Kick The Jukebox (KICK THE JUKEBOX)

In this best-of episode Louie and Kyle take a look back at some of their favorite tunes and albums from Jamaica: a place where the music is always cool, engaging and very often wonderfully informative. The boys deep dive into the soundtrack for The Harder They Come, Burning Spear's 1975 release Marcus Garvey and the career of Island Records founder Chris Blackwell.

Please check out our podcast recommendation for this week: Quarter Rest with Joe Diaco!

Improviser, musician and beautiful British man Peter Smith leads Louie and Kyle on a deep dive into Marillion, the hugely successful British prog-rock band who over their 40 year career have gotten no respect from the radio or the press, but have legions upon legions of devoted fans that have allowed them to become their own cottage industry. In this episode we delve into their definitive 1995 release Afraid of Sunlight. This is a case where despite the fact Marillion are considered terminally uncool, their devoted fans get it completely right.

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Show notes:

It was great to have Peter on the show who is a killer musician highly influenced by Marillion. Please listen to his SoundCloud which has some beautiful work on it! https://soundcloud.com/damndirtygrapes

If you liked Afraid of Sunlight, Peter recommends the Marillion album Season's End next, Kyle would love for you to get more into Peter Gabriel and Louie doesn't fuck with Prog a lot, but when he does, he's listening to Can and Babe Ruth.

In this best of episode, Louie & Kyle dive into some classic songs that make them want to dance, and get into the history of Chicago House, 80's New York No-Wave and some classic Disco in the process.

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Show notes: Here are the songs we chatted about. They all come highly recommended with the highest Kick the Jukebox seal of approval:

Material, Nona Hendryx - Bustin' Out

Marshall Jefferson - The House Music Anthem (Move Your Body)

The Joubert Singers - Stand on the Word 

Also, here's the link to Louie's recommendation: Disco Music History

Kyle and Louie are joined by BC The Beatles' co-host and Rhino Records' Allison Boron to talk about one of her favorite records, Sam Cooke's One Night Stand! Live at the Harlem Square Club. Deemed too raucous when recorded, this disc sat on the shelves for over 20 years after Sam's death before being released and heralded a total soul and rock n roll classic. They also get into how to find musical common ground with your partner and how true crime videos can be the key to a good night's sleep!

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Show Notes:

It's been a long time coming, but Allison is finally a guest on the show! She's been a huge influence on my music taste and a true blue friend for years. The three of us had plenty of reccos too. Kyle has been revisiting The Arctic Monkeys with his girlfriend this week, while Louie has been listening to a lot of Pup, Dog Park Dissidents and Jeff Rosenstock with his boyfriend. Allison took us on a tour of the new Paul McCartney Flaming Pie archive re-release.

When we got into Sam Cooke, we brought up his croonery appearance on Arthur Murray Dance Party, his work with his record label SAR (especially the song "Put Me Down Easy" by his brother LC Cooke) and the recent Netflix documentary  ReMastered: The Two Killings of Sam Cooke. Also, remember! Our Rave.DJ contest is ON! This was fun and soulful one, jukeheads. -Louie

Blondie's Plastic Letters wasn't fully appreciated when it was released in February 1978 and it's often eclipsed by its follow up Parallel Lines. It's a shame, because Plastic Letters contains some of Blondie's most melodic, sophisticated and rockin' work. Join hosts Kyle Gordon and Louie Pearlman as they discuss Plastic Letters' dirty New York rocker roots that show through the band's platinum blonde sheen.

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Show notes:

If you liked Plastic Letters, we recommend The Paragons' 1967 release On the Beach With the Paragons which introduced the world to the wonderful "The Tide Is High," later covered by Blondie. Also check out original Blondie bassist Gary Valentine's work with his band The Know for some mystically-charged, herky-jerky Power Pop and New Wave. - Louie

When Frank Sinatra released "Into the Wee Small Hours" in 1955, he changed the trajectory of American popular music in a big way. This week, Louie and Kyle delve into what's arguably the first concept album of all time and explore the arrangements and emotions that make "Into the Wee Small Hours" so classic.

Plus, the boys get into some musical shlock too as they have a lively discussion about a band fronted by a real British royal and another who were some sort of creepy cult!

Kyle and Louie make some small talk over Scritti Politti's infectious, shimmering, danceable 1984 album Cupid & Psyche 85! On the surface, these tunes are some of the catchiest pop you've ever heard, but you actually need a PHD in literature to get all the lyrics. Join your favorite 20th century music geek buddies as they traverse the brilliant world of Scritti Politti's mastermind lyricist Green Gartside.

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Show notes:

This was such a fun one to bring it on home! We've had an amazing season and we're really excited for our next season, which is going to follow a pretty cool arc. Get pumped, Jukeheads! We talked about a lot of great music to follow-up on this episode including keyboardist David Gamson's wild cover of The Archies' "Sugar Sugar," the track "Say A Little Prayer" by the immortal Aretha Franklin, and the earlier Scritti Politti album Songs to Remember. Once you give Cupid & Psyche 85 plenty of spins, Kyle recommends following up with Erasure's 1988 album The Innocents and I think it's time to do your own deep-dive into 80's Freestyle. We'll be back with some greatest hits episodes and a brand new season soon! - Louie

In this best-of episode, Kyle and Louie are joined by three special guests: songwriter Eli Bolin (John Mulaney & The Sack Lunch Bunch), Weezer expert Jason Boxer (Weezerpedia), and The Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame's Gretchen Unico to discuss some great Power Pop gems: The Cars' self titled 1978 debut, Weezer's 1996 sophmore outing Pinkerton and Harry Nilsson's 1971 masterpiece Nilsson Schmilsson!

Also, be sure to check out our podcast recommendation: The Lyric Boys!

Kyle 'N Louie are waxin and milkin' all y'all square heads as they discuss 1989's Paul's Boutique, which was a game changing album for The Beastie Boys, The Dust Brothers and the golden age of Hip Hop. Plus Kyle discusses what music is best to listen to when reading about "the troubles" in Ireland and Louie has been obsessed with a real nightmare of a music website.

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Episode Notes:

We had some great reccos in this episode. Check out the NYT review of Say Nothing, the book currently in Kyle's hot little hands. Also check out Louie's actually halfway decent Kanye / Cut Copy mashup that he made on the nightmarish apocalyptic website Rave.dj (don't watch if you're prone to seizures, seriously).

There's been so much written and said about Paul's Boutique already if you want more info on this seminal album, but a great supplemental piece to this episode is this YouTube video that breaks down every sample on the album. - Louie

Kyle 'N Louie both describe this episode as "very Irish" as they deep-dive into The Pouges' Rum, Sodomy & The Lash from 1985. This Elvis Costello-produced Celtic Punk album is the purest version of the The Pogues available, and Shane MacGowan's songs on it are frank, honest and riveting. Also, Kyle makes an argument for fried chicken sandwiches and the band Big Country and Louie does a quick review of the new documentary about the Disney KISS/Star Wars rip-off band (yup you read that right) Halyx.

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Show notes:

It's always fun when one of us brings in an album that is definitive for one of us, and Rum, Sodomy & The Lash is definitely that for Kyle. Here is that actually lovely birthday party for Shane MacGowan that was on The Late Late Show last year. Also, this is the week that we're all gonna get into Big Country and the Defunctland original documentary Live From The Space Stage: The Story of Halyx.

Finally: don't forget our Rave.dj mash mix competition is ON! Follow us on Twitter, Instagram or Facebook for more info on how to enter!

It's here! Kyle Gordon and Louie Pearlman's new music podcast Kick the Jukebox! In this episode, Kyle and Louie share their love for The Ramones' Rocket To Russia, hep you to an old 80's NYC disco track you've never heard before, reawaken your love of early Madonna and unearth some rare Ramones recordings never before heard! Episode One Spotify Music Playlist: https://open.spotify.com/user/louie4711/playlist/1tet8GAKNgLxViBZVr1BYS

Kyle Gordon and Louie Pearlman's new music podcast Kick The Jukebox returns for episode two! In this episode, Kyle & Louie get into why Wu-Tang Clan's debut Enter the Wu-Tang Clan - 36 Chambers changed the Hip Hop landscape forever, teach you about some obscure and wonderful early 60's Country and 70's Canadian Pop acts and unearth an NPR interview that Wu-Tang fans can't miss! Here's a link to the song we talked about that wasn't on Spotify: http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xa3s81_onna-no-jyumon-by-kaji-meiko_music Spotify Listen-Along List: https://open.spotify.com/user/louie4711/playlist/7vXXpPQwde1T948ub4wvbb

Pay no mind to what they say, Episode 3 of Kick the Jukebox is here! Our album of the month is the game-changing Beauty and the Beat by The Go-Go's. Kyle and Louie heap a lot of love on this album by the pioneering all-girl punk/new wave band. They also delve into Jane Wiedlin's solo career, a notable Gravediggaz track, and a song so threateningly queer it was banned from the radio when it was released. Plus! Kyle & Louie found a rare recording that fans of the 70's LA punk band The Germs cannot dare to miss! Please consider supporting us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/KickTheJukebox Lots of followup links this month because we covered a lot of ground: Spotify Listen Along List: https://open.spotify.com/user/louie4711/playlist/6HKMxsqOcsyYR0aiSfQXf9 Podcast Artwork By the wonderful rainbowalternative: https://www.etsy.com/listing/524111503/the-go-gos-go-gos-gogos-band-upcycled?ref=market History of Queer Music 101 Spotify Playlist: https://open.spotify.com/user/bowen.yang/playlist/7xtHIzJTGBR76xoVWYUk9m Turning Tricks To Get My Fix: Tales From the NYC Drug Underbelly by Johnny of No Fucker: https://noisey.vice.com/en_us/article/rgpvzj/sucking-dicks-to-get-my-fix-tales-from-the-nyc-drug-underbelly-by-johnny-of-no-fucker No Fucker - No Fucker (EP): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MaBk-xPjI5A The Go-Go's We Got the Beat (Stiff Single): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tyjwFsWkNmc Decline of Western Civilization: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oBOE2PwLxXY URGH! A Music War: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7BaLhCyccs8&list=PL1g1-Okh_ImOmN66QAIm1mxn5d6c7Knln Francesca Lia Block: http://www.francescaliablock.com/ Jane Wiedlin - Rush Hour (original music video with dolphins!): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P4ZHP4HbA2M

Don't stop thinkin' about Kick The Jukebox Episode 4!!! Kyle and Louie tackle Rumours, the massive 70's rock Fleetwood Mac classic record. We also interview musician, actor, TV writer and member of fan favorites The Spring Standards Heather Robb about her connection to Fleetwood Mac. (interview starts at 01:01:55) PLUS! Kyle reveals that he has a soft spot for Bruce Cockburn! Louie is in love with Fred Schneider from The B-52's, but we already knew that! A member of The Animaniacs was in a fake version of Fleetwood Mac but we don't remember which one! Thanks to Heather Robb for being our first interview ever! Please check out her work at https://www.heatherrobb.com/ As always, check out our Spotify listen-along list! https://open.spotify.com/user/louie4711/playlist/7Cpsk8YJTZBkQ3coWAxKmA PS: Apologies about the sub-par sound for parts of this episode. Much like Fleetwood Mac had to do on Rumours we had our own sound restoration to do. Things will be back to audiophile standard next episode. Promise! Support us on Patreon! https://www.patreon.com/KickTheJukebox

BONUS! If you just want to hear Heather and Louie's interview without the rest of the episode, here it is!

After a bunch of copyright rigamarole and heartache(hey Universal Music... SUCK IT), here's the episode with no clips of Kanye! Please enjoy: Good morning, you drunk hot girls! Kick The Jukebox is BACK: harder, better faster stronger, (sorry we’ve been gone so long!) and Kyle and Louie take on Kanye West’s Graduation, an album that arguably changed the trajectory of Hip Hop forever! Also, Louie and Kyle chat about what they’re digging right now: namely pop-country rock from the 80’s and some 70’s Nigerian synth-pop! Spotify Listen Along List: https://open.spotify.com/user/louie4711/playlist/4l6L0VPnUlUHYoOVh2YnEp

Spuds! Beautiful Mutants! Booji Bois! It's KTJB Episode 6!!! Louie & Kyle dip their energy-domes into Devo's classic debut "Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo!" Kyle gets Louie into John Martyn! Louie gets Kyle into The Partridge Family (sort of!). And both boys agree: Toni Basil is cooler than anyone gives her credit for! Speaking of Toni, her music isn't on Spotify so check out her awesome song here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t_4L_ZIES4g The spotify playlist is here: https://open.spotify.com/user/louie4711/playlist/3zEVfgfXDjjP6SW1MGWLYH YEAH YEAH YEAH YEAH YEAHYEAHYEAHYEAHYEAHYEAHYEAH YEAH! Please consider supporting us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/KickTheJukebox

Kick the Jukebox is BACK in podcast-form. This is a slightly-edited version of our live radio show on KPISS.FM! To access the full show, please visit https://kpiss.fm/#/show/kick-the-jukebox. For this episode instead of focusing on an album, Kyle and Louie wax poetic about Louie’s favorite singer-songwriter, bubblegum music father and punk godfather Joey Levine! And speaking of wax, wax was indeed spun as we listened to some vinyl live from the station! Also, Kyle classes it up with a Four Tops track! It’s an all late-sixties Kick the Jukebox.

Kyle ‘N Louie talk you through the lyrically dark and psychedelic 1996 album Thank God For Mental Illness while spinning some of it’s best tracks. They also delve into some of their fave songs from The Byrds, and The Germs (RIP Lorna Doom!)

Weezerpedia maestro Jason Boxer talks about the album that Weezer fans love and the band has a very complicated relationship with: Pinkerton. No other one other than Jason could have been as El Scorcho with his insights. Plus! Kyle loves an obscure New Edition track! Jason brings in a Canadian track (NOT LOUIE!) by The Most Serene Republic. Louie introduces the boys to Dark Wave.

Kyle N Louie get into the cult-classic album that is The Zombie's 1968 Odessey and Oracle! Such tracks like Hung Up On a Dream and Time of the Season get the KTJB-treatment, as do songs by outsider-music maestro Daniel Johnston and Muppet Show-era Harry Belafonte!

Louie is joined by Editor in Chief and co-owner of www.ToughPigs.com (the site for Muppet fans who grew-up), Joe Hennes to discuss one of his favorite albums, the Sixties-staple, Crosby, Stills & Nash! Joe also brings in a great new(ish) track by British group Matthew and the Atlas and Louie is back on his bullshit with an old-school Redd Kross track.

This was a fun one, jukeheads, because Louie brought a slice of cheesecake into the station! Then Kyle N Louie chat powerpop, (mainly The Rentals Vs Weezer), move onto a brilliant deep cut by The Pixies and then get very somber and dancey discussing their album of the week: the seminal Power, Corruption and Lies by New Order.

Here's another podcast of a classic Kick the Jukebox radio show! Kyle and Louie have so much fun talking about Jane Weidlin’s 1988 solo venture, Fur! B'also, fun facts about Katrina & the Waves, and Giorgio!

Kyle 'N Louie are joined by special guest Mike Malone (who has seen The B-52's over 80 times in concert!) to discuss their album "Cosmic Thing," which had a huge impact on Mike and Louie growing up, so it's gonna get a little emotional, folks! Plus, Kyle just got back from New Orleans, so he spins some Dr. John and Mike schools the boys on why Pylon Reenactment Society kick ass!

From The Poppy Family to the Prince Family to Prince Paul, this episode with Gabe Pacheco has it all! We have a wonderful chat with Gabe, who is a hilarious and insightful comedian and teacher in NYC about one of his favorite albums: the underrated Hip Hopera A Prince Among Thieves by genius producer Prince Paul. Also, Kyle eats a sandwich that agrees with him, THANK GOD.

In honor of Pride Month and the release of “Rocketman,” Kyle and Louie deep-dive into one of Elton John and Bernie Taupin’s most respected releases, Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy! They answer the big questions, like who Sugar Bear is! Also, Kyle reminisces about an amazing Peter Gabriel performance he saw, and Louie celebrates both Bill & Ted Day and Pride Month with one of his favorite Pansy Division tracks!

Louie is joined by special guest, composer and lyricist Eli Bolin (Documentary Now’s Co-Op, Found! The Musical, Sesame Street, Story Pirates) to talk about one of their favorite albums and guys, Harry Nilsson and his 1971 masterpiece, Nilsson Schmilsson! Also, Louie brings in some X-Ray Spex and Eli shares his love for Annie Haslam!

Kyle ‘n Louie get into it when it comes to The Carpenters’ 1970 classic, Close to You! This gorgeous record was considered “too square” for a lot of music loves of the time, but guess what, it’s totally great! Also, learn the stories behind the weirdness that is JD and the Straight Shot and Junkshop Glam-Canuck kings Sweeny Todd. This episode will leave ya with bubblegum on your knees!

What is a musical guilty pleasure? What makes us feel bad for liking certain kinds of music? How does taste get formed and how does it stick with us? Kyle and Louie get into it when discussing the underrated 1997 Danish dance classic, Aqua’s Aquarium. Also, they touch on tracks by those commies Pet Shop Boys and somewhat forgotten teen soul sensation Stacy Lattisaw!

Let’s hear it One More Time for this classic Kick The Jukebox radio show! You can feel Kyle N Louie’s Digital Love for Daft Punk’s masterpiece of an album: Discovery! Plus, Kurt Cobain makes a surprise appearance, your beautiful boys delve into the history of House Music and a real banger of a disco/gospel song.

It's a quiet storm indeed as Kyle and Louie deep-dive into one of Kyle's faves, Sade's 1984 lush and beautiful Diamond Life! This album is truly a balm for any difficult situation!

Not only do we get a very important update on Kyle and Louie's facial hair during this episode, but we also get to into why Oingo Boingo's 1985 album is an underrated New Wave classic.

In this episode, Kyle and Louie are joined by special guest, singer-songwriter, Jo Kroger to pay tribute to the much missed Adam Schlesinger and his power pop tour de force, 2003's Fountains of Wayne album Welcome Interstate Managers.

Let the wave of mutilation wash over you as we deep-dive into The Pixies' 1989 LP Doolittle! This album paved the way for Alternative Music as we know it today, and Kyle 'N Louie have an engaging discussion about the power of being a band's band, and how sometimes being slow-burn successful is so much better than just flaming out.

It's easy to forget that Cyndi Lauper's chart-topping success in the early Eighties was definitely not a given. In this episode of Kick the Jukebox, Kyle and Louie look into how the team behind her solo debut, 1983's "She's So Unusual," polished some unknown songs by lesser-known artists and gave them that much needed Cyndi Lauper charm. The result is a timeless album that's a blast to revisit today: a pop-celebration of outsiders and weirdos everywhere.

Kyle and Louie get into that age old question, what is Emo, and are Death Cab Emo, or Indie, or what??? The debate rages on, but what is clear is how beautiful and smart the songwriting is on this 2003 indie-rock classic. Transatlanticism is one of Kyle's faves so get ready for a lot of heartfelt praise and wistful sighs on this latest KTJB.

The world's a mess and Kick the Jukebox is back! Kyle 'n Louie tell the story of why X's 1980 album "Los Angeles" is a celebrated gem of a west coast LA punk album, and one of Louie's personal faves. Also, Kyle turns around on The Cars, and Louie chats about why we need Little Richard more than ever.

If you need a dreamlike, beautiful, genre-defying escape of a record while staying home, do we have an album for you: John Martyn's 1977 release One World. In this episode, Kyle and Louie take you though the genius guitarist's processes and his collaborations with producer Chris Blackwell and keyboardist Steve Winwood that make this release one of Island Records' most unique of the late seventies.

Kyle 'N Louie deep-dive into what might be their most contentious album yet: 1979's "Get the Knack." What are the Knack? Great, tight Power Pop? Puerile and sexist? A little bit of column A and a little bit of B? Take a listen to find out!

In support of the Black Lives Matter movement, we’ve decided to postpone the airing of our episode this week in order to use our space on the internet to amplify black voices and causes. We’ll be back next week but in the meantime, here are some ways you can support: Donate to Campaign Zero at https://www.joincampaignzero.org/ Look up your local bail fund and contribute at the National Bail Fund Network, which can be found at https://www.communityjusticeexchange.org/ Join a Black Lives Matter protest currently happening in your area: https://blacklivesmatter.com/ Thanks, and we'll see you next week.

When Burning Spear released Marcus Garvey in 1975, it took the world of Reggae, Roots and Dread by storm. Join hosts Kyle Gordon and Louie Pearlman as they explore what made this album so important historically and musically, and what it can help us understand about the current moment.

The Cars' 1978 self titled debut was a huge hit for the power-pop/new wave outfit, with four charting singles that we still remember fondly today. We're joined by rock historian/WRUW Cleveland DJ Gretchen Unico to discuss what makes The Cars just what we needed.

We're joined by special guest Mike Joseph (Billboard Magazine's 2020 Pride List of Industry Shaping LGBTQ Executives, Detoxicity Podcast ) to talk about Public Enemy's explosive 1990 LP "Fear of a Black Planet," a battle-cry of a classic hip-hop album that marks a moment in time for the Black Power movement while deftly predicting its future.

When Sly and the Family Stone sang "Stand!" on their 1969 classic LP, it was a command to get up, fight for your rights and dance. In this episode, we deep-dive into what we can learn from Sly Stone's wholly unique blend of funk, soul, rock and late-sixties socially conscious psychedelia.

We're joined by Liam Carroll, writer for The Spool, Rebeat Magazine, Newscult and founder of B-Movie review site Analog Scum to discuss his gateway album for his favorite band: 1995's Electr-O-Pura by Yo La Tengo. Liam gets into how Yo La Tengo embodies a bucolic New Jersey that is rarely written about, and why they've endured when so many other cool-kid indie bands haven't.

The world wasn't quite ready for McCartney II when Paul released it in 1980. It's cold and electronic sound is divisive among the hardcore fans. But for the very reasons that McCartney II was a tough sell when it was first released, it's influenced so many musical genres and artists. In this episode, Kyle and Louie analyze what happens when a Beatle goes New Wave.

Louie N Kyle take a trip to the world of the deeply psychedelic sixties band Love. Love lived communally in a Griffith Park castle, they horded guns and drugs and, most importantly, they weren't fucking around. Learn how they made one of the best albums of all time against insurmountable odds.

Before Vince Guaraldi made his mark in pop culture with his iconic music for Peanuts, he released Jazz Impressions of Black Orpheus, which includes his wonderfully warm hit, "Cast Your Fate to the Wind," his haunting cover of "Moon River" and more. This episode marks Louie and Kyle's first foray into the world of Jazz, and they are joined by their old pal, Jason Boxer! The trio discusses Jason running for his local school board, songs that may or may not secretly be psy ops and why Vince's music makes us feel so good.