Club Random with Bill Maher - Cameron Crowe | Club Random with Bill Maher

Episode Date: March 10, 2024

The brilliant Cameron Crowe reveals how Sean Penn got cast in Fast Times at Ridgemont High; Bill and Cameron on Bill’s love for Billy Joel, the artists that influenced them both, the most poetic lyric by Elvis Costello, what it was like being the youngest writer ever at Rolling Stone, Bill and Cameron’s mutual love for Eddie Vedder, why lyrics are unimportant in some songs, what Salman Rushdie told Bill about writing, as an artist what it means to accrue a body of work over time, and at this point, you could have watched about three minutes and decided for yourself. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On March 29th something is coming Kong Godzilla, they can feel it fight together a teaming up or face extinction Godzilla Kong the new Empire only in theaters March 29 He said I know this character I grew up with this character and we said we'll do it and he goes hire me and I'll do it and we actually hired him Everybody in the world has an idea for a movie. Or ten. That's not the hard one.

How does it end? Clare Render. I tell ya. Tainy, the Cameron. Yeah. Heavy lifting. So sit in the old chair. I love it here.

I love it here too. It's fantastic. It is, but here, I'm sitting your place. Yeah baby. Places. I'm here, I'm here. Places people, places. We're having a big show.

No, I love it here too. This was, I almost tore this place down because it was full of mold and termites and everything bad you could think of. And it was just a vibe about it. When I bought it, it was just filled with video games. This room or this whole place? Yeah, that's what the former owner had in here. But I've never played a video game in my life.

I never even played Pac-Man. Like in college, Pac-Man was what was, is that what was going on life. I never even played Pac-Man, like in college. Pac-Man was what was, is that what was going on when you were in college? Pac-Man. Did you play? Little bit. I never even played pinball.

Really? Even though pinball wizard, not that I have to tell you. Appreciate that. Don't you? Of course, pinball wizard, we love all versions of pinball wizard. The who best of all. Who else did it? We have Elton course. Pinball Wizard. We love all versions of Pinball Wizard. The who best of all.

Who else did it? We have Elton John doing Pinball Wizard. Oh yeah, that's right. That's right. Kind of a... That's quite a tribute when a really super duper successful and great artist covers your song. It's really, that's kind of the ultimate tip of the cap, I would think. It's like saying, boy, I wish I'd written that one.

True. What is some of the other, like, what's your top ten cover? Like the art of McCartney, that album is good and like Billy Joel does, maybe I'm amazed. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Have you heard that? What do you think of Billy Joel and the Grammys? Don't get me started on Billy Joel. Let's do it. I mean, because of, because that re. Have you heard that? What'd you think of Billy Joel and the Grammys? Don't get me started on Billy Joel. I mean, I mean,

Let's do it. I mean, because of, because that reawaken, not that I haven't always loved him, but like I'm actually making, my girl is here this week and I'm just fucking driving her nuts with like how awesome Billy Joel is. And like we have to learn about Billy Joel.

And so I'm just gonna go off, you know, like I use the old iPod as I've mentioned many times because you can curate your songs better. And I know exactly how many songs I like of any artist. And like the Beatles have the most, of course, Billy has 51. Wow. Which is good for my iPod.

Yeah. Because I weed my garden carefully. So like only the stuff I really, really like. When I put it on shuffle, it's every song is great even though it's like Frank Sinatra, then Green Day and then you know, but what they have in common is I love them all. And I swear to God, his 51 songs, now the one,

yeah, 50 and now he's got a new one. It's pretty good. It is pretty good. Yeah, he's just amazing. And I mean, they are just of such a high quality. I might, I know this is sacrilege, but I might take that 50 over my top beetle 50. Wow.

I had to be schooled in Billy Joel, but like the people that love Billy Joel will teach you. Just the lyrics, like he's, I don't think people recognize that, I mean a lot of pop, he's definitely a better lyricist than the Beatles, who they range from downrightright awful to like, okay, but it's always a pop lyric. I mean, it's, frequently it's gobbledygook and early stuff is just primitive.

I love me do, I love you too or whatever the fuck. But Paul Simon and Billy Joel are on just on a different level as far as lyricists. They're just much more elegant, thought out, stand as poetry, really clever. You know, John is a real estate novelist, real estate novelist is a great, I mean, not that the Beatles didn't have their moments like that. Yeah, yeah, yeah. But he's much more consistent.

Do you love his characters? Like he creates characters and scenes. I think he got that from McCartney. Yeah, yeah. McCartney was the ultimate character creator. Desmond has a borrow in the marketplace. You know, like he always was just making people up. Remember another day, his first single?

Love another day. I do too. You know, just the lady, morning she wets her hair. It's just another day. Just another day. You know, I'm obsessed with this one thing. Like, Lenin, John Lennon did a whole bunch of interviews, sadly, right before he was killed. Like, he was in the middle of a press junket.

I wish I'd been able to interview him. You never did, even when you were the teenage wonder kind. That would have been my dream. Really, that didn't get to John. No, because that was house husband period. But I saw him on the streets of New York once with Yoko. Oh. This wasn't the story I was gonna tell you,

but he was, they got out of a cab and another couple took their cab. And I saw this young couple take the cab from John and Yoko, knowing it was John and Yoko. Right. And Bill, I think about them fairly often. Can you break up if John and Yoko blessed you as a couple, couple to couple?

I say it would be difficult. They're probably still together. But that's another thing. Or they could have been indifferent to the whole experience. True. I mean, were you close enough to see if they were compelling when they...

I saw some quvel for sure. Most people would. There was some quvel. But isn't it amazing that they were taken cabs? Yes, I love that. I mean, that's what they wanted. They wanted a more regular life, although... New York life. I mean, you know, I love John Lennon,

like I'm seeing that's a no man and the Beatles and Toto, but, and Toto. That's a pretty good bet. But he had a phony side to him. Like he pretended to be the working class hero and the other ones would tell you, he was the one who had a muchony side to him. Like he pretended to be the working class hero and the other ones would tell you, he was the one who had a much more middle class life. He was richer though, he wasn't rich.

But they were like real poor. And he was in this little, he was like in a suburban, right? Yeah. Aunt Mimi and you know, I mean she was strict but it was not, he was not the scraping by quite like the other ones were. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. But it was not, he was not the scraping by quite like the other ones were.

And Elvis Costello nailed him in the lyric with, of The Other Side of Summer, do you remember that song? I do. Great record. Great record, no? Great, great. I'm reminiscing. That's what it looks like.

There's another lyricist. The first line of that song, the sun struggles up another beautiful day. That's a poet, the sun struggles up most, what, no? No, yeah, I'm with you. Yeah, but he said, wasn't it a millionaire who said, imagine no possessions? Wow.

In that song. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. And it's true, because they were filling that Dakota, they kept buying apartments in the Dakota. Lining them up. And filling it with- With a cow farm, state and everything. Yeah, the California, remember that article

in the New York Magazine, right? Yeah. But they filled up, you know, I think when he died and they went through this stuff, it was just like a floor of shit, rocking horses and whatever the fuck was in there. Amazing. You know, but.

The thing that I remember he said in one of those last interviews that he did, they asked him about Billy Joel. And he said that he loved just the way you are. And he said that he knew where Billy Joel lived. I guess it was kind of in the same place. And so, or across the river from each other. And Lenin said he would be in a little boat

out in the water and he would sing just the way you are as loud as he could, hoping that Billy Joel would hear it. So I always thought like, if I ever met Billy Joel, I would say, did you ever hear a wisp of John Lennon singing maybe, or just the way you are? Like in the distance somewhere, like you dreamed it, but actually it was him in a boat serenading you.

Or I bet he could have gotten his number. Good point. You know, you are John Lennon. Maybe not as poetic as the manager. Well that's funny. The boat serenade. It's funny because the only two like big songs of Billy Joel that I do not like are probably his two biggest hits.

I'm not a big fan of, I love you just the way you are. And I'm not a big fan of we started the fire. Right, right. Was that it? We didn't start the fire. We didn't start the fire. I like, the lyrics are clever. He was also quite the historian.

You know, he was very interested in history. He did that awesome song about Vietnam. Yeah, yeah. He did the one about Leningrad when he went to Russia and it's really about the Cold War. Allentown is kind of like about recession in America. Allentown is great. You know, it was a lot more than just,

bitch better have my money. Totally. Now, Bill, when you listen to this stuff, like does it take you to like a sentimental place? Like where do you go with the Billy? A song can. Joel stuff. Oh, it just, you know, I just look I have the

luxury of having no musical ability Right. I think you have no musical. I have no musical right So we are we can just we're free to be fans to be fair just fans and isn't it freeing It's so freeing. I don't have a song that I will play for you that I've written. Right. You don't have to deal with that. And I can also be totally honest and just say, I love this and I don't love that. I've just said, I don't love, we didn't start the fire.

It's just not, he's such a brilliant, it's, for me I love melody. I guess, look, you cannot quantify. There's something in a song. Yes, part of it is lyrics, but I used to have this argument with Clive Davis, and he would say it was like the most important thing, and I would say maybe for women. But for men, like absolutely not. A song can have shit lyrics, like, excuse me,

some Beatles song. And I still love the song, because I just love the song. Yeah. And then, but it's a cornflakes box. It's something that they just put to, you know. Totally. Do you listen to lyrics early, or do you just like listen to the groove first?

Some people go right to the lyrics. I know that, yeah. I'm not that person. Right, they're called women, I'm telling you. I don't think that's our thing, because women you know, obviously they're very moved they're more Communicative and they're looking for romance because yeah the men in their actual lives are never romantic enough So the men in their actual life don't say things like I love you just the way you are So when Billy Joel sings it he gets the most beautiful supermodel in the world

That's true. It's true. It's true. You know. Because you can play a song for somebody and just, you know, for your girlfriend or whoever and just be like, isn't this a great song? God, I feel so good listening to it. I have no idea what it's about. She's like, oh, you don't know what it's about?

Right. He doesn't want to have children. She does. They split up. In the third verse, they get a house together and it's already over and it's a terrible, terrible tragic song. I'm like, I'll get there in a couple of years

with what the words are, but you're right, you're right. Well, half the time, I don't even know what the words are. Yeah, totally. Because I know today you can always get the words. I think it's part of the app, right? When you stream. Yes. Okay, but I think it's part of the app, right? When you stream. Yes. Okay, but I don't... Your song lyric video accompanies. Right. I don't want that. If I'm really interested, I can look it up in two seconds on Google.

But there are songs I've been listening to for 50 years, and I still really don't know what the lyrics are. Pearl Jam songs. All... Well, you know... are you aware of the Pearl Jam lyrics? It's really good. Interesting you would ask me this. Because, you know, Eddie Vedder, and I became friends from my Hawaiian vacations, he's always there at the same time. And, you know, if you get into a gift war with Eddie better, you will lose. So, because he's such a generous, sweet person. So sweet. So he gave me something that was amazing

and then of course I'm in a gift war. And okay, one year. How do you come back? You know what I did? Tell me. I got all his lyrics, everything he's ever written, and printed them out like as if it was a coffee table book and made that, because I don't think he has that.

That's funny. Did you have photos in it? No, no, just it was just, you know, your body, here's your, as a poetry book, because nobody had done that yet. Killer. Yeah. What'd he do?

He beat it like the next year. Yeah. He got this, there used to be this show called Celebrity Box, it was a claymation thing where the celebrities would box each other. Remember that? Fagely. It was I think on MTV or Comedy Central.

Celebrity fight off. Yeah. And they did me once. I was one of the celebrities. I don't know, they would fight you with someone, I guess, who they thought you should be fighting. And he got the original, the acclamation figure that they used. No.

Yes, he did. And he made all of them. That takes work. Oh, I know. I'm telling you, you don't want to get in a gift war. He doesn't have a team looking for it. I sense it's a personal quest. Eddie Vedder is just the ultimate human and artist.

I mean, yes, but yeah, you're right. The lyric, it was great to print out his lyrics because he is hard to understand. But I mean, so is Mick Jagger. For sure. I still don't know the lyrics to Hunky Tongue Woman. And he's okay with that. And he's.

And I'm okay with it. And everybody's okay with it. I feel like I'd be disappointed. Yes. Because they're also not genius lyricists, they're rolling stuff. Yeah, I mean, and he knows he can drop whole, you know, sentences and stuff.

It's like, at a certain point under my thumb became like, thumb, girl. You know, it's just- Maybe when he sings it in the concert? Yeah, yeah, it's just like, the words aren't essential anymore, Bill. Do they still sing that song? I think they've pulled that chest

out from time to time. I'd be very surprised. It is one of the most misogynistic. I love the song and I could give a shit what it's about. Yeah. So, and I understand it was. Well, we don't know because we're not lyrics guys. So it's like.

Well, but those, I know those. It's hard to get escaped the lyrics of that song. Oh yeah. But I think they still, I hope they do. I hope they do. I like the good Ruby Tuesday. Ruby, oh, the Stones, they're,

they're by, I mean, they have probably the same amount, 40, 50 songs in my album. And they're fantastic also. I mean, you can't the same amount, 40, 50 songs in my album. And they're fantastic also. I mean, you can't always get what you want. I mean, they're all, they're playlist that they do in their concert and a few others. I mean, they did an album with Don Was about 20 years ago. There's a couple of really good tracks on it. The new one is, there's a couple, you know,

it's like none of it is bad. You just wanna kinda schmush like 12 pretty good songs in so much. Two awesome ones, you know what I mean? I know, which they've done before. Doubleback singles in the day. No, I mean they. Bruby Tuesday was a B side, I think.

Is that right? That's the power of the double A-side single. Well, it was the ultimate beetle double A-side single. Isn't it like paperback rider and rain or something amazing like that? Yeah, but I don't think that would be the ultimate. I think the ultimate would be Penny Lane and Strawberry Fields. I'm with you. Because those were two, two iconics.

I mean, even for them, that's in their iconic list. Penny Lane and Strawberry Fields. It's so great It's amazing. I've opined my Theory to now a few publications. It's been out there. I used to just say it's a friend I don't know somehow it got out and then I'm not afraid to talk about it, but I had a theory that they broke up because To them singles are everything. That's their era. Not that they didn't make amazing albums, but the singles

didn't go on the albums. I got you, yeah. The H.J. Jude album was a collection of the singles. It was an amazing album. That's only the American record company taking, the American record put out different versions. Yeah, yeah. Until about Revolver and then they, I think Rubber Soul Revolver, I think that's when they demanded,

no, you gotta put out the same album we put out in England. Which was 14 songs and not the singles. I mean, Sergeant Pepper was supposed to begin with those two songs, Penny Lane and Strawberry Fields. That was the concept is our childhood. And then they forgot that and they just had a bunch of other really great songs. But um... You're a Beatles guy. That's cool. I know, of course I am, but you're deep tissue Beatles, which which kind of am. Well, it's me while I'm talking to you. But I'm just saying I hail you for digging into

to you. But I'm just saying I hail you for digging into the first sequences of Sergeant Pepper and stuff like that. It's a world to disappear into, the Beatles, the world of the Beatles. Let me ask you, how do you feel about the Sam Mendes four Beatles films, one on each of the members? Let's talk about that. I just, I just. Let's vet that. I just read it. I know what you're talking about. I don't quite get it yet. I mean, each beetle has their own movie made about them. I assume the other three have to be in it.

I guess they cross paths. But like, how do you do that? Is it a Rosamond thing where it's just, first we see the same scene, but now it's some George's point of view, and then we see it from Ringo's point of view. What if they all saw the same thing? Hey, this Elvis has kind of an asshole tonight.

You know, I think they all, that was- That's what you did all the movies, all four movies. Well, I mean, one of the reasons why they did so well is that certainly in the early days, they were tight. They were tight, you know. I don't think they had a lot of different opinions. Then later they did. Yeah, of you know. I don't think they had a lot of different opinions. Then later they did.

Yeah, of course. So I don't know. I don't know. Does he direct them all who writes them? Like, what's the deal? If we could sit through and love, as I did, and I bet you did, the eight hours of the, basically the let it be outtakes

that Peter Jackson put together, I'm sure we'll like this too. That's right. You know, the Beatles are like, I mean, the way they can keep mining out of them. I know. They're like, when the Saudi Arabians, like when they hit that one oil field that like,

in like in the 50s, and it's still going. Yeah, totally. There's an oil field there that's really big, hence their reputation for an oil producing nation. So here's my question. So when the singles era, and actually let's just say when the song intensive song era of music started to slip into more of like

records as opposed to songs, I would say over the last 20 plus years, of music started to slip into more of like records as opposed to songs. I would say over the last 20 plus years, did you lose interest in music and that kind of music? Or do you like that like there's less emphasis on lyrics now? It's more just vibe, right? And how are you with that? I will answer that in one second.

But I just remembered why I was telling you about penny lane, okay, so every fields my theory about why they broke up they prized singles and John Lennon kept losing that race like hey Jude beat out revolution. That's another two-sided like revolution Strawberry fields and you can't get the A side. Yeah, yeah. And that happened, hello, goodbye, paperback writer and Rain.

Rain is a great song, but it's the B side. And I think that bugged him. That's a wild concept. That feels right. But it feels right because he was that guy. And also we're all competitive in this business. And we, I mean, they were competitive in a very positive way,

but you also just don't wanna flat out lose. Yeah. And at a certain point, I mean, Paul McCartney is more prolific. I don't think like his best or better than John Lennon's best. Yeah. I mean, you know, day in the life

and revolution and I am the war risk and I mean, he's got tons of great ones. But he was lazier by his own admission. He would sit on the couch, he would say, and Paul would call up and say, we gotta do this. And he'd be like, and Paul was like, oh, you know, the principal comes around and makes us work. But he said, honestly, I wouldn't have done it otherwise.

He didn't want to lose when they got in the studio. Oh, you have more songs on the album than I do, and they're better. So. It's a great theory. Yeah, I mean, I don't know. And I don't think you could get a straight answer out of Paul McCartney about it, but, you know, who knows.

You know, to that theory that John in the bedroom with a guitar was probably his most comfortable place. Elliot Mintz put together, after John died, like all of these private homemade tapes, I don't know if you ever heard it, he had a radio show called The Lost Lennon Tapes. I remember Elliot, yeah. Wasn't he like their confidants?

He was their confidant and publicist. And Bill, he had like all of Lenin's work tapes and just stuff that he made like shit that he was doing just with the tape recorder with a cassette player going in the bed and like Sean is crying across the room and he's just like talking about stuff and he hears gotta serve somebody from Dylan and he kind of plays gotta serve somebody

and it's fascinating. It is that guy in his pulled back and retired mode, but you're right, he's following pop music and he's following all the hits of the time. And by the way, just before he died, came back with one of his greatest, and again, such a super, just a pop hit record starting over. Starting over.

Watching the wheels. Watching the wheels. Great. Yeah, that's another great one. But starting over is just, you know, if you like, if you're like just the regular fan, just the young man in the 22nd row, that's the kind of record I love. And I mean, I certainly know people who hate music like that. It's just It's like fuck you. Yeah. Yeah. Like music like that. Fine. No, I'm kidding

But you know, there are people and like you good God enjoy your Miles Davis and your acoustic Dylan or whatever the and I will enjoy Popular music. I got you because again, we're just the fan There's new bands that I think you would love. I think there's new stuff. I listen to new stuff. Okay, good. Oh yeah. Good, because I know you have expertise in the era

when talking about- Name some new bands that you like or artists. I think My Morning Jacket is a great band. Yeah, I have, what's one of their big ones? It's, I don't know a lot of their stuff, but something crossed my transom about a year or two ago, and I love it. It's very, the vibe in this immediate.

And I think it's long, it's like eight minutes. I can't remember the name. Golden, maybe? No, it's like a bit longer title than that. I don't know, but okay, so get more of them in another in another time that band is Is huge, you know, I just think like right live their oh no, they're explosive. They're amazing It's amazing the way bands, which is what we grew up in are so Just out of vogue right now. I know a A band? Yeah. That's just, all the big stars are female singers.

I mean, singles mostly. I mean, that's, you could just name, keep name from Taylor Swift and Beyonce onto Rihanna and all the, it just goes on and on. Those are the stars. That's what sells now. Women actually are buying more electric guitars than men now, which is kind of fantastic.

And by the way, the kids who think that Taylor Swift invented the breakup song and the I Will Get Back at You song really have to listen to Carly Simon, Your So Vain, because nobody ever did it quite with the velvet shiv that she did velvet shiv is on Your So Vain. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Supposedly about Warren Beatty. Yeah You know with Mick Jagger singing on it. That's awesome move That's like a ballsy Carly Simon. It's so distinctive when that voice comes in. Dealing you her cards and there, that, you know. Oh, but, you know, it's amazing.

And again, it's a great record. Great lyric. I mean, also poetic lyrics there. Your scarf was apricot. There's another, there's a word in there that's crazy. Yes, I know what you're talking about. Yeah, it's like your dance, yeah, whatever. I forget the word, but yes.

I didn't hear it for 20 years, I didn't hear it because I don't listen to lyrics. Well, she's a sign of the publishing house, is she not? She is, she is. So the literary got into her blood, but. That's true. You walked into the party like you were walking onto a yacht.

You are strategically something. Behind one. One. Yeah. Your hats, whatever. Let's bring her out. Carly Simon, ladies and gentlemen. It's amazing, we've heard it a thousand times.

And something just, yeah. You probably think this song is about you. That's the lyric. And then, yeah. Her first single, that's the way. You had One Eye in the Mirror. One Eye in the Mirror. As you watched yourself, Gavat. Her first single, that's the way. Oh, you had one eye in the mirror as you watched yourself govot. Govot, that's it, thank you.

That's it. But then when you're where you should be all the time and when you're not, you're with some underworld spy or the wife of a close friend, eh, come on. No, it's a shiv, there's no doubt about it. Taylor has got to study that, it's a shiv. There's no doubt about it. Come on. Taylor has got to study that. That's a shiv.

That's high-end shiv work. And she, her first single is fantastic. That's the way I always heard it should be. Remember that? Oh, she's, now there's one who's got like a dozen in my iPod. But again, they're all fantastic. Yes, I've gone through many Carly Simon song crushes. You know, where you just get a song where you just,

for sure. You gotta play it every day for two weeks. You just get a crush. Completely. Do you like interviewing musicians? Oh, sure. I mean, like here? Yeah, for any reason. Oh, I mean, you know, those of us, you know, who are not musicians,

it's always going to be a little fantastical for us. You know, there's just going to be, it's sort of like they are a little demigod because they just walk through this world. I mean, one of the things that just amazes me about the whole rock experience is that so many of them will say or have a story or a life pattern and if I had to put the ending to it in three words, it's drugs beat sex. And I feel like if I had been a rock star

and women were throwing at themselves, it was just, I think, I would have kept with that and not the drugs. Like, so many of them have these stories, we're like, oh my God, you're living this amazing life and then the drugs got to be way more important than the sex and ruin the sex. They were too sick and drunk and uncoked to even have sex. So why?

But that's your drugs beat sex usually. Yeah. I hope I would have been able to do better. I think you would have been more strategic. What a noble wish for a man's life. It is a noble wish. But see, you had it on your mind. You wouldn't have fallen into that trap.

But you know what I'm talking about? I do. So many of them. Yeah. And very often, pedestrian drugs, like drunk, really you're a drunk. Yeah. You get to the pinnacle so you can be a drunk

and get away with it for a while. Wow. What is it? Is it imposter syndrome or something? It's like, because there's so many bands that have one hit and then like a guy goes into a 7-Eleven and shoots someone and the band's over and it was only one hit. It's like, that's how they celebrate.

It's like, let's go loot, you know, pink dot. It's like, it's crazy. So they must like, there must be at least one person in the band that like hates themselves and the success just oh They all hate each other. Yeah, that's another thing right. I've talked about that with many of them And then there's one guy in the band. It's an archivist that kind of keeps the stuff And and there's that guy but anyway good for you. Yeah, we like that guy. Yeah, because you're an archivist I am that guy. Yeah, you are I can't play

I like that guy. Yeah, because you're an archaic. I am that guy. Yeah, you are that guy. I can't play. But I am that guy. Right, you are an archaic. You're a little bit that guy because you saved all the stuff in this little enclave.

I mean, my, This was your stash of stuff. The Supremes. From a poster that was in an album. Bill, I had that. You did? It's in my room. It was the, these were the first women

that I had on my wall. It was from the Supremes Greatest Hits album. It was the, these were the first women that I had on my wall. It was from the Supreme's Greatest Hits album. It was like a fold up poster and I had it on my wall. And I remember my sister came into the room one day and was like, you're into women now, nice. So it was like, it was that. You had that very thing? Bill, I walked in and I saw it and it was just like, wow.

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That's PreviaHair.com slash random. I had a script I was working on and I thought like forgive me. I thought like the perfect person to play sorry about my phone. I had like a really cool 60-ish character this kind of like a Californian, you know, like post-socialite woman who was part of the California culture. Anyway, so I thought Raquel Welch would be the perfect person to play this part. And she died. This is just a script I was working on.

Cause I thought like there was more for Raquel Welch. I thought there was an Anne Margaret carnal knowledge moment for her that she never quite got. There could have been. So that I was thinking of chasing that. She was in the last of Sheila in 1974, one of the great, amazing movies that's unsung because it invented a whole type of mystery shooting of a film that's used in everything. But yeah, she cut off.

But so you're working on a screenplay now? Are you always working on something? Yeah, for sure. You're always writing a screenplay? Yeah, for sure. Well, you have a very impressive shelf. I must say, my friend Salman Rushdie, he says, he said, I'm just glad that I have a shelf, you know,

like he's got, in other words, he's got, in a whole shelf of books, like he's, you know, when you get to a certain age, you want, and you know, you have a very great shelf with all your movies that, you know, the big, the Jerry Maguire. I look at it that way, it's like a shelf. I've worked on a shelf.

Yeah, you've got your kind of good shelf. I got a couple more slides there like a shelf. I've worked on a shelf. Yeah, you've got a good shelf. I got a couple more slides there on the shelf. I'm just like, I'm into like lining it up. Well, I know you wrote the screenplay to Fast Times at Ridgemont High, right? Yeah, your buddy, Sean Penn's tour de force. Oh, right. Oh, of course.

Yeah, man, he walked right into it. It was, I always thought. Is that the way you wrote that character? Or did he change it? Yeah, no, because he was based on a guy from San Diego who was like one of those young beachcomber guys. Spicoli. Yeah, his real name is very close to Spicoli.

It was really kind of a portrait of this guy. And actually the last time I saw him, he was shirtless, the real guy. And he was walking down the street looking for a party. He had like a wings apropos of our conversation. He had a wings necklace on somehow. And he was shirtless and I was talking with a friend of mine. A cartney band?

The band. And he had like cut offs and stuff. And the guy I was hanging with said like he you know Jeff's gonna come looking for a party and the guy walks up and he's like I'm looking for some jack And there's some at a party right right and it's like that's the last time I heard from him And that was what's the call he was based on taught Sean to say it like? Sean, Sean, Bill Sean had it, had the character. And what was amazing was he didn't really audition. He had auditioned for the casting guy quietly,

but when he came in to meet all of us, he had this attitude that was like so confident and he hadn't even had a movie come out yet. And he said, I know this character, I grew up with this character, I lived in Malibu, I know exactly what this guy's like. Yeah, he's a big surfer. Yeah.

He's a surfer too. And we said, we'll do it. And he goes, hire me and I'll do it. We actually hired him. Really? And my thing was every day I would try and get him. He would only be called Jeff. He was in character the whole time. We would go out for pizza afterwards and I would try and coax him to say the line, you

dick because to me, if the guy didn't nail the line, you dick were sunk. Mr. Hand. And so with Mr. Hand and so like the day the countdown to the day where he was killing it and everything but we hadn't really heard him like unfurl and do it. He did it perfectly. And we were all lined up by the camera and he walked in and Ray Walston you know was there and he had done his stuff and and Sean rolls in and he was just like you. Jack. in and he was just like, you jack. And we looked at each other like jackpot. Not only does he know how to do it, he's way inside of it. And, you know, he stole all our hearts.

Yeah. Our stony hearts. And then the countries. No, it was iconic. He was amazing. And it was based on a guy he knew. Right. But he walked in with the checkerboard vans and everything.

I mean, they should have given him the company because I think because of Sean and the checkerboard vans they got to resell the company for a billion or something. That's scenery, walkout. But he walked right into it. With the smoke coming out of the van. It's fantastic. And he has that thing like Mr. Hand. You know, is there someone like me every year? And that's when you see the genius of Sean

because he's giving you the emotion underneath the joke. And you're like, oh my God, I care about this guy. He's fantastic. I'm glad you guys are buds. Yeah, another Hawaii dude. You have your Hawaiian house. Yeah, we don't do it anymore, but it was 12 years. It was really, yeah, I would have loved to go with you.

It would be fun. And Eddie in Hawaii is a magical thing. You've got your shelf. I got my shelf to work on. I want to say something about, not to jump in. Not to jump in, but I want to say something about you. We got to hang a little bit at a basketball game. Oh yeah. And here's what I loved. I was kind of walking behind you. We got to hang a little bit at a basketball game. Oh yeah.

And here's what I loved. I was kinda walking behind you as you were leaving. You're a man of the people. It is like everywhere you look, it's like Bill. Yeah. Bill, hey man, Bill. Bill, and you have a moment with all of them. You look at them and you see,

you have a moment with all of them and it's like Bill, Bill. And even the guy that came up and goes, Bill Murray, I love you. You're like, I love you. Close enough, close enough. I love you, close enough. But you're, I really loved how you, you have that kind of grass rootsy thing

at the basketball game where they were just like, other people were there and they were like, not noticing the other people. It was Bill. Because it's not, you know, it's not... And you were great with them. Yeah. But it's not like nine out of ten people in the crowd.

It's like one out of ten or two is going to do that or something. But that's still a lot of people. A passionate one. And they're passionate. Right. And we sort of like, I feel like we're just on the same wavelength the way we see things and we really think people who don't see things the way we do are kind of nuts.

And maybe we're right, maybe we're not. Maybe we're sometimes right. But yeah, no, that's a lovely thing. It's a lovely level where I don't really have to worry about the kind of things, who wants that kind of like, they're parked outside your house, paparazzi life, not me. And I don't have that. But you have, you know, it's nice to be appreciated

by the, like you say, the man in the street, man, woman, whatever in the street, as long as they're in the street. And they're in the street. But I think that's like a valuable thing when somebody goes out on a limb a little bit and says like, Bill, and you're not like, yeah, you're like, hey, you've seen that. Oh, no, I feel like such a schmuck. And I remember like...

Because it takes guts. It does. For everyone, I never did it. I saw people when I was younger and I was just too shy. And like, oh no, what if they actually turn around and start talking to me? I don't wanna deal with that. That's it, you know? So for every person who does it,

there's a few who probably are, no, I would like to, but I mean, I definitely was shy like that. And I would have been mortified. I was, the Yankee game once when I was very young. I'm maybe the first time my father took me to him. We walked down, we weren't sitting down by the field, but we walked down before the game batting practice and Mickey Mantle was standing there like,

like he was like 10 feet away from me. And I screamed, hey Mickey, at the top of my lungs. And he turned around and like, I was just like so scared at that moment. And what he turned around and just gave you a kind of. He just turned around, he heard his name like screamed and it's like, yeah, he's a human and. But the fact that he turned around,

it's like a moment you get to own, right? I'm just saying it scarred me for life. And Mickey Mantle made me. You touched him. Yeah, I just say it. Yeah, I touched his eardrum. You did. And then he made me pee my pants.

I mean, I may almost have literally, I'm sure I turned beet red, because that's what would happen with that age when you just. But you had a moment with the Mick, that's amazing. That was my moment with the Mick. The first time I ever got asked for an autograph, it was like, I thought it was a joke. And I put out the movie Singles,

and there were these really cool college kids in this Mexican restaurant that came up, and the guy was like... What was that, 91? 91, way to go. I'm very good with movies. Jerry Maguire, 96. 96?

Almost famous, 2003. Damn. Good. 96 almost famous 2003 damn good Ridge Richmond high was 82 or 83 83 83 because that's the year I moved out here and the soundtrack Was my you're good my go-to like make-out record Wow Really it was right after the Eagles broke up, so Don Henley. Love rules. Love rules, what a great unsung song.

Also great lyrics. Great lyrics. Eagles could do it, like Desperado. Some great poetic lyrics. They should get a check in our room. Song power. The songs are great. But. I love that you've.

Yeah, that was 83, yes, my fri- Right, okay, then what else? Jerry McGuire, I said that one. Oh, Say Anything was 91. No, no, no, no, no. No, 90. I can see in your eyes, you know you're close. 90. 89. 89. Close. I can see in your eyes, you know you're close. 90.

89. 89. Close. I remember Ioni Skye, I remember that name. Thanks man. I certainly remember, oh, that was, I've watched that many, many times. Well, that's iconic with the holding up the boom box.

John Cusack, amazing. My theory, if he only had played the right record, he could have gotten her to come down, but like. You'd be amazed at like where that came from. I really liked this Billy Eidle song for like one day and it was to be a lover. So in the script, it was to be a lover by Billy Eidle and it really didn't work.

And no song worked in that spot except for In Your Eyes, which we got super lucky because he, he is a very personal song for him and he didn't wanna give it to anybody. And a lot of people had told Peter Gabriel, like you gotta talk to this guy and they really wanna use your song. And so like I got up super early one morning

and he was in Germany and he, I'd sent him a VHS tape of the movie and there was this frail kind of voice that was Peter Gabriel on the phone. And I was really nervous and he was like, I can't give you the song. And I was like, oh man, because it's a very personal song for me

and I can't, I just can't do it. But thank you for sharing your film with me. And I was just like crushed. And as I was putting the phone down, I just had like a teenage moment and I'd like put the phone back up and he was still on the line and I go, but why? And he goes, well because when he takes the shot

it didn't quite work for me. I'm like, takes the shot and he goes, this is the John Belushi movie, isn't it? And I go, no! And he goes, oh is it the high school movie? And I go, yes! And he goes, oh I'm gonna watch that tonight. I'm like, oh thank god.

Watch it and he watched it and said yes, which was shocking and amazing and incredible. But it was a close call. Because nothing works. That is one rocker who's sort of eluded me. Now maybe I should say, you're a big fan. I'm a big fan. I think he's got great stuff.

It's Peter Gabriel's solo. Is a a big fan. I think Genesis great stuff. It's it's it's Peter Gabriel solo is a mother Oh, but that is Genesis. Okay, because I must tell you I Never got into Genesis wait at the time. I love that you're confessing. I am must tell you I must I Never was into them when they were huge. Yeah, no I. No, I. No, you weren't either. No. Okay. But I was aware that they were a big band.

Right. But I literally couldn't name one song and I thought, well, yeah, I, it's not really accurate to say I don't like Genesis. I just don't know Genesis. Yeah. And for some instinctive reason, I feel it is instinctive because I can't remember any rational reason why I would have avoided them.

But so like, this is one thing I love about the old iPod when you can, you know, or I guess I could have got it on streaming, but I just wanna hear it the way I wanna hear it. And then if I like something, keep it and get rid of the rest of it. So I downloaded, like, their greatest 35, I think it was quite a large selection, maybe even 40 or 50 songs.

Body of work. Body of work. And I was like, okay, I'm going to listen to this three times, you know, because you don't always like something. True. Yeah. still nothing. Okay, all right. But that's just me, and I know that's terrible.

I don't think you have to go back to that well. I think you told her. The reason why I don't feel bad about saying is because this band and Mr. Gabriel need my fandom like a hole in the head. They're huge, they have thousands of devotees, and you just can't get mad at someone for not like, people do this all the time, like with each other. Listen to this, and then it's like, yeah, it's okay.

What, you don't like that joke? No, there's no reason why I do or I don't. I just do, and you just don't. You can't get mad at people for not liking your song. You can't. Or your band, or whatever. Or if they give you the light compliment. It's cute.

Right. No, it's meaningful. No, I mean, I, again. Change my life. Right. No, it's meaningful. No, I mean, I, again. Change my life. Something I like about the iPod, I can like see how many songs I have, and that does, it does a certain clarity to that of who's the best.

And I think, Genesis. Didn't make it. Didn't make it. I think they got the goose egg. I don't know. Phil Collins solo ever? I mean, I did it with Rush. Okay. How'd that go?

Well, they have one in the maybe playlist. Okay. Which one? They actually did that well. Which one? I don't remember. I don't remember. They're in there. They got one. They popped one in there. They're not out. They're not quite in.

They're willing to, you know what? I got to let the field's life fallow, get it out of my head, and like in a six months or a year, I'll play play it or it'll come up and shuffle which is what I really want when I'm not expecting it and if I if I go like oh yeah that's good I mean look it's never gonna be my top 500 greatest because if it was I'd already be in there by now but you know I got like 4,200 songs that Kibbe cultivated over from the late 60s when I think we must have both started. What was your first year listening to music?

Oh, you're a precocious... No, probably same as you, like 67, 68, something like that. When you were like, what, how old? 13? Yeah, 12, 11. Yeah, okay. Something like that. Yeah. I mean, for me it was 68. I was the Sergeant Pepper album had been out, but when it came out, I was not interested in music. It was

still Little League. Then, like a year later, and then I was in the house and I played it, then I liked it. And I think that was the beginning of it. But 68, I started to write down the survey from WABC Radio. So I was listening to the radio. You're a music guy, come on. Yes, absolutely. This is fantastic. I still have those too.

I have the survey. The survey is fantastic. Of like from September 1968, I think like heard it through the grapevine. Yeah. What have been number one? I think Love Child. Your Supremes. Love Child was moving up grapevine. Yeah, but number one I think love child your supreme love child was moving up the charge I love child is doing hey Jude was had been Yeah, or maybe that was number one at the time. I don't know but and then of course there was you know the

filled it out with things by the association of course of course the classics for Wendy you'll see, you know, Windy will pass through. Gary Puckett and the Union. Gary Puckett and the Union gap. At a great year in 68. Yes. Woman woman.

Young girl, woman woman. Young girl, which I sang in my last special to make the point that, yeah, they just didn't care back then. They did. You could not get away with singing, young girl. Get out of my mind. the point that, yeah, they just didn't care back then. They did. You could not get away with singing, young girl.

Get out of my mind. You're way too young. My love for you is way out of line. Way out of line. You knew. See, he knew. I am contemplating. But I am contemplating.

And I am here and making you the subject of my hit. So I have a suggestion for you. Have you listened to the John Mayer channel on Sirius? No, but I like John. I like John. It's great. He has his own channel channel 14 and It's it's what it is. It's like record. No, no, it's like he peppers it a little bit with his own stuff But mostly oh, he is mr. Anti-algorithm He is like he is like I'm here to play you songs that you may never hear because of the way radio and streaming is now. And I love these songs personally,

and I've picked them out personally, and he is a great DJ. Good, I'm not surprised. Club Random is brought to you by the Audio Marketing Gurus at Radioactive Media. Being part Irish myself, I love the month of March, the month that represents new life and the luck of the Irish and the endless March Madness pools.

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The thing that the AI can't do, or they don't wanna do maybe, is if you say to, if you're on Spotify or Pandora or whatever and you say, you create a station based on a song. Yeah. It'll play stuff from around that era. My playlists, I want the same feel, but I can do it across decades, but I have to do it.

Exactly. And I love doing that. I love putting together a playlist that has something from 1968, and then something that, I mean, I could play a weekend cut right after that. And that sounds like it could have been made back then. His big hits, his good hits.

Absolutely. Right, I mean. But nobody, you have to do it yourself, basically. You have to do it yourself. But it's kind of fun. It is fun. It is, of course, fandom, which is a mini thing. And also an appreciation.

Look, we're not in the game, we're the cheerleaders. But if we're enjoying ourselves, so what? And then they also cheer what we do. Musicians also sometimes really want to be comics and they would love to be directors and you know big mock-or-in movies like you that's that's that's certainly I mean more than a few rock star Prince remember trying to be a movie star under the cherry tree that was one for two I thought purple rain was great purple

rain was right right right purple rain but purple rains the origin story that One for two. I thought Purple Rain was great. Purple Rain was. Under the Cherry Moon not too much. Right, Purple Rain, but Purple Rain's the origin story, this is my life story, so that's the easy one. Okay. That's the gimme, you're gonna give him that. That's good, I got you. It's the coming of age thing, I got it. I should ask you this.

But under the Cherry Moon. I have to answer this because, yes, you're the perfect one We gotta talk about you know movies. Yes. Wait, but it's okay. You write your movies you Direct them so my thing I would say this to the movie makers. It's all about the ending Everybody in the world has an idea for a movie or ten. That's not the hard part. How does it end?

How do you get that ending that's just, you know, your movies have been very successful because you do that. You get the ending. Every once in a while we stick the ending. But it's hard. You're absolutely right. Look, honestly, I didn't know what the Nillus guy

was about that one. I'm just not smart enough. But I love the Hawaiian one. Thank you. Aloha. Aloha. Is that what? Yeah, the last scene.

And great, you know, like it's a love triangle that like, like how does this work out? You're just, and then it's like, exact, and when it happens, it's like, what's the phrase, you know, it's, destined and yet unpredictable. It would not, could not be. That's the goal, always.

And it's like, of course she's with him for that that makes sense and he, but, and like, no, Bradley Cooper, it was not, you know, you send them off, off, off, and they, and you follow, and then're like, no, Bradley Cooper, it was not. You send them off and they're real, and you're following and that's a good ending. Sometimes the endings are super hard. My favorite ending is the say anything ending, which is like Q-Sack in Ioni Sky

just kind of waiting for the ding that happens when the turbulence ends on the plane flight, and then the ding happens on black. And that was kind of a mistake, because I was reading it out loud to just get a sense of what it was. And it actually went on and he said more, and the plane didn't land,

but there was an attempt at an ending. And I was reading it out loud and I got to like, they're staring at the ding button, they're staring at the ding, you know, button. They're waiting for the sound. And I could feel like, I can end it here. And I go, and that's the end. And it was like, that's a great ending. And I'm like, just don't use what I had written.

So it's like, which is kind of an editing room ending because you have it, but you just lop it off and that's the ending. Editing is everything. Editing is super and it's super everything and casting and also spirit the spirit that you bring to making the movie when you interviewed Quentin like his full spirit just like populates his movies. Wes Anderson's spirit populates his movies. By the way, both of those dudes are like titans of music in their movies. Yeah, you can tell with Quentin Tarantino. I mean, he's always putting in.

He pisses me off. It feels like he wrote the movie around the song. I know. He pisses me off because he'll take, I have like some things in my back pocket that I'm like holding onto. One of them was the Delphonic song, Didn't I Blow Your Mind This Time.

Yes. And I'm watching Jackie Brown. I'm like, this fucking guy is just spanking me with Didn't I Blow Your Mind This Time. It's like, there is not a chance anyone in the world will ever be able to use this song again. No. He so owns it. Yeah.

And you gotta love that. I got a name in Django Unchained. Like, Krueger thought of putting a fucking Jim Croce song on that scene. It's like, yeah, baby. He likes what he likes. He's great. So I'm not afraid.

I have some cues in the next thing that I'm anxious to like put up in front of Quentin just to see like, what do you think of that? A couple back pocket songs that I just wanna like. Oh. Stuff that you wouldn't expect in a place that you wouldn't expect. But don't you wanna save it for your movie?

Yes, this would be, I would have made the movie already. Oh, I see. And then let him see it. Oh, I see. Bill, I would not give it away in front. And he, I just, I like knowing that there's guys like Edgar Wright, Wes Anderson and Quentin who are so good at music and their movies

that like there's a part of me that is, that wants to get them to go, ooh, the way they've done it to me. So it's super fun when people really crush it. I have many stories about calling musicians because I had to get this music for this documentary I did, Religialist, which was like 2008, it came out.

So some people were very cooperative, some people crazy, Narels Barkley told me that. Stevie Wonder did not wanna be associated with a religion bashing movie. So Superstition was not going to be in this movie even though it would have been perfect. I tried to get The purpose of a man is to love a woman and the what was the Wayne Fontana in the mind?

The game of love or the story something like yeah He wouldn't sell it to me. Really? Wayne Fontana? Wayne? Yeah. No, that's what I- Living on a cot in Covina is not gonna sell you that?

Exactly. But Pete Townsend gave me the seeker. He not gave me, he sold me. I mean, that's, I think, something that stops people from putting some music in movies. It's these people can charge a lot of money. True. The seeker, so great.

Perfect for this movie. It's about religion, so. Townsend, there's another guy who can write a song. Like, I don't know if you're a who guy, but his lyrics are fantastic. Yeah, yeah. He's the best. He, Joni Mitchell as well, these are like some of the best interviews in rock. Like Pete Talisman is a spokesman for rock and music.

He's incredible. Well, he's, sometimes he writes rock journalism and he's the best. Really? Yeah, because he's, he does it and gets it and worships it too. Yeah, I mean the amount of pleasure, so funny the way in life, like some things you can pay a lot of money for and they give you like this much, but you know like a song say you know you bought it first on an album, for a lifetime of pleasure. You know I've been listening to Tommy Quadroferni, for their hits, the one where they're pissing on the, who's next?

Who's next? I mean, there's just like albums that are like top to bottom, every song is good, which is a hard thing to hit. And they hit that a few times. They do. Quadrophenia the movie. Did you have an opinion about that? I think I was watching it in the bathtub.

Right, it's a bathtub movie for you. I love the tears. What's it about? It's about like the mods and the rockers. But it's great. It is. I'll give it another shot. It's worthy of one of your tears.

T-I-E-R-S. I did not tell you this story of I was gonna tell you I So I got asked by it for an autograph after singles and I thought it was a joke And so I said no and I just thought the guy was making fun of me or something So I was like no, that's okay. It's okay And I saw him go back to his buddies and say like, you know, that guy's full shit or whatever. And like, they looked at me like, really? You're that guy?

Oh, oh, yeah. And I kind of, at that moment, I was like, I don't care if they're joking or not. Or if there's somebody else that they wanted to get an autograph from, but they're stuck with me, I'll sign it. Because that is that moment, the courageous moment usually that you just mentioned, that's huge.

And here's a story that kind of goes with that. We grew up in Palm Springs. And there was a costume, like a Western costume. You grew up in Palm Springs? Yeah, shop. And my mom goes in there. Ugh. And she's, well, you know.

It's like a million degrees. It's a million degrees, and you'll never meet somebody born in Palm Springs except me. Everybody else is passing through. I was born there. But my mom goes into this place. Sinatra, even Elvis.

Oh, why? Honeymoon there, baby. In Christ, I mean, everybody loved it. Dinosaur. Yeah. Come on. I mean, everybody loved it. Don't ensure. Yeah. Come on. So my mom goes into this western costume place and she's just like looking around or whatever. And she is very much into metaphysics and health foods and all that stuff by head of the curve. And she looks over and realizes that like all the women in this store are staring at the guy that's just walked in, Steve McQueen.

Not the director, Steve McQueen. The star, Steve McQueen. And so Steve McQueen is in this place and my mom, you know, fearlessly goes right up to him and says, what was the name of the horse that you rode in your movie, Junior Bonner. Junior Bonner. And my mom, little does she know that she's going to him after like, what, the great escape

and all of his huge movies have come out. But no, she's going to him about Junior Bonner, which is a little horse movie. I remember the title. I never saw the Junior Bonner. I don't think I ever saw it either, but. But Steve McQueen is like. Look how well she'd been in it, I would have seen it.

I'm with you. Steve McQueen goes like, you know, flicker. She goes, I love that horse. He goes, I love that horse. And they get into a 20 minute conversation about Metafit. He was probably high as shit, right? Because he smoked. Right.

But he spent like 20 minutes talking with my mom about health foods and the horse and all this stuff. And she came home and told us about it. And I swear to you, we feel like Steve McQueen is part of our family. All because he spent 20 minutes with my mom. And that river runs through my family. So like we're fucking talking about it now.

Steve McQueen was a very charismatic actor. Apparently so. She said his eyes were like fucking electric. Yeah, no, I'm sure. I mean, he was one of those. He got that chip. But you know. But you were that guy walking out of the basketball game and they're like Bill, Bill, Bill, Bill, Bill. You're like, chh, chh.

You are that guy. Well, Steve McQueen and I have a slightly different profile. And Steve McQueen. With the eyes, man. But Steve McQueen got a brain tumor. I know. And fucking died young. Well, not super young, but like, young, younger than I am now.

Young, young. So maybe it's not so great to be the pretty boy. No, I love Steve McQueen, I just wanna make that clear. And the director, just to be completely safe. Interesting take. Yes, but, okay, Quentin Tarantino. Yeah. I love all his movies.

I felt like he absolutely topped himself with the last one, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood. It's my all-time favorite Tarantino movie. I'm with you. Steve McQueen, it portrayed it. Not well. By, oh, I thought very well. Really?

I gotta go revisit. It was the one part of the movie where I was like, what's his name? Yeah, Damien. That guy. Damien's the devil in the Omen. That's right. No, his name is Damien Lewis.

Harris? Winter. Lewis. It's Lewis. You're right. It's Lewis. I feel terrible. He's a great actor.

He's a great actor. He was also in Homeland, which I loved. He was great in Homeland. He's great in everything. Now he's in Billions. We love him so much. Okay, I love him. I love him.

Right, isn't it? It's about a time in Hollywood. And I just thought he did Steve McQueen there. God, I gotta look at that again. He got him. I, for some reason, I thought that and Mama Cass was a little bit of a, of a almost thing, but I could be wrong. I could be wrong about that. I love that movie so much.

I don't remember them, yeah, I do too. I don't remember the Mama Cass so much, but yeah, check out that scene. I think Barbie Benton might be in that scene. I think Barbie Benton. Not that our life revolves around Barbie Benton, certainly anymore. Not anymore, but for a while. So you found her very cute, huh?

I did. I did and like wholesome kind of though, you don't know what wholesome is yet. You're that age. It's like she's not Right threatening to me. She's like the sweet person who's beautiful and She's nice to the old man, you know, it's kind of I don't know. It's yeah, they arrive You know your your hormones arrive when they arrive, I guess, but she was, and Raquel Welch, they were like galvanizing.

Also, I must say, and I really believe this, so good to have an innocent childhood. Like, yeah, maybe it's lame in some ways to people, but I would not give any amount of money to give up the innocence I had of, you know, my school had, like, none of the problems kids have today. No racial problems, because it was an all-white school. I'm not saying that's a good thing,

but that is what I was born into. No divorce. Yeah, yeah. No crime. You know, it was, I, oddly, I wasn't that happy as a child, but it was still idyllic compared to, like, real problems people have. I just didn't like the, the being a child bugged me. You're powerless, you're smaller. It was not for a control freak to be a child, just to begin with. But there was, you know, my parents were together and, you know, it was, it was Leave It To Beaver.

That's was, was that the way it was in Palm Springs? Kind of, kind of. I mean, you say Leave It To Beaver. Eddie Haskell was my favorite character and Eddie Haskell was like a rogue guy, the kind of, of which I didn't have much at school like you, a very similar thing. No, I mean, what a bad kid was was, I don't know, he school like you. I had a very similar thing. I mean.

No, I mean what a bad kid was was, I don't know, he put gum under the seat or something. It was, we really had an innocent. Are you happy you grew up in the time that you grew up in? Well, that's what I'm saying. I mean, I feel like. You would choose that again. Uh, yes, I would.

I really think I would. I mean, look at it. Because you get to see it all if you're born in that time. Yes, I would. I really think I would. Because you get to see it all if you're born in that time. I'm just saying childhood should be a time when you're... First of all, schools actually worked back then, unlike today, where they don't teach... they don't know anything. Their kids can be very smart, but they generally don't know anything. You can leave a high school and know nothing. There's no serious curriculum.

It's like whatever they fucking want to start teaching. None of the traditional things are like sort of absolutely necessary. Whereas when I went, no, you had to take history and you had to take English and you had to pass and biology and all these things. And I just think that, and then the kids don't go and they don't care and they're on their phones

and the teachers are checked out because it's a horrible thing. The teachers get literally get beat up in schools. I mean, it's insane. So am I glad I didn't live through that? Yes. I'm with you. My mom was a teacher and she was a hero.

I mean, she was a hero, a heroine to her students. I mean, they would hang out at my house to get more time with her, and she would counsel them and help them. Yeah, I would come home sometimes. How did that make you feel? Kind of like she was... I'm not sure if I was going back in my mind,

I would really be digging sharing my mother With with the neighborhood kids that seemed that would see it's it's also it was also like older kids She taught in college. So it was the older crowd the kind of cool older people that would be like Hanging out in our living room talking about the movement and stuff and it's that seemed really cool like Vietnam, you know, oh the movement and stuff and that seemed really cool. Like, Vietnam, you know, all of that stuff. And my sister got me into a local underground paper and that's how I started reviewing records because everybody was so interested in politics, nobody wanted to review the records that they had to review to get record company ads for their little underground papers. So I was like, I'll review that Carol King record.

You know, if I get to keep it, I'll review that who record. They should put you in the rock and roll hall of fame. What? You know what? I'm gonna start this. I don't play anything. No, but like they put people in hall of fames.

There's broadcasters who are in the baseball hall of fame. That's true. Writers like Red Smith. Then? No, you should be in the, because contribution to music. Thanks. I'm a fan like you, like I love what I love. I know, but you did something with it.

I did some things, but I also had a lot of help. I had a lot of musicians. But what do you think of the concept? Should there even be a rock and roll hall of fame? I feel like... I don't know. I mean, it's sort of antithetical to the spirit of rock and roll.

And also, if a bunch of musicians want to get together with each other and blow smoke up each other's ass, there's already a place they can do that. Rehab! Hello! That's funny. No, but... Yeah, I just feel like the idea of taking rock and roll, which is about rebellion

and, you know, I'm with you. It's, it's, you can't quite fit the two things together. You can't put it in a tux. When you do, you kill one. I agree. You shouldn't put it in a tux. You shouldn't do all that stuff. Right.

You put it in a tux is a great way to say it. Yes. It's, It's weird. But the fact that it's a given makes you kind of root for the people that aren't in the club now. So like I'm super jazzed that Peter Frampton is up as a nominee this year.

Like say what you will about all the fame. But like I love that Peter Frampton. Yeah, he had some good ones. Peter Frampton deserves it. You know what they should do? They should do like they've tried to do Woodstock. I was at Woodstock 25. How was that?

I was covering it as the correspondent for Jay Leno's Tonight Show in 1994. It was fun, we helicoptered in, it was awesome. I was like 37 and like, you know, it just started politically incorrect and I was doing this thing for Leno. Yeah, it was awesome. I was like 37 and like, you know, it just started politically incorrect and I was doing this thing for Leno. Yeah, it was great. It was a lot of fun.

But, oh, but what was I asking you right before that? It was very important to me. A Woodstock. Oh yeah, they should do a Woodstock. So then they, yeah, they, then they tried to do Woodstock 99. Right. That was a disaster.

Have you seen the documentary on it? No, but I want to. Oh, you have to. I will. Like tonight. Okay. Because it's just fucking ugly. Wow.

It's everything that the original one was not. Commercials, commercialism, very misogynistic. The big bands at the time were like, Limpiscan. Oh, wow. And so it was just a very bad male energy. Yeah, yeah. It's a great documentary. I'll check it out.

Yeah. Ouch. So they should do, like, but now the people who went to work are really old. They should do like a boom, like a ballroom Woodstock, where they have a mud pit. What? It is Woodstock. I know, but you have to live with the age of the people or your fans.

I am with you. They can't really go to Woodstock again. I grew up with you, literally. You grow up, I got it. I think it's great. I think it's great ballroom, I like it. No, people can't ever recognize when something is a one-off.

You know, that was a- Oh, that's so true. It was such a, you know- Leave it alone. Serendipity kind of a thing. They didn't expect it to be an open concert, of course. It was just overrun, right? Yeah.

And the bands and the mud and just the moments and I tell you, one Johnny Mitchell song I do like is What's That? Yeah. But she didn't do it. Her boyfriend did it. It wasn't a Crosby Stills National Young. She did it. She did it.

Oh, she did it. On her album, for sure. Oh. She wrote it while they were playing the festival. She didn't get to go. The fighter planes turning into butterflies. It's like, I'm telling you, bitch better have my money. You gotta listen to her version.

Her version is pretty compelling. I'll watch Woodstock, the disaster documentary. You'll check out the earlier Woodstock by Joni. I love that you're such a music guy. It's fantastic. Yeah. You feel it. Yeah. I mean, I can't imagine a life without it, although if I had to, would it be worth killing myself? There was never any music? No, but I would miss it horribly.

Yeah. I mean, very hard to dance. Very hard to dance. To, you know, and I do make dance playlists also, you know, you gotta dance, you know. You wanna hear my top dance play? Please. Okay.

I love you like a love song Love Song Baby by Selena Gomez. There you go. Do you know that song? Look at that. Do you know that song? I'm not obsessed with it, but I could be. You will be. I Touched Myself by Devynals 1990.

A good call. Good call. Killing me. I love that record. I touch myself. Yeah. When I think. Australian band, right? I don't know what the Divinals were. One hit wonder.

Okay. To my knowledge. That's all you needed them for. Right. You don't need to know the back history. Exactly. Don't wikipedia me. I don't need the wikipedia and the Divinals. I've got other problems and I can't do the, I can't Divinals. That's as. Exactly. Don't wikipedia me. I don't need the wikipedia and the divinals. I've got other problems, and I can't do the divinals.

Yeah, that's as far as it goes. I'm so sorry. Another dance song. Back to life. Back to life. That was kind of a great groove song. No, I can't answer that. OK.

No. OK, so this is going to surprise you. Sugar Pie Honey Bunch by Kid Rock. Haven't heard it. Awesome. Okay. I hate to say it, but even better than the original. For the dancing purposes.

Okay, and you're gonna give that to Kid Rock. I, okay. Music is music. And I like him. I guess. Yes, I know exactly who he is, and he's, you know what, he's so honest. And there for the party. Yeah, yeah, we know what, we don't know after agreeing on everything. You know what, that's, that's, I got you. I sympathize with the anti snob crusade.

But you will behold like a singer-songwriter song in 2024, right? Behold? Like you'll appreciate, you might sneak a singer song, behold, you can sneak one of those songs onto your iPod, right? What do you mean? Like Maggie Rogers is a great artist.

She's amazing. And she's a great songwriter. Send me the name. I will, I will. I'm always looking for a new talent. I will text you a little buzzy thing about Maggie Rogers. I am always looking for a new talent.

And young talent. I am always looking for young talent. Wait, wait. Don't take that out of context. Duly noted. Here at Club Random in the VIP lounge. No. I'm all about charity and giving to humanity.

Especially young people. I want to touch young people. Wait again. Wait a minute. Don't take that out of it. It's going to look terrible. I'm going to go play some pool. Work this out.

This you just exit and leave me here alone. Come on Thank you, this is great bill. Thanks, man. That was exactly as great as I thought you'd be we talk some music I'm telling you. I'm telling you. My Mad Magazine covers?