Rock and Roll Weirdness: An Indie Rock Hit Parade Chat with Jon Wurster
Anytime you get the chance to chat with Jon Wurster, do it. As the drummer for Superchunk, the Mountain Goats, Bob Mould and more, he’s got more than his fair share of stories as a touring musician. Add onto that his comedy writing chops, which can be heard regularly on The Best Show with Tom Scharpling, and his voracious appetite for music memoirs and biographies, and Wurster has become a kind of authority on the strangest corners of the music world. Take, for example, the Fun Topics™ that Jon and I discussed on his last visit. That kind of esoterica shows up daily on Jon’s social media profiles, particularly his Instagram account. It’s from that platform that the subject of this conversation originates: Rock and Roll Weirdness. Whether it’s an artist wearing their own band’s t-shirt onstage, Lemmy without facial hair, ‘How on Earth’ backstage meetings or something even stranger, Jon is the person who’s making these weird moments in rock history known to us all. Have a listen to our conversation and check out a few notable instances of Rock and Roll Weirdness below:
Artists wearing their own band’s shirts onstage:
The Johnny Ramone Collection:
Frank and Lemmy, cleanshaven:
Alice and The Colonel:
The cover of Van Morrison’s new album:
Artists playing something other than their signature instruments:
The Beatles with Jimmy Nicol:
Peter Cetera wearing a Bauhaus shirt in the video for “You’re The Inspiration”
Bob Weir for Safeway:
Cinderella for Pat’s Dogs (Pat’s Chili Dogs!)