Jon Young

You’d never know it just to look at him, but James Hunter is an accomplished time traveler. Despite passing for an ordinary mortal, this exuberant singer has obviously transported himself from a smoky London club circa 1963, where the preferred music is deep soul and the grooves are righteous.

It started during the pandemic. Cooped up in their homes, folk-music vets Tom Paxton and John McCutcheon began meeting for weekly writing sessions over Zoom, ultimately composing nearly 200 songs. That collaboration inspired these old friends to record the 2023 album, Together. Now they’re following it with Together Again,

Editor’s Note: Here at No Depression there’s too much great roots music in a year for us to cover it all. So in December, when new releases slow down, we ask writers to review some of the best albums we missed throughout the year in an ongoing series

Editor’s Note: Here at No Depression there’s too much great roots music in a year for us to cover it all. So in December, when new releases slow down, we ask writers to review some of the best albums we missed throughout the year in an on-going series

There’s one big problem with the new album from the veteran funk sextet Lettuce. Sweet and sunny, Cook is a warm-weather record, perfect for a backyard cookout or a lazy drive with the windows down – not a soundtrack for chilly days. Still, the band’s smooth amalgam of feelgood

Jesse Sykes will not be rushed. On her first album in 14 years (and fifth overall), the Seattle explorer takes a leisurely excursion to the folkier side of psychedelia without pandering to ‘60s nostalgia, raising cosmic questions yet never presuming to provide answers. A beautiful exercise in haunted contemplation, Forever,