In All Weathers, Glad Tidings

The Persuasions were just not any group of a cappella practitioners--they were the best, solid in every way, with lead singer Jerry Lawson standing out as one of the great singers of his time. The group's Christmas album, like...
by David McGee
 

 
 

Jackson Galaxy: Feline Miracle Worker

An exclusive interview with JACKSON GALAXY, the feline miracle worker and host of Animal Planet's popular 'MY CAT FROM HELL'
by David McGee
 

 

 

Always Sweethearts In Song

As The Canadian Sweethearts, Bob Regan and Lucille Starr never had big hits during their prime years of 1963-1967, but they made wonderful records in a folk-country vein, with some straight-ahead honky tonkers spicing up their ...
by David McGee
 

 
 

Prokofiev, Conflicted: Great Composer or Great Compromiser?

SERGEI PROKOFIEV was a great composer, but was he also a great compromiser when it came to bowing to the demands of the Soviet regime, which viewed him as a threat to the people?
by David McGee
 

 

 

First Global Topographic Model of Mercury

NASA’s MESSENGER mission has unveiled the first global Digital Elevation Model (DEM) of Mercury, revealing in stunning detail the topography across the entire innermost planet.
by David McGee
 

 
 

‘A Particular Anarchic Brand of Music Theater’

In the spirit of The Residents, London's BASTARD ASSIGNMENTS make their album debut with 'a particular anarchic brand of music theater,' according to our ROBERT HUGILL. Read on....
by David McGee
 

 

 

‘I WONDER AS I WANDER’

STORIES BEHIND THE SONGS: JOHN JACOB NILES's own account of writing 'I Wonder As I Wander,' plus an online discussion of the meaning of 'on'ry' in the first verse.
by David McGee
 

 
 

The Indefatigable George McPhee

The PAISLEY ABBEY CHOIR, with Director GEORGE. MCPHEE, offers the first outstanding choral album of 2021 in A CELTIC PRAYER, a program of choral and organ pieces by Scottish composers of contemporary and 20th Century Scottish s...
by David McGee
 

 

 

Animated Christmas Classics

Christmas classics from the inkwell including Peace on Earth (1939), The Insects' Christmas (1913), and the first Frosty (1953).
by David McGee
 

 
 

The ‘Quiet Ecstasy’ of Harry Simeone’s ‘Little Drummer Boy’

The story behind THE HARRY SIMEONE CHORALE's classic 'THE LITTLE DRUMMER BOY' begins in 1941 with KATHERINE KENNICOTT DAVIS'S 'CAROL OF THE DRUM' and includes a classic Christmas album featuring the oft-covered seasonal favorite.
by David McGee
 

 

 

Pushing the Envelope of Nordic Jazz

The Karl Strømme Quintet is opening up new frontiers in Nordic jazz. The group's new album, DYNALYD, furthers the musicians' integration of other styles into the modern jazz tradition. A most pleasing sound it is.
by David McGee
 

 
 

This Very Tree, The Survivor Tree & A Hundred Thousand Welcomes

On the 20th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks on America, our acclaimed kids' lit blogger, JULES, finds fresh perspectives for young readers in three new books, two specifically addressing the World Trade Center attacks, another ...
by David McGee