History in Five Songs with Martin Popoff
315 episodes Last Updated: Jul 08, 25
History in Five Songs with Martin Popoff is the show that aims to make grand and often oddball hard rock and heavy metal points through a narrative built upon the tiny idea of a quintet of songs. Buttressed with illustrative clips, Martin argues quickly and succinctly why these songs - and the specific sections of these tracks - support his mad professor premise, from the wobbly invention of an “American” heavy metal, to the influence of Led Zeppelin in hair metal or to more succinct topics like tapping and twin leads. The songs serve as bricks, but Martin slathers plenty of mortar. At the end, hopefully he has a sturdy house in which this week’s theory can reside unbothered by the elements. At approximately 7000, Martin has had published in books more record reviews than anybody in the history of music writing across all genres. Additionally, Martin has penned approximately 85 books on hard rock, heavy metal, classic rock and record collecting. Proud part of Pantheon - the podcast network for music lovers.
Episodes
In Episode 315 of History in Five Songs with Martin Popoff, Martin dives deep into the fascinating world of heavy metal albums that never achieved gold certification, spotlighting legendary but commercially underperforming releases from Black Sabbath, Angel Witch, Slayer, Venom, Mercyful Fate, and more — proving that critical acclaim and genre-defining influence don't always come with big sales.
Black Sabbath – “Hot Line”
Angel Witch – “Atlantis”
Venom – “Sacrifice”
Savatage – “On the Run”
Scorpions – “Pictured Life”
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In Episode 314 of History in Five Songs with Martin Popoff, Martin explores how songwriting credits can shape — or sometimes have little impact on — our understanding of band dynamics, musical identity, and who really deserves the money and credit behind the hits.
Whitesnake – “Hot Stuff”
UFO – “Too Hot to Handle”
Scorpions – “Bad Boys Running Wild”
Ozzy Osbourne – “Believer”
Deep Purple – “Pictures of Home”
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In Episode 313 of History in Five Songs with Martin Popoff, Martin delves into how a wide range of hard rock and metal bands navigated the hair metal era—from those who ignored it entirely, to those who subtly adapted, stayed the course, or went in completely bizarre directions.
Black Sabbath – “Call of the Wild”
Scorpions – “Hit Between the Eyes”
Queen – “Pain Is So Close to Pleasure”
Kiss – “Good Girl Gone Bad”
Starz – “Rock Six Times”
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In Episode 312 of History in Five Songs with Martin Popoff, Martin explores a curious subset of rock history—unexpected AOR albums—by spotlighting bands like Heart and Yes that made surprising forays into glossy, radio-friendly territory during the early ’80s, blurring the lines between prog, pop, and proto–hair metal.
Heart – “Heavy Heart”
Yes – “City of Love”
Blue Öyster Cult – “Eyes on Fire”
Golden Earring – “Enough Is Enough”
Sammy Hagar – “Remote Love”
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In Episode 311 of History in Five Songs with Martin Popoff, Martin argues that the real nail in hair metal's coffin wasn’t grunge, but the wave of uninspired cover songs that undermined the genre’s credibility and alienated metal purists from the very start.
Quiet Riot – “Cum on Feel the Noize”
Great White – “Gimme Some Lovin’”
Mötley Crüe – “Smokin’ in the Boys Room”
Twisted Sister – “Leader of the Pack”
Poison – “Your Mama Don’t Dance”
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In Episode 310 of History in Five Songs with Martin Popoff, Martin wrestles with defining the genre and counts down his five favorite—yet genre-challengingly eclectic—new wave bands, kicking off with the Boomtown Rats and Devo in a tightly-defined 1979-focused episode.
The Boomtown Rats – “Keep it Up”
Devo – “Blockhead”
The Police – “No Time This Time”
The Jam – “Girl on the Phone”
XTC – “Scissor Man”
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In Episode 309 of History in Five Songs with Martin Popoff, Martin delves into the theory that traditional, conservative pub rock diluted the innovation of New Wave, highlighting how artists like Elvis Costello, Joe Jackson, and Rockpile carried this "pub rock problem" into a genre otherwise defined by its creative and edgy origins.
Elvis Costello – “The Beat”
Joe Jackson – “Kinda Kute”
Rockpile – “A Knife and a Fork”
Talking Heads – “New Feeling”
Patti Smith – “Space Monkey”
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In Episode 308 of History in Five Songs with Martin Popoff, Martin dives into the murky origins of new wave music, exploring whether bands like Velvet Underground and Roxy Music truly helped invent the genre—or if new wave simply evolved without a clear starting point.
Velvet Underground – “Some Kinda Love”
Roxy Music – “All I Want Is You”
Iggy Pop – “Sister Midnight”
David Bowie – “Word on a Wing”
The Sex Pistols – “No Feelings”
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In Episode 307 of History in Five Songs with Martin Popoff, Martin dives into the fascinating and sometimes controversial world of UK rock stars who’ve been knighted, exploring the honors system, the cultural implications of Britishness, and spotlighting five legendary artists—like Mick Jagger, Ray Davies, and Bob Geldof—whose contributions to music (and beyond) earned them royal recognition.
Mick Jagger – “Shoot Off Your Mouth”
Ray Davies – “After the Fall”
Bob Geldof – “Love or Something”
Brian May – “Back to the Light"
Paul McCartney – “Vintage Clothes”
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In Episode 306 of History in Five Songs with Martin Popoff, Martin toys with the concept of "shadow bands"—offshoot groups formed by former members that mimic, diverge from, or rival the original band—ranging from dim echoes like David Lee Roth’s solo work to near-equal counterparts like Slash’s Snakepit to Ozzy’s post-Sabbath solo reign.
David Lee Roth – “40 Below”
Slash’s Snakepit – “Soma City Ward”
Roger Waters – “Bird in a Gale”
Mike + the Mechanics – “Blame”
Streets – “If Love Should Go”
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