Ralston – Carwreck Conversations (2004)purchase this album This is a debut record? I confess, I’d never heard of Ralston (nee Bowles) prior to him e-mailing me and asking me to…
Chris Whitley, 1960-2005 Read this moving tribute from Radio Free Newport. Go back and read the Whitley Guide. Buy some or all of his albums. Go gently into those soft…
Okay, jefitoblog faithful…you’ve stuck with me through Toto and Big Country. Can you handle an in-depth look at Norway’s most successful pop export? I’m sure many of you think I’ve…
My friends, I have been remiss: I received an e-mail a few weeks ago from John Reineck, of the band Soft, asking me to give the band’s new single “Higher”…
Years before Cowboy Troy fused rap and country to create Á¢€Å“Hick HopÁ¢€, Rhode Island outfit Rubber Rodeo, dressed in fringe jackets, cowboy boots and bolo ties, added the punk aesthetic…
Wrapped in taffeta and camp while sporting a foot-high blonde beehive, Mari Wilson (not the Supreme) stepped out of the mid-sixties and straight into the new wave movement with her…
Enya – Amarantine (2005)purchase this album Hey, what do you know? This sounds like Enya. Oh, right, the files: “Less Than A Pearl” (download) and “Sumiregusa” (download).
Despite recent appearances to the contrary, the ongoing Gross-Off series has not been abandoned here at jefitoblog; it’s just that between getting caught up on music reviews and changing poopy…
Cyndi Lauper – The Body Acoustic (2005)purchase this album Fifteen years ago, if you had told me that the words “Cyndi Lauper” and “critical renaissance” would apply to each other,…
Les Paul & Friends – American Made World Played (2005)purchase this album The AMG compares this album to Sinatra’s Duets, and that’s fair. All the ingredients are basically the same:…
Madonna – Confessions on a Dance Floor (2005)purchase this album As with the Kate Bush record from last week, I feel the need to start things off with an open,…
Bettye LaVette – I’ve Got My Own Hell to Raise (2005)purchase this album You know, I could have sworn my man Carl over at Cahl’s Jukebox had written a review…
I once used this space to make some rather unkind remarks about the collected works of Damn Yankees, as well as the overall existence of Tommy Shaw. Judging from the…
Josh Rouse – Bedroom Classics, Vol. 2 (2005)purchase this album I’ll be honest — I hated Rouse’s critically lauded debut, 1998’s Dressed Up Like Nebraska. But every time he releases…
Straight outta Beaver Falls, PA, came Dominic Ierace, playing in local combos until he and his band The Jaggerz hit number two in the Á¢€Ëœ70s with Á¢€Å“The RapperÁ¢€. After The…
When last we left our heroes, they were down one member (Slipperman reference intended). Would they pack it in or soldier on? Turns out they had no intention of breaking…
Brad Mehldau Trio – Day is Done (2005) purchase this album You wouldn’t know it from listening to Day is Done Á¢€” or a lot of Mehldau’s other stuff Á¢€”…
The Fabulous Thunderbirds – Painted On (2005)purchase this album Yep, those Fabulous Thunderbirds. Whether you’re a patron of the blues, or you just listened to enough FM rock in the…
Hey, all Á¢€” if you’re home tonight around 8:30, get UPN, and want to see an official FOJ (that’s Friend of Jefitoblog) on TV, make sure you tune into Love,…
Jamie Cullum – Catching Tales (2005)purchase this album Cullum’s introduction to American audiences was last year’s Twentysomething, a pleasant, slightly quirky set of jazzish tunes that instantly established him as…
Dar Williams – My Better Self (2005)purchase this album Dar Williams has written some great songs, and recorded some fine albums. I’m particularly partial to her bittersweet “When I Was…
Fiona Apple – Extraordinary Machine (2005)purchase this album Once upon a time, just listening to Fiona Apple made me grit my teeth. This was during the Tidal era, when critics…
[Note: Just as another reminder, this week’s Guide has been thoughtfully guest-blogged for you and me by Joe at Illicit Noise. Please join me in giving him a round of…
Argh. I really tried to get this up by Halloween, but it took quite a bit of work, i.e. rummaging through old VHS tapes, then some encoding, blah blah. So…
Whoa. It’s November 1 already? As some of you already know, or may have guessed, my wife and I are the proud owners of a shiny new baby. Her arrival…
Being the total music geek that I am, I can tell you the first CD I ever bought. Well, make that the first two CDs I ever bought, since they…
HalloweenÁ¢€â„¢s around the corner, so for the next two weeks, weÁ¢€â„¢ll focus on some seasonally themed Lost in the 80Á¢€â„¢s tunes. As SCTVÁ¢€â„¢s Count Floyd would say, Á¢€Å“Scary stuff, kids!Á¢€…
Hey folks, I hate to have to do this, but my mp3 archives are over their bandwidth limit again. Last month was our first month with the new host, as…
Just popping to share this, from E! Online… NEWS FROM PORT CHARLES: Singer-actor Rick Springfield reprising his role as Dr. Noah Drake on ABC’s General Hospital starting December 2. Wowza….