Deep Roots Magazine

Deep Roots Magazine

Roots Music and Meaningful Matters

 
Recent Articles
 

 
Duke Robillard featured

In Heavy Rotation: Blues & Resistance

Vintage blues with a modern twist from DUKE ROBILLARD and hIS ALL STAR BAND; messages socially conscious and comforting alike from ERIC BIBB;l and TODD CURRY's gospel message, 'kNOw Peace,' in Heavy Rotation
by David McGee
 

 
 
Maria Muldaur featured

THE DEEP ROOTS ELITE HALF-HUNDRED, 2025

The Best of the Rest, the Deep Roots Elite Half-Hundred for 2025 is online! Blues, gospel, classical, folk, bluegrass, Christmas albums, classic soul, soundtracks...all present and accounted for in chronicling the music that me...
by David McGee
 

 

 
Carl Perkins featured

The Original Cat’s Missing Link

Recorded, and discarded, in 1990, the album titled Some Things Never Change, finally released in 2025, might well have changed CARL PERKINS's late-career trajectory, if anyone had ever heard it back then.
by David McGee
 

 
 
Lord is There cover2

Deep Roots Albums of the Year, 2025

REGINA VANDERJEIK's gospel masterpiece leads the way. Joining her at the top: BUDDY GUY, DANNY GATTON, THE TWANGTOWN PARAMOUS, DUDLEY TAFT, SIERRA HULL, CHRISTOPHER TIN, LANCE COWAN, ABBA via RAMEAU, and PARCHMAN PRISON inmates.
by David McGee
 

 

 

Where Senior and Hospice Dogs Find TLC

An interview with JENNIFER LANGSTON, founder of Golden Ears, is a specialized refuge for senior and hospice dogs, with a stated mission to provide the dogs with dignified end of life comfort and care.
by David McGee
 

 
 

Remembering Raul Malo, Pt. 2

Interviews with RAUL MALO as his solo career unfolded, from 2001’s Today to 2010’s Sinners & Saints. Herewith the second part of the Deep Roots tribute to a generational artist, who passed away on December 8, 2025. 
by David McGee
 

 

 

Remembering Raul Malo, Pt. 1

The cancer that took RAUL MALO on December 8 will never still one of the most majestic voices of our time. In Pt. 1 of our tribute to Raul, archival reviews capture him solo and with The Mavericks in the spirit of the season.
by David McGee
 

 
 

The Deep Roots Yuletide Baedeker 2025

The annual DEEP ROOTS YULETIDE BAEDEKER is online, with links to new and vintage content published in Deep Roots over the years--a holiday bonanza of vintage music, animated evergreens, holiday-themed films, holiday fiction, ho...
by David McGee
 

 

 

In Trim: Bruce Brown’s Endless Epic

Writing for Longboard magazine in 2005, PAUL HOLMES captured the entire epic saga of the making of BRUCE BROWN's THE ENDLESS SUMMER.
by David McGee
 

 
 

Genesis of a Gospel Song: ‘Total Praise’

In his new series GENESIS OF A GOSPEL SONG, gospel editor BOB MAROVICH gets the inside story from RICHARD SMALLWOOD on how the latter wrote 'Total Praise,' one of the greatest contemporary gospel songs.
by David McGee
 

 

 

When Jack London Rekindled Surfing in Hawaii

JACK LONDON REKINDLES SURFING IN HAWAII: A brief history of surfing in Hawaii from Captain Cook to Duke Kahanmoku, and how author JACK LONDON ignited the modern surfing era in the islands.
by David McGee
 

 
 

Forevermore

His voice belongs to the ages now: Cleveland Duncan, lead tenor of The Penguins, died on November 6, shortly after casting his ballot in the Presidential election. Remembering the great lead singer who made 'Earth Angel' immortal.
by David McGee
 

 

 

An Impromptu Requiem for a Slain President

Upon hearing the news from Dallas on November 22, 1963, the BOSTON SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA, conducted by ERICH LEINSDORF, offered an impromptu requiem for a slain President.
by David McGee
 

 
 

Blues Built to Last

Chicago blues masters BOB CORRITORE and JOHN PRIMER have delivered blues built to last on THE GYPSY WOMAN TOLD ME, containing performances every bit as classic as the cover art by VINCE RAY.
by David McGee