Just In Time For Christmas: Greatest Greatest Hits and A Couple of Misses
I have to give my mother some Christmas due. …
Lowell George Remembered
Lowell George would have been around 75 this year had he lived. Given his many bad habits and poor diet and health, it is perhaps unsurprising that he never made it past 34. Of course that is sad on many levels.
For him, and the people who…
R.E.M. Ten Years Gone
Do you miss them? It wasn’t drugs or plane crashes or even old age that brought them down. No, they just walked away. And not because of bitter jealousies or suspicious accounting. Rather, they just agreed it was time. That decision has passed the ten year…
George “The Commander” Frayne Remembered
If there is one foundational truth regarding Rock & Roll, it is that it descends from many musical sources. This is true despite all the tired myths endlessly repeated. After all, every musical genre descends from multiple sources. …
Rock & Roll Texas Style
Death ruins everything. That it has ruined Rock & Roll is, thus, inevitable but not because death is inevitable but because it has a particular ability to strike down creative souls in the prime of life. Thank God for certain tough Tejano Rock & Rollers…
Charlie Watts Remembered
I generally avoid writing tributes to very well known Rock musicians on the day of their passing on the theory that the big media outlets will saturate the coverage and why add to the din? …
Pile O’Rocks: The State Theatre July 10, 2021
In the 1930’s, Alan Lomax traveled the Southern United States recording aging African American Blues and Folk musicians. His efforts saved a piece of our cultural heritage and, in turn, the songs he recorded inspired succeeding generations of Folk, Jazz, Blues and…
Jay Bennett Remembered: Wilco and Three J’s
Admittedly it can cut either way but I think it is telling that It was Jay Farrar who walked away from Uncle Tupelo and not Jeff Tweedy. Moreover, it was Jay who claimed the songwriting partnership had soured.
Jeff, for his part, immediately…
Rock & Roll Religion
Make a joyful noise onto the Lord…or so says Psalm 100. I like that. That suits my sense of spirituality and music. So why not celebrate both as the gifts they are?
1) Church of The Falling Rain — The Stone Coyotes: Imagine if you will…
Cats & Dogs & Rock & Roll
No real introduction is needed here. All three are faithful companions either alone or in good company…
1) We The Cats — Joe Jackson: Perhaps chameleon is the better animal analogy for Joe’s career arc but this album is Jazz Cat Cool. Without…
