40. Mike Skill Discusses The Rolling Stones, Exile on Main St.

Send us Fan MailA classic artist from the ‘80s (and beyond) joins Al to discuss a classic album from the 70s. Mike Skill of The Romantics provides insight into what makes The Rolling Stones’ Exile on Main St. such an important album in their catalog. In a wide-ranging conversation, Mike also explores his Detroit rock ’n roll roots, the great music that has come out of his adopted home of the Pacific Northwest, how two of The Romantics’ greatest hits came to be written and much more.I referred to an appearance Mike made on the T-Bone’s Prime Cuts podcast. If you want a more in-depth discussion on his work with The Romantics and his solo work, check it out here: https://www.tbpcpodcast.com/episode-3-mike-skill-of-the-romantics/You can follow Mike on both Twitter and Instagram at @mikejskill.You can get more information on Mike’s releases on his website, https://www.mikeskill.com/home.Get Mike’s music on Bandcamp! https://mikeskill.bandcamp.com/musicAl is on Twitter at @almelchiorBB, and this show has accounts on Twitter and Instagram at @youmealbum. Be sure to follow @youmealbum to find out in advance about upcoming guests and featured albums for this podcast.1:23 Mike joins the show1:30 Al explains how Exile on Main St. was one of the inspirations for this podcast2:58 Mike explains why Exile is an important album for him5:36 Mike talks about the circumstances under which Exile was recorded6:52 Mike has tried to approximate the type of non-linear feel that Exile has in his own work8:54 Mike has a solo album coming out in October10:37 Mike describes how What I Like About You was written12:28 Mike details how Talking In Your Sleep got written20:16 Mike tells us what is special to him about The Stones23:25 Mike talks about the Detroit musicians who inspired himWhat Mike likes about Exile on Main St.27:34 Leaving the frayed edges in29:36 How Mick Jagger came around to Keith Richards’ more spontaneous style31:10 The blues influence36:20 How The Stones gave a voice to the estranged of society41:54 The dirty guitar sound44:31 Mike talks about how rock ’n roll culture isn’t as prominent as it was46:57 Mike talks about Detroit and Portland as rock ’n roll towns53:03 Mike explains how Keith Richards created the guitar magic in the intro to Happy57:29 The origin of the Ventilator Blues59:07 Mike and Al like the spooky sound of I Just Want To See His Face1:02:00 When the album came out, FM stations played a broad range of songs from Exile1:04:37 Are albums really on the way out?1:06:28 Final thoughts on Exile and on The Stones in general1:14:28 Mike gives props to the producer and engineers on Exile1:18:24 Al has been listening to The Stones differently since Charlie Watts’ death1:20:41 What is Mike listening to these days?Outro music is from ’67 Riot by Mike Skill feat. Wayne KramerSupport the show