The True Tunes Podcast

John J. Thompson / True Tunes

We make no apologies here: Our goal is to help artists as they work to make the world a more beautiful and musical place, and to help grow audiences for those artists, both in scale and in depth. You might notice that our conversations with artists, producers, authors, and industry leaders are usually focused on those two main themes: artist and audience development. I experienced this first-hand for decades at the Cornerstone Festival – and I have dedicated my life to it for over forty years. And now, as an artist and author myself – and as a professor and director of music industry studies – helping the next generation of songwriters and artists find their way in this algorithmically addled environment is very close to my heart. I’m still here – working to make sense of it all right alongside everyone else. This is what we believe: We believe music is spiritually significant, not merely entertaining. All music participates in something larger than itself. We believe human curation is more valuable than algorithmic convenience. Trusted guides with great taste and earned judgment matter more than a machine that gives you more of what you already like. We believe gathering matters more than commerce, though commerce makes gathering possible. The transaction is credible because the curation is trustworthy. We believe countercultural conviction can be held without apology and without aggression. We know who we are. We are not interested in being popular in the wrong rooms. We believe the artist and the audience are equally sacred. The line between them nearly disappears when music is doing what it is supposed to do. The faith underneath all of it shows up in the questions we bring, not in the answers we insist on. We are a virtual – and occasionally real-life venue, not a feed, with lots of rooms to explore. A gathering place with human voices at the center -- asking what the work is doing to us, where it comes from, and why it matters. We still believe. So do you. Come join us.

  1. 1d ago

    True Tunes Connect - PILOT (Sheryl Crow Pt 1)

    Welcome to the PILOT EPISODE of True Tunes Connect, a new chapter in this continuing story that began back in 1989. Thirty years ago, I interviewed a freshly minted artist named Sheryl Crow for the pages of our old print magazine, True Tunes News, right as her first hit single was breaking. We had a feeling there was something deeper going on than "just having some fun." Turns out we were right. (Our Patreon members can find a digital reprint of that original article in their feed.)  For this pilot, we're dropping in on a private event recently held near Lipscomb University that we called "Wisdom From The Well", where one of my Music Industry Studies students, Abby Whitman, sat down to interview Sheryl herself. I open the show, then hand her the mic — and she did a better job of it than I did three decades ago. A note for longtime listeners: True Tunes Connect isn't the classic True Tunes Podcast, though it comes from the same place. These episodes run shorter — usually 15 to 20 minutes — built around two things we care about most: developing artists, and developing the audiences who need them. The long-form conversations you remember haven't gone anywhere; they'll surface from time to time as Special Features, and the full extended interview (including the rest of this Sheryl Crow conversation) is available to our Patreon members (and coming soon to our Substack subscribers) at Patreon.com/TrueTunes and TrueTunes.Substack.com. We will also continue to throw super-short "Microdose" episodes into the feed, along with some @45RPM specials. But True Tunes Connect is a wider, more comprehensive project we are developing to connect artists to the ideas, inspiration, and resources they need, and listeners to the artists they love. It's about artist - and audience - development and connection, with expressions that include the podcast, articles, workshops, books, and gatherings. You'll hear about it all - including our creed - here on the pilot and in upcoming episodes. Spread the word! Find photos, links, and more on the full Show Notes Page at TrueTunes.com/Connect-Pilot

  2. 11/26/2025

    The Roots, Rhythm, and Wisdom of Charlie Peacock

    We are back where we started, in more ways than one, with songwriter, artist, producer, and musician’s musician – Charlie Peacock. In this comprehensive conversation, recorded in person at Charlie’s home studio in Nashville, JJT and CP revisit his earliest days as a young musician in California. The release of his recent memoir, Roots and Rhythm, and an EP worth of previously unheard recordings from 1981 called The Kahne Sessions, frames this story of formation and transformation. We then follow the man as he becomes one of the most successful producers in the history of pop music. A special 30-minute Jukebox feature traces the evidence – from his earliest production work with The Choir and The 77s, to a Top 40 pop breakthrough, his discovery and launch of one of the great 90s alternative rock bands, and multiple Grammy Awards in the 2000s in the Americana and Folk space.   This may be our longest show yet (and it features over 60 musical cuts), but when considering the work of someone like Chuck, it seems more than fitting. His voice, both literally and as experienced through his piano, pen, and studio control board, has done as much to shape our concepts and imagination about the redemptive potential of art in a broken yet beautiful world as just about any other artist. So, sit back, relax, and let the words and the music wash over you as we give thanks for the gift that is Charlie Peacock.   If you want to support the show, please join our Patreon community or drop us a one-time tip and check out our MERCH!   For full show notes, (including a list of all of the songs used on this show,) photos, and more, visit TrueTunes.com/CP25 (coming soon)   Music List: Set 1 Watching Eternity Winsome Kelly Blues One Man Gets Around Charlie Peacock-Ashworth - Redbones In The Shadows John McLaughlin - Extrapolation Jeff Beck Group ft. Jan Hamme - Freeway Jam (Live) Scrappy Lil’ Cat We The People Dance 4 Me All Night (Afrobeat ’23) Jamming with Edward - The Boudoir Stomp Refuge of the Wild (f. Eric Harland, John Patitucci, Chris Potter & Marcus    Printup) Suddenly Big Man’s Hat (Live) Istanbul, Gate To Prosperity (ft. Jeff Coffin & WonderTwins)   Set 2 High Risk Casualty American Music Lie Down In The Grass (Bruce Neher STEM mix) Rhythm Girls Charlie Peacock Group - Motion Sickness (Last Vestiges of Honor) Charlie Peacock Group - No Magazines (Last Vestiges of Honor) Hot Night Downtown Vector - Running from the Light Charlie Peacock-Ashworth - Jude, as in Hey Jude Vector - Mannequin Virtue Congolesia I Will Need Your Help Iridium-2022-07-09-Demo-Mix   Set 3 Message Boy (Video remix) Experience Rainbow Motherfunk Monkeys at the Zoo Blue for You (ft. Eric Harland, John Patitucci, Chris Potter & Marcus Printup) This is How the Work Gets Done Sexy Chill Sway Beauty Left the Room Go Light, Go Free (ft. Turtle Island Quartet) One Small Pebble A Boy and His Dreams Whole Lot Different, Whole Lot the Same (Pandemic version, ft. Jimmy Abegg, Sam Ashworth, Brent Bourgeois, Eric Heilman, Michael Roe, Aaron Smith, Bongo Bob Smith and Roger Smith)   All songs credited to Charlie Peacock, except where noted.   Jukebox Playlist   77s Ba-Ba-Ba-Ba Caught In An Unguarded Moment Someone New You Don’t Scare Me   The Choir Fear Only You Render Love   Russ Taff Down in the Lowlands   Margaret Becker This Is My Passion The Hunger Stays Simple House All I Ever Wanted Soul Tattoo   Jimmy Abegg Entertaining Angels Touch of Love   Out of the Grey He Is Not Silent   Charlie Peacock Every Heartbeat (Live at 3rd & Lindsley)   Amy Grant Every Heartbeat   dc Talk In the Light   Aaron Smith Again and One Mo’ Time   Sarah Masen All Fall Down   Switchfoot Ode to Chin Dare You to Move   The Civil Wars If I Didn’t Know Better Poison & Wine Barton Hollow   Charlie Peacock Damnation   Charlie Peacock ft. Sam Ashworth & Ruby Amanfu Good Things   Charlie Peacock (ft. Brian Blade, Scott Mulvahill, Roger Smith & Jeff Coffin) Promise of Fellowship Kept   Also heard: Phil Keaggy - God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen Charlie Peacock - Blue for You (ft. Eric Harland, John Patitucci, Chris Potter & Marcus Printup) Charlie Peacock - 88 Tons of Awesome

    The Roots, Rhythm, and Wisdom of Charlie Peacock
  3. 10/17/2025

    @45RPM Charlie Peacock's "Kahne Sessions" (An Early 80s Time Capsule)

    Millions have been impacted by Charlie Peacock's Grammy Award-winning production and songwriting work. A smaller, but devoted group has been with him since his days as a Sacramento-based alternative pop artist and member of the progressive Exit Records scene. But very few have ever heard the work he did prior to his 1983 debut, Lie Down In The Grass, until now. On the heels of the release of his expansive and revealing memoir Roots and Rhythm, Peacock just dropped a never-before-heard collection of songs he recorded in 1980 and 81 with the legendary rock producer David Kahne (later named among the 500 most important Rock Producers by Rolling Stone for his work with Regina Spektor, The Bangles, Paul McCartney, Fishbone, Lana Del Rey, Springsteen, Tony Bennett, Stevie Nicks and others.) The Kahne Sessions reveals a young diamond in the rough, and on this special episode Charlie takes us back to those early days in his career and puts it all into context. And there is a LOT more where this comes from. This conversation, recorded in person in Charlie's home studio, covered everything from his earliest days as a musician, to the transformation sobriety and faith brought to his work, to concerns he has over the ways commodification, dehumanization, and artificial intelligence are impacting the way today's artists are engaging with the work. That will all be coming soon, but we wanted to get THIS part - celebrating the release of The Kahne Sessions out to you right away. Be sure to subscribe to the show on whichever platform you prefer so you don't miss a beat. And if you missed our very first episode - way back in 2019 - it featured none other than Charlie Peacock. You can find that show HERE. For more information, including a list of all of the songs used on this episode, visit the show notes page at TrueTunes.com/CPKahneSessions If you want to support the show, please join our Patreon community or drop us a one-time tip and check out our MERCH! Follow Charlie on Substack HERE: https://charliepeacock.substack.com/

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About

We make no apologies here: Our goal is to help artists as they work to make the world a more beautiful and musical place, and to help grow audiences for those artists, both in scale and in depth. You might notice that our conversations with artists, producers, authors, and industry leaders are usually focused on those two main themes: artist and audience development. I experienced this first-hand for decades at the Cornerstone Festival – and I have dedicated my life to it for over forty years. And now, as an artist and author myself – and as a professor and director of music industry studies – helping the next generation of songwriters and artists find their way in this algorithmically addled environment is very close to my heart. I’m still here – working to make sense of it all right alongside everyone else. This is what we believe: We believe music is spiritually significant, not merely entertaining. All music participates in something larger than itself. We believe human curation is more valuable than algorithmic convenience. Trusted guides with great taste and earned judgment matter more than a machine that gives you more of what you already like. We believe gathering matters more than commerce, though commerce makes gathering possible. The transaction is credible because the curation is trustworthy. We believe countercultural conviction can be held without apology and without aggression. We know who we are. We are not interested in being popular in the wrong rooms. We believe the artist and the audience are equally sacred. The line between them nearly disappears when music is doing what it is supposed to do. The faith underneath all of it shows up in the questions we bring, not in the answers we insist on. We are a virtual – and occasionally real-life venue, not a feed, with lots of rooms to explore. A gathering place with human voices at the center -- asking what the work is doing to us, where it comes from, and why it matters. We still believe. So do you. Come join us.

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