http://blogcritics.org/ A sinister cabal of superior bloggers on music, books, film, popular culture, politics, and technology - updated continuously. en Copyright 2005-2007 by the authors Mon, 2 Sep 2002 17:34:16 EDT http://backend.userland.com/rss Blogcritics.org custom software http://blogcritics.org/ Phillip WinnSunday, August 26, 2007, marks the switch of all Blogcritics.org article feeds from full-content to short-content. This is the result of several converging factors, and is unfortunately a permanent decision (as permanent as any decision can be on the web, that is). We are aware of all of the reasons that this is a Bad Idea, and we are aware that some of you will be quite upset about having to click on something to read the free content, and we're sorry. Unfortunately, despite great effort, full-content feeds are not currently economically viable. Two other factors are involved: full-content feeds have resulted in an unprecedented level of content theft, with BC content appearing on many websites, usually spam sites, without attribution or permission. This duplicate content causes a cascading set of problems, not the least of which is that search engines generally aren't favorable to duplicate content, and don't always guess correctly. Finally, our RSS advertising partner is strongly in favor of short-content feeds. We hope that you'll continue to subscribe to BC via RSS, and when an article grabs your eye, it's only a click away, still free on the BC website. Thank you for your understanding. Administration0@blogcritics.org Sun, 26 Aug 2007 12:00:00 EDT http://blogcritics.org/archives/2002/09/02/173416.php Alwin HawkinsRichard Shindell is one of the best singer/songwriters today, carefully crafting deceptively simple guitar-backed ballads for the discerning listener for decades. Somehow popular success has eluded him, but his recent live performance CD Courier should have brought him prominently into the spotlight.Courier features 13 of Mr. Shindell's best work. The ballads are not the usual love-found-and-lost, though you'll find enough of that here. But you'll also hear songs involving federal interrogations (Fishing), trench-warfare messengers (The Courier), and nun-lead prison choirs superimposed on automotive turnpike warfare (Transit, my favorite song on the CD).You'll also hear one of the finest kiss-off songs ever written (Are You Happy Now?), Mary Magdelene's lament of the loss of her lover Jesus (The Ballad Of Mary Magdelene) and one of the best trucking songs written outside of the country music genre (The Kenworth Of My Dreams).You'll also find two creditable covers of Lowell George's Willin' and Springsteen's Fourth of July, Asbury Park. The backing band for Richard is professional and sharp, as are the backing vocals from fellow songster Lucy Kaplansky. The arrangements are a well-crafted for the live stage, and the sound is incredibly crisp and clean for live performance work. This is a great piece of work from a veteran troubadour, and should be a prominent part of your music collection. Music: Folk371@blogcritics.org Mon, 2 Sep 2002 17:34:16 EDT