Guitarist JOHNNY JENKINS died June 26. His first band of note in the Macon, Georgia, area, the Pinetoppers, included Otis Redding on vocals. While Redding became a national star, Jenkins declined to follow, fearing airline travel. His guitar style is […]
Have you heard the one about the drummer turned singer-songwriter? No, seriously: It’s not a joke. Some fine records this year have come courtesy of musicians originally associated with keeping time: Tim O’Reagan (ex-Jayhawks), Mark Pickerel (Screaming Trees) — and […]
Onetime Molly Hatchet guitarist DUANE ROLAND died June 19 in St. Augustin, Florida, of natural causes. He was 53.
Mandolinist and singer VERN WILLIAMS died June 6 in Calaveras County, California. Half of the pioneering West Coast bluegrass duo Vern & Ray, he led a band under his own name and worked with his son Delbert, Jerry Garcia, Herb […]
BILLY PRESTON, long remembered as the Fifth Beatle, died June 5 in Scottsdale, Arizona. He had been in a coma caused by pericarditis since late in 2005. The keyboardist and singer had two significant hits in the ’70s (“Will It […]
Singer and songwriter BOBBY HARDEN died May 30. Originally (with his two sisters) a member of the Harden Trio, his songs were recorded by Mark Chesnutt, Loretta Lynn, and Reba McEntire. He also sang background vocals on recordings by Gary […]
Songwriter CY COBEN died May 26 of a heart attack. Over his long career he wrote songs for Hank Snow (“Nobody’s Child”), Eddie Arnold (“Hep Cat Baby” and “I Want To Play House With You”). He also wrote the theme […]
There’s no better view from a festival stage than the one in Telluride, Colorado, facing vast escarpments, waterfalls and Lord of the Rings-worthy peaks. It’s easy to mark first-time performers because no matter how hip they are, the massive box […]
TapeOpCon just loved New Orleans in the summer of 2005. They couldnt wait to return, and organizers Larry Crane and Craig Schumacher had hoped to make the Crescent City their conference home for the next few years. When Katrina blew […]
Three songs. Thats all it took for Sarah Borges to establish an easy rapport with the 50 or so folks at the Pour House, and for her and the three-piece Broken Singles to make it clear they were offering late-Friday-night […]
