blues blues3 featured

Christmas Beyond the Blue

BLUES, BLUES CHRISTMAS VOLUME 3 leads this revised and updated review of four essential blues Christmas albums, including last year's DEATH MIGHT BE YOUR SANTA CLAUS
by David McGee
 

 
 
vijay iyer cosmic

Otherworldly Sensations of Time and Space

A COSMIC RHYTHM WITH EACH STROKE, by VIJAY IYER and WADADA LEO SMITH, is grounded in human feeling and promises to stand the test of time.
by David McGee
 

 

 
variations album featured

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
 

 
 
beverly crawford essential2 1

Church Aphorisms and Mother Wit in Abundance

Still singing songs packed with church aphorisms and mother wit, some of BEVERLY CRAWFORD's most memorable moments are captured on THE ESSENTIAL-VOL 2
by David McGee
 

 

 
albert cummings believe featured

The Cummings Imperative

The first outstanding blues album of 2020 comes in the form of ALBERT CUMMINGS's BELIEVE, a tour de force of expressive, soulful vocalizing and guitar mastery of a higher order.
by David McGee
 

 
 
kimm pavement

A Beautiful Day in Ms. Rogers’ Neighborhood

It's a beautiful day in the neighborhood when KIMM ROGERS dives into her songs on WHERE THE PAVEMENT GROWS and asks: 'Would you be mine? Could you be mine?'
by David McGee
 

 

 
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2013’s Elite Half-Hundred – Part I

Selections 1-25 of the 2013 Elite Half Hundred include THE BENEDICTINES OF MARY, QUEEN OF APOSTLES, STEEP CANYON RANGERS, DAILEY & VINCENT, ALAN JACKSON, et al.
by David McGee
 

 
 
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All In a Day’s Blues

An alum of the late, great Calvin Owens's Blues Orchestra, guitarist CHARLES 'CD' DAVIS has a winner in his solo debut, 24 HOUR BLUES, featuring some Orchestra vets and four outstanding vocalists playing up a blues storm.
by David McGee
 

 

 
paul1 spotlight

Paulie, Au Courant, Defying Time and Tide

Pure Paul McCartney, au courant, defying time and tide, towering over whomever would challenge his grandeur. Celebrate him now. David McGee reviews Paulie's self-curated 4-CD solo overview. Exit breathless.
by David McGee
 

 
 
Nick Moss Band Get Your Back cover

Coasting With the Blues

THE NICK MOSS BAND with DENNIS GRUENLING spans the continent on one of its finest outings.
by David McGee
 

 

 
dick dale featured

Swingin’ and A-Surfin’, All Summer Long: Revisited

A fresh look at one of our 2014 summer picks, SUMMER BEACH PARTY, a collection of tunes from the beach movies of the '60s, with some curious omissions to account for.
by David McGee
 

 
 
james montgomery detroit

Blues As Biography

It's blues as biography on the JAMES MONTGOMERY BAND's new album, FROM DETROIT...TO THE DELTA, with guests JAMES COTTON, JOHNNY WINTER and others.
by David McGee