scott joplin

In this episode of "5 Minutes with The Rabbit," join Johnny Rabbit as he delves into the vibrant musical tapestry of St. Louis. From the rhythmic tunes of Chuck Berry to the historic melodies of Scott Joplin's ragtime, explore the city's musical heritage. Discover anecdotes, little-known facts, and a sneak peek into the upcoming St. Louis History Museum event celebrating the city's radio and TV history. Don't miss this engaging dive into St. Louis' rich musical legacy!

Tracy talks about how long she's wanted to cover Scott Joplin, and the way his cause of death is often omitted from accounts. Holly then mentions the long reaching tendrils of the papacy in 14th century politics. 

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Quick!  Name a song by Steely Dan.  Chances are good that the song you picked is off this sixth studio album, the iconic Aja.  Steely Dan had already become a successful jazz rock group by this time, but Donald Fagen and Walter Becker created their most successful album by far with this one.

By the time this album was produced, the group had been reduced to the duo who were responsible for the lion's share of the music.  Fagen and Becker assembled a large group of session musicians to make this album, including well known vocalists like Michael McDonald of the Doobie Brothers and Timothy B. Schmit of the Eagles.  

Donald Fagen has said that the album name was inspired by a high school friend whose Korean wife’s name was Aja.   

Many consider this album and Gaucho, the following Steely Dan studio album, to be two of the founding albums to a genre that would become known as yacht rock.  However, the heart of this music is undoubtedly jazz.

Black Cow
The album starts with this song which has been interpreted a lot of ways, from a commentary on a troubled relationship to self-doubt, to  a track inspired by Thelonious Monk.  The song describes a girl sitting at a counter, and a Black Cow is a fountain drink like a Coke float.

Deacon Blues
The opening lines describing the "expanding man" may have been inspired from sci-fi author Alfred Brester's 1950's novel "The Demolished Man."  The song itself is about having a name for the nerds and the losers of the world, and compares football powerhouse Alabama and their name as "the Crimson Tide," to the proposed name for the loser.  Becker and Fagen considered this song somewhat autobiographical.

Peg
This track features backing vocals from Michael McDonald.  The song is about an actress in a photo shoot being promised fame.  While some speculated that the song referenced Broadway and Hollywood star Peg Entwistle, Donald Fagen stated that "we just wanted a dotted half note for that spot and Peg was short enough to fit with the music."  

Josie
This song finishes off the album and is a bit more influenced by Delta blues than the more jazzy tracks on the album.  This may be because the song was written well before the rest of the recordings for Aja.  The song tells about a popular girl from a blue collar town, who always creates excitement when she returns to town.  Timothy B. Schmit plays bass and is on background vocals for this track.

ENTERTAINMENT TRACK:

“The Lonely Man” - theme from the television series “The Incredible Hulk”
Long before the MCU, we were introduced to David Banner in this weekly show, who struggled to escape the curse of turning into the Hulk when he became angry.  Bill Bixby played David Banner, and Lou Ferrigno became famous as the green-muscled Hulk.

STAFF PICKS:

“Free 'n' Easy” by Uriah Heep
Wayne's rocking staff pick highlights an underrated prog rock/heavy metal group.  This is not a single, but a deep cut off Uriah Heep's eleventh album.  

“Baby What a Big Surprise” by Chicago
Rob brings us this well known tune with Peter Cetera taking his turn as lead vocalist of Chicago.  Cetera was attempting to repeat the success of "If You Leave Me Now" with this song.  Interestingly, this song is the only one on the album Chicago XI to feature Cetera on lead vocals.  

“I Know a Little” by Lynyrd Skynyrd
Bruce's staff pick was written by guitarist Steve Gaines, and features his talented picking.  This song is off the last Skynyrd album before the plane crash that killed several band members including front man Ronnie Van Zant and Steve Gaines.  Gaines had just joined the band, so this would be his first and last studio album as a member of Lynyrd Skynyrd.

“Cold As Ice” by Foreigner
Brian's pick is a great tragic song about a materialistic woman who will some day face the consequences of her selfish ways.  This is off Foreigner's debut and self-titled album.

INSTRUMENTAL TRACK:

“The Entertainer” by Scott Joplin
Billy Dee Williams starred in the biographical film "Scott Joplin," which was released in November 1977.

Thanks for listening to “What the Riff?!?” 

NOTE: To adjust the loudness of the music or voices, you may adjust the balance on your device. VOICES are stronger in the LEFT channel, and MUSIC is stronger on the RIGHT channel.

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**NOTE: What the Riff?!? does not own the rights to any of these songs and we neither sell, nor profit from them. We share them so you can learn about them and purchase them for your own collections.

How do you define creativity? If we encourage our kids to be creative, will they be more successful in life? Adam and Marc explore the topic of creativity with Chris Ballew, lead singer of Presidents of the United States of America, creator of Caspar Babypants, and, dare we say, friend of the show. Also, the trials of talking to our kids about how to say no when something feels off. And what was Marc's childhood buffoonery that should have cursed him with gingivitis for life?
 

Episode 17 opens with a discussion on... you guessed it: creativity. Why is it important? How is it useful? How does teaching and encouraging creativity as dads help our kids in the long run? The guys waste no time introducing a guest who is celebrated frequently on the show, and who is a supremely creative being: Chris Ballew. A father of two, Chris shares stories of his stately tenure with Presidents of the United States of America, his time writing, recording, and performing Caspar Babypants, and of course, being a dad. Born to a line of musicians and immersed in music and art since birth, Augie and Josie Ballew have creativity in their blood. Now in their 20s, Chris explains how they have used that creativity to carve their own paths. Chris shares a personal philosophy on giving your children the tools for success and then releasing them into the world—but confesses that in his own experience, letting go is easier said than done. Other conversation topics include:

•  Involving your kids in your own creativity
•  How to encourage creativity in your kids when you’re not an inherently creative person
•  The Ballew kids' involvement in Caspar songwriting and shows
•  Chris’ recent fatherhood joys and challenges
•  Letting your creation run free
•  The future of Caspar Babypants
 

In an installment of So That’s a Thing Now, Adam chronicles his six year old daughter’s curiosity around “red flags” and “green flags” as described in a book by Zack and Kimberly King.

There’s still time to submit your dad jokes to the Modern Dadhood voice mailbox at 603-431-5465. Along with the help of guest judge Comedian Juston McKinney, the top 3 winners will receive a swell prize from BrüMate.
 

EPISODE TRANSCRIPT


LINKS:
Caspar Babypants
Babypants on FB
New Album: BUG OUT!
Tiny Song Jukebox
Chris Ballew
Chris' Art!
Chris on Instagram
Presidents of the United States of America 
Kate Endle Illustration & Fine Art
I Said No!
How To Talk So Kids Will Listen & Listen So Kids Will Talk
Why Creativity is the Most Important Skill in the World
Red Vault Audio
Spencer Albee

When you list the greatest singer/songwriters of the rock era, it will not be long before the name Jim Croce appears. Rob shares that this fifth and final album entitled “I Got a Name” was posthumously released in December after Croce’s tragic death in an airplane accident in September of 1973. The pilot struck a pecan tree at the end of the runway - the only tree in the area - killing all 5 on board a small plane in Nachez, Louisiana. Croce was the child of Italian immigrants and grew up in south Philadelphia. He got his start playing fraternity parties and coffee houses. We hope you enjoy this feature album from this outstanding folk rock singer-songwriter who passed too soon.

“I Got a Name”
This well known title track was the first single from the album, released the day after Croce's death.

“Lovers Cross”
This song is about the downsides of a relationship in which one partner is too dependent on the other for their happiness. “And bridges are meant for burnin' when the people and memories they join aren't the same.”

“Five Short Minutes”
And this one is a cautionary tale about sleeping with groupies who are too young! “Because five short minutes of lovin' done brought me twenty long years in jail.”

“Working at the Carwash Blues”
This track tells the story of an ex-con who got a job at a car wash after his time in prison. It was the fourth single released. Gonzo did a cover of this song on “The Muppet Show.”

ENTERTAINMENT TRACK:

“The Entertainer” from the movie “The Sting”
This Scott Joplin ragtime song was featured in the blockbuster film "The Sting" starring Robert Redford and Paul Newman.

STAFF PICKS:

“Midnight Train to Georgia” by Gladys Knight & The Pips
This Grammy-winning song was a cover of a song originally entitled “Midnight Plane to Houston,” and Bruce adds, it was inspired by a conversation writer Jim Weatherly had with Farrah Fawcett.

“Smokin' in the Boy's Room” by Brownsville Station
Brian's staff pick is perhaps better known from the Motley Crue cover. It was originally entitled “Smokin' in the Theater,” and was the song that moved Brownsville Station from a regional band to a national one.

“If You Wanna Get to Heaven” by Ozark Mountain Daredevils
Wayne picks a southern country-rock song. The Ozark Mountain Daredevils hailed from Springfield, Missouri, and chose to stick around the state rather than chase a larger audience in Los Angeles or other cities with a larger music scene.

“Hello, It's Me” by Todd Rundgren
Rob's staff pick is one of the big songs from Philly's Todd Rundgren. This song was recorded three different times, this one being his solo hit.

INSTRUMENTAL TRACK:

“Love's Theme” by Love Unlimited Orchestra
We exit this podcast on an instrumental disco hit that was from a group formed by Barry White.

Thanks for listening to “What the Riff?!?” 

NOTE: To adjust the loudness of the music or voices, you may adjust the balance on your device. VOICES are stronger in the LEFT channel, and MUSIC is stronger on the RIGHT channel.

Please follow us on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/whattheriffpodcast/, and message or email us with what you'd like to hear, what you think of the show, and any rock worthy memes we can share.

Of course we'd love for you to rate the show in your podcast platform!

**NOTE: What the Riff?!? does not own the rights to any of these songs and we neither sell, nor profit from them. We share them so you can learn about them and purchase them for your own collections.

EPISODE 284: Scott Joplin, the "King of Ragtime", moved to New York in 1907, at the height of his fame. And yet, he died a decade later, forgotten by the public. He remained nearly forgotten and buried in a communal grave in Queens, until a resurgence of interest in Ragtime in the 1970s. How did this happen?

In today's music-packed show, we travel to Missouri, stopping by Sedalia and St. Louis, and interview a range of Ragtime experts to help us understand the mystery of Joplin's forgotten years in New York City.

Support the show: https://www.patreon.com/boweryboys