Gary Stoller

Fourteen months ago, the music world lost legendary rock and roller Leon Russell. His keyboard wizardry, clever songwriting, and unique, gravelly voice are sorely missed, but he left us a posthumous present, On a Distant Shore, to savor forever. Mark Lambert produced the 12-song album, and Ray Goren, a young

Matthew O’Neill’s goal when recording his most recent album, Trophic Cascade, was “timelessness,” and with so much creative musical diversity flowing through it, its appeal will undoubtedly last for many generations. Trophic Cascade, released on the environmental record label Underwater Panther Coalition, has touches of rock, folk, and

Many Americans have had strong reactions to the Trump presidency. Larry Kirwan’s reaction may be one of the strongest — and most creative. Kirwan, the former lead singer, songwriter, and guitarist of Black 47, tells me he was influenced by a “great poem,” W.B. Yeats’ “The Second Coming,” when

As I walked toward the entrance of Hartford’s Bushnell Memorial Hall in May 1980, I was quite surprised to see ticket holders offering their $15 tickets for $5 each. I thought it was sacrilege for so many people in Connecticut to be disinterested in seeing Bob Dylan in a

Carlene Carter tells me she’s “always been a rockin’ country kinda woman,” and who can argue with that assessment? Carter, the daughter of June Carter Cash and stepdaughter of Johnny Cash, has repeatedly stepped out of the mystique of her country music family and done things her own way.

Powerhouse Nashville guitarist JD Simo may never forget a night when he played at the Saxon Pub in Austin, Texas, about 13 years ago. He remembers the evening, though, not for his band’s performance but rather for the prowess of the headliner, Stephen Bruton. “We actually opened the show,