Uncle Tupelo - Anodyne
Truth to tell, this is virtually a new record to these ears. Though this magazine's name comes, in part, from the title of the first Uncle Tupelo album -- and even though, in some quarters, ND was slagged as little more than an Uncle Tupelo fanzine -- we'd
Al Kooper / Mike Bloomfield / Stephen Stills - Super Session
Contrary to Al Kooper's assertion in the liner notes that this music "has amazingly found itself timeless," Super Session is very much tied to its times: 1968. (Being reissued or used in films is not the same as being timeless.) The project brought together members of
Elvin Bishop Group - Self-Titled/Feel It!/Rock My Soul
Can you be a rock star if the voice that is most readily comparable to yours is that of Andy Devine's? Devine, you may recall, was the comic actor with a cracked voice who appeared in a zillion movies and TV shows. Elvin Bishop sounds just like him.
Warren Zevon - The First Sessions
These four discs represent the first, tentative steps at getting Warren Zevon's back catalog in order. Wile it's nice to have this material available again, it also represents, disappointingly, a series of missed opportunitiesFirst things first: The First Sessions is a true archaeological dig, and places
Townes Van Zandt - In the Beginning
No one would ever mistake Townes Van Zandt for Red Foley, not even before the ravages of drugs and booze rendered his vocals brittle and unsure; near the end, his voice was the sound of dissipation itself. And it'd be a stretch to say that Townes is crooning
Willie Nelson - The Essential Willie Nelson
William Hughes Nelson, who turned 70 in April, has made his most lasting contributions to country music via three artistic personas. There's "W. Nelson," the songwriter; "Shotgun Willie," the single and album artist; and just plain "Willie," the celebrity. These categories don&