Music

Los Angeles' highly influential position in rock history is examined. Pat Smear remembers the days of Germs, and visits legendary KROQ disc jockey Rodney Bingenheimer, owner of a 1970s Sunset Strip club that became the hub for the Los Angeles glam rock scene. Foo Fighters head to the desert to record their new song 'Outside', which features a solo from Eagles' guitarist Joe Walsh, at Rancho De La Luna, and in turn, Kyuss and the 1990s Palm Desert Scene is explored.

The band heads to Nashville, Tenn. Dave sits down with Dolly Parton, Tony Joe White, Steve Earle, Willie Nelson, Emmylou Harris and producer Tony Brown to discuss Nashville's musical influences and the Nashville sound. Foo Fighters prepare to record at Southern Ground studio, owned by country musician Zac Brown, who also guests on the song 'Congregation'.

In 1982, the best of friends and still teenagers George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley as Wham! set out to conquer the world. By June of 1986, they played their very last gig at Wembley Stadium having done exactly that. Now, for the very first time, told in their own words, comes the amazing story of how in four years they dominated the charts around the world with timeless and classic pop songs. Hit after hit ‘Club Tropicana,’ ‘Wake Me Up Before You Go Go,’ ‘Freedom,’ ‘I'm Your Man’ and of course ‘Last Christmas.’
Their time in the spotlight was white-hot, and they became the very first Western pop act to play in China. It was a time that both encapsulated and epitomized not just their youth but also that of the many millions of fans that adored them.

Dave Grohl returns to his musical roots, while the Foo Fighters prepare to record at Seattle's Robert Lang Studio with Death Cab for Cutie's Benjamin Gibbard. Dave sets his focus on the Seattle music scene, mainly the grunge movement and its implications in American Rock Music. Interviews with Chris Cornell, Nancy Wilson, Bruce Pavitt.

The 80s was also an age of innovators and icons, of style and substance. In this chapter, Dylan Jones celebrates some of the stars who created the timeless legacy of the 1980s. From stellar BBC archive performances from the likes of Madonna, Depeche Mode, Sade, Duran Duran, Pet Shop Boys and Tina Turner to iconic MTV-era gems from Billy Idol, Eurythmics, U2, Janet Jackson, Prince and many more.
It also features rarely seen archive television footage from the BBC vaults, including Terry Wogan interviewing Grace Jones, Bruce Springsteen on the Old Grey Whistle Test and Adam Ant performing his own stunts in a behind-the-scenes look at the making of the Prince Charming video.

The 1980s was a time when artists in both the UK and US were delivering powerful social commentary in their songs. Dylan Jones selects some of the finest alternative voices from this era. From The Cure on Top of the Pops at the beginning of the decade to The Stone Roses' debut TV performance in 1989, this episode takes a comprehensive look at the alternative music of an entire era. It also features powerful live performances from Billy Bragg, Tracy Chapman, Bronski Beat and The Selecter. In addition, there are archival gems from Pixies, The Smiths, Suzanne Vega, The Fall, REM and many more.