Music Raygun

We’re wrapping up the first year of our podcast with a second helping of Music Raygun B-sides. That means looking back to past episode themes for bonus clips that we left out (or didn’t know about) the first time around. There’s a clip each from our episodes about the Jackson dynasty, Halloween, dance, Charlene deGuzman, the holidays, "Bad," Los Angeles and funk. Plus two from even older episodes. But you’ll just have to listen to find out which ones. Catch you on the flip side. Get it? To see the videos we watch in this episode, visit musicraygun.com/playlists.

Music Raygun is finally focusing on the funk. Typical to their tastes, Paul leans toward the early funk years of the late ‘60s and early ‘70s, while Kirk prefers the vibe of the late ‘70s and early ‘80s. There are some favorites and some lesser-known acts. And the mix shows you how funk has influenced other musical genres, from rock to R&B to hip-hop and beyond, since its invention. That’s the kind of funk that we like. And then you make the ugly face. That’s funky. To see the videos we watch in this episode, visit musicraygun.com/playlists.

Kirk and Paul already paid tribute to their respective hometowns of Cleveland and Providence, so now it’s time to acknowledge their shared current home: Los Angeles. All the clips in this episode feature bands from LA. But Kirk and Paul skew hard to their different favored genres. Kirk brings rap, R&B and funk to the table. Paul prefers garage rock, punk and power pop. And Angelyne makes an appearance, naturally. It’s a schizophrenic good time. Just like Los Angeles itself! We love/hate you, Butt Town. To see the videos we watch in this episode, visit musicraygun.com/playlists.

Happy New Year, raygunners! In celebration of 2018’s dawn, this episode is something a little different. Kirk and Paul watch just one video. Well, two videos. It’s one music video, plus a short “making of” segment about it. And it’s Michael Jackson’s “Bad,” the Martin Scorsese-directed long-form music video that turned 30 a few months ago. “Bad” is 18 minutes of MJ at his most extra, at least up until that point. It’s equal parts genuinely cool and deeply corny. So there’s a lot to talk about. To see the videos we watch in this episode, visit musicraygun.com/playlists.

Merry Christmas, happy Hanukkah, happy Kwanzaa, wonderful solstice and cool Yule to everyone. We know a lot of people say they hate Christmas music, and to them we ask: Are you listening to the right Christmas music? We hope you’ll find something to like in our holiday playlist, which includes Grace Jones, The Ramones, Kurtis Blow, Kaela Kimura and more. There’s also a holiday treat from the worst boy band of all time. And Paul and Kirk reflect on a year without George Michael in the world. To see the videos we watch in this episode, visit musicraygun.com/playlists.

For the first time on “Music Raygun,” our guest is the topic. Charlene deGuzman is a musician, dancer, comedian, writer and advice columnist. She and Paul look back at her time as a member of Stomp, as Hannah Montana’s drummer, as the creator of a YouTube video that’s been seen more than 51 million times, and as maker of many more wonderful things. Her upcoming film is “Unlovable,” which she wrote with Sarah Adina Smith and Mark Duplass, and stars in with John Hawkes and Melissa Leo. To see the videos we watch in this episode, visit musicraygun.com/playlists.

For the second time on “Music Raygun,” our topic for this episode is no topic at all. It’s our first sequel episode as we bring you another grab bag of videos. We’re looking at an assortment of our favorite clips that more or less defy categorization. That means Elvis, Chakha Khan, Captain Beefheart and Anita O’Day all in one podcast. And that’s just to name a few of the wild artists we visit in this episode. Wesley Snipes is in there somewhere too. It’s a pod-boy bouillabaisse. To see the videos we watch in this episode, visit musicraygun.com/playlists.

We’re joined by special guest Isabel Nelson, a friend of the show and, like Kirk, a trained dancer. That’s why the focus of this episode is dance. Isabel and Kirk are here to speak intelligently about the art form, with thoughtful comments rooted in their education and experience. Paul’s here too, to say his dumb opinions based on nothing. We’re talking about Gene Kelly, Bob Fosse, Boogaloo Shrimp and many others. It’s an especially visual episode, so be sure to check out the featured playlist for yourself. To see the videos we watch in this episode, visit musicraygun.com/playlists.

It’s the most frightening episode of the show yet. Kirk and Paul are celebrating Halloween with the very spookiest and ookiest music clips they could find on YouTube. Some of them are Halloween-themed videos. One’s just something that terrified Kirk for no explainable reason when he was a kid. There’s also another visit with the great Bev and Bob. Listen to this eerie episode to get you in that Halloween mood, but don’t be surprised if by the end of it your hair has turned bone white! To see the videos we watch in this episode, visit musicraygun.com/playlists.

Michael Jackson was so huge in the 1980s that his success affected everyone in the music industry, not excluding the other Jacksons, i.e., Michael’s siblings. Everyone was so desperate for a piece of what Michael had that anyone related to him got a record deal. That’s what this episode is about: what Jackie, Tito, Jermaine, Marlon, Randy, Rebbie, La Toya and even Janet were doing at the height of their brother’s fame. Some of it’s bad, some of it’s weird, and some of it’s surprisingly great. To see the videos we watch in this episode, visit musicraygun.com/playlists.

We’ve done a “grab bag” episode in the past where we said the theme was no theme. It was kind of random videos that didn’t fit any topic. We’re doing another assortment show this time, but it’s sort of the opposite, because instead of no theme, it’s all the themes. We’re going back to themes we’ve done in the first 15 episodes of the show, and picking new videos that didn’t quite make the cut for whatever reason the first time around. Call them Music Raygun B-sides. To see the videos we watch in this episode, visit musicraygun.com/playlists.

Kirk had his time to shine with the disco episode, but this one is all Paul’s doing. It’s finally time to talk about punk. Cretins hop, Pistols curse, and GG Allin does, well, the things that GG Allin did before he passed on. Knowing that Kirk doesn’t actually like punk music, Paul made sure to load this episode up with interesting archival material, including a fantastic old interview with John Holmstrom and Legs McNeil, and a look at that infamous “battle of the bands” episode of “CHiPs.” To see the videos we watch in this episode, visit musicraygun.com/playlists.

What do we like? We like the cars that go boom, or at least the girls who sing about them. We also like Biz Markie, BDP, Heavy D, and Public E, so we're taking a look at a very specific time period in rap history: 1988 and 1989. Kirk was in college, getting drunk at parties and dancing to Salt-N-Pepa records. Paul was practically a toddler, and never got to watch "The Arsenio Hall Show," because it was on past his bedtime. So they have different perspectives. To see the videos we watch in this episode, visit musicraygun.com/playlists.

Kirk takes the wheel as “Music Raygun” goes back in time to the 1970s, when everything was bright and shiny on the outside, but sort of washed out and profoundly bleak beneath the surface. That's right: It's our disco episode. There’s Travolta, “Dance Fever” and, of course, a “Soul Train” line. That’s all to be expected. Less expected is… Ethel Merman? And don’t worry; we also sit through “Disco Duck.” Yeah. We do that. For you. All this, plus a fish saves the city of Pittsburgh. To see the videos we watch in this episode, visit musicraygun.com/playlists.

We're going home, back to our respective hometowns. Paul is presenting the music of Rhode Island, and Kirk visits his old stomping grounds in Cleveland/Northeast Ohio. Both areas spawned bands with a working-class, blue-collar aesthetic, but that’s where the similarities end. Rhode Island provides the alternative and punk rock, while Cleveland brings the smooth pop and R&B. Then again, those differences probably have way more to do with our respective tastes than the regions where we come from. To see the videos we watch in this episode, visit musicraygun.com/playlists.

For the first time, we’re focusing our attention on one instrument: the saxophone. This has been a long time coming. When we first discussed what topics we wanted to have on the show, “saxophone” was Kirk’s immediate thought. There’s lots of smooth jazz and pop here to make him happy, but there's also some punk rock to keep Paul satisfied. We learn what’s wrong with the greatest pop sax solo of all time, and we spend 20 minutes talking about just one Kenny G video. Strap in. To see the videos we watch in this episode, visit musicraygun.com/playlists.

Katie Willert is back! She's co-hosting while Kirk is on vacation. As promised during Katie’s first appearance on “Music Raygun,” she and Paul devote this episode to a legendary artist whom they love: Harry Nilsson. Nilsson never performed live, but he was creative with his projects on record, on TV and in movies, and there’s lots of cool video of him to look at. He was a true weirdo, a deeply troubled man and a tragic figure. So there’s both laughter and honest-to-God tears in this one. To see the videos we watch in this episode, visit musicraygun.com/playlists.

We always say every episode of “Music Raygun” features a particular music artist, concept or topic. Well, we lied to you about that. Because this time, our topic is... no topic. It's the first "grab bag" episode. We each chose a few of our favorite videos that, frankly, defy categorization. But they’re too good to ignore just because we normally make a themed podcast. We’ll watch a dance contest, a domestic dispute, and the most coked-out band in the world. Also, Paul convinces Kirk to like punk. To see the videos we watch in this episode, visit musicraygun.com/playlists.

Kirk is really happy whenever he gets to talk about one of his top five, possibly top three favorite bands ever. We’re talking about Ronnie, Bobby, Ricky and Mike (and Ralph and Johnny). It’s the long-planned New Edition episode. And that means we also have to cover the whole New Edition family tree. That means Bobby Brown, Bell Biv DeVoe, New Kids on the Block, Another Bad Creation, Heads of State and more. N.E. has been around for almost 40 years, so there's much to discuss. To see the videos we watch in this episode, visit musicraygun.com/playlists.

We’re joined by the fantastic Katie Willert, who’s here to share with us (and you) some of her favorite songs and videos. You know Katie from Cracked's "After Hours," the Upright Citizens Brigade, Funny or Die and and many other comedy things. We know her because we all used to work together making Internet stuff. Katie’s picks include Roxy Music, Talking Heads, HAIM and more. We also take a special look at some of her own musical comedy sketches. Plus, a future episode topic is decided upon. To see the videos we watch in this episode, visit musicraygun.com/playlists.