It takes some special instruments and a unique perspective to appreciate the frustrating version of "success" that weaves in and through Tonio K.'s long strange trip of a music career. He should have been one of those critical reference points of the heady '70s and '80s, right up there with Warren Zevon and Joe Jackson. He had the wit, the sneer, the shades, and the major label hookups. But even with the odds in his favor, a hall-of-fame roster of supporting band members, and people like T Bone Burnett supporting him, it wasn't until he started putting his pen to work for other artists that his path emerged. On this episode, we visit with the elusive, and in some ways illusory, artist and songwriter for a rare exploration of his entire career. We'll examine his earliest days in the trippy psychedelic art rock scene, his stint with the late Buddy Holly's “Crickets,” his serious run at a solo artist career, and his late renaissance as the crafter of smash hits for an impossibly diverse list of artists that includes both a member of The Sex Pistols and Burt Bacharach. Tonio K. tells us the whole amazing story – and with the help of some friends, we have peppered the show with some extremely rare Tonio K. recordings and a brace of tunes that made him a darling of both the Christian and mainstream underground. And, as if THAT wasn't enough, Tom Willett – who signed K. to WHAT? Records in the '80s and worked alongside T Bone and others – joins us for the conversation as well.
The full music list, our special Spotify Mix, and more for this episode are available on the SHOW NOTES page at TrueTunes.com/Tonio1.
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Renaissance Man Jimmy Abegg (+ Peter Gabriel & Lowland Hum on the Jukebox)
Amy Grant‘s Secret: 2 Jobs & A Prayer
Natalie Bergman’s Jesus Music for a New Generation
Taylor Leonhardt Learns a Language REMIX (+Tapestry, Wrecking Ball, 1,000 Kisses & Raising Sand on the Jukebox)
Rich Mullins: The Lost Interview Pt 2 (Rich + McVicker, Madeira & Webb + Andrew Peterson on the Jukebox)
Rich Mullins: The Lost Interview Pt. 1 (The Ragamuffins Set The Stage)
Phil Madeira (Part 2 of 2) Jazz, Scapegoats, & Resolution
Phil Madeira (Part 1 of 2) Deep Roots & Expanding Horizons
Kevin Max: Considering Boundaries + Mark Heard’s ”Dry Bones Dance”
Jukebox Takeover #3: 20 Great Albums of 2020
Jukebox Takeover #2 The Christmas Music of Over The Rhine (Making Space for Beauty and Grace)
Marc Byrd ”Hidden” BONUS Episode w Marc Byrd: (Hammock Live, Theology, and TT Patreon Launch)
Marc Byrd: Hammock, God of Wonders, & Hearing the Beauty Beyond the Noise
Larry Norman & his son Mike; It’s Complicated…
The Electric Jesus Story (So Far...) w Brian Baumgartner, Chris White, & Daniel Smith: [The Beauty of Failure and Art Vs. Propaganda]
Buddy Miller: Learning To Listen with Big Ears
Ella Mine and the Beauty, Purpose, and Potential of Darkness and Pain in Art
More Musical Adulting w Waterdeep, Living Artfully in Tandem (Part 2 of 2)
Music for Adults w Waterdeep + Buddy & Julie Miller on the Jukebox (Part 1 of 2)
Sandra McCracken: Singing A New Song + At The Foot of the Cross
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