Posted in September, 2016

Catherine Russell

It was inevitable that Catherine Russell would make this record. The daughter of famed bandleader Luis Russell, who arranged for Louis Armstrong, and the late Carline Ray, noted vocalist/guitarist/bassist who … Read more

Ronnie Earl and the Broadcasters

I have described Ronnie Earl as “the John Coltrane of the guitar” on these pages before, but this album may best epitomize that term.  Earl pays tribute to his dear … Read more

St. Paul & the Broken Bones

Sophomore albums bring their challenges especially when a band has a highly acclaimed debut, like 2013’s Half the City.  We all know about the sophomore jinx, which often has bands … Read more

Hollis Brown

The vault of material Hollis Brown frontman Mike Montali chooses to pull from renders promise. Revisiting songs he wrote a decade ago when Hollis Brown was in its infancy, Montali … Read more

The McKee Brothers

In my radio days I had a caller who often said, “You can never have too many horns.”   It is the horn charts that drew me to this record, but … Read more

Elvis Presley

Elvis Presley is a pretty easy sell. Like most iconic and late musicians, there is a plethora of new releases that just shake up what’s already been heard. Case and … Read more

Alessandro Fadini

A lone, edgy sax intros the title track, an equally jumpy, (kudos to the fluid pump and bump of bassist Jakob Dreyer) though tightly wound backstreet riff that unfolds like … Read more

Bill Lloyd

Bill Lloyd has an impeccable history, one that began when he co-helmed the pop country duo Foster and Lloyd and then continued into a solo career that’s seen him become … Read more