(April 2024) Episode 564 is THE TURTLES and FLO & EDDIE. As a Frank Zappa enjoyer I always thought of the Turtles as the band Flo & Eddie (Howard Kaylan and Mark Volman) were in before they joined the second version of the Mothers of Invention, rather than the reverse. It turns out they provided a lot more enjoyable 60s LA pop/rock beyond “Happy Together,” “Elenore” and “You Showed Me.” Five good albums worth, augmented by their characteristic humor (the line “you’re my pride and joy etc.” from “Elenore” get me every time). After the Turtles folded, Flo & Eddie reached the prurient zenith of their humor with the Mothers (e.g. “Bwana Dik”) and recorded several quirky albums on their own.

Favorite album: The Turtles Present the Battle of the Bands

Favorite song: Happy Together

Favorite Flo & Eddie album: Fillmore East – June 1971 (with the Mothers)

Compared to expectations: ↑

Recommendation: Any of the albums are good; I like Battle of the Bands because of its intentional variety, although Happy Together scores higher.

(July 2021) Episode 339 is WEIRD AL YANKOVIC. Simply put, he is a genius. There is no shortage of parody/satire music out there (esp. in the social media age) but Weird Al is the master and has been so for decades. His albums (and videos) are consistently clever, current and on point. I LOLd often. And his original songs are not only funny but show him to be a talented pop/rock songwriter (ex: Skipper Dan). Extra points for doing it clean and not resorting to prurience or profanity (not that there’s anything wrong with that). I look forward to the polka medleys.

Favorite album: Straight Outta Lynwood

Favorite song: Jurassic Park

Compared to expectations: ↑