Author Archives: Jon Sidel

Greetings from Laurel Canyon!

I was (I was staring at the water) / I was staring at the water / I had one hand on my head between you and the water / I had one hand on my head in the water / I had my hand over my mouth / And I watched the moon over New Jersey / I had

You’re making me feel like a dollar in your hand / You’re making me feel like I’m a zero dollar man / You’re making me feel like a dollar in your hand / You’re making me feel like I’m a zero dollar man

God is real, God is real / I’m not kidding, God is actually real / I’m not kidding this time / I think God is actually for real / God is real, God is actually real / God is real, I wouldn’t joke about this / I’m not kidding this time

This second week of December finds us LA canyon dwellers basking in the beautiful morning sunshine. As I flip through my pile of fresh vinyl releases from 2025, what’s not to be grateful for? There’s plenty of diversity to choose from.

There’s a bunch of cool, male rock stars emerging,—and big thanks to Cameron Winter for being so fucking cool.

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Greetings from Laurel Canyon!

Heartthrob Lone Star, burning up a cigarette / Smokestack Hollywood, banking on the parlay bet / Man, I think it would do ya some good / Take a walk around the neighborhood / Nevermind the pissing rain / Baptize your brain, blow your worries away

Rock n’ roll, rock n’ roll / Burning through the stereo / Bite me like an animal / Be a dear, fetch me a beer / It’s been a bitch year

For well over a decade, I’ve been writing this wee column to intro my radio show. My obsession with “rock ‘n’ roll” rarely fades. For your “Idelic host,” the key to life still boils down to two factors: cool friends and cool songs. It’s great to have old friends, but it’s making new ones that is the spice of life that keeps me going.

Over the years I have referred to turning on to a new song and band as an “Idelic Hit.” Each week I scour my “sources” to find that spark of joy that touched me as kid. Sharing “my finds” with you, whoever and wherever you are, makes my joy complete.

So THANK YOU. Yeah man, fucking A!

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Greetings from Laurel Canyon!

Daddy / Hold me / It seems so very dark tonight / And day

Daddy / I can’t sleep / I need you to come and sing to me / That the stars up in the sky / Will shine down gently on the two of us tonight / And soon enough it will be light / We’ll hold on tightly to each other, you and I / And I won’t cry

I’m calling today “Kenny’s day.” Four years ago to the day, my dad passed in Vegas. Losing my dad has been a mind-blowing experience. Please know it wasn’t a tragedy.

He passed as peacefully as Kenny could on an absolutely beautify day in the Las Vegas desert. An infamous stock broker and gambler, he died with likely not more than a few hundred dollars to his name. I can see him shrug and smiling at me saying, “I left it all on the table.”

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Greetings from Laurel Canyon!

It’s raining today / But once there was summer / and you / And dark little rooms / And sleep in late afternoons / Those moments descend / On my window pane

I’ve hung around too long / Listenin’ to the old landlady’s hard-luck stories / You out of me, me out of you / We go like lovers / To replace the empty space / Repeat our dreams to someone new

It’s raining today / And I watch the cellophane streets / No hang-ups for me / ‘Cause hang-ups need company / The street corner girl’s / A cold tremblin’ leaf

It’s raining today in the canyon. No complaints for most of 2025—our little cul-de-sac has been all smiles. Tonight I plan to eat the last of the fresh cantaloupe and watermelon of ’25. It was an excellent year for crunchy watermelon, and it appears that our avocado tree is going to shed a bundle sooner than the new year.

With rain in the breeze I took the opportunity to start this week’s episode with some serious easy, and sentimental, listening. This is one of those Idelic hours I’ll likely spin a number of times this week. I hope you’ll do the same.

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Greetings from Laurel Canyon!

I believe it’s homicide / I rest my case, don’t cast aside / You better believe it / That’s the truth of it / Take it or leave it / Resign to it

Homicide, homicide / Homicide, homicide

No one cared / When someone lied / They’d rather say / That it’s irrelevant / You better believe it / That’s the truth of it / Take it or leave it / Resign to it

Homicide, homicide / Homicide, homicide / Homicide, homicide / Homicide, homicide

I made it through Halloween safely. Big cities appear ready to “fight the power” at the polls, and some friends and I went to see The Saints with Mark Arm (Mudhoney) and Mick Harvey (Birthday Party).

Got to rock out with longtime friends Matt Green, Kevin Haskins, Sam Velde, and Laurel Stearns. All of us were delighted to check this special band off our live, punk rock bucket-list. All in all, a bit of hope, sunshine, and classic punk rock goes a long way.

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Greetings from Laurel Canyon!

Stumble in somnambulance so / Pre-dawn corpses come to life / Armies of the dead surviving / Armies of the hungry ones

Only-ones, lonely-ones / Ripped up like shredded-wheat / Only-ones, lonely-ones / Be a sort of human picnic

This ain’t no love-in / This ain’t no happening / This ain’t no feeling in my arm

Fuck man, this week, or should I say year, has been a grind. But today all I can really say is…

BOO! Happy Halloween! Because if you’re a rock ‘n’ roller like me, today is your favorite day of the year. Here’s to so many fun nights and escapades. From all night mayhem to watching our kids taste their first piece of candy, it’s a sweet day for spooky rock ‘n’ roll.

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Greetings from Laurel Canyon!

Come on man resurrect yourself / Tell yourself a thought that’s true / Come on man and protect yourself / There’s nothing that you can’t come through / And I ain’t gonna go blindly / Living in an empty shell / There’s nothing that you can’t come through / There’s nothing that you can’t come through / Through

A lot happened this week. At the center of the week was my daughter Zoe’s birthday. Family and parenthood has often been a muse for Idelic Hour episodes, and this week is no exception.

Please enjoy an hour of song dedicated to the lovely, enchanting Zoe Blue.

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Greetings from Laurel Canyon!

Baby, let me wash your feet forever / Baby, you can stay in my house forever and ever / Baby, let me dance away / Lеt me dance away forevеr, baby

Running around on a beautiful Indian Summer day, yet fall is coming. Wouldn’t it be nice if life could be this nice every day?

Dig on some new sounds.

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Greetings from Laurel Canyon!

Please trip them gently / They don’t like to fall (Oh by jingo) / There’s no room for anger / We’re all very small (Oh by jingo)

We’re painting our faces and dressing in thoughts from the skies, from paradise / But they think that we’re holding a secretive ball / Won’t someone invite them / They’re just taller children / That’s all, after all

Man is an obstacle / Sad as the clown (Oh by jingo) / So hold on to nothing / And he won’t let you down (Oh by jingo)

Per my Friday tradition, I start my lil “Idelic” column with a song lyric. In many ways it’s been a great way to take up space. If you know me, it’s not that I have little to say, but writing has always been a chore. AI is all the talk, and who knows, maybe next, a Google Gemini will address the weather in Laurel Canyon.

On second thought, do we really think a computer program can write a lyric as cool as a young David Bowie? “Oh by jingo!” Yeah, god fucking help us.

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Greetings from Laurel Canyon!

You always act so stupid / You always talk so dumb / But this is partytime / And you’ve got to say its better than a war / This is partytime / And its better than a cold bath with someone you dislike / This is partytime / And its good to drink for free when you haven’t any money / This is partytime / Oh, she might just possibly take me home

Right on cue, fall seems to finally have come to Southern California. This said, it’s mostly just the angles of the sun and moon. After a gloomy Friday we’re back to sensational weather. We still have watermelon in the fridge.

Call it baseball weather with old friends, new artists, songs, and fall baseball.

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Greetings from Laurel Canyon!

John the baptist was the opening band / That no one paid to see, except you and me

His cousin Christ / He was strange but he was nice / They tried to kick his ass / He didn’t fight back

We all die / When it’s our time

Fall has officially come. In many parts it means a change in the seasons. Here in LA, it’s really summer until Halloween. That said, the angle of the sun changes and so does the vibe. It’s the sentimental season—a great time for watching sport. Whether you fancy baseball, football, soccer, surfing, fishing, bike riding, or just a walk. Let’s get out there and get active. If you want to support your favorite sports teams by placing bets on them, you may explore gaming platforms like ufabet เว็บตรง.

Also, it’s a Jewish tradition to pray for friends and family who are no longer. So, per that tradition, I started this week’s episode with my sadly departed pal Richard Swift. The rest of this Idelic episode features mostly new songs and young bands. I listened back this morning and I’m impressed.

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Greetings from Laurel Canyon!

Once upon a time, not too long ago, we took a day out in Manchester / We all fall down, there’s not enough hours in the day / Played a bit of football, fell into the union / Barged our way into the toilet with the kung fu king

There’s not enough hours in the day / I remember seeing someone dressed in a suit, looking like a lunatic / And we all fall down, there’s not enough hours in a trip

Growing up Jewish on the east side of Manhattan, our family went to the theatre. I’ve always had a soft spot for 1960s Broadway musicals. I’ve always wanted to do a modern take on A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum.

The musical tells the bawdy story of a slave named Pseudolus and his attempts to win his freedom by helping his young master woo the girl next door. The plot displays many classic elements of “farce,” including puns, the slamming of doors, cases of mistaken identity (frequently involving characters disguising themselves as one another), and satirical comments on social class. The title derives from a line often used by vaudeville comedians to begin a story:

“A funny thing happened on the way to the theater.”

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Greetings from Laurel Canyon!

Inn í þig / (ÞAð er) svo gott að vera (hér) / En stoppa stutt við

Ég flýt um í neðarsjávar hýði / (Á hóteli) / Beintengdur við rafmagnstöfluna / (Og nærist)

Tjú, tjú / Tjú, tjú

En biðin gerir mig (leiðan) / Brot (hættan) sparka frá mér (og kall á) / Ég verð að fara (hjálp)

Tjú, tjú, tjú / Tjú, tjú, tjú / Tjú, tjú, tjú, tjú, tjú

Ég spring út og friðurinn í loft upp

Much of what I love about music is beyond explanation—magical. Somehow a song can bring me back to a place and time. I’m not too sure who hipped me to Sigur Rós. Funny, it might have been Beck. It was around the time I was his A&R man. I remember Sigur had a small slot at Coachella. I was excited to see them.

I remember it was a beautiful warm spring night in the desert. In truth, I was a bit surprised to come upon Jónsi, a skinny boy singing to a small crowd. My posse of beautiful festival friends I dragged across the field—we were totally interested in the textures and sound of this music. I believe I told them to meet me at the bar in the VIP.

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Greetings from Laurel Canyon!

You picked me up / Oh, yes you did / When nobody else would / I know you did / And you did things / For me, my baby / That nobody else could / I know you did

It’s another hot one here in LA. Actually at 90 degrees, we’re on a cooling trend. After two short weeks it’s like…I’m getting my pencils sharped and notebooks organized for a busy, busy fall. The trick is to be happily working away. Honestly those summer cucumbers and watermelon help.

Per tradition, September marks the beginning of school and triggers the time for young bands to release new songs. So, with that in mind…

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Greetings from Laurel Canyon!

I met a girl who sang the blues / And I asked her for some happy news / But she just smiled and turned away / I went down to the sacred store / Where I’d heard the music years before / But the man there said the music wouldn’t play

And in the streets, the children screamed / The lovers cried and the poets dreamed / But not a word was spoken / The church bells all were broken

And the three men I admire most / The Father, Son and the Holy Ghost / They caught the last train for the coast / The day the music died

I guess one could say, “Any day is a good day to release a new song.”

Honestly, I’m a bit stumped on what to report this week. I did give a nod and a wink at this week’s stack of new vinyl. This Idelic Hour set shows that even in dark times, music thrives.

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