Led Zeppelin: Day by Day
Sean MurphyImagine Led Zeppelin in our contemporary culture, with smart phones and social media documenting their every activity and utterance—a ceaseless spectacle. It’s impossible. Literally; obviously. But it’s possible that the…
The Weeklings: Final Popped Culture
In this much-beloved feature launched for the very final time, our editors and contributors each respond to a single cultural question. As always, please, no wagering. Five years later,…
10 for NYC by 10, on 9/11
New York City would be unimaginable without jazz, and vice versa. Here then is a tribute for --and by-- several musicians who help define and celebrate the cultural mecca of…
End of Summer (Camp) with a Bat, a Cat and a Clown
IT IS AN INEXORABLE, if lamentable rite of passage: revisiting mementos from one’s childhood and discovering that, to an adult’s eyes, they’re lacking. But then, “putting away childish things” is…
Sanctuary
I visited my mother’s grave the first several years for the same reason I used to attend church: it was expected, it was meant to make me feel better, it…
For My Mother on Her Birthday
I’m scared, I said. “It’s okay,” she said. “You know I’ll never leave you, right? I would never leave this place without you.” How many times did she tell me…
Bobby Hutcherson: Thanks for the Good Vibes
Bobby Hutcherson was not just a major, and positive force for good in the jazz idiom, he was a genuine innovator. Before him, the vibraphone was largely considered a novelty…
Trumbo, Cranston and Ozymandias
A few random thoughts while watching 'Trumbo'. 1. You should watch this. 2. Bryan Cranston remains an American treasure. 3. Can you believe people used to smoke in movie theaters?...…
Intimation: A Poem
Intimation My fiancée informs me that I snore now: either comfortable enough to tell the truth, or else a commentary on my own contentment. Our unconscious understands and steers us…
Forever Never Changes: Remembering Arthur Lee (Ten Years Later)
Arthur Lee died ten years ago today (August 3, 2006). I not only am keen to remember --and celebrate-- his life and work, I also appreciate the fact that the piece…