Jason Isbell Digs Deep for Soulful Set at Historic Venue
As an artist, you've reached a certain level when fellow musicians come to hear you play. And, when it comes to Toronto venues, you've also joined an elite club when you play Massey Hall. Last night Jason Isbell achieved both in one memorable evening. He played
Japanese Band Bluegrass 45 Celebrates 50 Years
The Japanese bluegrass band Bluegrass 45 will be making a 50th anniversary appearance at the International Bluegrass Music Association's Wide Open Bluegrass in Raleigh, NC, next month. Recently, my wife and I sat down with Akira Otsuka, mandolin player with this groundbreaking international band.
In the post-World War
Lukas Nelson's Real Promises
He's got long hair and a bus, and a tour schedule fit for any dedicated road dawg. But that's about all Lukas and daddy Willie Nelson have in common. Willie had Lukas and brother Micah onstage with him since they were babies, but his style didn&
Evan Bartels' Complicated Relationship With His God
Listening to Evan Bartels (backed by his band, The Stoney Lonesomes) on his stellar debut album The Devil, God & Me calls to mind the words of his fellow Nebraskan Matthew Sweet, "I cannot understand my god/I don't know why it gets to me/One day
Carla Olson: ‘Gene Clark Taught Me So Many Things About Singing’
Carla Olson sang, played guitar, and was a leader of the highly respected Los Angeles-based rock band the Textones long before she met Gene Clark. Yet she credits the late Byrds singer for providing her with a musical education.
“Gene taught me so many things about singing,” Olson says, “He
A Jan & Dean Album That Should Have Stayed in the Vaults
Though never on a par with the Beach Boys, Jan & Dean had their moments. This wasn’t one of them. In fact, my first reaction when I heard Filet of Soul Redux echoed the famous opening line of Greil Marcus’s review of Bob Dylan’s Self-Portrait: “What is