In this episode, host Ken Womack talks to Don Dannemann and Pat McLoughlin of the American rock band, The Cyrkle. During the 1960s, the Cyrkle scored two Top 40 hits in "Red Rubber Ball" and "Turn-Down Day."

The band was formed by guitarists and lead singers Don Dannemann and Tom Dawes, who met while studying at Lafayette College. The group's big break came when they were discovered by attorney Nat Weiss, who recommend them to Brian Epstein, the famed manager of the Beatles. Produced by John Simon, the band's unique spelling of their name came at the behest of John Lennon. In 1966, they played 14 days as the opening act on the Beatles' final American tour, including the August 29th concert at San Francisco's Candlestick Park.

In 2014, the Cyrkle roared back to life after McLoughlin pursued the idea and with Dannemann having re-joined the group, the band continues to perform across the United States and will be a part of our 2026 "Everything Fab Four" Fest!

In this episode host Ken Womack talks to Brian Kehew and Kevin Ryan, acclaimed American audio historians, recording engineers, producers, and writers whose work has helped establish a definitive technical history of the Beatles' recording career. They are best known as the co-authors of Recording The Beatles. Originally published in 2006, it is an exhaustive, landmark study of the equipment, microphones, recording techniques, and studio practices that shaped the Beatles' music at Abbey Road. Their latest book is George Martin: The Scores, a three-volume collection reproducing Martin's handwritten orchestral manuscripts, including scores associated with songs such as "Yesterday" and "A Day in the Life," with a foreword by Paul McCartney.

In our Season 8 finale, host Ken Womack welcomes the incomparable, Grammy Award-winning "Queen of Percussion" Sheila E! They discuss how her growing up in a musical family with "the hippest parents in the world" led to her luminous career that included the hits "A Love Bizarre" and "The Glamorous Life," plus working with Prince, Ringo Starr and a host of other artists.