British rock drummer Bobby Irwin died this past Friday (March 8, 2015) in England after a long illness. The much loved and admired Irwin spent most of his life there except for a stint in the Eighties when he lived in San Antonio, Texas after marrying a local girl. Irwin’s career first took hold as […]
In the late 80’s, two of the best pop songwriters ever to grace this planet got together to co-write songs. As far as collaborations went, one of them came to the table having been half of the greatest pop songwriting partnership of all time. The other had grown up as a huge fan of the […]
In my recent blog bit about Lloyd Cole, I described him as perhaps the most under-rated of the artists that I truly admire. Unfortunately, in making that statement I had forgotten about the talented singer-songwriter Ron Sexsmith. While Sexsmith is often called a “songwriter’s songwriter,” let’s be honest–that’s just a nice way of labelling someone […]
This piece originally appeared in Beyond Belief #4 back in November 1995. By the time it was officially announced that Elvis Costello and Paul McCartney were collaborating on songs, the two had been working together sporadically for several months. Paul had been recording the rock and roll oldies album which would become Choba B CCCP […]
Of all the singer-songwriters I truly admire, Lloyd Cole is perhaps the most under-appreciated by the general public. Since the first Lloyd Cole and the Commotions record in 1984, this former Brit and current Massachusetts resident has released over a dozen LPs that are all worthy of everyone’s attention. A first-rate lyricist in the classic […]
Is it odd for a musical performer to present an evening primarily focused on the music of another artist? Not if you have been an integral part of that artist’s career in the way that Steve Nieve has for Elvis Costello. On his brief tour of the US, this masterful keyboardist of Royal College of […]
Back before Austin’s South by Southwest music extravaganza grew out of control, it was actually something that a commoner like myself could enjoy. Case in point was one of 1992’s featured separate admission shows (though only a mere $5): the lone Austin appearance on the lone tour of rock “super group” Little Village. With John […]
Not only do I go back a long way with the music of Steve Earle, but he and I have both lived in the same three metropolitan areas: San Antonio, Nashville and New York City. This gives me a hometown familiarity with his local lyrical references about places like the “speed trap up ahead in […]
Location: 623 7th Ave. South, Nashville, TN 37203 http://www.thirdmanrecords.com Since moving to Nashville several years ago, Detroit-native Jack White has become one of Music City’s most eminent musical ambassadors. He also created the Third Man Records complex which was a catalyst in bringing some life to the City’s south side. Fans of White and his […]
I was quite saddened to hear this past week that underground Nashville music legend Dave Cloud had passed away. While my son attended Belmont University over the past few years, he had the honor of befriending Dave on the porch of Bongo Java where he regularly held court. I was hopeful that I would someday […]
Music City Mike 