CD Reviews

If, as Marx said, religion is the opiate of the masses, it might be said that pop music is a slightly caffeinated soda beverage along the lines of Coca Cola or Mountain Dew of the masses; it’s not there to cloud the mind but only something sweet that offers a pick-me-up during the day. Your […]

Singer/songwriter Mary Karlzen is back in the spotlight once again with her 2020 CD, Shine. After an initial splash in 1995 with her CD Yelling at Mary on Atlantic Records, followed by two releases in 2000 and 2007 on Y&T and Dualtone labels respectively, the Chicago native took a musical hiatus to spend more time […]

There is a sensation you get when you take your first bite of fresh-from-the-oven peach cobbler à la mode—the kind with vanilla ice cream served warm—the delightful feel of hot and cool, the sweet crust and ice cream melt deliciously in your mouth and soothe your soul. You know you’ll be back for more. This […]

Kris Wott, a singer, guitar slinger, and harmonica player gives us his take on bluesy southern country rock with Time Will Tell, a nine-selection CD that features the contributions of ten other musicians, including brother Andrew on drums and brother Frank on upright bass. Wott taps into the roots of southern rock, the folk and […]

By 1950, big bands were no longer enjoying their heyday. The generation who had filled the dance floors to Glen Miller and the Dorsey brothers was older, married, and raising families of baby boomers. Though big bands continued to perform for decades afterwards, in many ways they became musical relics of the 1940s. The big […]

Benjamin Jayne are Benjamin and Amanda Wright, two siblings whose first musical release was Hi-Lo, a 2018 project. He is a New England songwriter and guitarist, she lives in Barcelona where she teaches, makes music singing (solo projects under the name Amanda Jayne), and plays piano. They do musical projects long distance, including their new […]

Michael J. Dwyer is a singer-songwriter with decades of experience. Forty years ago he toured the world with a Christian rock band. Since then he has made music as a solo performer as well as being a member of a few bands. He has recently released Borderlands, a collection of seven self-penned songs that Dwyer […]

Recorded in 1990, but only released now, Naked Animals, by alto saxophonist Mark Lewis’ quartet, finds San Diego native James Long on bass. Lewis, like Long, was an American ex-pat living in Amsterdam. Long was Lewis’ regular bassist for most of the 1980s, including for these sessions toward the end of the quartet’s run. Pianist […]

Drew Weaver’s EP, Drew Weaver Sings Country Mood Songs, is pretty self-explanatory. The six songs represent a step toward the outlaw country songs of the 20th century; the tunes are not ones that everyone knows by heart, though they’re written by folks like Hank Williams and Merle Haggard. The music is laid down in two-minute […]