Commentary

Arts Remembrance: To Sérgio with Love — Sérgio Mendes, 1941–2024

September 7, 2024
Posted in , , ,

Sergio Mendes, the man who ignited my own love affair with Brazilian music, has passed, at the age of 83, from complications of long Covid.

Read More

Book Review: Neoliberal Soup for the Fledgling Capitalist Soul — “The Algebra of Wealth”

August 12, 2024
Posted in , , ,

Serious individuals of all stripes seeking candid yet pragmatic life, career, and financial guidance will find much to savor in this book.

Read More

Arts Commentary: From the Editor’s Desk — By Popular Demand

August 6, 2024
Posted in ,

Back in February of this year I began to write a weekly column for the newsletter on Substack. A few readers have asked that I post these opinion pieces in the magazine.  Here is a selection of my favorites.

Read More

Film Commentary: Looking Sharp, Leatherface! “The Texas Chain Saw Massacre” Turns Fifty

July 23, 2024
Posted in , ,

No 4k DVD, Blu-ray, theatrical digital, or streaming version of the movie improves on the visceral electricity of the original “The Texas Chain Saw Massacre”.

Read More

Arts Commentary: Record Companies Suing AI — Who Owns Input?

June 30, 2024
Posted in , ,

The real action, rest assured, will take place in the counting house, not the courthouse.

Read More

Book Review: “Big Fiction” — Is the Author Hive-Mind or Queen Bee?

June 28, 2024
Posted in , , ,

On closer inspection, Dan Sinykin’s notion of a “conglomerate author” is largely a fiction.

Read More

Jazz Commentary: Celebrating Bassist William Parker’s Lifetime of Achievement

June 27, 2024
Posted in , , ,

It was not just networking that propelled William Parker into the front rank of bassists. He could generate such a huge and complex cascade of sound that he energized leaders from Cecil Taylor and Ivo Perelman to Zoh Amba.

Read More

Book Review: “Freeman’s Challenge” — Essential Reading on Prisons, Slavery, and Profit

June 4, 2024
Posted in , , ,

The prison was the first in the nation specifically designed to generate a profit for everybody but the laborers.

Read More

Arts Commentary: Creative Cross-Pollination — HarborArts Expands the Power of Public Art

June 4, 2024
Posted in , ,

Over the last 15 years, HarborArts has effectively used public art to raise public awareness, stimulating dialogue about environmental concerns — the climate crisis and degradation of the sea.

Read More

Jazz Remembrance: David Sanborn, Way Beyond Smooth

May 28, 2024
Posted in , , ,

He was lucky to be so well-rewarded for doing what he loved to do, and we were always lucky to hear him.

Read More

Recent Posts