Live albums. They are the most maligned recordings by critics, yet the fans just love them. You don’t believe me? Ask Peter Frampton, The Allman Brothers, Led Zeppelin, Yes, Lynyrd Skynyrd, The Rolling Stones, David Bowie, Neil Young, Neil Diamond, Little Feat, The Who, Lou Reed, Cheap Trick and Kiss to name a few, who […]
Song Of The Day by Eric Berman – “The Ruling Class” by Loose Fur
I love a good whistle! Not enough songs these days feature the old pucker up and blow that you can take with you anywhere you go. So, whenever I come across a song that features a good blow, you know I’m gonna have to bring it to your attention. Such is the case with this […]
Song of the Day by Eric Berman – “World Away” by Tweedy
Song of the Day by Eric Berman – “World Away” by Tweedy Today marks the release date for the first semi-solo outing by Jeff Tweedy of Wilco. Teaming up with his 18 year old son, Spencer and going under the “Tweedy” moniker, the duo have released a sprawling, ramshackle record called Sukierae that brings another […]
Song Of the Day by Eric Berman – “The Jolly Banker” by Wilco
Back in 1997, British political folkie Billy Bragg joined forces with all-American rock band Wilco to compose and record music for lyrics left behind by the late, great Woody Guthrie. The recordings resulted in the two-volume “Mermaid Avenue” albums. Some songs were recorded by Bragg backed by Wilco and some were just Wilco songs. This […]
Song Of The Day by Eric Berman – “Old L.A.” by New Multitudes
While Bruce Springsteen tries to turn himself into Woody Guthrie by writing socially conscious lyrics (that are nebulous at best) and adopting a faux Oklahoma accent, the spirit and songs of Woody are alive and well in the form of New Multitudes. Marrying new music to lyrics left behind by Woody Guthrie is not a […]
Song Of The Day by Eric Berman – "Dawned On Me" by Wilco
Song Of The Day by Eric Berman – “Dawned On Me” by Wilco While their last album left much to be desired, the latest Wilco record, “The Whole Love,” is up there with their best work. They are back in Chicago this week for a run of shows dubbed “The Incredible […]
Song Of The Day – “A Hard Rain’s Gonna Fall” by Bob Dylan and his Band from the “AmericanaramA Festival” 2013
Editor’s note: This story originally appeared in July 2013 We live in the day and age of festivals. For music fans, festivals offer bang for the buck providing the opportunity to see numerous bands that you might not ever get to see otherwise at one time and in one place. For musicians, they open up […]
Top Albums of 2015
Song of the Day by Eric Berman: Top Albums of 2015 Kendrick Lamar: To Pimp A Butterfly Kamasi Washington: The Epic Wilco: Star Wars Sufjan Stevens: Carrie & Lowell Bod Dylan: Shadows In The Night Rudresh Mahanthappa: Bird Calls Alabama Shakes: Sound and Color Kurt Vile: b’lieve i’m goin down Sleater-Kinney: No Cities To Love […]
Booth Reviews: Broken Anchor at the Empty Bottle in Chicago
Includes an audio interview (see below) There is a constant barrage of press releases from publicists touting album releases, tour appearances, and films. Every so often one catches my attention, most often because its a rock pioneer, such as Alan Parsons, whom I interviewed in October of 2012. This time, however, it was for an indie […]
Song Of The Day by Eric Berman – “I Am Trying To Break Your Heart” by J.C. Brooks and the Uptown Sound
Wilco got soul with this total reworking of the “Yankee Hotel Foxtrot” classic.
