As emblematic of its time as of its sorcerer-like creator, 1967's Are You Experienced? unleashed Jimi Hendrix onto a world in the midst of such cultural and musical shake-ups that it really didn't seem as "far out" as it actually was. It wasn't just Hendrix's virtuosic skill as a pure player that was so impressive; it was, even more, the range and scope of sheer sound that he coaxed, ...
Clapton caught the "unplugged" trend just at the right time, when the public was hungry to hear how well rock stars and their material could hold up when stripped of elaborate production values. Clapton himself seemed baffled by the phenomenon, especially when picking up the armload of Grammys Unplugged earned him, including Record and Song of the Year for "Tears in Heaven", the ...
"Bagpipes", a song written as the soundtrack to a Michel Gondry music video, Patti Page's musical shadow, and Jack and Meg co-narrating a scavenger's rummages: it must be time for Icky Thump, the many-flavored riposte to 2006's Get Behind Me Satan. The duo starts big with the title track--Jack's fast-tumbling, falsetto-tinged lyrics jagging on hyper keyboard-sounding segues and Meg's ...
JJ Cale penned two of Eric Clapton's career-defining solo hits, "Cocaine" and "After Midnight." And since Clapton has often fashioned his persona in a WWJD manner (what would JJ do?), this collaboration is long overdue. But despite the rather slick production and long list of guest backing musicians (including four bassists, four drummers, five other guitarists, and three percussionists), The ...
Dylan was virtually gushing great songs when this masterpiece arrived in the summer of 1965. For the epochal opening of "Like a Rolling Stone" through the absurdly apocalyptic closer, "Desolation Row", his command of surrealistic language was daring and amazing. As a vocalist, he was rewriting the rules of the game. Jimi Hendrix made note of Mr Z's technically suspect pitch and decided that ...
Considered an unprecedented magnum opus when it arrived on two records in May of 1966 (1997's Time out of Mind is actually only about a minute shorter), Blonde on Blonde featured Dylan continuing to demonstrate remarkable powers over the course of 14 new numbers. Working in Nashville with session men and a few conscripted recruits (Al Kooper, Robbie Robertson), Dylan continued to ...