Author Archive
12 Sep 2025
Take Five: Early R.E.M. Songs You Should Know
R.E.M. was one of the most important musical acts of their era. Groundbreaking in establishing alternative rock (or college rock, or post-punk, or whatever critics might label it), the Athens, […]
11 Sep 2025
Take Five: Great Guest Spots featuring Rod Argent
Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Rod Argent is one of the most versatile and creative musicians in rock. As a founding member of The Zombies, he was responsible for […]
10 Sep 2025
For the Blues Project, There’s No Time Like Now
The original Blues Project was the stuff of legends. Featuring an eclectic mix of New York City players drawn together by a desire to do something that brought together their […]
09 Sep 2025
Album Review: Soft Machine – Floating World Live
In my recent look at Soft Works’ Abracadabra, I laid out a very rough sketch of the convoluted timeline that is the Soft Machine story. One of the mileposts in […]
08 Sep 2025
Album Review: Soft Works – Abracadabra
From its beginnings, pioneering Canterbury group Soft Machine was an anomaly: a “rock” group that leaned decidedly toward jazz, yet worked within the rock idiom, as part of the rock […]
05 Sep 2025
Album Review: Dave Specter – Live at Space
SPACE is a popular club in the Chicago area; its calendar includes top local, regional and national acts. Being a hotbed of electric blues, the venue has its share of […]
04 Sep 2025
Album Review: The Haas Company – Thirteen
I’ve written before of my belief that fusion gave birth to smooth jazz. The latter being an unforgivable sin, I look askance at any new release presenting itself as fusion. […]
03 Sep 2025
Take Five: Yardbirds Greats You Might Have Missed
The Yardbirds came together in 1963. The band’s original run – not counting reunions and that time they changed their name to New Yardbirds and then to Led Zeppelin – […]
02 Sep 2025
Take Five: Non-Blondie Tunes Featuring Deborah Harry
As justly acclaimed and admired as she is, vocalist Deborah Harry is far more musically eclectic than casual listeners might recognize. As lead singer and co-leader of Blondie, Harry was […]
01 Sep 2025
30 Days Out, September 2025 #1: Brian Jonestown Massacre, Mt. Joy, Kendra Morris, James McMurtry
Indie rockers, indie singer-songwriters, and potential train wreck that could also be great: those are among the musical highlights in Asheville over the next 30 days. Fasten your seat belts; […]