When Robert Mitchum Was Like So…

In 1957, while filming in Trinidad with director John Huston, ROBERT MITCHUM became obsessed with Calypso music, so much so that he made an entire album of it, for Capitol, with Johnny Mercer's blessing. It's good stuff. Let's ...
by David McGee
 

 
 

A Thanksgiving Celebration in Song

Reflections on Thanksgiving in song. Music by Larry Yazzie and the Native Pride Dancers, Douglas Spotted Eagle, Johnny Cash, Mary Chapin Carpenter, George Winston, Celtic Women and, by way of A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving, Vince...
by David McGee
 

 

 

Softly, As She Leaves Us

Style and Substance: Remembering EYDIE GORME + a potpourri of her essential recordings
by David McGee
 

 
 

Dame Kiri Turns 70, Bids Farewell to Opera (But That’s Not All, Folks)

Celebrating her 70th birthday today, DAME KIRI TE KANAWA is appearing at Covent Garden in a Donizetti farce--her last opera role, she says. But it's not the last we'll hear of her. Deep Roots pays tribute to a great.
by David McGee
 

 

 

Saluting Jonathan Winters

We lost a true original with the April 11 passing of JONATHAN WINTERS, an improvisational comedy genius (and author, actor, artist). In VIDEO FILE, we look back on a few of his many special moments.
by David McGee
 

 
 

Stranger On the Shore

In 1962 British jazz clarinetist ACKER BILK penned a haunting instrumental for his daughter Jenny, changed its title and saw it sell a million copies. Here's how YouTube commenters remember it.
by David McGee
 

 

 

George Beverly Shea Turns 104, Honored with Graham Library Exhibit

An indispensable component of Billy Graham's Crusades with his ministry in song, GEORGE BEVERLY SHEA, a towering figure in 20th Century gospel music, turned 104 on Feb. 1. A look back at a life writ large.
by David McGee
 

 
 

‘He Brought a Certain Level of Class to the Blues’: Remembering Bobby ‘Blue’ Bland, 1930-2013

American music lost a giant with the passing of BOBBY 'BLUE' BLAND. Our tribute offers an overview of his career and a guide to his essential recordings.
by David McGee
 

 

 

Animated Christmas Evergreens

A selection of vintage animated Christmas cartoons, from the 1930s to the 1990s, including the rare 'A Snow Man in July,' produced by the Nazi regime and seized by the U.S. during WWII.
by David McGee
 

 
 

A Classic Animated Christmas

From the vaults, classics indeed: 1939's 'Peace on Earth,' the only cartoon ever nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize; from 1913, Ladislas Starevitch's pioneering and amazing stop-motion animated 'The Insects' Revenge' (plus a pr...
by David McGee
 

 

 

Remembering Jeff Golub, 1955-2015

Remembering Jeff Golub: Honoring the life and celebrating the music he made before leaving this mortal coil on New Year's Day.
by David McGee
 

 
 

It’s So Hard to Say Goodbye

Sometimes the viewer comments on YouTube are surprisingly poignant and heartfelt. We found a few when we followed BOBBY VINTON's 'Blue on Blue' deeper into YouTube and deeper into sad songs.
by David McGee