The early ’70s may not have been a very good time for the country America – witness the Vietnam War and Watergate – but it was a very good time for the musical act America.

Featuring calm and quiet vocals, Joe Merklee’s new EP ‘July’ exudes a deceptive strength, with delicate melodies that really sneak up on you.

“Skin Tight” makes for a nice little trip back to the kind of gutty rhythm and blues that Chicago was once known for.

You know that great musicianship and creativity are always in store for Avi Granite 6’s strong return but little else can be anticipated, and that’s the main joy of ‘Orbit.’

Mixing standard pop and rock practices with experimental sprinklings, ‘Nazz Nazz’ should have sent Todd Rundgren’s band into the superstar stratosphere.

A melding of klezmer, jazz and not a little bit of funk, Big Brooklyn’s ‘Purpose’ is a hugely engaging debut – and the first, hopefully, of many more to come.

On an album dominated by flinty rockers, “The Other Side” stands out as a classic Toto ballad. It may be Steve Lukather’s best vocal performance on ‘Kingdom of Desire.’

Jeff Coffey has exited Chicago, citing the group’s relentless touring schedule. Luckily, he seems to have no intention of resting on the beach.

Why did someone, or some group of ones, allow Chicago to release a song with James Pankow on lead vocals?

Bill Frisell is never more Bill than when it’s only Bill, and no one else. ‘Music IS’ features only Frisell’s music, as his deftly looped samples become a second instrument.