Transcript
Speaker: I'm shattered. I needn't be. Mr. Dillon, you seem very reluctant to talk about the fact that you're a popular entertainer and you're a most popular entertainer. what do you want me to say? I actually have a bone to pick with your industry, music journalism.
Speaker: You really have no idea as to why you or no thoughts on why you're popular. Why were you guys always so mean to Bob Dylan back in the day? Well, I don't understand why you were reluctant to... What do you want me to say? What do you want me to say about it? I was never mean to Bob Dylan. You gotta go back to these rough interviews. Oh, okay. Would you label yourself and perhaps tell us what your role is?
Speaker: What would you call your music? you then resident Ask him all these questions like it's Lee Harvey Oswald. do you think of yourself primarily as a singer? sir, I am not a communist. Or as a poet. I'm just a taxi. You have sold out to commercial interests. No, I've not been charged with that. In fact, nobody has said that to me yet. well He's holding government secrets. but Where is Desolation Road?
Speaker: I didn't hear you. He's on drugs, leave him alone! Where is Desolation Row? don't know what this is all about. I have no idea. The red herring and so forth is rather ridiculous. Who's Oswald keep looking at off camera? CIA handler, stick to the script, you're a Marxist? What are you doing right here? What are you thinking about right now? Create insurance relations with Cuba. What was the question? I had no answers any those questions anymore than any other performer did, really.
Speaker: I've seen Dylan live a few times and it's been really solid. He doesn't allow photography at his shows. I snuck in a camera one time when he played at, ah he played the Woodlands. I remember I snuck a picture of Bob Dylan and I posted it on the Houston Press website. And I think like somebody from the tour was like, can you please take that down?
Speaker: And I'm like, I didn't take it. So I put like a fake name on it. Oh, you got in trouble. Yeah, I got in trouble. Oh, Dylan's team got in with you. Yeah, yeah. They were not supposed to take photos. They sent your ass to Desolation Row. Did you like the Bob Dylan movie?
Speaker: Which one? Oh, yeah, yeah. The Timothee Chalamet one's OK. I like the one where he's played by. You're like, I'm not there? I like, I'm not there. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Bob Dylan be a little black boy sometimes. was in the factory.
Speaker: She ain't got shoes. like that. like that at the theater. Angelica Theater. He's a woman, maybe. Are you trying to push your idealism to the people? No, that's not what I'm saying. he He could even be Heath Ledger. God, we miss this guy. Christian Bale also. So he could be, Bob Dylan could be the Joker and Batman, which is interesting.
Speaker: and I'm not, ah I'm explaining why Bob Dylan's famous. Okay. I learned, this is true because I do learn most of my music from movies. Like I learned the song, the hurricane, his song hurricane from the movie, the hurricane. i thought he wrote it for the movie. i thought he was like, was like, he's going to want to fucking Oscar for this.
Speaker: It turns out he wrote it. Denzel called him. He's like, Hey, I got this movie coming out. That's what I thought. yeah i thought i was like, this is amazing. But it turns out he wrote it about the case in the six days, which is also an incredible skill. He has, he could take a homicide file and turn it into music. That's a good song, too.
Speaker: And it solved the case. I go through phases where I'm a big Aerosmith 90s person. Sure. It's like I just listen Get a Grip. What's your favorite Aerosmith song? Shut Up and Dance.
Speaker: I'm not telling you that. i No, it's good advice. song is called Shut Up and Dance. It was from the Waynesboro 2 soundtrack. That's what I love about music. Makes us shake our little asses. I'm more of mathematical singer. I use words like most people use numbers.
Speaker: That's the about a best I can do. you elaborate a little bit more on that? You're losing me again. Oh, I hate to do that. Hi, welcome back to the I Don't Understand show with me, Sam Fickman, reporter for the Houston Chronicle, music journalist, radio host, raconteur. don't know about that. Rock is music expert. I'm not an expert. If you're a rock music expert in a ra and a raconteur, does that make you a raconteur? Like a Jack White?
Speaker: Are you a Jack White? No, Lord no. you know how to play a piano from 1833? I cannot play any instrument. You play no instruments. No. And we can relate very well. I can play a turntable. What's that?
Speaker: Like vinyl. Doctor. DJ. Yeah. Are you DJ? Actually, it's funny. um I was a, well, yes and no. I was a classic country DJ. I can say I still am. I'm just retired.
Speaker: I was a vinyl DJ with the Vinyl Ranch DJ Collective. I started DJing with them in 2011 with Dave Wrangler. And then I retired. And now whenever Dave comes to town, I'll pull my vinyl out and I'll do it again. Anyway, that's, won you had an intro. Let me just just do that. I think your intro, you probably know you better than I do. No. Frankly, ah you should introduce yourself. Even after all the ketamine therapy, I really don't know myself. What kind of therapy? Ketamine therapy. did it work?
Speaker: Yeah. Houston Chronicle reporter. Nowhere of where to get many tattoos. I can't remember which limb things are on. I have to like look at my body. Like I can't remember which.
Speaker: I can tell you now you have a lot a raccoon on your knee right knee. do have, yeah. Raccoon right knee. Yeah. Butterfly left knee. Yeah. My first tattoo was in April of 2001 and one and i was 18 and my mom bought my first one and it's like at- Twin Towers. It does slightly disappoint me that we can never be buried in the same cemetery.
Speaker: But right we do have this time together now. So there's that. So is that what? Okay, that's. That's Jewish.
Speaker: Do you have to tattoo regrets? um No, it's more of like your vibe shifts over the years and like you're not that person. went back to find ISIS just to tell her.
Speaker: Craig Levati. You said it right. I can't believe it. I can't believe it. I nailed it. And then imagine I just get it completely wrong on camera. Some people just completely. Name them. People that have known me for my entire life have probably screwed it up. You have that sneaky H in there. Yeah. Yeah. Levati. I think in the old old country, it's supposed to be Levati. What country was that?
Speaker: Czechoslovakia. Oh, you're Czech? Yeah, I'm Czech. I'm Russian. Russian, yeah, okay. Clearly not Russian to get married. who Actually, people my generation aren't getting married until they're... Look around you, bro. All your friends are married. And they're all happy.
Speaker: I really hope it works out for you, man. I really do, but I just don't think this is... The video podcast gonna hug you when you're 70? Get me out of here.
Speaker: I was telling you when we were walking in I realized that it's been 20 years since I started writing about music for the Houston Press. You cannot make friends with the rock stars. How close to real life music journalism is the movie Almost Famous? Rock and roll is a lifestyle. He gets most of the pieces right, but you know how it is with movies. You have to kind of like change. So your experience doesn't exactly mirror that film. No. you ever met Jason Lee?
Speaker: From... Almost Famous? No, but he's a photographer now. that movie made me think you could meet Jason Lee. So Almost Famous is bullshit. Movies are lies. Wait, what am I talking about? I always loved the part where he puts the shaving cream on his hair, on his on his hands, and then I didn't know that was like a thing if you had long hair. I was thought i never had hair, so don't remember. Have you never had hair, and baby to this? I have been bald since I was 20.
Speaker: Briefly, when I was 19, I tried the foam Rogaine. Joe Rogaine?
Speaker: The first concert I ever went to was 1987. It was George Strait at the rodeo. This was at the Astrodome back in the day. The fireworks went off. And when I was little, I loved fireworks, but they made me puke. So I missed the first song of the George Strait concert on the revolving stage because I threw up in a popcorn bucket. Oh, wow. Yeah. So it was kind cool for a pretty wild kid. Yeah, it was almost in my body. My life was just right before me. And it was like, all right, cool. Just throw up now. I'll be throwing up in many concerts. That was my first concert. Do you remember the first album you bought with your own money?
Speaker: My first album I bought with my own money, the Apollo 13 soundtrack. what What songs were that? Did they sample, Houston, we have a prom, prom, prom? Vocal snippets from the soundtrack. Really? Failure's not an option. Stuff like that, yeah. So my favorite song ever in the world is Norman Greenbaum's Spirit in the sky Oh, wow, cool. That's a great song.
Speaker: Whoop.
Speaker: whoop And that was on the soundtrack. And I guess the mid-90s soundtracks were a huge thing for movies. Yes. I think my favorite soundtrack is The Departed.
Speaker: Okay, that's got the Van Morrison covering Pink Floyd.
Speaker: Bad Finger. And the Departed waltz. Do you know lyrics? I never know any lyrics. Sometimes I'll be listening to a song for years and I am shocked when I find out what I've been singing.
Speaker: like do you know the song Gimme Shelter? Yeah. Do you know lyrics that song?
Speaker: Yeah. I've been singing that, I've been yelling that song my entire life. Pain, murder, it's just shot away. worse than that scarier than that you look it up i'm not saying what those lyrics are but i've been like yelling in my whole life and it's martin scorsese puts up in every single movie like this song applies to the films i make yeah i should say it does it does apply to your movies fuck yourself i'm tired from fucking your wife how's your mother good she's tired from fucking my father
Speaker: When I was a music journalist, like, you know, like going out every night, I went to every show that I could get free tickets for. hey folks, Craig Levati here. i I never said no to an assignment. Let's go check it out. And I always said yes to everything and I always, like if I had an opportunity to do something, I was just jumped at it.
Speaker: This is the waste management stage. So that meant that Monday night I was at Slayer.
Speaker: Wednesday night I was at Kenny G at Arena Theater. And then like Thursday night I may have been at Michael Bublé.
Speaker: I just took everything I could. It wasn't like I was like, oh I'm too good for this. It was like I could always gleam something interesting from that experience. and August 17th, 2006 is when I had my first byline in the print edition of the Houston Press back when the Houston Press had a print edition I really liked Mary Jane's. It used to be Pearl Bar and i don't know what it is now. And then Walter's on Washington was across the street. You could kind of go back and forth during shows.
Speaker: Growing up in Houston, obviously Fitzgerald's was a big thing. Upstairs and downstairs. I preferred shows downstairs. Arctic Monkeys, Kings of Leon, Chemical Romance.
Speaker: That was like my vibe at the time. I was always in awew and amazement that people could do things with their fingers. Yeah, it's sort of a thing that my hands can't do. no my My mind and hands do not coordinate like this. I had a bass guitar for a while and I tried really hard and i just could not get the... i can't i can type, but I can't do that.
Speaker: Yeah, I could type. Yeah, somehow I could do all the stuff my boss wants me to do all the time. I type really well. Yeah, can type and I could... Sometimes when I'm typing and I'm writing, like, I do feel like it is kind of a musical thing. um And so I could kind of get that same same vibe, like piano or something. Have you ever seen Stomp? Anything can be music. Yeah, no, that was like... Chair can be music.
Speaker: All right. What's your favorite year? Ninety- two thousand and three. Really? Yeah. Okay. That's like the year that you know everything about pop culture from that year. I think because I had all these movie posters on my wall from 2003, I was sort of like my brain turned into like- How old were you in 2003? 16. Okay. Oh, that's a, that's a good, my favorite year is 1997.
Speaker: I can tell, like, you can ask me like what day a movie came out that year, what Friday, and I could tell you. Titanic. December 19th, 1997. LA Confidential.
Speaker: Is that it? That sounds right. What's your favorite noise? My favorite noise? Mine is broom. Oh, brooms are good. Sweep sweep? Yeah. No.
Speaker: There's me zoning out, just hearing sweeping sounds. Oh, wow. I like the sound of a lawnmower. Of a lawnmower. Yeah. My favorite sound is the bubble gun from Minority Report.
Speaker: Oh yeah. It goes boom. I don't love the violence that accompanies the sound. Maybe it'd be better if it was like like in your shampoo and you squeeze your shampoo bottle.
Speaker: Yeah, perfect. Why didn't Spielberg do it that way? I like sand and floor. That's good too. I love country music. I just won't say which country.
Speaker: yeah you ru school your musical messty
Speaker: There's certain things now that I look back and I go, wow, I can't believe i actually saw that. A lot of people wish they could have seen that. I saw the white stripes on the elephant tour, this thing that they used have New Orleans called Voodoo Fest.
Speaker: First off, who are you? like I think that was also the night tour I realized I want to be a music writer. um where it was like, I think was the weekend I drove out there.
Speaker: i was 20. So like in New Orleans, isn't fun when you can't drink. um And it was like the Stooges that had been reunited. They had Mike Watt. It was when the Ashton brothers were still alive.
Speaker: Manson, Perfect Circle, Yeah, and then White Stripes, and I remember, and Queens of the Stone Age. I was a huge, ah still, yeah. I was a huge Queens of the Stone Age fan at one time. um And they like headlined, but yeah, the White Stripes played before Queens, I think, or one of those. Anyway, the White Stripes was still the loudest concert I've ever been to, and it was like at a festival.
Speaker: Shot hair in the velvet tongue, I wanna give you what you give to me. And every breath that is in your lungs is a tiny little gift to me. tiny little gift to me.
Speaker: The White Stripes is still the loudest concert I've ever been So I think that was the one where I think I still have like, that's like a feather in my cap. I saw the White Stripes like that. Is that when they were back in the day pretending to be maybe brothers or maybe husband and wife? Yeah, no, that was still like, that was 2003. Yes, they would have been, guess,
Speaker: At that point, the the conceit would have been that they were like, what, exes, Why'd they do this to us? That's the other rumor floating around there, Jack. Where they played this way with our heads. oh am I don't like comment on my situation. They didn't need to do that. The music's great, guys. We love the music. You don't need to freak us. But also, like, now knowing that we know about Jack White now over the past, like, 25 years, like, it's like, okay, that was just another one of his, like, gimmicks. He's like an Andy Kaufman guy. He kind likes to mess with us. It's okay. Why should people care about the white strings? Why should people care?
Speaker: Oh, what I don't know. i don't know why they should care for us anymore. Have you ever been to Legoland? Do you have go-to karaoke song? I don't do karaoke, man. Let's say them at the same time. One, two, three. Welcome to the world Black Parade, my chemical romance. said we are the world.
Speaker: We are the world. Fantastic. I'm good. I don't think that's any good at all, but...
Speaker: You can erase that.
Speaker: Not so fast. Everyone having a real great time dancing like it's the end of an Adam Sandler movie. Well, hold on now. I would like to make an official Southern man's apology to Neil Young. He shouldn't have had to hear that for all these years. Southern man don't need a round anymore. Every time he goes to get a tire change, he has to hear that song.
Speaker: And I'm getting old. This is the official South's apology to Neil Young. Did you ever see Neil Young live? No. Dylan around that time, Dylan was ah was a big influence on me. I liked I was knocked out. How about Subterranean Homesick Blues from Don't Look Back? What's your favorite instrument?
Speaker: my favorite instrument to listen to? Bass. but I think piano is interesting because it's music, but it's also furniture. How did piano get it this far evolutionarily? It's humongous. How do people get it? First of all, musicians are mostly poor. They gotta push this thing around. How do they practice a piano? My stepson plays piano. Piano's homework. And i'm and the only thing I can like like tell him that's interesting, I'm like, yeah, that's a percussive instrument.
Speaker: And he's like, oh, okay. Percussive? It's like, because it's it's kind of, since you're... Beach me. yeah Yeah, it's kind of like a percussive instrument. that's the sound description. Yeah, and that's the only thing What other sound descriptions?
Speaker: Pianos for middle schoolers. We had a piano, and I only ever learned the Godfather theme on it, and we lost it in Hurricane Harvey. Here's a clip.
Speaker: Music
Speaker: The most beautiful sound you ever heard, then cut to Dr. Dingus on his gadzooks machine. But it's a good lesson. Music can look stupid, but be beautiful.
Speaker: Looking like Dr. Seuss. Roll the clip. I think my favorite instrument my favorite instrument has to be the drums.
Speaker: for this very reason. There are 87 different instruments, but you just shut up, do them all at once, and call them the drums. Why are they all having to do all eight of those instruments at the same time? How about we just hire eight different musicians to do each one? And then the drummer doesn't have to be so stressed out and yelled at by J.K. Simmons. Welcome to jam band music. That's what they do. I think the drums are insane. This guy's going to go boom, boom, boom. That's all different instruments. Have one guy for the titta. Have another guy for the boom, boom, boom. Have another guy for the and have another guy for the do do to do and then the drummer doesn't have to be like freaking out all the time like oh well how do i do all this at once you don't have to do it all at once like animal from the muppets well animal i mean this guy's a treat to watch oh my god he's on fire he's the only one who could do it all yeah yeah you could see everyone else can relax
Speaker: martin Napster simply facilitates communication among people interested in music. It's a return to the original information sharing approach of the internet.
Speaker: Napster, sharing's only fun when it's not your stuff. Was Napster good or was Lars Ulrich valid? You know what, maybe I wouldn't have to whore myself out if you f***ing kids didn't steal my music.
Speaker: whoa Napster was good. What was it, the video? the napster Napster bad, Metallica good. Money good! Napster bad!
Speaker: There was ah a song that we were working on for the Mission Impossible 2 movie that all of a sudden showed up on radio stations across the country. Interesting. This all started because of some shitty song from Mission Impossible 2.
Speaker: All roads do lead to Ethan. Ethan! We miss you, Luther. God damn, we miss you.
Speaker: I love Napster. I had a buddy of mine that went to UT at the time, and I remember going to his dorm room because he had a T1 connection. I brought a pack of CD-Rs to his dorm room, and I made like 10 CDs while I was there.
Speaker: downloading viruses onto his poor computer.
Speaker: I'm a sh cuz ah, LimeWire, what was it? sharebear Share bear share Napster share. Yeah, there were more. Yeah. And what was the other? There was another one out there. We never stopped pirate. They frankly, we never stopped, but pirate Bay was torn. Never stopped Lars. What I'm hearing is
Speaker: Choose my words carefully here.
Speaker: But I loved, my favorite thing, I know this is like, everybody talks about this, but all the songs that were misattributed on Napster. yes Oh yeah, right, because like the information was bad. because like It was like um a ChadGBT, where there's so many songs I've misattributed. Beatles did Do You Believe in Magic.
Speaker: Like that song of, when we dance together, dancing cheek to cheek. I thought my mom wrote that song. My mom used to sing me that song when I was a baby, and I thought she wrote it. And then the other day I learned it's like Bing Crosby or some shit.
Speaker: Do you fuck with musicals? My step kids really like musicals, so I'm probably gonna... They like La Miz? Yes, 84621. Follow to the left of your itinerary. I love ah Russell Crowe in that. and He looks like a giant bear singing. I'm Javert. Javert, no, you're a bear.
Speaker: Great actor. Oh, tremendous actor. But he looks like a bear. I like that. I like when an actors who can't sing at all. I like Moulin Rouge. I love... Okay, Moulin Rouge my favorite. When Ewan McGregor goes off about Roxanna and they're doing that and the and and they got the mixture and shes he's he's all sad about the prospect of her with the Duke.
Speaker: Ewan McGregor was on a heater then too because it was Trainspotting. That's where I learned most of my music is from the Trainspotting Trown track. she like Does Sweeney Todd count? god that's good Sweeney Todd counts, but only if it's the version performed by Gertie and Ollie Trinkie at their little recital. Remember Ollie? He had the big job interview. He gave it all up. She doesn't think he's gonna be there. what the?
Speaker: But thank Christ for Ollie, because he remembered he loved his daughter. Favorite James Bond theme. If you have. I'll start with mine. Go ahead. Sheryl Crow. Tomorrow never dies.
Speaker: She did that. Sheryl Crow did tomorrow never dies. And there was this one time I was in a bookstore and it started playing and the entire vibe of the bookstore completely shifted. Everybody just started looking at each other like, oh my God, Sheryl Crow is incredible. It was this moment where everybody was just walking around like, can you all believe how amazing Sheryl Crow is? And we're all looking at each other like nodding. Like this is great. No, Sheryl Crow's good. You could music could bring you together. My favorite James Bond theme.
Speaker: You had 40 choices. i You picked the worst one. I picked the worst one. Favorite decade for music. Oh. oh
Speaker: Man, 70s? Favorite century for music.
Speaker: Hmm. I like seventeen hundred Right now? No. I like the one where they're like... didnt it No, I wish I knew more about... is there ever a genre or like a time period of music you wished you knew more about? Well, it kind of pisses me off that it took so long to learn how to record things.
Speaker: Yes. It's like, they liked Shakespeare and Mozart. Why didn't they learn? All they had to do was figure out, like, get that shit on wax, add something to the wax. They couldn't figure out how to, like, record one of Shakespeare's plays or Mozart. had to wait all this time. Now we have all this recording equipment, but we don't Shakespeare. We have me. I'd like to go back in time and, like... We have me now.
Speaker: And I have all these cameras, but not Mozart's here. But you get Sam on four of ten cameras. sucks. I wish I listened to more Eddie Cantor. Yes. Like that really creepy stuff from like, it was like Boardwalk Empire, like that kind of music.
Speaker: That stuff I really like too, because it it's like before that, like those really strange like songs about like, my baby loves a pickle and I have a dime. Yeah. Whenever you hear one of those songs on like the 40s on four or something, it's just like... Before that. You're in the 30s on three. Yes, the 20s on The 10s on ten one. Then it just sounds like ghosts in that shining That's like it. um Yeah, that's why i like to listen to all that stuff. like I loved all that. like You're on the Titanic. Yeah, I like that kind of music because lyrically it was just very strange.
Speaker: You love Elvis?
Speaker: you love elvis I had a huge fascination with Elvis like 15, 20 years ago. I have like, have the taking, you got Elvis on there? Taking can care of business. Where is, it what music is represented on here? Oh God. Um, I have four five grateful dead tattoos.
Speaker: I have the black flag logo. i have the Rolling Stones lips. The lyrics to Gimme Shelter. Jesus, Craig! My Luby's fandom started when I realized I was not a good cook and these people were better. It's like beyond comfort food. It's like heavenly. It's hand carved, hand breaded, hand made everything. And there's an extra amount of love I think you guys put in there, like a Luby's love.
Speaker: Is there a dream concert from the past you wish you could have attended? I would have loved to have been at one of the acid tests.
Speaker: If this is an acid test, they all pass with flying colors. oh flying colors. Is that where that's from? Ken Keezy? Ken Keezy acid test. I would have loved it. that music or was that like a doctor? It was a dead thing too. It was another Grateful Dead thing. Oh, yeah i would what was that? Explain that. So it was basically when you would go and you would spend like a dollar to go see the Grateful Dead and Ken Keezy and um Bear Owsley would have made a bunch of liquid acid and then there was like ladling into like Kool-Aid cups for everybody. i
Speaker: got into the Grateful Dead when I was like five or six because the video for Touch of Grey was on MTV all the time and I was raised by a a young mother, young parents, and so we were like, we watched MTV the way kids now probably like watch YouTube and stuff. And I remember seeing the video for Touch of Grey where they turn into skeletons.
Speaker: And I thought that was the coolest thing in the world. And then I got the little 45 for Touch of Grey. And the B-side is Brother Esau. And I always just loved something about, it was kind of smirky, the attitude about it what was what they did.
Speaker: And then as I got older, I just really liked the adventurness the the adventurousness of it to where it spoke to me as like wanting to like travel like the country and travel like the world.
Speaker: I went to two of the shows at The Sphere. Yeah. 2024. It was right after the hurricane hit. And I already Robin Carter. yeah ah Enter Patti Valentine from the Upper Hall.
Speaker: She sees a bartender in a pool of blood. cried out, my God, she killed them all. It was the, yeah, it was the summer that Beryl hit. Here comes the story.
Speaker: yes And I remember I had tickets to go see Dead & Company at the Sphere in Vegas. yes And I was like, do I? Wait, so they've broken up since then? Well, Bob Weir died. Oh, that's... He broke up the band and died. He can't break up more than that. the you know the embraces yeah This week is called The Days Between. i don't know when this is going to run.
Speaker: Jerry Garcia's birthday was August 1st, and then there's like five or six days... between that and then the anniversary of his death in 95 and us deadheads we call it the days between. We're in it right now? Yeah we're in it right now. Yeah and so it's like this thing where like we celebrate like Grateful Dead culture and stuff within that the span of time between the anniversary of his birth and his death. How many days is that? I think it's like five or six days. Wow it's like i feel it feels kind of religious. like yeah Yeah it is. Welcome to the music episode taking place during the days between. Yeah, yeah. So anyway, yeah, know um What drugs are you supposed to take on the days between? You're just, I don't know. Yeah.
Speaker: What drugs make the best music? Cocaine. The one I wish the most is I could have been at the last Waltz concert in 1976 where the band played their final concert yeah on Thanksgiving. Martin Scorsese. Sessi, Martin Scorsese. You've been talking about this guy your whole life. Learn how to say his name. Just say it like Robbie Robertson. Got Martin Scorsese to become involved. I talked with Martin Scorsese about helping us. He's his friend. I assume he knows how to say his name. On Thanksgiving, Martin Scorsese filmed the whole thing. Documentary The Lost Waltz. I wish I was back there backstage with them hanging out. It at Fillmore. Fillmore West.
Speaker: Winterland.
Speaker: We were doing taxi driving. What was that one about again? about a Midwesterner who i drives a taxi cab at night in New York. He's a loner. He's sort of like the character Arthur Bremer. You know Arthur Bremer, the guy who shot George Wallace in America? He's sort of like that. It's a religious picture in that it ah it explodes into great violence, you follow?
Speaker: And it's repression into violence. Something on your mind, Marty? It's Bob Dylan. Bob Dylan. wants to wear a giant hat. You should see him with the press. A complete ball breaker. It's gonna ruin all my shots. Have all my shots planned. Can't even answer the simplest question.
Speaker: You can't see Ringo's little face with Bob's hat. It's blocking out everything. Marty, you and your friends have been talking about this film for ages. There's nothing to be nervous about. It's a concert film. It's gonna be a complete success. I wanted this to be different from other concert pictures you've seen. Sure. No audience. Don't want to see the audience.
Speaker: No audience. And I thought it was a great idea to film their last night. Robbie, boys. I would historical document. Levon's fuming, but Levon will be fine. Levon bad terms, as they say.
Speaker: So we have Laszlo, Kovacs, Wilmer, Zygmunt. They're filming, but it's nightmare. It's ruining my picture. Because of his hat. of all things. Got all the shots playing with the band. I got every- Robbie, Robbie, Robbie to the left.
Speaker: And now Bob is going to be wearing this gigantic white hat. No, I've seen the hat. He's insisting on it. yeah indeed He won't do the show without We want him in picture, obviously. Wouldn't be the same without him.
Speaker: I love that you said picture instead of movie. Dylan and Robbie and the band, they played together for years. I mean, it would have beat Dylan if he didn't make things a little difficult. But how do you tell Bob Dylan to take the hat off?
Speaker: He won't do it won't do Marty, you needn't worry about Bob Desmond. I can handle Bob Dylan. Ugh, that'd be amazing. Everything's going to be fine.
Speaker: Hey Sam, really want to thank you for meeting me. I know how busy you are, how tired you are. Tired? Talk about tired. You're the one that looks tired. Forever young.
Speaker: Forever young! we're gonna talk to noda bug place but i didn't like it it was very intense you should not have put me that to yourasia was scary to hear him involved to me like that you let that happen to me it was scary that you let that happen to me did you bring backpack filled with cocaine i add the back metaphorter of cocaine i wouldve been the guy with a backpack full of cocaine i thought I think that's where I could have fit in. They were always just like... yeah because coca The band was really into cocaine. yeah Yeah. I think so. I mean, based on all the evidence. I hope
Speaker: hope it works out for you, man. I really do. I love you, man. I am i' am blessed to know you. yeah yeah Oh, Marty! The cocaine is turning you into pure life!
Speaker: What are you working on? What you got planned next, Marty? I'm going to make the departed. Do you normally know what you... I'm sorry. it It hardly ever starts with the piano. It'll start with... um It starts with words, mainly. Welcome to the Apple of my iPod.
Speaker: My official Fiona Apple spin-off presentation program where we keep track of all things, Fiona Apple. It has now been 2,304 days since the release of Fetch the Bolt Cutters and we remain in waiting.
Speaker: And frankly, we'll wait even longer because she doesn't owe us a thing. She's done enough. She's given us everything. She doesn't have to make another, she doesn't have to do one other. In fact, I don't want her to feel one ounce of pressure to do anything ever again.
Speaker: In fact, this is the last episode of the Apple of my iPod. I'd like to thank Fiona Apple for the music. Always the music.
Speaker: Thank you. and My Uncle Chuck was in a couple of bar bands. You know, they just played covers like Dreams Clearwater. had a Lucite drum step. He was left-handed. And he wasn't very good.
Speaker: Okay, here's a question. here's a i like this is This is a thing I like to play with a lot, too. Would you keep Cobain and then at the same... like which You had Eddie Vedder dies in 94 instead of Kurt.
Speaker: instead of kurt I mean, I would feel too bad to say that about Eddie Vedder. no, no. I'm not saying like you just want to kill Eddie Vedder. But guess what? We're going to Eddie Vedder's funeral tonight. yeah like yeah He's deady Vedder now because Craig had to do his little game. But we get Kurt back.
Speaker: But Eddie Vedder at that point, like you only would have got 10 inverses. You wouldn't have had Vitology. Bye. Vitology. Fuck you, first off. Whoa! Whoa! Sorry, I just said something. But, like, can you imagine? Or, like, would you trade Ringo Starr? wouldn't trade anyone for anyone. It would be too much on my conscience. Ringo Starr dies in 1980 instead of John Lennon. I mean, on paper, but I'm not going to do that to Ringo's family. Do you remember your first time in Canada it all, Kurt?
Speaker: No. I would have loved to have seen Cobain with, like, a Trent Reznor glow-up. Doing music for David Fincher. But like but like muscular, you know? like jack Like jacked Cobain. But does Courtney Love not be in Man on the Moon then?
Speaker: That's the best movie soundtrack. Man on the Moon, best movie soundtrack. Again, they didn't write that for the movie though. Man on the Moon? No, well, The Great Beyond was written for the movie. i know, but the and the song where he talks about Andy Kaufman was not written. that was from Automatic for the People. Again, I was like, what a great song. It's to win an Oscar for this. Greatest R.E.M. album.
Speaker: Man on the Moon.
Speaker: Is Paul's Boutique the best Beastie Boys album? I'll pretend I asked these questions. Is Paul's Boutique the best Beastie Boys album? um No and yes. It's the most fully formed concept of what the Beastie Boys could be and what their thing. What's your fave?
Speaker: Hello Nasty. Hello Nasty.
Speaker: When I was in the Marine Corps oh shit in in boot camp, I did this thing every Sunday where i would sunday or Sunday every week. I would kind of hop around to different religious services. That's a risky time to switch religions. i mean also God could be like, watch out. but Honestly, the reason why I think I did it was because I just was like, since I was injured and I didn't, the time in the did you injure yourself? And when were you in the Marines? ah I joined up right after 9-11.
Speaker: Oh, because that joke I made earlier. And my mom bought my first one, and it's like a... Twin Towers. Anyway... Adam Driver. so did it also. Adam Driver. Did you work with him? No, it's funny you said that, because i I looked up when Adam Driver was on base in San Diego at MCRD, and he was there. He would have...
Speaker: graduated boot camp about the month that I got there. Really? He probably was creepy looking with issue. Yeah, i heard very intense at Juilliard, and I imagine that carried over on a military base. But no, like that's kind of funny that I could say that i so I can lie and say I went to boot camp with Adam Driver. I wish you ended up in Star Wars instead of him. Yeah. Frankly, imagine if this is what Kylo Ren looked like. I would have been like the the like most ice-ly cantina person. like You'd fit in. I would have been like just random guy. Like, oh, that's a random check. served the blue milk. Random check. Yeah, that's what I would have been.
Speaker: You know who I would be. The bank is closed, Danny. Okay. You've been so kind to use your time of this day to talk some music stuff. Yeah, I gotta go to Lowe's and buy some wire for our weed whackers.
Speaker: Weed Whacker. My nickname in college. you. Because you were an amazing guest on the show. And I'm Paul. Hey, I'm not trying to be offensive. Like, you got to cover that shit up. Cover your hair. No, in fact, don't ever wear it.
Speaker: But do frame it. I'm excited. on that this Thank you You get your I Don't Understand hat for being a guest on the show. you. But new for season two, we now give our guests I Do Understand. Oh, that's cool. So you could wear that or with your wife, you know, you have different vibe. at that you go Y'all both wear them at the club. My wife would prefer I have the, I don't understand, because don't understand a lot of things. I would like a wife one day, too. But because you were a deadhead and you didn't mention the merchandise, I got you a cup with these bears on it Thank you. you explain the bears to me before we have them? They're not dancing. They're actually marching.
Speaker: And are they what I see when I'm with the music possesses me? That's supposed to be, yeah, that they're marching. Yeah. And am I one of the bears when I'm listening to the music? You could be an honorary deadhead if you want. Craig Levati, do you have anything to promote? Public content? Public content. ah Support of local restaurants. Yeah, i was going to ask, what are your favorite restaurants?
Speaker: um I like Yaya's, the Greek Mediterranean place. Legend of the Yaya Sisterhood. Like if I say the word house, like we're both going to see a different house. If I just say the word, right?
Speaker: Yaya, no, different. Traveling pants. they What is the philosophy of PR? what ah PR is public relations. You know, PR is kind of like being, ah i mean, my co-workers going to be watching this now.
Speaker: Nobody watches PR to me is advocating for your clients really hard and trying to find as many cool opportunities for them because at the end of the day, you're trying to help people realize their dreams. Like you're just constantly looking for really cool opportunities for your clients. You want them to like shine and be successful and to be, you know, lines out the door. what what What are you going to on your car on your ride home right now? Let's do that. Let's look it up right now. yeah Let's peek into his phone. Let's see. On the way here, I was listening to... ah Okay. Supertramp.
Speaker: She said, where you been? I said, no place special. She said, you look different. I said, well, I guess...
Speaker: My name is Sam Spickman. Welcome to the I Don't Understand podcast. My guest today is Milton Lawson. Milton, breaking the law, breaking the law. Who sings that? It bothers I'm actually sad and upset to think if I met John Goodman, he wouldn't know who I don't understand Amrits Hemingway. Not his books. I don't understand why he looks exactly like Kevin Smith. Why is the internet so mean to Forrest Gump? First of all, we're all supposed to be like a little extra nice, Gump.
Speaker: And this is why I've really brought you here.
Speaker: Mr. Dillon, when will you know that it's time to get out of the music field and into another field? When I get very dragged.
