• Smith/Kotzen

    Music

    Smith/Kotzen

    Black Light/White Noise

    This is the third album from rock veterans Adrian Smith (Iron Maiden) and Richie Kotzen (The Winery Dogs). The busy axeslingers – especially Kotzen, who is always involved in solo and band projects – released their full-length debut and an EP in 2021. Smith-Kotzen has happily blossomed into a going concern. What’s interesting about Smith/Kotzen’s

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Dave Alvin – Public Domain

Dave Alvin is one of those guys you have to love. He continuously makes great albums that encompass most of the genres that make up “American” music, and he does it without much…

Roy Orbison

Roy Orbison’s Monument Records labelmate Tony Joe White says Orbison gave his all at every live performance; nothing on this disc will disprove that claim. Yes, there are a couple of small hitches…

Johnny Adams – There Is Always One More Time

From the “there really can’t be a better singer around” catagory comes this set from the latter part of Adams career. It encompasses his work with Rounder from 1982 until his death in…

Otis Redding and Aretha Franklin

First off, neither of these excellent four-CD sets includes personnel listings in their skimpy liner booklets. This is simply unpardonable – especially considering how stylish, how influential, how downright phenomenal the backlines are…

Doyle Bramhall II

Rich Man

In the 15 years since his debut album, Welcome, Doyle Bramhall, II has been in great demand. Along with a decade working with Eric Clapton in the studio and onstage, he’s has collaborated…

The Mike Eldred Trio

The Mike Eldred Trio’s latest was recorded at Memphis’ hallowed Sun Studios, but the deep blues are straight outta the Delta. Eldred needs little introduction here. The former Fender Custom Shop manager, he’s…

Check This Action: The Swinging Steel of Bobby Black

Few instruments are as synonymous with a genre as pedal steel and country music. But for a seemingly conservative style as country, steel guitarists are some of the most-sophisticated, adventurous musicians on the…

California Breed

Big rock crooner/bassist Glenn Hughes has seen it all. From Trapeze and Deep Purple to Black Sabbath, his life is a compelling rock escapade filled with good drugs, great music, and over-the-top excesses.…

Paul Revere & The Raiders – Mojo Workout!

If it’s a given that rock revisionists (er, historians) haven’t given Paul Revere & The Raiders the respect they deserve, then where does that leave Drake Levin? “Drake who?” you ask? My point…

Review: “Gimme All Your Lovin’: The Blues, Boogie, and Beard of ZZ Top’s Billy F. Gibbons”

In his prologue, author Christopher McKittrick acknowledges the difficulty of condensing Gibbons’ six-decade career into one book, partially due to the enigmatic vocalist/guitarist’s own “admitted tall tales.” In short, Gibbons is both an…

Johnny A.

As the liner notes state, Johnny A.’s musical mantra is “melody is king.” And oh, how he proves it here – even when he dusts off his EBow for a side trip into…

Tim Mahoney

Self-distributed

Tim Mahoney’s latest work combines elements of heavy-metal power pop with ethereal folk ballads, and his mix of guitar raunch and lyricism makes for an addictive musical cocktail. Musically, Mahoney is something of…

Clarence “Gatemouth” Brown, Zuzu Bollin – Boogie Uproar: Texas Blues and R&B 1947-1954

The history of early Texas jump blues is often summed up in one name – T-Bone Walker. While Walker’s pioneering guitarwork, great original songs, and landmark recordings are justly famous, his star quality…

Alan Jackson

When Alan Jackson announced a bluegrass album produced by Alison Krauss in 2006, the result was Like Red On A Rose. On it, Jackson sang not straight-ahead bluegrass, but the sorts of dark…

Tony Rice – Night Flyer

The title is a bit misleading. Tony Rice has penned music and lyrics for a few songs (including the one that leads off this album), but the title refers to his interpretations of…

The Kentucky Colonels – Legendary Live Recordings

The Kentucky Colonels Living in the Past: Legendary Live Recordings is made up of tapes from seven different shows in 1961, ’63, ’64, and ’65. Material is from performances at venues in California…

Mike Baggetta/Jim Keltner/Mike Watt

Everywhen We Go

Guitarist Mike Baggetta teams up with renowned rock drummer Jim Keltner (Harrison, Dylan, Frisell) and equally legendary punk bassman Mike Watt (Minutemen, Stooges) for the trio’s second album. As one might expect given…

Donald Fagen – Morph the Cat

Donald Fagen – Morph the Cat Of all the records associated with Steely Dan, Walter Becker, and Donald Fagen, this may be the best since “the comeback.” And that’s something coming from someone…

Robert Trujillo and Others

Bassman

A brave and powerful film, Jaco documents the life of fusion bass virtuoso Jaco Pastorius. Yet by its end, you will realize that Pastorius transcended such simple terms as “jazz-rock” and “electric bass.”…

Martin Taylor – In Concert

In Concert

After finishing Gershwin’s “I Got Rhythm” – following his tongue-in-cheek, herky jerky, impossible-to-snap-your-fingers-to intro with a laughably fast walking bass figure, over which he somehow threads both melody and comping chords (simultaneously) –…

Little Richard

Some 14 years after blasting out of AM radios with hits like “Long Tall Sally,” “Tutti-Fruiti,” and “Slippin’ And Slidin’,” the wildest of rock and roll’s architects enjoyed a resurgence in visibility, when…

The Del McCoury Band – Del and the Boys

Anyone who thinks bluegrass music is just about doing songs performed by dead guys – but doing 'em faster, hasn't heard the Del McCoury band. Their latest album on Ricky Skaggs' Celli Music…

Brian Setzer ’68 Comeback Special – Ignition

Ignition

Okay, I confess. Somehow this one slid in under the radar. Released in late summer, it features Setzer back in a trio setting, basically just cutting loose, guitar-wise and vocally. And let’s face…

Justin Golden

Hard Times and a Woman

The word “blues” pops up in Justin Golden’s bio, but “African-Americana” might be a more apt term. The Virginian’s 12 originals make for an extremely impressive debut, as comfortable leaning toward country on…

Shadowy Men On A Shadowy Planet & Mike Neer

Savvy Show Stoppers Dim The Lights, Chill The Ham Sport Fishin’: The Lure Of The Bait, The Luck Of The Hook Steelonious

When the Kids In The Hall, an irreverent sketch comedy troupe from Toronto, got their own TV show in ’89, they chose “Having An Average Day,” an instrumental by a local trio, Shadowy…

Steve Miller – King Biscuit Flower Hour Presents

Before he was FM rock radio king, Steve Miller was known as Stevie “Guitar” Miller. This live release, recorded in 1973 and ’76, shows why. Culled from Washington, D.C. and New York City…

Los Lobos

Native Sons

The venerable Los Angeles band (guitarists Cesar Rosas, David Hidalgo and Louie Pérez, Jr., bassist Conrad Lozano and sax man Steve Berlin) pays homage to its musical roots and hometown, delving into a…

  • Yes

    Yes

    Close to the Edge: Super Deluxe Edition

The Cowsills

Rhythm Of The World

The Cowsills were pop-rock’s first family band and, yes, the model for the Partridge Family. During a two-year period beginning in 1967, they scored four Top 40 hits, with “The Rain, The Park…

Duke Levine – Beneath the Blue

As a player, Duke Levine is unclassifiable. He calls his style “country-soul” guitar, and that’s fair. But what do you call a guy who opens his latest record with a twangy version of…

Kansas – Two for the Show: 30th Anniversary Edition

Sony/Legacy

One iconic artifact of the late-’70s rock scene was the ubiquitous “double live album,” a marketing ploy usually timed for the Christmas rush, but one that also yielded much good music. Following the…