Discord and Rhyme: An Album Podcast

Rich got five pieces of candy! Libby got a chocolate bar! Mike got a rock. For this year’s Discord & Rhyme Halloween Spooktacular, Mike thought the time was right to sink our podcasting teeth into Siouxsie and the Banshees’ post-punk opus Juju, an album so seasonally appropriate there’s even a song called “Halloween” on it. With returning special guest and goth emerita Libby Cudmore along to help Mike and Rich understand this whole “goth” thing, Mike makes the case for why this dark masterpiece, filled with brilliant guitar work, inventive drumming, and the singular presence of Siouxsie Sioux, deserves your attention and probably influenced at least a few things you like, even if you’ve never set foot in a Hot Topic.

Cohosts: Mike DeFabio, Rich Bunnell, Libby Cudmore

Complete show notes: https://discordpod.com/listen/178-siouxsie-and-the-banshees-juju-1981

Discord & Rhyme's merch store: http://tee.pub/lic/discordpod

Support the podcast! https://www.patreon.com/discordpod

In this week's Wrecking Crew retrospective, our crew makes a feast out of some puzzling but very fascinating table scraps, including a rowdy, drunken recording session allegedly conducted as a tax write-off for Michael Nesmith, and several songs written by the enigmatic Lee Hazlewood. And just for kicks, we threw in one of the most iconic songs of the '60s as a special bonus track!

Co-hosts: Rich Bunnell, Ben Marlin, Dan Watkins

Tracklist:

• Jack Nitzsche - Baja
• The Shacklefords - California Sunshine Girl
• Michael Nesmith - Don't Call on Me*
• Suzi Jane Hokom - Little War
• Nancy Sinatra - These Boots Are Made for Walkin'

*erroneously listed on the official tracklist as "You Told Me"

Other clips:

• Jack Nitzsche - The Lonely Surfer
• The Beach Boys - I Get Around
• Neil Young - Expecting to Fly
• John Carpenter - Starman
• Stanford Clark - The Fool
• Duane Eddy - Rebel Rouser
• The Beach Boys - You Need a Mess of Help to Stand Alone
• The Monkees - You Told Me
• The Monkees - Don't Call on Me
• Michael Nesmith - You Told Me
• Lee Hazlewood & Suzi Jane Hokom - Califia (Stone Rider)
• Lee Hazlewood & Suzi Jane Hokom - Summer Wine
• Megadeth - These Boots
• British Electric Foundation - These Boots Are Made for Walkin'
• The Residents - Boots
• Crispin Glover - These Boots Are Made for Walkin'
• Nancy Sinatra & Lee Hazlewood - Some Velvet Morning
• Nancy Sinatra - You Only Live Twice
• Nancy Sinatra - Bang Bang (My Baby Shot Me Down)
• Sideshow Bob & Selma Bouvier - Somethin' Stupid

Paul Simon, famously short of stature but enormous in talent, is one of the most beloved and acclaimed American songwriters of the past century. He has at least four solo albums that would have made for great podcast episodes, but Amanda picked There Goes Rhymin’ Simon. This is probably not his absolute best album, but it’s incredibly good and serves as an excellent introduction to his solo career. He departed from the folk-rock style of Simon and Garfunkel and expanded on his experimentations with jazz, reggae, and R&B (some of these experiments being more successful than others), always accompanied by his characteristically clever turns of phrase. The result is an album that is widely varied but also sonically consistent, very early-’70s but also timeless, and extremely interesting and fun.

Cohosts: Amanda Rodgers, Ben Marlin, Rich Bunnell

Complete show notes: https://discordpod.com/listen/177-paul-simon-there-goes-rhymin-simon-1973

Discord & Rhyme's merch store: http://tee.pub/lic/discordpod

Support the podcast! https://www.patreon.com/discordpod

This week, the D&R crew discusses a new batch of tunes featuring our favorite L.A.-area session musicians, including the accidental invention of a silly but awesome production technique, a sick beat that helped lay the groundwork for hip-hop, and a celebrated trumpeteer whose cornball music nearly tears this podcast apart.

Co-hosts: Rich Bunnell, Mike DeFabio, Amanda Rodgers

Tracklist:

• Herb Alpert & The Tijuana Brass - This Guy's in Love with You
• Harry Nilsson - Everybody's Talkin'
• Toni Fisher - The Big Hurt
• The Monkees - Mary, Mary
• Sonny & Cher - The Beat Goes On

Other clips:

• Herb Alpert & The Tijuana Brass - Spanish Flea
• Herb Alpert & The Tijuana Brass - The Lonely Bull
• Herb Alpert & The Tijuana Brass - Whipped Cream
• Herb Alpert & The Tijuana Brass - Lollipops and Roses
• Herb Alpert & The Tijuana Brass - Rise
• Faith No More - This Guy's in Love with You
• Herb Alpert & The Tijuana Brass - A Taste of Honey
• The Beatles - Tomorrow Never Knows
• Scott Walker - The Big Hurt
• The Paul Butterfield Blues Band - Mary, Mary
• The Bloodhound Gang - Along Comes Mary
• Run-DMC - Mary, Mary
• Big Daddy Kane - Pimpin' Ain't Easy
• De La Soul - Change in Speak
• Solange - Sandcastle Disco
• DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince - The Reverend
• Theo Mondle - The Humpback Hop
• Cornershop - Brimful of Asha (Norman Cook Remix)
• Devo - Post Post-Modern Man (Sub Post-Modern Mix)
• Caesars - Jerk It Out
• Sonic Youth - Bull in the Heather
• The Winstons - Amen Brother
• The Monkees - Zilch
• The Searchers - Needles and Pins
• Sonny & Cher - I Got You Babe
• Cisco Kid - Freak On

Theme song based on "This Is Pop," written by Andy Partridge, with new lyrics by Adam Smith

Opening music: The Hector Collectors

https://thehectorcollectors.bandcamp.com/

Closing credits music: Kenneth Kraylie

https://kennethkraylie.bandcamp.com/

https://casinos.bandcamp.com/

In late 1995, Stone Temple Pilots were one of the most popular bands in the United States, but they were still widely disliked by critics. The band responded with Tiny Music... Song From The Vatican Gift Shop, where they forged their own unique identity and branched out to try a bunch of styles far from the 90's grunge music they had long been associated with. Phil has been fascinated by this record for a long time and is thrilled to share his appreciation with Rich and Dan.

Cohosts: Phil Maddox, Rich Bunnell, Dan Watkins

Complete show notes: https://discordpod.com/listen/176-stone-temple-pilots-tiny-music-songs-from-the-vatican-gift-shop

Discord & Rhyme's merch store: http://tee.pub/lic/discordpod

Support the podcast! https://www.patreon.com/discordpod

Back to the Wrecking Crew! Since "Good Vibrations" got its own showcase as it deserves, this is tracks 2-6, including some of the best sunshine pop and some of the most annoying protest music, all performed expertly by the best musicians in Los Angeles.

Songs:

• The Mamas and the Papas - California Dreamin'
• Tommy Roe - Dizzy
• Barry McGuire - Eve of Destruction
• The Association - Windy
• The 5th Dimension - Up, Up and Away

Other clips:

• Barry McGuire - California Dreamin'
• The Beach Boys - California Dreamin'
• Tommy Roe - Sheila
• Nice & Smooth - Early to Rise
• Heavy D & the Boyz - You Can't See What I See
• Public Enemy - 1 Million Bottlebags
• Leaders of the New School - A Quarter to Cutthroat
• D-Nice - Straight from the Bronx
• Naughty by Nature - Guard Your Grill
• D-Smooth - Droppin' Smooth Lyrics
• Eric B. & Rakim - Casualties of War (Soulpower Remix)
• 3rd Bass - Problem Child
• Girl Talk - Here's the Thing
• They Might Be Giants - Ana Ng
• Bob the Builder - Dizzy
• The Dickies - Eve of Destruction
• The Spokesmen - Dawn of Correction
• The Beatles - The Beatles Third Christmas Record
• The Association - Cherish
• Ruthann Friedman - Windy (demo)
• Stereolab - Ping Pong
• The Free Design - Make the Madness Stop
• Dizzy Devil - Dizzy

If there was ever a song that deserved a whole episode to itself, it's the Beach Boys' "Good Vibrations." A psychedelic masterpiece assembled bit by bit over several months and several studios, on paper it shouldn't have worked - but with the help of the Wrecking Crew, the Beach Boys successfully brought Brian Wilson's musical vision to life. It's become so familiar to everyone at this point that you might not even notice how brilliant it really is, so Ben, Rich, and special guest Sean are breaking it down piece by piece to illustrate its true genius.

And of course there are a million illustrative clips:

The Beach Boys:

• Good Vibrations - Western 5-4-66 (First Chorus)
• Kiss Me, Baby
• California Girls
• The Little Girl I Once Knew
• Wouldn't It Be Nice
• Don't Talk (Put Your Head on My Shoulder)
• God Only Knows
• Good Vibrations - Gold Star 2-18-66 (The Pet Sounds Session)
• Student Demonstration Time
• Good Good Good Vibrations (First Version With Overdubs) 3-66
• Let's Go Away for Awhile
• I Know There's an Answer
• Good Vibrations - Alternate Edit 8-24-66
• Heroes and Villains

Other clips:

• Brian Wilson - Good Vibrations (2004 version)
• Columbia Symphony Orchestra and Leonard Bernstein - Rhapsody in Blue
• Henry Mancini - The Pink Panther Theme
• Queen - Bohemian Rhapsody
• The Ad Libs - The Boy from New York City
• Clara Rockmore - The Swan (Saint-Saëns)
• Weezer - Surf Wax America
• Brian Wilson - Child Is Father of the Man
• The Byrds - Turn! Turn! Turn! To Everything There Is a Season)
• Loleatta Holloway and Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch - Good Vibrations

Buy Ben's book, Come On a Safari With Me: Listening to the Beach Boys, Song by Song: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FTJGDK79

This quarterly double feature is about Fleetwood Mac for a couple of reasons: because they’re a very interesting and important band, and because they have two self-titled albums that sound nothing like each other. Launched by Peter Green in 1968 as a British blues band, in less than a decade they became an unstoppable California pop-rock monster. Their progression from one to the other is one of the most fascinating stories in rock history, and includes a lot of incredible music that you might not have known about. Mike, John, and Amanda had a great time talking about the various forms of Fleetwood Mac, and if you’re not familiar with their earlier incarnations, we hope you end up loving them as much as we do. And even if you don’t, the later version of the band is still every bit as good as their reputation says they are.

This episode includes Side Two of each album; see last week's episode for Sides One.

Cohosts: Mike DeFabio, John McFerrin, Amanda Rodgers

Complete show notes: https://discordpod.com/listen/175-fleetwood-mac-fleetwood-mac-1968-and-fleetwood-mac-1975

Discord & Rhyme's merch store: http://tee.pub/lic/discordpod

Support the podcast! https://www.patreon.com/discordpod

This quarterly double feature is about Fleetwood Mac for a couple of reasons: because they’re a very interesting and important band, and because they have two self-titled albums that sound nothing like each other. Launched by Peter Green in 1968 as a British blues band, in less than a decade they became an unstoppable California pop-rock monster. Their progression from one to the other is one of the most fascinating stories in rock history, and includes a lot of incredible music that you might not have known about. Mike, John, and Amanda had a great time talking about the various forms of Fleetwood Mac, and if you’re not familiar with their earlier incarnations, we hope you end up loving them as much as we do. And even if you don’t, the later version of the band is still every bit as good as their reputation says they are. This episode includes Side One of each album, and you will get Sides Two next week!

Cohosts: Mike DeFabio, John McFerrin, Amanda Rodgers

Complete show notes: https://discordpod.com/listen/175-fleetwood-mac-fleetwood-mac-1968-and-fleetwood-mac-1975

Discord & Rhyme's merch store: http://tee.pub/lic/discordpod

Support the podcast! https://www.patreon.com/discordpod

This week, we dive into the second half of "Weird Al" Yankovic's tribute to the alternative rock format, featuring angsty anthems from Smashing Pumpkins and Soundgarden, the return of America's brother-in-law Anthony Kiedis, and a song that Rivers Cuomo stole from this medley, so we're stealin' it back.

Co-hosts: Rich Bunnell, Phil Maddox, Ben Marlin

Tracklist:

• Smashing Pumpkins - Bullet with Butterfly Wings
• Weezer - Buddy Holly
• Red Hot Chili Peppers - My Friends
• Foo Fighters - I'll Stick Around
• Soundgarden - Black Hole Sun
• Green Day - Basket Case

Other clips:

• Smashing Pumpkins - Disarm
• Smashing Pumpkins - Cherub Rock
• Smashing Pumpkins - 1979
• "Weird Al" Yankovic - Skipper Dan
• Weezer - My Name Is Jonas (The Kitchen Tape demo)
• Red Hot Chili Peppers - Aeroplane
• "Weird Al" Yankovic - Bedrock Anthem
• Foo Fighters - Big Me
• Foo Fighters - Learn to Fly
• "Weird Al" Yankovic - My Own Eyes
• Soundgarden - Rusty Cage
• "Weird Al" Yankovic - Canadian Idiot
• Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass - Spanish Flea

For this year's Q&A episode, we asked you guys what artists and albums you'd like to hear us cover on the show, and you did not disappoint! We got literally hundreds of suggestions, and we did our best to narrow them down but we still ended up having to split this episode into two parts. We published Part 1 last week, and here's Part 2 right here. We had a great time talking about everything from Bob Dylan to Dennis Wilson, and we hope you enjoy it too.

Cohosts: Everybody

Spotify playlist: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5Ew83laRbjctsD57wQXcd7

Discord & Rhyme's merch store: http://tee.pub/lic/discordpod

Support the podcast! https://www.patreon.com/discordpod

For this year's Q&A episode, we asked you guys what artists and albums you'd like to hear us cover on the show, and you did not disappoint! We got literally hundreds of suggestions, and we did our best to narrow them down but we still ended up having to split this episode into two parts. Part 1 is right here, and you'll hear Part 2 next week. We had a great time talking about everything from Bob Dylan to Dennis Wilson, and we hope you enjoy it too.

Cohosts: Everybody

Spotify playlist: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5Ew83laRbjctsD57wQXcd7

Discord & Rhyme's merch store: http://tee.pub/lic/discordpod

Support the podcast! https://www.patreon.com/discordpod

This week, we don our lederhosen and celebrate the return of our compilation series dissecting "Weird Al" Yankovic's polka medleys, on which he rounded up and lovingly lampooned the chart music of the day. Originally released on his 1996 album Bad Hair Day, "The Alternative Polka" was Al's attempt to catalog the emerging radio format of alternative rock, though the artists in this batch cover so much stylistic ground as to suggest that maybe, just maybe, the whole "alternative" label was just a marketing gimmick. Whether it's a real genre or not, we've finally reached the radio hits our hosts grew up listening to, which makes for a fun discussion with a healthy dose of '90s nostalgia.

Tracks:

• Beck - Loser
• Stone Temple Pilots - Sex Type Thing
• Sheryl Crow - All I Wanna Do
• Nine Inch Nails - Closer
• R.E.M. - Bang and Blame
• Alanis Morissette - You Oughta Know

Other clips:

• Beck - The New Pollution
• Beck - Soul Suckin' Jerk
• Beck - Get Real Paid
• "Weird Al" Yankovic - Wanna B Ur Lovr
• Stone Temple Pilots - Plush
• "Weird Al" Yankovic - Syndicated Inc.
• Michael Jackson and Sheryl Crow - I Just Can't Stop Loving You
• Sheryl Crow - All Kinds of People
• Sheryl Crow - If It Makes You Happy
• Sheryl Crow - Soak Up the Sun
• "Weird Al" Yankovic - Germs
• Nine Inch Nails - Terrible Lie
• David Bowie - I'm Afraid of Americans (Nine Inch Nails remix)
• R.E.M. - Crush with Eyeliner
• Talking Heads - The Lady Don't Mind
• "Weird Al" Yankovic - We All Have Cell Phones (live)
• Alanis Morissette - Too Hot
• Alanis Morissette - No Return

By the late 60s, Harry Nilsson’s songs had a way of showing up everywhere, from TV and movies to other people’s hit records. However, it was 1971’s Nilsson Schmilsson that finally scored him a bona fide hit album, spawning three hit singles and a Grammy win. The record holds the unique status of being Harry’s most focused and disciplined album while still featuring an idiosyncratic range of styles including hard rock, power ballads, and oddball novelties. All of these genres are effortlessly held together with one of the best voices in the business. Join Dan, Amanda, and Rich as they put the lime in the coconut and discuss the man, the legend, and the group himself.

Cohosts: Dan Watkins, Rich Bunnell, Amanda Rodgers

Complete show notes: https://discordpod.com/listen/174-harry-nilsson-nilsson-schmilsson-1971

Discord & Rhyme's merch store: http://tee.pub/lic/discordpod

Support the podcast! https://www.patreon.com/discordpod

It's time for a release from the Patreon vault! In this one, originally released in October 2025, we're talking about one of the best percussion instruments: handclaps! From the doomiest metal to the sunniest pop, handclaps add an interesting new layer to anything.

P.S. Mike is aware that he mixed up the two singers on Napalm Death’s Scum: Justin Broadrick sings on the first side and Lee Dorrian sings on the second. In his defense, they both sound exactly the same.

P.P.S. Turns out it was Rich who noticed the Moody Blues similarity.

P.P.P.S. Buy Ben's book!! https://www.amazon.com/Come-Safari-Me-Listening-Beach-ebook/dp/B0FTJGDK79

The songs:

• Lafayette Afro Rock Band - Conga
• Cathedral - Midnight Mountain
• The Rolling Stones - Carol
• Laufey - Lover Girl
• Steve Reich - Clapping Music
• Fitz and the Tantrums - HandClap
• Outkast - Hey Ya!
• Tortoise - Seneca
• The Bay City Rollers - Saturday Night
• Taylor Swift - Shake It Off
• Miles Davis - Black Satin
• The Beach Boys - I Do

Cohosts: Mike DeFabio, Ben Marlin, Amanda Rodgers

Discord & Rhyme's merch store: http://tee.pub/lic/discordpod

Support the podcast! https://www.patreon.com/discordpod

Ready for action, nip it in the bud, we’re never relaxin’, this podcast is everlasting! In this episode, Rich has somethin’ to say about OutKast, the Atlanta duo consisting of Antwon “Big Boi” Patton and André “3000” Benjamin, who conquered hip-hop in the late ‘90s and early ‘00s before quietly parting ways. The most fascinating characteristic of OutKast is the duality between Big Boi’s extroverted, in-your-face gangsta persona and Andre’s introverted, quiet philosopher poet persona, a contrast they thoroughly explore on their 1998 album Aquemini, whose title is a portmanteau of their astrological signs. The duo emerged from Atlanta at a time when Southern hip-hop was struggling to be taken seriously amid the dominant West Coast/East Coast narrative, and on this album OutKast proudly make an argument for themselves as masters of the genre with music that’s both overwhelmingly colorful and layered with history and cultural subtext, all in a way that’s distinctly Southern. So if you’ve been on the fence about getting into hip-hop, Aquemini may be the album that helps you get the hump up out your back now.

Cohosts: Rich Bunnell, Mike DeFabio, Amanda Rodgers

Complete show notes: https://discordpod.com/listen/173-outkast-aquemini-1998

Discord & Rhyme's merch store: http://tee.pub/lic/discordpod

Support the podcast! https://www.patreon.com/discordpod

Today we're wrapping up the first disc of The Wrecking Crew! In this episode: the surprise return of a Discord & Rhyme hero, an all-time great that deserves revisiting, and possibly the worst Jan and Dean song ever.

Today's tracks:

• Chris Montez - Let's Dance
• The Mamas & the Papas - Monday, Monday
• The Teddy Bears - To Know Him Is To Love Him
• The Sandpipers - Guantanamera

Cohosts: Rich Bunnell, John McFerrin, Ben Marlin

Discord & Rhyme's merch store: http://tee.pub/lic/discordpod

Support the podcast! https://www.patreon.com/discordpod

https://kennethkraylie.bandcamp.com/
https://casinos.bandcamp.com/
https://thehectorcollectors.bandcamp.com/

Big Star are your favorite eighties band’s favorite band; but while you've heard their influence, you may not have heard their music. In the early 1970s, this Memphis-based band recorded two albums filled with jangly power-pop and yearning balladry that should have been huge but that had to settle for being mysterious and legendary. Ben found those albums on his 19th birthday, and he's loved them ever since. Joined by Rich and Phil, he explores the band’s sparkling debut album, #1 Record.

Cohosts: Ben Marlin, Rich Bunnell, Phil Maddox

Complete show notes: https://discordpod.com/listen/172-big-star-1-record-1972

Discord & Rhyme's merch store: http://tee.pub/lic/discordpod

Support the podcast! https://www.patreon.com/discordpod

Episode 2 of our Wrecking Crew series features one of the best pop songs of all time followed by one of the worst, with some okay ones in between! Try not to get too excited as we discuss how these incredible musicians could work with just about anything.

Today's tracks:

• The Byrds - Mr. Tambourine Man
• The Fifth Dimension - Stoned Soul Picnic
• The Routers - Let's Go (Pony)
• Nino Tempo & April Stevens - Deep Purple
• Ritchie Valens - Donna

The "Let's Go" montage:

• Bay City Rollers - Saturday Night
• Ramones - Do You Remember Rock 'n' Roll Radio?
• John Fogerty - Centerfield
• Slade - Give Us a Goal
• The Cars - Let's Go
• Hoodoo Gurus - Like Wow - Wipeout!
• Will Ferrell and Molly Shannon - Dog Show
• The Seatbelts - Doggy Dog
• England FanChants - England (Clap)

Cohosts: Rich Bunnell, John McFerrin, Amanda Rodgers

Discord & Rhyme's merch store: http://tee.pub/lic/discordpod

Support the podcast! https://www.patreon.com/discordpod

https://kennethkraylie.bandcamp.com/
https://casinos.bandcamp.com/
https://thehectorcollectors.bandcamp.com/

GoddammitbabyyouknowIain'tlyintoyouThisIsDiscordAndRhyyyymeYEEEEEAAAAHHHHWWWW!!! Van Halen was a cultural phenomenon in the late 1970s and early 1980s until David Lee Roth split with the band, and they’re one of the first bands that John had any real opinions on in his journey of getting into rock music. With this album, the band largely redefined the boundaries of what an electric guitar could do in a rock context, but they also found a way to make this boundary-pushing fun and light on its feet in a way that largely helped shape rock music for the next decade. About half of this album is radio staples, but the other half has some real gems as well, so come listen to John lead a discussion (with Rich and Mike) about a great album from what was, for a few years, an absolutely great band.

Cohosts: John McFerrin, Mike DeFabio, Rich Bunnell

Complete show notes: https://discordpod.com/listen/171-van-halen-van-halen-1978

Discord & Rhyme's merch store: http://tee.pub/lic/discordpod

Support the podcast! https://www.patreon.com/discordpod