Deep Roots Magazine

Deep Roots Magazine

Roots Music and Meaningful Matters

 
 

 

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
 

 
 

Venture Forth!

Filmed during the band's 60th anniversary year, THE VENTURES: STARS ON GUITARS is a loving, long-overdue tribute to rock 'n' roll's greatest instrumental group.
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
 

 
 

‘I Try To Write a Terrific Song’
Hal David: In His Own Words

Saluting the magnificent artistry of the late HAL DAVID, who, with and apart from Burt Bacharach, spoke volumes about the human condition in his captivating, unforgettable lyrics—truly a voice for all time.
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
 

 
 

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
 

 

 

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
 

 
 

‘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
 

 

 

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