Roger Joseph Manning Jr. is a keyboardist, singer, and songwriter whose career includes a wide range or recording and touring projects, including work with Beck, Adele, Jay-Z, and Johnny Cash among others. Manning co-founded the highly influential power pop band Jellyfish in 1989 and recorded two albums with the group Bellybutton (1990) and Spilt Milk (1993). When the group disbanded in 1994, Manning continued to release music with a series of projects including TV Eyes, Imperial Drag, The Moog Cookbook, and, more recently, The Lickerish Quartet. He has also toured and recorded with Grammy Award-winning artist Beck, appearing on albums such as Midnight Vultures (1999), Sea Change (2002), and Hyperspace (2019).
Since 2005, Manning has also issued a series of recordings under his own name, including his most recent effort, Radio Daze, which combines new material and selections from his acclaimed 2018 effort, Glamping.
In this conversation, Manning discusses his initial love of drums, the joys of Berkley, California’s legendary used record stores on Telegraph Avenue, his time studying music at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles and why it’s important to stay true to the music you love.
You can learn more about Manning’s work at https://rogerjosephmanningjrofficial.com.
Host, producer, editor: Jedd Beaudoin
Theme music: Torin Andersen
Digital editors: Karlee Cooper, Beth Golay, Hugo Phan
Production Assistance: Jonathan Huber
