Our guest, Chris Salewicz, was there at the dawn of punk in 1976 England, witnessing firsthand the birth of The Clash and Sex Pistols. Chris attended the first ever performances of both bands and will share insider stories of their rise and lasting influence over the last 50 years.

In this episode, you’ll discover:

• Why Clash frontman Joe Strummer changed his name
• The fascinating childhood that shaped Strummer’s persona and The Clash approach
• How guitarist Mick Jones' encyclopedic knowledge of music evolved the band's sound
• Inside details behind The Clash vs. Sex Pistols rivalry
• The reason Paul Simonon, a non-musician, joined The Clash
• How The Clash brought reggae to the masses
• The economic realities of the UK that fueled punk’s explosion

Learn how The Clash became the first punk band to experience mass commercial success. Widely loved by a legion of famous fans including Pete Townshend, U2, Green Day and Nirvana, The Clash combined social conscious lyrics, music genre-bending influences and a fiery on-stage presence to captivate a generation of music fans. The influence of punk on all forms of art has continued to this day.

Guest Bio - Chris Salewicz
Chris wrote Redemption Song: The Ballad of Joe Strummer and knew each of the member of The Clash personally. He is the author of several iconic musicians including Bob Marley, Mick Jagger & Keith Richard, Jimmy Page and more. He also was involved in the launch of MTV Europe.

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From the bars to the arenas, how did our biggest music legends make the leap? Join us as we take a deep dive into music history to explore the stories surrounding the fascinating journey and sometimes little-known facts of rock music’s biggest legends.

In each episode of Garage To Stadiums, host Dave Anthony teams up with an author of a rock biography or director of a rock documentary to explore that journey, their early years, the stories behind the scenes, their top songs, and their place in music history.

Learn about the passion, talent, luck and even scandal that often came together to propel these stars from obscurity to household names.

Picture a 1970s American teen, dressed as Frank N. Furter from Rocky Horror, interviewed on local TV outside a suburban cinema. That fearless teen grows up to be Michael Stipe, lead singer of R.E.M., the first alternative band to achieve global commercial success, from its origins in tiny Athens, Georgia. On this episode you'll learn:

• How Athens, Georgia became the unlikely spawning ground for several successful bands.
• How R.E.M. created a memorable sound by combining punk, pop music, southern rock and R'n'B
• Why Pearl Jam and Nirvana cited R.E.M. as a major trailblazer, and influence on their sound
• How an onstage near-tragedy changed the band forever...
• The college radio strategy the company employed to build its credibility and momentum
• Why R.E.M. turned down the offer to write a theme song for the popular TV show Friends

The first alternative band to experience mass commercial success, R.E.M. occupies an influential position in music history, inspiring many bands with their fiercely independent spirit and sound. Astonishingly, the band first heard on 1980s college radio went on to sell 90 million albums.

Guest Bio - Peter Ames Carlin, author & journalist
Peter appeared on our Bruce Springsteen episode. In addition to writing a best-seller about Springsteen, he's chronicled Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys and Paul McCartney of The Beatles. His new book, The Name of This Band is R.E.M., has just been released.

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Oasis has announced its return to touring and almost 10 million fans have applied for tickets. Go back and witness the 1990s explosion of this band, headed by brothers songwriter Noel Gallagher and lead singer Liam Gallagher. In this episode, you'll hear:

• The incredible challenging childhood that the brothers overcame
• The secret formula that allowed Oasis to attract fans across several genres of music
• How 80's acid house dance music influenced the Oasis sound
• How they became the hottest band in a matter of months leading the way for the rise of "Britpop"
• Insider tales from our guest who witnessed their infamous tours and legendary brother-on-brother arguments

Oasis has sold an incredible 75 million albums internationally and is now gearing up for its triumphant return to touring. Oasis is notorious for for its brashness, antics and swagger. However their talent is clear in the creation of their Britpop sound which was inspired by the music of The Beatles, David Bowie and The Who and more modern influences like The Stone Roses and The Smiths. The result: memorable, melodious stadium-ready songs that dominated the charts, and sound just as current today.

Guest Bio - Paolo Hewitt, author & journalist
Author and music journalist Paulo Hewitt is the author of 26 books covering a variety of subjects, from music to football to fashion. Two of his biggest sellers are Getting High: The Adventures of Oasis when he spent considerable time with the band during the 1994 to 1996 period and Forever The People, his account of the band's notorious Be Here Now tour in 1997-98. He was even asked to write a poem that appears on the inner sleeve of the (What's the Story) Morning Glory? that sold 22 million copies.

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Learn how Bob Marley transformed from humble beginnings as child in one of the poorest areas of Jamaica to international superstar. John Masouri, author of Simmer Down: Marley-Tosh-Livingston is a renowned reggae historian and tells us how Marley became synonymous with an innovative new music form called reggae, and political activism that defended disenfranchised people globally. You’ll learn:

-About the incredible age difference of Bob's white father and his black mother and how their relationship led to Bob's subsequent challenges as a mixed race child in Jamaica
-How reggae was not Bob's first music genre of choice
-Learn how reggae was created from American R'n'B and several other forms melded together
-Why an assassination attempt was made on Bob’s life and led to gunshot wounds
-The international royal figure that led to Bob discovering the Rastafarian religion and its dreadlock look
-Which of Bob's musical accomplishments TIME magazine listed as the best music of the 20th Century

Bob Marley is an international superstar who has reached the top of the musical and political worlds. Incredibly, he has won a UN humanitarian award for his political efforts and one of his albums was voted the best album of the 20th Century.

But his incredibly productive life did not begin this way. Nor did his music career begin with reggae. To hear more about Bob Marley's surprising and uplifting story, listen to this engaging episode to understand how and why he achieved his international superstar status.

Guest Bio
John Masouri is a distinguished reggae historian and the author of several books on the genre including the definitive text on Bob Marley's life Simmer Down: Marley-Tosh-Livingston. John is a highly acclaimed author and music journalist specializing in reggae and dancehall genres for more than 35 years. John's work has appeared in Music Week, The Guardian Observer and New Musical Express (NME).

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You will taken from the mid-1960s through the early ‘70s Los Angeles, when a band would emerge that changed all of the rules of music. Jim Cherry, author of The Doors Examined joins us to tell the mesmerizing story of a band fronted by an electrifying, handsome poet named Jim Morrison. The Doors relentlessly challenged, confronted and inspired fans with their provocative songs and performances. In this episode you'll learn:

-About a shocking highway incident that changed the lead singer forever
-The strange origins of how The Doors formed in Venice, California
-The incredible secret that nobody knew about the Vietnam War and Jim Morrison
-Why The Doors were banned from radio and concert appearances in several US states
-The reasons for the arrest of a key member of the band during various concert performances
-How the band played a key role in the punk music movement

Guest Bio
Jim Cherry is the author of The Doors Examined and was formally a columnist for the Rants, Raves and Rock and Roll Magazine radio show. He is also a novelist, having written several novels, short stories and poems.

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While other 1960's bands warbled on about peace and love, The Doors explored the dark side of human nature with songs like People are Strange, The End, LA Woman, and Strange Days. They also possessed one of the most electrifying figures in rock history, Jim Morrison, their lead singer who was an incredibly well-read individual, and also a poet. Morrison possessed an intoxicating blend of charisma, good looks and a curiosity for the dark side of life that combined with the band's mesmerizing music, often forcing audiences to straddle that fine balance between jubilation and mayhem. Accordingly, Morrison became the very embodiment of 1960's rebellion.

The Doors have sold over 100 million albums worldwide, and have been the inspiration for many bands that followed in various genres like alternative rock and punk.

Take yourself back to Swinging London for the formation of The Who in 1964. Guest Mark Wilkerson, author of Who are You: The Life of Pete Townshend discussed The Who's enormous influence on rock music sound, album structure and concert staging all while navigating through the offstage mayhem that become synonymous with this group. In this episode you'll learn:

-How lead songwriter and guitarist Pete Townshend became rock's foremost innovator
-How a mysterious religious figure’s theories were embedded in the band’s most famous songs
-The bizarre tale of The Who's manager accused of a violent crime in an uncharted part of the Amazon Rainforest
-How the band used an opera structure to create new formats for music
-Why the band was banned from a major hotel chain for life
-How band members' distaste for one another was a cited key to their success

Anchored by songwriter and guitarist Pete Townshend, an art school student, who as you will hear brought art concepts into the band's songs and stage performance. Townsend continued that innovation by creating incredible forms of rock music, modeled after operas and integrating computers into music before any other band.

Guest Bio:
Mark Wilkerson wrote Who are You: The Life of Pete Townshend. Mark was born in England and lived there for 14 years and fell in love with The Who's music before moving to the US in 1984. A few years later, a fellow Townshend fan Eddie Vedder of Pearl Jam, asked Mark to join the team that put together PJ:20 An official history of Pearl Jam to commemorate the band's 20th anniversary.

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Known for their influential music, explosive live shows and rebellious sound, The Who's impact on rock music and cultural landscape continues to inspire and influence generations, with over 100 million records sold. This band is truly a global phenomenon and has influenced bands across punk, alternative, and rock.

You will be astonished at the story of The Who's musical sophistication and innovation. Yet, The Who live in concert still knew how to get down to business and rock you. For years, they were considered the best live band in the world, and the loudest. And as you will hear, there were several tragic downsides that threatened this band to create an incredible story like no other.

In this episode, you'll step into the early 1960s to see how a young Bob Dylan appeared out of nowhere to shape modern rock music. You'll follow him through the decades to hear Dylan's incredible influence on all music through his influence on superstars like The Beatles, Bruce Springsteen, Neil Young and more. Join host Dave Anthony and our guest, Harold Lepidus, author of Friends and Other Strangers: Bob Dylan Examined, and learn:

• How Bob grew up in a Jewish family in Minnesota and changed his name
• The very strange obsession that brought him to New York in the early '60s
• How the women in his life greatly influenced his lyric writing
• Why audiences booing him was the mark of a key turning point in modern rock n roll
• How a near-tragic motorcycle accident actually may have saved his life
• About his unknown backup band becoming a superstar band on their own without Bob
• His legacy and influence on all music that has come along since his debut

Bob Dylan is widely considered to be the inspiration for how rock music transformed itself from joyful ditties like Twist and Shout to deep and meaningful lyrics that communicated the challenges and dichotomies of life. To understand the evolution of music, it is key to understand Dylan's key role in its transformation.

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Bonus Content:

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2. Visit GaragetoStadiums.com for bonus content on Bob Dylan, including concert footage, transcripts and other interesting facts.