Ray Manzarek: The Key to the Doors
Sean MurphyWhen it comes to this great American band’s legacy, the best thing about the Doors is also the worst thing about the Doors: Jim Morrison. Blessed with one of the…
Wagner at 200 or, Get Your Götterdämmerung On
Or, If Loving Wagner is Wrong, I Don't Want To Be Reich. (More on one of the most complex and controversial composers ever, who was born 200 years ago today,…
Ray Manzarek, R.I.P.
I knew I'd have to deal with this one of these days. So many of my favorite old-school rock legends died when I was young, or before I was born…
Improving Upon Perfection, Part Five: Five Covers from The Black Keys
(Parts 1-4 of this series here, here, here, and here.) Before they became the Black Keys of Leon (a development that was equal parts unfortunate and inevitable) The Black Keys…
Pet Sounds: The Kind of World Where We Belong
5/16/66. A day that changed music, forever, for the better. A case could, and probably should, be made that we ought to refer to rock music as "BP" and "AP"…
Ten Songs That Never Fail
With the emotional baggage associated with things like Mother's Day and my birthday, it's nice --and necessary-- to step back and fully appreciate my family and friends. This was my…
What’s It All About, Then? Part One: Jazz, Featuring Eric Dolphy (Revisited)
Question: What's it all about? Answer: I don't know. But I do know a few things. I know some of the things that make me tick. Even though I write…
Robert Johnson: A Celebration in Covers
As was mentioned in the piece revisited yesterday (see HERE), Robert Johnson's body of work was small but unsurpassed in terms of import and influence. Perhaps the best way --aside…
Robert Johnson: The Centennial of an American Genius (Revisited)
5/8/2011: Does any single figure loom as large over an art form as Robert Johnson? Bach and Shakespeare come to mind, but classical music, like literature, took centuries and multiple…
The Only Band That Mattered, Part Three
After spending a reasonable amount of time on this planet, I'm convinced there are two types of people in the world: Those who recognize that Sandinista! is a bloody masterpiece,…