The Ben Maynard Program
"Tell Your Story". Everyone has a story. Not just the famous. This is a guest driven program but when we are "guest free", It's just YOU and ME! I love music and we will talk a lot about it. Enjoy the ride!
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The Ben Maynard Program
Friday Night LIVE! Shenanigans, Stump the Chump, A Heartwarming Pastor Chat, and the Great Bohemian Queen
Brace yourselves for an evening where the only agenda is fun, and where shots of Malort are downed if you've got the guts to dial in. I, Ben Maynard, am throwing down the gauntlet for some high-stakes music trivia in Stump the Chump, and I can't wait to share last week's heart-to-heart with Pastor Brian that's been warming listeners' hearts. The night doesn't end there, though; come with me as I recount an unforgettable evening at the Avalon Hollywood Theater, where Bohemian Queen rocked it out for charity.
Life's full of surprises, like my spur-of-the-moment work trip to Portland, but fear not—your weekly dose of the Ben Maynard Program won't skip a beat. From a hotel room or the mixing board at home, I'll be bringing you every laugh and insight, including an exclusive with the phenomenal Kobe Reese. Prepare to stroll down memory lane with Jerry Gomez and me as we relive the glory of our '84 baseball championship; those were the days!
Rounding off, we pay homage to Journey's incredible 800-week Billboard triumph, a testament to their timeless sound. Meanwhile, I'll ponder the unpredictable world of social media and its impact on our show's viewership—sometimes we hit it big, and sometimes we're left scratching our heads. Your suggestions keep us fresh and on our toes, and I'm tossing around the idea of a live Portland show—keep your eyes peeled on Instagram for that! So, tune in, enjoy the ride, and remember to stay lively and connected. Cheers to a fantastic weekend!
Thanks for listening! Follow me on Instagram: benmaynardprogram
and subscribe to my YouTube channel: THE BEN MAYNARD PROGRAM
I also welcome your comments. email: pl8blocker@aol.com
Hey there, everyone. Welcome into the Ben Maynard program. Thanks for being here. What's tonight? It's Friday night live. Yes, it is. We are live tonight on a Friday. Uh-huh, on a Friday, uh-huh, yes. So welcome in. And before we get started, little housekeeping to take care of.
Speaker 1:As you know, this podcast is available on multiple podcast platforms like Apple Podcasts, amazon Music and Spotify. However, if you cannot resist all of this going on right here and you're watching on YouTube, just like tonight, then please subscribe to the channel, give me a thumbs up and leave a comment. I love your comments and you know that I reply to them, and you know that I reply to them and you know that I'll read them on the air as well. So please leave a comment. Oh, something else too, regarding YouTube and subscribing. I think I've heard other people say subscribe to the channel and hit the notification bell. So if that's the case, then also hit the notification bell. Because, see again, old guy, I thought that if you just subscribe to the channel, you would automatically get notifications, but I'm not sure if that's the case. So, anyway, when you subscribe, if there's a notification bell, just hit it, okay. Yeah, just do that. Let's see what else. What else? What else? Oh yeah, and last but not least, follow me on Instagram. All one word Ben Maynard Program. So with that, there are plenty of ways to take in this show for your dancing and listening pleasure. And with that, welcome in again.
Speaker 1:It's Friday night and we are live. Yes, we are, and thanks for being here. This is, you know, I love doing this. I love just coming into the studio with no real agenda, but just to have some fun for an hour or so. So that's what we are going to do. We're going to have a lot of fun and, just like Friday Night Live, we've got our regular things. Let me get my glasses on here so I can see. We have our Malort Challenge, and you know what that means. Oh, let me see. Hold on a second here. Let me do this because I get caught up. Ah yeah, friday Night Live. There we go. So we're going to do our regular stuff. The Malort Challenge.
Speaker 1:And for the newbies, the Malort Challenge is well, malort is this fine, nasty tasting liqueur and if you call into the program then I have to take a drink of it and it's nasty, nasty, nasty stuff. I'll just tell you that right out of the gate. And then, to make it even worse, I've got my box right here of nasty jelly belly bean boozled beans yeah, nasty stuff, let me click this right there. There we go. And so, to make it even worse, I add one of those into the shot of Malort, and most of the time it's a pretty nasty bean. I know, you just take your chances. It's. Sometimes it's good, sometimes not so good, and so far on our Friday night lives, more times than not it's pretty nasty. Usually I'll get barf. I think I've had canned dog food a couple of times. So just, yeah, not good Anyhow. So, yeah, if you call into the program, then that's my punishment. And I've been asked, mostly by Catherine why do you want to drink this nasty stuff? And I tell her it's not that I want to drink it because I don't.
Speaker 1:However, I'm trying to entice more people to engage with the show, so let me do this here. You see it's Friday Night Live. Let me put this banner up. Oh, yeah, there we go, good stuff. And then let me ah, let me get in. Ah, there we go Get into the comments. Okay, I got to put the comments up so that I can see them. And yeah, so we've got the Malort challenge. We will also play Stump the Chump, and that's just predicated on someone calling in with music trivia. And if you stump me, I am the chump. So if you stump me then, yes, I've got to take a drink of that Malort right there. Okay, so this isn't a drinking show, but that's my punishment. But I'm willing to bite the bullet for you guys out there. I'm willing to do it to get the audience engaged in the program. So, yeah, there we go. So let's see what's been going on. What's been going on this week A lot of stuff since we really got together last.
Speaker 1:Now, the last time, see, last week we had Pastor Brian in studio and that was just some really, really good stuff. I'm not really because of anything that I did more so because of what Pastor Brian did. Just, you know, it was great to have some engaging conversation, get to know a little bit more about him and yeah, of course, we did talk about Christianity. You know, that's just what else are you going to do when your pastor comes in the studio, talk about fishing? Well, he doesn't fish and neither do I, so that's not going to happen. Now, yeah, it was really good. It's gotten some really good response and I'm just hoping that it's going to keep gaining more traction and more people will take it in. More traction and more people will take it in, whether they listen to the audio version on Buzzsprout or they watch it right here on YouTube. So that was last Friday morning when Pastor Brian came in and let's see the night before that. So a week ago, thursday, catherine and I were in Hollywood and we were at the Avalon Hollywood Theater to see Bohemian Queen. We went to see them headline the David Z Foundation benefit concert and that was absolutely killer For those.
Speaker 1:Some of you, you may have seen the Facebook live video that I put out during soundcheck and yeah, I'm not great. I'm still kind of not, still kind of let me take kind of out of that sentence there because it makes me sound wishy-washy but yeah, I'm a work in progress when it comes to that, that's a definite. But I did that Facebook Live video and a lot of people saw it. The show was, oh, it was so it was so, so good, and I guess I'll just go here first.
Speaker 1:I met some people at the show and obviously you know if I'm doing my job at all, I'm trying to network a little bit and get people you know to. I'm doing my job at all. I'm trying to network a little bit and get people you know to pay attention to this. Hey, what's going on, spaz? What do you mean? You lost your invitation to Queen. It wasn't by invite, it was a paid ticket. I had to pay for my tickets. Um, but uh, yeah. So I'm I'm out trying to network and and and meet people and, um, you know, steer them towards the podcast. Um and one, what? Where's my calling card? Oh yeah, let me hold on, get this, get this right here. So here's what I did.
Speaker 1:I think I shared with you folks a couple of weeks ago that I had these made coasters with the podcast logo on them. So for you listening to the audio I apologize you can't see, but nonetheless it's a coaster and it's got the show logo on it, but nonetheless it's a coaster and it's got the show logo on it. So I took some of these to that concert last week and of course I passed them out. But what was missing? Now, of course, there's the name of the show which features my name, but I didn't think about it until Catherine and I got home that night.
Speaker 1:What I need are some stickers to put on the back that'll have my cell phone number, that'll have my email address and my socials and all that kind of stuff on the back. So it really is my calling card. You know, boom, here you go, ben Maynard program on the front. Turn it over on the back and there's all my info right there. So I think we're gonna work on that next. Uh-oh, we've got a call. We've got a call, so we gotta stop right here, okay, all right, hold on a second, let's do this and let's do that. And well, hello, who's calling? It's me, uncle Ben, your favorite Tony, yes, I know, I have you in my contacts, so I know it's you. How are you?
Speaker 3:I'm good. How about you? We're watching your live right now at my dad's house.
Speaker 1:Oh, that's what you're doing, oh, okay, well, all right, well cool. Well, welcome to the show. I hope you enjoy.
Speaker 3:Absolutely, and I see that you have that bottle of Malora there.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I know.
Speaker 3:I'm going to throw that in the trash.
Speaker 1:Well, no, I can't go in the trash because it's part of the show. But yeah, I'm sure it was your mom or your dad that had you call, because they said if you call Uncle Ben, then he's going to take a drink of this nasty stuff.
Speaker 3:Technically, he kept telling me this whole entire time. I dare you to call him. I dare you to call him.
Speaker 1:Oh okay, All right, yeah, so you probably didn't catch the very beginning of the show where I explain what the Malort challenge is and and it's. You know, Malort is the nastiest liquor out there. It's just absolutely terrible.
Speaker 3:And so Absolutely. I've only had one shot, and not even six beers were able to wash it down.
Speaker 1:Oh, so you have tried it. Okay, I have. I tried it out in Chicago, oh and right where it's from, and it is some pretty bad stuff. So in order to get the audience more engaged in the program, I am willing to bite the bullet. Every time someone calls into the show, I take a shot. Oh, good luck. So if you're watching now, let's see. It's been a couple I don't know a couple weeks or so since we've done Friday Night Live, so my Mr Spock shot glass has not left the studio, so it's got whatever malort residue from a couple weeks ago still in the bottom of the glass. Whatever comes off of the bean boozled beans is still in the bottom of the glass, so it's like an extra punishment. All right, let me screw this top back on here. How's everything going, tony?
Speaker 3:Everything's going pretty good in here. Like I said at my dad's house with my boys and everything, we're having a little bit like a family night, all right.
Speaker 1:Well, what better way to spend family night than with the Ben Maynard program? Absolutely, because we love our Uncle Ben. It's better than movie night. It's that and Dodgers, either one. Okay, and just for everyone out there, tony is like a world-class massage therapist. Yeah, she is. Yeah, she's a world-class massage therapist. She was taking care of my neck and shoulders on 4th of July last year. Therapist, she was taking care of my neck and shoulders on 4th of July last year. She knew that I needed it big time. It was great, but that's what she does. That's, that's her, uh, that's her profession and she is, uh, like I said, world-class, got magic hands.
Speaker 3:Thank you so much.
Speaker 1:Well, of course, of course, absolutely. Um so, uh, tell. Tell your folks that I said hello. Your dad has already sent one comment to me, but tell them that I said hello. And if you are watching this, tony cheers to you. This one's for you, okay.
Speaker 3:Cheers to that nasty stuff.
Speaker 1:Oh, it's terrible Love you Ben. Oh, hold on. Oh, it's bad. Oh, and I got a nasty bean. Oh my gosh, oh, oh. Sometimes I oh, oh, gosh. I don't even know what that one is, but it's bad.
Speaker 3:Yeah, just by like hearing you, hearing you like drinking it, it's already bringing back bad memories for me.
Speaker 1:Yeah, some nasty flashbacks. Huh. Well, I love you too, tony. Love you, uncle ben. All right, thanks for calling in. All right, be good. All right, all right, you too bye. Now, there she goes, there she goes. I think that was canned dog food.
Speaker 2:Oh.
Speaker 1:I'm not. Oh, I'm trying. I'm not sure I know. I know it was Brown and I think canned dog food is a Brown one I don't know it was just bad.
Speaker 1:Oh, oh, terrible stuff. Um, so where were we? Oh, oh, terrible stuff. So where were we? Oh, we were talking about the show last week, the concert, and so I met some people and passed out my calling card and had some folks say, yeah, yeah, no, I'll come on the podcast, come on the podcast. And so next week and I'm really gonna have to work this one out and I'll explain it in a minute but I met this young man, 13 years old, musician, multi-instrumentalist. He was there with his parents, he was opening the show, he was doing an acoustic set with Pauly, uh, from ZO2 and Bohemian Queen, and if you listened to, uh, the second time that Pauly was on the show, then when we we really talked about the benefit concert a lot, if you listen to that one, then you know who this young man in it is.
Speaker 1:Uh, paulie explained a young man by the name of kobe reese, and so he was there with his parents. We, katherine and I, got there for sound check and, um, we're just hanging out, just watching, doing our thing, and I see this young man he's dressed up and I thought this has got to be the kid that's opening the show. And sure enough it was, and they did their sound check and I talked to his parents. They're very nice people, they're from New Jersey and so yeah. So I talked to them about having Kobe come on the podcast and they said, oh, absolutely, sure, no problem. They gave me a business card Where's uh, I think it's still here on the table. Yeah, here it is on the table. They gave me. He's got his own, he's got his own business cards. Yes, so they gave me a business card with all the info. And then I talked with Kobe I think it was before the show had started and mentioned him coming on and he was just like over the moon and I'm like, hey, look, I'm not big time, okay, but I appreciate it and you'd be helping me more than I'm going to be helping you if you come on the podcast.
Speaker 1:So that's going to happen. It's going to happen next week. We're going to record that show a week from tomorrow, so next Saturday. But here's the rub. I just got word yesterday, yesterday afternoon, that I am leaving for Portland Oregon Sunday morning. I fly out at 7 am Sunday morning to Portland Oregon and I'm going to be there a minimum of two weeks for work. So of course I can't let that stop the show. That's no, it's not going to happen.
Speaker 1:So I'm going to pack up the laptop I thought about taking, I thought about taking the mixing board and a couple of microphones too, but there's there's kind of I don't think there's really a reason to do it. I think I can do it all just through the laptop, especially if I'm going to be, if I'm going to have it sitting on a desk and I'm going to be staring right into us, right sitting right in front of it. So, um, yeah, so I'm going to try that out and I hope it works, but it'll be interesting. And, um, yeah, maybe I can do a couple of shows from Portland. I think that would be a kick in the pants. I don't know, sitting in a hotel room is just going to be so much fun, right? So, yeah. So I'm looking forward to that and it'll be a good time, and I'm really looking forward to introducing you people to Kobe Reese. You are going to be in for a treat, and I am too. I am too.
Speaker 1:He was amazing. He's got his own band under his name and I was looking on his website and they've got touring dates on the East Coast from gosh, did I see something in the Massachusetts area or something like that, but all the way down into Florida, so, and I think most of those are certainly during the summer, when he's not in school, but, yeah, so that people could, you know, take their photos, because there was, there were some celebrities there, and so Catherine and I we got our pictures taken on the red carpet, and then Kobe had come out with his mother, and so him and I took some pictures and I thought, okay, that's cool, let's have some fun with this young man and son of a gun. By the time Catherine and I got home and were in bed that night, he had already posted them on his Instagram. And sure enough, who was on there with him? Yours truly, that's right, me Awesome.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:I was like all right, cool, so I'm looking forward to it. We'll have a good time next week, all right, and so just stay tuned for that. And what else, what else, what else, what else, what else, what else, what else? We already got talked about the more challenge. We talked about stump, stump the chump. So you got to come with your music questions. Okay, you got to come with it. And, oh, you know, last week no, not last week, but the week before, when we had done the last Friday Night Live I got a great phone call from an old time friend haven't seen since high school and that was, if you remember, that was Jerry Gomez and gosh.
Speaker 1:We talked, he called into the show. It was great. He called into the show and we talked for gosh a good 20 minutes, had a great conversation. Go back and watch it or listen to it, because it was a good conversation. And, um, you know, he has a background in the music business along with his brother, and so, uh, we talked a little bit about that.
Speaker 1:But the one thing we also mentioned was that we played on a, a baseball team, in 1984. It was at a park in Whittier York Field and they used to have a rec league and it was. I don't know, it was like 17, 18, 19-year-olds or something like that. I can't recall exactly what the age was, maybe 17 and 18-year-olds and so we played on the same team, the Braves, and we talked about I was a catcher, my brother, my brother Chuck, he was our big time pitcher, jerry was our third baseman and we won the championship that year, that season, and we had a great team and everyone hated us, but I think it was well. Everybody hates winners anyhow. But beside that, I think we were probably a little cocky and, like Jerry had said in that conversation, I have a big mouth and so I probably was a little. Yeah, I probably was a little overboard, more arrogant than anything, I suppose, but we were good. So we talked about that and it was funny.
Speaker 1:I had gone up in my attic, I had to get the luggage down. I had to get the luggage down this afternoon when I came home so I could get myself packed and ready to go on Sunday morning. And lo and behold, I get this. I see this. I knew it was up there. So I, of course, while I'm getting luggage, I'm going to look for it. There's our championship trophy from 1984. And let me see what it says. You know, it's funny.
Speaker 1:I don't even know if I have any viewers right now. I can tell you this, my own family's not. Oh, it says City of Whittier, midget, junior League Champs 1984. Yeah, and why do I still have this? I still have this 40 years later. I guess because I don't throw things away, not things like this.
Speaker 1:I don't. I don't throw awards away and I don't throw all my trophies over the years in baseball, and I have a few. I have a few championship trophies and, yeah, I don't throw them away. I hang on to them. So, whatever, but I don't display them anymore. I used to display them, but all they are is dust collectors and so, yeah, no, that's okay, they don't need to be on display, they can stay in the attic. And then when I venture into the attic the few times a year that I do, then I can go down memory lane. All right, what else? What else? Oh, yeah, and so tomorrow, let me back up.
Speaker 1:I think most of you in the listening and viewing audience, you know that around the house here we like our Imperial Stouts. So I need to stop right there, because I kept saying that that I kept saying Imperial stouts, and they are. However, I need to clarify that the stouts that we enjoy here, uh, are barrel aged Imperial stouts. Okay, so these aren't processed the normal way that beer is, and it's probably why I like them, because I hate beer. I don't like beer at all, and so you know, we had our stout tasting back in December and then, of course, there's been a couple times on our Friday Night Lives when Catherine and Jim bust in the studio and they come bringing their barrel-aged stouts for me to try. So tomorrow night we, catherine and I no, I take that back I have to say Catherine and Jim are hosting a stout tasting here at the house featuring our barrel-aged Imperial stouts. You know some of the ones we enjoy, some of them we've never tried before, so it'll be a first time. And, yeah, I need to clarify that. I need to remember to constantly say barrel-aged.
Speaker 1:And when I say Catherine and Jim have taken this over, well, it was my thing and I was planning on it and I picked the date and all that good stuff and I started picking the stouts that we were to sample and then, between Jim and Catherine, they took it over. Yeah, so I kind of got pushed aside. So Catherine and Jim are hosting a stout tasting tomorrow night out on my patio. How's that? I'm just there. I'm just there to partake. Yeah, I don't know how it happened, but it happened and that's kind of just the way it goes.
Speaker 1:So right now, I'm just the one ugly shot in and no one else is called. So right now, I'm winning. Okay, I'm winning, and you are not Everybody out there watching or listening. You are not winning. Let me take a sip of water, please. I got to get that Malort out of my mouth. Oh nasty stuff.
Speaker 1:So, oh, I wanted to share this news. I thought this was really really cool news that came down the other day. Let me, I'm into my iPad here Now. You know, now, spaz, you should be watching. I don't know if you're watching any longer, but you should be watching because this involves our favorite band, journey. Now, I'm not sure if anyone out there in the audience is aware that Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon holds the record for the most consecutive weeks on the Billboard Top 200 album chart. Okay, and I think they set that record. It's like it's over 900 weeks. I know that I don't know the exact number, but it's over 900.
Speaker 1:And so this news came down just the other day that Journey's Greatest Hits, volume 1, because there is a second volume, I shouldn't even say Volume 1. I should just say Journey's Greatest Hits, because the other one is, I think it's called Journey's Greatest Hits 2. But that's not what we're talking about. We're talking about Journey's Greatest Hits. That was released in December of 1988. That album that's the biggest seller in the Journey catalog. I don't know, it was like 10 years ago. It was up to like 16 million copies sold. And we all know that.
Speaker 1:Escape is a diamond album. That's a 10 million seller. Ape is a diamond album. That's a 10 million seller. Greatest Hits was already a 10 million seller. I don't remember when it hit 10 million. Oh, it says it right here in 1999. So 11 years it took and it hit diamond status.
Speaker 1:So now this is what's really cool. I guess it was this week Journey's Greatest Hits reached 800 consecutive weeks on the Billboard Top 200 album chart. Is that awesome or what? That is so, so cool, so, so cool. And let's see, what does it say here? I'm looking, I'm looking, I'm looking. Nothing right there. It just says and this I'm looking on Loudwire okay, because the article had come out on Loudwire. It says Journey's greatest hits album has reached a rare plateau by notching its 800th week on the Billboard 200. The other two acts Pink Floyd and then Bob Marley. It was his greatest hits album by him. I think it's called Legend. So only two other acts Pink Floyd and Bob Marley have ever reached this feat. Let's see. And Bob Marley hit 800 weeks last September. Let's see.
Speaker 1:Journey's Greatest Hits made its Billboard 200 debut back on December 3rd 1988, boasting a pair of top five hits, four top 10 hits and three top 20 hits, along with lower charting must-have favorites like Lights, any Way you Want it, sender my Love and Wheel in the Sky. The LP peaked at number 10 on February 11th 1989. Certification for $10 million in sales followed in 1999. So, yeah, 1999. So yeah, that's cool. Let me see. I think there's a quote from Steve Perry in here. It says fans weren't the only ones who found themselves putting these old favorites in perspective. I forgot how good they were. The stereo separation, the echoes, the snare, drum sounds, steve Perry told the Tampa Bay Times after putting together a sequel oh, okay, this is not a recent quote After putting together a sequel, 2011's greatest hits. Two he added that Neil Sean's guitar is stupidly amazing and completely still to this day underrated, which I agree with that statement right there. Oh, hang on, something's on my screen here, let me get rid of it.
Speaker 1:Bam Done, yeah. So I just thought that was really really cool that our favorite band, their greatest hits, is still on the Billboard Top 200. I didn't know that, I had no idea, but that's special, but that shows you how good Journey was. And I say was because, um, because you know, I, I mean, I love that classic lineup. I love, really, I love all lineups of the band, um, but I'll be honest, I'm not so much of a fan these days, uh, simply because, um, it's, it's getting too far away from, uh, from that classic lineup too much, uh, too much, too too many changes, uh, personnel wise, and so, yeah, it, now there's so many, uh, so yeah, now there's so many.
Speaker 1:I shouldn't say so many, but you've got two guys, definitely you've got two guys in the band that weren't a part of any of that stuff. Nothing that was on Greatest Hits or Greatest Hits 2. The only two guys that were part of that were Jonathan Cain and Neil Sean Dean Castronovo coming in in 1998, along with Steve and Jerry, and they released some absolutely phenomenal material, but none of that was on those two compilations there, and the band today still relies heavily on all that classic material. They don't hardly play anything post Steve Perry. So maybe a couple of songs, a couple of Arnell songs, but the you know 90% of what they're playing in their live set. Only two guys on stage had anything to do with it in Neil and Jonathan. So anyway, so yeah, I, just for me, it's sad, I sort of kind of am starting to equate that to Foreigner, aside from the fact that at least journey is still putting out new material. I mean, they just released a. They're not just, but they released a new album. It's going on three years now, but, um, you know, so they're still putting out music where foreigner hasn't put out any music in 15 years, and that's not what Friday night live is all about.
Speaker 1:Stop, stop, okay. So yeah, I just thought I would share that bit of news because I thought it was really, really cool and you know I love my journey and yeah. So here's what I wanted to do Also. So here's what I wanted to do Also. Let me look at something here. If I could, let me go to. I got to open up a couple windows here. Sorry about this, but when you're doing a live show, that's the way it goes. Let's do this. Come on, let's open this window. Come on, let's open this window. Ah, come on. Of course, you know when I need it to be going, it's really slow. Okay, so there's good stuff there, all right, and we have our stats right there. Okay, cool that window.
Speaker 2:And let me open up.
Speaker 1:Come on, dang it.
Speaker 1:Stop, of course, live on the air. It's going to act up like this Come on, all right, let's open this one up, because what I'm going to do, I want to give you some kind of some stats on the podcast, and let's go to my channel, let's pop that open right there and bang, all right. So this is kind of interesting. Okay, I noticed, I've noticed that with now, tonight, let me back up Tonight is episode 43. I can't believe we're on episode 43. This show started in October of last year, 25 and we're almost at 50. And for me, that's going to be landmark. I'm just telling you, just letting you know. Okay, so this is what I find is kind of interesting 43 episodes in. You know, there's quite a few episodes that have over a hundred views, and you know, for me, okay, that's cool, I'm, I'm, I'm okay with that. Yes, I would like to see more. I definitely would like to see more. Uh, so that's why I tell you to tell a friend, you know, um, but here's what's really interesting Back, way back when, let me see, way back when, in November, I had my niece, my niece Marina, on and it was just a surprise show, just a quick thing.
Speaker 1:I think we talked for about 30 minutes and I thought, ah, you know, I'm just going to put this up. Well, sorry about that. It, um, it started to move really quickly, um, and then after about I don't know really after about four days, maybe five days, it just stopped as far as the views on it. And I asked her she's got a big social media presence. Okay, she does, she's got a lot of followers on Instagram, and so I had asked her. I said, hey, can you plug the podcast, plug your appearance, plug my show on your Instagram? You know, so, maybe we can, I can gain some traction here and she never did. She's got a huge social media following and she didn't plug the show.
Speaker 1:It has, like, no, you know, like I told you, it's now, it's very low in views it has. It has under 75 views. Um, it has less than that. So now, um, take an episode, like you know well, the, the, the episodes with spaz, and I think the very first one we did, the Journey albums. When we ranked the Journey albums last year. Come on, stop it. That one's up to almost 200 views Now. I know Journey is a good subject on YouTube here and people love Journey, so I know that could drive some of the numbers.
Speaker 1:But I have almost no social media presence at all. Spaz definitely doesn't. He has less than I do and I have almost none. So I just thought that was interesting. Little social media presence, good viewership, and they have some good listens on the audio version, which I see, those numbers on Buzzsprout. So there's that one, there's the one that Eddie and I did, or, if you remember my friend Eddie, who's dealing with cancer and he's been fighting that for the last two years, that one has done pretty well. It actually could do even better. I should give it another bump. I really should post it on my Facebook and just remind everyone that it's still there. But no social media presence for us, okay.
Speaker 1:Now, this is what was interesting. Okay, if you remember and you may not, because there's no views on it when I had Ashley Tella on. She's a big content creator on social media. I think she does reels and she's on Instagram and other things as well, probably TikTok and all that stuff. Okay, but she's a content creator and she has a huge following, huge social media presence, but she didn't push the show. Okay, she didn't plug it on her socials. It's got 46 views, that's it. So you know, in comparison, me, by myself ranking the Kiss Studio albums, I'm up to nearly 200 views. Me, nobody.
Speaker 1:Okay, now this one crap. Sorry folks, sorry folks, I started a show here, all right. So now this one here, this one, this one was the biggest, the biggest episode until until a couple of weeks ago when former LA County Sheriff Alex Villanueva came on the program and that was right before the March primary election. That one got a big push. First, you know, he's a person of notoriety, but I had some other people of notoriety, that nothing. But I think I talked about it on a previous episode that my friends Troy and Debbie Silva really helped to push this one. So this one was over 500 views, and so it's. You know, it's really good, it's. It's actually my number two episode.
Speaker 1:Now, let's see, I had Pauly Zeon, and you know that and you know how much I love Pauly, and Pauly is an accomplished musician with a great name and great reputation. Now, my audience may not be real familiar with Pauly Z other than him coming on this show, but his band ZO2 has a great following. His tribute bands, great following. Well, I should say his tribute band, bohemian Queen. Tremendous following, tremendous following around the country. He's getting the other ones started the Zep, la Purple-ish and Separate Journeys, yeah. So he's getting those ones up and running and I'm sure they're going to get just as big a following as Bohemian Queen. But Pauly is pretty big to do and has a great following.
Speaker 1:He's first off just on Facebook. Just on his Facebook page he has, I don't know, like 4,000 or 7,000 followers, something like that. But his social media person didn't promote it. I sent him the links and a social media person didn't promote it. So his first visit I thought was really good. It started taking off pretty quick and then it just like stopped and it's under 100 views. And if you haven't seen any of these, I encourage you go back and watch these or just listen to them on, you know, on whatever podcast platform you choose. But because this is, these are great conversations and it's not I'm not trying to toot my own horn and saying, oh, I'm just the greatest interviewer out there, because it's not about me, it's about my guests and just the conversations that we have. So so, yeah, that first one is under 100 views.
Speaker 1:Well, polly came back on about two weeks before the benefit show for the sole purpose of plugging it, and we did. And again, huge social media presence, but no one pushes it. So it's just kind of interesting how that happens. And the episodes that I'm the only one that pushes it or Catherine's the only one that pushes it, they're the ones that seem to have more views. Wait, got a comment. Well, hi there, debbie. Yeah, you see that the Malort's in the house. It's right, it's Friday Night Live. Where else is it going to be? So yeah, that's just kind of weird. So yeah, that's just kind of weird.
Speaker 1:But I'm happy to say, I'm happy to say that the biggest episode of this podcast to this date, at this time, was when my daughter, tess, came in studio. Yeah, it's funny, I'm gonna let you peek behind the curtain a little bit, all right. I told you all that day that I had been asking her to come in. Come in, let's do a show. Trust me, I had no idea what we were going to talk about, okay, and so, um, we had mine and Catherine's uh well, and Tessa's niece, but mine and Catherine's uh granddaughter, it was her birthday party. So we, um, yes, she is, she is a rock star, debbie. For those of you who can't see the comments.
Speaker 1:Debbie says tess is a rock star. She is, but I asked her, I bugged her. I said well, you're already here, okay, so just come to the house, come in the studio, let's get this done. Let's bang it out. Come on now. You've been dodging me for all this time. So we did, did and great episode.
Speaker 1:But that's not how it was supposed to go. It was actually supposed to go the other way around. Tess was supposed to interview me and it never happened. I don't know. I think she just I think she just kind of maybe got nervous or camera shy or something and kind of maybe couldn't think of what she had going on.
Speaker 1:Oh, darn it, you know what I forgot? We're like 49 minutes into this and I didn't do this. Let me do this right here. And I no wonder no one's calling. I didn't post the number to call in the show. Are you kidding Jeez? How are people going to call if I don't put up the number to the show? Kidding Jeez, how are people going to call in if I don't put up the number to the show? The number to call this program is 909-268-5135. Yes, it is. So you can call in if you feel like it. Let's go back to the comments here. There we go. Good, Well, that episode. Now Tess.
Speaker 1:Tess also, this is the one anomaly, okay, this is the one anomaly in the whole equation. Tess has a pretty substantial, uh, social media following as well. I don't like 3000, uh, instagram followers, okay, which I mean? Look, I have like 12. Okay, maybe I have 20. So you see the difference.
Speaker 1:And I asked Tess, please, please, put this on your socials and promote this, because I knew just all it takes is one person with a big social media presence, a big following, for something to gain traction or to take off. Well, to this day, she still hasn't done it. But it's my biggest episode. It's got over 700 views, in fact, I'm gonna look, it's 721. So it's like, yeah, all right, you see, now if you help me out a little bit, I bet you I gain another 500. So you know, that's all it takes. It doesn't take much, it doesn't take much at all, and I think that the younger people don't really feel like their crowd wants to hear from an old guy I'm an old guy, but look, I'm better looking than most of you out there and I'm funnier than all of you Just letting you know, all right, so okay. So there's that.
Speaker 1:Now something else I thought was really cool. Oh, let me go back to this. Let's go back, back, back, back, Boom. Ok, we've talked about this before. Yes, we're doing a little state of the podcast stuff. That's what we're doing. But we've talked about this and I'm going to bring this up again because it's nice to kind of talk about every few months Wait, where is it? Where is it? Where is it? Where is it? Oh, okay, boom boom boom.
Speaker 1:What am I looking for? Oh, there, it is. Okay, hit that one right there. Oh, there, it is Okay, hit that one right there. I've told you before that the podcast. This is what is so cool that the podcast is actually worldwide. It is heard on six of seven continents, and I just think that's crazy. And I'm still looking in the wrong screen here. Let's go back. Ah, there, it is there, it is. Yeah, all time. All right, okay, let's see. Now look one. Yeah, six. Now look, I mentioned before that we have at least one listener in africa, and which is really cool, but that's about all, just one.
Speaker 1:So it's like 1% listenership in Africa and, of course, 81% is right here in the United States, or I'm sorry, I take that back North America. Yeah, we got like 3% in South America. Like the same thing in Asia, which I think that might only be Japan, I think. So, yeah, that's what it looks like. We got like 4% in Australia, but, cool, the phone number still isn't showing, just for your info. Oh, really, oh, it's probably because let me see. Yeah, it's right there at the bottom of the screen. Deb, scrolling across the bottom of the screen, there it is. I'm looking right at it. But you already know my number we have 15% listenership in Europe. So I think that's cool. I think that's cool, um, eight percent, eight percent in canada. That's awesome. So, eight percent of that 81 percent is in canada and, uh, most of that is from Saskatchewan, saskatoon, saskatchewan, that's where most of that comes from, and thank you to Saskatchewan. Yes, thank you so much for that. So, yeah, I think that's great. I love it. I love it. I love it.
Speaker 1:I can't believe that a person like me has folks listening to this stuff here and all the other content that actually does have some value, more value than a Friday Night Live live that it's being listened to worldwide Certainly not on the same level as so many other podcasters out there. But look, remember, I said that I was going to initially call this podcast. Who's this Guy? So there you go. Oh, we got a phone call. I bet you. I initially call this podcast. Who's this Guy? So there you go. Oh, we got a phone call. I'll bet you, I know who this is. I'll bet you, I know who this is. It's me. Oh, hey, debbie, how are you? Oh, man, I'm so glad I caught the end of the show.
Speaker 3:I just got home from work. And I said I got to make Ben take a shot. That's what I'm calling for you.
Speaker 1:You were in that nasty drive home.
Speaker 3:I wanted to talk about tessa's episode. It was so good because, like, those are things that like say I didn't even know and you know I'm her aunt yeah and so it was really interesting to listen to her talk about her experience, you know, with with you, and you know it was just really enlightening and I really enjoyed listening to it. I really did.
Speaker 1:Well, thanks, I appreciate that, Debbie, and you know that's when I have somebody on the show. You know when I have somebody on the show, that's what I'm hoping to get out of it, that's what I'm hoping to bring to the listener, the viewer. However you're taking in this show, and that's what I want to bring to the table is that have them open up a little bit about themselves and tell the audience something that, whether they want to know it or not, they find it very interesting, and that's why I try really hard to not ask questions that can be answered with yes or no or with, you know, a cup, just a couple of words.
Speaker 3:Right, that's, that's a good strategy. You know what? What might be fun is if, like, you post a question that you know, since it's like you want people to tell their stories, maybe you could like pose a question that you want to cover next week, because then people would have a chance to think about it. Like, say, if you were to say I'm just making this up like, um, what was your most terrifying moment in high school?
Speaker 3:oh so, you know somebody, you know people could think about it and say, oh, you know what? I want to call up and tell about the time that blah, blah, blah happened to me. You know, I mean that might be kind of fun.
Speaker 1:So you're saying for for me to to ask a question of the listeners, so I just put a question out there and the listeners can call in on that, or for oh, okay, okay, okay.
Speaker 3:Like next Friday you know like maybe, maybe tonight you'll you'll be thinking about some questions that you could do for next Friday's show and then you can. You know, either you can pose like a question or two call in if you want to talk about, like I just said, a terrifying moment.
Speaker 3:Yeah, sure, sure, sure, sure and then like, say something, and next week let's talk about something the most crazy moment you had while driving a car you know and then people can think about it and say, oh yeah, I want to call in and tell them about this time.
Speaker 1:That's not a that's that's, that's not a bad idea, that really isn't. You know what it's. It's funny that you mentioned this too, Deb, because you know, I don't know if you're familiar with who Eddie Trunk is, but I'm a huge listener of Eddie's and I don't engage in the show a lot. I've called in a few times, but, but usually I'm listening to him while I'm at work. So I really can't.
Speaker 1:But quite a few of the listeners, they they call up and they make recommendations hey, you should do this, Try this kind of show, or try, because Eddie will do a lot of topical shows and it's all music related. And they'll say, hey, why don't you try this one, or try this countdown show or that type of show? And so he keeps a running list of different types of content-related shows or topic-related shows and every once in a while he, he does, he, he, he refers to that and then they'll have a show. Um, so yeah, that's not bad. You know, it's not bad sometimes to let your uh, to let your audience sit in on the production of your show.
Speaker 3:Well, yeah, because this way, I mean, if you want to hear people's stories, that's the way to get the stories, you know, rolling.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, yeah, okay, now take a shot. Okay, let me take it, and then we'll finish this up. I'm going to sign off. No, no, no, no, no, no, no, wait, wait, no, no, stay here. Stay here. Stay here for a second. Okay, I'll stay here. Let me take this shot and then hang on. I got something else to say to you.
Speaker 3:Okay.
Speaker 1:Oh, okay, please be a good bean. Okay, all right. All right, the bean made up for it.
Speaker 3:The bean was good, wait, what kind of a bean did you have this time?
Speaker 1:I don't know, but it tastes good. I think it, um, it was kind of yellowish in color, so I thought it might be like a rotten egg or something. So, whatever the opposite of that one is, I think it is Cause it's pretty good. Oh, um, okay, so here, um, okay, so, so you, obviously, you, you, you got in late, but next Friday I'll be in Portland. Yes, I'm leaving Sunday morning for Portland for work.
Speaker 1:I'm going to go up there for at least two weeks. I may be up there for a month, but I'm going to take, I'm taking the laptop. I don't think I'm going to take my mixer or anything else. I don't think I'll take the rest of the equipment because I think I can do everything I need to just through the laptop. I don't think I'm going to take my mixer or anything else. I don't think I'll take the rest of the equipment because I think I can do everything I need to just through the laptop. It won't, you know, it won't be as pretty as this is, but yeah, we'll get it done and I want to do a Friday night live from Portland. I think it'd be great.
Speaker 3:Yeah.
Speaker 1:Yeah, so it'll give me something to think about. I try to come up with something and then maybe by around Wednesday or Thursday, I can get it out on the socials, put it out on the Instagram and Facebook and all that. Actually, you know what you and I aren't. You're not following me on Facebook, are you? No, but I will.
Speaker 3:Okay, actually, you know what you and I aren't, you're not following me on Facebook, are you?
Speaker 1:Um, no, but I will. Okay. Well, you know what? Just send me a friend request and then I'll just uh, I'll uh, yeah, so I'll just do it, yeah.
Speaker 2:All right.
Speaker 3:Okay, sounds great.
Speaker 1:Okay, cool, well, thanks for calling Deb. Okay, love you, dude, love you too. Talk to you later. Okay, bye-bye, bye-bye.
Speaker 1:What did we get here on Facebook? Something just popped up. Oh, oh, just somebody liked the last notification that I put up regarding tonight's show, anyway. So just so that everyone knows I don't even know where I was going with that. What were we talking? We covered the journey news. We were talking about state of the podcast. Yeah, I think that's it. I know we covered the stout tasting tomorrow night.
Speaker 1:Definitely we'll be talking about that next Friday on Friday Night Live. Okay, we'll be doing that and got Kobe Reese coming up next Saturday. I'm recording that one Saturday morning. So remember to be here. I'll post a question, I'll think of something and I'll post one or two questions on Facebook. We'll get it on Instagram. Regarding next Friday's show, that was a good idea by Deb. I'll come up with something and then if you want to share your story regarding the question, then let's get it done and see, that's Friday. Kobe on Saturday. See, stout tasting tomorrow. We'll talk about that next week.
Speaker 1:What else, what else, what else? You know what? I think that's about it, people, I like to keep this around an hour and, uh, I think the last couple of Friday night lives ran over a little bit, but we had some good stuff going on and we had, I look, I enjoyed tonight's tonight's show. I hope you enjoyed tonight's show, um, but really we don't have to keep this thing going. All right, I've done everything I need to do and I'm sure you want to get back to doing what you were doing and that's enjoying your Friday evening. So let's just wrap this up right here, okay, as always, this program is oh, wait a minute. Aye, aye, aye, I'm trying to wrap this up. Holy cow, phone call. I. Oh, I just hung up. You have to call back. I just hung up. Oh, geez. Okay, there we go. Let's try this again. Okay, I'm trying to wrap this show. What's going on?
Speaker 2:That's too bad, too sad. Are you ready for a stomp the chump?
Speaker 1:Oh, you've got one, huh.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I think I'm going to give it away on a hint. But okay, so who was the front man that got involved with the mob and was found dead in bed from a fire which was attributed to smoking, in bed from a fire which was attributed to smoking?
Speaker 1:and and if you need a hint, I can go, I can give you a hint for the fellow van members wow, uh, um, uh. The front man of a band who got mixed up with the mob, yep, was found dead in bed with a woman. You said no, no no, oh, he was just.
Speaker 2:He was just found dead in bed yep okay, wow and it was, and it was, there was a, there was a fire that they attributed to smoking in bed wait a minute, wait a minute, wait a minute, wait a minute, wait a minute. Wait a minute, wait a minute, okay I will give you one band member and I'm pretty sure you'll get it on that, and if that doesn't get it, I've got like three or four more. Okay, so the first band member was Peter Frampton.
Speaker 1:Oh, okay, Well, that would be. Oh, wait a minute. Okay, so we're talking about humble pie. So are we talking about Steve Marriott?
Speaker 2:Yep.
Speaker 1:Okay, you got it Well, Steve Marriott, but he died in the 70s, didn't he? Or was it the early 80s?
Speaker 2:Well, I didn't give you. Or was it the early 80s? Well, I didn't give you a timeline, I was making it a little bit tough.
Speaker 1:Oh yeah, no, no, no, no, no, yeah, okay.
Speaker 2:I'm just. This was later in his career.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:He got involved with the mob.
Speaker 1:Okay, okay, yeah.
Speaker 2:And somehow found dead in bed.
Speaker 1:I dead in bed. I knew he was dead, I knew he had passed away and, like I said, I thought it was like late 70s, early 80s, but I had no idea it had anything to do with the mob. Wow, okay, well, speculation, okay, yeah, of course.
Speaker 2:Okay, you got it.
Speaker 1:All right.
Speaker 2:No drinky poo for you.
Speaker 1:No, I've already had like three, so I'm good, I'm good okay um, all right, well, listen, uh, thanks for, uh, thanks for helping out with stump the chump, and now let me close this show out. Okay, all right, brother, bye, oh gosh, all right. Uh, I don't know where where I was. I think I started to say that this program is available on multiple podcast platforms like Apple Podcasts, amazon Music and Spotify. Let's see, it's also on like Podchaser and Podcast Addict and, oh gosh, podcast Index or something I don't know. It's on like 15 different platforms, but if I keep going down that whole list, we'll never get through this. So that's why I only give you those big three. Or, like I say, if you just cannot resist all this that I've got going on here and you have to watch on YouTube, then please subscribe to the channel and, like we talked about in the beginning, hit the notification bell if it's there.
Speaker 1:I don't know if it is or not, but do it all right, and then you'll get notifications on all the new shows and new episodes and let's see, if you do watch on YouTube and you do subscribe to the channel and you do hit the notification bell, then please give me a thumbs up and leave a comment. All right, comments are great. Last but not least, follow me on Instagram Ben Maynard Program. All right, people, it's Friday night. We are live. We are also out. Thank you so much for being here. This is the Ben Maynard Program. Tell a friend.