WEDDING BELL BLUES A hit for the 5th Dimension, I always preferred Laura’s take. It’s the simple piano intro, which draws you in, you know you’re gonna hear a story. Great music swings, there’s something more than the notes. “Wedding Bell Blues” is a performance, something that picks you up and carries you away. You […]

This was the one that broke him in the U.S.A. Donovan’s gotten a bad rap, ever since that Bob Dylan movie, where the bard from Hibbing cuts him down. At this late date we can see Mr. Leitch was no match for Zimmy. But that does not mean he was not great in his own […]

“Long Way Down” The SteelDrivers I forgot it was Chris Stapleton’s previous band. I downloaded three playlists to my phone. “Singer/Songwriter Highlights 2015,” I wanted to catch up on what I might have missed, “The A-List: Singer/Songwriter,” since it’d had been so rewarding at home, and then “The A-List Country,” because I like the faux […]

1. “Mr. Tambourine Man” The Byrds Folk rock. A new sound with the old melody and lyrics of folk married to rock guitars, a hybrid that snuck up on the Brits and caught them unawares. You’ve got no idea what a revelation it was to hear this sound on the radio, just ask Tom Petty! […]