If you are a fan of Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings (and we are), then surely you’ve marvelled at the coiled brilliance of her smooth and sultry backup singers — dubbed the Dapettes (and we have). Here’s a chance to sample their forthcoming debut album, as Saun and Starr takeRead More

Utterly engrossing, and full of dusty portent, Lee DeWyze’s “Blackbird Song” couldn’t have put more space between his time on American Idol and where he is now. DeWyze, who won Season 9 of Idol, issued the more country pop-leaning Frames last summer. Forget that You May Also Like: Richard Thompson,Read More

Theirs is a meeting across the generations, and a bold illustration of the way time, ultimately, surrenders to tradition — and of the utter agelessness of the rich musical folkway of conjunto. You May Also Like: Conjunto Guantanamo, ‘Guitarra, Tabaco y Ron’ (2024): One Track Mind Stanley Clarke, Superfonicos, MaxRead More

Somehow, Ray LaMontagne lost his mojo. A year went past after the release of his Grammy-winning God Willin’ and the Creek Don’t Rise project. Then two. Then four. Other than the stand-alone track “Empty,” LaMontagne simply walked off the musical map. You May Also Like: No related posts.

Eric Reed, who rose to fame in the early 1990s with Wynton Marsalis, has discovered a well spring of inspiration in the music of Thelonious Monk, as “Gallop’s Gallop” heralds his third tribute album to the offbeat jazz genius. You May Also Like: Gregory Lewis, with Marc Ribot – OrganRead More

Richard Barone, the ex-Bongos leader, imbues this Velvet Underground gem with a newfound sense of sad reverie. Whereas the nihilistic Nico, on the original 1967 version, stood apart from the conviviality, a distant observer, Barone finds the nostalgia, the very real need for attachment in the Lou Reed lyric. YouRead More

Glass Hammer returns never sounding so much like itself, even as the band boldly expands its vocabulary — musically and quite literally. “Crowbone,” for instance, includes an invigorating guest turn by violinist David Ragsdale of Kansas fame You May Also Like: Philip Glass Transcended David Bowie’s Towering Influence on ‘LowRead More

Given an expectation that the young Sam Coulson, who’s taken over for long-time guitarist Steve Howe, was going to provide a bit more of a metallic crunch to the proceedings, Asia’s opening statement on the forthcoming Gravitas couldn’t be more surprising. You May Also Like: John Wetton, Geoff Downes sayRead More

Brian Blade commences with a quiet pulse on “He Died Fighting,” setting the stage for an appropriately militaristic opening statement. But as the rest of his long-standing Fellowship Band gathers around, the track opens up into a vista of astonishing emotional complexity. You May Also Like: Brian Blade & TheRead More

A previously unreleased trio recording from Pat Martino provides new insight both into his obvious debt to Wes Montgomery and Grant Green — but also how his burning, blinding speed outstripped anything those old masters ever attempted, even as the guitarist opened a door for fusion’s looming ferocity. You MayRead More