The Big Bopper ‘Chantilly Lace’

Song Of The Day by Eric Berman – “Chantilly Lace” by The Big Bopper Jiles “Jape” P. Richardson became a radio D.J. in 1952 and worked for ten years (with a two year break in the middle for army duty) at Texas radio station KTRM where he ultimately became their music director. While working at a sock hop, he decided to change his name to The Big Bopper after he witnessed teenagers dancing to a new dance called The...

Riot Fest Announces Initial Line-Up. Blondie, Motorhead, Fall Out Boy, Violent Femmes and Many More…

RIOT FEST & CARNIVAL UNLEASHES INITIAL LINE-UP - SEPTEMBER 13-15 at HUMBOLDT PARK IN CHICAGO ————————————————————————————————————————— TICKETS GO ON SALE AT 10pm WED, MAY 15th 3-DAY PASSES STARTING AT $69.98! —————————————————————————————————————————- Riot Fest & Carnival 2013 unleashes a dynamite musical line-up featuring Fall Out Boy, Blink-182, Violent Femmes, Motorhead, Rancid, Blondie, Rocket From The Crypt, Atmosphere, The Dismemberment Plan, Best Coast and a slew of killer bands from every era (line-up listed below). On a mission to create a punk rock...

2013 Americana Music Honors and Award Nominees Announced.

2013 A(Nashville, TN) May 14, 2013 – The Americana Music Association announced nominees today for the 2013 Honors & Awards in Los Angeles at the Grammy Museum®. The ceremony featured performances by now nominated artists Buddy Miller and Jim Lauderdale, T Bone Burnett with Lisa Marie Presley, Elizabeth Cook and The Milk Carton Kids. The program was broadcast live on AXS TV, who will present a special encore presentation of the event later this evening at 9PM ET/6PM PT. Shovels &...

Late Night Talk Show Guests for the Week of May 13th

Conan O’Brien Mo 5/13: Mila Kunis, Chris Hardwick, Family of the Year (R 2/21/13) Tu 5/14: Jennifer Love Hewitt, the Slide Brothers featuring Shemekia Copeland We 5/15: Zach Galifianakis, Jim Gaffigan, Beware of the Darkness Th 5/16: Zachary Quinto, Heather Graham, Jen Kirkman Craig Ferguson Mo 5/13: John Cho, Sara Rue Tu 5/14: Ray Liotta, DeAnne Smith, Pistol Annies We 5/15: Ice-T, Paula Poundstone Th 5/16: Paul Reiser, Yunjin Kim Fr 5/17: William Shatner David Letterman Mo 5/13: Mark Harmon, Amy Schumer, Luke Bryan Tu 5/14: Tom Hanks, a performance from the Broadway musical “Pippin” We 5/15: Ed Helms, Hoda Kotb, Brad Paisley Th 5/16: Barbara...

Ray Berretto ‘Acid’

Song Of The Day by Eric Berman – “Soul Drummers” by Ray Barretto Like Tito Puente before him, Ray Barretto is one of the all-time greatest “Soul Drummers” of them all. He gave us the “El Watusi” in 1961, “Senor 007″ in 1969 and this gem in 1967. The music emanated from el barrio, the South Bronx and Spanish Harlem in New York City, via the then-fledgling Latin record labels like Tico and Fania. Like Rap music in the...

Jimi and Sir Paul Recording Together? Yes, There Was a Chance.

Jimi, Sir Paul …. and Miles Davis?! Could we have seen an album recorded by a band that included both Jimi Hendrix and Paul McCartney. Well, it might have been closer to reality than you ever dreamed. And those two weren’t the only giant names that might have been included. The story takes us back to October 21st, 1969. Mr. Hendrix was putting together a band to record some new music. He had three of the four pieces...

2013 Blues Music Awards Winners Announced

34th Annual Blues Music Award Winners Last Night the 34th annual Blues Music Award winners were announced at a ceremony at Cook Convention Center in Memphis, Tennessee. We have the nominees and winners listed below. —————————————————————————————————————————————– Acoustic Album **Not Alone – Ann Rabson w/ Bob Margolin** -** winners listed first** Billy Boy Arnold Sings Big Bill Broonzy – Billy Boy Arnold Blues on Solid Ground – John Primer Deeper In The Well – Eric Bibb Talking Guitar – Paul...

Stephen Stills Forms New Blues-Rock Band With Kenny Wayne Shepherd and Barry Goldberg

“The Rides” to Release debut album in August LOS ANGELES, May 9, 2013 /PRNewswire/ – No stranger to top flight musical partnerships, legendary singer-songwriter and Buffalo Springfield / CSN / CSN&Y principal Stephen Stills unites with fellow guitar slinger Kenny Wayne Shepherd and venerable Electric Flag keyboardist Barry Goldberg to form the new all-star blues-rock group The Rides. The multi-generational outfit’s debut album, Can’t Get Enough, is set for CD, digital, and vinyl release August 27 on 429 Records. Featuring four co-written originals, a handful of covers, and a vintage, previously unrecorded Stills gem, Can’t Get Enough was inspired by—and is...

Willie Nelson ‘Crazy: The Demo Sessions’ – NEW RELEASE REVIEW

Song Of The Day by Eric Berman – “Undo The Right” by Willie Nelson “If you can’t say you love me say you hate me / And that you regret each time you held me tight, If you can’t be mine forever then forsake me / If you can’t undo the wrong, undo the right.” Totally brilliant in its simplicity! And so is this demo recording made for Pamper Music, the music publishing company owned by Ray Price and...

Paul McCartney Returns to the Stage in Brazil With an Amazing 38 Song Set That Was Full of Surprises

Paul McCartney returned to the stage tonight in Mineirão, Belo Horizonte, Brazil. It was his first show of 2013 and he pulled out some real gems. He opened with “Eight Days A Week” he claimed it was only the second time that he has ever played it live. Another surprised was “Your Mother Should Know” which also was played by for the second time. It was never played by the Beatles. ”Hi, Hi, Hi” hadn’t been played since 1976. (File photo)...

Telekinesis ‘Dormarion’ – NEW MUSIC REVIEW

Today’s Cool Album of the Day (#858 in the Series) is Telekinesis, Dormarion (Merge Records) It is May 3rd, and I’m just saying it right now. This will be the album of the summer. Hailing from Seattle, Telekinesis (Michael Benjamin Lerner’s one-man show) has just rocked my life with the new album Dormarion. Sometimes I struggle with writing the same thing about all the bands I like. They’re all good for pretty much the same reasons: folksy, rootsy, soulful,...

Rudresh Mahanthappa ‘Gamak’ – NEW MUSIC REVIEW

Song Of The Day by Eric Berman – “Waiting Is Forbidden” by Rudresh Mahanthappa Welcome to the sonic space where Ornette Coleman’s Prime Time meets King Crimson. Sound intriguing? If it doesn’t, read no further because today’s Song Of The Day is not for the faint of heart or those of closed mind. Despite his exotic name, Rudresh Mahanthappa was born in Italy of Indian descent, but raised in Boulder Colorado from a very young age. He studied music...

Tom Jones ‘Spirit in the Room’ – NEW MUSIC REVIEW

Song Of The Day by Eric Berman – “Just Dropped In” by Tom Jones Tom Jones just released his 40th album this week called Spirit In The Room. It was released last May in England and has finally gained a release stateside. It is also the second “mortality” album he’s released in a row. The “mortality album” occurs when a rapidly aging heritage artist is matched with a hip (younger) producer, who in this case is Ethan Johns. (Johns...

Phil Lucafo ‘One Block East’

Phil Lucafo’s One Block East, the first solo album from one of the founding members of the legendary country-rock band Heartsfield is finally here! Phil was responsible or partly responsible for many of Heartsfield’s better known songs such as “The Only Time I’m Sober Is When You’re Gone,” “Pass Me By,” “Gypsy Rider,” “I Like It A Lot” and “Rock and Roll Farm.” “The Only Time I’m Sober Is When You’re Gone” was just recently covered by a...

Earl ‘The Earl of Old Town’ Pionke…Club Owner and a True Legend of the Chicago Music Scene Has Died

Earl Pionke, known even more around the Chicago music scene as “The Earl of Old Town” has died. He passed away this afternoon April 26th at 2:30 PM. For years Mr. Pionke owned the popular “Earl of Old Town” pub in Chicago that spawned the careers of many future household names such as John Prine, Steve Goodman, Bonnie Koloc and many many more. The news of Mr. Pionke’s passing was announced by his close friend Marina Jason: “It is...

Kurt Vile “Wakin’ On A Pretty Daze” – NEW MUSIC REVIEW

Song Of The Day by Eric Berman – “Never Run Away” by Kurt Vile (Matador Records) Kurt Vile’s lo-fi bedroom records from the past have given way to a more produced sound on his latest record called Wakin’ On A Pretty Daze. While some of the edges have been smoothed out production-wise, the songwriting is as sharp as ever on his most assured collection yet, as he comes to terms with balancing life on the road and raising a...

Steve Earle & The Dukes (& Duchesses) ‘The Low Highway’ – NEW MUSIC REVIEW

Song Of The Day by Eric Berman – “Pocket Full Of Rain” by Steve Earle & The Dukes (& Duchesses) Steve Earle is an American Storyteller, poet and novelist, and his brand new album is certainly his best and most varied since Transcendental Blues, which came out almost 20 years ago. Recording with his crack live band, The Dukes (& The Duchesses) consisting of Chris Masterson on guitar, Eleanor Whitmore on violin, Kelley Looney on bass, Will Rigby on...

Bob Dylan Announces “AmericanaramA Festival of Music’ with Wilco and MMJ

Now this sounds like fun. A great blend of some fine music from multi-generations of greatness. The AmericanaramA Festival of Music, coming this summer, with Bob Dylan and his Band, Wilco, and My Morning Jacket, with special guests at select shows including Richard Thompson Electric Band and Ryan Bingham. 26 dates have been confirmed. They’re listen below. Tickets on sale starting this Wednesday! ——————————————————————————————————————————— Jun 26, 2013 West Palm Beach, FL Cruzan Amphitheatre with WILCO and My...

‘Cool Album of the Day’ Announces the Formation of ‘Cool Album Productions’

“If You’re Not Moving Forward Then You’re Going Backwards.” That saying has long been vibrating off many of our eardrums. Yes, it’s even bounced off ours here at “Cool Album of the Day” when those eardrums weren’t vibrating with good music. Hence we officially announce the formation of our independent record label branded “Cool Album Productions.” Our first release with be April 30th with the first solo album titled One Block East from former Heartsfield lead guitarist, songwriter,...

The Grateful Dead ‘Rare Cuts & Oddities 1966′ .. Plus a ‘Record Store Day’ Recap

Song Of The Day by Eric Berman – “Walkin’ The Dog” by Grateful Dead/Record Store Day Recap I’m a dyed in the wool, straight up record collector. I’ve been collecting records for more than 40 years and my thirst for music is pretty much insatiable. Today, I got totally played on by “the man.” I’m talking about “the man” who presses the records I buy. The man that I help keep relevant by going back to the tap and...

Todd Rundgren ‘State’ – NEW MUSIC REVIEW

I love Todd Rundgren. I’ve been a fan since the early 1970s, and at this point I don’t see that ever changing. Like Neil Young, Todd is one of the most mercurial artists who still makes interesting records in all sorts of genres mainly to please himself. That’s made for lots of experimentation along the way resulting in all different types of records like Beatles sound-alikes, samba reworking of older material, a record of Robert Johnson covers (called...

Dawes ‘Stories Don’t End’ – NEW MUSIC REVIEW

Song Of The Day by Eric Berman – “Most People” by Dawes Dawes make musical catnip circa 1976 for Mumford-loving, aging boomers who are desperately trying to stay musically relevant, while never ever leaving their musical comfort zone. And along with Fleet Foxes, Dawes have created a sound that is grounded in well-written songs, hummable melodies, plush harmonies and poetic lyrics that are chock full of credibility, offering a welcome relief from the jingoistic sing-a-long fare provided by...

Vince Gill Shares His Thoughts on Today’s Country Music..and He’s Right On!

For quite some time now I’ve been harsh on today’s country music, or more specifically, the state of today’s country radio. Now I’ve been joined by Vince Gill in its critique. It’s sad when Taylor Swift can dominate country radio and Merle Haggard can’t get a sniff. And I’m not talking about Merle’s old great albums I’m referring to his last couple of albums. They’ve been great yet completely ignored. Justin Townes Earle’s “Harlem River Blues” also did...

Walker Lukens ‘Devoted’ – NEW MUSIC REVIEW

Today’s Cool Album of the Day (#856 in the Series) is Walker Lukens, Devoted. If Harry Nilsson, Paul Simon, and Warren Zevon had a love child, his name would be Walker Lukens. This Austin settled, by way of Houston and New York City musician is that good, and with his new album Devoted he has managed to combine the raw, vulnerable musings of Nilsson, the pop sensibility of Simon, and the “on the edge” coolest guy in the room...

Old Man Markley ‘Down Side Up’ – NEW MUSIC REVIEW

Today’s Cool Album of the Day (#854 in the Series) is Old Man Markley, Down Side Up (Fat Wreck Chords) There is an interesting thing happening in the pop music world these days. The more things change, the more they stay the same….and yet they still keep changing. Not entirely sure what that means, but this much is true: traditionally defined genres are blending, sometimes being deconstructed altogether, and new fusions are emerging. Especially in the Nashville/ACM scene,...

Eric Burdon ”Til Your River Runs Dry’ – NEW MUSIC REVIEW

Song Of The Day by Eric Berman – “Devil And Jesus” by Eric Burdon While the world gets ready to get their ya-ya’s out over The Stones’ 50th Anniversary tour another legendary British Invasion hero just released a new album that stands head and shoulders next to much of his material from is glory days with The Animals. Eric Burdon seemingly all but disappeared from the musical landscape until last year’s South By Southwest gathering where Bruce Springsteen...

Josh Ritter ‘The Beast In Its Tracks’ – NEW MUSIC REVIEW

Today’s Cool Album of the Day (#852 in the Series) is Josh Ritter, The Beast In Its Tracks I have come to expect great things from Josh Ritter over the handful of years that I’ve been a fan of his. And were it not for my pawing through a friend’s estate sale and picking up Animal Years because he swore I’d like it, I’m not sure how or when I would have found Josh Ritter. But man, now...

Rolling Stones ’50 and Counting’ Tour Dates. Mick Taylor to be ‘Special Guest’ Throughout the Tour.

The 50 and Counting tour continues…. “50 and Counting has been pretty amazing so far,” Mick Jagger said in a release. “We did a few shows in London and New York last year … and had such a good time that we thought … let’s do some more. It’s a good show. Lots of the classic stuff everyone wants to hear … with a few little gems tucked in here and there. The stage is shaped like...

Eric Clapton ‘Old Sock’ and 50th Anniversary Concert Review – NEW MUSIC REVIEW

Today’s Cool Album of the Day (#850 in the Series) is Eric Clapton, Old Sock, but first we look at his 50th Anniversary Tour concert stop in Oklahoma City. It is hard for me to put into words the excitement I had going to see Eric Clapton in concert. This is the man who inspired me to pick up a guitar and learn to play. At the same time, his playing can make me want to quit the...

The Black Lillies ‘Runaway Freeway Blues’ – NEW MUSIC REVIEW

Today’s Cool album of the day (#849 in the Series) is The Black Lillies, Runaway Freeway Blues. This marks the band’s third album and I’ll say right here that you should go ahead and not just buy this new one, but first two , Whiskey Angel and 100 Miles of Wreckage as well. You will not be disappointed. It might make sense to tell you a little about the band itself and then get to the details of...

Tune in Tom Lounges New Show “The Midwest Beat”

Tom Lounges Joins 89.1 “The Lakeshore” with New Show. Tune in “Midwest BEAT with Tom Lounges” on Tuesday evenings (6-7pm Central) with a repeat broadcast on Friday nights at 12am/Midnight. Only on 89.1FM – The Lakeshore and online streaming at www.thelakeshorefm.com Tom’s show has been steadily building a loyal audience since debuting on January 8th. Recent show guests have included – George Thorogood, Marcia Ball, Tommy James, Bill Leverty of Firehouse, Cuba Gooding Sr., Marilyn McCoo & Billy...

Boz Scaggs ‘Memphis’ – NEW MUSIC REVIEW

Song Of The Day by Eric Berman – “Love On A Two Way Street” by Boz Scaggs Boz Scaggs has led a dual career over the years. On one hand, he’s been a master bluesman who cut his teeth recording with the likes of Steve Miller and Duane Allman, and then there’s the silky-smooth soul man who became a platinum- plated superstar during the late ‘70s. Fortunately for his fans, both sides of Scaggs are present on his...

Pat Metheny ‘The Orchestrion Project’ – NEW MUSIC REVIEW

Song Of The Day by Eric Berman – “Improvisation #2” by Pat Metheny Orchestrion Project If the essence of Jazz is to listen to and improvise off of the musical ideas of those you are playing with, and you are in essence a one man band, can you still consider the music you make jazz? The orchestrion is a mechanically controlled mini orchestra that was designed by Pat Metheny and controlled by his touch on the guitar. Metheny...

Elizabeth Cook Once Again Graces ‘The Late Show with David Letterman’

One of Cool Album of the Day’s favorite performers graced The Late Show with David Letterman yet again recently. Elizabeth Cook not only performed a great classic song but also put smiles on faces with yet another fun interview. You can see both below. Enjoy! Her latest EP is a Gospel record called Gospel Plow. It was released a year or so ago. In fact, this is her second appearance on Dave’s show in that time. We’ve also...

Devon Allman ‘Turquoise’ – NEW MUSIC REVIEW

Today’s Cool Album of the Day (#846 in the Series) is Devon Allman, Turquoise The first thing that hits you between the ears with a critical listen to “When I Left Home,” the opening track of Devon Allman’s fine new album Turquoise, a song that takes you through an autobiographical narrative that touches only sparingly on his rock royalty pedigree as the son of Gregg Allman and the Nephew of the late Duane Allman, is that Devon‘s musical...

Jim James ‘Regions of Light and Sound of God’ – NEW MUSIC REVIEW

Today’s Cool Album of the Day (#844 in the Series) is Jim James, Regions of Light and Sound of God. Jim James is one of those voices that I heard in the chaos of my house, and immediately stopped everything and listened. It was the first time I had heard his voice. He was singing “Steam Engine”on vinyl on our Carver stereo. I was immediately smitten. (My husband was about one day ahead of me hearing them on the radio and...

Original Santana Band to Reunite For New Album.

Yes, the rumors are true. All signs are pointing to a reunion of the original Santana band and an album looks imminent. Carlos recently told music Vintage Vinyl News: “So far we have invited the original members like Gregg Rolie from the first three albums, It will be like Santana IV because we stopped at ‘Santana III’” Carlos continued that the album will have the African feel of the first three Santana records. “We have been checking out a...

Atoms For Peace ‘Amok’ – NEW MUSIC REVIEW

Song Of The Day by Eric Berman – “What The Eyeballs Did” by Atoms For Peace The first thing that grabs you is the rhythm – jittery, squiggly, purely wiggy and totally glitchy rhythm. Rhythms that don’t make you dance, but do make you move. The ghost of Talking Heads’ Remain In Light lives here. Their fingerprints are all over songs that have been built up from rhythm. They inhabit the nine tracks that make up Amok, the...

The Bryan Ferry Orchestra ‘The Jazz Age’ – NEW MUSIC REVIEW

Today’s Cool Album of the Day (#841 in the Series) is Bryan Ferry, The Jazz Age Talk about something coming completely out of left field. I had heard nothing about this album until one day I saw it pop up on a listing of new releases for the week. What makes it more surprising is that was true even though it had been out in the UK for about three months. The premise of The Jazz Age is...

Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds ‘Push The Sky Away’ – NEW MUSIC REVIEW

Today’s Cool Album of the Day (#839 in the Series) is Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds, Push The Sky Away The advance word on this one was that Nick and the band had recorded a somewhat subdued set, their most laid-back batch of songs since 1997′s classic The Boatmans Call and I’m very pleased to report that the word was spot on. I personally feel that Nick is at his very best when it comes to (for...

The ‘Nirvana Baby’ is Now All Grown Up. Who is He? What Is He Doing Now?

You’ve seen him but you probably never knew his name. The famous three month old pee-pee baring baby on the cover of the Nirvana Nevermind album is now a 22 year old man. His name is Spencer Elden. He told MTV News a few years back “it’s kind of creepy that that many people have seen me naked — I feel like I’m the world’s biggest porn star.” The shot was taken at the Rose Bowl...

Paul Barrere & Roger Cole ‘Riding The Nova Train’ – Today’s Cool Album of the Day’ – NEW MUSIC REVIEW

Today’s Cool Album of the Day (#836 in the Series) is Paul Barrere & Roger Cole, Riding the Nova Train Paul Barrere’s latest project is finally available; a collection of eclectic tunes reminiscent of the early days of Little Feat, recorded with old friend Roger Cole, Riding The Nova Train has a sample of influences through Paul’s long career. After the band plays at Feat Fan XI in Jamaica in March, Paul will be taking a...

Roger Knox ‘Stranger In My Land’ – NEW MUSIC REVIEW

Today’s Cool Album of the Day (#834 in the Series) is Roger Knox, Stranger In My Land (Bloodshot Records) Part travelogue, part National Geographic special, and part crash sociology course, Stranger in My Land, the new album by Roger Knox is surely to be the most important album you will listen to all year, and might just be the most important album of the decade. The overall arch of this record, the unfair treatment of Australian Aborigines, is...

Jerry Garcia Band ‘GarciaLive Volume One’ – NEW ALBUM REVIEW

Song Of The Day by Eric Berman – “Catfish John” by Jerry Garcia Band It was a tale of two Jerries. By 1980 Jerry Garcia had his day job with the Grateful Dead. During that year, the band released the somewhat weak studio album, Go To Heaven, and took to the road to promote it. While the 1979-1980 shows generally found the band in excellent form, in order to keep things interesting for the fans and themselves, they...

Richard Thompson ‘Electric’ – NEW MUSIC REVIEW

Today’s Cool Album of the Day (#833 in the Series) is Richard Thompson, Electric If you are a fan of Richard Thompson, just hearing the title of his new album Electric should make you smile. If somehow you don’t know his music just listening to the first track “Stony Ground” will do the same thing. The song starts out with some clapping and percussion and then Richard Thompson and his Trio kick in to a song about “Old...

Eels ‘Wonderful, Glorious’ – NEW MUSIC REVIEW

Song Of The Day by Eric Berman – “Kind Of Fuzzy” by Eels It’s wonderful! It’s glorious! It’s Eels new album Wonderful, Glorious! Actually, the album could have been titled Everett Comes Alive, or even more to the point Get Happy! For their tenth studio album, Eels turned to a collaborative process, creating songs out of in-studio jams, with E (Mark Oliver Everett) adding lyrics on the fly. The result is a recording that is far more diverse...

Ernie Ball Announces New M-Steel Electric Guitar Strings For 2013

Legendary String Maker Ernie Ball Develops The Most Technologically Advanced Guitar Strings Available ——————————————- January 24, 2013 – Los Angeles, CA – Ernie Ball, one of the leading manufacturers of strings and musical instrument accessories, has announced today, another breakthrough in the world of string innovation and design. The company is proud to announce the development of M-Steel electric guitar strings; the new patent-pending premium line of guitar strings made from a defense grade alloy known as Maraging...

Stevie Van Zandt to miss Australian Leg of Springsteen Tour, Tom Morello to Fill In.

Since Stevie Van Zandt’s filming commitments to his highly successful television show Lilyhammer will keep him off stage for the upcoming Australian tour dates, Bruce Springsteen has invited Tom Morello to sit in temporarily on guitar. Following the Australian dates, Van Zandt will return to the tour in Oslo, Norway on April 29, 2013. Tom Morello performed on multiple recordings from ‘Wrecking Ball’ (Jack of All Trades, This Depression), and recently joined Bruce Springsteen and the E Street...

‘Library of Congress: National Registry of Music’ – Entries Since 1960 (Part 1)

One of the greatest honors in the recording world is to have your work added to the Library of Congress National Registry. Let’s look at the 100 or so entries that were recorded since 1960. Here are the first 25. Be sure to visit all four pages Part 1 / Part 2 /Part 3 / Part 4 ———————————————————————————– “The Button-Down Mind of Bob Newhart” (album). Bob Newhart. (1960) Bob Newhart introduced his fresh, new style of deceptively satiric comedy to audiences with this...

‘Cool Album of the Day’ Favorite Albums of 2012

One of the things that many music websites do this time of year is publish what they call “The Best Albums of Year..blah blah blah.” All I have to say is, if you claim your list is a best of, then you better have heard every album that was released. I read a ton of these lists and I know for sure, these people are deciding on what is a best of and they haven’t come close to...

Paul Barrere to Take Year Long Medical Leave From Little Feat

Paul Barrere will be taking some time off from Little Feat. He’s announced that due to his treatment for Hepatitis “C” that he will need to take about a year off from touring although he may do a one-off show with the band “if the planets line up.” As Paul explains in his statement below, he will continue to play through the March Jamaica shows before he begins his treatments. ====================================================== Here’s a statement from Paul Barrere: In...

Bruce Springsteen Announces 2013 European ‘Wrecking Ball Tour’ Dates

Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band announce 17 additional dates in Europe for the 2013 leg of the Wrecking Ball World Tour. In addition, Bruce & The E Street Band’s headlining performance at Rock In Rio 2013 has already been announced and other tour dates will be announced shortly. To date, the Wrecking Ball World Tour has stopped in 17 countries for over 80 shows including several of the longest performances of Springsteen’s career, earning him and...

“Cool Album of the Day” is Looking for Contributors

If you follow the Cool Album of the Day website I’m guessing that you are a little bit of a music fan. Excellent! Have you ever wanted to be published? Well if you are, we at Cool Album of the Day are always looking for contributors. You know what we do here. Like I mentioned, we’re always looking for people that would like to do a write up on some of their favorite albums. We’d also love people that would...

The 100 Best Albums Since 2000 (well at least according to Rolling Stone Magazine)

Rolling Stone Magazine has released, what they feel, are the 100 best albums released since the year 2000. Here’s their list.. —————————————————————————————————————————————————————— 100-75// 74-50 //49-25 //24-1 100: Leonard Cohen, ‘Ten New Songs’ 99: The Hold Steady, ‘Almost Killed Me’ 98: TV on the Radio, ‘Return to Cookie Mountain’ 97: Wilco, ‘Sky Blue Sky’ 96: The Streets, ‘Original Pirate Material’ 95: Alicia Keys, ‘Songs in a Minor’ 94: The Libertines, ‘Up the Bracket’ 93:...

Chicago’s Aragon Ballroom. The Most Complete Listing of Shows from the 60s thru the 90s

Ah the Aragon Ballroom. This is a fun listing for the old Rock ‘n’ Rollers that visit the Cool Album of the Day site. Here’s a list of just about ever show that was held at the Aragon Ballroom in the Uptown neighborhood of Chicago. If you went there, have fun looking thru this list. Look for the shows that you saw. Feel ‘bummed’ about the ones you missed. Be angry about the ones that you would have checked...

Music: How we bought it through the years. Plus: ‘What is an ‘album?’

Albums? No, an ‘album’ does NOT mean vinyl. For years our radio friends would refer to the music they played as ‘albums.’ Stick around for something from the new Genesis album, or That was ”Song For My Brother’ from the Shadowfax album, ‘Watercourse Way.’ Then as the 80s were ending, so was the way that radio gave us our music. They were making the transition from playing vinyl to compact disc. It cost them a good penny and they...

These Bands/Individuals are NOT in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame!

Well we know the 2013 nominees now. So now I’m going to update the list of bands and individuals that we started a few years back that are NOT yet in. (if you missed them they are Rush, Procol Harum, Deep Purple, The Meters, Chic, The Marvelettes, Paul Butterfield Blues Band, Randy Newman, Heart, Albert King, Joan Jett and the Blackhearts, NWA, Kraftwerk, Public Enemy and Donna Summer.) This is not an endorsement for these bands. In fact, there...

Green Day Brings the Party to Chicago – CONCERT REVIEW

Song Of The Day by Eric Berman – “99 Revolutions” by Green Day Can an artist who has been charged with being a party animal for an arena full of people still be the life of the party after coming off a stint in rehab? That question was answered this evening when Green Day took the stage for their rescheduled 99 Revolutions Tour supporting three recent album releases Uno!, Dos! and Tre!. And with the help of his...

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Was (Not Was) “What Up, Dog?”

Posted 26 Sep 2011 in 80s, Albums of 1988, Albums of the 80s, Funk, Rock + Roll, Soul/R+B

——————————————————————————————- Today’s Cool Album of the Day (#506 in the Series) is Was (Not Was), What Up, Dog? Have you heard this one? I’m guessing many of you have not. Well, you may have heard one of the singles, “Walk the Dinosaur” or “Spy In the House of Love,” but like many great albums, the singles don’t tell the story. Was (Not Was) is the brainchild of Don Was and David Was. Two outstanding producers/musicians. Don Was has done many things you’ve heard. From the great Bonnie Raitt album, Nick of Time to The Rolling Stones. The majority of this album is a hard funk/ jazz sound, with a couple great ballads tossed in. The band’s sense of humor...

Bill Withers “Just As I Am”

Posted 25 Sep 2011 in 70s, Albums of 1971, Albums of the 70s, Singer / Songwriter, Soul/R+B, Walt Falconer

Today’s Cool Album of the Day (#505 in the Series) is Bill Withers, Just As I Am By all rights the Bill Withers album Just As I Am should never have been made. It’s not that the talent was not here, it certainly was, it’s just that it is not often that when a record company needs to take promotional pictures for an album that they have to work around the artist’s break times during his 8-5 job at a Boeing plant making airplane toilets. In 1967 Bill Withers, fresh from a discharge from the Navy and bolstered by his fellow sailor’s encouragement and recognition of his talent, moved to the west coast to make some demo records...

Patricia Barber “Nightclub”

Posted 24 Sep 2011 in 00s, Albums of 2000, Albums of the 00s, Pop, Stephen Dalrymple, Vocal

Today’s Cool Album of the Day (#504 in the Series) is Patricia Barber, Nightclub A dark , delicious delight of an album. Take a look through Patricia Barber’s career and you’ll quickly see that she likes to be adventurous and do her own thing, rarely the safe option for her. Most people blessed with a voice and talent like hers would settle for a nice, comfortable career, the easy money. It’s to her credit that she tries not to go down that road too often and it’s her questing spirit which results in wonderful releases like this. It may also be the reason that you might not have heard of her! The aim on this recording was to...

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Bob Marley and the Wailers “Live!”

Posted 23 Sep 2011 in 70s, Albums of 1975, Albums of the 70s, Live, Reggae / Ska

Today’s Cool Album of the Day (#503 in the Series and # 51 in the Live, Saturday Night Series) is Bob Marley, Live! This has long been considered the best live album of Bob Marley’s career. It’s also been considered the best live album of the reggae genre for some years now. I’ll let you make that call personally. To each his own as they say, I think the point that “it’s good” can be made, that the idea here. Me, I would have seen a live disc recorded on the next tour. That would have been the one for Rastaman Vibration. That was my fave, but this will do. This was the tour for Natty Dread. Bob...

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The Jimmy Fallon Show to Feature “Pink Floyd Week”

Posted 23 Sep 2011 in Uncategorized

For quite some time now, The Jimmy Fallon show has been doing some great things with his musical guests. If you haven’t seen his Neil Young impressions then you’re really missing out. The brilliance of it is in its subtleties. He’s also had The Vanilla Fudge and The Zombies are recent guests. Those were indeed fun to see. Now he’s taking it to another step. Next week he’s featuring the Pink Floyd. No, the band will not reform and perform. Sit back down. Nick Mason will be an interview guest on Monday, Sept 26. The Shins will perform The Dark Side of the Moon’s”Breathe” on the same show. That will be followed the next day by Roger Waters....

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Colin Hay “Are You Looking At Me”

Posted 22 Sep 2011 in 00s, Albums of 2006, Albums of the 00s, Pop, Rock + Roll

Today’s Cool Album of the Day (#502 in the Series) is Colin Hay, Are You Looking At Me? One of the cool things about being a music fan is having good friends with whom you can play the “Trust me on this one” game. You know it; you probably played it and never even realized it. A good friend comes up to you and either hands you a CD, or a cassette or even good ol’ vinyl and says “Check this out” I think you’ll like it. You look at the title and try and hide your surprise when he or she hands you a title that you would never listen to on your own. In fact, you...

R.E.M. “Chronic Town”

Posted 21 Sep 2011 in 80s, Albums of 1982, Albums of the 80s, Rock + Roll, Rock and Roll Hall of Famer

Today’s Cool Album of the Day (#501 in the Series) is R.E.M., Chronic Town OK, who remembers Trouser Press? Actually, it’s still around. Maybe it’s just online now, I have no idea actually. If you remember the magazine, do you remember when they used to have “flexi discs” in the issues? Who were most of the bands on those discs, no Idea, but I do remember one. That was R.E.M. and the songs that appeared on the flexi discs were from their Chronic Town EP. My good friend Terry took a bunch of those discs and took a bunch of the better songs from these bands and put them on a Maxell or TDK or “something” cassette tape. Two...

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Van Morrison “Astral Weeks”

Posted 20 Sep 2011 in Albums of 1968, Albums of the 60s, Folk Rock, Rock + Roll, Rock and Roll Hall of Famer, Stephen Dalrymple

Today’s Cool Album of the Day (#500 IN THE SERIES, and #30 in the Whale Wednesday Series) is Van Morrison, Astral Weeks. Astral Weeks by Van Morrison is the greatest album ever made. By anyone. Ever. A bold statement to make, given the vast amount of albums that Iwould consider “classic” but I’m willing to stand by it. I’ve loved this album for many years, can still listen to it without feeling it’s overfamiliar, and can still marvel at the sheer beauty of the music, the lyrics AND the singing. It’s a shape changer. For the first few, I dunno, hundred?, thousand?, listens you simply don’t know what’s coming next, where the music’s going to go, what flights of...

The Beach Boys “Surf’s Up”

Posted 18 Sep 2011 in 70s, Albums of 1971, Albums of the 70s, Pop, Rock + Roll, Rock and Roll Hall of Famer, Walt Falconer

Today’s Cool Album of the Day (#499 in the Series) is The Beach Boys, Surfs Up Sometimes the Mojo inspirations for my psychedelic meanderings for Cool Album of the Day come from lubricating the death machine, wandering in the desert aimlessly with an Indian Shaman by my side guiding me. Other times I am in the Falcon’s Nest jungle room staring at the black light posters of Jimi Hendrix and Led Zeppelin wondering where I can put my next lava lamp while consulting my Todd Mcfarlane figures of Alice Cooper, Ozzy Osbourne, Rob Zombie, and Jim Morrison. Alice Cooper is usually the more vocal of this quartet. Dave Alvin (Cool Album of the Day #471) was his. Jim Morrison...

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Todd Rundgren “(Re)Production”

Posted 17 Sep 2011 in 10s, Albums of 2011, Albums of the 10s, Alt-Rock, New Wave, Pop

Today’s Cool Album of the Day (#498 in the Series) is Todd Rundgren, (Re)Production Todd’s (Re)Production is going to get a ton of bad reviews. Why you say? Well, this album just doesn’t come across that well on first listen. Unfortunately, that’s all most reviewers will give to a new disc. Not here, no no no. I try to give a new release at least three spins before I take out my crayon and loose leaf paper, ok my laptop actually. One thing that we’ve discussed before is how albums that take a little longer to get into are usually the ones that stay with you longer. I feel that way. That’s the case here. (Re)Production is all covers,...