reissue Archive
04 Dec 2023
Album Review: The Alligator Records Christmas Collection
By late 1992, the first vinyl era was drawing to a close. At its peak in 1977-78, vinyl LP sales in the U.S. approached 350 million units per year. With […]
27 Oct 2023
Album Review: Love Tractor — Around the Bend (40th Anniversary)
Forty years on, it’s too easy to forget just how fertile a creative ground was the Athens, Georgia music scene of the early ‘80s. Sure, everybody knows about R.E.M. and […]
19 Oct 2023
Album Review: Jackie Wilson — Higher and Higher
A giant in the world of r&b and soul, Jackie Wilson’s career got a big break when Johnny Otis (father of Shuggie) discovered him in the early 1950s. Wilson passed […]
16 Oct 2023
Album Review: The Chi-Lites – A Lonely Man
If I might engage in the vernacular for a moment, streaming ain’t all that. Issues concerning fair remuneration to the artists aside, streaming platforms have many advantages for the listener. […]
13 Oct 2023
Album Review: R.E.M. – Accelerate
Continuing on with my modern-day takes on late-period RE.M. albums – an endeavor inspired by 2023 vinyl reissues of those records – I’ll be less self-indulgent on only provide just […]
12 Oct 2023
Album Review: R.E.M. – Reveal
Imagine, if you will, that it’s 1984. You’re a serious fan of R.E.M., owning and treasuring their debut EP Chronic Town and the pair of albums they released, 1983’s Murmur […]
09 Oct 2023
Album Review: The Lost Generation — Young, Tough and Terrible
From Chicago in 1970 came The Lost Generation. Their sleek, sensuous and soulful sounds is in line with the growing symphonic soul movement of the era. Smooth, layered vocals from […]
04 Oct 2023
Album Review: Andrew Gold — Greetings from Planet Love
Andrew Gold never got the respect or recognition he so richly deserved. He’s best known for his hit single “Thank You for Being a Friend,” a pop tune from 1978. […]
16 Aug 2023
Album Review: A Produce – Land of a Thousand Trances
When it comes to ambient music, the rules are different. The qualities and values that can make a good song – melody, rhythm, hooks – are either wholly absent or […]
27 Jul 2023
Album Review: Ani DiFranco — Little Plastic Castles
One of popular music’s most refreshing and encouraging developments of the last couple of decades has been the rise of the independent artist. True, there have always been occasional artists […]