Short Tracks: BOB DYLAN – TROUBLE NO MORE: THE BOOTLEG SERIES, VOL. 13 1979-1981 (ROCK/FOLK ROCK)
BOB DYLAN – TROUBLE NO MORE: THE BOOTLEG SERIES, VOL. 13 1979-1981 (ROCK/FOLK ROCK): A pre-release review of this box set questioned how good this would be. Don’t believe my esteemed peer. The abbreviated box set, covering just 30 songs from the ’79-80 tour, is fantastic. If you are a true Bob Dylan fan though, you’ll ask Santa for the […]
Short Tracks: Christine McVie’s Legacy : 5 Essential Fleetwood Mac Songs
Short Cuts: 5 Fleetwood Mac songs by Christine McVie who was born July 12, 1943. 1. “Oh Daddy” – ‘Rumours’ (1977) “Oh Daddy” is one of the most hauntingly understated songs on Rumours, and perhaps one of Christine McVie’s most emotionally enigmatic compositions. Written for Mick Fleetwood, the band’s de facto leader and the only […]
Short Tracks: Sonic Tides: Exploring the Dynamic Soundscapes of ‘Waves 7’ by Fernando Perdomo (2025)
‘ Waves 7’ stays the course of the Waves series as we enter the dog days of summer. Multitalented producer and guitarist Fernando Perdomo delivers another 10 songs for July, which run the prog-instrumental gamut. The album, available in digital and CD formats via https://fernandoperdomo.bandcamp.com/album/waves-7, starts with the mesmerizing “Sunrise Lightship”. Perdomo utilizes his armada […]
Short Cuts: Anticipating ‘The Very Day’: A Sneak Peek with “Miss Jane Sinclair” by Steve Porcaro (2025)
Maestro Steve Porcaro helped make the holiday weekend extra special by releasing the first single from his upcoming album, ‘The Very Day’. “Miss Jane Sinclair,” available now via digital platforms, is a delightful follow-up to the keyboardist’s superb 2016 album, “Someday/Somehow. Porcaro steps into the producer chair previously filled by the late Michael Sherwood, delivering […]
Short Tracks: Epic Hooks and Powerful Lyrics: A Review of ‘ Torrential Pain’ by Joe Bailey (2025)
British Prog-Metal multi-instrumentalist Joe Bailey follows up his epic 2023 release ‘Splinters’ with ’Torrential Pain’, which is out now on Reficul Records. Not that Joe has been sitting on his hands for the last year and a half. He continues his partnership in the Dark Monarchy. “Torrential Pain” picks up where he was with ’Splinters’ […]
Short Tracks: Timeless Salsa: The 2025 Reissue of Celia y Willie by Celia Cruz and Willie Colón
Initially released in 1981, ‘Celia y Willie’ returns remastered and available in high-quality vinyl. The reissue, part of Craft Recordings’ celebration of Cruz’ Centennial is a perfect time capsule of ehen two titans of salsa—Celia Cruz, the Queen of Latin Music, and Willie Colón, the Fania All-Stars’ trombone-wielding innovator—joined forces for the 1981 album Celia […]
Short Cuts: Soaring Synths and Storytelling. The Impact of “The Silent Flight” by Projekt Gemineye (2025)
Projekt Gemineye concludes its single series of releases with the soaring “The Silent Flight”. Mastermind Mark Anthony K ups his keyboard/synth game with expressive patches of ’80s-era synth sounds. K does not shy away from his trademark chorus guitar runs, which add to the song’s dynamics. Additionally, the drum sound has a different dynamic than […]
Durand Jones, soul singer: Slang Of Ages Interview (archive – 2016)
Louisiana-born soul-singing sensation Durand Jones got started, long before his debut album Durand Jones and the Indications was even a dream yet, in the church. That laid the ground work for a burgeoning music career, but only after a move to Bloomington, Ind. There, he joined the Indiana University Soul Revue, and subsequently began collaborating with the […]
Short Tracks: ‘Ambient Den” by Ambient Den (2025)
Down Under prog rocker Ben Craven has been a favorite of mine since his exquisite 2016 album, ‘Last Chance to Hear’. While Craven has produced several stellar solo works since then, he has on occasion teamed up with keyboardist Tim Bennetts ( Seven Day Mask ) on several projects, including their work on Progaustralis live, […]
Short Cuts: “Hold Your Head High” by Projekt Gemineye (2025)- A Rock Anthem of Optimism
The third of Projekt Gemineye’s single series, “Hold Your Head High,” is full of Gibson SG goodness, which supports the direct, and dare I say, optimistic lyrical core. Mark Anthony K has released a series of unrelated singles in the last few weeks, all stellar, and have their self-contained lyrical center. “Hold Your Head High” […]