In this special episode, Yusuf aka Cat Stevens meets with Simon and Brian in London for a chat about the writing of his new record The Laughing Apple and classic songs from his back catalogue. Songs discussed include: ‘Matthew & Son’, ‘The First Cut Is The Deepest’, ‘Wild World’, ‘Father and Son’, ‘Moonshadow’, ‘(Remember The Days Of The) Old Schoolyard’, ‘Heaven/Where True Love Goes’ and ‘Mighty Peace’.
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In this episode, Gary Numan joins Sodajerker in Liverpool for a conversation about the writing of his latest album Savage: Songs from a Broken World including ‘My Name is Ruin’ and ‘Ghost Nation’. Gary also explains his precise approach to lyric writing, why he couldn’t care less about analogue versus digital, and the stories behind classics like ‘Listen to the Sirens’, ‘Are ‘Friends’ Electric?’ and ‘Cars’.
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Ron and Russell Mael of Sparks sit down with Simon and Brian in London to discuss the writing of their terrific new album Hippopotamus. The brothers describe the processes behind the music and lyrics of songs like ‘What The Hell Is It This Time?’, ‘Edith Piaf (Said It Better Than Me)’ and ‘Missionary Position’ alongside classics from their catalogue like ‘My Baby’s Taking Me Home’, ‘When Do I Get To Sing ‘My Way” and ‘This Town Ain’t Big Enough for Both of Us’.
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Multi-talented singer-songwriter and former Men At Work frontman Colin Hay talks with Simon and Brian about the writing of his excellent recent album Fierce Mercy. During the episode, Colin reflects on his writing partnership with Michael Giorgiades and tells the stories behind a cornucopia of stunning songs from his back catalogue like ‘Down Under’, ‘Who Can It Be Now?’, ‘Overkill’, ‘Waiting For My Real Life To Begin’, ‘Oh California’, ‘Send Somebody’ and ‘If I Had Been A Better Man’.
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Singer-songwriter Imelda May sits down with Simon and Brian in Liverpool for a chat about the writing of her recent album Life Love Flesh Blood including songs like ‘Black Tears’, ‘Should’ve Been You’, ‘Leave Me Lonely’ and ‘The Girl I Used To Be’. Imelda also talks about her collaboration with producer T Bone Burnett, co-writing in Nashville, and songs from previous albums like ‘Mayhem’ and ‘It’s Good To Be Alive’.
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Rising star Declan McKenna talks to Sodajerker about the writing of his fantastic debut album, What Do You Think About The Car?, including the songs ‘Humongous’, ‘Isombard’, ‘Paracetamol’ and ‘Brazil’. Declan also reflects on the process of being socially and politically aware in his music.
Download this episode Subscribe in iTunes Listen to Spotify playlist© 2017 Sodajerker. Some rights reserved.
In late July of 2011, during a break from demoing a new song, Simon and I sat in our little loft studio in the Liverpool suburbs and tentatively discussed the possibility of doing a podcast. A songwriting podcast, to be precise. Our motivation was thus: we’d been plugging away, writing songs under the Sodajerker sobriquet for a while and, to put it bluntly, were looking for ways to attract some attention to ourselves and the music we were making. Podcasting was becoming an increasingly popular medium, so we figured that this could be one small way to put ourselves on the map.
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Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriter and guitarist Jason Isbell joins Simon and Brian in London to mark the milestone of the 100th Sodajerker podcast. Jason talks about the writing of his incredible new record, The Nashville Sound, classic songs from his solo and Drive-By Truckers periods, how TV’s Hoarders impacted upon the new album, and the songwriting significance of the humble weed vape.
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In this special bonus episode, Simon and Brian answer your questions about the podcast and share some stories and insights from behind the scenes of the show.
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Singer-songwriter Jack Savoretti sits down in Liverpool with Simon and Brian to talk about songs from his career to date and his most recent album, Sleep No More, including ‘Catapult’, ‘Not Worthy’, ‘When We Were Lovers’ and ‘Deep Waters’. Jack reflects on the collaborative process, why ‘demo’ is a dirty word, and how his cultural heritage has influenced his songwriting.
Download this episode Subscribe in iTunes Listen to Spotify playlist© 2017 Sodajerker. Some rights reserved.
For Christmas 1989, when I was 10 and a half, I got my first Sony Walkman (still one of the best presents I’ve ever received) and a cassette to play on it – Prince’s soundtrack for Tim Burton’s Batman movie, released earlier that year, with which I was obsessed at the time. It was the first album I ever owned, and the only one for a while, so I would play it on a near-constant loop until the tempos slowed and vocals deepened as the Walkman’s batteries ran out of juice. Admittedly, this listening frenzy was as much to do with my childhood Batman obsession as the soundtrack, but now I realise my future musical tastes were being subtly shaped too.
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Episode 319 – Linda PerryJune 20, 2026
Episode 318 – Sean Ono LennonMay 31, 2026
Episode 317 – Matt JohnsonMay 14, 2026
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