Ten Songs That Never Fail
Sean MurphyWith 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…
12/12/12: 12 Songs for the Apocalypse
It's not the end of the world, and I feel fine. But if it was, I would want all these songs to accompany me as we spiraled down the metaphysical…
Let Us Give Thanks for the Guitar Solo
Over at Esquire the always reliable Charlie Pierce (some previous blog love for him HERE) opened up a discussion on the best guitar solos. This excercise is equal parts pointless and…
Hey Gibson, Let’s Talk Guitar Albums (Revisited)
(August, 2010) Okay. Gibson (the fine folks who bring us some of our best guitars) has recently announced their selections of what they deem the Top 50 Guitar Albums ever.…
Got Mars?
So this is pretty neat, huh? Look at us Earthlings, getting our Mars on. It's too bad Ray Bradbury did not live long enough to see this, as he surely…
Black Magic: 15 Essential Black Sabbath Songs
Yes, they created the template for heavy metal and thrash, but even now it’s instructive to acknowledge just how unique Black Sabbath was; how different from anything else anyone was…
Happy Halloween: Black Sabbath Style
This is (Black) Magic. Sabbath in '70, live. I've had plenty to say about Sabbath (here, here and here). If you are not the link-clicking sort, here are some key…
Ten Albums That Supposedly Suck (But Do Not): #2
2. Black Sabbath, Never Say Die! (1978) Maybe Ozzy really did sell his soul to the devil. How else to explain his solo albums getting more love—even amongst old school…
Every Day is Earth Day (Redux)
I'm so proud of my Pops. Last night, quite out of the blue (or, out of the black as the case may be), he said he had to ask…
Steven Wilson: The Gentleman Doth Protest Too Much (Part Two, The Fury)
Many of Steven Wilson's mostly accurate, but increasingly tedious denunciations of inferior audio can be attributed to genuine motivations. He really does despise digital downloads and looks askance at those…