The Byrds entered 1971 heading in opposite directions. As a live unit, there’s no question that the band was at its career apex. The Clarence White-Gene Parsons-Skip Battin rhythm section was massive. If anything, Roger McGuinn was the musical weak link, a disturbing trend that would replicate itself in the studio. I will diatribe later […]
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One of last year’s most unexpected pleasures was getting knocked out by Son Volt‘s most recent album, American Central Dust. Just when I thought Jay Farrar had disappeared down a mumbly, monotonous rabbit hole, he totally won me back with country and rock and would you believe, country-rock? Yeah, I know it’s nothing particularly groundbreaking, […]
Read MoreHere’s a couple videos in anticipation of my next post. We’re gonna travel from Alabama to St. Louis on the Mo-Bama Railroad Line and our engineer for this trip is Jay Farrar. So, let’s get our segue on. Uncle Tupelo - Atomic Power http://youtu.be/PDNX4fRcHoY&w=560 Mississippi Nights, St. Louis April 30, 1994 (2nd to last show) […]
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It ain’t every day that a guy’s favorite team wins the championship in glorious, tradition-rich college football. And if that guy’s favorite team is the Alabama Crimson Tide — his alma mater, no less — then perhaps a musical celebration is in order. So, in honor of my beloved Tide and their 14-0 run […]
Read More“All those sweet old love songs, Oh, every word rings true, Sham-a-ling-dong-ding means sweetheart, And sham-a-ling-dang-dong does too.” Wanna know the difference between a great singer and someone with a great voice? Watch this video. Jesse Winchester destroys all sentient beings with this performance of “Sham-A-Ling-Dong-Ding,” a heartbreaking slice of nostalgia done earlier this year […]
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