Episode 482: Kady Rain

hello friends! floods are taking over today here in texas. houston has been hit hard and i hope all of our houston friends are safe and dry. i was in houston this weekend playing a couple of shows with skyrocket. i spent record store day there. i went to cactus music and sig's lagoon. i didn't get any "special releases", but i scored some good vinyl and got some gifts for folks. i hope you got to get out to some mom and pop record stores this weekend too. you can find my record store day pics at our facebook page.
my guests for episode 482 are pop music geniuses, kady rain and ben bazzrea! they have a brilliant new single dropping this week called, "can't save us" you can hear it at the end of the show. kady and ben stopped by a couple of weeks ago and we had a fantastic conversation about writing pop songs, how to be a pop band in austin, crazy parties when kady was my neighbor, internet trolls and much, much more!
you can hear their music and find out when they're playing by going to kadyrain.com. i hope enjoy getting to know kady and ben. i sure did. let's get down!
ciao! -jg

Episode 474: Major Grizz

hello friends! i hope you've made it out of the sxsw 2016 maelstrom of insanity in one piece. hopefully, no tears were shed. i had a great week. i'm tired. i played some good shows, hosted a great showcase at sxsan jose, wrote a song, did some great podcasts and i'm still here. i'm off from skyrocket this week. i'm just going to work on some new songs and chill out. what are you doing?
my guest for episode 474 is aaron blackerby from the band, major grizz! they have a new frenchie smith produced song, "shitty secrets" dropping this friday march, 25 and they have a single release show on saturday march 26th at the blackheart here in austin. aaron and i had a great conversation about working with frenchie, putting an end to his last band and starting fresh with major grizz and much, much more! aaron is a great hang! i hooe you enjoy our conversation. i sure did. let's get down!
ciao! -jg

Episode 470: Otis The Destroyer Returns!

hello friends! i hope you all had a fantastic weekend. i had a good one. i was back to work with SKYROCKET! after a week off. we played in san antonio on friday and san marcos on saturday. i missed my peeps. i'm playing a solo show this thursday march 10th at the volstead here in austin. in fact, it's the hotel vegas/ the volstead's fifth anniversary and there are some great bands and artists on the bill including my pals, joseph king, casey mcpherson, sweet spirit and many more!
my friend, taylor wilkins from otis the destroyer returns to the show for episode 470! otis the destroyer has a brand new e.p. out called, belushi that came out last week. it's great and you can find it on itunes, spotify, otisthedestroyer.bandcamp.com and at their shows. they have a show THIS friday march 11th at hotel vegas. i suggest you get out and see this amazing rock and roll band. i hope you enjoy our conversation. i sure did. let's get down! 
ciao! -jg

Episode 461: Bale Creek Allen

hello friends! i hope you're all doing well. i'm good. i had a busy day of podcasting. i'm looking forward to bringing you guys some good conversations. i'm going to galveston with skyrocket tomorrow to play a mardi gras party. i thought we were playing the galveston mardi gras, but we're not.  sometimes i don't know what's going on until i get a show sheet a couple of days before the show. welcome to "johnnyworld" population: me. my guest for episode 461 is a true artist and a dear old friend, bale creek allen. bale is a true artist because to me he is aggressively creative. by that, i mean he works in bronze sculpture, painting, photography, neon, wood work, spoken word, theater and music. i honestly love his work in all of those mediums. in the last 25 years that i've known him, i've seen many of his art shows, music shows and more. his work is always honest, powerful, sometimes brutal and always beautiful. he's a really sweet and inspiring person to be around. i hope you enjoy our conversation. i sure did. let's get down!ciao! -jg

Episode 457: KP and the Boom Boom

hello friends! i hope you're all doing well. things are good here. i got to play the new antone's here in austin last night. i really like that place. it looks and sounds beautiful. great sound on stage, great location and great people. i'm very happy antone's is back. i missed it. if you're in houston tonight, friday, jan. 22nd, skyrocket will be at the continental club. we go on at 10. it's a great time.my guests for episode 457 are kate and nick from austin euro/soul/pop kp and the boom boom! if you live in austin, you can see them tomorrow, saturday, january 23rd at geraldine's in the new van zant hotel. they have two e.p.'s out now and are putting the finishing touches on their debut full-length in a few months. you can find them online at kpbbmusic.com. nick and kate came by a couple of weeks ago and we had a great conversation about living in the u.k., india and guatamala, having an indian singing guru, euro/soul, having natural charisma, opening for snoop dogg, the writing and recording process and much, much more! i had a great time getting to know kate and nick. i'm sure you will too. let's get down!ciao! -jg

Episode 453: Lou Rebecca / Rock Journalist, Kristy Loye

hello friends! i hope you're all doing well and getting ready for the weekend. i have a big show for you guys today. first up, i have a skype conversation with houston press writer, kristy loye! kristy wrote an article for the houston press.com called, "rock and roll is dead, and even axl and slash can't save it". that really hit a nerve with people both with it and against it. go read it for yourself here . i reached out to kristy because i thought she touched on some important issues facing all musicians, how to make a living in an age where support for musicians (and artists in general) is becoming more scarce by the day. great conversation!!!on a completely different note, i also talk to french-pop artist, lou rebecca. lou is playing a show tonight, fri. 1/8 at the vulcan gas company in austin, tx. she moved here 6 months ago from paris, where she grew up the daughter of a pop singer mother and record producing father. she has an ep ready for release but has to figure out her deal with her french publishing company, sony. lou and her husband, daniel, a great photographer and director, came by last week and we had a great conversation. i hope you enjoy getting to know her as much as i did. let's get down!ciao! jg

Episode 440: Casey McPherson Returns!

hello friends! i hope you all had a great holiday weekend. i had a very laid back holiday weekend. i played one show with skyrocket and did a couple of podcasts on saturday and sunday. i got the chance to sit down and talk to paco estrada on saturday at orb recording studios and then sunday morning, bright and early, the trishas came over and we had a great conversation and a lot of laughs. look for both of those in the coming weeks. my guest for episode 440 is one of my favorite people and best friends, the amazingly talented singer/songwriter from alpha rev and flying colors, casey mcpherson! casey has had a busy few years since he was last on. he's released several albums and toured europe a few times with his prog/rock/pop band, flying colors which features mike potnoy and steve morse. he's released a lot of new music with his band, alpha rev. he's also been finding ways to build a community and help his community by raising awareness about affordable housing. this year casey is a black fret nominee and he's performing at the 2nd annual black fret black ball gala at the paramount theater in austin, tx this friday, december 12th. you can find out how to get tickets by going to black fret black ball gala. i hope you enjoy my conversation with casey. i sure did. let's get down!ciao! -jg

Episode 437: Star Parks

hello friends! i hope you're all doing well. the weather in austin has been gorgeous the last couple of days and that's always a good thing. i hope wherever you are, it's gorgeous too. fall is the best! i'm playing a solo show on tuesday, november 24th at the volstead here in austin. i'll be opening for the big fix which should be a good time. come out. the volstead is a rad bar and the have a fantastic patio. other than that, i'm heading to fredericksburg tomorrow with skyrocket tomorrow to play at the crossroads. those are always lively and interesting shows with at least three bachelorette parties in the audience. each party thinks their bachelorette is the best and as they drink more, they become more and more competitive. should be lively and interesting. i'll let you know how it goes on tuesday's show.my guest for episode 437 is andy bianculli from the band, star parks. their album, don't dwell will be available in january 2016, but for now you can go to starparks.bandcamp.com to hear some jams. andy came by back in early october and we had a fantastic conversation about touring with a cajun band, the legitimacy of john cusack as brian wilson, making lo-fi pop music on your own and much, much more. i hope you enjoy getting to know andy. i sure did. let's get down!ciao! -jg

Episode 434: Laurie Gallardo Returns!

hello friends! i hope you're all doing well. i had a crazy weekend of shows. hey! speaking of shows, i'm playing a solo show next tuesday, november 17th at the townsend. the show starts at 8 and i go on at 9. there will be a special guest playing from 8-9. i'll post a link on our facebook page when i have all the details. i'm looking for an old drum machine that's reasonably priced and is from the 70's. do you know of one. write me on our facebook page. my guest for episode 434 is the voice of KUTX 98.9 fm in austin, laurie gallardo! this is laurie's second time on the show. we sat down a month or so ago and caught up on her various endeavors including her d.j. shift on KUTX 98.9 monday-thursday 8-11pm, her support of local music and touring bands with her "austin music minute" heard daily on KUTX and "the good music club" which can be found at thegoodmusicclub.com/ and much, much more! laurie has been a great friend and tireless supporter of the podcast and my music career. i have a genuine respect for her. i see her out at a lot of shows and music functions. she's definitely an important part of this crazy austin music scene. i hope you enjoy our conversation as much as i did. let's get down! ciao! -jg

Episode 433: Ben Balmer / Honky Tonk Heaven: The Story of The Broken Spoke

hello friends! i hope you're all doing well. before we get to my conversation with ben balmer, 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 guest for episode 433 is singer/songwriter, ben balmer! i just happened to see ben a couple of months ago when he opened for aly tadros at a house concert. i was blown away by his songs and his performance, so i asked him to come over for a chat. well, he did and we had a great conversation about his newest album loose lips, sunk ships, bruised hips and boozed lips, touring the u.s. and europe, he played a song live on the show and much, much more. i hope you enjoy getting to know ben as much as i did. let's get down!ciao! -jg