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Tape Spaghetti

Blake Wyland & Scott Marquart

Welcome to Tape Spaghetti—where music history gets tangled. Hosts Blake Wyland and Scott Marquart dive into the wildest, weirdest, and most unexpected stories from the music industry. From legendary feuds to bizarre scandals, insane characters… and even murder! On this show we unravel the chaos behind the songs you love, the musicians you know, and stories that you need to hear.

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#71
Wednesday · 50 min
Lead Belly Part 1: Death, Prison & the Birth of a Legend
Long before Kurt Cobain's legendary performance of “Where Did You Sleep Last Night?” on MTV Unplugged, there was Lead Belly. Wandering folk hero. Convicted killer. Musical encyclopedia. A man so talented he supposedly sang his way out of prison...twice. On this episode of Tape Spaghetti, Scott and Blake dig into the real Huddie Ledbetter and discover that the truth is every bit as fascinating as the mythology. From rowdy Shreveport bars and a friendship with Blind Lemon Jefferson, to chain gangs, an assumed identity, a homicide conviction, and hard labor at Angola, Lead Belly lived a life almost impossible to summarize neatly. Along the way, he mastered the booming 12-string style that became his signature and preserved songs that would eventually reach everyone from Creedence Clearwater Revival to Nirvana. Then folklorists John and Alan Lomax arrived with a recording machine weighing hundreds of pounds, and helped transform an already remarkable musician into one of American music’s most enduring legends.
August 18 · 1 hr 18 min
The Tragic Life and Death of Marvin Gaye
Marvin Gaye made some of the most beautiful music ever recorded, but behind it was a life defined by a constant struggle for control. On this episode of Tape Spaghetti, Scott and Blake trace Gaye’s journey from an abusive childhood to the pinnacle of Motown, where Berry Gordy’s hit-making machine dictated everything from his sound to his image. Gaye fought back with What’s Going On, staking his career on an album that Gordy didn't want released, and winning spectacularly. But hit records couldn't bring Gaye peace. After a brutal divorce led to a scathingly personal record and millions of dollars in tax debt, Gaye rose from the ashes on the strength of "Sexual Healing," and he once again seemed to be on top of the world. Then an unthinkable family dispute brought everything to a screeching, fatal halt.
August 11 · 1 hr 4 min
Ringo Starr, Phil Collins & Kirk Hammett: The Replacements Who Changed Everything
Getting kicked out of a band is no fun at all. But what happens when losing the “wrong” person turns out to be exactly the right move? This week on Tape Spaghetti, Scott and Blake dig into famous lineup changes that looked risky, unpopular, or downright catastrophic at the time, only to completely reshape music history. The Beatles canned Pete Best and replaced him with Ringo Starr on the cusp of universal stardom. Not only did Genesis survive the loss of Peter Gabriel, they absolutely thrived with Phil Collins behind the mic. Dave Mustaine spent two turbulent years as Metallica's lead guitarist before his departure opened the door for Kirk Hammett, and the foundation of Megadeth. Yep, these ruthless business decisions sparked the creative evolutions that changed pop music forever, and proved that sometimes the person who seems impossible to replace is anything but. Here's how some key rock 'n' roll personnel changes actually made everything better... sometimes.
August 4 · 1 hr 19 min
Paul Simon’s Graceland Problem
What happens when incredible music collides with impossible politics? In this episode of Tape Spaghetti, Scott and Blake dive into the tangled history of Paul Simon's Graceland, tracing how one bootleg cassette led to a Grammy-winning masterpiece... and an international controversy. When Simon laid his ears on some extremely jive hits from South Africa, it helped him break a wicked creative slump and create an all-timer album featuring some righteously amazing South African artists. Sounds groovy, right? Well, it mostly was. Except, by ignoring a United Nations boycott and recording in apartheid South Africa, Simon ended up in the crosshairs of some serious criticism. In a debate where every side believed they were doing the right thing, was Simon helping oppressed artists reach the world stage, or was he undermining a global effort to end decades of segregation?
#67
July 30 · 1 hr 7 min
The Assassination Of John Lennon Makes Absolutely No Sense
Everyone knows John Lennon was murdered outside the Dakota on December 8, 1980. Far fewer know just how strange and unsettling the full story really is. In this episode of Tape Spaghetti, Scott and Blake trace the events leading up to one of music's darkest days, exploring Mark David Chapman's obsession with The Catcher in the Rye, the bizarre patterns and coincidences he believed were shaping his destiny, and the psychological unraveling that culminated in a global tragedy. Along the way, they revisit Lennon's quieter post-Beatles life in New York, the creation of Double Fantasy, the haunting autograph Lennon signed for Chapman just hours before the shooting, and the ripple effects that followed around the world.
#66
July 15 · 1 hr 5 min
How The Beatles Fell Apart While Making The White Album
Unclear creative direction, bizarre experimentation, and a rudderless band of twenty-somethings. Sounds like the making of a half-baked album by a bunch of nobodies, right? ...Not quite. In this episode of Tape Spaghetti, Scott & Blake break down the White Album, a legendary record by the most popular band of all time. Following Brian Epstein's death The Beatles had to steer their own ship, and things got rocky very quickly. Paul tried to take charge. George got tired of being overlooked. John was entirely preoccupied with Yoko Ono. And Ringo straight up quit. But while the White Album could be dismissed as an unfocused hodgepodge, it became something way more interesting: a real-time snapshot of four brilliant musicians evolving into separate artists. If you've ever wondered how one album could contain Blackbird, Helter Skelter, Revolution 9, and so much more beautiful chaos, this episode tells the story behind every crack.
#65
July 8 · 53 min
How Fake Music Is Bleeding Real Artists Dry
And it probably isn't in the way that you think it is.
June 30 · 55 min
How Country Music Tried to Destroy the *Dixie* Chicks
Before they became the most controversial band in country music, the Dixie Chicks were absolutely unstoppable. In this episode of Tape Spaghetti, Scott and Blake unpack the extraordinary story of the Dixie Chicks, whose meteoric rise was matched only by the speed of their catastrophic public downfall. (Or maybe not???) Long before headlines and controversy, the band had already rewritten the rules of Nashville by playing their own instruments, refusing to fit neatly into the industry's expectations, and stacking up diamond-selling albums studded with hits like "Wide Open Spaces" and "Cowboy Take Me Away."But when Natalie Maines criticized President George W. Bush in 2003, everything changed very, very quickly. Country radio turned against them, protests erupted across America, and the trio suddenly became the face of one of the moment's most heated political debates. Was the backlash actually about politics, or was it about who was allowed to speak up in country music? Here's how the biggest band in country became its biggest outcast... until a career-defining comeback saw the Chicks rise again.
#63
June 28 · 32 min
The $36 Song That Terrified the FBI (Mike Mitchell of The Kingsmen)
Before punk rock, before arena rock, and before garage rock was a thing, there was "Louie Louie." In this special episode of Tape Spaghetti, Blake shares his remarkable conversation with Kingsmen guitarist Mike Mitchell, whose band accidentally changed history. Recorded in a single take for less than the cost of a decent dinner, Louie Louie's famously garbled lyrics sparked a national panic when some listeners became convinced they were obscene. The result was one of the strangest investigations in music history, complete with FBI agents attending shows and federal analysts trying, and failing, to decipher just what the heck the band was singing. Beyond the scandal, Mitchell shares incredible stories about touring in the early days of rock, his help developing the Sunn amplifier brand, and influencing generations of musicians. It's a wild ride through censorship, innovation, and the wonderfully chaotic success of one of rock 'n' roll's earliest earworms.
#62
June 16 · 1 hr 10 min
Chuck Berry, Dick Clark & Rock ’n’ Roll’s Payola Scandal
Paranoid about the algorithm? Totally understandable. But, if you're yearning for the good ol' days when records zipped to the top of the charts on the strength of catchy tunes and the cultural zeitgeist... we've got some bad news for you. In the 1950s, well before playlists and trending were a thing, it was DJs that had the power to make or break a pop artist's career. And in this episode of Tape Spaghetti, Scott & Blake investigate the Payola scandal, in which labels, managers, and promoters spun an infamous web of bribes to influence which tunes got primo airtime. Featuring larger-than-life figures like Alan Freed, the disc jockey who brought rock 'n' roll to the masses, and Dick Clark, host of Bandstand and all-around American sweetheart, this episode explores the blurry line between marketing and manipulation while revealing how youth culture, race, shifting social norms, and the rise of rock served to intensify the controversy. Can popularity *ever* be completely authentic?
#61
June 10 · 1 hr 16 min
Sugar Ray, Smash Mouth, and the One-Hit Wonders That Weren’t
Pop music simply wouldn't be the same without one-hit wonders, those flash in a pan artists who capture the listening public's imagination... for about 5 minutes. But, what about those musicians who are labeled one-hit wonders and then absolutely refuse to go away? In this episode, Scott & Blake explore the curious cases of bands that scored a massive breakthrough hit, got written off by critics and industry insiders, and then somehow came roaring back with even BIGGER songs. This unique pattern popped up all over the 1990s, and it's easy to forget that some serious household names were originally supposed to fade into oblivion after their initial success: Smash Mouth. Sugar Ray. Beck. The Goo Goo Dolls. Radiohead! Here's a '90s-nostalgia infused look at the rare artists who've turned their 15 minutes of fame into careers that've lasted decades.
#60
June 2 · 1 hr 16 min
Jim Sullivan Drove Into the Desert and Disappeared
A struggling musician drives into the New Mexico desert with a guitar, a trunk full of records, and dreams of making it in Nashville. He is never seen again. This week on Tape Spaghetti, Scott and Blake dive into the bizarre true story of Jim Sullivan, a gifted songwriter whose cult-classic album U.F.O. became even more intriguing after he seemingly vanished off the face of the Earth in 1975. Along the way, they explore Sullivan’s connections to the California music scene, near-misses with fame, and the heartbreaking frustration of creating incredible music that nobody seemed to hear. From there the mystery only deepens. Abandoned hotel rooms, a cryptic final phone call, and a deserted Volkswagen discovered many miles from nowhere. With music that's worth celebrating and a disappearance worth investigating, this is how Jim Sullivan went from unheralded songwriter to unsolved mystery.
#59
May 29 · 1 hr 6 min
The FBI vs. The Fugs
How obscene does your band need to be for the FBI to get involved? In this episode of Tape Spaghetti, Scott and Blake dig into the band that found out the hard way: The Fugs. A chaotic 1960s underground band comprised of poets, pranksters, activists, and, well, absolute weirdos, The Fugs tackled topics such as sex, politics, drugs, and social rebellion in songs with titles so outrageous they got the attention of the federal authorities. The Fugs were pre-punk, but their music was provocative enough to spark a full-blown moral panic, with crackdowns, censorship, and J. Edgar Hoover's paranoia-driven bureau taking a keen interest. This one's got art, politics, '60s counterculture, and well... You'll just have to find out.
#58
May 19 · 1 hr 16 min
Gram Parsons’ Friends Stole His Body and Burned It
There are a good many outlaw country artists. But Gram Parsons might be the only one whose outlaw status followed him to the grave...and then back out of it. In this episode of Tape Spaghetti, Scott & Blake dig up the unbelievable life and afterlife of Gram Parsons, a country-rock visionary who pushed musical boundaries while battling self-destructive habits exacerbated by the intensity of fame. Parsons dropped out of Harvard and landed in the chaotic chaos of the Laurel Canyon scene, bouncing between The Byrds, the Flying Burrito Brothers, and collaborations with a litany of country music legends. A true vanguard, he even outdid the 27 Club by, tragically, fatally overdosing at just 26 years old. Unbelievably, his story doesn't end there. What followed was a coffin hijacking, LOTS of tequila, and an outlaw cremation under the stars of Joshua Tree. Here's how country's greatest wild child continued to build his legend from beyond the grave.
#57
May 12 · 1 hr 11 min
The Beach Boys Made a Rap Song… And That’s Not the Worst Part
The Beach Boys undoubtedly changed pop music forever. But they also cut an album so strange that it's basically been erased from music history. In this episode of Tape Spaghetti, Scott & Blake take a look at Summer in Paradise, the Beach Boys' bizarre attempt at reclaiming their throne with a "modern" summer soundtrack. With Brian Wilson out of the picture, the Mike Love-led Beach Boys wanted to see if they could get lightning to strike twice after the unlikely success of "Kokomo." The result was a fully digital, Pro Tools-powered sound experiment packed with synthetic everything, recycled ideas, and... a Beach Boys rap?? Here's how a band once at the forefront of pop innovation chased its own past to the tune of album so bad it hurts.
#56
May 6 · 1 hr 5 min
Waylon Jennings, Cocaine, and a DEA Raid Gone Wrong
Waylon Jennings didn't just sing songs about being an outlaw. He genuinely became one. In this week's Tape Spaghetti, Scott & Blake discuss the life and legend of Waylon Jennings, who went from small-town disc-jockey to Buddy Holly's bandmate to one of country's greatest rebels. Back when Nashville was a highly polished music machine, Jennings forged his own gritty sound... and even grittier lifestyle. It all culminated in a raid of his recording studio by DEA agents in search a suspicious package, which vanished in just about the most absurd way possible. Here's the story of Waylon Jennings as a myth-making outlaw country star, the tension between artists and Nashville overlords, and a dash of true crime that seems too crazy to be true.
#56
April 29 · 1 hr 7 min
Neil Young Got SUED for Not Sounding Like… Himself?
A big ol' multi-million-dollar record deal, a rebel artist, a major corporate label, and "total creative freedom." What could possibly go wrong? In this episode of Tape Spaghetti, Scott and Blake unravel the chaotic 1980s era of Neil Young. When Young let his artistic spirit soar into downright experimental territory, his own label, Geffen, sued him for not being “Neil Young enough.” While the album he delivered technically fit the contract, it certainly didn't meet expectations. Fans were confused, executives were pissed, and Young was accused of fulfilling the brief in an act of pure sabotage. The lawsuit that followed shook the industry. Was the artist in the right for boldly embodying his creative identity, or did Geffen have cause to react on behalf of Young's frustrated fans? Here's how Neil Young's foray into synth-heavy rockabilly music actually spoke to a larger argument over who *actually* owns an artist's signature sound.
#54
April 21 · 1 hr 1 min
The Dark Secret of Portland’s Roseland Theater
As a native Pacific-Northwesterner with roots in the music scene, our very own Blake Wyland is verifiably Portland-proud. But this week he delves into one of the city's darkest stories...with shocking ties to a beloved rock venue. This episode of Tape Spaghetti takes you inside the history of Portland’s Roseland Theater, previously known as the Starry Night nightclub—where the town's vibrant music culture masked something incredibly sinister. Sure, lots of clubs engage in semi-shady operations, but in this case, a story about a scrappy rock venue quickly twists into a full-blown crime saga involving counterfeit tickets, a volatile owner, a group of deeply suspicious insiders, and an employee who gets too close to exposing the truth. When things take a violent turn, the aftermath is as unsettling as the crime itself. No body. Lingering mystery. How the heck did this story stay hidden for so long?
#53
April 14 · 1 hr 10 min
Keanu Reeves Has a Band… and So Do These Actors
What do Joe Pesci, Oscar Isaac, and Keanu Reeves all have in common? No, this isn't the weirdest casting call of all time (though, we'd totally watch that movie) – it's MUSIC. In this episode of Tape Spaghetti, Scott and Blake dive into the unexpected world of actors who were (or still are) legit musicians. This Hollywood crossover occurs in some seriously surprising places, and the actors in question weren't just dipping their toes into the music scene. They were genuinely grinding it out in bands. Oscar Isaac as a ska frontman. Fred Armisen earning genuine punk cred. Jeff Goldblum's jazz orchestra. Or Keanu Reeves quietly rocking out in Dogstar. This one'll make you rethink some actors you thought you knew, and highlights how the siren song of musical success can continue to lure established celebrities – even when they're already household names.
April 7 · 1 hr 3 min
John Carpenter: The Man Who Scored Your Nightmares
Before his name became synonymous with nightmares and jumpscares, John Carpenter was a humble film student with an extremely limited budget. So, what did this industrious director do when he couldn't afford to hire a composer? He became one. This week on Tape Spaghetti, Scott & Blake look at Carpenter's lesser-known brilliance as a music-maker and how what started as a workaround became a legacy of minimalist tension and, without hyperbole, the sound of fear itself. With a lofty imagination but no money for an orchestra, Carpenter discovered he could create massive, atmospheric synth soundscapes entirely on his own. That approach exploded with Halloween, where a simple, relentless theme became instantly recognizable. But the story doesn’t end there. From Escape from New York to The Thing (with a little help from Ennio Morricone), Carpenter kept evolving his sound while building a catalog of cult classics. Eventually, he stepped away from directing and leaned fully into music, even touring and releasing albums of “soundtracks for movies that don’t exist.” Here's how a kid who grew up resisting formal music training became the architect of some of the most pervasive film music of all time – scary movie or otherwise.

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