Favorite Albums of 2025 – Editor’s Pick What defines a great album? When you’re several songs in and your mind is still exploding, you’re still groovin’, or turning it up and leaning in to listen closer? Lots of albums have that one incredibly great song, or two, or three. But for a favorite album you’ll […]
BENTLEY’S BANDSTAND: November 2025 Al Basile, BLUES IN HAND. Lock up the blues crew, because Al Basile is on the lurch and recorded what is the best album of his celebrated career. He’s grabbed the uptown blues by the horns and is more than ready to kick up some naugahyde action through the window. This […]
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The memorably named Peanut Butter Conspiracy remains a tiny footnote in rock history. The quintet doesn’t even qualify as a one-hit wonder, as its only charting single, 1967’s “It’s a Happening Thing,” climbed no higher on Billboard’s pop list than No. 93. Perhaps it’s time for a fresh assessment of this outfit, however. Formed from […]
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Dar Williams – Hummingbird Highway I’m familiar with Dar Williams & while her skillful lyrics weave together into her fine music with expertise, she’s been an exceptional artist. This set is an observance filled with colorful characters & places. Some are from a child’s perspective; others are from her many road adventures. Songwriting’s like learning […]
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Interview: Moved by Metaphor, Dar Williams Commits to the Hummingbird Highway Dar Williams toured a spice farm in Belize set amid pristine jungles and primordial Mayan ruins. At a bumpy junction, the driver told the passengers that there were three possible options: steering east, veering west, or sticking to the middle road, which he called […]
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