Archive for April, 2013

Vinyl

Something Else! sneak peek: Emily Bear, “Blue Note” from Diversity (2013)

Emily Bear plays her piano with a finely nuanced touch, with both her comping left hand and a right hand that can cascade notes like sand pouring out of your hands. The song, her own, is a circular figure to which she discreetly adds graceful touches You May Also Like:Read More

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‘It’s a pretty daunting task’: Yes’ Geoff Downes on following Rick Wakeman, and avoiding the capes

When Geoff Downes was invited, along with fellow Buggles co-founder Trevor Horn, to join Yes just before 1980’s Drama, the keyboardist was taking over a seat once warmed by the legendarily talented, and memorably caped Rick Wakeman. You May Also Like: How Yes Finally Saved ‘Drama’ From Unjust Obscurity

Vinyl

Quattro – Popzzical (2013)

It’s classical. No, wait. It’s contemporary jazz. Sure, but that’s not exactly it, either. Latin pop? That, too. In fact, Quattro’s deliciously uncategorizable forthcoming album Popzzical includes all of that, but ultimately fits somewhere in between. You May Also Like: Luca Crispino, Danilo Gallo, Luca Pighi + Roberto Zorzi –Read More

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‘Died a death’: Mick Fleetwood on the surprising early fan response to Fleetwood Mac’s Rumours

1977’s Rumours, it’s worth noting, wasn’t always the best-selling album in Fleetwood Mac’s career. In fact, not long after they finished it, Mick Fleetwood says the group attempted to perform the project sequentially — with disastrous results. You May Also Like: No related posts.

Sparks Fly On E Street: Bruce Springsteen, "Gloria's Eyes" (1992)

Sparks Fly On E Street: Bruce Springsteen, “Gloria’s Eyes” (1992)

Here’s a great example of how Bruce’s live performance can transform a song. “Gloria’s Eyes,” the studio version is nothing special. A guy-loses-girl story set to a rolling guitar figure/blues changes thing. You May Also Like: Reevaluating Bruce Springsteen’s ‘The Wild, the Innocent and the E Street Shuffle’

Vinyl

‘My first time in here!’: Highlights from Todd Rundgren’s online chat with fans today about State

Todd Rundgren held an online fan chat Sunday to discuss his newest studio effort, and an upcoming tour to start in May. He’ll also hold another edition of “Toddstock,” this time celebrating his 65th birthday, in June outside of New Orleans. You May Also Like: Why Todd Rundgren’s ‘Back toRead More

Vinyl

Charles Lloyd – Quartets ECM Box Set (2013)

The story of Quartets, the new ECM box set covering five of Charles Lloyd’s albums, isn’t a sweeping career retrospective; it would take at least twenty discs to sufficiently do that for this tenor saxophonist whose become a lion in jazz over a fifty year span. Instead, this is aboutRead More

Vinyl

Alanis Morissette – Live at Montreux (2013)

Maybe no song in this forthcoming live set so perfectly illustrates the contentment and joy that the now-married new mother Alanis Morissette seems to enjoy now as does “Thank U,” her set closer at Montreux last year. You May Also Like: Forget What You Heard About Alanis Morissette’s Flavors ofRead More

Vinyl

Flotsam and Jetsam – Ugly Noise (2012)

After 1995’s Drift, Flotsam and Jetsam seemed to do just that — drift off the musical map — with a series of disappointing records and a couple of long hiatuses between records. Then came 2010’s The Cold. You May Also Like: Flotsam and Jetsam, “Iron Maiden” from Flotsam and JetsamRead More

Vinyl

Gordon Hauptfleisch (1954-2013): An Appreciation

Having spent some of his earliest years just a mile down the road from where the Beach Boys grew up, the late Gordon Hauptfleish had a special way of capturing California’s flaxen past, always describing it with real force and wisdom. You May Also Like: ‘Drums & Demons: The TragicRead More