Category: Music

The name on the record may be different, but the musicians who play on Condensate are the same ones who started out some 30 years ago as The Time. Joining forces for their first album since 1990, Morris Day (vocals), Jerome Benton (percussion), Jimmy Jam (keyboards), Terry Lewis (bass), Jesse Johnson (guitar), Jellybean Johnson (drums),...

This music started for me in the mid-’50s when I was about 11 years old. My parents still had a babysitter for me — Janet, who lived down the hall from us in our apartment building in Queens Village, NY. About 30 minutes after my folks would leave, all of Janet’s friends would come over...

Paul McCartney, Kisses on the Bottom. When you get older the Bucket List gets to be much more luminous. Whatever it is you’ve been putting off in life, it’s best time to get to it. No doubt Paul McCartney has had these songs running around his expansive mind since his parents used to do them...

Rest in Peace Hubert Sumlin, 80, well known as the pivotal guitarist for the late blues innovator Howlin’ Wolf, passed away this week. Howard Tate, 72, one of the masters of soul singing, also moved on to higher ground this week. I want to take a moment to say how much each of these men...

Annie Barker, a Los Angeles singer-songwriter currently living in the UK, started her music career back in the young days of the new century. One thing that stands out about Annie Barker is her voice. It delivers a similarity to Cocteau Twins’ Elisabeth Fraser, but maintains its own uniqueness. Annie Barker’s voice is trained in...

In the early 1960s, Phil Spector produced a remarkable treasure trove of music on his own Philles label, much of which has been unavailable for years. On October 18, Spector Records/Legacy will be releasing these original albums, remastered and issued as a seven-CD box set entitled Phil Spector Presents: The Philles Album Collection. The first...

Ambient music has been around now for a long, long time.  Once championed by Tangerine Dream, a successful German ambient band from the ‘70s, the genre has consistently expanded to become many things for many people.  From therapeutic, musically backed waterfalls and ocean splashes to the magnificent textures of Michael Hoenig (Departures From The Northern...

Hugh Laurie, Let Them Talk. New Orleans is such a seductive city it’s almost impossible to withstand its allure, especially musically. It can suck in willing listeners, often for lifetime stints. Once that bug bites you, it don’t let go. Hugh Laurie is one of its ecstatic victims. His passion for Crescent City sounds goes...

Ben Folds has been a major force on the musical landscape since 1995 when, with bassist Robert Sledge and drummer Darren Jesse, he formed Ben Folds Five. This October, after almost two decades of making albums solo and with Ben Folds Five, Folds will release a comprehensive collection of his work entitled The Best Imitation...

Actors moonlighting as musicians often get a bad rap. While it’s true that some like Bruce Willis and Steven Seagal should think twice before stepping into a recording studio again, there are those who can actually make music and do it with skill and artfulness.   When Hugh Laurie was approached to make an album...