Rock N Roll Archaeology

A sober, chronological narrative of the tragic final day of John Lennon on December 8, 1980. This episode tracks Lennon's last hours, his final interview, and the chilling, parallel actions of his killer, Mark Chapman...

The show opens December 27th, 1961, at the Cavern Club where Pete Best calls in sick, and the boys bring in Richard Starkey - Ringo Starr to the world - to sit in on drums, his first paid gig with the Beatles. It clicks...

Arrival: we begin the show on February 7th, 1964, in the first-class cabin aboard Pan American Airlines Flight 101 from London to New York City. It’s a raucous, party atmosphere, but John Lennon, for a moment anyway...

Synopsis Rock N Roll Archaeology excavates the divergent paths of Elton John and John Lennon in the first half of the 1970s, a period where one man sprinted toward the brightest spotlight on Earth while the other...

In this episode of RNRA Digs Deeper, host Christian Swain sits down with veteran music journalist Selena Fragassi to excavate the history of one of modern rock's most significant acts: Pearl Jam. Delving into her...

Examining–and reconsidering–The Rocky Horror Picture Show. At the time, it was transgressive, outrageous; but now it seems a little bit tame. And…a bit problematic, when taken in a modern context. But it's still the...

Welcome to Rock N Roll Archaeology! This is a reboot of Episode One: The Precursors, originally released October 15, 2015. We updated and improved it some, and re-released it on November 4, 2020. ⁠Show Notes and...

Rock N Roll Archaeology (RNRA) presents "Southbound," an exploration of 1970s Southern Rock. Through detailed storytelling, RNRA chronicles The Allman Brothers Band, Duane Allman's impact, and their resilience with Eat...

Rock N Roll Archaeology explores the 1970s LA Sound, a world of sun-drenched harmonies and seismic ambition. From a bizarre funeral pact for Gram Parsons at the Troubadour to the rise of the Eagles from Linda Ronstadt's...

Dig into the archives for a conversation about John Lennon's five-year legal battle against the U.S. government's attempt to deport him. This episode explores the politically charged atmosphere of the early 1970s, where...

Dig into the archives for a conversation about John Lennon's five-year legal battle against the U.S. government's attempt to deport him. This episode explores the politically charged atmosphere of the early 1970s, where...

Progressive Rock reached its zenith during the early 1970s, a period often celebrated as the genre's golden age. This era of Prog Rock has inspired intense opinions—both positive and negative—that rival those of any...

We’re putting down a marker with this episode, and the follow-up: the highest highs and the lowest lows of the entire Rock Era occurred in 1969. It’s a year so big, we had to cut it in two, in order to serve it up...

Welcome back to the second half of our big chapter telling the big story of a big year in Rock. If you haven’t done so already, we highly recommend you listen to Episode 18 before you delve into this one! We tell the...

In 1985, a group of powerful "Washington Wives" led by Tipper Gore formed the PMRC to clean up rock and roll, sparking a culture war that culminated in a dramatic Senate hearing. This episode of ⁠Rock N Roll...

Episode Title: The Last Great Dream: Dennis McNally on the 1960s Counterculture, the Grateful Dead, and Its Lasting LegacyEpisode Summary:What if everything you thought you knew about the 1960s hippie movement and the...

Explore the power of myth with Drive-By Truckers' landmark album, Southern Rock Opera. This RNRA Short dissects how Patterson Hood and Mike Cooley used the legend of Lynyrd Skynyrd to confront "The Duality of the...

Synopsis The fuse was lit in 1966. Jeff Beck, Jimmy Page, John Paul Jones, and Keith Moon came together to record a proto-metal classic. After the session an offhand quip from Keith Moon sticks with Jimmy Page. Then we...

Rock N Roll as the First Draft Of History. We begin in the midwest college town of Kent, Ohio, in the late spring of 1970. We’ll meet three future rockers--students at Kent State University, barely out of their...

Host Christian Swain relaunches the interview show "Deeper Digs in Rock" on the Rock N Roll Archaeology feed! Initially focused on academics and journalists, the show plans to evolve into a LIVE, interactive panel...

For nearly 30 years, Randy Newman has been the musical voice behind Pixar’s most beloved films—Toy Story, Monsters Inc., Cars, and more—earning multiple awards and generations of fans. But beyond these nostalgic...

Glam rock was more than just a sound—it was a shift in how music, fashion, and identity intertwined. We explore the rise of Glam in the early ‘70s, with David Bowie as its central figure. Through alter egos like Ziggy...

In this special RNRA Short, we set our sights on Bob Dylan’s journey from scrappy young folksinger to the electric wonder who rocked the 1965 Newport Folk Festival. We’re talking about “A Complete Unknown,” James...

A deep dive into three iconic films that showcase Bruce Springsteen across fifty years in Rock N Roll. Wings for Wheels: The Making of Born to Run offers an intimate look at the painstaking creation of his...

Hey there, rock fans! In this Rock and Roll Archaeology Shorts we’re calling "The Politics of Dancing," I’m diving deep into how music and presidential campaigns have intersected through the years. From Bill Clinton’s...