Professor of Rock

In this exclusive, full-length interview, Adam sits down with Gavin Rossdale, the voice and driving force behind the legendary band Bush.Gavin opens up like never before, taking us on a candid journey through the highs, the struggles, and the defining moments that led to the formation of one of the most iconic rock bands of the ’90s. From the uncertainty of his early days to the breakthrough success that changed everything, this is the story behind the music… told by the man who lived it.It’s raw, reflective, and packed with insights you won’t hear anywhere else; an inside look at the mindset, resilience, and passion that fueled Bush’s rise to global fame.If you’re a fan of Bush, ’90s rock, or the real stories behind legendary artists, this is an interview you don’t want to miss. Only on Professor of Rock.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Coming up, we tell the story of songs that had deep meaning to the writer, and to us, the listeners, who locked into their emotional power. And they are songs that are some of the most celebrated ever, but were surprisingly never HITS! We’ll tell the tale about Oingo Boingo's Dead Man's Party, a song that was inspired while staying at a haunted hotel where multiple deaths took place. And what came from that overnight stay is one of the catchiest and creepiest songs ever. There’s also the story of Dire Straits' Brothers in Arms, which was intended to unite soldiers fighting on different sides of a war. And it means as much today as it did then. Plus a deeply personal song that the singer wanted to emote perfectly. He felt the best way to get in a vulnerable state of mind was to record the song without any clothes! Plus Depeche Mode's Blasphemous Rumours that sent small communities into a tailspin and the greatest B SIDE in history. It's our countdown of the Top 10 Non-Hits of ’85. NEXT on Professor of Rock! The stories of The Smiths How Soon is Now, Inxs Listen Like Thieves, Tear for Fears the Working Hour, The Cult and many more. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

We're serving up another Vault classic in honor of POR's Sammy Hagar giveaway. In this classic episode, the Red Rocker himself, Sammy Hagar tells us how he joined Van Halen and the resulting Music. He also tells the story behind creating the game changing song Dreams, the second single from their 1986 album 5150 which was the first Van Halen album to go to #1. The album 5150 is named after Eddie Van Halen’s studio. 5150, sold a million copies in its first week. Think about that for a second. The last few years, there have only been a couple of artists or albums that have sold 1 million copies over an entire year! Enjoy our Exclusive Interview with Sammy Hagar. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Coming up, we just hit 1.5 million subscribers! And to celebrate I’m giving some love to a “lost art” in the music biz, the Greatest Hits Record… but with a twist! Back in the day, these compilations were a vital part of our collections: Beatles Red and Blue, Eagles (1971-1975), Fleetwood Mac, Queen, Journey,… we all loved having all the hits in one place. Today I’ve got my picks for the 9 greatest song stories in rock history. I went with 9 cuz it’s my favorite number. You could call it a Professor of Rock Greatest Hits episode. Some of these stories have been told but today I’ve dug up some completely new details. And I gotta tell ya, it was so hard to narrow down thousands of stories to just 9. So maybe we’ll have to do a POR Greatest Hits volume 2. But for this one, I’ve got the story of the most cursed song in the history of music Gloomy Sunday, written by Rezso Seress, a former trapeze artist who survived a death-defying fall. Plus, there’s the story of Strawberry Alarm Clock trying to record their hit song, but Nobody in the band could nail down the tough vocal…Finally, a random kid watching the session jumped in and tried it and blew everyone away! It became a #1 hit and he wasn’t even in the band. Then there’s the story of a teenager who was told by his dad to write the stupidest song ever… and it led to one of the most iconic themes of all time, M*A*S*H! Let’s get into it.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Up next, a true story of resilience and redemption as we tell the story of STEVE MILLER BAND and their classic song Jet Airliner… a song that was trapped on an unreleased album by a guy named Paul Pena, who was stopped by legal battles and a ruthless manager, who was hell-bent on destroying his career. But hope emerged from an unexpected source when legendary rock star and "gangster of love" Steve Miller stepped in to breathe new life into the imprisoned track. With expert rearrangement and by changing the lyrics from an angry song to a happy-go-lucky one, Jet Airliner was transformed into a chart-topping sensation across multiple formats. The aerodynamics for one of classic rock’s greatest hits and a classic of the 70s is revealed NEXT …on Professor of Rock.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Today, the name of the game is “Sabotage!” And it's sabotage in every sense of the word. And on this episode, we've got stories of self-destruction, tales of bands mutilating their songs in concert, and even undercutting rival bands onstage. We’ll tell the story of Liam Gallagher, who refused to perform Oasis's MTV Unplugged gig. And instead, he actually heckled his bandmates from the balcony throughout the show. Then there’s the off-beat pop star Cyndi Lauper, who loathed her headline hit The Goonies R Good Enough. She hated it so much that she badmouthed it in the press and refused to perform it live for over a decade. Could her fans ever change her mind? And finally, there’s the Replacements, who were determined to flush their career down the toilet. When they were given the opportunity of a lifetime to open for Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, the guys took the stage dressed in the other band’s wives' clothing. They gave such an awful performance that it went down in history. But why? Find out next as we count down my Top 6 Sabotage Stories in rock. Let’s go.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Coming up next an interview with one of the greatest voices of the 80s…Tony Hadley who fronted new romantic band Spandau Ballet. He tells the story of their greatest songs including the classic TRUE and in the middle of the interview I shock him with the news that a boy band totally ripped off his classic song plus their other classics like Gold and his story of meeting Frank Sinatra. Let’s do it. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

A countdown of six rock songs that sparked bans, blacklistings, and bonfires over album art, lyrics, or misunderstood titles. Stories include a controversial restroom cover, a motorcycle sound effect that raised alarms, a hit retired over language, and a sex-themed single slapped with TV restrictions. Expect outrageous censorship tales and baffling gatekeeper decisions.

In 1986 Van Halen released their first album with new lead singer Sammy Hagar. 5150 became the band’s first number one album in the US and included three top 25 hits. It also contained a mind blowing rocker, Best of Both Worlds was a perfect pairing of Eddie’s guitar and Sammy’s voice that should’ve been a massive hit. Next up the story of this Van Halen classic with commentary by Sammy Hagar.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Coming up….we celebrate songs from one of the greatest years in music. These songs were HUGE back in the day, but decades later, sound really DATED. Just because they haven’t held up well doesn’t diminish our love for the songs, but it makes for an interesting study in music. One of the songs, Turn Up the Radio, came from a bunch of drinking buddies who were all in other bands but jammed for fun on the weekends. But it just so happened that the drummer was jogging buddies with frontman David Lee Roth of Van Halen, and he heard one of their drunken jams and loved it so much he invited them to open for his band on one of the biggest tours ever. Another one, She Bop by Cyndi Lauper, was written about self-love and faced the wrath of a bunch of politicians’ wives who named it one of the dirtiest songs ever and got it banned. Another was written by an unknown singer named Rockwell who tried to hide his true identity due to his famous father and even used a fake British accent to throw off reporters, and one song became a hit because a famous actress was on a radio show and she was trying to play her boyfriend’s band but played the wrong side of the tape where the German singer Nena blew up the phones lines and made the song that was never supposed to be released in america a smash. Let’s do it.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.