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Celebrate the sounds of The Town with journalist Liam O’Donoghue, the host and producer of the popular local history podcast, East Bay Yesterday. Liam's show routinely covers the rich and underexplored tales of the East Bay's past, whether it's a deep dive into Emeryville's former "Rotten City" reputation, or a story about the long gone mass transit Key System that pre-dated BART and AC Transit. When he's not reporting on East Bay lore, Liam is also a music nerd and a DJ. In this episode he combines his love of history and music by taking us on an audio tour of Oakland's different musical eras through five special songs, spanning from mid-century West Coast jazz to warehouse party music.

Liam's Selections:

The Dave Brubeck Quartet - "Take Five"

Gene Russell - "Black Orchid"

Souls of Mischief - "'93 til Infinity"

Keak Da Sneak - "Super Hyphy (Thizz Remix)"

The Younger Lovers - "The Ballad of Two Stubborn Men"

Listen to these songs and so many more on Liam’s extended playlist of Oakland Jams!

Subscribe to East Bay Yesterday

As the co-host of "Forum" on KQED Public Radio and a writer for the Atlantic, journalist Alexis Madrigal often reports on big ideas and urgent stories that affect the Bay Area and the world. But in his spare time, he loves running, gardening, and 70’s funk and disco. In our latest episode, Alexis talks about a wide-ranging selection of five tunes he holds dear from his past and present—from P-Funk, to Norwegian Jazz, to Latin Hip-Hop. Along the way, we’ll learn about how his Dad’s record collection got him through his post-college malaise, the song that gets him in a book-writing mood, and his deep appreciation of music and art borne out of colonial occupation and resistance.

Alexis's Selections:

Funkadelic - "One Nation Under a Groove"

Gato Barbieri - "Encuentros"

Daniel Herskedal - "The Mistral Noir"

La Dame Blanche - "Veneno"

Thao & The Get Down Stay Down - "Temple"

Catch Alexis on KQED’s Forum

Listen to his Containers podcast series

Learn more about his forthcoming book

February 2024 marks five whole years since Bar Shiru first opened to the public, and this podcast simply wouldn't exist without the creative partnership of its owners, Dan Gahr and Shirin Raza Gahr. To mark this special occasion, we gathered a few Select Five friends and supporters to the bar and recorded our very first episode in front of a live audience! Listen to Dan and Shirin's conversation with Pam about the five songs that represent their five year journey since Bar Shiru launched in February 2019.

Shirin & Dan's Selections:

Herbie Hancock - “Maiden Voyage”

SAULT - “Wildfires”

A Tribe Called Quest, “Jazz (We’ve Got)”

Calvin Keys - “Shawn Neeq”

Vieux Farka Touré, Khruangbhin - "Tongo Barra"

Listen to these songs and many more on Dan & Shirin's 5-year anniversary playlist.

We're honored to kick off 2024 with the esteemed Cheryl Dunye, a world-renowned filmmaker and director of episodic television. Cheryl's work includes the groundbreaking 1996 film The Watermelon Woman, which is part of the permanent cinema collection at the Museum of Modern Art in NYC and was added to the Criterion Collection in 2023. She's also directed episodes of The Umbrella Academy, Bridgerton, and Queen Sugar, among many other shows. Born in Liberia and raised in Philly, Cheryl is now rooted in the Town’s vibrant filmmaking community, having founded Jingletown Films, an Oakland-based production company. Hear her talk about five of her favorite tunes of the moment, the emotional places they take her, and the big wide cinematic possibilities that music can open up.

Cheryl's Selections:

5. Joan Armatrading - "Cool Blue Stole My Heart"

4. Chilly Gonzales - "Gogol"

3. Elis Regina - "Upa, Neguinho"

2. Wildcookie - "Serious Drug (Instrumental Version)"

1. Pastor T.L. Barrett and the Youth for Christ Choir- "Like a Ship"

Learn more about Cheryl's work and Jingletown Films here

We made it through another challenging year and we couldn't be happier! From forced career changes to grieving the death of a pet, 2023 was a real struggle. But now that it's mostly in the rear view mirror, we can look back fondly at some of the musical highlights that kept us afloat.

Brian's Selections:

5. Unknown Mortal Orchestra - "Nadja"

4. El Michaels Affair + Black Thought - "The Weather"

3. The Beatles - "For No One"

2. Muddy Waters - "She’s Alright"

1. De La Soul - "Trying People"

Kate's Selections:

5. Electric Light Orchestra - "Mr. Blue Sky"

4. Sylvan Esso - "Ferris Wheel"

3. Olivia Rodrigo - "bad idea right?"

2. L’Imperatrice - "Fou"

1. Kate & GAHR (aka, Daniel Gahr) - "Untitled07"

Pam's Selections:

5. De La Soul - "Simply"

4. Buscrates - Control Center (album)

3. Sessa - "Sereia Sentimental"

2. Quantum Criminals: Ramblers, Wild Gamblers, and Other Sole Survivors from the Songs of Steely Dan (book) by Alex Pappademas & Joan Lemay + "My Old School" (song)

1. Antonio Carlos Jobim - "Aguas de Março (Waters of March)"

Listen to our 2023 Year Ender companion playlist, including all of the songs we discussed + others we loved this year Subscribe to The Creative Commonwealth Substack

How do you turn a song into a scent? And what does music teach us about scent-making and its history? We take a deep dive into these questions with Saskia Wilson-Brown, whose mission is to disrupt, decolonize, and democratize perfumery. Saskia, who is Bay Area-bred, is the founder and executive director of the Institute for Art and Olfaction in Los Angeles, a nonprofit art studio that makes perfumery accessible to all. Listen as she takes us on an aromatic journey through five songs that relate to fragrance-making and its global origins, modern scent practies, and the complex world of naturals versus synthetics.

Saskia's Selections:

1.) Omar Souleyman- "Warni Warni"

2.) Charles Trenet - "La Mer"

3.) MC Solaar - "Nouveau Western"

4.) Otis Redding - "Cigarettes and Coffee"

5.) Mort Garson - “Symphony for a Spider Plant"/Mother Earth's Plantasia

For further listening, check out Saskia's playlist.

Check out Saskia's podcast, Perfume On The Radio