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Henry Carrigan

THE READING ROOM: Willie Nelson’s ‘The Last Leaf: Reflections on Late-Life Creativity — and My Longest Love Affair’

THE READING ROOM: Willie Nelson’s ‘The Last Leaf: Reflections on Late-Life Creativity — and My Longest Love Affair’

Step inside the bus, take a deep breath, and settle back as Willie Nelson ruminates on aging, creativity, the power of breathing, the wonder of love, and the vitality of songwriting in The Last Leaf: Reflections on Late-Life Creativity — and My Longest Love Affair. Affectionate, cantankerous, and filled with

ALBUM REVIEW: A New Must-Have Compilation Highlights Jelly Roll Morton's Early Years

ALBUM REVIEW: A New Must-Have Compilation Highlights Jelly Roll Morton's Early Years

Born in the Creole community in New Orleans in 1890, Ferdinand LaMother “Jelly Roll” Morton absorbed various musical influences that he eventually combined in his own signature styles. He started playing guitar around age seven, switching to piano at age 10, always alive to the diversity of sounds that emerged

THE READING ROOM: Jim Newberry’s ‘Chicago Music, Seen: 100 Portraits’

THE READING ROOM: Jim Newberry’s ‘Chicago Music, Seen: 100 Portraits’

Once upon a time, the photos and artwork on albums told as much of a story as the music itself. Recall, for example, the entranced gaze of the young William Miller in Almost Famous as he traces his finger over the glossy, kaleidoscopic covers of albums by Bob Dylan, Joni

ALBUM REVIEW: Kaitlin Butts Welcomes Us to the Party on 'Hello, Honky Tonk'

ALBUM REVIEW: Kaitlin Butts Welcomes Us to the Party on 'Hello, Honky Tonk'

Welcome, welcome to the show that never ends: Kaitlin Butts’ glittering, dolorous, kaleidoscopic dance hall and bar where she sits behind the piano all night observing the denizens of bar stools and sawdust floors as they fight, love, curse, lie, and drink. In the songs on her fourth album Hello,

THE READING ROOM: Sean Wilentz’s ‘Bob Dylan: Through the Open Window (1956-1963)’

THE READING ROOM: Sean Wilentz’s ‘Bob Dylan: Through the Open Window (1956-1963)’

Of the making of many books about Bob Dylan there is no end. Casual fans likely own a few of them; ardent fans have shelves groaning under the weight of tomes such as Michael Gray’s The Bob Dylan Encyclopedia. Sean Wilentz’s new book, Bob Dylan: Through the Open

ALBUM REVIEW: John Leventhal Explores Found Sounds on 'National Drift'

ALBUM REVIEW: John Leventhal Explores Found Sounds on 'National Drift'

Listen: just go buy John Leventhal’s second album National Drift. A restless musical genius, Leventhal hears notes and snatches of melodies and builds rhythmic patterns around them, delivering soundscapes that soothe and transport. He’s a guitarist who is one with his instrument, and he’s a multi-instrumentalist

THE READING ROOM: John Krajicek’s ‘Patience for the Ride: The Art and Life of Will Johnson’

THE READING ROOM: John Krajicek’s ‘Patience for the Ride: The Art and Life of Will Johnson’

Linda Ronstadt once told me that when she records a song, she keeps an art book open on the music stand in front of her. The pages of paintings inspired her in their breadth, illustrating the multi-faceted artistic response to, and interpretation of, the world around us. Those visual