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Henry Carrigan

THE READING ROOM: New 33 1/3 Book Zooms In on John Prine’s Debut Album

THE READING ROOM: New 33 1/3 Book Zooms In on John Prine’s Debut Album

Bob Dylan once told music critic Bill Flanagan that John Prine’s “stuff is pure Proustian existentialism. Midwestern mindtrips to the nth degree.” Almost two years after Prine’s death on April 7, 2020, from complications related to COVID-19, writer Erin Osmon offers her own tribute to the singing mailman

THE READING ROOM: Artists and Insiders Trace the Evolution of Rock Concerts

THE READING ROOM: Artists and Insiders Trace the Evolution of Rock Concerts

One spring night in 1972, six of us piled into a van and headed to the Atlanta Municipal Auditorium to see our first big rock concert. The auditorium even then was creaky and had seen better days. It still featured pro wrestling matches most weekend nights, but the biggest regular

THE READING ROOM: Biography Charts Intensity and Influence of B.B. King

THE READING ROOM: Biography Charts Intensity and Influence of B.B. King

Even though the thrill of hearing the king of the blues live has been gone since B.B. King died in May 2015, author Daniel de Visé hopes to help us recall how King ascended to the throne of the blues world in his new biography, King of the Blues:

THE READING ROOM: Bobby Rush Memoir Recounts Building His ‘Folk Funk’ Sound

THE READING ROOM: Bobby Rush Memoir Recounts Building His ‘Folk Funk’ Sound

Reading Bobby Rush’s memoir I Ain’t Studdin’ Ya: My American Blues Story is a bit like watching him leave it all the stage at one of his shows. On stage, he works the crowd, rolling from one song into another with an effortlessness that comes from playing juke

Taylor Rae Showcases Wide Range on Debut ‘Mad Twenties’

Taylor Rae Showcases Wide Range on Debut ‘Mad Twenties’

Santa Cruz, California, native Taylor Rae’s debut album, Mad Twenties, unfolds cinematically, evolving dreamily as it traverses an emotional landscape littered with the shards of a broken relationship. Rae’s edgy vocals slide easily from tender to tough, from gentle whisper on folk ballads to soaring shouts on the

THE READING ROOM: Real Moments Outshine Rock Memories in Dave Grohl’s Memoir

THE READING ROOM: Real Moments Outshine Rock Memories in Dave Grohl’s Memoir

Very few rock memoirs feel like sitting in the room with an old friend who’s telling tales about growing up and discovering how deeply music is etched in his heart and dreams, but this is exactly how Dave Grohl’s new memoir The Storyteller: Tales of Life and Music

THE READING ROOM: Determination and ‘A Little Faith’ Drive John Hiatt’s Life Story

THE READING ROOM: Determination and ‘A Little Faith’ Drive John Hiatt’s Life Story

John Hiatt has been working at the troubadour trade steadily for over 40 years — well, more if you count his boyhood bands — and he’s produced a catalog of gems that sparkle with wry insight, candor, and introspection. As it turns out, Hiatt set his sights very early on being