spoken word Archive
22 Jul 2019
You Are Cordially Invited: John and Yoko’s ‘Wedding Album’ at 40
As the Beatles launched their punningly-named Apple Corps in 1967, the group also started a number of offshoot/subsidiary business lines. Apple Records would be the most well-known (and truly the […]
16 Dec 2018
Oxford American Celebrates N.C. Music
North Carolina has a rich musical history and a thriving current-day music scene. Both are being recognized in the Winter 2018 issue of Oxford American. The esteemed literary and arts […]
14 Nov 2018
Asheville Moth GrandSLAM: Slam-dunk Stories
The oral tradition predates the written word by thousands of years. Throughout history, storytelling has provided both a creative outlet and a focus for community. The Appalachian narrative tradition has […]
12 Sep 2018
Album Review: Iceberg Slim — Reflections
If I told you that a key inspiration for the slice-of-street hip-hop of Ice-T was an earlier recording artist going by the name of Iceberg Slim, you’d likely develop some […]
08 Jun 2018
Album Review: Battleground Korea: Songs and Sounds of America’s Forgotten War
Readers old enough to remember the long-running and beloved television sitcom M*A*S*H likely know that according to its creators, even though the show was set in wartime Korea, it was […]
30 Nov 2017
Joe Penland on the Connection Between Old-time Music and Storytelling
“I didn’t know I was a storyteller until I was told I was one,” says Joe Penland. A singer, songwriter and most definitely a storyteller, Penland is part of the […]
30 Nov 2016
Hundred-word Reviews for Nov./Dec. 2016, Part 8 of 10
Manu Katché – Unstatic Style: jazz This is an album of tasty mostly-instrumental jazz that sometimes – but not always – leans in an Afro-Cuban direction. Luca Aquino’s trumpet is […]
12 Sep 2016
Album Mini-review: Allen Ginsberg — The Last Word on First Blues
File next to: William Burroughs, The Fugs, Lenny Bruce Beat poet Allen Ginsberg is a towering figure in America’s cultural history. Most of his recorded material is spoken word, but […]
16 Mar 2016
Radio Radio!
A programming note: I am pleased to announce that tomorrow (Thursday, April 17, 2016) I will be a guest on the “Riffin'” radio show on Asheville FM 103.3. Among (I […]
08 Sep 2015
Hundred-word Reviews for September, Part 7 of 8
Today features hundred word reviews of archival and reissue releases from American and overseas labels. The Brecker Brothers – The Bottom Line Archive This is the latest from the new […]