NY Music : Joan Baez Announces Release Of First Poetry Book (by Faith Logue)

Legendary folk singer, activist, and Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Joan Baez has announced she is releasing her first book of poetry When You See My Mother, Ask Her to Dance – out April 30. Joan Baez, a Staten Island native, is a dynamic force of nature. Her commitment to music and social activism has earned global recognition, ranging from induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, to the Ambassador of Conscience Award – Amnesty International’s highest honor.

Read More

Forbes : U2 Announces A Series Of New Music Releases (by Hugh McIntyre)

U2 is fresh off their first Las Vegas residency and ready to head into their next chapter. But while the world waits for completely brand new music from the Irish rockers, they have announced a year-long series of musical re-releases, ones which will surely be of interest to their most die-hard followers. On Friday (April 5), U2 dropped a new collection of remixes and alternate editions of their single “Discothèque.” [...] The new album runs an hour and 12 minutes long, with plenty of renditions of “Discothèque” for fans who can’t get enough of the tune. The tracklist includes the original radio edit, as well as remixes that come with names like the DM Deep Club Mix, Howie B, Hairy B Mix, and the Hexidecimal Mix, among others.

Read More

No Depression : ALBUM REVIEW: ‘All This Time’ Is an Ode to Joy from Larry Campbell and Teresa Williams (by Nick Cristiano)

Campbell, master of all things strings and former accompanist to Bob Dylan and the late Levon Helm (among others), and singer-actress Williams have been together for four decades. Their chemistry is again evident as they alternate lead vocals and harmonize beautifully on this 10-song set — with seven Campbell originals — that chronicles a bond both hard-earned and enduring.

Read More

Inside Africa : CNN’s Inside Africa Joins Five-Time Grammy Winner Angelique Kidjo Backstage And Back Home During Her Tour

In a new episode of Inside Africa, CNN joins five-time Grammy winner Angelique Kidjo who is on tour celebrating her 40th anniversary at the top of the global music industry. She says: “Being on stage for me is just the best thing ever. It’s the best place, and the safest, and the most beautiful place that exists on earth for me.” The Beninese star is out to change perceptions of ‘African music’ one audience at a time: “People still think that classical music has nothing to do with African music. That there is any music on this planet that has nothing to do with Africa. So, why is Africa the cradle of humanity? Where do we come from? And the way that we can dissociate ourself, for me, is a manifestation of fear. Because the narrative that I’ve been told about Africa is so negative, that no one wants to be associated with it. So, if you want to change the narrative, let’s start with music.”

Read More

American Songwriter : The Not-So-Subtle Political Commentary Behind Kris Kristofferson’s 1990 Single “Don’t Let the Bastards (Get You Down)” (by Tina Benitez-Eves)

They’re killing babies in the name of freedom opens Kris Kristofferson on his 1990 song “Don’t Let the Bastards (Get You Down).” Released months before the U.S. was about to invade Iraq, no specific conflict is referenced in the song by Kristofferson, who served as a captain in the U.S. Army. At the time, Kristofferson’s political views were crystal clear, and he opposed the recent military policies enforced by the then George W. Bush Jr. administration and remained outspoken about his more left-wing stances. [...] Soon after the release of Don’t Let the Bastards (Get You Down),” the title became Kristofferson’s catchphrase. He even said the words to Sinéad O’Connor, after she was booed at a Bob Dylan tribute concert at Madison Square Garden, shortly after her controversial appearance on Saturday Night Live in 1992 where she tore a photograph of then-Pope John Paul II to shed light on the unspoken sexual abuses by priests in the Catholic church.

Read More

The String : John Leventhal, In The Spotlight At Last, Talks ‘Rumble Strip’ (by Craig Havighurst)

John Leventhal was producer on Rosanne Cash’s string of remarkable albums in the 2000s, including "The List" (especially impactful on me) and the Grammy-winning "The River And The Thread" (2014). And then he made more honest, gorgeous albums for others - "This Is Where I Live by soul artist William Bell" in 2016 and Sarah Jarosz’s "World On The Ground" in 2020 - both major award winners. Amid it all, Leventhal was named Americana Instrumentalist of the Year in 2015. And yet for all of this, John Leventhal made it to age 70 having never released music of his own. That changed in late January with the release of "Rumble Strip", a collection of three songs and thirteen instrumentals, made by John working alone and playing all the instruments, not counting the duo vocals of Rosanne Cash on a couple of timeless cuts.

Read More

Popmatters : THOSE DAYS ARE GONE FOREVER: STEELY DAN’S ‘PRETZEL LOGIC’ AT 50

Steely Dan’s 50-year-old third album, Pretzel Logic, conceals its dark satirical vision of modern society beneath immaculate studio production. This 1974’s album marked the transition between their beginnings as a conventional rock band and their later incarnation as a studio collective under the leadership of Walter Becker and Donald Fagen. Founding guitarists Denny Dias and Jeff “Skunk” Baxter performed on Pretzel Logic, while original drummer Jim Hodder got bumped in favor of session men Jim Gordon and Jeff Porcaro. This perfectionism, involving 16 studio musicians, made Becker and Fagen infamous as rock’s geekiest dictatorship.

Read More

Relix : Warren Haynes Plots Now Is The Time Tour, with the Warren Haynes Band and Symphonic Support

Warren Haynes has unveiled the ambitious new Now Is The Time Tour, set to stage three special concerts in the Northeast this June. Alongside The Dreams and Sounds Symphonic Experience, this series will feature the debut of the highly-anticipated new Warren Haynes Band. Each show will be composed of three frames: two pioneering sets of symphonic music, capped off by a final presentation of Haynes’ inimitable blues-rock prowess. Throughout the performances, Haynes will explore the highlights of his sprawling catalog, including unheard arrangements of favorites from Gov’t Mule, the Allman Brothers Band and the Grateful Dead, as well as revived compositions from the lauded Jerry Garcia Symphonic Celebration series.

Read More

The Somerville Times : Blind Boys of Alabama Play Arts at the Armory Spotlight Series

Arts at the Armory’s Spotlight Series is thrilled to bring Blind Boys of Alabama to their historic Performance Hall stage on March 14. Hailed as “gospel titans” by Rolling Stone, the Blind Boys of Alabama defied the considerable odds stacked against them in the segregated south, from singing for pocket change in the Jim Crow South, to performing for three different American presidents, soundtracking the Civil Rights movement and helping define modern gospel music as we know it.

Read More