Episode
The $36 Song That Terrified the FBI (Mike Mitchell of The Kingsmen)
- Podcast
- Tape Spaghetti
- Published
- Jun 24, 2026
- Duration seconds
- 1979
- Processing state
not_requested- Canonical source
- https://pdst.fm/e/traffic.megaphone.fm/FPMN6163965445.mp3
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Summary
Before punk rock, before arena rock, and before garage rock was a thing, there was "Louie Louie." In this special episode of Tape Spaghetti, Blake shares his remarkable conversation with Kingsmen guitarist Mike Mitchell, whose band accidentally changed history. Recorded in a single take for less than the cost of a decent dinner, Louie Louie's famously garbled lyrics sparked a national panic when some listeners became convinced they were obscene. The result was one of the strangest investigations in music history, complete with FBI agents attending shows and federal analysts trying, and failing, to decipher just what the heck the band was singing. Beyond the scandal, Mitchell shares incredible stories about touring in the early days of rock, his help developing the Sunn amplifier brand, and influencing generations of musicians. It's a wild ride through censorship, innovation, and the wonderfully chaotic success of one of rock 'n' roll's earliest earworms.