Sharing the Stage: Rodney Crowell and Vince Gill on Four Decades of Friendship
This month, longtime friends and musical collaborators Rodney Crowell and Vince Gill release new albums within a week of each other. Each album takes its title from the singer’s home state: Crowell’s Texas is out today and Gill’s Okie lands Aug. 23. We used this occasion to
50 Years After Woodstock, The Music Plays On
Fifty years ago today, a little past five in the afternoon, on a stage planned and lit by E.H. Beresford “Chip” Monck, who introduced him, Richie Havens found himself the surprise opening act of “An Aquarian Exposition” presented by the Woodstock Music & Art Fair. Resplendent in an orange
THE READING ROOM: Songwriters Celebrate Ray Wylie Hubbard
A few years ago, Ray Wylie Hubbard reflected on his life and the evolution of his songwriting and music in a humorous, candid, and cinematic memoir a life … well, lived (Bordello Records). He told the now-famous story — which he repeats in the introduction to The Messenger: The Songwriting Legacy of
Madison Cunningham’s 'Who Are You Now' Braids Heart With Technical Prowess
Angular rhythms and intricate guitar work abound in Madison Cunningham’s new album, Who Are You Now — but that doesn’t mean the project is an overly erudite listen. On the contrary, many of its melodies are earworms, the kind that sneak up on you while you’re busy focusing
On ‘Gypsy,’ Eilen Jewell Balances Roaming and Roots
Eilen Jewell’s new album, Gypsy, opens with “Crawl,” a bluesy/honky-tonk tune bolstered by Jerry Miller’s chorus-y guitar part and Katrina Nicolayeff’s wending fiddle. “I want solitude, don’t want to be alone,” Jewell sings, “want to put down roots, want to be a rolling stone,” capturing
50 STATES OF FOLK: How Hawaii Created the Modern Country Sound
Turn your radio to a country music station, and you’re likely to hear the lilting sounds of a pedal steel. It’s a sound iconic to the genre, so ubiquitous that it’s probably permeated your idea of what country music is without a second thought.
But what you