James Cotton, Fully Present

Cancer has robbed him of his singing voice but not his spirit or his ability to play blues harp like no else around. At age 77, JAMES COTTON is going strong, as his new album attests. Review by BILL DAHL.
by David McGee
 

 
 

Sing to Me, Sing to Me…

Having made so many memorable statements in her career, 84-year-old ANNIE ROSS delivers one of her finest on TO LADY WITH LOVE, in memory of her mentor-friend BILLIE HOLIDAY, with Pizzarellis Bucky and John on guitars.
by David McGee
 

 

 

The Mystery Endures

MELODY GARDOT's brilliant CURRENCY OF MAN, finds this unique artist on intimate terms with 'chaos at any moment.' Dark, but empathetic, the new CD is all that, and more.
by David McGee
 

 
 

We Need to Talk

A fine new long player by one of the best bluegrass bands extant, THE MOUNTAINS ARE CALLING ME HOME finds JUNIOR SISK & RAMBLERS CHOICE chronicling betrayals, regrets and loss. We need to talk.
by David McGee
 

 

 

Fashioning a More Thoughtful World

Scottish classical guitarist SEAN SHIBE, playing with lovely clarity and thoughtfulness, adds his own innate sense of the elegant to a trio of BACH lute compositions he has seamlessly transposed to his own instrument.
by David McGee
 

 
 

And Magic Slim Says ‘Well Done’

JOHN PRIMER is on fire in paying tribute to hid former boss, Magic Slim, with the surviving Teardrops and Slim's son, SHAWN HOLT, on the blues giant's latest outing.
by David McGee
 

 

 

On Saving Mortal Souls

“Having not played in this style in the past is a huge disadvantage, but I am willing to stretch and fight to get it under control. Those pesky chords! Those finger positions, those slides, those finger-thumb rolls, those cou...
by David McGee
 

 
 

Elizabeth Cook’s Gospel Set

Summoning memories of 'good rocking country bands twanging for Jesus,' hard country devotee ELIZABETH COOK goes hard gospel on her Gospel Plow EP. You are hereby sanctified.
by David McGee
 

 

 

Love or Chicken, It’s Tasty

You might say stellar guitarist-singer-songwriter BILL KIRCHEN lights it up on his new album, Seeds and Steams. Or you might also say SEEDS AND STEMS Bill Kirchen Proper Records “Get outta my way you small town clowns/th...
by David McGee
 

 
 

A Gene Kelly ‘Omnibus’

In 1958 the distinguished Omnibus series commissioned GENE KELLY's first TV special. For the first time since its historic broadcast on December 21, 1958, Kelly's DANCING: A MAN'S GAME is available commercially, via DVD.
by David McGee
 

 

 

Everything Old Is New Again

On CHRISTMAS, the platinum-plus Australian Christian artist PETER FURLER teams with Vintage Christmas aficionado DAVID IAN for a soothing, introspective, jazz-based seasonal rumination.
by David McGee
 

 
 

The Haunting

For his fourth solo album, PETER COOPER ennobles the literate, poetic texts of ERIC TAYLOR on DEPOT LIGHT: THE SONGS OF ERIC TAYLOR--a career highlight for both artists.
by David McGee