Mr. K’s Super Show

In this episode, guest co-host Jeff Harris (Behind The Grooves) and me explore the musical enigma known as Steely Dan!  And for the record, Steely Dan is a group, not just one guy.A group that defies easy categorization, as they mix rock, jazz, pop, funk, and lyrics that are sometimes inscrutable, but always interesting.  Donald Fagen and Walter Becker were two friends who met in college and set about writing songs that were an arty blend of their many musical and literary influences.We explore the original era of Steely Dan, spanning 1972-1980.  We delve into each album, the songs, the stories, the many musicians who helped Becker and Fagen realize their esoteric musical visions and ultimately, why we love these albums so much.  We try and shed some light on what Steely Dan was all about.Check out Jeff Harris's Behind The Grooves music blog: https://www.patreon.com/behindthegrooves/about?fbclid=IwAR3TFDb9hvywTPXcYlTaD5OgTloCjDHcGYJzOSG4uh-hDkd-OzfhvXkJHGM

We take a soujourn to the Hyborian age of sword and sorcery with a young barbarian known as...Conan!In this episode, we take a look at Conan's comic roots, beginning in 1970 with the classic Conan The Barbarian series written by Roy Thomas and drawn by Barry Windsor-Smith.  We not only talk about the stories and art, but also how Marvel Comics came to be the first publisher to adapt the classic character by Robert E. Howard into comics!Know, oh princes and princesses, that between the years of 1970 - 1973, the classic era of Conan comics was upon us, and it paved the way for other heroes of sword and sorcery and that it begat these enduring works.Fetch yourself a flagon of good ale and listen as we analyze and discuss this classic era of everyone's favorite rogue...Conan!  By Crom, you'll have a good time!

50 years ago, the music world got its' first KISS, in the form a debut album by four young men who not only played hard and heavy rock, but had the audacity to wear makeup, over the top costumes, and platform shoes that made them seem bigger than life.1974's self titled debut album by Gene, Paul, Ace, and Peter fired the first shot of KISS's kinetic sound and it was a mission statement that their unique brand of hook-filled glitter rock was not to be denied.  And just in case that wasn't enough for ya, later that year, they issued a second album, Hotter Than Hell.  Two albums by a new group in one year -- these guys were serious.I talked with Bakko (Cobras And Fire podcast) about the debut album and with Jeff Hogland about Hotter Than Hell, and we had a fun time talking about our favorite songs, trivia, and how these albums effected us in the days of our impressionable youth.  Both of these guys brought their own unique perspectives on the records and how these records helped to shape our appreciation of music.Check out Bakko on the Cobras And Fire podcast: https://cobrasandfire.com/

In this episode, we tackle one of the Marvel Universe's most epic anti-heroes, the mutant known as...Wolverine!More specifically, we tackle 1982's Wolverine mini-series by Chris Claremont and Frank Miller as well as X-Men #172 and 173 by Chris Claremont and Paul Smith.  To do this, we needed some help doing the heavy lifting, so we brought on our first ever guest star: Eric Miller (Pods and Sods)!The three of us had a great time dissecting the convoluted backstory of Marvel's favorite mutant and the various plot threads and machinations that make for great comics!  If you like Wolverine and the X-Men, you'll like this episode!  Listen to Eric Miller on the Pods and Sods music podcast: https://podsodcast.com/Listen to Eric Miller on the Foreign Comics Calling podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/ken-worthing?fbclid=IwAR1Xzg2vTX-CNn3HoMvSZ2D_HPVzdSEtLGfJ3VmDuqNwMI5VYXB4KZ6_nrY

What would happen if the legendary teen pop group The Bay City Rollers dropped the "Bay City" from their name,  their signature tartan garb, and pursued a new sound?The year is 1979 and after a tumultuous 1978, The Bay City Rollers have a new singer, a new sound, and a new look.  Hoping to stake out a post-teen idol territory in anticipation of the 1980s, the Rollers are now clad in bright new wave colors, skinny ties and have rechristened themselves simply, "The Rollers."Guest co-Host Debbie Smith-Clarke and me explore this segment of (Bay City) Rollers history.  A segment largely unknown to casual fans and the general public.  We will explore the origins of this new incarnation as well as take an in-depth look at the three albums this lineup produced: Elevator, Voxx, and Ricochet.We'll delve into why these albums are so great and why they didn't connect with music buyers in the way that their previous albums did.  As always, we had a lot of fun talking up The Rollers!  Check out Dedication -- Fans Remember The Bay City Rollers podcast:  https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/dedication-fans-remember-the-bay-city-rollers-podcast-2/id1535575923

In this episode, we revisit an Avengers saga with so many turns and twists -- not to mention flashbacks -- that you'll get whiplash from reading it!We go back to the Marvel Age of Comics to examine The Avengers #57 - 60 by Roy Thomas and John Buscema, a saga that introduces a character that will have a major impact on the Marvel Universe, The Vision.  We also get to meet such characters as Yellowjacket and villains who sound suspiciously like mobsters from a 1930s gangster movie.This saga is over the top in the way only a 1960s Marvel comic could be!Hosted by Chris Karam and Brad Page

It was sixty years ago this month that The Beatles set foot in America and our country has never been the same ever since!Guest Co-Host Brad Page (I'm In Love With That Song podcast) and me delve into the frenzied state known as Beatlemania, that took over in February 1964, when The Beatles first played to the American TV audience on The Ed Sullivan Show.  We trace the back story to the group's debut album in their native Britain in 1963, an album that created such a stir that by years end, not one, but two record companies were vying to be the first to release a Beatles album in the US!And who were the men behind the scenes who lit the fuse for this cultural revolution?  And what is the connection between The Beatles and later rivals The Monkees?  And why did The Beatles take hold like no other band before or since has done?Give this episode a listen and find out!  It's fab!Listen to Brad Page's I'm In Love With That Song Podcast: https://lovethatsongpodcast.com/

While things were getting grim an' gritty in 1980s comics, the antidote was a dose of BWAH-HA-HA, which came in the form of Justice League International.  We take a deep dive into issues #5-8.In the post-Crisis, cold war decade of the '80s, a new Justice League was needed, and while this version of the league took their heroics seriously, it didn't stop them from cracking a joke or two or three or....well, you get the point.  This classic comic re-invented the League for a new era and the inspired creativity of Keith Giffen, J.M. DeMatteis, and Kevin Maguire made sure the action and the jokes were fast and furious, sometimes ending in literal punchlines.There's battling, backstabbing, and drama....and that's just amongst the heroes themselves!Needless to say, we had a lot of fun doing this episode.Hosted by Brad Page and Chris Karam

On this show, we accentuate the positive, so we start off 2024 with an episode about the band Yes.  More specifically, their 1978 album Tormato.Special Guest Kevin Mulryne (Yes Music Podcast) discusses his book Yes: The Tormato Story, in which he delves into the making of this over the top prog rock classic.  We had a lot of fun discussing this book and all the behind the scenes anecdotes we could cram into one podcast!Who fiddled with Rick Wakeman's keyboards?  How many copies of Tormato can one man own?  Did Jon Anderson have knowledge of UFOs arriving on this planet? Which version of Tormato is the best one to have?  Listen to this podcast and find out the answers!Check out Kevin Mulryne's Yes Music Podcast: https://yesmusicpodcast.com/Check out Kevin Mulryne's book Yes: The Tormato Story: https://tormatobook.com/

It's our ho-ho-holiday show and for this one, we decided to go back to the distant past for a story that's so groovy, it's almost far out!Dig it, we're talking about "The TT's Swingin' Christmas Carol" from Teen Titans #13 (1967), in which The Titans (Robin, Wonder Girl, Aqualad, & Kid Flash), become the ghosts of Christmas past, present, and future, as they face off against the evil businessman Ebenezer Scrounge.Any similarities to Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol" are purely intentional and...marv!We hope you'll not only like this swingin,'  classic story, but our take on it as well.  Ya Dig?"God Rest Ye Jazzy Gentlemen" arranged and performed by Brad Page.Hosted by Chris Karam and Brad Page.