Los Lobos: A Social Comment on the "Gates of Gold"
A cartoon strip by Brian McFadden that ran in The New York Times on Sept. 6 depicted a forlorn Statue of Liberty greeting a boatload of immigrants with a sign reading “Huddled Masses No Longer Welcome.” It’s timely, considering a new groundswell of build-a-border-wall, anti-immigrant politicians, and it all
Boz Scaggs: His Road to the Blues
Boz Scaggs, best known in mainstream pop music for his classic ’70s disco-era album, Silk Degrees, has always drawn his roots, influence, and musical expression from Texas blues.
He began with a blues guitar in his hands as a teenager in Texas. The distinctly American music has been his anchor
Weighty and Serious: Mandolin Orange - Such Jubilee
In my previous Vinyl Roots column, I talked about the reasons I came to vinyl in the first place. I don't necessarily have an audiophile perspective -- I listen to my vinyl records on a crappy Numark turntable with mediocre bookshelf reference speakers. It's more about
Todd Snider’s Gothic Masterpiece “Train Song”
"Sing a Train Song": this deft and touching tune by one of East Nashville’s finest – or maybe its finest – is easy to hear as a familiar trope; train songs abound in American music for good reason. But in this song, trains do more than usual, as a
"We're All Criminals Here": Today's Best Artists Cover Uncle Tupelo
Recorded music makes standards a funny thing. Songs themselves don't really need to stand the test of time anymore -- until we reach that point of technological no return like Zion in The Matrix, it's safe to assume that we can listen to any song we
The Song "No Depression": Where We Came From
The song "No Depression in Heaven" was originally recorded by the Carter Family in 1936 during the Great Depression. Depending on where you look, it's either attributed to A.P. Carter or James David Vaughan.
Regardless, the song has been recorded by artists as variant as