Popular Music
The cross generational Do the Reggae Tour suggested that reggae’s creative trek was far from over.
MonoNeon is the most important musician to emerge from Memphis in recent memory.
I am grateful that Al Jardine (at 82, he’s showing signs of age) and Brian Wilson’s band are still bringing Wilson’s brilliant legacy to audiences.
Two very influential and brilliant Cuban musicians, Albita Rodríguez and Chucho Valdés, join together to make a fine album; Chilean guitarist/vocalist/composer Camila Meza serves up a potent mixture of jazz and lyrics concerned with social justice.
In his new album, Terry Kitchen moves effortlessly through lilting songs of happiness and sadness.
Jon Batiste’s performance resonated with what musician Zachary Richard calls the “holy trinity” of Louisiana music: Cajun, zydeco, and “old-fashioned” rock and roll.
This year’s Chicago Blues Festival provided plenty of hope for the blues.
There were unscripted song selections whose daring and heart made this concert so much more than a night of old beloved tunes.
The magic in Eliane Elias’s performances is in how easily she slips from one musical dialect into another.
Music Commentary: Analyzing the Greatness of Brian Wilson’s “God Only Knows”
I hope this close look makes clear the exquisite craftsmanship that went into “God Only Knows.” But for many of us, the song has a magic that goes beyond the mere exercise of compositional skill, even skill of a very high order.
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