St. Louis has produced a wealth of influential musicians working in every genre under the sun, from hip-hop to Americana.
Authors Amanda E. Doyle and Steve Pick capture many of the sights and sounds of this history in their new book “St. Louis Sound: An Illustrated Timeline,” published by St. Louis-based Reedy Press.
“We have this huge musical heritage, and it is ongoing, like, tonight. Because of everything that’s come before and the cultural influences that we just all have,” Doyle says, “I think that the musicians we have today are heirs to that in a lot of ways, and are also going to influence someone 20 years down the road, 200 years down the road.”
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Doyle and Pick cover the giants of St. Louis music, from Chuck Berry to Miles Davis to alt-country trailblazers Uncle Tupelo. They also take us to long-defunct venues, including Club Plantation, Mississippi Nights and the Orpheum Theater, while shining a light on today’s music scene, including artists like Sleepy Kitty and Pokey Lafarge.
Doyle and Pick discuss many of these artists and explore the legendary origins of the songs “St. Louis Blues” and “Stagger Lee.” Along the way, we hear music by Chuck Berry, Miles Davis, Duke Ellington & Jimmy Blanton, Louis Armstrong & His All Stars with Velma Middleton, Lloyd Price, Grateful Dead, Dr. John, Uncle Tupelo and Nelly.
This episode of Cut & Paste expands on an earlier radio feature about the book.
Look for new Cut & Paste podcasts every few weeks on our website. You can also find all previous podcasts focusing on a diverse collection of visual and performing artists here.
The podcast is sponsored by JEMA Architects, Planners and Designers.
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