In the Pat Metheny Group, there is always one musician who plays the role of “utility man.” The basic instrumentation is guitar, piano/keys, acoustic and electric bass, drums, trumpet, and (sometimes) harmonica. The extra player is responsible for filling in on any number of instruments including vibes, acoustic guitar, electricRead More

Boasting a Americana twang but also a rough moral sensibility and a cutting way with an image, Darryl Gregory’s Big Texas Sky is probably too edgy for country radio. It’s a shame. You May Also Like: Wilco (The Album) echoed, but didn’t quite live up to Sky Blue Sky MichaelRead More

Steve Smith, like Paul McCartney, has a solo career that’s way more extensive than the higher profile rock band he belonged to for a relatively short period of time, but he’ll always be known as that Journey drummer You May Also Like: Steve Smith: The Albums That Shaped My CareerRead More

Foreigner’s new live album is neither all that bad, nor all that good — probably worth the ticket price at the original concert venue, if you don’t pay too much attention, but instantly forgettable as a home listening experience. You May Also Like: ‘Rockin’ the City of Angels’: Inside DouglasRead More

A gutsy blend of contemplative Evans/Tristano-informed piano excursions and these grease-popping Cuban jams, pianist Gonzalo Rubalcaba’s XXI Century takes us on a journey across time and cultures. You May Also Like: Aruan Ortiz, with Andrew Cyrille + Mauricio Herrera – ‘Inside Rhythmic Falls’ (2020) Matthew Shipp – ‘Codebreaker’ (2021)

So I’ve been spending some time recently filtering through “stuff.” That is, combing through piles, boxes, and closets full of belongings in the attempt to get our house ready for sale. One thing that’ll wreck our chance of a sale, even more so than walls painted in disturbing (read: notRead More

We waited eight years for this? A retread of a throw-away track from the Get a Grip album, which for the most part should have been a throw-away itself? You May Also Like: Steven Tyler – We’re All Somebody From Somewhere (2016) Why I’m Still Disappointed With Aerosmith’s ‘Music FromRead More

Full of raw emotion, frank admissions, fun pop asides and memorable guitar gumption, ‘Analog Man’ illustrates all over again just how complicated Joe Walsh always was.

Italian electric bassist Giacomo Merega once again gets together with saxophonist Noah Kaplan and guitarist Marco Cappelli for a set of rhythm-less free form improvisations Watch the Walls Instead. You May Also Like: Noah Jack, “Neighborhood” (2017): One Track Mind Tiger Hatchery – ‘Breathing In the Walls’ (2018) Noah HaiduRead More

It might be easy to look at the title of this and dismiss it as yet another of those “unauthorized biographies” that seem to show up every once in a while — the kind of thing that only completists will snap up. And looking at the cover doesn’t help: nearlyRead More