© 2025 Spokane Public Radio.
An NPR member station
Donate
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations
SPR Reimagined
Johnson's Improbable History of Pop
Saturdays 7:00-8:00 p.m. on SPR News
Hosted by John Johnson

John Johnson conducts a tour of the obscure world of early rock and pop music. The 95% of records that never got commercial airtime have a home, Johnson’s Improbable History of Pop features those artists who fell through the commercial cracks.

  • Dave DuPree, Cary Beare, and Bob Burdett
    Gotham
    Three founding members of popular late 1980's Spokane band share their sotry and sounds with us.
  • Greg Beumer and Keri Reese
    True Faced
    Guests Greg Beumer and Kari Reese share the sounds and inside stories of their 2010 collaboration.
  • Ron Lloyd, part 2
    Walla Walla born singer/songwriter Ron Lloyd returns with his son Bryan Lloyd to share highlights from his six decade career.
  • The Michigan Box
    Small label rock and roll, gospel, honky tonk, bluegrass, garage rock r & b, and more from the Wolverine State.
  • Driftless Dreamers of the Cosmos
    Highlights from latest release in Numero's Cosmic American Music series plus other goodies.
  • Brian Wilson
    A selection of songs written and performed by Brian Wilson from throughout the decades.
  • Songs That Mattered in 1980
    We celebrate SPR's 45th birthday with a curated selection of tunes from 1980, our first year.
  • Hoyt Axton
    Former SPR host Dan Maher is our guest with his tribute to singer/songwriter Hoyt Axton. This is an encore presentation from 2011.
  • They Tell Me It's Summer
    A curated collection of tunes to celebrate the newly arrived summer season from a wide variety of eras and genres.
  • The Sonics
    A tribute to 1960's Northwest garage rock pioneers from Tacoma whose gritty sounds anticipated much of 1990's grunge.