In Episode 349 of History in Five Songs with Martin Popoff, Martin contrasts his previous celebration of career-defining concert records by spotlighting “live albums that meant little," from messy hybrids and poorly timed releases to reputation-denting misfires that felt unnecessary, undercooked, or simply forgettable within their bands’ catalogs.

1. Ozzy Osbourne – “Symptom of the Universe”
2. Rolling Stones – “Twenty Flight Rock”
3. Rainbow – “Kill the King”
4. The Clash – “I Fought the Law”
5. The Eagles – “The Long Run”

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In Episode 348 of History in Five Songs with Martin Popoff, Martin examines bands like Kiss, Foghat and others whose live albums either broke them commercially, became their bestsellers, defined their reputations, or even marked their creative peak.

1. Kiss – “Strutter”
2. Foghat – “Fool for the City”
3. UFO – “Mother Mary”
4. Pat Travers Band – “Heat in the Street”
5. Peter Frampton – “It’s a Plain Shame”

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In Episode 347 of History in Five Songs with Martin Popoff, Martin explores the intriguing phenomenon of major bands like Rush, Iron Maiden, and Nirvana whose beloved early albums—often packed with staple songs and fan favorites—surprisingly underperformed commercially compared to their later multi-platinum successes.

1. Rush – “Finding My Way”
2. Iron Maiden – “Phantom of the Opera”
3. Cheap Trick – “Hot Love”
4. Nirvana – “Swap Meet”
5. Def Leppard – “It Don’t Matter”

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In Episode 346 of History in Five Songs with Martin Popoff, Martin traces the parallel career arcs of Kate Bush and Peter Gabriel, comparing their conservative early albums, synchronized creative peaks, shared technologies and collaborators, commercial high points, and eventual semi-retirement marked by long gaps, home studios, and artistic mystique.

1. Peter Gabriel – “Modern Love”
2. Kate Bush – “Delius”
3. Peter Gabriel – “Mercy Street”
4. Kate Bush – “Snowed in at Wheeler Street”
5. Peter Gabriel – “Intruder”

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In Episode 345 of History in Five Songs with Martin Popoff, Martin explores surprisingly famous rock stars across metal, prog, and punkrock who—despite major influence, acclaim, and ticket-selling power—never earned a single U.S. gold record.

1. Scorpions – “Top of the Bill”
2. Status Quo – “Down Down”
3. Porcupine Tree – “Shallow”
4. The Replacements – “I Don’t Know”
5. Motörhead – “(Don’t Need) Religion”

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In Episode 344 of History in Five Songs with Martin Popoff, Martin explores how famously British and international bands—from Yes and Black Sabbath to Bowie, Foreigner, and Peter Gabriel—gradually absorbed American members, not to “become American,” but through creative instinct, convenience, touring realities, and fresh energy that subtly reshaped their sound and identity.

1. Yes – “Cut from the Stars”
2. Foreigner – “Lonely Children”
3. Sepultura – “Unconscious”
4. Rainbow – “Freedom Fighter”
5. Peter Gabriel – “The Family and the Fishing Net”

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In Episode 342 of History in Five Songs with Martin Popoff, Martin contemplates the unusual choice of albums where the title track appears last, and examines what that placement says about the songs and albums, using examples from Slayer, Alice in Chains, David Bowie, and more.

1. Slayer – “Seasons in the Abyss”
2. Nazareth – “No Mean City”
3. Alice in Chains – “Black Gives Way to Blue”
4. April Wine – “The Whole World’s Going Crazy”
5. David Bowie – “Heathen (Rays)”

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In Episode 343 of History in Five Songs with Martin Popoff, Martin explores the most surprising and often baffling musical “biggest left turns,” spotlighting bands that radically and unexpectedly reinvented their sound—from punk to prog, metal to synth-pop, and rock to funk—often defying logic, trends, and their own pasts.

1. The Saints – “See You in Paradise”
2. Alice Cooper – “Leather Boots”
3. The Meat Puppets – “Paradise”
4. The Tubes – “Tip of My Tongue”
5. Rush – “Lock and Key”

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In Episode 341 of History in Five Songs with Martin Popoff, Martin rings in the "new year” of 1980 by examining how classic rock, metal, punk, and new wave bands either reinvented themselves, stalled out, or flat-out quit as the calendar flipped from the ’70s into the radically different ’80s.

1. Y&T – “Shake It Loose”
2. Led Zeppelin – “Carouselambra”
3. Black Sabbath – “Wishing Well”
4. The Damned – “Plan 9 Channel 7”
5. David Bowie – “Ricochet”

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In Episode 340 of History in Five Songs with Martin Popoff, Martin treats Judas Priest’s Painkiller and AC/DC’s The Razor’s Edge as near-identical 1990-era comeback doppelgangers, comparing their timing, guitars, drummers, production, and missed momentum as two old-guard metal bands tried to outmuscle a changing scene on the eve of grunge.

1. AC/DC – “Are You Ready”
2. Judas Priest – “Between the Hammer & the Anvil”
3. AC/DC – “Moneytalks”
4. Judas Priest – “Night Crawler”
5. AC/DC – “Thunderstruck”

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In Episode 339 of History in Five Songs with Martin Popoff, Martin explores how persistence and simply staying in the game can eventually pay off, using life-lesson stories and musical examples—from Gary Moore and John Wetton to Tommy Thayer and Derek Shulman—of artists who kept showing up, climbed the ladder in different ways, and ultimately landed career-defining gigs inside and beyond the rock world.

1. Gary Moore – “Moving On”
2. Gentle Giant – “All Through the Night”
3. Kiss – “Outta This World”
4. Asia – “Cutting It Fine”
5. Trans-Siberian Orchestra – “The Dark”

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