EPISODE · Apr 28, 2026 · 47 MIN
SAMMY DAVIS JR. COOKED FOR US: The 1970s Sunset Strip Bust That Ended Everything
from H.O.G. POD: Chicagoland Hyper Local Music Scene · host HogPod Chicagoland's Hyper Local Music Chat
At 75, Debora Masterson is gigging on bass in Chicago — and her debut novel is about the Sunset Strip rocker she loved at 15, the federal drug bust that killed his band Freedom Quest, the bowl of chocolate mescaline on their coffee table, the Hawaii cult he joined when she left him, and the reunion thirty years later that became twenty beautiful years..Plus: the time Sammy Davis Jr. cooked dinner for the whole cast in his Chicago apartment with Jesse Jackson there, Debora warming up alone in a Lincoln Center rehearsal room when Mikhail Baryshnikov walked in, the bowl of chocolate mescaline on a Reseda living room coffee table at age 22, and how she finished her husband's book five and a half years after he passed..🎶 He Taught Me Bass — Hogpod Album #11 inspired by Debora's story:https://open.spotify.com/album/1ZRM23....🎯 KEY MOMENTS0:00 The love story tease — 1965, two kids, sex drugs rock and roll, Vietnam0:14 Why her story belongs in Chicago1:08 Meet Craig Ingraham — the real Mr. Jukebox1:46 Met at 15 and 18 — fake IDs in the San Fernando Valley4:01 Freedom Quest forms in 1973 — the monster band that almost made it4:48 The roadie was a fed — drug bust kills the band5:48 Grammy legend David Benoit's teenage start6:46 The bowl of mescaline on the living room table8:21 He vanished to Hawaii — and joined a cult9:30 Manson was in the Valley too9:57 Sammy Davis Jr. cooks for the cast (Jesse Jackson's surprise visit)13:30 Alone in a room with Baryshnikov17:00 North Beach Summer of Love (not stripper joints)22:00 The Catalina Island Chi-Chi Club summer23:00 Cat's Meow Supper Club, Fort Wayne, the road to Chicago29:30 He never made it to Chicago — he's here in spirit now40:09 The seizures that ended his music42:34 Where to buy Freedom Quest — Bookshop.org over Amazon46:33 Pop-Tarts, Valley Girl, gag me with a spoon46:35 The 420 surprise — a 75-year-old's viral reaction.📍 Chicago - Chicagoland - Music Memoir - Debut Novel - Sunset Strip - 1960s - 1970s - Freedom Quest - Sammy Davis Jr - Baryshnikov - North Beach - Catalina.🎤 Guest Links — Debora MastersonWebsite: deboramasterson.comBook on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0GQ573WV4Atmosphere Press: https://atmospherepress.com/books/fre...Bookshop.org: bookshop.org (search "Freedom Quest Debora Masterson")Craig Ingraham music: craigingraham.com/musicApple Music — Freedom Quest album: / freedom-quest .❤️ Support Hogpod — patreon.com/hogpod.Hosted by Pete Jansons and Mike "Bongo" Orfanos (Bongo Mike)..📞 Booking — [email protected] / 708-287-3692.#ChicagoMusic #ChicagolandMusicScene #DeboraMasterson #FreedomQuest #HeTaughtMeBass #CraigIngraham #ChicagoAuthor #ChicagoPodcast #MusicPodcast #HogpodMusicChat #DebutNovel #MusicMemoir #SammyDavisJr #SunsetStrip #BassPlayer
What this episode covers
At 75, Debora Masterson is gigging on bass in Chicago — and her debut novel is about the Sunset Strip rocker she loved at 15, the federal drug bust that killed his band Freedom Quest, the bowl of chocolate mescaline on their coffee table, the Hawaii cult he joined when she left him, and the reunion thirty years later that became twenty beautiful years..Plus: the time Sammy Davis Jr. cooked dinner for the whole cast in his Chicago apartment with Jesse Jackson there, Debora warming up alone in a Lincoln Center rehearsal room when Mikhail Baryshnikov walked in, the bowl of chocolate mescaline on a Reseda living room coffee table at age 22, and how she finished her husband's book five and a half years after he passed..🎶 He Taught Me Bass — Hogpod Album #11 inspired by Debora's story:https://open.spotify.com/album/1ZRM23....🎯 KEY MOMENTS0:00 The love story tease — 1965, two kids, sex drugs rock and roll, Vietnam0:14 Why her story belongs in Chicago1:08 Meet Craig Ingraham — the real Mr. Jukebox1:46 Met at 15 and 18 — fake IDs in the San Fernando Valley4:01 Freedom Quest forms in 1973 — the monster band that almost made it4:48 The roadie was a fed — drug bust kills the band5:48 Grammy legend David Benoit's teenage start6:46 The bowl of mescaline on the living room table8:21 He vanished to Hawaii — and joined a cult9:30 Manson was in the Valley too9:57 Sammy Davis Jr. cooks for the cast (Jesse Jackson's surprise visit)13:30 Alone in a room with Baryshnikov17:00 North Beach Summer of Love (not stripper joints)22:00 The Catalina Island Chi-Chi Club summer23:00 Cat's Meow Supper Club, Fort Wayne, the road to Chicago29:30 He never made it to Chicago — he's here in spirit now40:09 The seizures that ended his music42:34 Where to buy Freedom Quest — Bookshop.org over Amazon46:33 Pop-Tarts, Valley Girl, gag me with a spoon46:35 The 420 surprise — a 75-year-old's viral reaction.📍 Chicago - Chicagoland - Music Memoir - Debut Novel - Sunset Strip - 1960s - 1970s - Freedom Quest - Sammy Davis Jr - Baryshnikov - North Beach - Catalina.🎤 Guest Links — Debora MastersonWebsite: deboramasterson.comBook on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0GQ573WV4Atmosphere Press: https://atmospherepress.com/books/fre...Bookshop.org: bookshop.org (search "Freedom Quest Debora Masterson")Craig Ingraham music: craigingraham.com/musicApple Music — Freedom Quest album: / freedom-quest .❤️ Support Hogpod — patreon.com/hogpod.Hosted by Pete Jansons and Mike "Bongo" Orfanos (Bongo Mike)..📞 Booking — [email protected] / 708-287-3692.#ChicagoMusic #ChicagolandMusicScene #DeboraMasterson #FreedomQuest #HeTaughtMeBass #CraigIngraham #ChicagoAuthor #ChicagoPodcast #MusicPodcast #HogpodMusicChat #DebutNovel #MusicMemoir #SammyDavisJr #SunsetStrip #BassPlayer
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SAMMY DAVIS JR. COOKED FOR US: The 1970s Sunset Strip Bust That Ended Everything
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