In Defense of Good Sax, Part One
Sean MurphyA writer whom I respect recently made an offhand observation that I'd like to challenge --not because his opinion isn't valid but rather because it seems representative of a casual…
Forever Never Changes: Remembering Arthur Lee
Arthur Lee died eight years ago this week (August 3, 2006). I not only am keen to remember --and celebrate-- his life and work, I also appreciate the fact that…
The Molly Ringwald Evolutionary Trio
Question: The Molly Ringwald Evolutionary Trio: What celebrity did you desperately want to have sex with at three different ages–sixteen, twenty-one, and then thirty? Answers, below. Summer ’86. I had…
Fantômas: Fifteen Years Later
A writer should always set challenges: it keeps things interesting and guards against formulaic and predictable assessments. Still, as Harry Callahan sagely observed, "A man's gotta know his limitations." I…
Mr. Bungle’s California: Fifteen Years Later
*8/5/14: This dropped a little over five years ago, which is difficult to fathom. This album dropped a little over fifteen years ago, which is exceedingly difficult to fathom. ***…
Wayne Shorter: JuJu at 50
Fifty years ago, today, this masterpiece dropped on an unworthy world. Borrowing Coltrane's band, Wayne Shorter proved he could bring the ruckus like the best of them. This, in fact,…
Via the Spectrum Road with Vernon Reid (Revisited)
Listening to Vernon Reid speak is like listening to Vernon Reid play the guitar: you need both ears and all your mind to keep up. Ideas flow eagerly, thoughts within…
Remembering the USS Indianapolis, Robert Shaw and The Scene
On July 30, 1945, the USS Indianapolis, which had just delivered key components of the Hiroshima atomic bomb to the Pacific island of Tinian, was torpedoed by a Japanese submarine.…
Ripe with Rich Attainments: Jethro Tull’s ‘A Passion Play’, Reassessed
For prog-rock aficionados, the hits keep coming, and one man above all deserves our gratitude: Steven Wilson. Whether it’s Yes, King Crimson, or Jethro Tull—all of whom he has worked…
Ars Moriendi or, The Art of Dying (American Style)
This post takes some excerpts from my memoir Please Talk About Me When I’m Gone. While this project is an attempt to commemorate –and celebrate– my mother’s life, it also…