Jazz on a Tightrope, Cruise Off the Rails: On The Record Takes a Wild Ride
You don’t need to understand every note to know you’ve heard something remarkable.
In Episode 46 of On The Record, Brian Wise returns from the Melbourne International Jazz Festival with an enthusiastic report on the Tomeka Reid Quartet—and a cassette player’s unexpected contribution to the proceedings.
At the cinema, Mackenzie has encountered something considerably harder to recommend without qualifications. His verdict on Digger, starring Tom Cruise and directed by Alejandro González Iñárritu, is “a magnificent failure”.
Show Notes
Tomeka Reid Quartet whole album
Dee Dee Bridgewater: NPR Music Tiny Desk Concert
Jimmy Webb - Between The Devil And The Deep Blue Sea (Lyric Video) (Official)
Glen Campbell Wichita Lineman (Remastered 2001)
Flea feat. Nick Cave - Wichita Lineman (Official Visualizer)
DIGGER | Official Trailer
Brazil (1985) Official Trailer - Jonathan Pryce, Terry Gilliam Movie HD
APOLLO HAS FALLEN | Official Trailer | STUDIOCANAL
Apollo Has Fallen on SBS
VulgarGrad - Гоп-стоп - Gop-Stop
The Diplomat: Season 4 | Official Trailer | Netflix
23 Oct 2026
Elvis Gets Five Stars, Ticket Prices Get Both Barrels
A box set should tell a story, not merely find new ways to sell you the same songs. In Episode 45 of On The Record, Brian Wise and Michael Mackenzie reckon Elvis Costello has delivered one worth hearing.
The expanded My Aim Is True receives an enthusiastic assessment from both hosts, who hear its early recordings, alternate versions and live performances as a portrait of a songwriter becoming himself.
“This really builds a story about how Elvis Costello came to be,” says Wise.
For Wise, that story comes with eyewitness credentials. Living in London, he heard Costello’s demos on Charlie Gillett’s radio programme, then headed to the Hope and Anchor expecting a quiet night. Instead, he found a queue stretching around the corner.
Mackenzie’s memories are dawn starts cleaning a restaurant ship on the Thames, with Live Stiffs in his headphones. Costello’s performance of “I Just Don’t Know What to Do with Myself” still takes him straight back there.
Show Notes
Elvis Costello Unboxes ‘My Aim Is True’ 49th Anniversary Edition
Elvis Costello Walk On (Hope & Anchor Studio)
Elvis Costello & the Attractions - I Just Don't Know What to Do with Myself
Whole Wide World (Live Stiffs, at University of Lester, Lester, UK / October 22nd, 1977)
Elvis Costello (What’s So Funny ‘Bout) Peace, Love and Understanding (Live at Great American Music Hall,...
Elvis Costello Trust Full Album
The Kings of America Live At The Royal Albert Hall
Elvis Costello Brilliant Mistake (Live)
Spectacle: Elvis Costello With...
Lou Reed shows Sweet Jane riff
Lou Reed and Elvis Costello perform "Perfect Day"
Best of Bleak Squad
Bob Dylan. Tangled Up In Blue. Lights of Autumn Tour. Oslo. October 17, 2026
Zach Bryan - Nine Ball
The Gentlemen | A Guy Ritchie Series Official Trailer | Netflix
16 Oct 2026
Dylan’s Electric Vehicle, Dalton’s Quiet Power and Costello’s Early Days
“I ain’t gonna drive in Maggie’s car no more.”
Bob Dylan’s “Maggie’s Farm” gets an unlikely alternative lyric in Episode 44 of On The Record with Brian Wise and Michael Mackenzie, as the hosts consider its licensing to an Audi electric-vehicle ad.
For Wise, the commercial’s invocation of Dylan’s electric breakthrough at Newport raises an uncomfortable question: what happens when a song’s cultural associations become advertising material?
Mackenzie is more amused by Dylan’s apparent indifference to how others treasure his catalogue.
Between them lies the familiar predicament of the devoted listener: the artist has moved on, but you’re still attached to what the music meant.
Show Notes
Emily Wurramara - 'Adore Me' (Official Music Video)
Dylan on Audi Ad Rewrite the rules | the Audi RS 5
Karen Dalton: In My Own Time | Official Trailer
Karen Dalton In My Own Time on SBS
Amazon in court for introducing ads to Prime Video using allegedly unfair contract terms
Elvis Costello Imagination (Is A Powerful Deceiver)
Official Trailer | Dustfall | ABC iview
Blade Runner 2099 - NYCC Trailer | Prime Video
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