vinyl Archive
16 Feb 2020
Album Review: Louis Armstrong and His All Stars — Live in 1956
Though he had certainly been massively popular before, in the middle 1950s jazz trumpeter and vocalist Louis Armstrong was near the top of his game. In 1947 he broke up […]
12 Feb 2020
Shot in the Dark: Utopia’s ‘Adventures in Utopia’ at at 40
Utopia – or Todd Rundgren’s Utopia, as it was originally and would years later again be known – started out as one thing and became another. In its original form, […]
31 Jan 2020
Album Review: The Velvert Turner Group
Jimi Hendrix’s influence on music is incalculable. He affected the course of music not only as a fiery, innovative guitarist but also in his groundbreaking use of the recording studio-as-instrument. […]
30 Dec 2019
Deliciousness: Frank Zappa’s ‘Hot Rats’ at 50
By the time of the release of Hot Rats, his second solo album, Frank Zappa was well established as an important force in pushing the boundaries of pop music. Not […]
20 Dec 2019
Album Review: The Black Tones — Cobain & Cornbread
Ice-T (among many others) has long made the point that African Americans’ role in the creation of rock ‘n’ roll doesn’t get the recognition it deserves. While I agree, I […]
18 Dec 2019
Album Review: Rachid Taha — Je Suis Africain
Are you familiar with a musical genre called Chaâbi? Me neither. Put simply (and reductively), it’s North African folk music, sort of a cousin to another style, raï. One of […]
17 Dec 2019
Album Review: Daystar — The Complete Recordings
It’s always tricky choosing a band name. I once had a group called the Buzztones; we played obscure ’60s garage-psych. But one day we discovered there was another Buzztones, and […]
16 Dec 2019
Neil Young is Here to Stay: the ‘Rusty’ Year of 1979
As the 1970s wound toward a close, Neil Young placed himself in a curious position. By that point he had been in the public eye as a musician for more […]
04 Dec 2019
Hunger for the Dreams: ‘The Allman Brothers Band’ at 50
When the eponymous debut album by The Allman Brothers Band appeared on record store shelves in November 1969, record buyers may have thought they were discovering a new group. To […]
23 Nov 2019
Weird of Scotland: Jack Bruce’s ‘Songs for a Tailor’ at 50
Sixties supergroup Cream had at least five things that made it special: guitarist Eric Clapton, drummer Ginger Baker and bassist-vocalist Jack Bruce were the three most obvious assets. But producer […]