Bentley’s Bandstand: Favorite Albums of 2025 (First Half) Shane Alexander, FOREVER SONGS. Not everyone has a name known across the country, but then again very few can write songs as strong and soulful as Shane Alexander. He calls Southern California home, but his heart belongs to the cosmos. There is a way Alexander builds […]
Book & Music Reviews: A Biography of Joe Meek, England’s Counterpart to Phil Spector, plus Bobby Lee Trammell, the Rain Parade, and Brian Wilson In the intro to a new biography of Joe Meek, author Darryl W. Bullock notes that recent years have witnessed heightened interest in the career of the music producer and songwriter. […]
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BENTLEY’S BANDSTAND: June 2025 By Bill Bentley Jeffrey Broussard and the Nighttime Syndicate, BAYOU MOONLIGHT. It is well known in the burgs and bayous of New Orleans that music is meant to be put in the mixer. Any number of genres can get thrown together, and the end result often borders on bliss. There is […]
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When it comes to mining the vaults, the Boss still has a way to go to catch up to the Bard. Bob Dylan has offered a ton of archival releases, including the Bootleg Series, which now encompasses nearly 60 CDs. Bruce Springsteen is headed in the same direction as Dylan, though, having issued lots of […]
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Music Reviews: The Wandering Hearts, Willie Nile, Christopher Cross, Iron Horse, and the Black Watch The Wandering Hearts, Déjà vu (We Have All Been Here Before). Original material dominates Wild Silence, The Wandering Hearts, and Mother, the three previous albums from this British folk-rock trio. For its latest outing, however, the group eschews self-penned tracks, […]
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Grooves & Cuts – Mailbag Roundup Reviews May 2025 Spilled Mercury: The Davenports – You Could’ve Just Said That While the majority of other writers compare this “band” to Weezer, Ben Folds & the Fountains of Wayne the actual roots of this musical approach were planted in 1978 by Cliff Wade & Geoff Gill of […]
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Music Reviews: Gene and Eunice, J.M. Kearns, Tim O’Brien & Jan Fabricius, Michael Arbenz & Andy Sheppard, and Comet Gain Gene and Eunice, From Ko Ko Mo to Poco Loco: The Singles Collection 1954–62. If Gene and Eunice and the songs referenced in this anthology’s title ring no bells for you, you’re not alone. Gene […]
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Frank Zappa’s Cheaper Than Cheep, plus Janis Ian, Christian Parker, Eli ‘Paperboy’ Reed, and Big Love Car Wash Frank Zappa and his band, the Mothers of Invention, were riding high in June 1974. They’d just completed a 10th-anniversary tour and, only three months earlier, had released Apostrophe (’), their first and only Top 10 album. […]
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Music & Film Reviews:’Pink Floyd at Pompeii MCMLXXII (2025 Editions), plus Julee Cruise and Emma Wilson Pink Floyd conquered the world with its eighth LP, 1973’s Dark Side of the Moon, which became one of the bestselling albums of all time. Its music is certainly adventurous, but to these ears, not quite as experimental—or exciting—as […]
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Don’t Get Trouble In Your Mind: On Film, An Emotional Journey With The Carolina Chocolate Drops It seems like such a long time since The Carolina Chocolate Drops came upon us and helped to redefine roots music, in turn winning a Grammy for Best Traditional Folk Album for their innovative album Genuine Negro Jig. In […]
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