Songcraft: Spotlight on Songwriters

Number one Funkateer Bootsy Collins takes us to Funk University! From his days in James Brown's group, to his work with Parliament/Funkadelic and Booty's Rubber Band, to his recent single that raises awareness about domestic violence, "the world's only rhinestone rock-star doll" tears the roof off the sucker and breaks it all down for us. Songcraft wants the funk!  

PART ONE:
Paul and Scott discuss particularly recognizable bassists ...

We're celebrating our 10th anniversary all year by digging in the vaults to re-present classic episodes with fresh commentary. Today, we're revisiting our 2021 conversation with Richard Marx. 

ABOUT RICHARD MARX:

Grammy-winning performer Richard Marx has sold more than 30 million albums as an artist, but if you only know him from late 1980s ballads such as “Hold on to the Nights” and “Right Here Waiting,” you only know part of the st...

From "King Tut" to the top of the bluegrass charts! Grammy and IBMA award-winning banjoists and songwriters Steve Martin and Alison Brown join us to chat about their respective careers and their first full-length collaborative album, Safe, Sensible and Sane. 

PART ONE
Paul and Scott chat about how impressed they are with all the various hats Alison Brown and Steve Martin wear, while also trying to wrap their heads around the seeming ...

We're celebrating our 10th anniversary all year by digging in the vaults to re-present classic episodes with fresh commentary. Today, we're revisiting our 2020 conversation with Stax legend David Porter.

ABOUT DAVID PORTER 
Named one of Rolling Stone magazine’s “100 Greatest Songwriters of All Time,” Porter is best known for his songwriting partnership with Isaac Hayes that helped define the sound of Memphis’s legendary Stax Records....

Grammy-winning singer/songwriter Shawn Camp pulls back the curtain on his varied career, including his latest album of songs that were composed with the legendary Guy Clark.

PART ONE
Scott and Paul talk about how technology is changing the songwriting game, and other old man complaints. 

PART TWO
Our in-depth conversation with Shawn Camp  

ABOUT SHAWN CAMP
Singer/songwriter Shawn Camp has written chart-topping hits such as “Two Pina Cola...

We're celebrating our 10th anniversary all year by digging in the vaults to re-present classic episodes with fresh commentary. Today, we're revisiting our 2019 conversation with Emily Saliers of Indigo Girls. 

ABOUT EMILY SALIERS
Singer-songwriter Emily Saliers is best known as one half of  Indigo Girls, which NPR called “one of the finest folk duos of all time.” The Georgia-raised musical icon is the sole writer of some of the group...

Whitney Phillips, Grammy-nominated songwriter and member of the ensemble cast of the Netflix show Hitmakers, talks about life as a modern-day pop writer

PART ONE
Paul and Scott dive into the idea of a "perfect song" and discuss some examples of songs they think just might fit into that elusive category.

PART TWO
Our in-depth conversation with Whitney Phillips

ABOUT WHITNEY PHILLIPS
Whitney Phillips is a Grammy-nominated songwriter and vo...

We're celebrating our 10th anniversary all year by digging in the vaults to re-present classic episodes with fresh commentary. Today, we're revisiting our 2022 conversation with Roland Orzabal. 

ABOUT ROLAND ORZABAL AND TEARS FOR FEARS:

Roland Orzabal and Curt Smith formed Tears for Fears in Bath, England, in 1981 and have gone on to sell 30 million albums worldwide. Their major breakthrough in the UK came in 1982 with the Top 5 sing...

Americana Award winner and Grammy nominee Hayes Carll chats about the development of his songwriting and the highly personal nature of his latest album, We're Only Human.   

PART ONE
Paul and Scott talk about the unfortunate history of songs about rock & roll.

PART TWO
Scott's in-depth conversation with Hayes Carll

ABOUT HAYES CARLL

Singer, songwriter, and Americana mainstay Hayes Carll hit the scene in 2002 with his independently releas...

We're celebrating our 10th anniversary all year by digging in the vaults to re-present classic episodes with fresh commentary. Today, we're revisiting our 2021 conversation with Dan Wilson. 

ABOUT DAN WILSON

Songwriter, singer, musician, producer and acclaimed visual artist Dan Wilson is a Minnesota native and Harvard graduate who launched his music career with the band Trip Shakespeare, which was signed to A&M Records. He went on to...

Five-time Grammy winner, ACM Poet's Award honoree, and Nashville Songwriters Hall of Famer Mary Chapin Carpenter opens up about her process and reflects on her approach to the craft. 

PART ONE:
Paul and Scott geek out hard on Elvis and legendary songwriter Doc Pomus. 

PART TWO:
Our in-depth conversation with Mary Chapin Carpenter

ABOUT MARY CHAPIN CARPENTER
Mary Chapin Carpenter is a five-time Grammy award-winning singer, songwriter and ...

We're celebrating our 10th anniversary all year by digging in the vaults to re-present classic episodes with fresh commentary. Today, we're revisiting our 2017 conversation with Vince Gill. 

ABOUT VINCE GILL
Multi-instrumentalist, singer, and songwriter Vince Gill launched his solo career in the mid-1980s, hitting the Top 10 on Billboard’s country singles chart a remarkable 25 times. All but one of those hits was written or co-writte...

The All-American Rejects frontman discusses the evolution of his songwriting process and what it means for him to embrace his art.  

PART ONE
Paul and Scott talk about their upcoming music-themed road trip.

PART TWO
Our in-depth interview with Tyson Ritter of The All-American Rejects

ABOUT TYSON RITTER
Tyson Ritter is best known as the lead vocalist, bassist, and primary lyricist of The All-American Rejects. Formed in Stillwater, Oklahom...

We're celebrating our 10th anniversary all year by digging in the vaults to re-present classic episodes with fresh commentary. Today, we're revisiting our 2019 conversation with Valerie Simpson of Ashford & Simpson. 

ABOUT VALERIE SIMPSON

Six-time Grammy nominee Valerie Simpson is best known as one half of the songwriting, production and performing duo of Ashford and Simpson, which she formed with musical partner and eventual husband...

Two-time Grammy winner and songwriting superhero Patty Griffin joins us for a wide-ranging discussion about her craft

PART ONE
Reflecting on the lives of recently-departed songwriters Alan Bergman and Ozzy Osbourne, which might be the only time those two were discussed in the same conversation! 

PART TWO
Our in-depth conversation with Patty Griffin

ABOUT PATTY GRIFFIN
Patty Griffin is a singer’s singer and a songwriter’s songwriter. With...

We're celebrating our 10th anniversary all year by digging in the vaults to re-present classic episodes with fresh commentary. Today, we're revisiting our 2023 conversation with Robert De Leo of Stone Temple Pilots. 

ABOUT ROBERT DE LEO
Robert De Leo is best known for his work in Stone Temple Pilots. Collaborating with lyricist and vocalist Scott Weiland, Robert wrote or co-wrote the music for many of the group’s classic songs, inclu...

Rock & Roll Hall of Famer Dave Mason chats about his early days in Traffic, writing the classic "Feelin' Alright?", working with Delaney & Bonnie, and so much more. 

PART ONE
Scott and Paul chat about Dave Mason's unique role in the rock & roll pantheon.

PART TWO
Our in-depth conversation with Dave Mason.

ABOUT DAVE MASON
After recording background vocals with The Spencer Davis Group on such hits as "Gimme Some Lovin'" and "I'm a Man," D...

We're celebrating our 10th anniversary all year by digging in the vaults to re-present classic episodes with fresh commentary. Today, we're revisiting our 2016 conversation with Mike Stoller. 

ABOUT MIKE STOLLER
Mike Stoller has written more than 60 songs that have appeared on the Billboard charts, including the #1 hits “Hound Dog,” “Kansas City,” “Yakety Yak,”  “Searchin’,” “Jailhouse Rock,” “Poison Ivy,” “Stand By Me,” “Young Blood...