Sixties nostalgia is a curious thingÁ¢€”make-a one man weep, make another man sing. Tom ScholzÁ¢€”the guitarist/mastermind/evil genius behind Seventies arena rock behemoth BostonÁ¢€”is one of those people for whom the…
Rob Smith
226 Articles
Rob Smith is a writer, teacher, wage earner, and all-around evil genius who spends most of his time holed up in his cluttered compound in central PA. His favorite color is ultramarine blue. His imaginary band The Dukes of Rexmont tours every summer.
Rob Smith
1 Min Read
Long, flowing hair, a perfectly groomed beard, and millions of records sold doesn’t mean you’re too good for a little advice, does it?
Rob Smith
1 Min Read
It’s time for more unsolicited career advice from Don Skwatzenschitz, and this week, he’s trying to help a furloughed Soldier of Love.
Rob Smith
1 Min Read
This is the final entry in our DbPB salute to Jim Peterik, and it is, I admit, an odd choice for a conclusion. “Above the Storm” is not Peterik’s best…
Rob Smith
1 Min Read
Does this man look like he needs career advice? Rob Smith’s Uncle Donnie Skwatzenschitz thought so.
Rob Smith
1 Min Read
Our DbPB salute to Jim Peterik will conclude in two weeks. We interrupt that series to mark the recent passing of one of the cornerstones of modern melodic rock, bassist…
Rob Smith
2 Min Read
Uncle Donnie apparently had a short-lived career in producing music videos, back in the early days of MTV. Lev let that one slip one night while we were doing shots…
Rob Smith
1 Min Read
If a new Survivor track is attached to a greatest hits compilation in the ’90s, will anyone hear it? Read this week’s Death by Power Ballad and find out.
Rob Smith
1 Min Read
“Favorite Zeroes” Á¢€Å“Music is enough for a lifetime, but a lifetime is not enough for music.Á¢€Á¢€”Sergei Rachmaninov Á¢€Å“Music and rhythm find their way into the secret places of the soul.Á¢€Á¢€”Plato…
Rob Smith
1 Min Read
It’s interesting to note that, regardless of what he did in the music industry (and what he did is still lost on me) or how much power he was able…
Rob Smith
1 Min Read
Maia Sharp, Echo (2009, Crooked Crown Records) Purchase this album (Amazon) I distinctly recall the first time I heard Maia Sharp sing. It was the summer of 1997, and I…
Rob Smith
1 Min Read
Our DbPB salute to Jim Peterik continues this week with “Strength Over Time,” by Sunstorm, a collective that’s not quite a band, and yet not quite not a band. Some…
Rob Smith
1 Min Read
Stay tuned throughout the weekend as we continue our tribute to Michael Jackson, with reflections and remembrances from the Popdose staff.
Rob Smith
1 Min Read
The next few DbPB installments will feature the work of a man who, to these ears, has contributed as much as if not more than any other artist to the…
Rob Smith
1 Min Read
As I’ve mentioned previously, Uncle Donnie’s been writing these things for yearsÁ¢€”decades, even. Lev brings over another box of them every once in a while. This one dates back to…
Rob Smith
1 Min Read
When last we left Michael Schenker, he was totally shredding through the last 40 seconds of UFO’s majestic power ballad, “Try Me.” Mikey hung around the band for another year…
Rob Smith
1 Min Read
Cocktail Slippers, Saint Valentine’s Day Massacre (2009, Wicked Cool) Purchase this album at Amazon.com Isn’t it funny how quite often the finest practitioners of rock and rollÁ¢€”that most American of…
Rob Smith
1 Min Read
Many thanks to Reader Jeff (an old pal from my Rutgers days) for reminding me about the time Uncle Donnie was invited up on stage at a D’Angelo show to…
Rob Smith
1 Min Read
One of the great eccentrics (and notorious drinkers) in rock, Michael Schenker also served in one of the great hard rock bands of the mid- and late 70s. The Schenker/Phil…
Rob Smith
2 Min Read
Lou Reed has a way of polarizing lovers of rock and roll, breaking up marriages, sending brothers off to war against one another, etc.Á‚ Uncle Donnie gets Lou, though, at…
Rob Smith
1 Min Read
Triumph was an arena rock staple in the late ’70s and through much of the ’80s, particularly in their native Canada, where they were known for their bombastic, pyro-filled shows,…
Rob Smith
1 Min Read
To know the unknowable is one of the great pursuits of sentient beings everywhere.Á‚ Has been for as long as there’s been sentient beings.Á‚ But to truly know the unknowable…
Rob Smith
1 Min Read
Before there was an Arnel Pineda (Steve Perry soundalike, currently fronting Journey), or a Benoit David (Jon Anderson soundalike, currently fronting Yes), or even a Chris Chan (Barry Manilow impersonator,…
Rob Smith
3 Min Read
With this week’s installment of Unsolicited Advice, Rob Smith’s uncle Don Skwatzenschitz becomes the latest in a long line of people to try and figure out what’s wrong with R.E.M.’s career.
Rob Smith
2 Min Read
Wouldn’t it be cool to be Cheap TrickÁ¢€â„¢s Robin Á¢€Å“The VoiceÁ¢€ Zander?Á‚ I mean, the guy’s, like, 85 years old and looks the same as he did on the cover…
Rob Smith
1 Min Read
In Bull Durham, Kevin Costner’s character Crash Davis chides Nuke LaLoosh (Tim Robbins) for his laziness and lack of focus on the game of baseball. “You got a gift,” he…
Rob Smith
2 Min Read
Wasn’t aware that Uncle Donnie had a hand in the movie business until I found this missive.Á‚ Of course, the “properties” he’s pushing probably explain why.Á‚ Still, wouldn’t it be…
Rob Smith
1 Min Read
One of my favorite things about joining the Popdose brother/sisterhood is the fact that I have found a group of people whose taste in music is as broad and, on…
Rob Smith
1 Min Read
Indigo Girls – Poseidon and the Bitter Bug (2009, Vanguard) Purchase this album (Amazon) To a 19-year-old roiling with existential crises, the Indigo Girls’ major label debut was the perfect…