For the Sake of the Song

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Podcast by Beth P

For the Sake of the Song

A podcast where musicians and music scene folks make playlists of songs they want to share then they tell us a bit about their picks! Hosted by Beth P, each episode includes a 15-song playlist made by the guest and a short interview with the guest about their playlist. Then the interview is added to the playlist as the first track and the entire playlist is posted on Spotify. Find the interviews and playlists on Spotify and the interviews and playlist track listings on Apple Music at For the Sake of the Song Podcast. Or just follow the podcast on Instagram @sakeofsongpodcast for all the links!
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Latest episodes

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20 May 2025

Mikey Coltun

Mikey Coltun is a musician, engineer, and producer and he's played with a number of great bands, including Les Rhinoceros, Mdou Moctar, Steve Gunn, KOLTUN, and more. He started studying music at the age of 3 and by 16 he was touring and playing all over the world with the most well-known and well-respected musicians in rock, jazz, punk, often blending Western and African styles. Mikey has recently started a new band, TAKAAT, with the other two members of the Mdou Moctar rhythm section, Ahmoudou Madassane and Souleymane Ibrahim, and they've just released their first EP, "TAKAAT is Noise, Volume 1" and Mikey not only plays bass on the tracks but he also recorded, mixed, and produced the album. The group started at soundchecks for Mdou Moctar shows when the trio indulged in their shared love of cranking amps to 11 and blowing out speakers. They blend the punk styles of bands like Fugazi with the guitar music from the Sahel, which results in deeply intense, dark, energetic music. They're currently on their first tour so make sure to check out where they're playing next and get out to see them (and stream or buy their album)!

Playlist Track Listing:

  1. “Naima – Live from Village Vanguard Again!” by John Coltrane
  2. “When I Grow Up” by Joe Mcphee
  3. “Pay To Cum” by Bad Brains
  4. “Banganesiba” by Tal National
  5. “Vie-Ni – From ‘Quando l’amore e sensualita’” by Ennio Morricone
  6. “Lorelei” by Sharp Pins
  7. “Lifted” by Curved Lights
  8. “Bara” by Vieux & Cheick Niang
  9. “Niamey, Niger 2021 (A)” by Amadou Ousmane Ali
  10. “Cycles of Fate part 1” by Jad Atoui
  11. “Clouds are whatever you make them out to be.” by Ipek Eginli
  12. “34” by J.R.C.G.
  13. “Chant” by Masami Tomihisa
  14. “Current Affair” by Evicshen
  15. “Hollywood” by Jessica Pratt

For the Sake of the Song Intro/Outro Music: "Gun" by The Maness Brothers @TheManessBrothers

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25:19

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06 May 2025

Matt Maher

Matt Maher is a songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, playing guitar, pedal steel, mandolin, dobro, and bass, and he's associated with many St. Louis-based bands, including Hunter Peebles & The Moonlighters, Yard Eagle, Smoke Association, The Screechin’ Halts, and Back Wash. His musical talent is key to making these bands shine so make sure to follow him and them so you can find out where to catch Matt playing next and hear all the new releases he's featured on!

Playlist Track Listing:

  1. “Shove” by LePonds
  2. “Jupiter” by Matt Maltese
  3. “What Would I Want? Sky” by Animal Collective
  4. “The Vowels, Pt. 2” by WHY?
  5. “RR vs. D” by Au
  6. “Ways to be Loved” by TOPS
  7. “Summer’s Over” by Jordana & TV Girl
  8. “Thanks For The Killer Game Of Crisco Twister” by Minus the Bear
  9. “Money” by Pono AM
  10. “Mirror of Time” by Twin Peaks
  11. “Mint Car” by The Cure
  12. “Deep Blue Sea” by Art Lown
  13. “Nothing’s Right” by Will Stewart
  14. “Sister’s House” by Dubb Nubb
  15. “On A Desert Isle” by C.W. Stoneking

For the Sake of the Song Intro/Outro Music: "Gun" by The Maness Brothers @TheManessBrothers

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22 April 2025

Matt Stuttler

Matt Stuttler is a singer, songwriter, guitarist, bass player, and self-described synth enthusiast who has been a mainstay in the St. Louis music scene for 15 years and he currently plays in many bands including Shitstorm, Nite Sprites, Dock Judson, Cyanides, Boreal Hills, The Losing End, Molten Bone, and Variante Form and his former bands include The Stranger, Beach Bodies, and Banana Clips. And when he’s not playing in a band, he’s helping them play and record as the owner and operator of the longtime St. Louis venue and recording studio, The Sinkhole. Matt has done so much for the St. Louis music scene over the years and has a wealth of musical knowledge so you do not want to skip this one!

You can check out The Sinkhole at www.sinkholerecords.com or on Instagram @sinkholestl

Playlist Track Listing:

  1. “M.E.” by Gary Numan
  2. “Citadel – Remastered 2017 / Stereo” by The Rolling Stones
  3. “Ball of Confusion (That’s What The World Is Today)” by The Temptations
  4. “Looking at You” by MC5
  5. “Homosapien” by Pete Shelley
  6. “Master of the Universe – 1996 Remaster” by Hawkwind
  7. “Powderfinger – 2016 Remaster” by Neil Young & Crazy Horse
  8. “Running on Empty” by Jackson Browne
  9. “Run From the City” by Purling Hiss
  10. “Marianne” by Joni Ekman
  11. “Waiting for an Alibi” by Thin Lizzy
  12. “Alone Again Or – 2015 Remaster” by Love
  13. “The Partisan” by Leonard Cohen
  14. “Cheree – 2019 Remaster” by Suicide
  15. “In League With Satan (7” version)” by Venom

For the Sake of the Song Intro/Outro Music: "Gun" by The Maness Brothers @TheManessBrothers

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08 April 2025

Jena Haffner

Jena Haffner, along with her dad, Jean, own and operate The Record Exchange, the longtime, iconic record store in St. Louis. Jean opened the store in 1977 so Jena was born into the world of music and vinyl and now she helps Jean operate the 10,000-square-foot store filled with not just vinyl but all types of media, media-playing equipment, and memorabilia. If you haven't been down to the store, what are you even doing?! Make sure you swing by to dig through crates, find that highly-sought after collectors' item or that obscure, deep cut, and support one of the best record stores in town! And if digging isn't your thing, they have a huge online store so go record shopping from your couch!

You can find out all about The Record Exchange at www.recordexchangestl.com

Playlist Track Listing:

  1. “Where Are We Going?” by Donald Byrd
  2. “Black Cow” by Steely Dan
  3. “I Forgot To Be Your Lover” by William Bell
  4. “Nothing Compares 2 U” by Prince
  5. “Cemetery Walk II” by Umphrey’s McGee
  6. “You’re Gonna Need Me” by Dionne Warwick
  7. “Fallin’ In Love” by La Bouche
  8. “Walk Home” by Bon Iver
  9. “Shakedown Street” by Grateful Dead
  10. “Everybody Loves The Sunshine” by Roy Ayers Ubiquity
  11. “Nobody to Love” by 13th Floor Elevators
  12. “Ego Tripping at the Gates of Hell” by The Flaming Lips
  13. “Stone Love” by Kashif
  14. “Give It Away” by Zero 7
  15. “Lost On 32nd Street” by Johnny “Hammond” Smith

For the Sake of the Song Intro/Outro Music: "Gun" by The Maness Brothers @TheManessBrothers

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01 April 2025

Guest Playlist: Volume 1

A new kind of episode and playlist!

Most of the guests on the podcast are musicians and they make us playlists of other musicians’ songs but we don’t get to hear the music that the guests themselves are making and putting out there, which hardly seems fair!

So to remedy that, every 15 episodes that feature a musician guest, I’m going to release an episode and playlist that features one song from each of those guests!

And to help me with these regularly occurring special episodes, we are so lucky to have the esteemed Caron Brittany House! In addition to being a truly wonderful human and friend, Caron has been contributing to the STL music scene for well over a decade. Her show Wax Lyrical ran for nearly 11 years on KDHX and she’s a longtime member of the Twangfest Board of Directors and has been instrumental in showcasing amazing local and national music in STL. And part of that includes the Saturday Sessions at the Tower Grove Farmers Market, which run every Saturday from April to October and feature some of the best acts in STL!

For these Guest Playlists, Caron chose the songs from half the artists and I chose the others and then we chatted about them so give it a listen, find some new music, and show the amazing podcast guests some love!

Playlist Track Listing:

1. “Roamer” by Blond Guru / Noah Gregory

2. “no longer neighbors” by po mia

3. “Say What You Will” by Joe Fletcher & Wrong Reasons

4. “Come Back” by The Public / Dylan Andersen

5. “Unplug the Machines” by Still Animals / Jessie Karabell

6. “Cadillac Dreams II” by Desi Darling / Sean Kimble

7. “Keep it to Myself” by Laka Soul

8. “Sorry, Weird” by Matt F. Basler

9. “Pushing Away, Pulling Together” by Joanna Serenko

10. “Dream Logic” by Space Quaker / Robin Harvey

11. “Knot to Force” by Surtsey / Joe Bassa

12. “Sensing” by Luisa Sims

13. “Jolly Rogers Arkansas” by Truman Kennedy

14. “Friends, Lovers, Ex-Lovers, Whatever” by SUSTO Stringband / Justin Osborne

15. “Hit The Ground” by We Are Root Mod / Isaac Johnston

For the Sake of the Song Intro/Outro Music: "Gun" by The Maness Brothers @TheManessBrothers

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25 March 2025

Jeffrey Lewis

Jeffrey Lewis is a singer, songwriter, and artist from NYC who has been putting out some of the best anti-folk music there is for over 20 years, including on his newest album “The EVEN MORE Freewheelin’ Jeffrey Lewis” on Don Giovanni Records. In addition to his musical chops, he’s also an accomplished illustrator and has written and drawn over a dozen comics in the series called “Fuff”.

For the playlist, Jeffrey submitted 29 tracks, all part of his evergreen effort to make a list of his favorite songs, and he told me to pick the final 15 for the playlist so I used a random number generator to select those 15 but the additional 14 tracks are included below because we all need EVEN MORE good music recs and who better to get them from than Jeffrey Lewis!

Playlist Track Listing:

  1. “Creature with the Atom Brain” by Roky Erickson
  2. “Etiquette” by Daniel Johnson
  3. “Escape (I Need a Break)” by Whodini
  4. “Where Will We Be Tomorrow” by Eddie Callahan
  5. “The Fang” by Nervous Norvus
  6. “This Carnival Is Dead and Gone” by Current 93
  7. “The Rubber Room” by Porter Wagoner
  8. “Madman” by Heron
  9. “Nothing” by The Fugs
  10. “Frustration” by The Mystic Tide
  11. “Systemic Death” by Crass
  12. “Hey, Who Really Cares” by Linda Perhacs
  13. “Summer Day Reflection Song” by Donovan
  14. “Spin Spider Spin” by Patty Zeitlin
  15. “He Miss Road” by Fela Kuti

 

EVEN MORE Jeffrey Lewis Music Recs:

  1. “Affection” by Jonathan Richman & The Modern Lovers
  2. “It’s the 4th of July and it’s raining a bit” by Tony Green Orchestra
  3. “I Ain’t Marching Anymore” by Phil Ochs
  4. “Mind Playin’ Tricks On Me” by Geto Boys
  5. “African Lullaby” by Bruce Haack
  6. “Your Heart Out” by The Fall
  7. “Nafqot new yegodagn” by Mahmoud Ahmed
  8. “The Tale of Richard Vail” by Mike Rechner
  9. “Ain’t Never Seen A White Man” by Hepplewhyte
  10. “Sleeping Gas” by The Teardrop Explodes
  11. “Dandelions” by Children of Sunshine
  12. “Third in a Knife Fight” by Gentlemen’s Relish
  13. “Would Ed Wood?” by Prewar Yardsale
  14. “Emily B” by Emily B*

(*This track is so obscure, I’m not sure if this is the correct title and artist!)

For the Sake of the Song intro/outro music: "Gun" by The Maness Brothers @TheManessBrothers

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