Episode 780: Ben Dickey

Hello friends! Singer/songwriter/actor, Ben Dickey is my guest for episode 780! You might know Ben from playing Blaze Foley in the Ethan Hawke directed movie, "Blaze". Ben's new album, the gorgeous A Glimmer On The Outskirts drops next Friday, March 8th. The album was produced by Ben's "Blaze" co-star, Charlie Sexton and is the first release on the new SexHawkeBlack Records. He'll be on tour of the U.S. supporting Hayes Carll until may. Go to bendickeymusic.com for tour dates, music and more! Ben and I met up at the SexHawkeBlack Records headquarters here in Austin last week and had an amazing conversation about his amazing journey, from Little Rock, Arkansas to Philadelphia where he worked in kitchens for 18 years eventually becoming a chef, to Louisiana where he stepped into acting in the movie, "Blaze" and a whole new music career. I had a great time getting to know this soulful and amazingly talented cat. I'm sure you will too. I'd like to thank Erika Schultz and Jason Swedberg for setting this up. Let's get down!
Ciao! -JG

Episode 734: Beth // James

Howdy gang! Mikaela Beth Kahn and Jordan James Burchill known professionally as Beth // James are my guests for episode 734! Their latest single, a peek into their next album, "Wasted On Sundays" just dropped a few weeks ago. Their song "Lion Eyes" off of their last album, 2017's All In Life, was prominently featured in the Spike Lee movie, "Blackkklansman". You can find their music, videos and tour dates at bethjamesband.com. We have a great conversation about American Sunday brunch culture, Nashville, getting a song on one of the year's biggest movies, their jazz roots and much more! I hope you enjoy getting to know these fine folks. I sure did. Let's get down!
Ciao! -JG

Episode 554: Goodbye 2016! With Laurie Gallardo and Taylor Muse

Hello friends! 2016 was the most tumultuos year that I can remember... or at least it felt that way. For the last episode of the year, I sit down with two of my friends, KUTX's Laurie Gallardo and Quiet Company frontman, Taylor Muse! We discuss all things 2016; the deaths, the music, the movies, tv, books and of course, the politics. Pop culture was turned on it's head in 2016 and I really felt it deserved it's own show. I hope you enjoy this chat between friends. I sure did. What did you think of 2016? I want to wish you all a very happy and safe new year! Let's get down!
 
ciao! -jg

Episode 469: Joe Salinas Returns! / Rev. Wade With "Soul Of A Musician Series" Stops By!

hello friends! i hope life is treating you well. news is pouring in about the president and the first lady being the keynote speakers at sxsw this year. that's pretty exciting for austin. it makes me think what those motorcades will do to enhance the over-the-top sxsw traffic. honestly, i think it's cool that they're coming. i'm finalizing my sxsw schedule... i'm doing some podcasts, hosting a SIMS showcase at the san jose' with awesome bands like, sweet spirit, ian moore and the lossy coils, the bluebonnets and more and i'm doing shows out of town with skyrocket. i'm looking forward to a week of madness. speaking of madness, if you live in austin and you're looking for a way to extend your "sunday funday", rev. merrill wade from st. matthews episcopal church has started "soul of a musician series", at the iron cactus north. rev. wade stopped by to tell us what it's all about. if you'd like to find out more about it go to soul of a musician series on facebook.
my guest for episode 469 is filmmaker/photographer/musician, joe salinas! joe has been on the show again to chat about his latest project, a documentary about the legendary punk band, the big boys, called "you can color outside the lines". he's ben traveling all over the country talking to punk legends, rock stars and other raconteurs about the effect of the big boys in punk music. you can find joe's work at joesalinasfilms.com i had a great time catching up with joe about his adventures. i'm sure you will too. let's get down!
ciao! -jg 

Episode 446: Kanude

hello friends! i hope you're all doing well. things are good here except, i took my car in because the window wouldn't roll up. they called today and told me they could fix my window, but then went down a list of like $1,200 worth of work that needs to be done to it. that's a little stressful during a slow work month and the christmas season. i also have to go to houston and back twice over the next week. might be time for a new car...my guest for episode 446 is singer/songwriter/actor chris knudson also known as kanude! i've known kanude for a few years and he's always been a great guy and great songwriter. he has a christmas song, "best christmas ever" available now at his bandcamp page along with several great albums. we have a great conversation about rooming with owen wilson at boarding school, scoring "el mariachi", living in berlin, nyc, houston, making records, playing at church and much, much more. i hope you enjoy getting to know kanude. i did. let's get down!ciao! -jg

Episode 427: Moving Panoramas / Honky Tonk Heaven: The Story of the Broken Spoke

hello friends! i hope you're all flying high again! things are going well here at la casa de johnny. i have a great big show for you guys today. before we get to my conversation with moving panoramas, i have a quick chat with michelle faires, producer of "honky tonk heaven: the story of the broken spoke" a documentary about the legendary texas honky tonk. they've just started editing and they've started a kickstarter campaign to finish up their movie. michelle gives us an insight to the story, but you can check it out and give at kickstarter.com/brokenspokefilm do it!my guests for episode 427 are the amazing dreamgaze trio, moving panoramas! their gorgeous new album, one came out earlier this month. you can find one and fin out all about them at movingpanoramas.com leslie and rosie from the band came by a few weeks ago and we had an amazing conversation about leslie's life-changing, traumatic few months, turning heartache and confusion into beautiful art, teaching rosie music and becoming bandmates, fear of numbers, school of rock, shoegaze vs. dreamgaze, the making of one, custom earplugs vs. $1 earplugs and much, much more! leslie's story is harrowing, but what she was able to do musically not only made her feel better but it made the world a more beautiful place and for that i thank her and the rest of the band. let's get down!ciao! -jg

Episode 418: Jesse Sublett Returns!

hello friends! i hope life is treating you well. things are good here. i got to play at an xtc tribute/SIMS benefit on friday night at strange brew lounge side. there was an amazingly well-rehearsed house band led by my pal jon green. there was a host of awesome singers that got up and threw down on the song they sang. i sang a song by the xtc alter-ego band, the dukes of stratosphear called, "collideascope". it was a very special night and i was honored to be a part of it. i played a benefit for big brothers and big sisters with skyrocket in houston on saturday. i actually did the intro for this show in my hotel room between soundcheck and the show. i hope you like it.my guest for episode 418 is musician/author/artist/actor and one of the coolest guys i know, jesse sublett! jesse has a fantastic new non-fiction book out called, "1960's austin gangsters: crime that rocked the capital". the book is about austin's seedy underworld and follows austin's notorious overton gang and all of the outrageous crimes and wild characters in their orbit. it's a fascinating story that takes you through brothels in south austin, bank robbing tours through small towns in the south and midwest, darrel k. royal's u.t. football program, the "dixie mafia", bugged jails and crooked sheriffs and much, much more. go to jesse's website for yourself! i loved this book and in our conversation, jesse takes us deeper into the lives of some of austin's most nefarious and colorful characters. i hope you enjoy this conversation as much as i did. let's get down!ciao! -jg

Episode 417: Chip Pope

hello friends! i hope you're all out there doing it until you need glasses. things are good here. i wrote a really good song with my pal, gabe rhodes today and i'm writing a song with my old music partner, einar tomorrow. i'm getting into a writing rhythm which i hope will get me out of my "writing funk". i feel like i've been doing false starts musically for the last couple of years. now, i'm just gonna write a bunch of songs and figure it out as i go. wish me luck. my guest for episode 417 is hilarious, writer/comic, chip pope! chip lives in los angeles but was in town a month ago doing some stand-up and visiting family. i saw him do stand up a couple of years ago at a festival and laughed my ass off. we have a few mutual friends and for some reason i feel like i met him when he lived here. anyway, chip came by while he was in town and we talked about writing for ellen, roseanne, the beavis and butthead reprise a couple of years ago, natasha leggero's latest comedy central special, a new comedy/history show for nat geo coming soon, his whacky family, new romantic 80's bands and singers and much, much more. i had a great tome getting to know chip. i'm sure you will too. let's get down!ciao! -jg

Episode 414: Joe King Carrasco / Clay Liford, Director of "Slash" Stops By

hello friends! i hope this episode finds you embracing the world as if it were your mother. things are good here. today we get a visit from director, clay liford who stops by to talk about his new movie, "slash". he's 95% done with the movie and has launched a kickstarter campaign to finish it. it's a coming of age comedy about a boy who writes "slasher fan fiction" a sub-genre of erotic fan fiction and stars michael ian black, missi pyle, hannah marks, michael johnston and more. clay and i have a great conversation about the sensitive nature of this story and how it's already caused some controversy in the "slasher" world. check out his kickstarter campaign and see what you can give. you have until friday sept. 25th so, get out there and get invovled!my guest for episode 414 is the man, the myth, the legend, the amazing joe king carrasco! joe stopped by a few weeks ago while he was in town promoting his new album, chiliando which he made with his new band, joe king carrasco y los side fx. chiliando is joe's most rocking album to date. he's been living in puerto vallarta for a while now and settled into his new mexican life. we sat down and had a fantastic conversation about, being a star of early mtv, having michael jackson sing back-up on a session, getting banned from saturday night live, his excitement over chiliando, questionable vans breaking down in the mountains while on tour, his dog rescue foundation vivaperros.org, owning his own club in puerto vallarta and much, much more! it was an hnor to have joe king come over and chat. i hope you enjoy it as much as i did. let's get down!ciao! -jg

Episode 407: Penelope Spheeris & Anna Fox / The Peterson Brothers

hello friends! i hope you're all finding yourselves enjoying your summer. i am. it just cooled off a bit which is nice. i have a great show for you guys today! a double-header, if you will. fist up i have legendary director, penelope spheeris and her daughter/ business partner, anna fox. you might know penelope from the big hollywood movies like "wayne's world" and "black sheep", but you might also know her from her "decline of western civilization" parts 1-3 documentaries. i came up watching part 1: the punk years and part 2: the metal years and loved them. the austin film society is presenting a ver special screening of all three parts plus, penelope's 1983 film, "suburbia" at the marchesa theater on friday, august 28th and saturday, august 29th. penelope and anna will be on hand for a "q & a" after the movies. tickets and more info on the event are available at https://www.austinfilm.org/decline so we have a great phone conversation where we find out what happened to the bands, odin and london from part 2: the metal years, why paul stanley was in bed with three girls during his interview and much more. if you want to own the new decline of western civilization box set, go here shout! factory.my second guests for episode 407 are austin's new generation of blues musicians, the peterson brothers! glenn and alex peterson stopped by to talk to me about their debut, self-titled album that came out earlier this month, being professional working musicians by night and high-school students by day, keeping their weekly continental club residency (mondays @ 6:30 fresh), where they want to take the blues and much, much more. i really enjoyed getting to know these fine, young, talented gentlemen. i'm sure you will too. find out more about the peterson brothers at petersonbrothersband.com let's get down!ciao! -jg