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Henry Carrigan

THE READING ROOM: 12 Memorable Music Books From 2023

THE READING ROOM: 12 Memorable Music Books From 2023

Turning the pages slowly, anticipating the final chapter of the challenging, sometimes daunting, and often entertaining narrative of 2023, readers have a chance to pause and to reflect on the highlights of their journeys. While some readers and critics make lists of best books of the year, this column focuses

ALBUM REVIEW: Dolly Parton’s Got the Glitz, But ‘Rockstar’ Doesn’t Shine

ALBUM REVIEW: Dolly Parton’s Got the Glitz, But ‘Rockstar’ Doesn’t Shine

Let’s get this out of the way first: Dolly Parton is no rock singer. Her vocal register lacks the depth and range to reach down into her gut for snarling growls or to modulate into a ringing falsetto. She sings with a crystalline purity that’s well suited to

THE READING ROOM: Jeff Tweedy Preaches the Power of Songs

THE READING ROOM: Jeff Tweedy Preaches the Power of Songs

With World Within a Song: Music That Changed My Life and Life That Changed My Music, Jeff Tweedy completes a trilogy of meditative books that offer windows into his life, his songwriting, and, now, his deeply personal take on how songs shape a life. In 2018, Tweedy conducted readers on

ALBUM REVIEW: On ‘Prayin’ for Sunshine,’ Suzy Bogguss Shines Light on Her Songwriting

ALBUM REVIEW: On ‘Prayin’ for Sunshine,’ Suzy Bogguss Shines Light on Her Songwriting

On her previous two albums, Suzy Bogguss wrapped her warm, crystalline, and sometimes hard-edged vocals around familiar American folk and pop songs ( 2011’s American Folk Songbook) and the songs of Merle Haggard (2014’s Lucky). On her new album, Prayin’ for Sunshine, she wrote and produced the entire album,

ALBUM REVIEW: Jessi Colter Hops Genres on ‘Edge of Forever’

ALBUM REVIEW: Jessi Colter Hops Genres on ‘Edge of Forever’

Jessi Colter has always stood on the edge. She and her late husband Waylon Jennings, along with Willie Nelson and Tompall Glaser, carried country music in new directions in 1976 with the album Wanted! The Outlaws, the first country album to hit platinum status. Colter brought her own outlaw stylings

THE READING ROOM: Artifacts and Essays Converse to Tell Bob Dylan Story in ‘Mixing Up the Medicine’

THE READING ROOM: Artifacts and Essays Converse to Tell Bob Dylan Story in ‘Mixing Up the Medicine’

Just over a decade ago, in 2011, Bob Dylan remarked: “Everybody knows by now that there’s a gazillion books on me either out or coming out in the near future. So I’m encouraging anybody who’s ever met me, heard me or even seen me, to get into

ALBUM REVIEW: Alice Gerrard Continues Old-Time Trailblazing With Outspoken ‘Sun to Sun’

ALBUM REVIEW: Alice Gerrard Continues Old-Time Trailblazing With Outspoken ‘Sun to Sun’

It’s been eight years since Alice Gerrard’s Grammy-nominated 2015 album Follow the Music, so it’s a treat to have a new project, Sun to Sun, from her. For the past 60 years, songwriter/singer/multi-instrumentalist Gerrard has been passing along and preserving old-time Appalachian and bluegrass music.