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PODCAST

Bill and Frank’s Guilt-Free Pleasures

There’s no shame in the music you love. Join us as we celebrate the open-hearted songs of the past 50 years (with a focus on the songs that shaped us from the 70s, 80s, and 90s).

music music commentary

All Episodes

50:06

Barry White: "You're My First, My Last, My Everything"

Bill and Frank’s Guilt-Free Pleasures ·

2025/04/06

In this episode we explore the sultry magic of Barry White, focusing on his iconic track "You're the First, the Last, My Everything." We discuss Barry's rise from the streets of Watts to his status as a soul legend, we unravel themes of love and seduction, we dive into the passionate lyrics and lush arrangements that define White’s sound, and we celebrate his artistry as both a vocalist and innovative producer. Prepare yourself for an unforgettable journey through love's essence! Links: 1970s

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52:35

Culture Club: "Karma Chameleon" (Watch out for those...

Bill and Frank’s Guilt-Free Pleasures ·

2025/03/30

It's hard to believe that it's taken us this long to do "Karma Chameleon," but maybe we needed to be at our A-game to handle a song this amazing. If you were alive in 1983, you would have heard this tune everywhere and you would have loved it! We go deep into the background of the band and the song, and we find out that it's a lot darker than we realized. Nevertheless, the joys of the song endure as our memories of 1983 come and go, come and go.Links: Official Music Video Live acoustic from

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01:04:36

Suzanne Vega & DNA: "Tom's Diner

Bill and Frank’s Guilt-Free Pleasures ·

2025/03/23

We explore the DNA remix of Suzanne Vega's "Tom's Diner" by taking a deep dive into the song's history and cultural significance, particularly how the original version became an integral part of the MP3 narrative. We also discuss the themes embedded within the lyrics - a stream-of-consciousness portrayal of someone experiencing life through a pane of glass, which gives us not only a time capsule of 1980s New York City, but also triggers our own bittersweet (painful) memories. Additionally, you’ll

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53:21

Real Life: "Send Me An Angel"

Bill and Frank’s Guilt-Free Pleasures ·

2025/03/16

From Rad to Knuckles, Real Life’s “Send Me An Angel” sets a perfect t scene. We hope you enjoy our discussion of the history and analysis of an 80s classic!Helpful Links Werewolf Video 89 Video You can find us on Instagram, Facebook, and our website. You can email us at BandFGuiltFree@gmail.com, too. We'd love to hear from you. Please rate and review us wherever you listen! Our theme music is by the incredibly talented Ian McGlynn.

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56:55

The Human League: "Human" (Guilty or Guilt-Free?)

Bill and Frank’s Guilt-Free Pleasures ·

2025/03/09

The Human League's "Human" is both irresistible and ridiculous. Despite the reprehensible content, Terry Lewis and Jimmy Jam create an earworm of a melody, and when combined with the not-quite-as-robotic-as-before vocals of Philip Oakey (which we continually mispronounce as "Oakley"), we can't help but return repeatedly to the tune. We discuss the history of the band, the song, and whether we can ever deem this to be a "guilt-free pleasure." Thank you for joining us!Links: The Official Video

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58:29

Scandal feat. Patty Smyth: "The Warrior" (Bang Bang)

Bill and Frank’s Guilt-Free Pleasures ·

2025/03/02

An incredible song with an absolutely ridiculous video, "The Warrior" is pure guilt-free pleasure. Besides discussing the history of the band, the song, and the video, we also explore Knuckles from Sonic The Hedgehog and its significance in Bill's life. And most importantly, we examine what it means to be a warrior in the world of love. Links: The Warrior video Bon Jovi video with Scandal: Love's Got A Line On You You can find us on Instagram, Facebook, and our website. You can email us at

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57:40

Faith Hill: "This Kiss" (Ahhhhh)

Bill and Frank’s Guilt-Free Pleasures ·

2025/02/23

We can't think of many songs with as much purity of heart than Faith Hill's "This Kiss." All the joy of early and enduring love is found here, as well as a remarkable story about how this song came together. We have a dearth of episodes on country music, but we hope this marks the beginning of more steel guitar days in the Guilt-Free Pleasureverse! Links: The video 1998 Country Music Awards performance You can find us on Instagram, Facebook, and our website. You can email us at

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53:32

Alias: More Than Words Can Say (I Need You Now)

Bill and Frank’s Guilt-Free Pleasures ·

2025/02/16

The story of Alias is the story of tenacity. Coming out of the ashes of Sheriff, Freddy Curcci and Steve Demarchi were couriers by day and hard-working rockers by night as they honed their craft and waited for an opportunity to get back on the scene. The serendipitous resurrection of "When I'm With You" (check our previous episode) on the Billboard Hot 100 gave them the chance to get a record deal, which resulted in the release of this incredible power ballad. We discuss the band's history, the

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54:55

Sheriff: "When I'm With You" (19 seconds of perfection)

Bill and Frank’s Guilt-Free Pleasures ·

2025/02/09

More info forthcoming....Links: Music Video if it was actually made Live Version You can find us on Instagram, Facebook, and our website. You can email us at BandFGuiltFree@gmail.com, too. We'd love to hear from you. Please rate and review us wherever you listen! Our theme music is by the incredibly talented Ian McGlynn.

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58:48

Michael McDonald: "Sweet Freedom" (A special listener...

Bill and Frank’s Guilt-Free Pleasures ·

2025/02/02

When you send us requests, we do listen! This episode was recommended by frequent listener Jake Wiebe, who feels that Michael McDonald's "Sweet Freedom" is an essential guilt-free pleasure. We agree. Official Video Running Scared Montage Sequence Our mixtape on Spotify Toad the Wet Sprocket and Michael McDonald You can find us on Instagram, Facebook, and our website. You can email us at BandFGuiltFree@gmail.com, too. We'd love to hear from you. Please rate and review us wherever you listen! Our

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52:45

Poison: "Every Rose Has Its Thorn" (Well, not every...

Bill and Frank’s Guilt-Free Pleasures ·

2025/01/26

This song has been frequented requested from listeners, and finally we are honouring that request (this one's especially for you, Maureen!). Frank is a huge fan of this song, while Bill is a bit more reticent about naming this as a guilt-free pleasure. Despite our differences and sharp disagreements, this podcast manages to survive the episode. We follow the history of Poison in general and this song in particular. We give a deep analysis of the song and even have a botanical specialist weigh in on

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53:13

Shannon: "Let The Music Play"

Bill and Frank’s Guilt-Free Pleasures ·

2025/01/19

Dave Kitchen returns to discuss the song that birthed the freestyle movement! Our episode picture is Sara at the roller rink 🛼

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01:03:54

Billy Joel: "Uptown Girl" (A song for us downtown guys)

Bill and Frank’s Guilt-Free Pleasures ·

2025/01/12

We just cannot get enough of Billy Joel's "Uptown Girl." From the message that the common person has a shot at the seeming unattainable other to the infectious early 1960s throwback vibes, we are all in! We walk through a brief history of Billy Joel and the story behind the song (it involves Elle MacPherson, Christie Brinkley, and Whitney Houston!). We also give a detailed analysis of the tune itself in downtown guy terms. And we discuss the timeless video that is totally of its time!Thank you for

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01:15:32

Anne Murray: "Snowbird" (with Rich Terfry / Buck 65)

Bill and Frank’s Guilt-Free Pleasures ·

2025/01/05

We are thrilled to have Rich Terfry (a.k.a. Buck 65) join us to talk about Anne Murray's "Snowbird." Anne Murray is a Canadian musical legend who has sold over 55 million records and it all started with "Snowbird." We cover the story of the song, its writer (Gene MacLellan), and we take a deep dive (as only Rich Terfry can do!) into our analysis of the song. Stay for a pretty epic mixtape to close the episode as we discover the surprising links between Anne Murray and hip hop. Also, for those still

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58:55

Spice Girls: "Stop" (We all get guilt-free)

Bill and Frank’s Guilt-Free Pleasures ·

2024/12/29

There are many great Spice Girls songs, but there is only one that altered the trajectory of our musical tastes as cynical young adults in the 1990s. One could argue (and we do) that the whole concept of a "guilt-free pleasure" was born when "Stop" was released. It may have been the first single to not top the U.K. charts for the Spice Girls, but it is nevertheless (arguably) their greatest sonic achievement. Beyond walking through the history of the band and the song, we also get a special message

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12:08

Depressmas: Greg Lake ("I Believe in Father...

Bill and Frank’s Guilt-Free Pleasures ·

2024/12/21

It's our annual Holiday greeting mini-episode! We thought we would change things up and bring in our good friend Dave Kitchen for our theme of "Depressmas" - songs that bring in the sadness of the season. It's short and (bitter)sweet! Merry Christmas, everyone. You have a home here at Bill & Frank's Guilt-Free Pleasures!Links: I Believe in Father Christmas music video The Cat Carol music video Carry Me Home music video Here's a special treat. Tim Baker of Hey Rosetta! sings Carry Me Home with

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01:03:35

Mariah Carey: "All I Want For Christmas Is You" (An...

Bill and Frank’s Guilt-Free Pleasures ·

2024/12/15

Christmas has come early for Frank as we are finally doing his favourite holiday tune! We discuss the enduring popularity of this juggernaut, the competing stories behind it's beginning, the unrelenting anger of Mariah fans on Twitter, and the click of reindeer. Helpful Links: Official Video Other Official Video (Black and White Version) Official Video with Unreleased Footage Recent Official Video (Make My Wish Come True) Justin Bieber Duet Video Mixtape Mariah Carey Atlantic Article: A Historic

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49:10

Jeffrey Osborne: "On The Wings Of Love" (Brought to...

Bill and Frank’s Guilt-Free Pleasures ·

2024/12/08

Jeffrey Osborne needs to be talked about more. An incredible voice with incredible tunes. And "On The Wings Of Love" is our absolute favourite. Links: Mixtape Top of the Pops video Questlove Interview You can find us on Instagram, Facebook, and our website. You can email us at BandFGuiltFree@gmail.com, too. Feel free to rate and review us wherever you listen! Here is our Spotify playlist featuring every song we've featured. Our theme music is by the incredibly talented Ian McGlynn.

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50:32

Loverboy: “Working For The Weekend” (Fishing for Orcas)

Bill and Frank’s Guilt-Free Pleasures ·

2024/12/01

We are starting from the start in this week’s episode. And we may not know what that means, but we do know that it is a fundamental fact that everyone is working for the weekend. We take you through a brief history of Loverboy and dig deep as we examine their most enduring hit. C’mon baby let’s go!Links: official video mixtape You can find us on Instagram, Facebook, and our website. You can email us at BandFGuiltFree@gmail.com, too. Feel free to rate and review us wherever you listen! Here is our

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51:10

Cameo: "Word Up" (Word to Big Bird!)

Bill and Frank’s Guilt-Free Pleasures ·

2024/11/24

As Frank says, there's a "danceable menacing feel" to the Cameo's "Word Up" It demands that you get down. No psychological romance here from sucker DJs! Music Video Top of the Pops Mixtape You can find us on Instagram, Facebook, and our website. You can email us at BandFGuiltFree@gmail.com, too. Feel free to rate and review us wherever you listen! Here is our Spotify playlist featuring every song we've featured. Our theme music is by the incredibly talented Ian McGlynn.

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