Song Surgery

Song Surgery

Song Surgery is where we dissect hit songs and hit records with the songwriters who composed them, and the singers and musicians who performed on them. (Be sure to subscribe and leave a rating!)

Episodes

February 1, 2022 67 mins

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Jimmy "Bo" Horne experienced a decade of regional success in southern Florida as a recording artist - that is, until labelmate Harry Wayne Casey (KC & the Sunshine Band) called him about a song written specifically for his voice. The result was his second hit penned by Casey, his first Top 40 hit and the beginnings of long-term international popularity.

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Swedish heavy metal band Lake of Tears put its footprint in the doom/death metal genre during the '90s.  Their sound expanded and changed as the band grew older and more musically mature, incorporating more instruments as they "further explored  the musical cosmos," according to founding member Daniel Brennare. But it was their ballad, "Forever Autumn," with a title "borrowed" from a...

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August 17, 2021 49 mins

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George McCrae was part of a duo with his wife Gwen. But it wasn't until the record label split them into two separate acts that he (and later Gwen too!) struck gold with a worldwide smash that is one of the best-selling singles ever. 

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Teenager Betty Wright had lied about her age (Pt. 1) when she was discovered while singing in a record store. But Deep City Records label owner and songwriter Willie J. Clarke worked with her over the years, eventually yielding a smash best-selling record that sold over two million copies.

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FAMU classmates  Willie J. Clarke and Johnny Pearsall established  Deep City Records, creating the original Miami Sound.  When they discovered teenager Betty Wright ("Clean Up Woman"), they knew they had found a voice who could be matched with the funkier compositions of songwriters Clarke and Clarence Reid. Clarke recounts the history and rise of Deep City Records.
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Sax player Fred Lipsius talks about arranging the horn section on Blood, Sweat & Tears' second hit record, and his life as a rock star.
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The Stylistics lead singer Russell Thompkins, Jr. explains why after three decades of conflict, he split from the group he helped form as a teenager.
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The Stylistics lead singer Russell Thompkins, Jr. recounts the formation of the legendary singing group, and the creation of one of their five hit singles from their debut album, written by the dynamic Thom Bell and Linda Creed.
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Tower of Power baritone saxophonist Stephen "Doc" Kupka tells the story of the band's first hit record and its musical influences.
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Monte Moir, former keyboardist for The Time, discusses the process of writing one of Alexander O'Neal's most memorable hit songs.
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On the heels of their first hit record, "You're Still a Young Man," Tower of Power bandleader Emilio Castillo recounts the story of how the band's second hit record was written, recorded and released.
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June 18, 2021 34 mins

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Songwriter John H. Fitch, Jr. explains how he teamed up with Reuben Cross to co-write one of the disco eras biggest hits.
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Sax player and horn arranger Fred Lipsius discusses the origin of the first rock/jazz fusion band, and the creation of their first hit song.
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Song Surgery explores the creation of hit songs with the writers who composed them, and the singers and musicians who performed on them.
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Press release: https://podnews.net/press-release/song-surgery

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