The Art of Longevity

The Art of Longevity

Author: The Song Sommelier Language: English Episodes: 95
The Art of Longevity, hosted by The Song Sommelier, sits at the crossroads of music, history, and the often-unseen business behind it. This isn't a typical interview podcast; it's a series of candid, in-depth dialogues with artists who have built careers spanning decades. Each conversation explores the real journey-how these musicians have weathered the industry's constant shifts, creative droughts, and commercial pressures to not just survive, but to continue evolving and connecting with audiences. We get into the specifics: the collaboration that saved a career, the business decision that changed everything, the fanbase that grew quietly over years. The discussions move fluidly between past triumphs, current projects, and future ambitions, always grounded in the artist's personal definition of success. It's about the resilience required to make art for a lifetime. Tune in for these uniquely honest reflections on what it truly means to last.
Episodes
The Art of Longevity Season 2, Episode 5: Mew [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 41:18
If one of the secrets to longevity in the music industry is simply taking your time, then Danish alternative rock band Mew are grand masters. Formed in 1995, the band took eight years before a major label deal came along…
The Art of Longevity Season 2, Episode 4: Los Lobos [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:00:28
When I sat down with Steve Berlin, the Los Lobos sax player and de facto spokesperson, I was a little more than intrigued. To most people around the world - outside of North America anyways - Los Lobos remain the La Bamb…
The Art of Longevity Season 2, Episode 3: Fink [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:09:06
On The Art of Longevity, Fin Greenhall explained the ideas behind Fink's new project IIUII: an acoustic retrospective of some of the band's (and fans) favourite, biggest songs. “I’m a better singer now than I was in 2005…
The Art of Longevity Season 2, Episode 2: Barenaked Ladies [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 54:43
Is it possible to make your best record 33 years into a career? That’s what may just have happened with Canadian legends Barenaked Ladies and their 2021 release Detour De Force. The album covers most of BNL’s styles (i.e…
The Art of Longevity Season 2, Episode 1: KT Tunstall [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 47:38
On the Art of Longevity Series II, Episode One, KT Tunstall tells me that albums can feel like a ‘flash in the pan’ despite all the work that goes into them. But albums like Wax (her latest, from 2018) will stick around…
The Art of Longevity Episode 7: The Coral, with James Skelly [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 51:36
The Coral is a band revered on the music scene - a real artist’s band. They are very accomplished musicians who first got together at school in the small Wirral town of Hoylake. The band members bonded over their many mu…
The Art of Longevity Episode 6: Maximo Park, with Paul Smith [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:09:09
Music critics have tried to classify the music made by North East England’s Maximo Park for the past two decades, eventually converging on the term ‘art pop’. Yet Paul Smith, the band’s singer and main co-songwriter (wit…
The Art of Longevity Episode 5: James, with Tim Booth [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:02:18
When you’ve been getting away with it as a seven piece band for nearly four decades, with 22 albums behind you - something’s got to give when it comes to longevity. Especially when, in the case of James and Tim Booth, yo…
The Art of Longevity Episode 4: Gary Numan [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:02:56
Success came relatively quickly to Gary Numan, when his single ‘Are ‘Friends’ Electric?’ rose to the top of the UK charts in May 1979. Without a chorus and clocking in at nearly five and a half minutes, it was an unlikel…
The Art of Longevity Episode 3: Laura Veirs [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 50:26
There’s no such thing as a critical review for any of Laura Veirs' 11 albums. But how does Laura measure her own success? The answer is, she doesn’t stop to think about it, much. Instead, as one project gets done, she’s…