I’m excited by the endless possibilities of where retirement will take me and the people I love during this new chapter of my life. If you’d like to join us, please follow this blog
Drive By Truckers: On the Road
Jump on the tour bus! It’s early December 2010 and the Drive By Truckers are pulling out for a quick trip down to Charleston, South Carolina.
Cindy Lee Berryhill: Beat Poet
Since folk music seems to sound better coming from New York than it does from California, Cindy Lee Berryhill sounds better today than she did last year
Esperanza Spalding: The Hectic Eclectic
“The creative process,” says jazz bassist Esperanza Spalding, “is all about trying to make these big, imaginary ideas feasible.”
America: Should I Stay or Should I Go?
For those of us who have loved and valued the precious freedoms that America has offered — freedoms that were hard-earned for Americans who have been denied them in previous darker times — the decision is pretty clearcut: We can try to live under a certain dictatorship or say goodbye to our beloved country.
Linda Thompson: Fashionably Late
The legendary British folksinger’s comeback after 17 years away from the spotlight is a long-overdue gem from one of rock & roll’s finest voices.
The Happy Hollow String Band: Bluegrass and ’70s Feminism
An all-girl, all-teen string band in rural North Carolina was making a powerful feminist statement when they formed amid the male-dominated bluegrass scene of the early 1970s. Contemporary outfits like Della Mae can thank them for paving the way.
Jimmy Buffett: Sail on, Sailor
When I was music editor at Rolling Stone in the ’90s, I was asked — well, told — to do a Q&A with Jimmy Buffett. Not being a fan of his music, I was surprised by how much I enjoyed talking to him. Buffett died today at 76.
Introducing … Cyanca
The choice was between music and track. Fortunately for all of us, this Charlotte-based hip-hop R&B singer chose music.
The Beatles, Reconsidered
In 2009, EMI issued remastered versions of The Beatles’ entire back catalog. Instead of sending advance copies, though, the company asked writers to come to New York City and listen to the recordings at Electric Lady Studios. Off I went, having been given the extraordinary task of reviewing music that had been reviewed a million times since the band’s heyday.