Imagine, if just for a second, that President Obama had ordered peaceful protesters outside a historic church to be dispersed with tear gas and rubber bullets just so he could get a photo op with an upside down Bible. No clergy at the church were consulted, no prayers were made and no passages of scripture…
Category: Marvin Gaye
Music With A Message – My Newstalk ZB Interview On Why Pop Matters
A few weeks back I was interviewed on another Newstalk ZB show, Total Recall, about pop songs that have a message and a conscience. As someone who loves popular music and the possibilities of the format (including when it’s being highly socially charged) this is one of my favourite topics. In the clip below (approximately…
Coast Soul Turns 1! Celebrating 50 Years Of The Greatest Soul & R&B
My soul and R&B iHeartRadio station and Coast FM radio show, Coast Soul, turned one last week. To celebrate, all the featured artists were the greatest of the great – think Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye, Michael Jackson, the Temptations, Diana Ross, the Commodores, Aretha Franklin etc. One of the joys of creating this station is the balance between…
10 Questions With Tim Roxborogh – My Get Frank Interview, Including 1st Ever Concert, Best Decade For Music & Favourite Travel Destination
The famous #casuallean. Recently I was interviewed by the publication Get Frank about all the different things I do in media, including hosting talkback, being a travel writer and establishing my own iHeartRadio station, Coast Soul. If you missed it, here is the link: http://www.getfrank.co.nz/lifestyle/music/10-questions-with-tim-roxborogh It was a nice opportunity to promote Coast Soul (if…
The Only Station Playing Both ‘Uptown Funk’ & ‘Play That Funky Music’ – Introducing ‘Soul’ On iHeartRadio
Listen to ‘Coast Soul’ by Tim Roxborogh on Coast FM every Sunday from 6pm-8pm. Until the station ‘Soul’ launched on iHeartRadio in April 2016 (created by Tim Roxborogh with David Brice), there was no format in New Zealand playing both Bruno Mars’ Uptown Funk and Wild Cherry’s Play That Funky Music. Two of the most…
The Launch Of ‘Soul’ – My New iHeart Radio Station Playing The Best Classic Soul & R&B
It’s fair to say I’ve been planning this for a little while. The first time I landed in Los Angeles was in 2006 and I passed a billboard overlooking the freeway in my taxi that I’ve never forgotten. It was advertising a radio station that played “everything from Marvin Gaye to Alicia Keys”. “They’ve stolen…
Jimi Hendrix’s ‘All Along The Watchtower’ + 5 More Of The Greatest Cover Versions Ever
Jimi Hendrix. This weekend marked 45 years since the death of Jimi Hendrix so with him and his colossal take on Bob Dylan’s All Along The Watchtower in mind, here’s a list of five of my all-time favourite cover songs. I played All Along The Watchtower (featured at the bottom of this article) on my radio show…
‘Blurred Lines’ And The Blurred Lines Of Copyright Infringement – Why This Decision Is All Wrong
Marvin Gaye. The ruling in the copyright infringement case against Pharrell Williams and Robin Thicke is ridiculous. Like any good student of 70s R&B, the first time I heard Blurred Lines – the Thicke / Williams / T.I. collaboration that became the biggest hit of 2013 – I knew it wasn’t only inspired by Marvin Gaye, but inspired by…
Marvin Gaye: 30 Years Since His Death, His 75th Birthday & My 5 Favourite Songs
Last week was simultaneously 30 years since Marvin Gaye was shot dead as well as being what should’ve been his 75th birthday. For me, Marvin epitomises much of the human condition as well as being one of the giants of popular music history. Marvin Gaye was an artist torn so desperately in so many different…
Diana Ross Turns 70 – 3 Of Her Best Superstar-Written Songs
For Diana Ross who turned 70 today, here are three of her biggest hits. For a full tribute to her towering role in 20th Century popular music, click here to link to a piece in the British paper The Telegraph written to mark her 70th. But for now, I want to focus on just three…
Nelson Mandela In Hospital – Sam Cooke’s ‘A Change Is Gonna’ Come’
Nelson Mandela. With the news 94 year old Nelson Mandela is back in hospital, I wanted to end last night’s episode of The Two (co-hosted by Pam Corkery, Newstalk ZB Friday and Sunday evenings from 8pm) with a suitably incredible song for such an incredible man. I chose a song which these days is better…