Why George Michael’s life is a movie plus Syd, Kirsty, Gorillaz & the worst album title ever

Why George Michael’s life is a movie plus Syd, Kirsty, Gorillaz & the worst album title ever

Author: Mark Ellen, David Hepworth and Alex Gold June 22, 2026 Duration: 58:09

Digging deep in the icebox of news to choose the following lightly chilled refreshments …

 

… 500 Miles, Wonderwall, Yes Sir I Can Boogie(?): what does it take to be a football anthem?

 

… Gorillaz brilliant reinvention of the “guest appearance”

 

… Jerry Dammers' father was the Dean of Bristol Cathedral? Siouxsie’s dad milked venom from snakes?

 

… Rod Stewart’s “laryngitis”- aka being on a private jet to watch Scotland play in Boston!

 

… how they’re celebrating Syd Barrett’s 80th

 

… the godawfullest album title in the entire history of popular music

 

… England 2 Colombia 0: Kirsty MacColl’s immaculate sense of melancholy

 

… Faux Fighters, Proxy Music, By Jovi: tribute bands aren’t lesser versions of the band you like but great versions of the songs you like

 

… the worst Boz Scaggs gig followed by the best

 

… teen fizz to chin-stroking introspection: the link between George Michael and the Beach Boys

 

… “Londoners like to feel they’re impossible to impress”

 

… plus 500 Hartlepool fans dressed as Smurfs and birthday guest Blaine Allan.

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There’s a particular kind of conversation about music that happens between friends who’ve spent a lifetime immersed in it-not as distant critics, but as participants in the culture. That’s the atmosphere you’ll find in Word In Your Ear, a podcast from Mark Ellen, David Hepworth, and Alex Gold. With a collective eighty years of writing and broadcasting for titles like Smash Hits and Mojo, and shows from "The Old Grey Whistle Test" to VH-1, they don’t just recount history; they unpack the stories behind it with the ease of a shared laugh. This podcast grew naturally from their work on the late, great magazine The Word, where they began recording over thirteen years ago, building a dedicated following who found something genuinely special in the mix. Each episode weaves together music, commentary, history, and interviews, moving seamlessly from deep-dive analysis of a seminal album to a frank chat with a surprising guest, all delivered with the warmth and wit of a late-night chat. It feels less like a formal show and more like you’ve been invited to pull up a chair in a room where the anecdotes are plentiful and the expertise is worn lightly. The result is a consistently engaging listen that treats music not as a museum piece but as a living, breathing part of our lives.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 50

Word In Your Ear
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