Nakedly Examined Music Podcast

Glenn was a central figure in the Hoboken punk scene, fronting the band “a” in the late ’70s (no released albums) and then The Individuals (one album and an EP) in the early ’80s. His next band, Rage to Live (two albums), was the first release from Bar/None records in 1986, and Glenn then joined the label as a partner and signed They Might Be Giants, Yo La Tengo, etc. He started recording his own music again in the early 2010’s and has now released three albums as Glenn Morrow’s Cry for Help.

We discuss “Sweater Weather” (and listen at the end to “That’s That”) from Our Final Album Vol. 1 (2026), “Our World” by The Individuals from Fields (1982), and “Swimmer” from the self-titled album (1986) by Rage to Live. Intro: “Yellowed Pages” from 2 (2020). More at glenn-morrow.com.

“Sweater Weather” was inspired by the Richard Brautigan 1967 poem “All Watched Over by Machines of Loving Grace.”

Watch Cry for Help playing “Our World” live. Here they are promoting their first album, and in an acoustic format. Watch a whole live-stream from Freedy Johnston’s. Watch The Individuals live.

They’ve released a couple of videos: “Other Side of the Dream,” “Forever and a Day,” and here’s one for “Sweather Weather.” Hear all of “Yellowed Pages“.

Hear more Nakedly Examined Music at nakedlyexaminedmusic.com. Support us at patreon.com/nakedlyexaminedmusic.

Dan was Ben Vaughn’s sound-man and released his first solo album of Americana rock in 2004. We discuss “Busted” from his eighth album (produced by Vaughn), the just Dan-and-his guitar effort Dispatches from the Desert, then “Beaumont” from Cast-Iron Songs and Torch Ballads (2023), “Favorite Color” from Rosetta, Please (A Love Story) (2006). End song: “Lookin’ for a Fight” also from the new album. Intro: “Always” from Man from Out of State (2004). More at danmontgomery.bandcamp.com.

Hear all of “Always,” and a couple of the drug songs we refer to near the beginning: “Phenobarbiedoll” and “Crack Home.” See Dan’s full, recent band live, and again here. See him play live as an acoustic duo. Here he is live 17 years ago. Hear his early band Drugs Before Breakfast.

Hear more Nakedly Examined Music at nakedlyexaminedmusic.com. Support us at patreon.com/nakedlyexaminedmusic.

Hear my previous interview with Ben Vaughn.

With his roots in folk, Josh released three rock albums in the ’90s before his big hit “Camera One,” from Useful Music (2001), which is getting a Silver Anniversary rework/reissue (The intro music for this episode is the newly recorded version). He has released seven albums since then, typically as The Josh Joplin Group, but sometimes as Among the Oak & Ash.

We discuss “Goodbye Berlin” from GpYr (2025), “History of I Do” from Figure Drawing (2023) (music by Wes Langois), “Juniper” from Boxing Nostalgic (1997), and conclude by listening to “High, Low & Wide” from the self-titled album by his folk unit, Among the Oak & Ash (2008). More at joshjoplingroup.com.

Watch the original video for “Camera One” and the silver-anniversary new recording/video. Hear the big-budget, Josh-rejected version of what would have been his second single from that album, “I’ve Changed.” There’s also a video for the solo version. Watch him back in the day playing the song on Letterman, and with just a guitar at a cafe in 2008.

Watch the Josh Joplin Group live recently, and as a duo with Wes Langois. Watch him talk and perform with Garrison Starr as Among the Oak and Ash. Watch that full band live in 2010. That band did lots of folk standards, but also a Smiths cover.

Hear more Nakedly Examined Music at nakedlyexaminedmusic.com. Support us at patreon.com/nakedlyexaminedmusic.

Bruce started as guitarist for the ’90s for Vulgar Unicorn and started Pineapple Thief as a solo project in 1999, though it quickly became a full band (and has for the last several albums been a true 4-way collaboration featuring King Crimson/Porcupine Tree drummer Gavin Harrison). He’s released 16 studio albums with Pineapple Thief and four solo albums (plus a collaboration album with Jonas Renske from Katatonia). More at brucesoord.com and pineapplethief.com.

We discuss “Pillars” from Ghosts in the Park (his 2026 solo album) and some Pineapple Thief tracks: the title track from It Leads to This (2024), “Clapham” from 10 Stories Down (2005), remixed for 3000 Days (2008), plus to conclude “Alone at Sea” from Magnolia (2014). Intro: “Private Paradise” by from Abducted at Birth (1999, originally called Abducting the Unicorn).

Hear all of “Private Paradise.” There’s an official video for “Pillars.” Here’s one for another new song “Meet Me On the Downs.” Watch Bruce live solo, and live with his “solo band.”

Watch the latest Pineapple Thief video, and here’s a nice one from 2020. Here they are live with Gavin. Here’s a whole live show from 2017 shortly after Gavin joined. Watch Bruce talk about his gear. There’s much more at their YouTube channel.

The Vulgar Unicorn albums are Under the Umbrella (1995), Sleeps With the Fishes (1996), and Jet Set Radio (2000). They also put out an album as Persona Non Grata (not released until 2004). Bruce’s partner in that band was Neil Randall, who currently puts out music as Niederrad 16.

Hear more Nakedly Examined Music at nakedlyexaminedmusic.com. Support us at patreon.com/nakedlyexaminedmusic for access to more Linsenmayer/Soord interaction via our bonus 2018 partial interview.

Michael is the songwriter and guitarist for the Canadian band Cowboy Junkies (featuring two of his siblings and a childhood friend), with whom he’s released 20+ studio albums and several live albums since 1989.

We discuss “Throw a Match” from Such Ferocious Beauty (2023), “He Will Call You Baby” from More Acoustic Junk (2025), remade from One Soul Now (2004), and “Rock and Bird” from The Caution Horses (1990). End song: ” Unanswered Letter” from The Wilderness-The Nomad Series, Vol. 4 (2012). Intro: “Misguided Angel” from The Trinity Session (1988). More at cowboyjunkies.com.

Follow along in Mark’s notes (Google has inexplicably decided that the file looks dangerous and might warn you of this, but it’s just the same as all the rest of them; you can ignore the warning.)

Watch the video for “Misguided Angel.” Here’s that video/alternate version of “Rock and Bird” featuring Bruce Hornsby (my previous guest!) as depicted in the video by Stephen Wright. Hear the original version of “He Will Call You Baby.” Hear the acoustic version of “The Wilderness.” Hear their tune with John Prine.

Watch a full live set from 2008. Watch them live on Carson in 1989, on Leno in 1994 and on Letterman in 1996. Here’s a video for one of their cover tunes (a David Bowie tune!).

Watch the video for a tune by one of Michael’s side projects, Lee Harvey Osmond (the singer is Tom Wilson). Listen to one of Michael’s solo album improvisations. Here’s his film soundtrack from 2017. Here’s his 1983 band with Alan, Germinal, and his even earlier band Hunger Project.

Hear more Nakedly Examined Music at nakedlyexaminedmusic.com. Support us at patreon.com/nakedlyexaminedmusic.