Roxy Music's Phil Manzanera on his new memoir

In this episode of Reading Is Funktamental, we are joined by Brad Tolinski and Chris Gill, authors of the new biography on one of guitar’s true greats, Blow by Blow: The Jeff Beck Story. With his shag haircut and white Stratocaster guitar, Jeff Beck was an icon known and loved by millions. Yet somehow, he maintained the ineffable low-profile cool of a cult hero as he glided through six decades of musical trends with nary a lapse in taste. Not to say he ever played it safe. What other guitarist can claim to have performed with opera star Luciano Pavarotti, mainstream television personality Kelly Clarkson, and professional degenerates like Guns N' Roses with equal grace and wit? Or as Beck himself once quipped, “I'm an awkward son of a bitch when it comes to doing the expected.” In Blow by Blow: The Jeff Beck Story​, Brad Tolinski and Chris Gill return to chart the unexplored life of rock's greatest and perhaps most enigmatic instrumentalist. Drawing on about 30 hours of interviews with the late guitarist, plus conversations with those closest to him and extensive research, the book sheds new light on the genius Jimmy Page once said: “shifted the whole sound and face of electric guitar music.” For more, read my print review of this book over at PopMatters, https://www.popmatters.com/jeff-beck-tolinski-gill "Reading is Funktamental" is a monthly, one-hour podcast and radio show about great books on music and music-makers. Each episode, host Sal Cataldi speaks with authors of some of the best reads on rock, jazz, punk, world, experimental music, and more. From time to time, the host and authors will be joined by notable musicians, writers, and artists who are die-hard fans of the subject matter covered. Expect lively conversation and a great playlist to go with it. "Reading Is Funktamental" airs the second Wednesday of every month from 10–11 AM on Wave Farm: WGXC 90.7 FM and online at wavefarm.org. You can also find it as a podcast on Apple, Spotify, and other platforms. Sal Cataldi is a musician and writer based in Saugerties. He is best known for his genre-leaping solo project, Spaghetti Eastern Music, and is also a member of the ambient guitar duo Guitars A Go Go, the poetry and music duo Vapor Vespers, and the quartet Spaceheater. His writing on music, books, and film has appeared in The New York Times, Rolling Stone, PopMatters, Seattle Times, Huffington Post, Inside+Out Upstate NY, and NYSMusic.com, where he reviews books.

Guest: Melissa Auf der Maur, musician, photographer, author of Even the Good Girls Cry: A ‘90s Rock Memoir and My ‘90s Rock Photographs In this episode of Reading Is Funktamental, we are joined by musician, photographer, and author Melissa Auf der Maur. Originally hailing from Montreal and currently a Hudson, NY resident, Melissa is the force behind the Basilica Hudson art and performance space. She is here today to discuss her two acclaimed memoirs, which trace her life from her early years in bohemian Montreal to the exciting and oftentimes psychotic days playing with Courtney Love and Hole, The Smashing Pumpkins, and her own solo career. For more on her written memoir, see my review over at https://www.popmatters.com/hole-melissa-auf-der-maurs-memoir "Reading is Funktamental" is a monthly one-hour podcast and radio show about great books written about music and music-makers. In each episode, host Sal Cataldi speaks to the authors of some of the best reads about rock, jazz, punk, world, experimental music, and much more. From time to time, the host and authors will be joined by notable musicians, writers, and artists who are die-hard fans of the subject matter covered. Expect lively conversation and a playlist of great music to go with it. "Reading Is Funktamental" can be heard the second Wednesday of every month from 10 – 11 AM on Wave Farm: WGXC 90.7 FM and online at wavefarm.org. It is also available as a podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and other platforms. Sal Cataldi is a musician and writer based in Saugerties. He is best known for his work with his genre-leaping solo project, Spaghetti Eastern Music, and is also a member of the ambient guitar duo Guitars A Go Go, the poetry-and-music duo Vapor Vespers, and the quartet Spaceheater. His writing on music, books, and film has been featured in The New York Times, Rolling Stone, PopMatters, Seattle Times, Huffington Post, Inside+Out Upstate NY, and NYSMusic.com, where he is the book reviewer.

In this episode of Reading Is Funktamental, we are joined again by Richie Unterberger, one of the most productive and insightful authors of rock history books, to discuss his latest, a complete history of the Velvet Underground. Blending new archival insights and first-hand accounts, Richie Unterberger illuminates the band’s radical global impact on New York’s progenitors of punk, who bridged pure rock’n’roll, avant-garde experimentation and literary songwriting to take rock music into previously uncharted territory. Beginning with each member’s path to the band, it details their influences, successes and (many) failures, the whirlwind with Warhol, the triumph of the Banana album, the fractured and strained relationships and egos, and beyond to the end of the Velvets and the beginnings of various solo careers. Rigorously researched and packed with previously undocumented insights, this book features first-hand interviews with the group’s associates, substantial material newly unearthed from the Lou Reed Archive and the Andy Warhol Archive, and never-before-seen images and ephemera. An entertaining and exhilarating narrative, Do What You Fear Most vividly captures the grit and uninhibited creativity of the 1960s New York cultural scene and is an essential portrait of one of the 20th century’s most visionary and influential bands. For more, read my review of this great book over at PopMatters: https://www.popmatters.com/velvet-underground-richie-unterberger "Reading is Funktamental" is a monthly one-hour podcast and radio show about great books written about music and music-makers. In each episode, host Sal Cataldi speaks to the authors of some of the best reads about rock, jazz, punk, world, experimental music, and much more. From time to time, the host and authors will be joined by notable musicians, writers, and artists who are die-hard fans of the subject matter covered. Expect lively conversation and a playlist of great music to go with it. "Reading Is Funktamental" can be heard the second Wednesday of every month from 10 – 11 AM on Wave Farm: WGXC 90.7 FM and online at wavefarm.org. It is also available as a podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and other platforms. Sal Cataldi is a musician and writer based in Saugerties. He is best known for his work with his genre-leaping solo project, Spaghetti Eastern Music, and is also a member of the ambient guitar duo Guitars A Go Go, the poetry-and-music duo Vapor Vespers, and the quartet Spaceheater. His writing on music, books, and film has been featured in The New York Times, Rolling Stone, PopMatters, Seattle Times, Huffington Post, Inside+Out Upstate NY, and NYSMusic.com, where he is the book reviewer.

In this episode of Reading Is Funktamental, we head back in time to discuss a true classic of jazz and jazz journalism. The fascinating life and legacy of the great jazz artist Rahsaan Roland Kirk, with John Kruth, the author of this first and most complete biography, Bright Moments: The Life and Legacy of Rahsaan Roland Kirk (2000). Bright Moments is the story of a truly neglected genius who eclipsed jazz itself. Rahsaan Roland Kirk was a one-of-a-kind musician and human being. As some of you may know, Rahsaan played two or three saxophones at a time and developed a unique breathing system, which some call circular breathing or spherical breathing, one that allowed him to play continuous, nonstop solos that mesmerized audiences everywhere. He was also fantastic on the clarinet and flute (with a breathy, vocalized technique that enormously influenced Jethro Tull’s Ian Anderson). A blind musician, Kirk played the history of jazz, or what he called “black classical music,” from the roots to the fruits, recorded over 35 records, and extensive tours. In this wonderful biography, Kruth interviewed his peers, friends, band members, widow, and doctor. They include Quincy Jones, Sonny Rollins, Grover Washington, Ken Kesey, Allen Ginsberg, Eric Burdon, and Ian Anderson, to name a few. Find out why Rahsaan was called by Jimi Hendrix his “favorite musician” "Reading is Funktamental" is a monthly one-hour podcast and radio show about great books written about music and music-makers. In each episode, host Sal Cataldi speaks to the authors of some of the best reads about rock, jazz, punk, world, experimental music, and much more. From time to time, the host and authors will be joined by notable musicians, writers, and artists who are die-hard fans of the subject matter covered. Expect lively conversation and a playlist of great music to go with it. "Reading Is Funktamental" can be heard the second Wednesday of every month from 10 – 11 AM on Wave Farm: WGXC 90.7 FM and online at wavefarm.org. It can also be found as a podcast on Apple, Spotify, and other platforms. Sal Cataldi is a musician and writer based in Saugerties. He is best known for his work with his genre-leaping solo project, Spaghetti Eastern Music, and is also a member of the ambient guitar duo, Guitars A Go Go, the poetry and music duo, Vapor Vespers, and the quartet, Spaceheater. His writing on music, books, and film has been featured in The New York Times, Rolling Stone, PopMatters, Seattle Times, Huffington Post, Inside+Out Upstate NY, and NYSMusic.com, where he is the book reviewer.

In this episode of Reading Is Funktamental, we discuss the fascinating life of a true NYC music original, Brian Cullman, author of How to Prepare for the Past: Travels in Music & Times. New Yorker Brian Cullman is a true rock ‘n roll Zelig. Like the character from the Woody Allen film of the same name, Cullman has built friendships with a remarkable array of figures central to the past six decades of popular music, from Ed Sullivan, Lester Bangs, and Big Joe Turner to Joe Boyd, Bill Laswell, and the Master Musicians of Jajouka. Cullman’s memories and adventures with this cast of noteworthy and often outlandish characters form the core of his entertaining new memoir, How to Prepare for the Past: Travels in Music & Time (Ze Books). Cullman’s meetings with these names are presented in 37 concise, vivid vignettes over just 250 pages. I quickly devoured these highly readable snippets of life, music, and travel within about 48 hours. For more details, see the review I penned for NYSMusic.com https://nysmusic.com/2026/04/06/brian-cullmans-memoir-of-a-rock-n-roll-zelig/ "Reading is Funktamental" is a monthly one-hour podcast and radio show about great books written about music and music-makers. In each episode, host Sal Cataldi speaks to the authors of some of the best reads about rock, jazz, punk, world, experimental music, and much more. From time to time, the host and authors will be joined by notable musicians, writers, and artists who are die-hard fans of the subject matter covered. Expect lively conversation and a playlist of great music to go with it. "Reading Is Funktamental" can be heard the second Wednesday of every month from 10 – 11 AM on Wave Farm: WGXC 90.7 FM and online at wavefarm.org. It can also be found as a podcast on Apple, Spotify, and other platforms. Sal Cataldi is a musician and writer based in Saugerties. He is best known for his work with his genre-leaping solo project, Spaghetti Eastern Music, and is also a member of the ambient guitar duo, Guitars A Go Go, the poetry and music duo, Vapor Vespers, and the quartet, Spaceheater. His writing on music, books, and film has been featured in The New York Times, Rolling Stone, PopMatters, Seattle Times, Huffington Post, Inside+Out Upstate NY, and NYSMusic.com, where he is the book reviewer.