One of the greatest blues guitarists of any era, Stevie Ray Vaughan’s recorded output with his band, Double Trouble, consisted of only five albums (four studio, one live) during his lifetime. And though he hit the scene like the self-described hurricane in his adaptation of (more…)
As the Beatles came to an end, George Harrison moved from the back seat to the catbird seat. In the Scorsese documentary, Living In The Material World, Phil Spector recalls Harrison offhandedly mentioning that he had a few ditties he’d written, after which he brought Spector (more…)
In the past year, the jazz world lost two giants in guitarist Jim Hall and bassist Charlie Haden. All the more reason to celebrate this previously unreleased recording of the pair performing as a duo at the 1990 Montreal Jazz Festival. Haden and (more…)
Kudos to Red House Records for this three-CD set of rare and unreleased recordings by blues singer/guitarist Dave Ray. It probably won’t fly off shelves, but more people need to be exposed to the music of Ray, who has been largely overlooked in the various treatises on blues and the Folk Boom. “Snaker,” as he […]
Guitarist Jorma Kaukonen and bassist Jack Casady have been playing music together for 53 years – 40 of them as Hot Tuna. What started as an acoustic splinter group from their gig with Jefferson Airplane morphed into both acoustic and electric variations and myriad combinations.Released on the heels of Tuna’s successful “blues tour” with Charlie […]
Guitar great Billy Mure (born November 4, 1915) passed away September 25, at the age of 97. He last performed on August 2, playing Dixieland banjo at Squid Lips, where he lived in Sebastian, Florida. Mure played on innumerable sessions from the ’50s to the ’70s, but is (more…)
Although she has released 20 solo albums, Ross is best known for her tenure in the vocal trio of Lambert, Hendricks & Ross, from ’57 to ’62. But she’s also been a nightclub owner, songwriter, actress, and the subject of a documentary and a Broadway (more…)
Roots, from 2011, ended an almost 10-year drought for Winter, and in fine style, featuring excellent playing from Derek Trucks, Sonny Landreth, Vince Gill, and especially Winter himself. Step Back was to be the second CD in a trilogy, with more guests playing what Winter (more…)
It was February 21, 2012. As part of the White House’s music series, “Red, White & Blues” featured a cavalcade of blues and blues-influenced greats including B.B. King, Jeff Beck, Mick Jagger, Derek Trucks, Susan Tedeschi, Keb’ Mo’, and guitar legend Buddy Guy. President Obama thanked the performers as they wrapped up the evening with […]
If you’re going to take on the life story of B.B. King, you’d better do it right. Not only is it one of the most remarkable rags-to-riches stories in show business (or any walk of life), but King’s stature truly transcends music. He’s not just (more…)
