Bloggerhythms

Sadly, Yes bassist Chris Squire passed away of acute erythroid leukemia yesterday at age 67. In the revolving door that was Yes Squire was the only member to appear on every album the band, who isn't in the hall of fame but should be, ever released. While the low profile Squire was less known than former members Jon Anderson and Rick Wakeman, he was an extremely important cog in the wheel that kept the Yes machine rolling. Some people even say the band could not have existed without him. As All Music Guide so accurately stated his bass playing frequently served as another lead instrument. Squire also sang back up and was responsible for co-composing many of the quintet's best songs. The prog-rocker's solo output was small. He only released four albums in his name throughout his career. Yes was always his primary focus. This post is shorter than most of the articles published here because the best way to celebrate Chris Squire's contributions to rock music ...

Help Yourself, commonly known as "The Helps," were an English band formed in 1970 who specialized in American style country-rock. The group revolved around chief songwriter, lead singer, and guitarist, Malcolm Morley who later went on to play with a host of British rockers, including Kirsty MacColl and Ian Gomm. This forgotten, psychedelic, country quartet was influenced heavily by Poco, Pure Prairie League, New Riders of the Purple Sage, latter day Byrds, Ozark Mountain Daredevils, and the Grateful Dead. They were unusual for a British band because at that time everything the island nation exported was power pop, a hybrid of American blues, or prog-rock. Their sound was totally American. The Londoners could also rock when they wanted to and the combination of styles won them a small, but devoted, hippie following in the UK. Unfortunately, they received no traction at all in the United States, partially because they never toured here. None of The Helps four LPs s...

The Mavericks haven't always sounded like a stereotypical country band and that's because they've only marginally ever been one. They've absorbed too many influences to be truly Nashville despite the fact the city is the band's home base. What they do sound like are themselves and that should be apparent from the first note of the salsa drenched "All Night Long," a killer dance track that is the best way to open their new album, Mono . If you don't recognize the quartet from that first millisecond you're just not a fan. Raul Malo and his friends continue to mix a recipe of country, early rock 'n roll, their leader's excellent songwriting, and his even better "Roy Orbison" vocal chords into a stew that makes them one of America's great party bands. Despite all of their successes I can still see them kicking butt as a bar's house band every Saturday night and being happy about it. Guitarist Eddie Perez who joined in 2...

When I received a review copy of Kevin Jenkins' new album, 'Til the Story's Told , I didn't recognize the bass player's name at first. Then, it occurred to me that Jenkins is the gentleman who played on Black 47's Home of the Brave CD way back in 1994. He left the Celtic rockers after just one album but the band saw fit to namecheck him later on the humorous "Green Suede Shoes," one of their autobiographical songs. After that, I never heard of him again, until now. Jenkins has released only one other album in his own name but he's had a fine career as a successful sideman. He has played in all of the great halls including Budokan, Royal Albert Hall, and Madison Square Garden and opened concerts for Michael Jackson, The Police, Eric Clapton, Tina Turner, BB King, and Joe Cocker. Jenkins has also played alongside Cyndi Lauper, Enrique Iglesias, Graham Parker, Holly Palmer, October Project, Cliff Eberhardt, Tom Rush, and Shemekia Copeland who sa...

Per Dictionary.com: bayou (noun) American, chiefly Lower Mississippi Valley and Gulf States 1. a marshy arm, inlet, or outlet of a lake, river, etc., usually sluggish or stagnant. 2. any of various other often boggy and slow-moving or still bodies of water. billabong (noun) Australian 1. a branch of a river flowing away from the main stream but leading to no other body of water; a blind or dead-end channel. 2. a creek bed holding water only in the rainy season __________________________________________ Australian Clayton Doley is a superb Hammond B3 and keyboard player who calls himself a blues man but categorizing his music isn't that simple. You could safely classify his work as both jazz and R&B, or based on his voice just as easily believe he is a lounge act (the latter isn't meant to be an insult) because, despite the earthiness of his music, Doley's voice is too smooth to be associated with the likes of Buddy Guy or John Lee Hooker. Instead, he bea...