In a time when there is a 24 hour global stream of information at our fingertips, some stories are impossible to imagine. Today, Talkhouse has launched its latest podcast, The True Story of the Fake Zombies, earning accolades spanning FLOOD Magazine, Punknews.org, Podalization, Icon vs Icon and more. An outrageous music-meets-true crime epic, host Daniel Ralston regales listeners with an expertly researched and unbelievable music industry scam that went untold for decades.
Throughout the historiographic 8-episode weekly series, Ralston dives deep into the tale of how, in 1969, a music promotion company in a tiny Michigan town sent out not one but two bands onto the road to pretend to be The Zombies, the recently disbanded British Invasion band who had just had a huge hit with their song “Time of the Season.” Fake band members included Frank Beard and Dusty Hill, who would go on to become legendary figures in their next band, ZZ Top!
Ralston, who discovered this stranger-than-fiction con a decade ago, dives deep into every aspect of this 55-year-old rock n’ roll mystery, uncovering the secret history of the shady managers who concocted the scheme, the hapless young musicians who were recruited for the scam, the unlikely town where the whole thing was cooked up, the impact of the scheme on the real Zombies (whose iconic music features throughout the show), and much more.
Ralston shares, “55 years ago, four guys from Texas toured North America pretending to be the British Psychedelic rock band The Zombies.Two of those incredibly talented young men ended up in ZZ Top. Eight years ago, I wrote a story that uncovered the names and faces behind the Texas Zombies. I am incredibly excited to take the story further. The True Story of The Fake Zombies traces the origins of the Texas band back to Bay City, Michigan, where two audacious managers put the whole thing together. This podcast was made possible by the local historians, legendary music writers and musical heroes who agreed to help tell the story of this truly wild rock and roll con. We are incredibly honored to have The Zombies voices and music included in the podcast.”
“The True Story of the Fake Zombies” is a production of iHeartMedia, Nevermind Media and Talkhouse. New episodes will be available every Thursday on the iHeartRadio app and wherever podcasts are heard.
“The True Story of the Fake Zombies” is distributed by iHeartPodcasts.
About Daniel Ralston:
Daniel Ralston is a writer, director, and journalist. He is the co-creator and co-host of the highly influential music podcast Low Times as well as MTV’s Videohead podcast. His writing has appeared in TIME, Buzzfeed, Grantland, Vulture and Esquire. He has also directed music videos for artists like Aimee Mann, The So So Glos, Eric Bachmann, and Kevin Devine, among others.
