Episode 108: Don Cheadle, Shredding History, and Speculoos
This week: Actor Don Cheadle (“The Guard”) kisses and doesn’t tell… Music history gets a blast to the eardrums… And Rico discovers the best waffle topping you’ve never heard of. Plus, an uncool joke from Emma Straub, and new old soul from The Shakes.
Icebreaker: Emma Straub Emma Straub, author of the acclaimed story collection Other People We Married, serves up a cheesy joke that burns the cool.
Small Talk: Rate Your Priest Richard Lawson, staff writer for Gawker.com, tells us about a website that lets users cast judgement upon a special group of service providers.
A History Lesson with Booze: The Electric Guitar & an “Electric Lemonade” This week in 1937, lap-steel guitarist George Beauchamp and partner Adolph Rickenbacker patented the modern electric guitar, laying the foundations for ear-splitting rock ‘n’ roll, youth revolutions, and holding up your lighter during a power ballad. Toast the greatest invention ever with this amped-up take on a cocktail standard:
“The Electric Lemonade (Variation),” as mixed by Megan Jones of Crosby Restaurant in Santa Ana, CA - home of Rickenbacker HQ:
In a chilled highball glass add:
- 1.25 oz. vodka
- .5 oz. St-Germain Elderflower liquor
- .25 oz. freshly-squeezed lemonade
- splash of soda water or ginger ale
Sip, pump fist, bang head. Repeat ‘til deaf.
BONUS AUDIO: FIRST ELECTRIC GUITAR RECORDING! Gage Brewer, a small-time performer from Northwest Oklahoma, picks away at electrified Hawaiian and Spanish-style Rickenbackers in a home recording from 1932. Gage was the first musician ever to play live with an electric guitar — his “Frying Pan” sits proudly at the Wichita-Sedgwick County Historical Museum, and the only copy of this 78-rpm belongs to local Scott Kern. He generously gave us permission to listen in on an excerpt:
Guest of Honor: Don Cheadle
Don Cheadle is equally at-home in Oscar-winning dramas (Hotel Rwanda, Crash), and summer fare like Iron Man 2 and the Ocean’s 11 series. So it shouldn’t come as a total surprise that his new film The Guard (rolling out this month) takes him into more uncharted terrain - a pitch-black cop comedy set in rural western Ireland. Don tells Brendan about Brendan’s greatness (!), the subtle perks of celebrity, and Cobalt.
Main Course: Letting Loose Speculoos L.A. waffle shop Shaky Alibi serves a sweet Belgian topping called “Speculoos” that Rico says is the most delicious thing that ever happened to fried carbs. The spread — increasingly popular (and controversial) in Europe — is still a specialty item in the U.S. Shaky Alibi owner R.J. Milano explains why that’ll likely change… and why he can’t always keep the stuff in stock.
One For The Road: The Shakes! - “You Ain’t Alone” Unsigned Athens, AL outfit The Shakes! (Update 4/10/12: now very much signed and better known as Alabama Shakes) embrace the old-school soul sound so completely you’d swear their songs were recorded decades ago. But the band’s sensitive lyrics and surprising arrangements are totally 21st-century. Slow-burning barnstormer “You Ain’t Alone” features the Otis Reddingesque wails of frontlady Brittany Howard — best heard on a hot summer night after the last dance.
Music On This Week’s Show:
Sea & Cake - “The Argument”
Aphex Twin - “Girl/Boy Song”
Tipsy - “Liquordelic”
Andy Iona & His Islanders - “Maui Girl”
Replicants - “Are ‘Friends’ Electric?”
Dogs Die in Hot Cars - “Celebrity Sanctum”
Butterglory - “Fight Fight Fight”
The Shakes! - “You Ain’t Alone”




What? You interview Don Cheadle about being in an Irish comedy and you don’t ask him about doing the accent??
08/11/11 10:03 AM
He plays an American. In the clip featured in this interview, he’s the guy who doesn’t have an Irish accent.
Gagliano’s humor is just great! The skillful mix of irony and satire is very appreciated.