Like a lot of young guys growing up in the 70s, I fell in love with the electric guitar. I didn’t get my first instrument until my late teens and really didn’t start playing in earnest until my early 20s. You May Also Like: Why You Should Give Pat Metheny’sRead More

So I was poking my way through an odd discussion about classic rock on one of those Internet-type forum things. It started out with the question of whether Bruce Springsteen’s popularity — ticket and album sales-wise — had been hurt because he isn’t considered to be “classic rock.” You MayRead More

When people hear that a horn player employs “extended techniques” on their instrument, what often comes to mind are things like valve clatter, ostinato, vocalizations, and circular breathing. With Colin Stetson, we get all of that, very often at the same time. You May Also Like: Colin Stetson – AllRead More

When The Rising first came out, the meaning of the songs of pure loss — Empty Sky and You’re Missing in particular — could only come out of the context of the events of 9/11. Though you might be able to take the story of You’re Missing and apply itRead More

A fairly traditional jazz ballad, “The Bat” tells its tale in a slightly unconventional way. You May Also Like: ‘Bright Size Life’ Gave Early Definition to Pat Metheny’s Incredible Career Pat Metheny, May 16, 2019: Shows I’ll Never Forget Pat Metheny – ‘MoonDial’ (2024)

When I’ve gone back to revisit Devo’s first appearance on Saturday Night Live (October 14, 1978), it still seems kind of shocking. I hadn’t yet heard them on the radio, so their bizarre cover of the Stones’ “Satisfaction” and especially the beyond-bizarre performance of “Jocko Homo” had me staring atRead More

The name Krzysztof Penderecki indeed belongs to the film score hall of fame. His uber-creepy “Polymorphia” has been used in The Exorcist, The Shining, and more recently, 1993’s Fearless. You May Also Like: Radiohead Saw the Future With ‘OK Computer,’ Then Became It Tim Berne’s Science Friction [Marc Ducret, CraigRead More

Dropping “Waitin’ On A Sunny Day” from consideration, “Mary’s Place” is the worst song Bruce has done since … oh, take your pick You May Also Like: Reevaluating Bruce Springsteen’s ‘The Wild, the Innocent and the E Street Shuffle’

Even though Bright Size Life contains a lot of elements of traditional jazz, it wasn’t until Metheny brought saxophones to the mix that it felt as though his version of the tradition was being presented. You May Also Like: How ‘Wish’ Scuffed Up Joshua Redman’s Initial Melodicism Pat Metheny, MayRead More

There are turning points in life that don’t announce themselves. That is, you won’t realize what has happened until long after the fact. You May Also Like: Why Patti Smith’s Resiliency Leads Me Back to ‘Easter,’ Time and Again Sam Boshnack Quintet – Nellie Bly Project (2017)