Franke Previte formed Franke and the Knockouts in 1980, who had three Top 40 singles and two Top 50 albums.  Franke co-wrote music for the hit soundtrack Dirty Dancing featuring the Academy Award winning "The Time of my Life."  He also co-wrote "Hungry Eyes," which was a #1 U.S. Adult Contemporary hit sung by Eric Carmen.  Franke and the Knockouts most recent album was titled The Complete Collection.  We interviewed Franke in June of 2011.  In our Showcase Segment, we feature Gerry Beckley (interviewed in Episode 71) of America, who has released 10 solo albums including his 2022 release Aurora.  In 2024, he's dropped several singles including "Crazy" and we expect a new album from him soon.  We close out this episode with the legendary Billy Joel who released his first new single since 2007 titled "Turn The Lights Back On."  Kick back and chill as you listen to this episode from the CAT!

In Part 2 of our interview and feature with the phenominal Jeff "Skunk" Baxter, we focus on his years with Steely Dan and talk about the multi-Grammy award winning album (Minute by Minute) by The Doobie Brothers.  We'll also get Jeff's insights on his awesome solo album Speed of Heat and dive into his thoughts on the music industry today.  Be sure to listen to our other shows featuring current and former Doobies on Episodes 18, 44, 75, 128 and 167.  In our showcase segment, we look back at the career of Electric Light Orchestra's keyboardist Richard Tandy who passed away on May 1, 2024.  Tandy's playing was an important part of ELO's sound, playing various keyboard instruments and adding vocals on many songs.    World-class musicians...world-class shows, from your friends at Classic Artists Today!