FEATURE:
Podcast Picks
Sodajerker on Songwriting
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FOR a brief feature…
I am highlighting some great podcasts that are helping me stave off the boredom and help educate me at the same time. As a huge music fan, there are ample options out there when it comes to podcasts and audio stimulation. One podcast that I have recently switched onto is Sodajerker on Songwriting. I would encourage people to visit the podcast’s website (and their Instagram), and to give Sodajerker a follow on Twitter. Here is some more information about Sodajerker and the podcast they run:
“Sodajerker is a songwriting team from Liverpool in the United Kingdom. Founded by co-writers Simon Barber and Brian O’Connor, Sodajerker is the creative outlet for two friends raised on the celebrated songbooks of such luminaries as Lennon and McCartney, Bacharach and David, Holland-Dozier-Holland, Goffin and King and The Chic Organisation.
Like the profession from which they take their name, Sodajerker use their hard-won skills to conjure artistry from the everyday. Their songs have been heard on radio stations around the world and on a number of film soundtracks.
Simon and Brian are also the co-hosts of the Sodajerker On Songwriting podcast, a programme featuring interviews with some of the world’s most successful songwriters. Subscribe in Apple Podcasts or listen to episodes here on the site”.
I like the fact Barber and O’Connor are songwriters, so they have this understanding of the industry and, as such, you get some real insight and connection with the artists featured. I have just listened to one of the most-recent episodes (Laura Marling is the latest to feature) with Rina Sawayama, and it was great to learn more about her musical upbringing and how her album, SAWAWYAMA, came together.
IN THIS PHOTO: Rina Sawayama/PHOTO CREDIT: Jess Farana for DIY
Paul McCartney has featured on the Sodajerker on Songwriting podcast, and that must have been quite a coup, as Barber and O’Connor are huge Beatles fans! In fact, I first heard about Sodajerker, when they appeared on a Beatles podcast, I am the Eggpod, last year. I think music-related podcasts are great, and it is nice to hear an artist sat down in conversation, and it allows the listener to get deep with the subject. I think so many chat shows turn guests around so fast, you never really learn anything at all. On podcasts like Sodajerker on Songwriting, for just under an hour, one can sit back and become absorbed in this fantastic chat. During lockdown, things have not changed radically for the podcast, but the guests are remote, so there is a slightly different feel and tone to the episodes. Apart from that, it is business as usual! I know I am a little late to the Sodajerker party, but I would recommend it to all music fans out there, and anyone who is thinking of starting their own podcast.
The interviews are really interesting; Barber and O’Connor are knowledgeable, funny and warm, and I am spending the next couple of weeks catching up on all of the episodes I have not heard yet. I think my favourite so far are the two with Prefab Sprout’s Paddy McAloon, and he is someone who does not give too many interviews, and I love to hear McAloon speak – I think McAloon is the only guest who has appeared on the podcast twice! If you can donate to the podcast then do so, as it is one of the very best on the market. I will leave things there, but if you are looking around for a brilliant music source that delivers humour, depth and variety, then make sure you tune your ears into…
IN THIS PHOTO: Paddy McAloon
THE Sodajerker on Songwriting podcast.