Coming up next… a song that was so offensive, the Doors were fired on the spot for performing it. Here’s what happened: Jim Morrison, was playing one of The Doors's new songs "The End" as the house band for one of California’s most happening clubs... when Jim suddenly went off on a creative tangent that hearkened back to a story from Greek mythology. But the audience had no idea what was going on… Jim Morrison took a song that was already about death, birth, freedom, madness and a bunch of other words I can’t say on here plus, whatever else you can think of and put some relish on it. He screamed out a profanity-laced desire that would shock every generation thereafter who would hear the story or the song. and that’s not all. There are some insane stories that go with this epic 12-minute song… including how Morrison was fired for performing it and how he got buck-naked and hosed down a recording studio with a fire extinguisher. And there’s plenty more where that came from… It’s all coming up NEXT on the Professor of Rock.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The 80s gave us some of the most irresistible, inescapable songs ever put to tape. And today we're going all in on the neon decade, counting down my picks for the Top 8 catchiest 80s songs. These are the songs that you’re grateful when they get stuck in your head. On this episode, we have the story of Jonathan Cain, the broke and broken musician who lost his record deal, his girlfriend, and nearly his dog when it was hit by a speeding car. Desperate and ready to pack it in, he called home to his father to ask if he should give up on his music dreams. But his father’s 3 word response gave him the courage to keep going and became the title for the biggest rock song in history: Don't Stop Believin'. Plus, one of the most beloved music videos of all time almost never happened… Take On Me by a-ha. Two earlier versions of the song had already flopped, and almost no one on earth had heard them. But it turns out the third time is the charm… because the next release gave us one of the defining songs of the 80s and one of the greatest videos, but then decades later the band’s own video got blocked from YOUTUBE in the US by their old label. Plus, a song title that Tears For Fears stole from The Clash, and then when it became a hit, that singer from the ripped-off band only asked for 5 bucks for it. The stories are next on POR.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Let's run it back!

Coming up, an interview with one of the 80s great hitmakers. The most successful duo of the rock era, Daryl Hall and John Oates Everything they touched turned to Gold and Platinum. Here, John Oates tells the story of a number-one hit from the mid-80s that came at the crossroads of Analog and digital… Out of Touch, it was their final #1 hit after ruling the neon decade with 11 hits, and this one was one of their biggest and they almost gave it away. To put it all in perspective this song was actually a huge accident. Also on this same 1984 record, they had another hit where they spelled the chorus and if you were anything like me you were a little thrown by this… the story is next on Professor of Rock.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.