Exploring the Energy with Anzo & Friends

What a treat hosting one of the best and most beautiful couples I know, Kim & Gregg Carlin.  

Kim, being a southern girl and all, kicks off our conversation by sharing her love of country music and explains why she gravitates to the likes of Chris Stapleton, Toby Keith, George Strait, and Willie Nelson.  She comes clean explaining that she’ll be at Madison Square Garden the night after our interview with “another man” ...

My relatively new friendship with Robyn Pray is undoubtedly a result of the universe connecting the two of us.  Here’s how that happened and why this episode means so much to me.

In the summer of 2023, I received a very kind and somewhat mysterious note from a name that I didn’t recognize, though I did recognize the sender’s address - Keeseville Free Library in Keeseville, New York.  Admittedly not being an avid reader or library-go...

I was honored and proud to host yet another member of the Villanova Wildcat Crew, my friend Peter Russell. 

To say that Peter and I have a few things in common would be an understatement and it wouldn’t do our friendship justice.  First and foremost, we both appreciate energy, and we embrace the people that exude positive energy, starting with two of the most beautiful souls in the universe, Rainer “TITAN” Jenss and Tom Staib.  God ...

Now in their 20’s and all having left the nest, it’s not often I get to spend extended one-on-one time with my daughters.  This is why this episode is so special to me.

A few weeks ago my youngest daughter, Lilly, and I embarked on a 12+ hour roadtrip from our home town of Greenlawn, Long Island to Charleston, South Carolina where Lilly will join her sister, Hannah, and call it home for a while. Along the way, Lilly shares what...

The title may be a bit of a giveaway, but unlike all previous episode show notes where I share a preview of the content, in this very special episode, I invite listeners to learn about my guest, Dan Pashman, by tuning in and finding out Dan’s amazing story for themselves.  In other words, I’ll keep you in suspense!

Join us, and let’s see where the energy takes us!

Anything’s Pastable https://www.sporkful.com/anythings-pastable/  

The ...

It was intentional and by design that the official rebrand of the podcast from Grateful Dad & Friends to Exploring the Energy w/ Anzo & Friends kicked off at a local, music-centric brewery, aptly named, U.S. Brews.  

What better place to explore the energy?!

In the inaugural episode, I’m joined by U.S. Brews owner & founder, Brian “Gunny” McGunnigle and Paul “Nud” Schmitz, with special cameo appearances by Kevin “Camper” ...

I've known Jason Darby for over 45 years, and while we've long shared a deep bond through our love of family, golf & tennis, and music, I was still surprised by the depth of his knowledge when it comes to the guitar—and especially his passion for legendary players like Eddie Van Halen, Nuno Bettencourt, and Keith Richards, to name a few.

Our conversation kicks off with a trip down memory lane, back to the late ’70s on ...

Circa Fall 1982, I first met Mike Rice in Huntington High School’s 9th-grade math class, where we became fast friends and “partners in crime.”   In fact, it turns out it wasn’t until we sat down on this Thursday afternoon in February ‘25, some 43years later, that we discovered our connection goes back as far as 1974, when we shared the same kindergarten class in Flower Hill Elementary School.Fast forward to 2025, Mike (aka “Sketch”...

My friend of 50+ years, Justin Rubin, joins me and shares his recent experience facing the L.A. Wildfires and how the fires have affected his closest friends in the surrounding areas, and how L.A. is rising to the occasion as they enter the rebuilding process.  

He relives his journey of his early days at Canterbury School when his world was rocked by the loss of his brother, Greg, from a brain tumor in 1984, followed by the loss of...

Grateful Dad & Friends would not exist if it weren’t for my guest, Will Retherford, who founded and owns the Tulsa-based production company, Citizens of Sound. 

I have my friend Lawrence Zarian - who some of you may know from his regular appearances on The Kelly Clarkson Show or from his podcast, You Are Beautiful With Lawrence Zarian - to thank for connecting us.  Although it’s my GUESTS who are the focus and who provide the co...

Love really IS in the air as we approach Valentine’s Day.  On today’s episode, I’m joined by the love of my life, my bride Ms Margs, and our friends, Lindsey Janes and Will Derasmoto, to celebrate their love and to toast to their recent engagement!
 
The conversation includes the story of how, despite the age gap and despite being in different phases of life during the early days of their relationship, they became the coupl...

The Energy Train keeps rolling with an unforgettable guest: Dave “Fetts” Fetterolf. A dynamic personality with boundless energy, Fetts is a man of many talents—insane athletic ability, a battery that never quits, a wildly successful career, and his most important role of all - husband and proud father of three.

In this episode Fetts opens up about his journey, sharing how he overcame dyslexia to earn a spot at Cornell University, wh...

Kicking off Season 4 and ringing in 2025 with a cool cat that has widened my musical lens TENFOLD, Mr. John “Johnny Gowanus” Hennegan.  

Although I’ve known John since the early 80’s and we’ve run with the same group of guys over the years, I had zero clue just how broad his taste in music is, so a big shoutout to Erik “Swede” Larson for suggesting I invite John to be a guest on GD&F in the first place!  You were 100% right, Swe...

Similar to Season 2, Episode 1 when I sat down with Doug “Pops” Smith, who I like to refer to as a “Wise Old Owl”, in this episode I have the pleasure of connecting with a friend that I consider in the same first-class league, Mr. Tom White.  

Tom and I met when I first called on the five-generation Italian food products company, Pastene & Co, soliciting their label business back in the early 2000’s, and although he was a client...

I don’t always subscribe to the notion that “everything happens for a reason,” but as the universe would have it, the recent loss of a mutual friend, Rainer “TITAN” Jenss, has reconnected me with a gentleman that I am now proud to call one of my closest friends and confidants, Tim “Tmac” McGuire.  

Among many of his distinguished designations, Tmac is the youngest of 8 children, a Villanova Wildcat alum, husband, and father of ...

In the spirit of Thanksgiving, show the ones you love just how much they mean to you, and share your appreciation and gratitude for the gift of life, the gift of love, and the gift of energy that we all share. Thank you ALL for the gift of YOUR love and our collective friendship.

Nobody embodies the mindset of gratitude more so than my friend, John Macario. Though John and I have yet to meet in person, we recently connecte...

To those that know him, the man needs no introduction.  For those that don’t, his name is Beau Carino and he’s the founder of one of Long Island’s hottest live music venues, Beau’s Bar, in the village of Greenlawn.  For nearly 20 years, Beau has attracted some of the finest talent in the area, ranging from young guns like Dog In A Pile to veteran guitar virtuosos like Jeff Matson, lead singer and guitarist for Dark Star Orchestra. ...

With the exception of a select few cameo appearances by my previous guests’ significant others, this is the first episode where I sit down start-to-finish with a young couple, none other than my daughter, Ms. Hope Staib, and her significant other, Mr. Austin Koerner.  Hope and Austin share their story, and their musical tastes and interests, and they reveal what’s on the horizon as Austin aims to become a firefighter and Hope looks...

S3, E6 begins with the story of the Mandelbaum family in the late 1930’s and 40’s, and includes the harrowing tale of those family members who miraculously survived the holocaust, and the tragedy of those family members who didn’t.  He describes the day his Aunt Regina saved his mother from certain death during the Nazi “selection process” in 1942 and how that one single act of courage ultimately saved generations to follow.

Syd rec...