The Chills at Will Podcast

Notes and Links to Alex Pappademas’s Work     Alex Pappademas is the Senior Culture Editor of GQ. He has been writing about music, film, television and other forms of popular culture for over 20 years. He is the author of Keanu Reeves: Most Triumphant— The Movies and Meaning of an Irrepressible Icon (2022, Abrams Image) and the coauthor, with Joan LeMay, of Quantum Criminals: Ramblers, Wild Gamblers, and Other Sole Survivors From the Songs of Steely Dan (2023, University of Texas Press). His work has also appeared in The New York Times Magazine, the Los Angeles Times, and Grantland. He is based in Los Angeles.    Buy Friends of the Devil: West Texas Cowboys, Brown-Eyed Women, and Other Sunshine Daydreamers from the Songs of the Grateful Dead   Alex Pappademas' Page with GQ   Review of Friend of the Devil with Biblio Sanctum     At about 2:30, Alex talks about the “apprehension” and “excitement level” that comes with his book publication and highlights the wonderful physical book with art by Joan LeMay At about 5:50, Alex lays out his book tour events At about 7:25, Alex outlines his early reading, and how his interest in music and criticism propelled him forward as a writer At about 11:10, Steely Dan and The Band debate and shout outs! At about 14:50, Pete cites the interconnectedness of the “Great American Songbook” and how adroitly Alex covered this in his book At about 15:50, The two discuss an incredible scene involving Bob Dylan and Stevie Wonder and Bob Dylan’s possibly apocryphal stories  At about 20:00, Alex responds to Pete’s asking about what made him a Grateful Dead fan after initially sneering at the band At about 23:20, Alex talks about getting into the Grateful Dead “communally” until later in their modern run and how he heard so much Grateful Dead via archives At about 27:00, Pete cites the book’s epigraph and those who are yet to explore the Grateful Dead At about 28:00, Pete cites the book’s first chapter and ideas of travel and being on the road, involving “Bertha” and so many songs, and Alex expands on the "ambiguity" of Jerry Garcia versus lyrics of Robert Hunter’s less so At about 32:20, The two talk about the Grateful Dead’s “Dark Star” and its history as a “jam” At about 33:20, Alex highlights looping and layering in music and how John Oswald’s album helped solidify his Grateful Dead fandom At about 36:40, Alex expands on the ways in which so many different musical groups and movements have been influenced by The Grateful Dead  At about 43:00, Alex responds to Pete’s questions about the ethos of the Dead and their reactions to tragedies that unfolded around the band and its fans At about 47:00, Alex homes in on the Dead, especially Jerry, and their drug use and the effects of the drugs At about 51:35, Pete connects the Dead’s hesitancy to tell others what to do to a classic scene from The Simpsons At about 54:15, The two reflect on an iconic and heartbreaking photo that is featured in the book and is the genesis of an iconic American and Dead song-”I Know You Rider” At about 56:10, Pete highlights the skillful ways in which Friend of the Devil… traces the history of The Dead and América in the 20th century At about 57:10, Pete wonders about the political leanings of The Dead, and Alex cites a lot of “ambivalence” At about 1:03:20, Pete gives props to Alex for his writing in Friend of the Devil… as both personal and not  At about 1:04:00, Pete fanboys over Alex’s great run as writer of “The Kardashiad”        You can now subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts, and leave me a five-star review. You can also ask for the podcast by name using Alexa, and find the pod on Stitcher, Spotify, and on Amazon Music. Follow Pete on IG, where he is @chillsatwillpodcast, or on Twitter, where he is @chillsatwillpo1. You can watch other episodes on YouTube-watch and subscribe to The Chills at Will Podcast Channel. Please subscribe to both the YouTube Channel and the podcast while you’re checking out this episode.       Pete is very excited to have one or two podcast episodes per month featured on the website of Chicago Review of Books. The audio will be posted, along with a written interview culled from the audio. His conversation with Jeff Pearlman, a recent guest, is up now at Chicago Review.     Sign up now for The Chills at Will Podcast Patreon: it can be found at patreon.com/chillsatwillpodcastpeterriehl      Check out the page that describes the benefits of a Patreon membership, including cool swag and bonus episodes. Thanks in advance for supporting Pete’s one-man show, DIY podcast and extensive reading, research, editing, and promoting to keep this independent podcast pumping out high-quality content!    This month’s Patreon bonus episode is the second episode for Pete’s limited podcast series, Rage is a Gift: Evil Empire at 30. Pete reflects on the Importance (and the power of this capital "I") of Rage Against the Machine and their seminal Evil Empire album, which is celebrating 30 years of resistance. The episode focuses on the opening track, “People of the Sun.” The limited podcast series will do a deep exploration of, and reflection on, the lyrics and context of each of the 12 powerful songs on the album.     Pete has added a $1 a month tier for “Well-Wishers” and Cheerleaders of the Show.    The intro song for The Chills at Will Podcast is “Wind Down” (Instrumental Version), and the other song played on this episode was “Hoops” (Instrumental)” by Matt Weidauer, and both songs are used through ArchesAudio.com.     Please tune in for Episode 369 with De'Shawn Charles Winslow, the author of In West Mills, which won a Center for Fiction First Novel Prize, an American Book Award, a Willie Morris Award for Southern Fiction, and was a finalist for other awards and prizes. His other novels include Decent People (2023) and The Fervent Whites (2026), the focus of our conversation.     The episode airs on November 4 or 5.     Please go to ceasefiretoday.org, and/or https://act.uscpr.org/a/letaidin to call your congresspeople and demand an end to the forced famine and destruction of Gaza and the Palestinian people.    You can also donate at chuffed.org, World Central Kitchen, and so many more, and/or you can contact writer friend Ursula Villarreal-Moura directly or through Pete, as she has direct links with friends in Gaza.