Rhapsody in Blue was an immediate commercial and critical success when it was first played in 1924. But it’s caused problems for black music, and black musicians, ever since.
Category: music
Looking for America
Elton John would have done OK anyway. But the secret of his global success is that he took Americana back to America.
Bert Jansch, Loren Auerbach, and the Bert Jansch Foundation. (Part 2)
‘You had to be at the top of your game to play with Bert, because he could go off in any direction.’
Remembering Bert Jansch at 80. (Part 1)
“If you haven’t heard of him you’ll have heard of the people who have been influenced by him.”
‘The Luck of the Draw’
Pete Atkin’s newest LP, ‘The Luck of the Draw,’ is full of small pleasures.
The look of punk
Jamie Reid will always be associated with Sex Pistols. But he was a radical artist his whole life.
Listening to Martin Simpson
Folk, blues, roots, and songs of true stories of everyday lives.
Christmas folk
The folk music that marks the midwinter holiday is often a step away from Christmas schmaltz.
From field recordings to folk rock
The songs that Vaughan Williams drew on in his Folk Song Suite have become modern folk standards.
Spielberg’s West Side Story
The remake of West Side Story is darker and tougher than the original. It was worth doing.