On this episode, Mark Simon talks to Ken Partridge, a music journalist and author of Hell of a Hat, The Best of 90s Ska and Swing.

Ken talked about how his interests in journalism and music began and evolved, some of the prominent musicians he’s interviewed and how he finds little tidbits to make stories on everything he does (including Grandma Got Run Over By a Reindeer) distinct. He also shared his favorite question-answer moment, when he got Joni Mitchell to refer to herself as a genius.

Ken also explained why he wrote this book, what the experience and process was like. He gave tips on how to get good answers to questions and how to handle the volume of work in a book project. He also discussed his journalistic influences and picked a music journalist he wanted to salute.

You can find Ken’s book here.