How can U just leave me standing? ...in search of Prince Rogers Nelson.

About How can U just leave me standing? ...in search of Prince Rogers Nelson.

Prince Rogers Nelson was a cultural icon, ground-breaking artist and one of the most influential, prolific and revered musicians of his generation, inspiring diverse groups of people around the world. This show talks to people who have memories of the Purple one, and will include associates, bandmates and fans alike. Don't be 'alone in a world that's so cold' - join us! May U Live 2 C the Dawn...

Publisher

Sam Bleazard

Category

arts · music · music

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

10 Apr 2021

Latest episode

17 Jun 2026

Latest episodes

51 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   17 Jun 2026

   As President of Prince's Paisley Park Records, Alan Leeds tried to bridge a relationship between mercurial artist and major corporation. In the final part of the interview he also shares his favourite memories of various artists, including D'Angelo.

   Born in Jackson Heights, New York, Alan Leeds is an American music industry legend, as a tour manager and production manager, he is best known for his work organising performances and concert tours for artists such as James Brown, Prince, KISS, Cameo, D'Angelo and Chris Rock. In addition to his career in artist management, he is recognised as an award-winning writer and music archivist, receiving a Grammy Award for Best Album Notes in 1992 for his work on the James Brown compilation Star Time. Alan also penned the liner notes for the 1993 Prince box set The Hits/The B-Sides, and co-wrote The James Brown Reader with Nelson George. His music career began as a DJ, before he became involved with James Brown as his publicity director in 1969, and worked as Brown's tour manager from 1970 to 1973. Beginning in 1983, Alan managed tours for Prince during the peak of his commercial and artistic success, notably during the Purple Rain Tour. His work with Prince culminated in him being named as president of Prince's label Paisley Park Records in 1989. Alan's career as a tour manager continued with D'Angelo, managing the successful Voodoo Tour in 2000. This was followed by stints with a variety of other artists, including Raphael Saadiq and The Roots. He has also been involved in the curation of the James Brown: The Singles collections, and has spoken at events commemorating Brown's career and accomplishments. In his personal life Alan has a wife, Gwen, and a son, Tristan. His brother is saxophonist Eric Leeds. In 2020, Leeds released the biographical book, "There Was a Time: James Brown, The Chitlin' Circuit, and Me." And we are absolutely delighted to have him on the 50th episode of our show, Alan welcome...! Our thanks also to Paddy Fang for his help on this interview.

2. 

   30 May 2026

   Brazilian beaches in high heels, frenzied premieres in limousines and some general counsel for a genius. But behind the scenes, some very rare moments of vulnerability, "when the Emperor had no clothes", as Alan Leeds tells Sam Bleazard in part 2.

   Born in Jackson Heights, New York, Alan Leeds is an American music industry legend, as a tour manager and production manager, he is best known for his work organising performances and concert tours for artists such as James Brown, Prince, KISS, Cameo, D'Angelo and Chris Rock. In addition to his career in artist management, he is recognised as an award-winning writer and music archivist, receiving a Grammy Award for Best Album Notes in 1992 for his work on the James Brown compilation Star Time. Alan also penned the liner notes for the 1993 Prince box set The Hits/The B-Sides, and co-wrote The James Brown Reader with Nelson George. His music career began as a DJ, before he became involved with James Brown as his publicity director in 1969, and worked as Brown's tour manager from 1970 to 1973. Beginning in 1983, Alan managed tours for Prince during the peak of his commercial and artistic success, notably during the Purple Rain Tour. His work with Prince culminated in him being named as president of Prince's label Paisley Park Records in 1989. Alan's career as a tour manager continued with D'Angelo, managing the successful Voodoo Tour in 2000. This was followed by stints with a variety of other artists, including Raphael Saadiq and The Roots. He has also been involved in the curation of the James Brown: The Singles collections, and has spoken at events commemorating Brown's career and accomplishments. In his personal life Alan has a wife, Gwen, and a son, Tristan. His brother is saxophonist Eric Leeds. In 2020, Leeds released the biographical book, "There Was a Time: James Brown, The Chitlin' Circuit, and Me." We were delighted to welcome him as our guest on the show. This is part two of our interview.

3. 

   4 May 2026

   The Godfather of Soul, James Brown, glam rockers KISS, Prince, D'Angelo - Alan Leeds has had quite a life in artist management. Ahead of publishing his career memoir, he sits down with Sam Bleazard to discuss his seminal experiences in music.

   Born in Jackson Heights, New York, Alan Leeds is an American music industry legend, as a tour manager and production manager, he is best known for his work organising performances and concert tours for artists such as James Brown, Prince, KISS, Cameo, D'Angelo and Chris Rock. In addition to his career in artist management, he is recognised as an award-winning writer and music archivist, receiving a Grammy Award for Best Album Notes in 1992 for his work on the James Brown compilation Star Time. Alan also penned the liner notes for the 1993 Prince box set The Hits/The B-Sides, and co-wrote The James Brown Reader with Nelson George. His music career began as a DJ, before he became involved with James Brown as his publicity director in 1969, and worked as Brown's tour manager from 1970 to 1973. Beginning in 1983, Alan managed tours for Prince during the peak of his commercial and artistic success, notably during the Purple Rain Tour. His work with Prince culminated in him being named as president of Prince's label Paisley Park Records in 1989. Alan's career as a tour manager continued with D'Angelo, managing the successful Voodoo Tour in 2000. This was followed by stints with a variety of other artists, including Raphael Saadiq and The Roots. He has also been involved in the curation of the James Brown: The Singles collections, and has spoken at events commemorating Brown's career and accomplishments. In his personal life Alan has a wife, Gwen, and a son, Tristan. His brother is saxophonist Eric Leeds. In 2020, Leeds released the biographical book, "There Was a Time: James Brown, The Chitlin' Circuit, and Me." We were delighted to welcome him as our guest, on the 50th episode of the show.

Reach and audience

Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.

Apple Podcasts (US)

4.1 / 5

9 ratings

Spotify

5.0 / 5

11 ratings

Podcast Authority Score: 58 / 100

A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.

Quality

65

Social presence

91

YouTube

0

Engagement

81

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Guest appearances

Books guests

Based on episode analysis; this does not confirm that the show is currently accepting guests.