Nash Edgerton tells me about how he and his brother Joel first fell in love with movies as kids and how he decided to become a stuntman. He shares how he started making his own mini-movie clips to help him get jobs as a stunt performer, and how this sparked an interest in filmmaking. This led to a handful of highly acclaimed short films and eventua…

The incredibly talented Mark Lettieri speaks about his musical career and learning how to find balance making a living as a musician. He explains why he doesn't regret taking even bad gigs early on in his career, which type of gig makes him nervous and which musicians he'd love to play with.Av Myth vs. Craft

Guitarist and singer/songwriter Ben Poole tells us how listening to Voodoo Child changed his life and sparked his musical journey. He describes the ups and downs of life on the road and how audiences are different in each country. He shares stories, tells us what he looks for in musicians and recounts his recent participation in the Playing With Fi…

Take a behind the scenes look at the methods, motivation and creative vision of the multi-talented photographer, director, producer & musician Sam Jones. Among other topics, he explains how working as a cartoonist for his college newspaper prepared him to become a portrait photographer. Sam shares the lessons he learned from film and how they benef…

Phil Hurley sits down with me to review his journey from upstate New York to Austin, Texas. He tells me how he started playing music, about his band Gigolo Aunts and his time in Boston, Seattle, Amsterdam and Los Angeles. He recounts his time playing with Tracy Bonham, recalls the power that MTV used to have, his time working at Westwood Music in L…

Music veteran and manager Mark Proct looks back on his career of over 40 years working with Texas music royalty, including Willie Nelson, Jerry Jeff Walker, Asleep at the Wheel, Delbert McClinton, the Fabulous Thunderbirds, Jimmie and Stevie Ray Vaughan, the Arc Angels, Storyville and many more. We also discuss his book Home Today, Gone Tomorrow, w…

Tone, taste, grit and groove. Ray Wylie Hubbard shares stories and insights and cracks me up along the way. He tells us about his friendship with Joe Walsh, his emotional bond with musical instruments and resurrecting his career at age 41. He reflects on his purpose in life and tells us what he thinks about “bro country."…

Legendary drummer Kenny Aronoff looks back on his upbringing, education and accomplished career. He breaks down the keys to his success and we talk about his upcoming autobiography, which will come out this fall. Kenny also shares great stories, tells us how his classical training has helped his career, which drummers have influenced him and which …

I speak with Ben Clymer, the founder and executive editor of the online watch magazine HODINKEE. Ben discusses his appreciation of well made mechanical objects, ranging from his childhood admiration for analogue light meters and compasses to his passion for mechanical watches and vintage cars. He tells us about his experience at the Columbia Univer…

I speak with Dr. Art Markman (co-host of Two Guys on Your Head, Professor of Psychology at The University of Texas at Austin) about the psychology of losing a sibling. Prior to speaking with Dr. Markman I knew that he was eloquent and erudite about human nature and behavior. After speaking with him I learned that he is also a deeply empathetic and …

The legendary drummer and percussionist Alex Acuña looks back on his career and shares fascinating stories and insights. He tells us about growing up in a tiny town north of Lima, Peru in a family full of musicians. He describes his life as a top studio musician in Lima while still a teenager and leaving it all behind to join Perez Prado’s band at …

Studio legend Tim Pierce goes into detail about how he became one of the most sought after session guitarists in the world. He tells us why live performance just wasn’t for him and shares great insights into the role of the guitar in popular music. He talks about his views on digital vs. analog recording and shares great news about the guitar instr…

Guitarist Josh Smith looks back on his career and describes his approach to music. He tells us about choosing the guitar over baseball and why even as a kid his bandmates were always adults. He describes his move to Los Angeles and how he got his start as a session musician and sideman. He breaks down the qualities he looks for in a rhythm section …

Multi-instrumentalist, songwriter and record producer Henrik Freischlader takes a break from his hectic schedule to tell us about his career in music. He started playing drums at age four and went on to pick up the guitar, bass and (some) piano. He describes his songwriting process and his approach to recording albums. He shares why he founded his …

Indigenous frontman & guitarist Mato Nanji shares stories about falling in love with music and the role it played in shaping his life. He describes how he formed Indigenous with his sister, brother and cousin, their experience playing on the B.B. King Blues Tour and why he carried on with the band after his family members left the band. He tells us…

Guitarist JD Simo tells us about growing up in Chicago and falling in love with music at a young age. He describes the experience of moving to Nashville, nearly falling flag, only to eventually pull through in spades. He shares the lessons he learned playing in Don Kelley’s band and laments the lack of opportunities for young musicians to play live…

Austin-based photographer Todd V. Wolfson recounts how attending an Alice Cooper concert as a 13-year old changed his life. He describes Austin, Texas in 1979 and why he moved there. He tells us why he thinks he’s had so much success working with musicians and shares his approach to photographing people. Lastly, he dives into the advent of digital …

Guitar great Pete Thorn tells us about growing up in Edmonton, Canada, moving to Los Angeles to attend Musicians Institute and what he values most from the year he spent there. He looks back at what he learned working with Frank Simes and how he felt after signing his first record deal. He describes the ingredients that he thinks have made his demo…

World renowned drummer Jimmy Chamberlin reviews his musical upbringing and career. He tells us about his siblings’ eclectic music collection, his first few bands—including a polka band—and how he worked as a carpenter for a few years. He shares stories about The Smashing Pumpkins, the role each member played in the band and why he and Billy Corgan …

The multi-talented G. Love shares great stories and insights into his musical career. He tells us about being a street musician in Philadelphia and Boston, how he met his drummer Jeff “The Houseman” Clemens and how he felt when he got his first record deal. He looks back on his career and how he might have done some things differently (or maybe not…

Powerhouse guitarist & songwriter Philip Sayce goes deep about his musical journey and aspirations. He reminisces about sneaking into blues jams at Toronto clubs, the time he spent in Jeff Healey’s band and how he launched his solo career. Philip sheds light on the dark corners of the music industry and stresses the importance of staying true to on…

Jazz drummer Scott Laningham tells us about the role music has played in his life. He walks us through his musical upbringing and his adventures at the University of North Texas music school, moving to New York with Mitch Watkins, (nearly) touring Europe with Leonard Cohen and how he ended up living and playing in Austin, Texas. He also expounds ho…

Jazz luminary Dr. James Polk sits down with me to review his musical career. He shares fascinating stories about his childhood in Texas, his first professional gig at age 13, being a high school band director in a segregated school, prejudice and discrimination in the South and his time in the Ray Charles Orchestra. He also shares his perspective o…

The legendary Mike Campbell covers a number of topics that include how his father influenced his appreciation of music, the cultural impact of The Beatles’ performance on The Ed Sullivan Show, his approach to songwriting, the decision to leave the University of Florida to join Mudcrutch, how he collaborates with Tom Petty, fronting his club band Th…

Matt Schofield recounts how a video of B.B. King sparked his musical career, taking him from a tiny town in the English countryside to sharing the stage with Robben Ford and Buddy Guy. He shares the lessons he learned over seven years as a sideman in London and the challenges of songwriting and singing. He gives us his perspective on artistic evolu…

David Grissom recounts his career in music, how he approaches songwriting and why he thinks he’s had the success he’s had. He shares stories about his arrival to Austin in 1983 (or as he called it, “guitarland”) and how his career took off. He tells us about his time in Joe Ely’s band, playing with John Mellencamp and his thought process each time …

Chris Beall tells us about the music scene growing up in west Texas, his stint in Nashville, his temporary disillusionment with music and why he relaunched his solo career. He also dissects what makes the South Austin Moonlighters such a special band and shares advice for anyone considering a career in music.…

Eli Haslanger opens up about his journey from sixth grade band to becoming one of his generation’s most talented jazz saxophonists. He recounts how his childhood, education and life experiences guided him to where he is today. Toward the end of the episode he shares the lessons he’s learned as a band leader and advice for anyone considering a caree…

Ian Moore shares his thoughts on how he made a career in music, his approach to songwriting, his thoughts on recording and performing and the importance of getting quiet. He also recounts the ingredients that he thinks made his recent songwriter's workshops so successful.Av Myth vs. Craft