Travel back to Northern California of the mid 1960s with a young teenage girl writing poems in her bedroom after enduring countless moves across the country with her family. From a succession of menial jobs to support herself and her guitarist boyfriend Lindsey Buckingham to a strange twist that catapults her to becoming a mystical, fierce, powerful song writer fronting one of the top bands of the 1970s. Stevie Nicks has faced serious personal challenges, the kind that could have ended the dreams of many, yet now stands as a two-time Rock & Roll Hall of Famer with over 150 million albums sold. You'll learn:

• How Stevie's musician grandfather formed a musical act with a 5-year-old Stevie
• How Stevie and Lindsey actually met
• The fateful incident that led to Stevie and Lindsey joining Fleetwood Mac
• Her unsuccessful attempt to leave Fleetwood Mac to join another famous band
• How one of her biggest hits was given as a gift to her
• How she overcame her torturous battle with various drugs

Episode Guest
Zoë Howe is a writer, broadcaster, musician and artist. She is the author of the biography Vision, Dreams & Rumours: A Portrait of Stevie Nicks. She is an acclaimed music journalist who has written books on a variety of performers. She joins us from the UK.

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One of the most astonishing transformations in music history began with an earnest, bespectacled pianist named Reginald Kenneth Dwight — a shy kid who dreamed of writing songs for others. Our guest will take us inside that dream that took an unexpected turn when he reinvented himself as Elton John - a name that would soon be synonymous with spectacle, melody, and superstardom - releasing a run of number one albums that redefined pop and rock music.

In this episode, you’ll learn:
- How Elton never intended to be a stage performer at all — his plan was to write songs for others
- The unlikely and almost accidental origins of his ultimate songwriting partner
- How his very first American concert drew a dozen rock legends into the audience
- A deep, inside look at the classic albums that made him unstoppable
- The artists who shaped his sound, his showmanship, and his fearless stage persona
- And how he evolved into a master of the modern soundtrack — from Broadway to Hollywood

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Guest Biography
Gillian Garr, author of Elton John, Captain Fantastic on the Yellow Brick Road. She's written extensively on music for a variety of publications, including Rolling Stone, Mojo and Goldmine. Gillian is the author of over 15 music biography books, including books on Green Day, Nirvana, Jimi Hendrix and the history of women in rock and roll. She joins us from Seattle.

This special episode dives into one of the most pivotal moments in rock history. With a new Bruce Springsteen biopic hitting theatres this month, we uncover the real story behind the making of an epic album — and the desperate fight to save his career. It’s 1974...after two critically acclaimed but commercially disappointing albums, Bruce Springsteen is on the brink of being dropped by Columbia Records. Cornered by doubt and haunted by his past, he pushes himself, his band, and his producers to the breaking point — all in pursuit of the sound that would define him.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

• The backstory of his troubled childhood and how it affected him for life
• The complicated dichotomy that is Bruce's internal conflict for his entire career
• How the songs Born to Run, Jungleland and others evolved substantially in the studio
• The hidden meanings and themes of key songs on the album
• A surprising reveal about the album's underlying theme
• The key role of a 22-year-old Born to Run studio sound engineer who would go to become a billionaire

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Guest Bio
Today we'll explore the making of the landmark album Born to Run with Bruce insider Peter Ames Carlin, author of the recently released Tonight in Jungleland: The Making of Born to Run, which has already become a New York Times bestseller. Peter was on our previous episodes on the Story of R.E.M. and Story of Bruce Springsteen. He's also written definitive biographies on Paul McCartney and Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys.