that in future, like do our conversations like Frost and Nixon or whatever. We both have to be Frost, right? Right.

We're Frost and Frost, right? In closing. And I know this is a tired question, but I'll ask. your five non-box set, non-greatest hits, non-live, five albums that you stand by as just definitive masterworks. I'm not even giving you the Desert Island disc or this is all you can listen to the rest of your life or houses on fire and this is all you can save. Five records. Okay. I'm going to give you four.

and then the fifth one is fluid. I would say what's going on, Marvin, Joni Mitchell, Hejira, Beach Boys Pet Sounds, who live at Leads, and then... No live! But okay, okay, okay.

Oh, no live? Oh, no live? Okay, fuck, okay. I'll let that go. It's a great album. Okay, thanks for that. This week, like I told you, when I saw you, I'm on such a Tom Bell spinners thing.

I would say the first spinner's out. album right now. Really? Yeah, I just love that record. Only Don't Let the Greengrass Fool You is not a perfect song on that album. So it's not totally perfect, but it's really speaking to me now. And that's the one you choose as the redheaded stepchild? Redheaded stepchild, which always leaves, you know, that chair gets occupied by many.

It gets played so much, though. Like, I wouldn't think. No, I just love how it all hangs together. I love it. I got it. Okay. I can't get you out of my mind. I'm like, I'm owned. I have it. It's like, I don't know. It's the happy, sad thing. For what's going on, do you see that as a total, a complete work from start to finish? Like for me, though, side one is song one. Absolutely.

And then holy, holy, song two. And I consider that a four song record. I'm with you. And so for me, there's side one. The same with Slice Fresh. I consider that. all of side won just one song. But really, Hijira, it's more than hissing of the summer lawns? Oh, yeah. Hiziera is a journey.

Hiziera takes you on the ride. That was Prince's favorite Joni album, too. He put me on a hissing of the summer lawns. Oh, that's right. He loves Hitzing of the summer lawns. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Right, but for you, like, what is it about Hijera that speaks to you?

I like the story behind it. I like how the package suits the music. I like that it was, she blew off a tour, took a journey on her own and wrote those songs, most of those songs on that journey. And I just, I love the whole adventure of it. And it's, and it's present in the music. So the backstory really does mean something. Like, without the backstory of Nebraska, would you feel the same way about her? Or even Vonne Verre's album of him nursing a broken Heart with chicken soup and Northern Exposure boxed. I love that.

Come on. I love that. I love the whole story. That's why I kind of went out and did all these interviews, I think, is to like, what's the story behind the story? I love it. Got it. That's why you, you know, put those reviews on your wall.

It's like. Got it. Like having it there, the process of taking it and putting it on your wall. It's like all part of the same thing. I will wait till the Joni pick comes out to nerd out on you some more. I'm humble that someone that I admire and respect so much from your writing as a journalist to your filmwork and just your love of music. Like you are one of my North Stars in terms of having it both. Like I love creating music, but I love absorbing it more and telling about it.

And I really owe that to you and I thank you for everything. I could say so much of that right back to you, and I will. Thank you so much. Back you soon. The Questlove show is hosted by me, Amir Questlove Thompson. The executive producers are Sean G., Brian Calhoun, and me. Produced by Brittany Benjamin and Jake Payne. Produced for IHeart by Noel Brown.

Edited by Alex Conroy. IHeart video support by Mark Canton. Logos, graphics, and animation by Nick Aloe. Additional support by Lance Coleman. Special thanks to Kathy Vron. Special thanks to Sugar Steve Mandel. Please subscribe, rate, review, and share the Questlove show wherever you stream your podcast. Make sure you follow us on socials.

That's at QLS. Check out hundreds and hundreds of QLS episodes, including the QuestLL Supreme shows in our podcast archives. Questlove shows a production of IHeart Radio. A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what you're saying. Yep, that's me,

Clifford Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits, my basketball and college football journey, or my career in sports media. Well, now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, the Clifford Show. This is a place for raw, unfilled of conversations with athletes,

creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. So let's get to it. Listen to the Clifford show on the I Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok's podcast network on TikTok. When a group of women discover they've all dated the same prolific con artist,

they take matters into their own hands. I bowed. I will be his last target. He is not going to get away with this. He's going to get what he deserves. We always say that trust your girlfriends. Listen to the girlfriends. Trust me, babe.

On the Iheart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. This week on the Sports Slice podcast, it's all about the NFL draft. And we've got a special guest. The director of the NFL's East West Shrine Bowl, Eric Galco, joins the Sports Slice podcast to break down what really matters when evaluating draft prospects. From hidden traits teams look for to the biggest mistakes franchises make, to the players flying under. the radar. This is the insight you won't hear anywhere else. If you want to understand the draft

like an insider, you don't want to miss this episode. Listen to the Sports Slice Podcast on the Iheart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more, follow Timbo Slice of Life 12 and TikTok podcast network on TikTok. In 2023, Bachelor star Clayton Eckerd was accused of fathering twins. But the pregnancy appeared to be a hoax. You doctored this particular test twice, and so much. I doctored the test ones. It took an army of internet detectives to uncover a disturbing pattern. Two more

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on the IHeart Radio app, Apple podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. What's up, everyone, I'm Ago Vodam. My next guest, it's Will Ferrell. My dad gave me the best advice ever. He goes, just give it a shot. But if you ever reach a point where you're banging your head against the wall and it doesn't feel fun anymore, it's okay to quit. If you saw it written down, it would not be an inspiration. It would not be on a calendar of, you know, the cat. Just hang in there. Yeah, it would not be. Right. It wouldn't be that.

on luck. Listen to Thanks Dad on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. This is an

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