Sugar Ray & the Bluetones have added an entertaining gem to their long list of album releases with Living Tear to Tear.  From the first notes blown through Sugar Ray Norcia’s harmonica on “Rat Trap,” the album is a pleasure to hear. It’s not surprising that harpist Sugar Ray Norcia, a former member of Roomful […]
Photos that ROCK! Newport Folk Festival 2014
When the e-mail arrived confirming my press credentials for the Newport Folk Festival, I did a little dance around my living room. Not only is this the holy grail of music festivals (you may remember an incident with Bob Dylan and an electric guitar in 1965…), but I have been not-so- patiently waiting 12 years […]
Mud Morganfield & Kim Wilson – For Pops: A Tribute to Muddy Waters
Larry “Mud” Morganfield and Kim Wilson have put together a collaboration that features 1950s Chicago Blues akin to Morganfield’s famous father, McKinley Morganfield – Muddy Waters. And the surprisingly good tribute album by Waters’ eldest son and the frontman from the Fabulous Thunderbirds, For Pops: A Tribute to Muddy Waters, captures that Muddy Waters feel without […]
Newport Folk Festival – Saturday
With his days in the blues-rock duo White Stripes now comfortably behind him, Jack White has become a bit of a generational connector. He’s paid homage to country, blues and rock legends, yet he keeps winning new fans. When he stepped on to the stage at Newport Folk Fest, the standing area at the front […]
Mayer’s Playlist for August 2014, Part 2
ALBUMS OF THE MONTH Uncle John Farquhar, by Goodnight, Texas Goodnight, Texas are on a journey, if not across geography then certainly through time. The bi-coastal group – songwriters Avi Vinocur and Patrick Dyer Wolf live in San Francisco, CA and Chapel Hill, NC respectively – are committed to taking listeners on a musical tour […]
Newport Folk Festival – Friday
Ryan Adams really summed up the 2014 Newport Folk Fest experience well when he said, “”Like ten years ago I was depressed and now I’m playing music with *&$%ing sailboats in the background.” The setting at the legendary festival is literally one of the most beautiful spots as it juts far out into Narragansett Bay. […]
Mayer’s Playlist for August 2014, Part 1
ALBUMS OF THE MONTH Too Blessed to be Stressed, by Paul Thorn It has been a bit of a wait for some new music from Tupelo Mississippi’s second favorite musical son. Thorn bridged the gap between 2010’s Pimps and Preachers and now with What the Hell Is Goin On, a fun covers album. While I […]
Down by the Green River
It’s the best little festival you’ve never heard of. At least I hadn’t until this year. Who knew that over the span of 28 years the little known festival in central Massachusetts would host the likes of Gillian Wellch, Mavis Staples, Alison Kraus & Union Station, Buddy Guy, and Lucinda Williams to name a few. […]
Frank Solivan & Dirty Kitchen – Cold Spell
By the late 60’s and early 70’s bluegrass had evolved from Bill Monroe’s radical take on old-timey music to a relatively known and expected performance and sound.  The Stanley Brothers, the Foggy Mountain Boys, The Osborne Brothers, and many of their peers followed a set framework and style with matching dress and choreographed solos.  It’s hard […]
Photos that ROCK! Green River Festival
Green River Music Festival Greenfield, MA July 13, 2014 Sunshine. Trees. The outdoors. Incredible music. The Green River Festival had it all. The lineup featured a few of my favorite bands, which is really what drew me (and my camera!). In addition, it’s always a treat for me to be able to shoot concerts outdoors. […]