Paul Williams & Jillian Lauren: Hitmaker for Generations

Music icon Paul Williams shares a hilarious, heartfelt hour with longtime bestie, Linda Sivertsen (who moved into his mansion 26 years ago to care for his pups so he could go get sober) and this month’s guest host, bestselling memoirist and novelist Jillian Lauren.

Paul, whose standards have been recorded by Elvis Presley, Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald, Ray Charles, David Bowie, Tony Bennett, The Carpenters, Willie Nelson, REM, Diana Ross, The Dixie Chicks, and so many others—including Jillian’s rock star husband!—shares a secret-weapon creativity tool that led to winning the Oscar for “Evergreen” (with Barbara Streisand), an armful of Grammy’s, Golden Globes, and a recent New York Times bestseller. Oh, and an induction into the Songwriter’s Hall of Fame. There’s that.

Paul’s songs, “We’ve Only Just Begun,” “Rainy Days and Mondays” “You and Me Against the World” and “The Rainbow Connection” from the Muppets, have been anthems for generations. (Ever watch The Love Boat? Yep; that theme song’s there, too!) Not bad for a guy who calls himself “orphaned trailer trash” and never had formal musical training—but instead scribbled down the songs playing in his head.

We know you’ll be riveted hearing Paul's iconic voice as he sings the play-by-play details and lyrics of a Grammy-nominated song he downloaded in the park AND Paul's advice for getting out of your own way to create the best work of your life (it’s so much easier than you think). If there’s anyone who can assure you you’re never, ever alone in this creative journey, it’s Pauli.

Get ready to be inspired, too, with how this tuned-in, hilarious soul keeps getting MORE successful (and happier) with age. The creative heights he’s reached in the first half of his seventies are astounding, as is how he’s fighting for the digital rights for all writers. But career magic aside, it’s Paul's humanity—that thing that’s led him to help thousands of people one on one in recovery, and millions throughout the world via his lyrics—that’s truly contagious. Trust us: you're going to want to catch what this man's got, so snuggle in and listen up...