July 18, 2001: Brute Force: interview and music
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Irwin welcomes inexplicable phenom Stephen Friedland, a.k.a. Brute Force. Brute's 1968 John Simon-produced album, Confections of Love, was a strange mixture of cabaret-rock, outsider humor, and mystifying pop songcraft. A songwriter who began his career in New York during the Brill Building era, his tunes by have been recorded by such well-known artists as The Chiffons, The Cyrkle, Del Shannon, and The Creation. He recorded one controversial 45 rpm single for Apple Records, which is listed in the censored song database of the First Amendment Center at Vanderbilt. Brute, who performs comedy, acts, and teaches yoga, was born in Jersey City, and lives in New York. He snorkels and once swam halfway across the Bering Strait. Tune in to hear the guy who wrote the songs "Tapeworm of Love" and "To Sit on a Sandwich," and find out why.