Today Bob talks with the E Street Band's notorious drummer, Max Weinberg. Last fall, Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band released the critically acclaimed album "Letter to You," but due to the Covid-19 Pandemic, no tour followed. Bob and Max talk about what it's been like to be on a forced hiatus from touring and how a drummer who has toured most of his adult life maintains his beat-keeping chops.

Our guest today is the great singer-songwriter Arlo Guthrie, who recently announced his retirement from touring after more than a half-century of making music and playing concerts around the world. 

It’s fitting that we speak to Arlo in November, with Thanksgiving just a couple weeks away. After all, Arlo’s landmark song “Alice’s Restaurant” has become the Thanksgiving song of all time. 

We’ll discuss that song of course, but also Arlo’s roots and influences, his legendary father Woody Guthrie and his long and varied career in the music business. 

To listen to the full episode, visit:

liberalartsoregonstate.edu/poptalks

Welcome to the premiere of PopTalks, a monthly podcast produced by Oregon State University’s College of Liberal Arts and Popular Music studies program.

PopTalks is about pop music, issues, ideas, trends, new sounds, old sounds, the things that make our music so great. Each month I’ll be talking to a special guest from the world of popular music and together we’ll explore the inner workings of both the business and creative side, with the goal of making you a more knowledgeable listener while at the same time narrowing the gap between the artist and his audience.

Today’s guest is Tom Morello, a founding member of the legendary rock group “Rage Against The Machine” and with Chuck D, “Prophets of Rage.” Tom is also an honorary member of Bruce Springsteen’s "E Street Band" and a spiritual son of Woody Guthrie, the great American folk singer who taught us how music can affect political and social change in this country.

With the 2020 presidential election nearly upon us, that very topic – music as a means of social and political protest – is quite relevant today, especially when you consider how many contemporary artists have embraced that idea.

Tom Morello is one artist that has always seen value in using rock and roll to muster the masses into political action. His music is revolutionary, incendiary and incredibly powerful.

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Hosted by Bob Santelli
OSU Director of Popular Music and Performing Arts

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Audio intro: "Undecided Voters" by Kiwi Jr. from the Sub Pop Records sampler.