Tune Tag #60 with Mike Degen: Maggie Rogers, Brothers Johnson, Kid Harpoon, Hoodoo Gurus, Jackson 5, Harry Styles

From Alaska, the former Substacker plays a mean Tune Tag, with artists that span the decades and the centuries! Which 2 former Motown legends are cousins? Has Kid Harpoon ever been deep-sea fishing?

Greetings, Mike! Did someone say “Tune Tag”?

Tune Tag welcomes former Substack-er, Mike Degen!

Mike is an outdoor adventurer who is currently in Alaska enjoying the long summer days. He writes poetry, nonfiction, and fiction.

Mike is also the author of the eagerly-adopted FRONT ROW & BACKSTAGE banner slogan, “The best music history writing online,” proudly displayed throughout the site! Nearly 3 years ago, I subscribed to Mike, who was writing prose’n’poetry on his own Substack page.

He left his six generously effusive words on a comment section just after subscribing to FR&B. Curious, I checked the analytics, and discovered that he had read at least a dozen of the FRONT ROW & BACKSTAGE articles before composing his thoughtful and treasured conclusion!

"The Best Music History Writing Online!"-Classic Rock, Prog, Pop, & Punk, 1960s to the Present!

Last week, we had the pleasure of introducing you to

Rich Headland

of Record Shop Stories:

Tune Tag #59 with Rich Headland of "Record Shop Stories": The Specials, Billy Cobham, Mahavishnu, Massive Attack, Jellyfish, Young Gun Silver Fox

Next week, we’re honored to welcome

Steve Gabe

of Steve’s Substack!

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Mike’s song #1 sent to Brad: Maggie Rogers, “Alaska,” 2019

The New York Post, September 26, 2019: The stars started to line up for this artist when she began playing the harp at 7 while growing up in Easton, Maryland. After listening to neo-soul artists such as Erykah Badu and Lauryn Hill, whom her mom played on the way to her classical music lessons, Rogers picked up the piano and guitar in middle school, then branched into the banjo and folk-bluegrass music in high school.

Mike’s rationale: Maggie Rogers wrote this song after taking a backpacking trip to Alaska. As someone who moved to Alaska for its beauty, this song really resonated with me.

A cool piece of history about the song: Maggie wrote the song while a student at NYU. Pharrell Williams visited her class and each student played him a song. Maggie chose “Alaska” and Pharrell loved it.

His reaction to the song went viral on YouTube, launching Maggie’s career!👇

Brad’s response: I wasn’t familiar with Maggie, but just a little research unearthed her heartfelt cover of one of my favorites, Bonnie Raitt, and her 1991 Top 20 hit, “I Can’t Make You Love Me,” live at the Sirius/XM studios. The song was written by country music songwriter, Allen Shamblin, and former Cincinnati Bengals defensive tackle and Columbia Records artist, Nashville Songwriters Hall of Famer, Mike Reid:

Nineteen years before Bonnie recorded “I Can’t Make You Love Me” for her Luck of the Draw album, I met her backstage in Houston. That story’s here:

50 Years Later: Meeting Bonnie Raitt at the Beginning of Her Career, Backstage in Houston, 1972

Brad’s song #1 sent to Mike: Kid Harpoon, “Stealing Cars,” 2009

Mike’s response: While he didn’t write “Alaska,” Kid Harpoon has written several songs for Maggie Rogers including the hit, “Light On” (co-written with Maggie), which came from her debut album, Heard It In a Past Life (2019), on which Harpoon was but one of nine producers!

Brad’s rationale: Kid Harpoon (real name, Thomas Edward Percy Hull, but you knew that) was co-composer and co-producer on Maggie Rogers’ 2019 album, Heard It In a Past Life. “Stealing Cars” (written by Tom Hull….yep, that’s him, The Kid) comes from Mr. Harpoon’s 2009 album, Once. Hull, 42, has written songs for Florence + The Machine, and he, Samuel Witte, and Tyler Johnson produced Harry Styles’ Harry’s House album, with Hull having a hand in writing or co-writing a dozen of the album’s 13 songs!

In fact, in 2023, Hull won the Grammy for Album of the Year and the Brit Award for Songwriter of the Year for his work on Harry’s House. Hull and Johnson produced the best-selling global single of 2023, Miley Cyrus’s “Flowers,” for which the duo won the Grammy for Record of the Year (a producer’s award).

The history of eyeglasses, UK edition, or making records strictly on specs: Through the years with Trevor Horn, 75: Giggles'n'Buggles, with an eye-popping resume that's as enviable as anyone's.