pop Archive
30 Jun 2009
Album Review: Ray Charles — Genius: The Ultimate Ray Charles Collection
The word Genius is thrown around far too cavalierly. At this writing, Michael Jackson (the self-proclaimed King of Pop) has been dead only a few days, and tributes everywhere call […]
26 Jun 2009
Preview: My Talk With Howard / My Dinner With Jimi
This evening I had the honor and pleasure to speak at great length with Howard Kaylan. Known to some as “Eddie” (as in, Flo and Eddie), vocalist for FZ’s Mothers, […]
26 May 2009
Album Review: Various Artists — Malt shop Memories
I’ve made a similar point before, but it’s worth saying again: in general Time-Life musical retrospectives haven’t got a long history of credibility. In general they’ve been viewed as cash-ins, […]
21 May 2009
Album Reviews: Rascals / Young Rascals Reissues (2007)
Young Rascals: The Young Rascals (Collectors’ Choice) Collections (Collectors’ Choice) Groovin’ (Collectors’ Choice) Rascals: Once Upon a Dream (Collectors’ Choice) Freedom Suite (Collectors’ Choice) See (Collectors’ Choice) Search and Nearness […]
20 May 2009
Album Review: The Pretty Things — S.F. Sorrow
The 1968 album S.F. Sorrow by The Pretty Things is an exemplar of a band, pushed to the wall, rising to the occasion and producing a classic. Prior to this, […]
18 May 2009
Album Review: R. Stevie Moore — Meet The
R Stevie Moore is one odd dude. I can’t say whether he’s the sort that listeners would wish to “have a beer with”, but his music is worthwhile for the […]
16 May 2009
Album Review: Nick Lowe – Jesus of Cool: 30th Anniversary Edition
Nick Lowe had a growing (if still somewhat underground) reputation in 1979. As a producer — mostly for Stiff Records — he had worked the boards on stunning a number […]
02 May 2009
Album Reviews: Toy Matinee — s/t and 3rd Matinee — Meanwhile
Toy Matinee was a short-lived pop-prog/art-pop group that released a single eponymous album in 1990. With a sound halfway between Mr. Mister and Jellyfish, Toy Matinee balanced the former’s chart-oriented […]
01 May 2009
Album Review: Air — Moon Safari 10th Anniversary Edition
At the very tail-end of the 20th century, Air — the duo of Nicolas Godin and Jean-Benoît Dunckel — released their debut, Moon Safari. Their blend of dance, exotica, rock […]
20 Apr 2009
Album Review: Wensday — Torch Rock™
Picking up Torch Rock™, one would expect an outing not dissimilar to late 70s/early 80s efforts by Karla DeVito and Ellen Foley; there’s a mock-operatic approach to the proceedings, much […]