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Soundcheck / March 11, 2008

Soundcheck

Tuesday, March 11, 2008
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  • Guitarist
    (Ctd 2005/flickr)

    One Man's Quest to Become a Hit Songwriter

    In a new memoir, British journalist Will Hodgkinson sets out on a mission: to learn how to write a hit song and record it within a year. Today, he joins us to share that journey, which included songwriting lessons with Keith Richards, Chan Marshall of Cat Power and Ray Davies of the Kinks. Also: Songwriter John Darnielle from the band The Mountain Goats performs songs from his new album, "Heretic Pride," and talks about writer's block.

Will Hodgkinson's "Melodic Adventure"

In music journalist Will Hodgkinson's first memoir he attempted to teach himself to play guitar in just six months. He chronicled his musical crash course in the book Guitar Man. Now he's back, with a sequel called Song Man that charts his quest to write and record a single song. Along the way, he gets some help from some very famous songwriters. He joins us to share his adventure.

Will Hodgkinson's MySpace page
Amazon.com: Song Man: A Melodic Adventure, Or, My Single-minded Approach to Songwriting

John Darnielle

The Mountain Goats are known for their low-fidelity recording approach, hard-strumming acoustic guitar lines and ultra-literate lyrics. The band's new album, “Heretic Pride,” is just out and frontman John Darnielle performs highlights.

The Mountain Goats' web site

The Pacifica Quartet

Soundcheck

Carter Burwell and Maya Beiser

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Ben Gibbard and Jay Farrar's Ode to Jack Kerouac

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The Ill Effects of Urban Noise

The Ill Effects of Urban Noise

Soundcheck

Soundcheck received an overwhelming response to our segment on the effects of urban noise. So much so that Arline Bronzaft decided to address the feedback. Listen to the original segment and read Bronzaft's response.

RZA on the Tao of Wu

Soundcheck