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CD REVIEW: THE TYMES “SO MUCH IN LOVE” (REAL GONE/ABKCO)

February 25th, 2012 | Bill | CD Review

Philly vocal groups didn’t come any more polished to a glistening sheen than the Tymes.

CD REVIEW: VARIOUS ARTISTS “CAMEO-PARKWAY HOLIDAY HITS” (REAL GONE MUSIC/ABKCO)

December 12th, 2011 | Bill | CD Review

You won’t find a more eclectic new Christmas reissue CD than this 18-song collection of super-obscurities from deep in the vaults of Philly’s Cameo/Parkway Records.

2011 CHICAGO BLUES FESTIVAL WRAPUP

June 13th, 2011 | Bill | Concert Review

Wow, what a disappointing Chicago Blues Festival this past weekend in Grant Park.

CD REVIEW: JACK EARLS & THE JIMBOS “SLOW DOWN–THE SUN YEARS, PLUS” (BEAR FAMILY)

April 30th, 2011 | Bill | CD Review

For every Elvis, Jerry Lee, or Johnny Cash who parlayed their days at Sun Records into fame and fortune, there were 10 more rockabillies that released a handful of seminal boppers apiece on the Memphis-based label and faded from national view. Or in Jack Earls’ case, one transcendent single that provided Bear Family with the title of Earls’ two-CD career overview, Slow Down—The Sun Years, Plus.

CD REVIEW: THE BIG BOPPER “HELLOOO BABY! YOU KNOW WHAT I LIKE!” (BEAR FAMILY)

April 27th, 2011 | Bill | CD Review

One-hit wonder. That’s the conventional thinking about J.P. Richardson, cut down in the same tragic February 3, 1959 plane crash that snuffed Buddy Holly and Ritchie Valens. If you believe the standard rock history books, the Big Bopper’s entire legacy revolves around his ’58 smash “Chantilly Lace.” Bear Family’s Hellooo Baby! You Know What I Like! should eradicate that faulty perception for good.

CD REVIEW: DON WOODY “YOU’RE BARKING UP THE WRONG TREE” (BEAR FAMILY)

April 26th, 2011 | Bill | CD Review

Bear Family’s recent compilation of rockabilly Don Woody’s catalog isn’t the usual jam-packed set the label is known for. 11 tracks in all, two written by Woody and sung by someone else. But the disc is well worth searching out; Don’s two sessions, one for Decca in December of 1956 for Decca and the other circa 1960 for tiny Arco Records of Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, were both rocking affairs.

BISHOP JOE SIMON HAS NEW CD SINGLE OUT

November 12th, 2010 | Bill | News

           Bishop Joe Simon called me the other day to let me know about his new downloadable single “I’ve Done Wrong Forgive Me,” and it’s something special—the closest he’s sounded to his classic soul style since he left the secular world behind many moons ago to exclusively sing gospel. You can order it direct from [...]

WELDON A. McDOUGAL III 1936-2010

November 12th, 2010 | Bill | Obituary

Truth be told, Weldon A. McDougal III wasn’t all that thrilled at the beginning of our friendship that Krause Publications had teamed the two of us up to create the book Motown: The Golden Years. He had a cache of hundreds of priceless candid photos that he’d taken while working as a Motown promo man and occasional house photographer during the ‘60s and early ‘70s, and smooth talker that he was, he’d sold Krause on the idea of publishing the best of them in book form. But Weldon hadn’t counted on splitting the action with a collaborator who was assigned to write the accompanying text.

SOLOMON BURKE 1940-2010

October 11th, 2010 | Bill | Obituary

Everything about Solomon Burke was bigger than life. Way bigger. Burke’s profoundly regal bearing, underscored by his insistence on performing while seated on a red throne with a crown adorning his head, came to him entirely naturally.

2010 PONDEROSA STOMP RECAP

September 29th, 2010 | Bill | Concert Review

Truth be told, I was skeptical when I heard the Ponderosa Stomp was moving to the fall from its traditional spring slot, nestled between the two weekends of Jazz Fest. This annual two-day New Orleans festival, celebrating the surviving giants of soul, blues, rockabilly, country, swamp-pop, Cajun, ‘50s rock and roll, Crescent City R&B, and garage rock, is my favorite live music event of the year, so any substantial changes to the operation are regarded with definite concern. As it turned out, the 2010 edition of the Stomp, held September 24-25 at the Crescent City’s House of Blues, turned out just fine.