25. Donnie and Joe Emerson
On the Season Three premiere, I’m bringing you the goods: the definitive article on the sleeper underground pop duo Donnie and Joe Emerson. The two oldest siblings of their family, Donnie and Joe made the leap from agriculture to popular culture with their 1979 album “Dreamin’ Wild.” The strange thing is that it took over three decades for their music to catch on. Talk about being ahead of their time! And now there’s even a major feature film in the works about their story, which you’ll hear more about later. The song that put them on the map is called “Baby.” In recent years it’s been featured in several movies and HBO’s Big Little Lies, not to mention several cover versions by new artists. I had the privilege of speaking with not only Donnie and Joe, but also their parents who risked everything to help their kids live their dream, from custom jump suits to building a studio and producing a record on their farm in Fruitland, Washington. Also, this episode includes the premiere of a previously unreleased Donnie and Joe instrumental song from 1983 called "Auzie Theme."
Recommended:
The sleeper hit album that started the magic:
The follow-up that almost never was. "Still Dreamin' Wild: The Lost Recordings"
Light in the Attic’s short documentary on the brothers, “The Rock-n-Roll Farmers”
And as a bonus, a music video Donnie made in the 1990s: