As a 20-year veteran of the local music scene, Bruce Connole’s life and career have taken so many twists and turns that they’re almost impossible to keep track of. Connole’s reputation is such that his movements generate interest from even casual music observers. Recently he’s enjoyed a career rebirth of…
These might be the darkest days in the history of country music. The industry has always been a two-faced creature. While Nashville has long paid lip service to the history and traditions of country music, it’s rarely ever practiced what it preached. After all, these are the same people who…
This may not be cause for concern for some of you whose lives revolve around something besides obscure and trivial music-related events, but deep in the heart of this here section, we’re biting our nails down into bone powder at this startling discovery–double live albums have just been added to…
First Live Album Created Entirely in the Studio: Johnny Rivers Johnny Rivers at the Whisky A-Go-Go (1964) It doesn’t take a secret agent man to figure out that this and three other “Recorded Live, Very Live” Whisky A-Go-Go albums sound identical to Johnny’s first designated “studio” album, where friends were…
Although he’s probably best known for the light jazz of the song “Europa,” saxophonist Gato Barbieri’s odyssey as a musician has taken him to nearly every corner of the world and brought him in contact with a host of musical giants. In the process, Barbieri has managed to carve a…
Trashman letters come in; bits o’ luv, lots o’ hate. But after I tossed the latest Jimmy Buffett dullard to the kittens in last month’s column, tons of spunk-packed e-mail scribed by ire Buffett mellow yellows from around the country crammed the box. Ironically, a bulk of said shorts arrived…
Gladys Knight & the Pips Claudine Bobby Womack The Poet Leon Huff Here to Make Music (The Right Stuff) This trio of R&B rereleases from The Right Stuff label dates back to the heart of the disco era. Released at any other time, two of the albums would easily have…
Some play for the sake of art, others to become famous, while many play just to pay the rent. Increasingly, groups that perform for the simple joy of making music are in the minority. The harsh reality of daily life as a working musician in Phoenix doesn’t usually offer the…
“I’ve just been in the hospital for the last couple of days,” confesses Lo-Fidelity Allstars DJ Phil Ward, a.k.a. The Albino Priest. Ward (who like the other members of the group uses a ridiculously elaborate alias) has been recovering from a serious bout of road fatigue. Speaking in a thick…
Among the greatest tragedies that the advent of music videos brought with it was that the amazing visual power of the medium, especially in its early years, was so strong that often the images it left behind were so indelible they tended to obscure the more important truths about the…
More and more, Tempe is becoming an enemy of the state. Developers are encouraging the growth of an already overly saturated downtown area, and businesses are being forced to relocate. Even McDonald’s–a company with a seemingly infallible reputation for success–was unable to survive on Mill Avenue. Some say that hungry…
“I used to ditch school and go hang out at his house,” says Sonic Thrills front man Jim Monarch, pointing to his bandmate and guitarist Michael “Johnny” Walker. Sitting on the front porch of his Tempe home, Monarch is recalling, amid the noise of passing jets, how the two Mesa…
A quick run-down of the artists contributing to the soundtrack for the upcoming teen comedy American Pie and one wonders if a more appropriate title for this collection of songs wouldn’t have been Why Alternative Radio Sucks. It seems that virtually all the guilty parties responsible for the dumbing down…
Don’t let the chain wallets, workman’s plaid and hitched jeans fool you. Flathead is more unique than its retro-hillbilly appearance might lead you to believe. After all, how many bands can say they’ve shared a studio with Waylon Jennings, had their record played as a warm-up for an arena full…
With the release of the Captain Beefheart boxed set Grow Fins: Rarities (1965-1982), rock’s ultimate eccentric is finally honored as a figure who influenced artists as diverse as Tom Waits and Pere Ubu. The five CDs offer 75 outtakes, as well as CD-enhanced live-performance tracks. Ironically, this long-overdue celebration of…
Lucius Parr We Got a Problem (self-released) Lucius Parr’s name often gets unfairly overlooked when the Valley’s premier blues artists are listed, but anyone who’s caught his tight combo knows that his talent is undeniable. Parr has first-rate credentials. He and his brother Lamar absorbed the blues as young kids…
December 6, 1969, was one of the worst days of my life. Although I was barely old enough to spell my own name, I had already been programmed to love all things related to Texas A&M University and to despise all things related to the University of Texas. Particularly when…
They were almost lost in the hype of a tour so hyped even the hype was having trouble finding its way. Long before a note was played, cynics had written off Paul/Bob ’99 as too big, too old and too steeply priced to possibly warrant the attention someone else was…
Between his weekly radio show on KJZZ and his work as entertainment director of the Rhythm Room, Bob Corritore has long held the title of the Valley’s greatest advocate for traditional blues and roots music. But Corritore is such an earnest and articulate fan that it’s easy to forget that…
Shudder to think that here in Phoenix, more than 12,000 people show up to see rock relics like Poison and Ratt while AOR radio stations look forward to the upcoming performances of Journey and Foreigner. But wait, there’s more. Missing Persons, The Outfield, Peter Frampton, Billy Squier, and Sammy Hagar…
If you’re a Dylan freak, the center of the universe is, of all places, Grand Junction, Colorado. Mick and Laurie McCuistion reside there, operating an enormous business that encompasses damn near everything relating to America’s unofficial poet laureate. In 1993, the couple began publishing the ultimate Dylan fanzine, the glossy…
Pavement Terror Twilight (Matador Records) It’s one of the little ironies of indie-pop that Pavement has hit its creative stride just as much of its initial, underground crowd has grown tired of the band. The postpunk rule of career management has long been that you either reach a mass audience…
