Otis Redding

King Khan and BBQ Show @ the Ruby Room, Monday, November 12

THE FIXE IS IN

RECORDINGS, 4-27

The Good Foot

A survey of recent soul, blues, R&B and roots reissues

Horn of Plenty

Legendary R&B saxman Grady Gaines stumbles into the fertile second act of his career

Austin Stories

Confused agenda of SXSW can't obscure the many musical highlights

Recordings

Confused agenda of SXSW can't obscure the many musical highlights

Debbie Does Tempe

Arizona Roadhouse gig attempts to rescue Debbie Gibson from the pit of pop ridicule

Repackaged Goods

The boxed-set dilemma: When are four CDs too little and three CDs too much respect?

Recordings

The boxed-set dilemma: When are four CDs too little and three CDs too much respect?

Recordings

The boxed-set dilemma: When are four CDs too little and three CDs too much respect?

Jamie Lidell

Multiply
(Warp)

R&B Is “Rap & Bullshit”

Multiply
(Warp)

The Bird revels in Sheriff Joe's decline, slams Mark Spencer's false hysteria, and explains why "illegals" ain't criminals

Multiply
(Warp)

Night PHX

Multiply
(Warp)

Martin Sexton

Multiply
(Warp)

Soweto Gospel Choir

Faith, hope, and harmony

Ray LaMontagne

Follow his bliss

Hacienda Brothers

Hacienda Brothers
(Koch Records Nashville)

Burke Slaw

With his latest star-powered release, Solomon Burke — the King of Rock and Soul — preaches to a new congregation

Great Persuader

After 40 years of street-corner symphonies, Jerry Lawson learns to sing with a band

Jools Holland

Big Band Rhythm & Blues (Warner Music)

Bottoming Out

Trailer-park Scrooge finds 10 reasons to say humbug about the music of 2001

Buddy & Julie Miller

Buddy & Julie Miller (HighTone)

Idol Dreaming

Wanting is everything in the celebrity-crazed culture of Everybody's Famous!

Various Artists

The Stax Story (Stax Records)

Candy Cane Mutiny

Consumers fight back! You have the power to make the ultimate Christmas album yourself. Use it!

Future Shock

Gumbo gazes into his crystal ball and tells us what to expect in jazz, blues and heritage as we approach 2001

Song of Salvation

R&B legend Sam Moore finds serenity in Scottsdale

Tombstone Blues

1,161 rock stars were fatally injured in the making of The Encyclopedia of Rock Obituaries

When Paul Met Gerry

What would have happened to rock'n'roll if Lennon and McCartney had never been properly introduced?

Never Sing Ill of the Dead

Hereafter, tunes extolling departed musicians should assume they might have a chance in hell

DID ISAAC HAYES GET THE SHAFT?"BLACK MOSES" EMERGES FROM THE BULRUSHES WITH TWO ALBUMS AND A BROKEN HEART

Hereafter, tunes extolling departed musicians should assume they might have a chance in hell

BOXING YOUR EARS

IF YOU'VE GOT CASH IN YOUR WALLET AND TIME ON YOUR HANDS, BOXED SETS ARE FOR YOU

Pirate Radio Gets a Tame U.S. Release, but We Still Love Rock 'N' Roll

IF YOU'VE GOT CASH IN YOUR WALLET AND TIME ON YOUR HANDS, BOXED SETS ARE FOR YOU

Eric Lindell

IF YOU'VE GOT CASH IN YOUR WALLET AND TIME ON YOUR HANDS, BOXED SETS ARE FOR YOU

Eric Lindell

IF YOU'VE GOT CASH IN YOUR WALLET AND TIME ON YOUR HANDS, BOXED SETS ARE FOR YOU

Amy Winehouse Slowed Down Becomes Male Soul Singer

Brian RomeroAmy Winehouse performing at Coachella in 2007​For this week's whimsy, I have found a recording Amy Winehouse's version of The Zutons' 2006 single "Valerie" slowed down to make her sound like a male soul singer -- perhaps Anthony Hamilton or even Otis Redding.It's pretty amazing what yo ... More >>

Bottling Wine with Sam Pillsbury and Co.

Nicole Whittington and James Waldron​When I went up to the Verde Valley to bottle wine with winemakers Eric Glomski, Tim White and Sam Pillsubry, I kept hearing that "wine making isn't as romantic as everyone thinks." Maybe the guys were afraid that I would find the monotonous assembly of bottl ... More >>

Jay Z and Kanye Drop "Otis" Video With All The Spike Jonze, Aziz Ansari, Models, and East African Drought Relief Needed to Rule

​The charm of "Otis," Jay Z and Kanye West's "Otis," the first single from their collaborative album Watch the Throne, is simple: Jay and 'Ye spit great verses over a killer Otis Redding sample. But the track doesn't make all that much sense as a single -- it's infectious, yeah, but there's not mu ... More >>

Hot Birds and the Chili Sauce @ The Compound Grill

​The charm of "Otis," Jay Z and Kanye West's "Otis," the first single from their collaborative album Watch the Throne, is simple: Jay and 'Ye spit great verses over a killer Otis Redding sample. But the track doesn't make all that much sense as a single -- it's infectious, yeah, but there's not mu ... More >>

Blow My Whistle: Best Songs With Whistling

​With August behind us, we are inching closer to the sold-out Foster the People show going down at The Venue Scottsdale on Tuesday, September 13. When the band's single "Pumped Up Kicks" came out, the dreamy synth pop sound washed over us like a wave of euphoria, even if we didn't catch the c ... More >>

The Smith Family Band @ Yucca Tap Room

​With August behind us, we are inching closer to the sold-out Foster the People show going down at The Venue Scottsdale on Tuesday, September 13. When the band's single "Pumped Up Kicks" came out, the dreamy synth pop sound washed over us like a wave of euphoria, even if we didn't catch the c ... More >>

Them's the Rules, or Why I Like The New Lenny Kravitz

Kravitz, looking tough as a kiddo.​If you honestly love music, you've got rules about it. Here are a few my mine. 1. Non-jazz artists and bands may feature no more than two saxophone solos during the duration of their career. 2. Bass guitars should be strung with two to four strings, bu ... More >>

15 Favorite Songs Tonight at Crescent Ballroom

​Stinkweeds dude and bassist-about-town Dario Miranda already illustrated the difficulties surrounding those foolish enough to accept Stateside Presents' invitation to DJ our 15 Favorite Songs tonight at Crescent Ballroom, so I hope you don't mind if I skip the bitching about how hard it is it ... More >>

The Dead Eyes of London Explain "In the Middle of the Fog"

Natalie Krishna Das​Most of local band The Dead Eyes of London's music has a distinctive fuzzy rock sound, but surprisingly, the track that seems to be a fan-favorite from their new album is the soulful, almost doo wop-y track, "In the Middle of the Fog". The track is off their current self-r ... More >>

The Bo-Keys at Rhythm Room, 11/7/11

​While M83 was bringing "epic" sounds to Crescent Ballroom, a very different kind of epic was going down across town at The Rhythm Room. The Bo-Keys, seven pieces lead by Scott Bomar and featuring Stax/Hi Records players Archie "Hubby" Turner on keys, Howard Grimes on drums, and Ben Cauley (the ... More >>

Top 10 Albums of 2011: Mike Escoto

Bon Iver​Welcome to another installment of Up on the Sun's 2011 Review. Over the next week, we'll be counting down our favorite songs, shows, national and local releases of 2011. This installment comes from Mike Escoto, who contributes to Up on the Sun and is one of the main perpetrators over ... More >>

Christmas Songs That Don't Suck: Part III

​Fa la la la la, and all that jazz. Getting tired of holiday music? We're not. Well, that's not entirely true. We're well tired of the lousy, saccharine, abominable Christmas music that clogs the airwaves. Is it worse when a radio station switches over to all-Xmas-all-the-time, or when a radio sta ... More >>

Joleen Lunzer, What Are You Listening To?

Joleen Lunzer​Joleen LunzerThe stand-up comedian headlines the Tempe Improv Thursday, February 23 at 7:30 p.m. When you put your key in the ignition and turn on the radio, what station would play right now? I recently found a station that plays hip hop/R&B from the 90's and early 2000's, 101. ... More >>