Perhaps the Pale Fountains will finally garner some notice following the appearance of a new four-CD box set devoted to Michael Head's critically acclaimed band, which formed in Liverpool in 1980 and split up in 1987.
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Music Reviews: Nick Drake’s ‘The Making of Five Leaves Left’ and Eric Andersen’s ‘Blue River: Live in Tokyo’
Let’s hope we’ll soon see similar boxes devoted to the making of Drake’s other two studio albums, both of which are as noteworthy as his debut. The world needs all the music from him that it can get.
Read More »Music Review: Bruce Springsteen’s ‘Tracks II: The Lost Albums’ Reveals 83 Previously Unheard Tunes
Bruce Springsteen's Tracks II: The Lost Albums includes 83 performances, many as good as those on his well-known CDs.
Read More »Music Reviews: Gene and Eunice, J.M. Kearns, Tim O’Brien & Jan Fabricius, Michael Arbenz & Andy Sheppard, and Comet Gain
Gene Wilson (aka Gene Forrest) and Eunice Levy, a married couple, scored several hits in the 1950s but dented the pop charts only once, with “Poco Loco.” But the songs collected here are almost uniformly excellent.
Read More »Music & Film Reviews: Frank Zappa’s ‘Cheaper Than Cheep,’ plus Janis Ian, Christian Parker, Eli ‘Paperboy’ Reed, and Big Love Car Wash
The 23-song program mines some of Zappa’s most noteworthy material. He reaches all the way back to 'Freak Out,' the Mothers’ sterling 1966 debut...
Read More »Book & Music Reviews: ‘Decade of Dissent: How 1960s Bob Dylan Changed the World,’ plus the Bongos & Robert Forster
Can there really be anything more to say about Bob Dylan and his music? As it turns out, the answer is a qualified yes. Just don’t hold your breath awaiting major revelations.
Read More »Album Reviews: Eric Andersen’s ‘Dance of Love and Death,’ plus Cat Stevens and Wanda Jackson
Andersen has been serving up poignant, powerful music for six decades now. 'Dance of Love and Death' leaves no doubt that he can still deliver.
Read More »Music Reviews: Willie Nelson’s ‘Oh What a Beautiful World,’ plus Quote the Raven and Mason Via
While Nelson’s list of five-star releases is long, it’s hard to imagine that any of them outshine this album of Rodney Crowell covers.
Read More »Music Reviews: Vicki Peterson and John Cowsill, Matt Andersen, Domenic Cicala, and Charles Mingus
Vicki Peterson and John Cowsill, Long After the Fire. This CD is a joint project by Vicki Peterson, who is best known as the Bangles’ lead guitarist, and her husband, John Cowsill, who struck gold as a singer and drummer in the siblings band the Cowsills. Here, they serve up …
Read More »Book and Music Reviews: ‘Fleetwood Mac: All the Songs,’ plus the Wildwoods, Joe ‘King’ Oliver, Jim Wurster, Mike Delevante, and Freddie Hubbard
Fleetwood Mac's colorful history embraces lots of little-known stories and recordings, 15 lineups, and more than two dozen studio and live albums.
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