Rock & Roll High School With Pete Ganbarg

For our 100th episode, we're joined by legendary Hall of Fame songwriter Desmond Child.
For nearly 50 years, Desmond has written or co-written some of the most iconic songs of the last half-century: "Livin' On A Prayer," "You Give Love A Bad Name," "I Was Made For Lovin' You," "Dude (Looks Like A Lady)," "I Hate Myself For Lovin' You," "Livin' La Vida Loca," and many, many more.
In this interview, Desmond shares the story of his upbringing in Florida, living with a larger-than-life Cuban mother and a father who, despite Desmond not learning the truth until he was 18 years old, was not his biological dad. Two of his aunts in Cuba were mistresses to men who led opposite sides of the Cuban Revolution: Batista AND Castro. And the stories just get more remarkable from there.
After moving to New York City and forming his own band, Desmond Child & Rouge, Desmond began a songwriting apprenticeship with legendary songwriter Bob Crewe (The Four Seasons, "Lady Marmalade"), through which he learned the secrets of writing songs that truly connect with an audience — lessons he would soon put to use writing some of the biggest hits in the history of popular music.
The list of artists who have recorded Desmond's songs is a who's who of music history: Aerosmith, Alice Cooper, Barbra Streisand, Bon Jovi, Cher, Joan Jett, KISS, Ricky Martin and many more.
Desmond's great 2023 memoir, Livin' On A Prayer: Big Songs Big Life, written with David Ritz, tells these stories and many more in even greater detail. His latest album, Desmond Child Rocks The Parthenon — The Live Concert Album, is out now.
For more on Desmond, follow @desmond.child on Instagram.
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Richard Gottehrer is one of the most influential figures in the history of popular music—but unless you're a serious student of music history, you may not know his name.
Over the course of an extraordinary career spanning more than six decades, Richard has reinvented himself time and again -- as a hit songwriter, recording artist, record executive, producer, and digital pioneer. So much so that we had to split this episode into two parts.
In Part Two of our conversation, Richard picks up where he left off after departing Sire Records and embarking on one of the most remarkable second acts in music history.
As a producer, Richard helped define the sound of New York's emerging punk and new wave movement, producing landmark recordings by Blondie, Richard Hell & The Voidoids, and later guiding The Go-Go's to international superstardom with their groundbreaking debut album, Beauty and the Beat.
He reflects on working with artists who would go on to become cultural icons, the creative instincts that allowed him to recognize greatness before the rest of the world, and the producer's role in capturing an artist's true identity on record.
But Richard wasn't finished reinventing himself.
Long before most of the music industry understood the coming digital revolution, Richard co-founded The Orchard, helping create the company that transformed digital distribution for independent artists and labels around the world. His vision once again placed him at the forefront of one of the biggest changes in the history of the music business.
This conversation is a masterclass in creativity, innovation, and lifelong reinvention from a man whose fingerprints can be found on virtually every era of modern popular music.
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Richard Gottehrer is one of the most influential figures in the history of popular music—but unless you're a serious student of music history, there's a good chance you've never heard his name.
Over the course of an extraordinary career spanning more than six decades, Richard has reinvented himself time and again -- as a hit songwriter, recording artist, record executive, producer, and digital pioneer. So much so that we had to split this episode into two parts.
In Part One of our conversation, we go back to where it all began.
Growing up in the Bronx, Richard broke into New York's legendary Brill Building songwriting scene, where he co-wrote timeless hits including "My Boyfriend's Back" and "I Want Candy." He later stepped into the spotlight as a member of The Strangeloves, whose recording of "I Want Candy" became a garage rock classic.
Richard also discovered a teenage guitarist and vocalist named Richard Zehringer, who played with a local Ohio band called Rick and the Raiders. After changing his name to Rick Derringer and renaming the band The McCoys, Gottehrer and his Strangeloves bandmates produced their #1 smash, "Hang On Sloopy."
Richard also shares the story behind the founding of Sire Records, the groundbreaking label he co-created with his lifelong friend Seymour Stein. Together they built one of the most influential independent labels of all time, helping launch artists who would forever change the sound of popular music.
Part One concludes with the remarkable story of one of Sire's earliest breakthrough successes: the international hit "Hocus Pocus" by the Dutch band Focus.
This is the fascinating origin story of a man who would go on to help shape virtually every corner of the modern music business. And it's only the beginning.
Part Two picks up with Richard's departure from Sire Records, his landmark production work with Blondie, Richard Hell & The Voidoids, and The Go-Go's, and his remarkable reinvention as the co-founder of The Orchard, the company that revolutionized digital distribution for independent music.
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Jim Messina has had one of the most remarkable and influential careers in American music.
As a member (and producer) of Buffalo Springfield, he helped shape one of the defining bands of the late 1960s before going on to form Poco, where he became one of the architects of the country rock movement. He later teamed with Kenny Loggins to create Loggins & Messina, one of the most successful and beloved duos of the 1970s, producing a string of enduring hits including "Danny's Song," "Your Mama Don't Dance," "House at Pooh Corner," and "Thinking of You."
But Messina's impact extends far beyond the spotlight. An accomplished producer, engineer, songwriter, and guitarist, he played a pivotal role behind the scenes, helping refine the sound of artists ranging from Buffalo Springfield to Loggins & Messina while earning a reputation as one of the era's great musical craftsmen.
In this conversation, Jim reflects on his extraordinary journey through some of the most important chapters in American popular music. We discuss the final days of Buffalo Springfield, the creation of Poco, how an intended producer-artist relationship with Kenny Loggins evolved into one of the decade's biggest recording acts, and the stories behind many of his best-loved songs.
He also shares candid thoughts on touring, recording, songwriting, and the lessons learned over more than six decades in music.
Whether you know him from Buffalo Springfield, Poco, Loggins & Messina, or his remarkable work behind the console, this is a conversation with one of rock's true architects.
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Howard Jones helped define the sound of the 1980s by proving that synthesizers could be every bit as expressive and emotionally resonant as guitars or pianos.
Classically trained as a pianist before embracing the emerging world of electronic music, Howard exploded onto the international stage with a remarkable string of hit singles, including "New Song," "What Is Love?," "Things Can Only Get Better," "Like to Get to Know You Well," and the U.S. Top 10 smash "No One Is to Blame." His first two albums, Human's Lib and Dream Into Action, established him as one of the defining artists of the MTV era, blending infectious melodies with thoughtful lyrics shaped in part by his lifelong Buddhist practice.
Howard's influence extended well beyond the charts. In 1985, he joined fellow keyboard innovators Stevie Wonder, Herbie Hancock, and Thomas Dolby for a memorable synthesizer summit at the Grammy Awards, and later that year performed at the historic Live Aid concert at Wembley Stadium, performing solo on Freddie Mercury's piano before a global audience of hundreds of millions. More than four decades later, he continues to record new music and tour internationally, bringing his timeless songs to audiences around the world.
In this conversation, Howard reflects on his classical training, the birth of synth-pop, his longtime onstage collaboraor, mime artist Jed Hoile, the stories behind his biggest hits, his Buddhist philosophy, and the role technology has played throughout his remarkable career. We also discuss songwriting, live performance, and why maintaining a sense of curiosity and optimism has remained at the heart of both his music and his life.
Thoughtful, innovative, and endlessly creative, Howard Jones continues to demonstrate that great songs—and great ideas—stand the test of time.
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