Country 500 (Day Three)
An estimated crowd of 50,000 barbecued enthusiasts converged on the infield of Daytona’s World-Famous International Speedway for a three-day celebration of “Great American Music.”
An estimated crowd of 50,000 barbecued enthusiasts converged on the infield of Daytona’s World-Famous International Speedway for a three-day celebration of “Great American Music.”
Ray Benson looks back at the his journey with Asleep At the Wheel, and the result is a hoot. James Mann says “Ah ha!”
After spending decades as a session musician, Bay Area blues artist Tom Casino carves his own identity in the aging genre by adding drunken wit and Ramones pop-punk to the mix.
Live (New West). Review by Joe Frietze.
Dare to Dream: The Best of Don Walser (Texas Music ,Group / Lone Star). Review by James Mann.
The Best of Asleep at the Wheel (MCA). Review by Matt Thompson.
Bob Pomeroy gets into four Radio Rarities from producer Zev Feldman for Record Store Day with great jazz recordings from Wes Montgomery, Les McCann, Cal Tjader, and Ahmad Jamal.
Bob Pomeroy digs into Un “Sung Stories” (1986, Liberation Hall), Blasters’ frontman Phil Alvin’s American Roots collaboration with Sun Ra and his Arkestra, the Dirty Dozen Brass Band, and New Orleans saxman Lee Allen.
Roi J. Tamkin reviews A Darker Shade of Noir, fifteen new stories from women writers completely familiar with the horrors of owning a body in a patriarchal society, edited by Joyce Carol Oates.
Mandatory: The Best of The Blasters (Liberation Hall). Review by Bob Pomeroy.
Feeling funky this week, Christopher Long gets his groove on while discovering a well-cared-for used vinyl copy of one of his all-time R&B faves: Ice Cream Castle, the classic 1984 LP from The Time, for just a couple of bucks.
During AFI Fest 2023, Lily and Generoso interviewed director Lkhagvadulam Purev-Ochir, whose impressive debut feature, City of Wind, carefully examines the juxtaposition between the identity of place and tradition against the powers of modernity in contemporary Mongolia.
Juliana Hatfield Sings ELO (American Laundromat Records). Review by Laura Pontillo.
Ever-focused on finding (affordable) vinyl treasures, Christopher Long returns this week with his latest gem — a reasonably well-cared-for LP copy of The Glow, the 1979 studio classic from Bonnie Raitt.