Give me your music, your art, your huddled masses of words and rhythms yearning to breathe free.
“Do you not get it, lads? The Irish are the blacks of Europe.” That’s a wonderful line from The Commitments, a sweet little film about a ragtag assortment of Dubliners who form a soul band. Just think about it: like African Americans, the Irish have lived The Blues for centuries. And it shows…in their soul-fire … Read more
An important event on this date kicked off what would become an indispensable element of rock-n-roll music for time immemorial. On March 2, 1955, legendary R&B master Bo Diddley entered a Universal recording studio in Chicago and burned onto vinyl his song “Bo Diddley.” With it’s distinctive five-accent rhythm beat, it launched a thousand rock … Read more
“I want to do biological research [to find a cure for] cancer, if it isn’t discovered by then.” So said future Led Zeppelin guitar great Jimmy Page to a TV program host who asked him his future plans following the lad’s performance on a BBC talent show in 1957. So, should we be disappointed that the … Read more
“Everyone else wanted to be Elvis; I wanted to be Scotty,” Rolling Stones guitarist Keith Richards once told music writer James L. Dickerson. He’s referring, of course, to Scotty Moore, the finger-picking phenomenon who has long been considered rock’s first lead guitarist. Mr. Moore, who turns 83 today, was Elvis Presley’s sizzling sideman from 1954 … Read more
Cutting your teeth…honing your skills…paying your dues…(and, my favorite)…making your bones. Whatever you want to call it, Jimi Hendrix did it all in the days prior to achieving eternal superstardom as the greatest rock guitarist of all time. He played for years in backup bands for such American artists as Little Richard, Sam Cooke, the … Read more