Juggling pop rocking finesse with experimental episodes, Speed the Plough is still mixing and mashing genres. Democracy remains the key word on ‘Now.’

Talented trombonist/composer Matthew Hartnett has identified something culturally valuable in every environment he’s found himself in to make a remarkable introduction.

Most people associate Glenn Frey with the peaceful, easy country-rock songs with the Eagles. But he also had a gift for R&B and vocal arranging.

Daevid Allen’s final recording is as he’s always sounded: like he’s still frolicking in 1970 trying to imagine what music might be like in 2020 if we had lost our minds along the way,

There’s nothing forced about 1970’s back-to-basics ‘Morrison Hotel,’ which found the Doors offering blues-battered hard rock with renewed vim and vigor.

The Westies’ terrific sophomore effort revisits many of the elements that made 2015’s ‘West Side Stories’ shine, even while hitting a few new heights.

ZZ Top’s underrated ‘Tejas’ is like a forgotten middle child, having had the back luck to follow not just one, but two classic albums.

Jensen and Olin draw from a deep well of experience and the broad diversity of music styles to make a little magic with a big band.

Toto’s “If It’s the last Night” doesn’t hit the heights of “A Million Miles Away,” but it’s an effective ballad. Unfortunately, it’s not an effective album closer.

As these songs by the Beatles, the Rolling Stones and others show: Sometimes, having special guests provides just enough competition to make the main act work a little harder.