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Award-winning multi- instrumentalist singer, songwriter, composer, producer Ben Harper has enjoyed a career spanning over four decades, with studio and live work presenting a dynamic range of genres, from true Americana folk to deep reggae. Harper began his career in the ‘80s as a teenager, playing slide guitar in the style of blues legend Robert Johnson. His first touring gig was with another blues legend, Taj Mahal. His first solo record, Welcome To The Cruel World, was released on Virgin Records in 1994. In 2020, Harper delivered a true solo album, Winter Is For Lovers, that he’s recently followed up…

A veteran of the rock ‘n’ roll industry, singer/songwriter/guitarist/producer Marc Ribler has shared the stage with the likes of Steven Van Zandt, Bruce Springsteen, Paul McCartney, Elvis Costello, and many more. His career began in the mid ’80s with the band Nightflyer. Their minor success opened the door to opportunities including opening for Sam & Dave, Sly And The Family Stone, and Rick Danko of The Band. Marc then settled into a rewarding career in the ’90s as a songwriter for RCA. His songs have charted in the Billboard Top 100, the American Top 40, as well as in Canada…

Harry Chapin was one of the cheesiest, most pretentious singer/songwriters of the ‘70s but damn if he wasn’t one of my favorites. His song about the University of Texas sniper Charles Whitman is one of the best songs ever written. It’s high time that a full documentary has been made to honor his memory. 2021 will mark the 40th anniversary of his passing and this movie is the first full-length celebration of his talents. Unfortunately, it’s only half decent and I found myself thinking more and more about the VH1 Behind The Music that was made in the early 2000s.…

When the opening moments of a documentary about the tragic end of Blind Melon singer Shannon Hoon shows him in his hotel room talking to his girlfriend hours before he dies on a tour bus of a cocaine overdose, you know you’re in for a hell of a ride. Culled from hours of footage personally shot by Hoon over the last 10 years or so of his life before his death in 1995, the film chronicles the complete rise, fall, and demise of not only Blind Melon’s career but Hoon as a person as well. Being such a huge Melon…

 Becky Warren the singer-songwriter is a whip-smart, take-no-prisoners, reflexively charismatic performer with a novelist’s eye and a rock and roller’s heart. Her music, whether you cast it as Americana or alt-country or “catchy, guitar-driven rock” (her words), is filled with memorable characters and addictive hooks, penetrating lyrics and self-deprecating humor.Becky Warren the person is both very much the same and completely different. Genuinely modest about her prodigious talents, she is also speaking publicly for the first time this year about a personal struggle with depression that has now lasted more than half her life. After a pair of albums fronting…

 Jean-Paul Vest (Photo credit: Dustin Finn)The Sand Reckoner is the fifth studio album (plus one EP) from Last Charge Of The Light Horse, the vehicle for the music of songwriter Jean-Paul Vest. A native Texan long since transplanted to Long Island, New York, Vest’s painstakingly crafted songs combine the poetic intensity of Richard Thompson, the melodic intuition of George Harrison, the fearless complexity of XTC, and the willful experimentalism of Radiohead. Influences aside, though, Vest’s work is thoroughly original, each song a thoughtfully constructed statement, often both visceral and evocative.The new album is Vest’s fourth collaboration with Grammy-winning Los Angeles…

When you think “Southern rock” or “’70s rock,” many bands may come to mind, but there was one who led the charge directly out of Macon, Georgia: The Allman Brothers Band. Founded by guitarist Duane Allman and his brother Gregg on keyboards and vocals, their two-guitar, two-drum sonic attack rewrote the rules for rock music, and despite numerous tragedies afflicting the band, they somehow managed to keep the music going up until Gregg Allman’s death in 2017. The Allman Brothers Band’s discography is vast, having provided listeners with nearly 50 years of music. But, unlike many other “worst to first”…

After plowing through eleven Mercyful Fate albums in the course of four days, you might think that your faithful scribe would have had enough of material featuring King Diamond. But with the reissues of Diamond’s first albums recorded for Roadrunner being released, as well as the earliest Mercyful Fate albums, as well as the promise of a new album (The Institute), it seemed like the right time to tackle Diamond’s vast discography and attempt to rank them, worst to best. Please note: I started writing this prior to the reissues coming out, so the opinions are based on the releases…

With the suggestion of a new King Diamond album forthcoming, as well as a reissue of all King Diamond and Mercyful Fate albums which used to be on Roadrunner (and which have been long out of print), it seems to be the right time for a “worst to first” list for both. For this particular list, I’m only focusing on Mercyful Fate; King Diamond will follow soon after. Since there are precious few albums in Mercyful Fate’s discography, I am choosing to include EPs, as well as select compilation albums, as long as they include a significant amount of material…

They have been opening their concerts for over 40 years now with the line, “You wanted the best, you got the best!” But, how many studio albums from the legendary hard rock group Kiss can actually live up to that bold statement? There is no denying that the recorded output from Kiss has been cyclical over the years; some albums are met with near universal acclaim, while others are almost completely reviled. But what albums truly contain the best work of this band? That's where I come in; presented for your perusal (as well as certain disdain I'll get from…