Inspired by creator and host Carmel Holt’s own 25 year career in radio, and lifetime devoted to music, SHEROES is a podcast that amplifies womxn’s voices in song and conversation. As the third production under the SHEROES name, following her syndicated public radio show SHEROES Radio, and SHEROES: Mixtape Memoir (Sonos Radio), the SHEROES podcast on Talkhouse acts as kind of creative lab, expanding to include mini-episodes that highlight the intersectional feminist heart of SHERO interviews, live tapings, roundtables and more. Carmel’s approach continues to be guided by a fierce commitment to diversity and inclusivity, showcasing a wide range of guests sharing their experiences spanning genres and generations, with a passion for amplifying new voices while recognizing and celebrating the womxn who paved the way.
The two guest interviews featured in Episode 7 with Bruce Hornsby and Béla Fleck were recorded back-to-back by host/producer Carmel Holt. As it turns out, the threads that connect the two artists to each other and to Joni, make the conversations a perfect pair. Joni’s then-husband, Larry Klein, played bass on and co-produced several of her albums in the ’80s and ’90s. He would also bring the two guests in this episode closer to each other and to their shared SHERO, Joni.
Pianist and genre-blending musician Bruce Hornsby sings us through his Road to Joni, which includes Joni’s first live album Miles of Aisles, a revelation that led him to devour her entire early catalogue, becoming a “complete Joni Mitchell devotee.” In the 90’s, Hornsby would go on to play on Shawn Colvin’s second album, Fat City, produced by Larry Klein. Bruce ends by giving us a hint at a new project that he considers a “Paprika Plains”-like opus.
Banjo player and fellow breaker of genre-boundaries Béla Fleck’s Road began with a birthday gift from his stepfather: a copy of Blue that he would wear out that summer. Béla recounts how “The Last Time I Saw Richard” taught him entirely new emotions as a teenager. Later on, he tells us how he, too, played on Shawn Colvin’s album with Hornsby and Klein, and got to record in Joni’s house. He also shares the story of a terrifying overnight hospital stay his son and family endured, where they played Night Ride Home on repeat to get them through.
