Channeling Beatles, In Rarified Air

In their first new CD since 2012, the HOT CLUB OF SAN FRANCISCO reimagines tunes by Lennon-McCartney and George Harrison in the gypsy jazz style of DJANGO REINHARDT.
by David McGee
 

 
 

A Paean to Living, Remembering, Carrying On, Moving Forward

The pieces on this expertly produced Open G Records disc ask the listener not only to absorb the complexities of the sonic layers but also to consider their meaning.
by David McGee
 

 

 

Thirst No More

The world-weariness welling from deep within the Nashville-based singer-songwriter SUSAN McCRACKEN's soul expresses not helplessness but hopefulness on PATIENT KINGDOM, as if giving testimony to the cyclicality and potentiality...
by David McGee
 

 
 

Right On Time, Indeed

Daring to change, CHATHAM COUNTY LINE is renewed and reinvigorated to the nth degree on HIYO
by David McGee
 

 

 

A Bracing Christmas Wind

In Horns For the Holidays, the superb Dallas Wind Symphony not only celebrates the Christmas music tradition but also exemplifies the best of the wind ensemble genre, with its unique sonorities and long tradition of both origin...
by David McGee
 

 
 

Whither Happiness?

Hearing MINDY MCCREADY's most popular songs with new ears and wondering, Whither happiness?
by David McGee
 

 

 

What Becomes a Classic Most?

Streisand at her apex in recordings made almost three-and-a-half decades apart. Make no mistake--she’s the classic here, and a classy one at that.
by David McGee
 

 
 

A Solid Sender

KENNY 'BLUES BOSS' WAYNE is back with ROLLIN' WITH THE BOSS, a cool album of Kansas City boogie-woogie and New Orleans grooves that won't stop rockin'.
by David McGee
 

 

 

It’s Life, Y’know

It's the centennial year of MUDDY WATERS's birth, and two new tributes mark that special occasion: MUDDY WATERS 100, featuring contemporary Muddy acolytes, and the DVD, BLUES SUMMIT IN CHICAGO, 1974
by David McGee
 

 
 

Staying the Course

On CARTER STANLEY'S EYES, PETER ROWAN journeys into his deepest roots in bluegrass and folk. That's what happens when you stick with it.
by David McGee
 

 

 

Roll On

DAVE ADKINS and REPUBLIK STEEL make an impression on their debut album, That's Just the Way I Roll, as a new bluegrass band to be dealt with. Secret weapon: Adkins himself, a formidable vocalist.
by David McGee
 

 
 

‘Daddy G,’ In Full

GENE 'DADDY G' BARGE, saxophonist and vocalist par excellence, made his first record in 1955 and went on to accompany some of the greatest names in blues and soul. His new solo album, OLIO, demonstrates all his gifts in full.
by David McGee