imani spotlight 880x385

Singing the Travels: Imani Uzuri Finds the Bold Heart and Global Soul of Home on The Gypsy Diaries

The mysterious figure on the moonlit railway platform, the passersby on the dusty road are not strangers; they are friends and fellow travelers. And to stunning vocalist and thoughtful, globally inspired composer Imani Uzuri, t...
by David McGee
 

 
 
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That Swingin’ Little Guitar Man

Carl Perkins recalled a show he played in Atlanta in 1958 at which he was visited backstage by a young fellow who came with guitar in hand and introduced himself as Jerry Hubbard. The two pickers engaged each other in a couple ...
by David McGee
 

 

 
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The Wounded Wanderer, Restored

U.S. Route 50 lives in the shadow of Route 66 in the lore of legendary American highways, but it’s no less awesome as either myth or fact. Built in 1926 as part of the original U.S. Highway system, Route 50 runs east and west...
by David McGee
 

 
 
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Little Richard, Ascending

‘It’s Just Like An Unfinished Diamond’  Richard Penniman has at various times, often without prompting, referred to himself as “the originator, the instigator, the facilitator” of rock ‘n’ roll. To varying degree...
by David McGee
 

 

 
lrb chronology

(Much) More To Come…

One of the finest contemporary bluegrass bands around is cementing its reputation as same during this, its 30th anniversary year, with the second of three overviews of each decade of its productive existence. Like Volume One, V...
by David McGee
 

 
 
marty raybon southern roots

Going Mobile

Marty Raybon might well want to consider re-titling his album Southern Routes & Branches, given how many roads he travels in its dozen songs. To be clear, some of these roads he’s traveled before—nine of the songs are c...
by David McGee
 

 

 
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The Passionate Style

Italian composer, gambist, and singer Claudio Giovanni Monteverdi is often regarded as revolutionary in that his work marked the transition from the Renaissance style of music to that of the Baroque period. He developed two ind...
by David McGee
 

 
 
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SUNRISE – 1927

DEEP ROOTS THEATER: Now Playing--'Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans,' F.W. Murnau's silent classic from 1927, with extra added attraction 'Sinkin' n the Bathtub,' the first Looney Tunes cartoon, starring Bosko and Honey (1930).
by David McGee
 

 

 
joe south spotlight 880x3851

For All He Gave, and For Giving His All

An in-depth tribute to one of the finest singers-songwriters-guitarists-producers of his time, JOE SOUTH, who died of a heart attack on September 5. He always said what he meant and meant what he said. Yeah!
by David McGee