E130 - Top 5 ’80s Power Pop Songs (with Renee Schyjer)

 

Get ready for a powerful O3L...and not just because we're talking about '80s power pop. This week, we are very pleased to welcome Renee Schyjer, wife, muse and soulmate of rockin', rollin', power-poppin', wild feline frontman Freddy Moore.

 

Whether you know him as Freddy, his Midwest alter ego Skogie or mild-mannered offstage Rick, Frederick Moore was quite possibly the biggest rock star you've never heard of. Freddy had it at all. The looks, the charisma, the chops, the songs.

 

In the late '60s and early '70s, his band Skogie and the Flaming Pachucos reached local stardom and small-scale Beatle-level adulation. After moving to LA in the late '70s, they evolved into The Kats (and later The Nu-Kats). The Kats sold out every major club in Los Angeles, from Madame Wong's to the Whiskey to the Starwood to the Troubadour, headlining alongside bands like The Police, The Knack and The Motels. The Kats were offered dozens of record deals. They turned down every single one. KISS's Gene Simmons wanted to manage them. He was married at the time to a rising movie star named Demi Moore. Yes, Freddy seemingly had it all...yet rock n' roll stardom eluded him.

 

In 2014, Moore received the frightening diagnosis that he had developed early-onset Alzheimer's. With Renee's tireless love, help and research, Rick was able to hold onto his memories as long as he could to share them with the world.

 

Co-written with Shannon Guyton, the result is It's Not A Rumour, an unorthodox, hysterical story of survival, and making it big in music without ever making a dime. It's an "almost famous" chronicle woven together with lyrics, photos, and memorabilia. It's Not A Rumour is available from Amazon or other fine retailers.

 

In between booking Renee on the show and our release, Frederick Moore passed away on August 25, 2022. We dedicate this episode to his memory, and hope it is the celebration of life, love and music that he deserves.

 

Hear more of Freddy Moore's music at: http://demophonic.com/

 

In the O3L Spotlight this week is a Philadelphia-based band that WRKC's DJ Calc hipped us to, The Tisburys. We play "Language of Luxury" from their latest album, the gutsily titled Exile On Main Street. It's a great record touched by the influence of Springsteen, The Replacements, modern indie rock, '90s college rock and power pop. Check it out wherever you buy/stream music or at https://tisburys.bandcamp.com.

 

#musicpodcast #musicpodcasts #PodNation #powerpop #LAmusic #newwave #punkrock #indierock #indiepop #80smusic #demimoore #itsnotarumour #alzheimersawareness