Explore every episode of the podcast The Rock Podcast with Denny Somach

Join Denny and Lou Gramm in their exclusive conversation that covers Lou’s career from the very beginning (they go waaay back) through his time as Foreigner’s vocalist, and his successful solo career, including his new album, Released, a collection of unreleased songs recorded in the 1980s during the production of his previous solo albums. Lou reveals details of his stellar career including his induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2024. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The versatile frontman of progressive rock pioneers Gentle Giant, who went on to pivot into the record business, taking on senior roles at labels like Polygram, ATCO, and Roadrunner Records is Denny’s guest. They catch up on life and music, especially Derek’s new memoir, Giant Steps. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

If you love rock, you collect it: vinyl, CDs, autographs – and maybe concert tee shirts, posters, guitars, and more. Denny swaps inside stories with Heritage Auctions’ Rock Memorabilia expert. Led Zeppelin is a favorite, so you’ll hear about that rare John Bonham drumhead and learn how auctions work, including how items are authenticated. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The tables flip as Denny becomes the guest to reveal details and share stories about his new book, Get The Led Out: How Led Zeppelin Became the Biggest Band in the World. He’s interviewed by Neal Mirsky, well-known broadcaster, DJ, programmer and producer with MTV and Howard Stern in his credits, three-time honoree (by his peers) ‘Rock Program Director of the Year’, and former child star.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This candid conversation with Sir Mick Jagger was recorded in 1982 in Munich, Germany. At the time, Rolling Stones members weren’t speaking with each other, and they weren’t happy that Mick was planning his first solo album, so this is unique and it’s never been broadcast in its entirety. Join Denny Somach, who did that interview with Mick 43 years ago! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Don Felder from the Eagles is on the "Brotherhood of Rock" tour, with Styx and Kevin Cronin (REO.) He learned slide guitar from Duane Allman, gave Tom Petty lessons on piano and guitar, and wrote Hotel California. He talks about all this and more on The Rock Podcast. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jeff ‘Skunk’ Baxter: you know him from Steely Dan, the Doobie Brothers and a lot of session work. He now has a solo album out, Speed of Heat. This conversation also touches on his parallel career as a consultant for the US intelligence community. Must listen from the popular classic rock podcast! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The band that has played more live shows than any other, More Cowbell, where Jon Anderson found the Band of Geeks, and more from Eric Bloom of Blue Oyster Cult. Check out this exclusive conversation! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Denny has a deep-diving conversation with Michael Shrieve, a founding member of Santana, best known for his amazing live performance on Soul Sacrifice at Woodstock. He had just turned 20 years old when he played Woodstock, making him the youngest musician to perform at the festival. That drum solo during Soul Sacrifice has been described as electrifying, as is his new album, Drums of Compassion, which features performances by great drummers including Olatunji (Drums of Passion), who inspired Michael. He also discusses some of the other groups he’s been a part of: Automatic Man, Novo Combo, Go with Steve Winwood, and the short-lived Hagar Schon Aaronson Shrieve Band. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Carl Palmer, English drummer best known for being a founding member of Emerson, Lake & Palmer, and Asia, in a rare interview by Denny, back in 1982 when Asia was rehearsing in Lititz, PA for their debut tour. He’s currently on tour with Carl Palmer’s ELP Legacy – 42 years after this historic encounter. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Iain Matthews contemplates retirement and, instead, writes a song about it, adding to his discography of nearly 60 albums. Denny, who’s been a fan since the beginning of Matthews’ career, from Fairport Convention to solo to Matthews Southern Comfort, gets Iain talking about Joni Mitchell, Robert Plant, and in a totally unplanned moment, Amelia Earhart. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Denny catches up with legendary drummer Carmine Appice to talk about the new Cactus album and learns about Carmine’s new AI project as well as lots of reminiscing. You’ll hear a lot of names on this episode - Led Zeppelin, John Bonham, Jeff Beck, Rod Stewart, Vanilla Fudge, and Melanie. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Denny celebrates the late Jeff Beck’s birthday with vintage audio from his Classic Rock Archives. Beck, one of the greatest guitar players in rock history, discusses his Yardbirds days and the beginnings of his solo career, in this rare interview.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Denny catches up with Steve Hackett, former lead guitarist with Genesis (part of their classic line up with Gabriel, Collins, Banks and Rutherford) with whom he was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in March 2010. He just released his 30th solo album, The Circus And The Nightwhale, and is touring, so the conversation covers decades of Steve’s extraordinary career. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The man who wrote Layla with Eric Clapton and was a founding member of Derek and the Dominos lived a life touched by mental illness and marked by murder. Author Joel Selvin reveals the results of his years of research on the inside story of Jim Gordon, one of the most prolific drummers of all time. Joel’s new book, Drums and Demons, raises the larger questions of how we miss the signs that someone – even a great talent - is in trouble.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Denny and Dave Mason go back a very long time – even before Denny was the executive producer of Dave’s late 80s album Two Hearts. Dave holds nothing back, including what happened at his Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction in this intimate look at Dave’s career. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Known mostly as half of the platinum-selling group, America, with co-founder Dewey Bunnell, Gerry Beckley has recorded and released eight solo albums, the latest titled Aurora. He joined Denny from his home in Australia (the other is in Venice, CA) to talk about his career and answer that eternal question… “Did the horse ever get a name?” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Join Denny as he shares a comprehensive look at the early years of the #1 progressive rock band, taken from his extensive collection of vintage audio. You’ll hear Chris Squire, Jon Anderson, Rick Wakeman, Tony Kaye, Peter Banks, Bill Bruford, Alan White, Steve Howe, Trevor Rabin, Patrick Moraz, Geoff Downes, and more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

They’re more than just three of the best rock musicians in the business. When Leland Sklar, Russ Kunkel, and Waddy Wachtel get together with Denny, you feel the connection that has kept them together all these years, even though they’ve also had separate careers with amazing stories. Among others, you’ll hear Waddy on working with Warren Zevon. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

If anyone deserves the title, it’s George Martin. Here, in a candid interview with Carol Thatcher (daughter of former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, aka the “Iron Lady”) from 1982, he talks about discovering the Beatles, working with them in the studio, and other revelations. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Foghat, a legendary band in the pantheon of Rock ‘n Roll, has released a new album, Sonic Mojo. Founding member and leader, Roger Earl, who Denny first met in the 70’s, is this episode’s guest. Roger has seen it all - and he’s sharing it all - on The Rock Podcast. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As lead singer of Free (remember All Right Now?), Bad Company, The Law with Kenny Jones, The Firm with Jimmy Page, and Queen with Paul Rodgers, and with his solo albums,  Paul Rodgers has consistently delighted rock fans. In this episode, he talks about his career, how he and Cynthia, his wife, met tough health challenges, and his newest album, Midnight Rose. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Melanie was just starting her career when she  was the first artist booked to play Woodstock, almost a year before the concert took place. She was an unknown when she walked onto the Woodstock stage and sang for half a million people. By the end of her set, she was a star. In this episode, Denny interviews Melanie, who goes deep into her life and career - past, present, and future. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Eric Bazilian, one of the founders of the Hooters, catches up with Denny after many years, and you’re invited to tune in to the past, present, and future of this multitalented musician. Stay for a snippet from the performance that Denny featured on Hot Spots, his early 80s show on USA Network!  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Denny goes into the void, and through the career of a true English Rock God, Geezer Butler of Black Sabbath. This exclusive interview is where you’ll find the deep story on whatever happened to the Sabbath/Zeppelin jam and the Black Zeppelin album! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Celebrate Steve Howe's fifty years of playing just about anything with strings with Denny, who's known Steve most of those fifty years. They cover the early years, pre-Yes, up to their latest release, Mirror in the Sky, leaving nothing unsaid - including some intriguing details about who's touched Steve's guitar. Steve's been honored five times as Best Overall Guitar Player of the Year by Guitar Magazine, and he was the first inductee into the Guitar Player Hall of Fame. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What the Hell Ever Happened to Blood, Sweat and Tears? is a new documentary about the band that sold millions of records, won multiple Grammy Awards including Album of the Year, and headlined at Woodstock. Denny interviews Steve Katz, co-founder of the band, in this episode, which takes its title from Steve’s autobiography. You’ll hear about The Blues Project, Steve’s prodigious career, and the stars whose work he produced and influenced.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ian Anderson has been fronting Jethro Tull since it formed. He and Denny have known each other a long time, more than forty years, so they kick back and catch up on everything from the old days to the band’s newest release – their 23rd album. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

You may not know this, but the Zombies are the only band still touring after 50 years whose lead singer is not Mick Jagger! The Zombies are more than their biggest hits, “She’s Not There” and “Time of the Season.” Denny goes way back and deep with Colin Blunstone and Rod Argent as they launch their newest album, documentary, and tour. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Denny and Jon know each other for nearly 50 years, so you know this conversation will range from the earliest times to the latest tours for 2023, with brief stops at all of Jon’s works-in-progress. While you may have heard one or two of these stories in the past, even hard-core fans will be telling their friends about something from this episode! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

You’ll hear a rare historic interview with the legendary Black Irish bassist, who tragically died at age 36. Phil Lynott was known for his work both with Thin Lizzy and solo, and his influence on the heavy metal artists who followed him. The episode ends with Denny telling the story of how he and Phil got to sing on the same number one record! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The most influential band in British rock, after the Beatles and Rolling Stones, has included three of the most accomplished guitarists of all time - Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck, and Jimmy Page. You’ll hear from all three in this episode, plus Chris Dreja, Jim McCarty, Alice Cooper, Geddy Lee, and Joe Perry – all from Denny’s Classic Rock Archives.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Denny tells the little-known story of how Nazareth came to record Love Hurts, and the Scottish group’s connection to his hometown – and his career. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this 1984 interview, Roger Waters talks about how he came to his solo career; the meaning behind The Pros and Cons of Hitch Hiking; and he even offers an opinion on the possibility of Pink Floyd coming together again. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Best known for his long association with the Beach Boys, award-winning writer, director, and producer David Leaf talks about Brian Wilson, and the new edition of his classic, God Only Knows: The Story of Brian Wilson, the Beach Boys & the California Myth. Listen for the clips of Brian and Mike from The Classic Rock Archives! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

From the Classic Rock Archives, an exclusive interview with Nick Mason, founding member of Pink Floyd, from 1985. Nick talks about the history of band, including the tragic Syd Barrett, how David Gilmour joined, why they didn’t play Live Aid, meeting the Beatles at Abbey Road Studios while recording their first album, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

From the Classic Rock Archives, an exclusive interview with Curt Smith from 1985 - just as the iconic, “Everybody Wants to Rule the Wild” was being released – reveals the meaning of the name, their early years, and more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Founding member of Buffalo Springfield, Poco, and the Souther-Hillman-Furay band, the legendary Richie Furay, pioneer of Country-Rock, talks about his new album, In the Country, life, love, spirit, and career, including being signed by Atlantic Records. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Eric Johnson is the guitar player’s guitar player. His Platinum certified album, Ah Via Musicom, contains his Grammy award winner, Cliffs Of Dover. In this very candid conversation between old friends, the Austin-based inductee in the Guitar Player Gallery of Greats, also listed among the 100 Greatest Guitarists of the 20th Century by Musician Magazine, talks about his two new albums, his favorite guitarists and influences, and much more. Denny pulls an unreleased favorite from the Archives to end this episode. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Whiter Shade of Pale is one of the greatest songs of all time – AND one of the cold cases of rock ‘n’ roll. In what was to become Brooker’s final interview, he talks about his career and Denny talks about the legal entanglements concerning the writing of this song. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Kate Bush was a star in the UK back in the 80s, but didn’t make it in the US till her Running Up That Hill was prominently featured in Season 4 of the Netflix series Stranger Things, and she hit the top at Spotify. This episode features a 1982 interview from the host’s Classic Rock Archives. Kate rarely gave interviews, making this one a must-listen treasure! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ben Fong-Torres, famed Rolling Stone editor, talks about his life, career, and new documentary, Like a Rolling Stone: The Life & Times of Ben Fong-Torres, as well as Almost Famous, the movie that made him even more famous. This episode features a classic interview Ben did with Bob Geldof after Live Aid. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

John Lennon’s Lawyer Tells All! Ripped from the headlines – but all true. Jay Bergen, author of Lennon, The Mobster & The Lawyer tells the story of the dispute between the famous Beatle and the infamous mobster. The ultimate insider interview! Part of Pantheon Podcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

From walking in on the Beatles who were opening for Joey Dee, with Felix on organ – before they came to America – to playing with Jimi Hendrix, campaigning for Bobby Kennedy, and the drama of working in the industry. More than fifty years later, Felix is still a rascal, in every sense of the word! Part of Pantheon Podcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

John Waite tells all, beginning with The Babys and remembering how he and Denny met almost 45 years ago! You’ll hear about John’s acoustic album series, Wooden Heart, forthcoming documentary, tour plans - and why becoming a US citizen was so important to him. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Dion DiMucci is in his seventh decade of performing. In this exclusive interview, celebrating the release of his new album, Stomping Ground, we talk about life, love, and rock ‘n’ roll...and Dion reveals how his face made it onto one of the most iconic rock albums of all time. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In celebration of the 40th Anniversary of The Nylon Curtain, which included the hit single, Allentown, Denny Somach tells the story of Billy Joel’s first headline gig. Starting with how Denny recorded the show, lost the tape, and - years later - found it, this story stars 23 year old Billy Joel, up close and personal. Part of Pantheon Podcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In 1975, John Lennon walked into a New York radio studio, unannounced, and played DJ. It was the world premiere of his brand-new album, Rock and Roll. You’ll hear him talk about the early days of rock, his influences - Buddy Holly, Little Richard, Chuck Berry, Fats Domino - and the first day he met Paul McCartney. Candid and off the cuff, this is one of the most revealing conversations with Lennon ever.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Led Zeppelin was the biggest band in the world, and it still is. This episode features an exclusive interview with C.M. Kushins, author of the new, first-ever biography of the iconic drummer, Beast: John Bonham and the Rise of Led Zeppelin. Includes classic interviews from Jimmy Page and stories from Bonham's early days you won't hear anywhere but The Rock Podcast! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Nancy Wilson, RRHOF-inductee, guitarist and singer in Heart, talks about life, love, her new solo album and Led Zeppelin. Later in the episode, Linda Perry weighs in on her love of Led Zeppelin and secrets of her songwriting process. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices