Who are the best songwriters? There are many to choose from. There are some great songwriting teams, but I am only going to talk about individuals who write both music and lyrics. These are in no particular order. Bob Dylan – Bob has been at it for nearly 60 years. He is not a great … More Best Songwriters
Hard to believe John Lennon has been gone 40 years, but it is safe to say his legacy is stronger than it has ever been. I remembered John Lennon back in 2017. Remembering John Lennon Even more than his musical career, I believe he is most associated with the peace movement. It is impossible to … More John Lennon at 80
Favorite bands and musicians? My list is long. Picking one for each letter of the alphabet is challenging. Sometimes you have to work around a first name or last. Alan Parsons Project – A studio creation, two talented guys wrote the intricate songs and hired musicians to help create the music. For nearly a decade, … More Favorite Bands: A to Z
Every original studio album by the Beatles has now celebrated a 50 year anniversary. How can that be so? It is hard for me not to associate Let It Be with the end of the Beatles. Upon its release, the wheels were in motion for the band to dissolve. There was even a rancorous meeting … More Let It Be at 50
I’ve always loved the music of Donovan. Very few singer-songwriters can use the guitar melody and a voice to create such grand emotion. The Scotsman Donovan was the original hippy poet singer, at least one of the first. Compared to Bob Dylan, Donovan Leitch had more of a rootsy folk pedigree, but a talent for … More Donovan’s Greatest Hits
I hesitate to write about this album, it is one of my least favorite Paul McCartney/Wings albums. But since I started, here goes. Mr. McCartney was a bit rudderless in 1971, adjusting to being an ex-Beatle, and the cute one at that, was harder than it seemed. He had released his first solo album before … More Wild Life (1971): Paul McCartney & Wings
George Martin will forever be linked with the Beatles, and deservedly so. Besides the eight years with the Beatles, and his other Beatles projects, he produced many artists before and after the Beatles. Here are a dozen favorite projects, some of my favorites, out of the many he did. “Don’t Let the Sun Catch You … More George Martin: Other Works
George Harrison is my favorite Beatle. I own everything he’s done. The day one album was released, I walked across town to buy it. I’m also a tough critic. I remember being very excited about the release of this album. It was the follow up to Dark Horse, a critically panned album, but one I … More George Harrison: Extra Texture (1975)
This was the closest the four Beatles ever got to a reunion, working on Ringo’s third solo album. The other three ex-Beatles worked on the album, but not at the same time. Up to this point, Ringo had released an album of pop standards, Sentimental Journey, maybe the first pop musician to use the songbook … More The Ringo Album (1973)
Music didn’t begin in Laurel Canyon in 1965, but this film makes a strong case that pop music grew a new branch. I was looking forward to this film, and what I saw was unlike what I expected. Usually, I read up on films before I see them, but I wanted to experience Echo in … More Echo in the Canyon (review)
