THE READING ROOM: Martin Luther King, Jr. and Jazz
Martin Luther King, Jr. once called Mahalia Jackson his favorite singer. She was with him before and after he delivered his “I Have a Dream” speech at the Washington Memorial on August 28, 1963. King asked her to sing the familiar spiritual “How I Got Over” before his address, and
A New World Breaks Through on Terry Allen’s 'Just Like Moby Dick'
In the middle of his “American Childhood” three-song suite, Terry Allen sings with an ominous confidence, “It’s just the war, same fucking war, it’s always been. It never ends.” That stark hopelessness in “Bad Kiss,” the second song in the suite, is hilariously countered with the memory of
Gill Landry’s 'Skeleton at the Banquet' Tells a Dark, Conflicted Story
Gill Landry wrote his newest batch of songs, Skeleton at the Banquet, while spending a summer in small-town Western France. In a press release, he says this vantage point gave him a better perspective on the subject matter for his album, which is “a series of reflections and thoughts on
THROUGH THE LENS: Tami Neilson, Marty Stuart, Phil Madeira, and More Roots Music Releases
While 2019 was a stellar year for roots music, by taking a look at what's coming down the pike in next couple of weeks, 2020 just might be even better. Below are six albums that have been in constant rotation at my house, the car, the office, and
Bonny Light Horseman Adapts Age-Old Songs for a New Era
“Can this be an article where we don’t say ‘supergroup’?” asks Josh Kaufman, teasingly. “Say it in air quotes,” adds Eric D. Johnson, Kaufman’s bandmate, along with Anaïs Mitchell, in their new project, Bonny Light Horseman.
Though they cringe at the word, it is undeniably the most fitting
EASY ED'S BROADSIDE: Leonard Cohen Film Gives Fuller View of Love Story
When Nick Broomfield's documentary about the relationship between Leonard Cohen and Marianne Ihlen was released last July, it quickly jumped to the top of my “must see” list … but fell to the bottom within a week. Part of the reason was that the reviews for Marianne & Leonard: