The Jewish Immigrant Song
Jewish immigrants music-saturated synagogues and rich theater, flavored with humor and lament, were a magical formula for the birth of the American Songbook.
rock n roll
Johnnie Johnson Was an Important Artist in Rock’s Early Years
It has been decades since these Johnnie Johnson’s recordings were made, but the music has a timeless quality. Sometimes we just need to smile and chill.
Springsteen and the Silver Medal Syndrome
On the Billboard Hot 100 list, Bruce Springsteen endures the second-place status of silver medal syndrome year after year.
JD McPherson Adds New Wave Glam to His Rock ‘n’ Roll
Nite Owls is JD McPherson’s most fully realized front-to-back example of his talent yet, and it points the way to an even more exciting follow-up.
How Dion DiMucci Influenced Bruce Springsteen
Fifteen years before a 20-something Bruce Springsteen sweated out his original sin in clubs along the Jersey Shore, there was the rock ‘n’ roller Dion DiMucci.
Thelma and the Sleaze’s ‘Holey Water’ Is the Rock Album We Need
Thelma and the Sleaze continue their reign as the queens of loud, gaudy, disreputable rock ‘n’ roll on Holey Water, one of the funnest rock albums of the year.
Low Cut Connie Pays Homage to New York and Lou Reed on ‘Art Dealers’
Low Cut Connie’s Art Dealers offers empathetic portraits of people and places that he presumes have been undeservedly ignored or overlooked.
Dr. John’s ‘The Montreux Years’ Highlights His Very Best
The 14 performances recorded over 26 years at the Montreux Jazz Festival capture New Orleans’ Mac “Dr. John” Rebennack at the peak of his powers.
‘Rip It Up: The Best of Specialty Records’ Makes the Case for Being Rock ‘n’ Roll’s Ground Zero
Art Rupe’s little Hollywood label, Specialty Records celebrated Black culture’s boundless beauty, energy, joy, and excitement. It was also an originator of the rock ‘n’ roll sound.
Elvis Presley’s Unlikely Comeback
Eric Wolfson’s Elvis Presley’s From Elvis in Memphis examines the greatest accomplishment of Elvis’ career: a comeback album that reinstated his relevance.
Black Diamond Queens: African American Women and Rock and Roll (excerpt)
Ikette Claudia Lennear, rumored to be the inspiration for Mick Jagger's "Brown Sugar", often felt disconnect between her identity as an African American woman and her engagement with rock. Enjoy this excerpt of cultural anthropologist Maureen Mahon's Black Diamond Queens, courtesy of Duke University Press.
Laura Nyro’s “Save the Country” Calls Out from the Past
Laura Nyro, a witchy, queer, ethnic Russian Jew, died young, but her non-conformist anthem, "Save the Country", carries forth to these troubled times.