Jeff Elder Isn't Real is a Substack by writer and musician Jeff Elder, a place where the curtain is half open. Part memoir, part creative process, part cultural observation. Warm, honest, and a little strange. Just like life.

In this episode, Jeff reads his latest post, "Goodbye, Old Friend" — episode 23 of his ongoing Substack. Today marks the release of I'm A Star: The Remixes and the completion of the Starr Love audiobook, which also means saying goodbye to a story Jeff has carried around for over thirty years. Plus, a look at what's coming this fall, including a synth vocal project, a licensing album, an animated series about a dog named Sipsey, and the next book already taking shape.

Audio credits:Intro/Outro music: Seasons in the Sun by Terry Jacks

Subscribe to Jeff Elder Isn't Real on Substack for new posts every week, including audio versions of most every essay.

Jeff Elder Isn't Real is a Substack by writer and musician Jeff Elder, a place where the curtain is half open. Part memoir, part creative process, part cultural observation. Warm, honest, and a little strange. Just like life.

In this episode, Jeff reads his latest post, "Just Sign Here" — episode 22 of his ongoing memoir. It's about closing the John chapter for good. The damned house. The corporation he signed onto because someone needed a signature. The unpaid taxes nobody knew about. The New York trip that killed the bar. The gay mafia who camped outside his house. The friends who weren't. And somehow, in the middle of all of it, two records and a new Mike. It's the end of one era and the beginning of something better.

Audio credits:Intro/Outro music: Faith by Trust

Subscribe to Jeff Elder Isn't Real on Substack for new posts every week, including audio versions of most every essay.

Jeff Elder Isn't Real is a Substack by writer and musician Jeff Elder, a place where the curtain is half open. Part memoir, part creative process, part cultural observation. Warm, honest, and a little strange. Just like life.

In this episode, Jeff reads his latest post, "Minute by Minute" — episode 21 of his ongoing memoir. It's about 1993, the decline, and the decision to stay. AZT that didn't work. Drinking that got sloppy. A dude ranch trip that went sideways in the middle of the night. A psych ward. A pen that produced words that didn't exist. Hospice at home. And a quiet hospital room where Jeff held someone he loved as he died. This one is heavy. But it ends with gratitude, and a reminder to hold the people you love a little tighter.

Audio credits: Intro/Outro music: Minute by Minute by The Doobie Brothers

Subscribe to Jeff Elder Isn't Real on Substack for new posts every week, including audio versions of most every essay.

Jeff Elder Isn't Real is a Substack by writer and musician Jeff Elder, a place where the curtain is half open. Part memoir, part creative process, part cultural observation. Warm, honest, and a little strange. Just like life.

In this episode, Jeff reads his latest post, "Keeping The Lights On" — episode 20 of his ongoing memoir. It's about the best and worst of 1991 and into 1992. Red Red Groove was gaining real momentum, landing radio play and working on a second album called Silence — a nod to the Silence = Death movement. At the same time, the club scene was shifting, Circa was failing, and IKON was being born. And then, in a hospital room, everything changed. This one gets heavy.

Audio credits: Intro/Outro music: Red Red Groove - No Tears

Subscribe to Jeff Elder Isn't Real on Substack for new posts every week, including audio versions of most every essay.

Jeff Elder Isn’t Real is a Substack by writer and musician Jeff Elder, a place where the curtain is half open. Part memoir, part creative process, part cultural observation. Warm, honest, and a little strange. Just like life.

In this episode, Jeff reads his latest post, “The Thrill Ride Continues” — episode 19 of his ongoing memoir. It’s about 1990 and 1991, when Red Red Groove was hitting its stride, the DJ career was evolving, and the night a rope, a long-haired stranger, and a very specific comment about legs led to one of the best shows Jeff ever played. Plus, the story of a venue owner who called the cops on his own show, and the first quiet signs that something at home was about to change.

Audio credits: Intro/Outro music: Angels by Red Red Groove

Link to my Red Red Groove scrapbook (mentioned in this episode) is https://www.strangehighways.com/red-red-groove-scrapbook/

Subscribe to Jeff Elder Isn’t Real on Substack for new posts every week, including audio versions of most every essay.

Jeff Elder Isn't Real is a Substack by writer and musician Jeff Elder, a place where the curtain is half open. Part memoir, part creative process, part cultural observation. Warm, honest, and a little strange. Just like life.

In this episode, Jeff reads his latest post, "No Gift Refused" — episode 18 of his ongoing memoir. It's about the cloud nine years of 1989 and 1990, when everything was running full speed at once. The DJ career was clicking. Red Red Groove was building real momentum. And one night at an art gallery called Fascination Street, Trent Reznor walked in and changed the trajectory of the band. Plus, the story of how a bottle of tequila and a fistful of hair became an accidental lesson in industrial scene survival.

Audio credits: Intro / Outro - No Gift Refused by Until December

Subscribe to Jeff Elder Isn't Real on Substack for new posts every week, including audio versions of most every essay.

Jeff Elder Isn't Real is a Substack by writer and musician Jeff Elder, a place where the curtain is half open. Part memoir, part creative process, part cultural observation. Warm, honest, and a little strange. Just like life.

In this episode, Jeff reads his latest post, "Special Orange Juice" — episode 17 of his ongoing memoir. It's about the winter of 1988, a bottle of champagne, and how he wound up living in a gay bar owner's house without ever really deciding to. It's about Troy, John, the strange domestic logic of 24/7 club life, meeting Glenn and Alex from The Village People upstairs at The Max, and the first time he met his worst best friend. It's also about the night Red Red Groove played its very first show.

Audio credits: Intro/Outro music: New Order - Bizarre Love Triangle / True Faith

Subscribe to Jeff Elder Isn't Real on Substack for new posts every week, including audio versions of most every essay.

Jeff Elder Isn't Real is a Substack by writer and musician Jeff Elder, a place where the curtain is half open. Part memoir, part creative process, part cultural observation. Warm, honest, and a little strange. Just like life.

In this episode, Jeff reads his latest post, "I've Got Believers... Believing Me" — episode 16 of his ongoing memoir. It's about the night in the fall of 1988 when Richard showed up to The Max too drunk to stand, got fired two minutes before opening, and Jeff found himself alone in the DJ booth with a wall of records that weren't his and absolutely no business being there. It's about practicing in an empty club until something clicked, earning a permanent spot, and a moment of quiet kindness from a stranger that he's never forgotten.

Audio credits: Intro/Outro music: DJ by David Bowie.

Subscribe to Jeff Elder Isn't Real on Substack for new posts every week, including audio versions of most every essay.