'60s '70s '80s - Warm, Candid, Classic, Rock Interviews with Music Legends - A BREATH OF FRESH AIR

From Singing for Sweets to Punk Pioneer

Hugh Cornwell, best known as the original frontman of The Stranglers, has lived a career shaped by instinct, rebellion and creative evolution. Remarkably, his journey began at just three years old, singing in the garden for neighbours who rewarded him with sweets. Even then, Cornwell knew he wanted to be a singer—though his parents had very different plans.

Despite his artistic ambitions, Cornw...

Ann Wilson, the powerhouse voice behind the band Heart, is widely regarded as one of rock’s greatest female vocalists.

Born in 1950 in San Diego and raised in a military family that moved frequently, Ann found stability in music early on.

Alongside her younger sister Nancy Wilson, she was inspired by seeing The Beatles perform in '66—a moment both sisters later described as life-changing.

Ann began performing in local Seattle b...

Sandy recently sat down with legendary guitarist, singer-songwriter and founding member of Traffic, Dave Mason, for a candid and often humorous look back at a remarkable life in music.

Dave reflects on his early beginnings, revealing how a failed ambition to join the Royal Air Force led him instead toward music—a path he committed to in his teens after forming his first bands. He shares how his connection with Steve Winwood and othe...

In this episode, Sandy Kaye sits down with legendary singer-songwriter Don McLean, the voice behind one of the most iconic songs in music history—American Pie.

Best known for that timeless anthem, Don’s career spans more than five decades, with a remarkable catalogue that includes Vincent, And I Love You So, and many more. But as you’ll hear, there’s so much more to his story than a single hit.

Don takes us back to the turbulent late...

Step behind the curtain of the music industry and into the high-stakes world of one of pop’s most fascinating eras. In this episode, Sandy Kaye explores the remarkable story of Dan Beck — the music executive who worked closely with Michael Jackson during a pivotal and turbulent time in his career.

Dan Beck wasn’t just another record label executive. As a senior figure at Epic Records, he became Michael Jackson’s key marketing and pr...

Today’s guest is a true rock icon. Simon Kirke is the powerhouse drummer and co-founder of two of the most influential bands in classic rock history—Free and Bad Company.

From the raw, blues-driven energy of Free to the arena-filling success of Bad Company, Simon has lived a life that most musicians only dream about.

And as you’re about to hear, it all began with a simple toss of a coin.

In this warm and revealing conversation, Simon...

In this episode of A Breath of Fresh Air, Sandy Kaye sits down with Verdine White, the legendary bassist and founding member of Earth, Wind & Fire, to explore the remarkable life and career of one of music’s most dynamic performers.

Verdine reflects on growing up in a large and deeply musical family in Chicago, where jazz, blues and rhythm and blues filled the house and helped shape his earliest influences.

He talks about the en...

In this episode, Sandy Kaye sits down with one of the true pioneers of Australian rock music — Ross Wilson. With a career spanning more than six decades, Ross has shaped the sound of Australian music as a performer, songwriter and producer.

From his early beginnings in Melbourne in the '60s, Ross quickly became part of the thriving local music scene.

Inspired by blues records and armed with a harmonica, he joined his first band ...

Ralph McTell is one of Britain’s most enduring and respected singer-songwriters, a master storyteller whose songs have become woven into the fabric of English folk music.

Born in Kent and raised in Croydon, McTell developed an early love for American blues, folk and traditional British music. As a teenager he was captivated by artists such as Woody Guthrie and Ramblin’ Jack Elliott, influences that shaped both his fingerstyle guita...

Johnny Townsend is an American singer, songwriter, and musician best known as the lead vocalist and co-founder of the Sanford-Townsend Band, the group responsible for the timeless 1977 hit “Smoke from a Distant Fire.”

With his distinctive voice, melodic songwriting, and deeply personal life story, Johnny became one of the defining artists of the late-'70s soft rock and Southern rock era.

Johnny Townsend was born and raised in Tu...

Laurence Juber is an acclaimed guitarist, composer, and former lead guitarist with Paul McCartney’s band Wings.

His journey began in London during the explosion of Beatlemania. Inspired by The Beatles’ revolutionary sound, he picked up the guitar as a child and quickly developed into a versatile and highly skilled musician.

His early ambition was to become a studio guitarist, and by his early twenties he was already working in some ...

John Coghlan is one of British rock’s most instantly recognisable drummers — a powerhouse player whose relentless, no-nonsense beat helped define the sound and success of Status Quo, one of the UK’s most enduring and best-loved rock bands.

As a founding member, John was there at the very beginning, helping to shape a career that would span decades, rack up millions of record sales, and soundtrack generations of fans.

Born in London ...

Mitch Ryder is one of the most powerful and uncompromising voices in American rock and soul.

Born William Levise Jr. in Detroit, Michigan, he came of age in a city buzzing with rhythm and blues, gospel and early rock ’n’ roll.

That musical melting pot shaped Ryder’s unmistakable vocal style — raw, passionate and emotionally charged — setting him apart from his peers from the very beginning.

MItch burst onto the international scene i...

In this episode of A Breath of Fresh Air, Sandy Kaye explores the remarkable life and career of Burton Cummings, one of the most influential and recognisable voices in Canadian music history.

From his beginnings in Winnipeg to international superstardom — and now a highly anticipated return to the stage with The Guess Who — Cummings’ story is one of talent, ambition, creative independence and enduring legacy.

Born in Winnipeg, Manit...

The Bee Gees are one of the most influential and enduring acts in popular music history, a band whose songs have soundtracked generations and transcended genres, eras and trends.

Formed by brothers Barry, Robin and Maurice Gibb, the group’s journey began long before global fame, rooted in family, harmony and an almost instinctive musical bond.

Born on the Isle of Man and raised between England and Australia, the Gibb brothers began ...

Drummer Michael Shrieve’s story reads like a rock-and-roll fairy tale — the kind of musical journey that blends youthful serendipity with restless creativity, and a lifelong appetite for pushing boundaries.

Before he was a name on Santana’s classic albums or a Rock & Roll Hall of Famer, he was a kid with sticks and big dreams.

Born in California, Shrieve grew up deeply drawn to music. As a teenager he played in his first serious...

Frankie Miller has one of those voices that stops you mid-sentence — gritty, soulful, aching, and unmistakably real.

It’s the sound of lived experience, shaped by smoky pubs, late nights, hard miles on the road, and a deep love of rhythm and blues.

Born Francis Miller in 1949, in Glasgow, Scotland, Frankie grew up in a working-class environment where music wasn’t a luxury — it was a lifeline.

As a teenager, Frankie was already soaki...

On this week’s A Breath of Fresh Air, Sandy welcomes a man whose songs have woven themselves into the fabric of several generations.

Tommy James, the legendary frontman of Tommy James & The Shondells, joins us for a deep, revealing conversation about the highs, the heartbreaks and the astonishing twists behind one of the most successful hit-making careers of the 1960s and beyond.

Tommy’s journey is the kind of story Hollywood co...

In this deeply personal and wonderfully candid episode, we’re joined by one of rock’s most recognisable and influential drummers: Liberty DeVitto.

For three decades, Liberty was the rhythmic engine behind Billy Joel — the man whose explosive, intuitive playing powered classics like “Only the Good Die Young,” “Movin’ Out,” “You May Be Right,” “Scenes from an Italian Restaurant,” and so many more. But as you’ll hear, his story is so ...