America

The year 2010 marked the 40th Anniversary of perennial classic-rock favorite, America. Founding members, Gerry Beckley and Dewey Bunnell (along with former band mate Dan Peek) met in high school in London in the late 1960s and quickly harmonized their way to the top of the charts on the strength of their signature song “A Horse With No Name”. America became a global household name and paved the way with an impressive string of hits following the success of their first #1 single. Forty years later, these friends are still making music together, touring the world and thrilling audiences with their timeless sound.

America’s journey has found them exploring a wide variety of musical terrain. Their best-known tunes, which also include “I Need You,” “Ventura Highway,” “Don’t Cross The River,” “Tin Man,” “Lonely People,” and “Sister Golden Hair” were cornerstones of 1970’s Top 40 and FM rock radio. Yet beyond their impressive catalog of hits, listeners would discover there was always much more to America than surface perceptions. The combination of Gerry Beckley’s melodic pop rock and Dewey Bunnell’s use of folk-jazz elements, slinky Latin-leaning rhythms and impressionistic lyric imagery contrasted well with Dan Peek’s more traditional country-rock leanings and highly personal lyrics. …continue reading

Creedence Clearwater Revisited

Stu Cook and Doug “Cosmo” may not have intended it, but their band Creedence Clearwater Revisited has taken on a startling life of its own. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame rhythm section (bass and drums respectively) from the legendary group Creedence Clearwater Revival launched the Creedence Clearwater Revisited project in 1995 to once again perform live Creedence Clearwater Revival hits touchstones of a generation. Though the pair initially only planned to play private parties, Creedence Clearwater Revisited now performs up to 100 shows a year and released the album “Recollection.”

“We never really had any intention of playing for the public,” says Stu. “But a friend wanted to promote a couple of concerts. We got talked into it, but didn’t know how it would go over.”

Since then, the reaction to Creedence Clearwater Revisited’s concerts has been astounding, and driven in part by a generation of kids who, as Cosmo says, “weren’t even born when the music came out.” Likewise, the release of a doublelive CD on Universal’s Hip-O Records label, which features passionate, authoritative version of 22 classic hits was the result of public demand. “It was generated by requests of the people who came to the shows,” Stu acknowledges. “Over and over they would ask, ‘do you guys have a CD?’” Creedence Clearwater Revisited’s “Recollection” has proven so popular that in 2008 the RIAA certified it Platinum. …continue reading

Chris Isaak

“I have always wanted to make this record.” – Chris Isaak

Yes, after more than a quarter of a century into his career, Chris Isaak has finally created the album he’s always wanted to make. Beyond the Sun, Isaak’s first Vanguard Records release out Oct. 18 —is truly a labor of love. As a child spinning his parents 45s in their Stockton, California home, this deeply committed artist has been obsessed with the glory days of Memphis’ Sun Studio and the visionary artists who got their starts there—including Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Roy Orbison, Carl Perkins and Jerry Lee Lewis—all of them discovered and nurtured by the late, great Sun Records founder Sam Phillips. Now, at long last, Isaak has acted on this lifelong obsession, magically recapturing the transformative hepcat brilliance of the classic sides cut by these greats at Sun with Phillips during the mid-’50s, while also getting down to the heart and soul of his own deeply rooted musical identity. Beyond the Sun will be available in both the 14-song standard set as well as a double album version that includes an additional 11 tracks. …continue reading

Chris Cornell

Chris Cornell is a rock icon who thrives on contradictions. An innovator who resists genre labels, he was nonetheless the chief architect of the 90s grunge movement. Ranked as “one of the best voices in music history,” he has successfully maintained his own unique identity over more than two decades as a multi-Grammy award winning musician, Golden Globe nominee and universally acclaimed singer, songwriter and lyricist.

Seattle trailblazers Soundgarden were a law to themselves, edgy, dark and deeply individual. Their savage soundscapes, coupled with Cornell’s incisive lyrics and predatory roar, seduced audiences hungry for musical depth and complexity while leading trends in street fashion and iconic design. In 1989, they became the first Seattle band to sign to a major label Their sound continued to change and evolve over the course of five pioneering albums. …continue reading

Chris Botti

Chris Botti Expresses His Love For Romantic Melodies From Across the World In His New Sony CD, “Impressions.”

Playing with his uniquely expressive sound and soaring musical imagination, trumpeter Chris Botti is joined by featured artists Andrea Bocelli, Vince Gill, Herbie Hancock, Mark Knopfler, David Foster and Caroline Campbell in a warm, intimate celebration of melodic balladry.

Impressions, trumpeter Chris Botti’s new Sony CD, is the latest in a stellar parade of albums — starting with 2004’s When I Fall In Love and continuing with To Love Again, Italia and the CD/DVD Chris Botti In Boston — that have firmly established him as the world’s largest selling jazz instrumentalist. Add to that a cluster of Grammy nominations and three #1 albums on Billboard’s Jazz Albums listings. …continue reading

Craig Morgan

There are certain milestones in an artist’s career that would seem to inspire a moment of reflection. Yet as Craig Morgan put the finishing touches on THIS OLE BOY, an album marking more than ten years since the release of his self-titled debut album back in 2000, the singer/songwriter has a surprising reaction when asked for his thoughts on his decade-long run.Total shock.

“Is that right?’ Morgan asks, leaning back in his chair when told the news. He’s quiet for a moment as he lets his mind wind its way back through over ten years of memories to double check the math. Then his eyes brighten, “I guess it is,” Morgan marvels, “But I tell you, I feel like I just got started. I feel like I’m 25 years old and saying, ‘Wow, I hope I make it in the music business.’” …continue reading