The Cowsills and the Pain Behind ‘The Rain, The Park & Other Things’
The one rock band to ever come from Rhode Island – other than Throwing Muses – was the Cowsills, a family band from Newport that charted a handful of hits…
John Hiatt at the Troubadour Finally
He had spent time in Los Angeles as songwriter, recording artist and performer before he moved South a quarter century ago. But when John Hiatt began his current tour earlier…
Amy Winehouse and the Curse of 27
It was the drugs and lifestyle, no doubt. And the inability of anyone in her circle to pull her out of her decline. But the shocking death Saturday of Amy…
‘Idol’ Season 10: Bringing the Nice
On a panel to explain the new season of "American Idol," the retooled celebrity judging staff, its new mentor, its returning producer all painted a picture of the new season…
Lotta ‘Little Drummer Boy’
The weird little duet by David Bowie and Bing Crosby, recorded for a Christmas special in 1977 and released as a single in 1982, has taken on a life of…
Remembering Captain Beefheart
Captain Beefheart’s music came to me through the curatorial services of Frank Zappa The purveyor of the unusual in his own work in the Mothers of Invention, his Bizarre label…
Christmas with the Waldos
One more story about my recent weekend visit to New York City: Stopping in to see the Christmas tour of Jesse Malin with Marah and others. I had vaguely marked…
Paulie’s Recent Splash
It’s been a fruitful season for Paul McCartney, who at 68 has been playing small newsmaking gigs on both sides of the ocean – at the Apollo and the 100…
Buying Back the Past
The bulge in the population represented by post-World War II baby boomers doesn’t just affect Social Security futures. It also affects rock ‘n’ roll. This was the rock generation, after…
Lennon 30: When Beatlemania Turned Deadly
When someone says ``Beatlemania,'' it usually conjures up black-and-white footage of girls in outdated clothing jumping up and down at airports and weeping in theater seats. Yet another kind of…