185. Mark Hart (Crowded House) on XTC 'Drums & Wires' (1979)

Singer/songwriter and multi-instrumental wizard Mark Hart (Crowded House, Supertramp) joins me for a freewheeling journey through the records that inspired him through his formative years, particularly XTC's nervy new wave classic 'Drums & Wires'.

We talk about how XTC hid their intricacy and sophistication through canny pop songwriting, whatever happened to Oingo Boingo, driving to Woodstock on acid, how some Crowded House songs changed after they played them live, Mark’s possibly terrible childhood bands, a cover of “Louie Louie” in the style of Bowie’s “Let’s Dance”, the time Nick Seymour almost introduced Mark to XTC guitarist Dave Gregory on a boat, why Mark’s height got him fired from Jackshit and much more.

My Favorite Album is a podcast unpacking the great works of pop music. Each episode features a different songwriter or musician discussing their favorite album of all time - their history with it, the making of the album, individual songs and the album’s influence on their own music.

Jeremy Dylan is a filmmaker, journalist and photographer from Sydney, Australia who has worked in the music industry since 2007. He directed the the feature music documentary Jim Lauderdale: The King of Broken Hearts (out now!) and the feature film Benjamin Sniddlegrass and the Cauldron of Penguins, in addition to many commercials and music videos.

If you’ve got any feedback or suggestions, drop us a line at myfavoritealbumpodcast@gmail.com.