Anyone who reads this blog regularly knows that I listen to a lot of music. That includes lots of Christmas Music. For holiday music, I have jazz, blues, rock, gospel, country, pops, and klezmer. But I only have two classical albums. Another way of putting it is I have about 200 classical albums in my…
As a former horn player, I listen to as much French horn music as I can get. I love the big orchestras and bands, but there’s always been a special place in my heart for small ensembles. Things like woodwind quintets, brass trios, and brass quintets. One of my favorite brass quintets is the Canadian…
My kid is at a friend’s house, so I spent the afternoon listening to records. I listened to The Rolling Stones’ 12″ single of “Miss You” b/w “Far Away Eyes”, ? and the Mysterians’ single of “96 Tears” b/w “Midnight Hour”, Warren Haynes’ “Tales of Ordinary Madness”, Dr. John’s “Things Happen that Way”, Mavis Staples’…
Anyone who knows me probably knows that I love live music. Going to concerts might be my favorite thing to do. And I have to say, it just hits differently when your kid is the one performing. A middle school orchestra sounds as good as any world class symphony. OK, that’s an exaggeration, but school…
I just got home from a family vacation with two teens and two tweens. Throughout the trip, the young people controlled the music, so I heard a lot of contemporary pop music. I noticed something as I was listening. Many of the songs sounded as if they were incomplete. Not all of them, but a…
This summer, I’ve been trying to go to concerts again. It’s one of my favorite things to do, but the pandemic messed it all up. I’ve seen the Tedeschi Trucks Band (TTB), Los Lobos, the Gabe Dixon Band, and Al Foster so far. Every summer, TTB calls their tour “Wheels of Soul”, so I saw…
I’m really not a snob, but I’m afraid I’m going to sound like one in this essay. People can, and should, like whatever they like. I don’t believe in guilty pleasures. I just wanted to warn everyone. Pop Culture is an oligopoly. It is in the traditional, business sense; there are only a limited number…
Earlier today, I listened to Just to Be with You by Johnnie Johnson. In fact, I listened to it twice. It was so good that I went back and listened again. It’s originally an old Muddy Waters song written by Bernard Roth. This version features Phoebe Snow on vocals and Buddy Guy on lead guitar….
I recently picked up a copy of The Rolling Stones’ Tattoo You: 40th Anniversary Edition. It has a remastered version of the original 1981 album and a bonus disc of never before released songs recorded throughout the 70s. One of those songs is “Drift Away” recorded in 1974, just one year after Dobie Gray had…
There’s something I’ve been thinking about lately. It might sound strange to some people, but why isn’t the harmonica a more popular instrument? It’s often seen as a kid’s toy or lame or dorky. People dream of becoming a guitar hero, a pyrotechnic drummer, or a groovy bassist. They fantasize about being a hot DJ,…
