Hey We're Back!

Blasts from the past, a new album, and a new-from-the-archives sketch."Venison-only Restaurant", "Books On Tape", and "Home For Re-enactors" were edited by Tom Snyder, Additional songs by Katz & JammersFeaturing: Melissa Galsky, Maggie Surovell, Phyllis Montalvo-Katz, my aunt Sylvie, Sidney Katz, Tom Leopold, Dean Olsher, Jon Benjamin, and Tom Snyder.Music by: Mike Shapiro, Billy Novick, and Guy Van DuserEditing and Mastering: Bryce Kanzer  Producer: Dana Friedman

Unbeknownst to me, over an hour of Garry Shandling's unique voice was living on my computer. Featuring: Garry Shandling, Laura SilvermanMusic by: Mike Shapiro, Billy Novick, and Guy Van DuserEditing and Mastering: Bryce Kanzer  Producer: Dana Friedman

It’s almost like a family reunion, but we’re not related. This is a great episode for Peeping Toms, and is dedicated to  Dr. Katz/ Bob’s Burgers voyeurs.Featuring: Jon Benjamin, Melissa Galsky, Eugene Mirman, and co-host Laura SilvermanMusic by: Mike Shapiro, Billy Novick, and Guy Van DuserEditing and Mastering: Bryce Kanzer  Producer: Dana Friedman

I've known Susie Essman and Joy Behar since I started doing comedy almost 6400 years ago.  Laura I join them for some candid conversation. We also have a session with my therapist Dr. Wendy Liebman who makes mental health hep again.Featuring:  Laura Silverman, Wendy Liebman, Joy Behar, Susie EssmanMusic by: Mike Shapiro, Billy Novick, and Guy Van DuserEditing and Mastering: Bryce Kanzer  Producer: Dana Friedman

Wonder how Dr. Katz came to be? Curious about animation? This episode is really about collaboration, luck, timing and perseverance.Featuring:  Loren Bouchard, Laura Silverman, Tom SnyderMusic by: Mike Shapiro, Billy Novick, and Guy Van DuserEditing and Mastering: Bryce Kanzer  Producer: Dana Friedman

My special guest for Episode 67 is Kevin Nealon. Not only is Kevin a brilliant comedian, he's also a funny guy. This episode begins with me in therapy with Dr. Wendy Liebman. The episode succeeds because of the presence of my Co-Host Laura Jane Silverman, a mischievous force in the world of comedy,Featuring:  Wendy Liebman, Laura Silverman, Kevin NealonMusic by: Mike Shapiro, Billy Novick, and Guy Van DuserEditing and Mastering: Bryce Kanzer  Producer: Dana Friedman

This is a ridiculous episode! Luckily Laura Silverman (who has been my co-host for more than twenty years) is there to explain to Andy Kindler that a lot of what I'm saying are jokes. And once again, she reminds me of what a superb actress she is.Also, I've gone to the technology edge of Abbreviated Therapy.Featuring: Wendy Liebman, Laura Silverman, and Andy KindlerMusic by: Mike Shapiro, Billy Novick, and Guy Van DuserEditing and Mastering: Bryce Kanzer  Producer: Dana Friedman

First as a therapist, and now as a patient.Featuring: Wendy Liebman, Subhah AgarwalMusic by: Mike Shapiro, Billy Novick, and Guy Van DuserEditing and Mastering: Bryce Kanzer  Producer: Dana Friedman

This is an episode artfully curated by Dana Friedman from my vast audio library. Featuring: Jonathan Wilson, Lewis Black, Maggie Surovell, Tom Snyder, Laura Silverman, Andy Kindler, Sarah Silverman, Sidney Katz, Dana Gould, Eugene Mirman, and Susie Essman.Music by: The Coasters, Tom Snyder, Mike Shapiro, Billy Novick, and Guy Van Duser, with  Steve Loeb, Tommy T-Bone Wolk, and Ross Levison on fiddle. Special Thanks to Colleen McGarr at Moontower Comedy Festival, and Bruce Smith at OmniPop.Editing and Mastering: Bryce Kanzer Producer: Dana Friedman

Comedian/Writer Lew Schneider and friends invite me to participate in one of the most difficult decisions comedian Amy Miller will ever have to make.Featuring: Mingo Reynolds, Lew Schneider, Amy Miller, Special Thanks to: Kelly Writers House at the University of PennsylvaniaEditing and Mastering:  Bryce Kanzer Produced by: Dana Friedman

Music was my first love, if you don’t count Susan Feinbloom Featuring: Kathy Griffin, Frank Morgan, Davina, Dean Olsher, David Cross, Bob Odenkirk, Erica Rhodes, Paula PoundstoneRecording by Jesse Novak, Jennifer Crowe, Tom SnyderMusic by: Frank Morgan, Macy Gray, Randy Newman, Jerry Lieber, Mike Stoller, James Taylor, T-Bone Wolk, Mike Shapiro, Billy Novick, Guy Van DuserSpecial Thanks to Amanda Aranchyk, WNYC,  Lisa Geduldig, Opticians Felix, Mike, Tom, and Julia, Park Avenue SynagogueMastering and Editing: Bryce Kanzer Producer: Dana Friedman

Bill Braudis, Brian Kiley, and the right number with Wendy LiebmanMusic by Mike Shapiro, Billy Novick, and Guy Van Duser (with Ross Levinson)Mastering and Editing: Bryce Kanzer  Producer: Dana Friedman

This episode was curated from the Hey We're Back archives by our producer Dana Friedman. It's some of my favorite work!Featuring:  Wendy Liebman, David Paymer,  Lisa Mendy, Lauren Dombrowski, Melissa Galsky, Myla Pitt, Mary Katherine Tucker, Ron Lynch, Katie Covett, Laura Silverman, Tom Snyder, Dom Irrera, and Bob Saget.Music by: Mike Shapiro, Billy Novick, and Guy Van Duser.Additional Music by: Katz and JammersSpecial Thanks to Leo Sayer, Colleen McGarr at Moontower Comedy Festival, and Bruce Smith at OmniPop.Editing and Mastering: Bryce Kanzer Producer: Dana Friedman.

Every once in a while somebody reminds me of why I'm in the comedy business. This happened with Randy and Jason Sklar.Featuring Randy Sklar, Jason SklarMusic by Mike Shapiro, Billy Novick, and Guy Van DuserMastering and Editing: Bryce Kanzer,  Producer: Dana Friedman

A long overdue reunion fraught with comedy, sincerity and mutual respect.Featuring Judy GoldMusic by Mike Shapiro, Billy Novick, and Guy Van DuserMastering and Editing: Bryce Kanzer,  Producer: Dana Friedman

We start off the episode with a Hey We're Back classic: "Holding For Miss Kiley".B.J. Novak shares an amazing high-school stunt, Marc Maron appears on Dr. Katz Live, in Austin, and I swap stories with Gianmarco Soresi.Featuring: Jane Brucker, Marc Maron, B.J. Novak, Jesse Novak, and Gianmarco Soresi Special Thanks to Colleen McGarr at Moontower Comedy Festival, and Bruce Smith at OmniPopMusic by Mike Shapiro, Billy Novick, and Guy Van Duser (with Ross Levinson)Mastering and Editing: Bryce Kanzer,  Producer: Dana Friedman.

Before comedy I had a series of odd jobs. Some of them bordered on illegal. None of them bordered on profitable.  Joining me today are Tom Snyder, Tom Leopold, Morgan Murphy, Erica Rhodes, Laura Silverman, H.Jon Benjamin and special guest Maria Bamford.Editor: "Toll Booth On The Block", "Venison-Only Restaurant", and "Death Row Diet": Tom SnyderSpecial Thanks to Colleen McGarr at Moontower Comedy Festival, and Bruce Smith at OmniPopMusic by Mike Shapiro, Billy Novick, and Guy Van DuserMastering and Editing: Bryce Kanzer,  Producer: Dana Friedman.

A heart-racing game show played by special guests: Erica Rhodes, Louis CK, and Newton, Massachusetts.Featuring: Jonathan Wilson, Wren Ross, Louis CK, Erica Rhodes.Game show music composed and performed by Bryce KanzerMusic by: Mike Shapiro, Billy Novick, and Guy Van DuserMastered and edited by: Bryce KanzerProducer: Dana Friedman

Getting to interview Sarah Silverman was like talking to a more attractive version of myself—much more attractive.  She would probably say the exact same thing about me.Featuring: Sarah Silverman, Garry Shandling , Andy Kindler,  Kim Ernst, Kelly Knap, Myla Pitt, John S. Ramsey,  Anna Tessler, Jenny Rem WalkerMusic by: Mike Shapiro, Billy Novick, and Guy Van Duser Melvin Butler (with The Frank Wilkins Band),Fiddle: Ross Levinson, Piano: Steve Loeb, Bass: Tommy T-Bone WolkMusic Published by Koberti MusicEditing and Mastering: Bryce KanzerProduced by: Dana Friedman

In this episode we are introduced to the superb comedy of Jon Dore, and the musical talent of the late Robin Williams. I call this episode "New Haven, The Birthplace of Valerie Velardi", who is my good friend and my connection to Robin Williams. And, if I can find her, you get to meet Harriet Macledermy.Produced by: Dana FriedmanMastered by Bryce KanzerMusic by: Mike Shapiro, Billy Novick, and Guy Van Duser

In this episode you hear me pitching movie ideas to a Hollywood producer with mixed results, trying to place a personal ad with mixed results, and flirting with a telephone operator. It all happens so quickly you might want to listen twice.Featuring: H. Jon Benjamin Produced by: Dana FriedmanEdited by Jonathan KatzMastered by Bryce KanzerMusic by: Mike Shapiro, Billy Novick, and Guy Van Duser

Featuring: Andy Kindler, Anna TesslerMusic by: Mike Shapiro, Billy Novick, and Guy Van DuserProduced by: Katie Shannon

In this episode, I discovered that by simply asking a tough question, I might reveal more to myself than to my audience.Featuring: Jon Benjamin and Eugene MirmanMusic by: Mike Shapiro, Billy Novick, and Guy Van DuserEdited and Produced by: Rob Lynch

In this episode I try and rely on luck and the enormous audio archive in my home. Sometimes it's the sound effects that win in the end.

This episode is about a guy who has been lucky enough to "succeed" in the restaurant business, in comedy, and to meet the late great Barry White.

For most people 411 are numbers. For me, it has become a way of life.Featuring: Lisa Mendy, Lauren Dombrowski, Melissa Galsky, Myla Pitt, Mary Katherine MycaMusic by: Mike Shapiro, Billy Novick, and Guy Van DuserAdditional Music by: Katz And JammersProduced by: Rob Lynch

Phone sex? I like the phone part. My guests are two real phone sex operators, Lewis Black, and a partridge in a pear tree.Featuring: Two phone-sex operators, The Coasters, Lewis BlackMusic by: Mike Shapiro, Billy Novick, and Guy Van DuserProduced by: Rob Lynch

This is an unedited recording of an event that took place in April at the Kelley Writers House at UPenn. There I was enjoying the hospitality of my good friend, Lew Schneider, and my new friend, Mingo Reynolds.(Also) Featuring: Amy Miller

“Assisted Living” is not as sexy as that sounds. I talk about my need for assistance and my need for an assistant with name recognition.Featuring: David Cross, Bob Odenkirk and Erica Rhodes.Music by: Mike Shapiro, Billy Novick, and Guy Van DuserProduced by: Rob Lynch

I make Andy Kindler an offer he can refuse, and together we discover the amateur inventor that is him.Featuring: Max Simon, Andy KindlerMusic by: Mike Shapiro, Billy Novick, and Guy Van DuserProduced and Edited by: Rob Lynch

In this episode, I talk about three ways in which I consider myself “gifted”: My ability to hear dead people, to write a catchy tune, and to invent the very thing we need to make our lives better. I also rely on the talent of Erica Rhodes and Rob Lynch. Hope you like it, and please subscribe to my podcast.Featuring: Erica RhodesGuitar accompaniment: Rob LynchMusic by: Mike Shapiro, Billy Novick, and Guy Van DuserProduced by: Rob Lynch

The first half of this episode deals with a really cheap way to make a voiceover demo, and the second half is road stories with a comic named Mark Schiff. Maybe I should call it road stories and how to record them. I think that works better.Featuring: Sam, Mark SchiffMusic by Mike Shapiro, Billy Novick, and Guy Van Duser

In this episode I turn the tables on some guy in tech support, I ask BJ Novak and Todd Barry about geography, we hear comedian Ken Reid, the band Parks, and a lot of really stupid stuff with the audience and then the show ends with a surprisingly Jewish twist.(Portions recorded live The Improv Boston, and (The Improv) Cambridge, MA)Featuring: Ken Reid, Tom Snyder, BJ Novak, Todd BarryMusic by Mike Shapiro, Billy Novick, and Guy Van DuserAdditional Music by: Perks, Tom Snyder (piano)Produced by: Jeff Parsons

A clip of musical guests Willa Mamet and Paul Miller performing their song Louisiana off their album East Hill Road.http://willamamet.bandcamp.com/album/east-hill-roadAlso.  Click here for a teaser to the upcoming show!

Special Guest Comedian Jenny Zigrino and Singer/Songwriter Frank Morgan.Featuring “Solid Ground” by Frank MorganClick HERE to see VIDEO from the show. 

Music by: Leo Sayer

I explore how some people use technology to keep other people at a distance. I take a look at the upside and downside of being placed on hold and I also return to my on-again off-again “affair” with phone sex.Featuring: Jenny Rem WalkerEdited by: Tom SnyderProduced by: Katie ShannonMusic by: Mike Shapiro, Billy Novick, and Guy Van Duser

In this episode I am talking to my good friend, comedian Paula Poundstone, and even though I am on the wrong side of this “argument” I can’t seem to stop myself.

I’ve been apologizing for my music for the last twenty years and I’m not planning to stop anytime soon.

Tweeting aloud.

In this episode I try to live up to three different ways I have challenged myself. One of them includes a massage from comedian David Feldman, a truly gentle man.

In this episode comedian, producer, and writer David Feldman takes a break from comedy. We also get to see a side of David, the loving son, that might surprise you.Featuring: David FeldmanMusic by: Mike Shapiro, Billy Novick, and Guy Van Duser

In Episode 34 two women let me down gently and one woman not so gently.Featuring: Rachel Simon, Two very patient women in the awards businessMusic by: Mike Shapiro, Billy Novick, and Guy Van DuserMastered by: Tim Dacey

In this episode I pose the question, “What would you do if you got a collect call from the Pope?” I ask whether it’s possible for a man to be too compassionate, and I talk to a woman who is serving a life sentence and has a surprisingly upbeat outlook.Featuring: Tom Leopold, Bernice, A Very Sad MicrochipMusic by: Mike Shapiro, Billy Novick, and Guy Van DuserProduced by: Tim Dacey

In this, the second episode of Season 3, I reveal the limitations of the web, and look into refinancing our home.Music by: Mike Shapiro, Billy Novick, and Guy Van DuserEdited by Tim Dacey

In episode 31 I make a live appearance courtesy of Eugene Mirman at the Paradise in Boston, I find myself, Jonathan Katz, in therapy with Dr. Katz and the episode features a special guest, Susie Essman who knows more about oral hygiene and men than any woman I have ever met.Featuring: Eugene Mirman, Susie EssmanAdditional Editing: Tom SnyderMusic Published by Koberti MusicFiddle: Ross Levison, Piano: Steve Loeb, Bass: Tommy T-Bone WolkProduced by Tim DaceyToday's episode was underwritten by Explosion Bus

In this episode I am trying to discover why my band, Katz and Jammers, never got the recognition it deserved. I also share a short clip from a romantic comedy I made (one of several) with the actress Jennifer Aniston.Music Published by Koberti MusicFiddle: Ross Levinson, Piano: Steve Loeb, Bass: Tommy T-Bone WolkProduced by Tim DaceyToday's episode was underwritten by Explosion Bus

The long anticipated 29th episode of “Hey We’re Back!” A talk about problems I don’t really have, and how they’re not really solved.Featuring: John S. Ramsey, Kelly Knap, Kim Ernst, and Myla Pitt Music: Mike Shapiro, Billy Novick, Guy Van Duser Melvin Butler (with The Frank Wilkins Band):Fiddle: Ross Levinson, Piano: Steve Loeb, Bass: Tommy T-Bone Wolk