The spirit of investigation is really appealing and the person who put this together - and did so over a long period of time, which is brought home when you realise how many of the people he spoke to have died since - knows his stuff (although he doesn't quite get ZZ Top, that's clear) and has put the work in.
What really bothers me is that the people involved in this podcast series are really beholden to the This American Life approach to spoken word audio.
There are a lot of quiet spaces where I suppose you're meant to let things sink in.
Just digest that for a while.
The quiet spaces are so you can let things sink in.
I mean it.
I am guessing that the people behind this podcast had some issues with music, as well. They seem to have been enabled to use real original Zombies music. There are a few other vintage bits and pieces. But when it comes to ZZ Top, for instance, they don't even try to provide a soundalike (maybe they were warned).
Why do they talk about ZZ Top?
Because two of the men, later to become famous as members of ZZ Top, played in the 'fake Zombies'.
So, essentially, what you get with this series is a bunch of episodes that crawl through the material and really stretch it out with a lot of repetition and even quite a bit of - not quite outrage but a passive version of it. Seriously, the music industry is as much the realm of shifty pricks now as it was then, though obviously you couldn't pull a stunt like the fake Zombies now because, like, people have the internet. But on the other hand, you do have a man touring the USA talking about how much Hannibal Lecter was (or is?) wonderful.
Anyway, I semi-recommend this podcast. I've only listened to three eps. I hope Frank Beard comes on board before the end.
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