“Hey, I know that guy! It’s Neil! Turn around, quick!” Stephen Stills, struggling musician and songwriter, was riding shotgun in a white Ford Econoline Van driven by his manager, Barry Friedman. The date was April 6, 1966. In back was his old friend, Richie Furay, another aspiring singer-songwriter. They were stuck in a huge traffic […]
For centuries opera was dominated by larger-than-life characters: legendary gods and goddesses, mythical figures from ancient Greece and Rome, kings and queens. But as opera became an ever more popular form of entertainment, that model began to change. The operatic form continued to evolve during the post-Romantic period. Composers began turning to stories about simpler, […]
Tearing down and setting up. That’s the worst thing about playing drums in a classic rock band. Especially at my age. Tearing them down, packing them in the van; taking them out of the van; setting them up; tearing them down again, cramming them in the van and hauling them back again. Doing all of […]
In response to a question about the current state of the music industry, famed music producer Tony Visconti told an audience at the annual SXSW festival in Austin, Texas several years ago that pop music “Can’t get any worse!” Visconti claimed that record labels are simply repeating the formulas of the past, with diminishing returns. […]
A recent article in The Guardian [‘Bring that beat back: why are people in their 30s giving up on music?’ by Daniel Dylan Wray] highlighted research which purportedly show that as people today reach their thirties, music becomes less important in their lives. It’s a sign of the times that music is not so much […]
The IMAX presentation of The Beatles’ Rooftop concert was fun! The first half hour was a live link up with GET BACK director Peter Jackson, from his home in New Zealand. I dunno what time it was there, but he was totally disheveled…it looked like he’d just got out of bed. He did say he […]
The Pretenders are still one of my all-time favorite bands. Back when I was a healthy, idealistic young man, I was fortunate enough to see The Pretenders live, twice. Both of those times it was with the original lineup with Pete Farndon and James Honeyman-Scott – before Pete got kicked out of the band and […]
The local music scene in Albuquerque has been hit especially hard by the COVID crisis. Before the pandemic began there was a major issue with the number of small venues going out of business. Even with the explosion of brew pubs over the last few years, few will be in a position to support live […]
Black History Month is upon us once again; a time when corporate America gives lip service to the men and women who built this nation. The hypocrisy of all that “freedom and justice for all” bullshit is never more odious or obvious than during the month of February. Following the race riots of 2020, the […]
In the late 50s and early 60s, popular music was far more stratified than it is now. The categories were rigid and there was very little crossover between genres. Indeed, as the new decade dawned (1960), each camp was growing more firmly entrenched. Before the Cultural Revolution of the mid ‘60s, Jazz, R&B, Blues, pop, […]
Jason Darensburg's Blog-o-rama 