Tag Archives: Classic Rock and Oldies

An interesting aspect of the “rerelease everything we can get our paws on” CD era is the opportunity to hear music from the past with fresh ears. Some of it sounds about the same as it did back in the day, some of it has grown, and some has, um, …

Legendary producer-record exec Denny Cordell and Leon Russell had a remarkable run with their Shelter Records in the ’70s. They formed the label after working successfully together with Joe Cocker, in particular on Cocker’s Mad Dogs and Englishmentour, with Russell as the music director. They formed the label on Russell’s …

Man, has the world changed. Thank God I’m coming along at the tail end of the Baby Boomer generation (1958), which has pushed age category definitions beyond anything conceived since Methusela. “Middle age” now starts after 40, “late middle age” now extends into the 60s, “old age” isn’t even recognized, …

A classic collection of "nasty 50's r-and-b"

I own about ten different Beach Boys collections, but I am always willing to look at a new one. Sounds of Summer: The Very Best of the Beach Boys is an outstanding single-CD compilation with 30 songs covering the Boys’ entire career, the best single-CD set yet from the greatest …

Kenny Loggins is the latest veteran artist (Sophie B. Hawkins, Natalie Merchant, Pearl Jam) putting out a record on his own after a lifetime with the majors. Will anyone be left at Sony? From his press release: On the cutting edge of a new trend, Kenny Loggins announced today that …

“Green Onions” is one of the great instrumentals of the 60s. Rock instrumental hits are few and far between because rock instrumentals are dependent upon four variables in order to become popular. To be a hit, a song must satisfy all four criteria: (1) Melody (2) Mood (3) Novelty (4) …

Exclusive 30-second clips of most of the songs from Warren Zevon’s brilliant forthcoming album The Wind are now up on the MSNBC story. It’s an excellent way to get a head start and this fateful disc. Please check it out – the Internet is a very cool thing.

The great iconoclast Lou Reed will be latest inductee to Hollywood’s RockWalk Tuesday, June 24, at noon. Sweet Lou Reed will also appear at Tower Records Sunset for an in-store signing on Monday, June 23 at 7 p.m. and will perform at The Wiltern Theatre on Tuesday, June 24. The …

I had the great fortune of getting an early advance of the new, fateful, final Warren Zevon CD, “The Wind.” Besides being a fan for over 25 years, we also met Zevon at the big Blogger Bash at Brian Linse’s last summer. We even had some pics Dawn took. So …