Misadventures in Music with Ian Prowse & Mick Ord – Details, episodes & analysis

This month in the Misadventures in Music podcast, Ian Prowse and Mick Ord throw the spotlight on Henry  Priestman, a founder member of top 80's band, The Christians, who's triple platinum-selling debut album was one of the must-have records of that era.

Henry wrote or co-wrote ALL the songs on 'The Christians' but there's much,much more to his musical career as you'll discover. 

A founder member of 70's cult Liverpool band Yachts, he went on to work with It's Immaterial and in latter years has forged a successful career as a singer-songwriter. 

Henry's a natural storyteller with a sharp wit and an unbridled enthusiasm and love of songwriting.

Indeed,he recently discovered 17 unreleased "lost" songs by Yachts on cassettes in his attic which he's cleaned up and digitised and which will be released on album later this year.Sit back, enjoy and be prepared to be entertained

If you were to ask a random selection of people, "What's the first thing that springs to mind when you think of Yoko Ono?" 'She was married to John Lennon' would probably be a common reply.

If you then asked them what they know about her music, you'd either get blank looks or references to her screaming into a microphone like a banshee.

In the new Misadventures in Music podcast Ian Prowse and Mick Ord hear from Yoko biographer Madeline Boccaro who's been following her career as closely as anyone on the planet since the sixties.Her critically-acclaimed book "in your mind - the infinite universe of yoko ono" aims to dispel a number of myths about the 91 year old artist, in particular that "she's just a screamer".

Ian and Mick take a deep dive into Ono's music with Madeline in this Misadventures in Music podcast and emerge inspired and energised by this criminally misunderstood artist and ,yes, musician whose life story before and after John Lennon is simply jaw-dropping (in a good way).

We trust you will be energised too.And maybe surprised.

Enjoy.

Millions of words have been written about The  Beatles so why would James Campion spend 2 years writing ANOTHER one?

You  could be excused for thinking, "Either he's jumping on the bandwagon to earn a quick buck or because he has something genuinely original and thought-provoking to say."

Thankfully 'Take a Sad Song - the Emotional Currency of Hey Jude' charges headlong into the latter category.

In  Misadventures in Music episode #14 Ian Prowse and Mick Ord meet New  York based author, journalist and broadcaster James who reveals many of  the fascinating layers to Hey Jude.

Yes, it was written by Paul McCartney for John Lennon's son Julian who'd just seen his parents split up after John left the family home for Yoko Ono, but the song is SO  more than that, as James explains in his  critically-acclaimed book.

He takes us back to 1968 (the Year of Revolution, according to many social historians) when  the band appeared on the David Frost show in front of the cameras to sing Hey Jude in front of a studio audience (well, THREE studio audiences actually) for the first time in 2 years, having given up  touring in 1966.

James takes us behind the  scenes of that performance and  explains why and how the song became a  worldwide number one single and why, in his view, it's the best song  they ever recorded.

As one of the contributors to the book says, " It was 7 minutes we needed at the time'

Find out more on James' website - www.jamescampion.com

Our presenter Ian Prowse chats to Mick Ord about this latest album released on Feb 11th. One Hand On The Starry Plough.

After releasing albums with his bands, Pele and Amsterdam. This is Prowsy's 4th solo album that combines a feel good Indie, folk and Celtic vibe throughout. 

Find more about how the inspiration behind his hit single Battle and his noir-style ode to Diego Maradona, with discussions about his up-coming UK tour and supporting his friend Elvis Costello and the Imposters tour.

find out more about the stories and podcasts here

Leading on from Episode 2 - Mick spoke to producer  Siobhán McAndrew on the making of Crock of Gold - A Few Rounds With Shane MacGowan.

The interview details what it was like onset when filming with the man himself. An extraordinary insight, especially if you have seen the documentary

There aren't too many bands from the 70's and 80''s who're still producing compelling new music and not just replaying their biggest hits, but then Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark have always ignored the prevailing musical trends and ploughed their own furrow, which is why the Wirral band's blend of classic Synthpop and contemporary Electronic Dance Music is still wowing audiences.They're smack bang  in the middle of a European tour and their last album The Punishment of Luxury was greeted with widespread critical acclaim, but Andy McCluskey says OMD's next release, Bauhaus Staircase, will be their last.  

No, really. 

He's our special guest in this month's Misadventures in Music podcast, with Ian Prowse and Mick Ord.Andy talks candidly about OMD's history, their musical influences and looks to the future with optimism as fans await the release of Bauhaus Staircase, their 14th studio album.

A big thanks to Roy and Clare from the Podcafe in Liverpool for use of their recording studios.
Track Listing

• Autobahn by Kraftwerk  (extract)

• Warm Leatherette by The Normal  (full track)

• Electricity by OMD   (full track)

• Pyjamarama buy Roxy Music (full track)

• Dazzle Ships/ Genetic Engineering by OMD  (extracts)

• Radio Prague by OMD  (extract)

Unless you've landed on Earth from another planet in the last 24 hours, you probably know that in recent years, vinyl records have experienced a huge revival in popularity, which has led to a rebirth of record stores.

It's fair to say that Graham Jones, our guest on this month's Misadventures in Music podcast, has documented this "vinyl revival" better than anyone.

His book, Last Shop Standing: The Rise, Fall, and Rebirth of the Independent Record Shop, was a best-seller in 2009 and became an acclaimed documentary.

Graham's probably visited more record shops in the UK than anyone else as his most recent book 'The Vinyl Revival and the Shops That Made It Happen' (also a TV documentary) testifies.

He's a compelling storyteller with some genuinely hilarious (and eyebrow-raising) tales of his life in the record industry over the last 40 years.

He has some fascinating 'behind-the-scenes' stories that he's never revealed until we came along .

Enjoy the ride."

Brian "Nasher" Nash was the guitarist for one of the most explosive and unforgettable bands of the 1980s – Frankie Goes to Hollywood. The Liverpool legends burst onto the scene with the banned-but-brilliant Relax, and quickly followed it up with two more chart-topping hits that defined a generation.

In this episode of Misadventures in Music, Nasher shares a treasure trove of wild stories from his time at the top – from tax exile antics and surreal studio sessions to near-misses with Eddie Van Halen and the chaos of life on tour. It's a candid, hilarious, and at times emotional conversation with a man who's seen it all and come out the other side with his humour and heart intact.

Tune in for tales of rebellion, resilience, and rock 'n' roll excess – Frankie-style.

He interviewed everyone from Paul McCartney to Willie Nelson for his long-running radio show, and he has written more than 50 books on the likes of Bob Dylan, Little Richard, and the Beatles.

Now Spencer Leigh has written HIS autobiography, ' 80 @ 80 - A Liverpool Life', after more than 50 years throwing the spotlight on other people. He's our extra special guest in episode #32 of "Misadventures in Music" with Ian Prowse and Mick Ord..

Get ready for tales of Dylan being booed in Liverpool and X-rated stories of Freddie Starr's wild antics at the Cavern before he was famous. Indeed, no other writer probably knows more about the Merseybeat era of the sixties than Spencer.

Once more, he's still going strong and enjoying music and its larger-than-life personalities more than ever.

In this month's episode, Ian and Mick meet the Scottish film director Grant McPhee who's making a three-part documentary series on the untold story of Liverpool's arts and music underground scene from 1964 to 1984 - "Revolutionary Spirit".

Contrary to popular belief, the Merseyside music scene didn't collapse after the Beatles left the city in the 60's. There was a thriving underground scene before,during and after the Fab Four which paved the way for the 2nd Mersey Music explosion in the early 80's.

Grant discusses his first documentary in the series, 'The Pool of Life', which tells the story of the legendary Liverpool School of Language, Music, Dream and Pun - how it started and what it led to ; with some incredible archive footage from the 70's that has never been seen publicly before.Grant describes it as 'The Greatest Story Never Told'