Tough times call for angry protest records, for political records, for records that produce rueful smiles. Ry Cooder has done that and more with “No Banker Left Behind,” a tart treatise on the recent financial meltdown

by Mark Saleski From swing (“Bopsolete”) to smokey blues (and what self-respecting organ ensemble would sidestep the blues? Check out “Deep Blue,” killer guitar solo by Peter Bernstein on this one), this group knows how to have a good time. The title track gets in that groove and burns. And speaking of fun, there’s always the swingin’ cover of Michael [...]

On this special edition of Something Else! Reviews’ One Track Mind, we hand the reins over to Adrian Belew, guitarist with King Crimson.

Three of the most gifted improvisers in free jazz today released this week a studio follow-up from their well-received 2009 live debut. As fellow giants of the NYC downtown scene, William Parker, Craig Taborn and Gerald Cleaver know each well musically and personally (as noted before, Cleaver and Taborn go way, way back). That means that whenever they put their [...]

Not that long ago (well OK, maybe it was…), when the roots of my inner music nerd/writer were being put in place (1978, Creem magazine), there were several bands whose records were in heavy rotation on my turntable: Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple, Bad Company, Black Sabbath, Ted Nugent. At the time, these artists were revered.

by Tom Johnson Bob Marley’s son did this one without the Melody Makers to make an album less about being reggae and more about music. Ziggy seems to find some influence in the Dave Matthews Band, as many songs feature passages that could easily have been played by the DMB and would easily appeal to fans of their laid-back groove. [...]