Ska Boom-Episode 008: The Max's Kansas City Ska & Reggae Story

Ska Boom - An American Ska & Reggae Podcast

#Marc Wasserman #Ska #Reggae #Music

27:29

Episode web page: https://tinyurl.com/2b3dz2z8 ----------------------- Rate Insights Unlocked and write a review If you appreciate Insights Unlocked , please give it a rating and a review. Visit Apple Podcasts, pull up the Insights Unlocked show page and scroll to the bottom of the screen. Below the trailers, you'll find Ratings and Reviews. Click on a star rating. Scroll down past the highlighted review and click on "Write a Review." You'll make my day. ----------------------- In this episode of Insights Unlocked , we explore the evolving landscape of omnichannel strategies with Kate MacCabe, founder of Flywheel Strategy. With nearly two decades of experience in digital strategy and product management, Kate shares her insights on bridging internal silos, leveraging customer insights, and designing omnichannel experiences that truly resonate. From the early days of DTC growth to today’s complex, multi-touchpoint customer journeys, Kate explains why omnichannel is no longer optional—it’s essential. She highlights a standout example from Anthropologie, demonstrating how brands can create a unified customer experience across digital and physical spaces. Whether you’re a marketing leader, UX strategist, or product manager, this episode is packed with actionable advice on aligning teams, integrating user feedback, and building a future-proof omnichannel strategy. Key Takeaways: ✅ Omnichannel vs. Multichannel: Many brands think they’re omnichannel, but they’re really just multichannel. Kate breaks down the difference and how to shift toward true integration. ✅ Anthropologie’s Success Story: Learn how this brand seamlessly blended physical and digital experiences to create a memorable, data-driven customer journey. ✅ User Feedback is the Secret Weapon: Discover how continuous user testing—before, during, and after a launch—helps brands fine-tune their strategies and avoid costly mistakes. ✅ Aligning Teams for Success: Cross-functional collaboration is critical. Kate shares tips on breaking down silos between marketing, product, and development teams. ✅ Emerging Tech & Omnichannel: Instead of chasing the latest tech trends, Kate advises businesses to define their strategic goals first—then leverage AI, AR, and other innovations to enhance the customer experience. Quotes from the Episode: 💬 "Omnichannel isn’t just about being everywhere; it’s about creating seamless bridges between every touchpoint a customer interacts with." – Kate MacCabe 💬 "Companies that truly listen to their users—through qualitative and quantitative insights—are the ones that thrive in today’s competitive landscape." – Kate MacCabe Resources & Links: 🔗 Learn more about Flywheel Strategy 🔗 Connect with Kate MacCabe on LinkedIn 🔗 Explore UserTesting for customer insights for marketers…

4 года назад 22:39

MP3•Главная эпизода

On this episode of the Ska Boom podcast, I tell the untold story of how a band of reggae obsessed kids from New Jersey --The Terrorists -- backed a Jamaican ex-pat saxophonist who had helped found The Skatalites -- Roland Alphonso. Together they helped create a short-lived but important ska and reggae scene at Max’s Kansas City, which for a time was the punk rock club rival to CBGBs located less than a mile away.While Max's Kansas City was known as one of the birth places of American punk, its musical director Peter Crowley also had a passion for ska and reggae and began booking Sunday night reggae parties at the club beginning in 1976. His efforts helped to create a small scene and led him to discover The Terrorists, who along with The Shakers from Berkeley, CA and the Blue Riddim Band from Kansas City, MO are among the earliest American reggae bands.When members of the band discovered Roland Alphonso living in Brooklyn and convinced him to play with them, Crowley booked them as a double bill at Max's and based on the positive reception they received quickly took them into the studio to record albums he planned to release on the Max's Kansas City record label. Sadly it was not be. Those recording were finally released last year as "Max's SKAnsas City" on the Jungle Records label in the UK and I was honored to be asked to write the liner notes for the album.The Terrorists and Crowley don't get the credit they deserve for their contribution to a uniquely American version of ska and reggae. Hopefully this audio documentary will help more people to hear their story. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

112 эпизодов

Ska Boom - An American Ska & Reggae Podcast

Ska Boom-Episode 008: The Max's Kansas City Ska & Reggae Story

Ska Boom - An American Ska & Reggae Podcast

published 4 года назад

MP3•Главная эпизода

112 эпизодов

#Marc Wasserman #Ska #Reggae #Music

Все серии

Ska Boom - An American Ska & Reggae Podcast

1
Soul Salvation - A Gen X Love Letter To The English Beat: Record Store Day Reflections 21:18

22 weeks назад21:18

21:18

Welcome to the Ska Boom podcast. This episode marks the conclusion of the Soul Salvation series, which has served as the audio companion to my book Soul Salvation – A Gen X Love Letter To The English Beat. Across 18 episodes, I’ve explored the legacy of the English Beat and their final album, Special Beat Service, highlighting its significance to a generation of music lovers. This final episode encapsulates the journey of celebrating a band that has profoundly influenced so many – musicians like Pete Townshend, Elvis Costello and Eddie Vedder are fans -- and, it can be argued the album was the template for what would become Brit pop, 10 years later. While my podcast about the band is coming to an end, if you are a fan of the band and the Special Beat Service album I have some very exciting news for you. Record Store Day Black Friday 2024 has announced that among the 159 titles that will be released on Friday November 29, 2024 is an RSD exclusive double LP version of Special Beat Service album . With the reissue on the horizon, I’m going to use this last episode to reflect on the album in terms of the band’s musical evolution, its unique sound and it's commercial appeal, particularly to Americans. My book Soul Salvation: A Gen X Love Letter To The English Beat is now available from DiWulf.com and from Amazon globally. The music clips included in this podcast fall under the “Fair Use Doctrine” as defined by Section 107 of the Copyright Act of 1976. The law allows for use of music clips for purposes of criticism, com…

Ska Boom - An American Ska & Reggae Podcast

1
Soul Salvation - A Gen X Love Letter To The English Beat: American Bandstand 18:10

23 weeks назад18:10

18:10

Welcome back to the Ska Boom podcast! This season is called Soul Salvation and its the companion to my new book “Soul Salvation – A Gen X Love Letter To The English Beat." Through the book and this podcast I’m telling the story of the Special Beat Service album which embodies both the brilliance and the bittersweet end of the English Beat whose songs served as a soundtrack for thousands of Gen Xers like me. The book and this podcast is my tribute to the band’s final, triumphant act – which initially was largely overlooked – and how their music and the love of a young woman changed me forever. This week I’m taking a look at the influence American Bandstand had on 80s new wave music and the two appearances that the English Beat made on the show in 1982 and 1983 that were part I.R.S. Records goal of breaking the band in America. My new book Soul Salvation: A Gen X Love Letter To The English Beat is now available from DiWulf.com and from Amazon globally. The music clips included in this podcast fall under the “Fair Use Doctrine” as defined by Section 107 of the Copyright Act of 1976. The law allows for use of music clips for purposes of criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, education and research.…

Ska Boom - An American Ska & Reggae Podcast

1
Soul Salvation - A Gen X Love Letter To The English Beat: Bands Reunited 14:47

24 weeks назад14:47

14:47

Welcome back to the Ska Boom podcast! This season is called Soul Salvation and its the companion to my new book “Soul Salvation – A Gen X Love Letter To The English Beat." Through the book and this podcast I’m telling the story of the Special Beat Service album which embodies both the brilliance and the bittersweet end of the English Beat whose songs served as a soundtrack for thousands of Gen Xers like me. The book and this podcast is my tribute to the band’s final, triumphant act – which initially was largely overlooked – and how their music and the love of a young woman changed me forever. This week I’m delving into the fascinating but futile attempt by VH-1 to reunite the band for their 2004 show “Bands Reunited” and the behind-the-scenes story of why it was doomed from the start. My new book Soul Salvation: A Gen X Love Letter To The English Beat is now available from DiWulf.com and from Amazon globally. Here's a link to the full Ban's Reunited episode featuring the English Beat: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eUKLV9akM5c The music clips included in this podcast fall under the “Fair Use Doctrine” as defined by Section 107 of the Copyright Act of 1976. The law allows for use of music clips for purposes of criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, education and research.…

Ska Boom - An American Ska & Reggae Podcast

1
Soul Salvation - A Gen X Love Letter To The English Beat: The International Beat 21:22

25 weeks назад21:22

21:22

Welcome back to the Ska Boom podcast! This season is called Soul Salvation and its the companion to my new book “Soul Salvation – A Gen X Love Letter To The English Beat." Through the book and this podcast I’m telling the story of the Special Beat Service album which embodies both the brilliance and the bittersweet end of the English Beat whose songs served as a soundtrack for thousands of Gen Xers like me. The book and this podcast is my tribute to the band’s final, triumphant act – which initially was largely overlooked – and how their music and the love of a young woman changed me forever. This week I’m telling the story of the International Beat, the band formed by English Beat saxophonist Saxa and drummer Everett Morton after the demise of the original band in 1983. While members of the Fine Young Cannibals and General Public reinvented themselves and found pop success, the two most overlooked members of the band may have been partially responsible for kicking off the American ska boom of the 90s. My new book Soul Salvation: A Gen X Love Letter To The English Beat is now available from DiWulf.com and from Amazon globally. The music clips included in this podcast fall under the “Fair Use Doctrine” as defined by Section 107 of the Copyright Act of 1976. The law allows for use of music clips for purposes of criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, education and research.…

Ska Boom - An American Ska & Reggae Podcast

1
Soul Salvation - A Gen X Love Letter To The English Beat: Cribabi 23:49

26 weeks назад23:49

23:49

Welcome back to the Ska Boom podcast! This season is called Soul Salvation and its the companion to my new book “Soul Salvation – A Gen X Love Letter To The English Beat." Through the book and this podcast I’m telling the story of the Special Beat Service album which embodies both the brilliance and the bittersweet end of the English Beat whose songs served as a soundtrack for thousands of Gen Xers like me. The book and this podcast is my tribute to the band’s final, triumphant act – which initially was largely overlooked – and how their music and the love of a young woman changed me forever. This week’s episode is about the English Beat's guitarist Andy Cox’s post-Fine Young Cannibals band Cribabi and their 2002 album "Volume." The story of how Cox -- best known for his memorable power chords on the worldwide hit "She Drives Me Crazy," and the band's Japanese singer Yukari Fukiu met could be the inspiration for a 90’s-styled Hollywood rom-com. And I mean that in the best way possible. I also touch on Cox's interest in the world of experimental music made by bicycles! As noted, click here to listen to the full interview he did in 2007 with the Bike Show: https://thebikeshow.net/more-experimental-bicycle-music/ My new book Soul Salvation : A Gen X Love Letter To The English Beat is now available from DiWulf.com and from Amazon globally. The music clips included in this podcast fall under the “Fair Use Doctrine” as defined by Section 107 of the Copyright Act of 1976. The law allows for use of music clips for purposes of criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, education and research.…

Ska Boom - An American Ska & Reggae Podcast

1
Soul Salvation - A Gen X Love Letter To The English Beat: Fried 22:02

27 weeks назад22:02

22:02

Welcome back to the Ska Boom podcast! This season is called Soul Salvation and its the companion to my new book “Soul Salvation – A Gen X Love Letter To The English Beat." Through the book and this podcast I’m telling the story of the Special Beat Service album which embodies both the brilliance and the bittersweet end of the English Beat whose songs served as a soundtrack for thousands of Gen Xers like me. The book and this podcast is my tribute to the band’s final, triumphant act – which initially was largely overlooked – and how their music and the love of a young woman changed me forever. This week’s episode is about the English Beat's bassist David Steele’s post-Fine Young Cannibals band Fried. Chances are you’ve never heard of Fried, but I’m hopeful that if you are a fan of my podcast and music made by all the former members of the English Beat, you’ll take my advice and check them out. Take my word for it. You won’t regret it. On it you will hear all of Steele’s musical DNA stretching as far back as the English Beat’s first album and certainly the sounds on Special Beat Service. My new book Soul Salvation : A Gen X Love Letter To The English Beat is now available from DiWulf.com and from Amazon globally. The music clips included in this podcast fall under the “Fair Use Doctrine” as defined by Section 107 of the Copyright Act of 1976. The law allows for use of music clips for purposes of criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, education and research.…

Ska Boom - An American Ska & Reggae Podcast

1
Soul Salvation - A Gen X Love Letter To The English Beat: Supernova International Ska Festival 35:45

28 weeks назад35:45

35:45

Welcome back to the Ska Boom podcast! This season is called Soul Salvation and its the companion to my new book “Soul Salvation – A Gen X Love Letter To The English Beat." Through the book and this podcast I’m telling the story of the Special Beat Service album which embodies both the brilliance and the bittersweet end of the English Beat whose songs served as a soundtrack for thousands of Gen Xers like me. The book and this podcast is my tribute to the band’s final, triumphant act – which initially was largely overlooked – and how their music and the love of a young woman changed me forever. I recently attended the three-day, Supernova International Ska Festival in Hampton, Virginia which featured 30 plus ska bands from all over world that was headlined by The Selecter. I was invited to be part of the festival’s very first literary tent which featured authors like Pauline Black and Daniel Rachel who have focused on writing about ska and 2 Tone This week’s episode features musician and author Charles Benoit interviewing me about the genesis of writing "Soul Salvation" and some interesting stories and anecdotes about the band and some of my personal story that is woven throughout the book. My new book Soul Salvation : A Gen X Love Letter To The English Beat is now available from DiWulf.com and from Amazon globally. The music clips included in this podcast fall under the “Fair Use Doctrine” as defined by Section 107 of the Copyright Act of 1976. The law allows for use of music clips for purposes of criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, education and research.…

Ska Boom - An American Ska & Reggae Podcast

1
Soul Salvation - A Gen X Love Letter To The English Beat: Solo Records 22:59

29 weeks назад22:59

22:59

Welcome back to the Ska Boom podcast! This season is called Soul Salvation and its the companion to my new book “Soul Salvation – A Gen X Love Letter To The English Beat." Through the book and this podcast I’m telling the story of the Special Beat Service album which embodies both the brilliance and the bittersweet end of the English Beat whose songs served as a soundtrack for thousands of Gen Xers like me. The book and this podcast is my tribute to the band’s final, triumphant act – which initially was largely overlooked – and how their music and the love of a young woman changed me forever. This week’s episode is about the dueling solo albums that both Dave Wakeling and Ranking Roger released during the time between their two stints in General Public in the 80s and then again in the 90s. After the second General Public album "Hand To Mouth" failed to meet record company expectations, both Roger and Dave Wakeling dissolved their musical partnership in 1987. Wakeling recorded and released his solo record "No Warning" and Roger decided to do the same with his record “Radical Depature”. My new book Soul Salvation : A Gen X Love Letter To The English Beat is now available from DiWulf.com and from Amazon globally. The music clips included in this podcast fall under the “Fair Use Doctrine” as defined by Section 107 of the Copyright Act of 1976. The law allows for use of music clips for purposes of criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, education and research.…

Ska Boom - An American Ska & Reggae Podcast

1
Soul Salvation - A Gen X Love Letter To The English Beat: The Clash & Ranking Roger 25:09

30 weeks назад25:09

25:09

Welcome back to the Ska Boom podcast! This season is called Soul Salvation and its the companion to my new book “Soul Salvation – A Gen X Love Letter To The English Beat." Through the book and this podcast I’m telling the story of the Special Beat Service album which embodies both the brilliance and the bittersweet end of the English Beat whose songs served as a soundtrack for thousands of Gen Xers like me. The book and this podcast is my tribute to the band’s final, triumphant act – which initially was largely overlooked – and how their music and the love of a young woman changed me forever. This week’s episode is about the vibrant musical partnership that grew between Ranking Roger and The Clash and later more specifically with Mick Jones who was a member of General Public briefly and Ranking Roger who was a member of Big Audio Dynamite. My new book Soul Salvation : A Gen X Love Letter To The English Beat is now available from DiWulf.com and from Amazon globally. The music clips included in this podcast fall under the “Fair Use Doctrine” as defined by Section 107 of the Copyright Act of 1976. The law allows for use of music clips for purposes of criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, education and research.…

Ska Boom - An American Ska & Reggae Podcast

1
Soul Salvation - A Gen X Love Letter To The English Beat: Special Beat 22:39

31 weeks назад22:39

22:39

Welcome back to the Ska Boom podcast! This season is called Soul Salvation and its the companion to my new book “Soul Salvation – A Gen X Love Letter To The English Beat." Through the book and this podcast I’m telling the story of the Special Beat Service album which embodies both the brilliance and the bittersweet end of the English Beat whose songs served as a soundtrack for thousands of Gen Xers like me. The book and this podcast is my tribute to the band’s final, triumphant act – which initially was largely overlooked – and how their music and the love of a young woman changed me forever. This week’s episode is all about Special Beat, the 2 Tone ska super group formed in the early 90s to tap into the growing popularity of ska in America. The genesis of Special Beat was a one-off show by a band called The International Beat featuring Dave Wakeling and Ranking Roger that electrified an audience of 10,000 ska crazy kids at an Earth Day celebration in Berkeley, CA in the Spring of 1990. It's my opinion that the band was responsible for kicking off the explosion of 3rd wave American ska of the 90s. My new book Soul Salvation : A Gen X Love Letter To The English Beat is now available from DiWulf.com and from Amazon globally. The music clips included in this podcast fall under the “Fair Use Doctrine” as defined by Section 107 of the Copyright Act of 1976. The law allows for use of music clips for purposes of criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, education and research.…

Ska Boom - An American Ska & Reggae Podcast

1
Soul Salvation - A Gen X Love Letter To The English Beat: Go Feet 24:11

32 weeks назад24:11

24:11

Welcome back to the Ska Boom podcast! This season is called Soul Salvation and its the companion to my new book “Soul Salvation – A Gen X Love Letter To The English Beat." Through the book and this podcast I’m telling the story of the Special Beat Service album which embodies both the brilliance and the bittersweet end of the English Beat whose songs served as a soundtrack for thousands of Gen Xers like me. The book and this podcast is my tribute to the band’s final, triumphant act – which initially was largely overlooked – and how their music and the love of a young woman changed me forever. This week I’m changing gears to focus on how the band signed with Arista Records and how they were able to create their own boutique label Go Feet Records which released their albums and singles as well as those of several artists they signed directly to the label. Much of the detail from the behind-the-scenes machinations of how the band ended up signing and creating Go Feet comes from Malu Halasa’s band bio book “The Beat: Twist & Crawl” that was published in 1981. My new book Soul Salvation : A Gen X Love Letter To The English Beat is now available from DiWulf.com and from Amazon globally. The music clips included in this podcast fall under the “Fair Use Doctrine” as defined by Section 107 of the Copyright Act of 1976. The law allows for use of music clips for purposes of criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, education and research.…

Ska Boom - An American Ska & Reggae Podcast

1
Soul Salvation - A Gen X Love Letter To The English Beat: Blockhead 24:47

33 weeks назад24:47

24:47

Welcome back to the Ska Boom podcast! This season is called Soul Salvation and its the companion to my new book “Soul Salvation – A Gen X Love Letter To The English Beat." Through the book and this podcast I’m telling the story of the Special Beat Service album which embodies both the brilliance and the bittersweet end of the English Beat whose songs served as a soundtrack for thousands of Gen Xers like me. The book and this podcast is my tribute to the band’s final, triumphant act – which initially was largely overlooked – and how their music and the love of a young woman changed me forever. This week I’m focusing on the band’s keyboardist David “Blockhead” Wright whose melodic contributions added so much to the songs on Special Beat Service and have been overlooked and under appreciated. I interviewed Wright for my book and his perspective was invaluable in giving me an insider’s view on the band and the songs on the album. The audio from that interview is part of this episode. My new book Soul Salvation : A Gen X Love Letter To The English Beat is now available from DiWulf.com and from Amazon globally. The music clips included in this podcast fall under the “Fair Use Doctrine” as defined by Section 107 of the Copyright Act of 1976. The law allows for use of music clips for purposes of criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, education and research.…

Ska Boom - An American Ska & Reggae Podcast

1
Soul Salvation - A Gen X Love Letter To The English Beat: Saxa 18:31

34 weeks назад18:31

18:31

Welcome back to the Ska Boom podcast! This season is called Soul Salvation and its the companion to my new book “Soul Salvation – A Gen X Love Letter To The English Beat." Through the book and this podcast I’m telling the story of the Special Beat Service album which embodies both the brilliance and the bittersweet end of the English Beat whose songs served as a soundtrack for thousands of Gen Xers like me. The book and this podcast is my tribute to the band’s final, triumphant act – which initially was largely overlooked – and how their music and the love of a young woman changed me forever. I love the sound of horns but I really love the sound of the saxophone. Indeed, if I had had more musical talent and technical skill my nickname might have been 'Marco On The Sax!' I did take a few sax lessons in elementary school and dabbled again as a teen but sadly it was not meant to be. However, I owe my love of all things saxophone to one man in particular -- Lionel Augustus Martin -- better known as Saxa! My new book Soul Salvation : A Gen X Love Letter To The English Beat is now available for pre-sale from DiWulf.com and will be published on August 12th. The music clips included in this podcast fall under the “Fair Use Doctrine” as defined by Section 107 of the Copyright Act of 1976. The law allows for use of music clips for purposes of criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, education and research.…

Ska Boom - An American Ska & Reggae Podcast

1
Soul Salvation - A Gen X Love Letter To The English Beat: Everett Morton 23:08

35 weeks назад23:08

23:08

Welcome back to the Ska Boom podcast! This season is called Soul Salvation and its the companion to my new book “Soul Salvation – A Gen X Love Letter To The English Beat." Through the book and this podcast I’m telling the story of the Special Beat Service album which embodies both the brilliance and the bittersweet end of the English Beat whose songs served as a soundtrack for thousands of Gen Xers like me. The book and this podcast is my tribute to the band’s final, triumphant act – which initially was largely overlooked – and how their music and the love of a young woman changed me forever. It's my humble opinion that the band's drummer Everett Morton may be one of the best drummers you’ve either never heard of or just don’t know a lot about. And it's always been my mission to change that. Sadly he passed in late 2021 and has never received the credit he deserves. I think it's fair to say that the English Beat’s identifiable sound has much to do with his drumming style. So what was Morton’s style? It was clearly reggae but initially it was reggae drums that mixed with David Steele’s punky bass lines. So in effect they along with John Bardburry and Horace Panter of The Specials created something completely new and fresh. It was neither reggae nor punk but a brand-new sound: punky reggae My new book Soul Salvation : A Gen X Love Letter To The English Beat is now available for pre-sale from DiWulf.com and will be published on August 12th. The music clips included in this podcast fall under the “Fair Use Doctrine” as defined by Section 107 of the Copyright Act of 1976. The law allows for use of music clips for purposes of criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, education and research.…

Ska Boom - An American Ska & Reggae Podcast

1
Soul Salvation - A Gen X Love Letter To The English Beat: General Public 27:47

36 weeks назад27:47