The catalog that Jim Croce created during his short life and career is awe-inspiring. From the entertaining storytelling of “You Don’t Mess Around with Jim” to the heart-tugging beauty of “Operator (That’s Not the Way It Feels)” he demonstrated a mastery that leaves us wondering what could have been if he hadn’t died in a […]
Music With a Purpose – Revived and Revitalized
Several years back I did a series about music released with an eye towards social impact or change. Called Music With a Purpose, it was one of the more enjoyable series that I’ve written. The starting point was some great music, made all the more significant given the underlying meaning. Well, the time has come […]
The Traveling Ones – Meet Me There
Peanut butter and jelly, Luxardo cherries and good rye whiskey, banjos and mandolins. Â Some things go well together, like Justin Ahmanson and Emily Villareal, a duo that goes by the name The Traveling Ones. Â Their debut album is called Meet Me There and offers plenty of proof that this couple belongs together musically. Philosophically the […]
Monday Morning Video – Joe Strummer covers Jimmy Cliff
My original plan was to share a version of Jimmy Cliff covering his classic “The Harder They Come.” Until I stumbled across this version of Joe Strummer and the Mescaleros rockin’ it right.
A J Hobbs – Too Much Is Never Enough
There’s an old saying about blues musicians who had no formal training and yet could unload a gut-wrenching, soulful composition about life or love or maybe just an old dirt road: “it in him, and it got to get out.” Â There’s a country outlaw version of that in the first full-length album from California native […]
John Mayall – Talk About That
In the 1970s, John Mayall, O.B.E., was, along with Bob Dylan, John Prine, David Bromberg, Loudon Wainwright III, Shawn Phillips and Jerry Jeff Walker, one of my musical heroes.  Now at 83 and still touring and recording albums, Mayall is an inspiration. Mayall, often called the “Godfather of British Blues,†is so much more than […]
Monday Morning Video – Girls Guns and Glory “Rock and Roll”
The lead off track from Girls Guns and Glory’s latest long player (Love and Protest) seems like a fitting song to kick off the week. Are you ready to rock and roll?
Monday Morning Video – Greg Trooper
2017 is already off to a rough start with the recent passing of songwriter Greg Trooper. He was very much a songwriter’s songwriter, a storyteller who delved deep into the lives of the characters who inhabited his songs all the while connecting the listener to the universal truths in their tales.
Say What?! Fall/Winter 2016 Edition
One of my favorite things about seeing live shows (well, after the music) are the crazy comments that you hear along the way. Here are a few choice selections from fall/winter 2016. The glass breaking was perfect timing. Too bad it was in the wrong fucking key. David Ramirez, when someone dropped a glass on […]
Paolo Von Giordano of New Diplomat Talks About the Band’s Multi-Purpose Rehearsal Space and Shares His Tips for Writing Songs
Paolo Von Giordano of electronic indie rock band New Diplomat talks about trying to eat healthy while on tour and why the band waited before scheduling their first gig together.