As Dan Bern explains it, when someone has a story to tell in Nashville, they write a nice little song that manages to tie everything together in two and a half minutes with a melody to boot. But in L.A., where Bern hangs his hat these days, when someone has a story, they write a movie. Movies cost a lot of dough, though -- something most singer-songwriters don't have lying around. more ›

Over the past 20 years, Bobby McFerrin has conducted some of the world's finest orchestras, bringing a fresh energy to classical music. His collaborations with the likes of Yo-Yo Ma, Chick Corea, and Herbie Hancock have topped the classical and jazz charts, and he founded the vocal ensembles Voicestra and Circlesongs, earning Grammy nods along the way. Combining formidable musical knowledge and technique with an unbridled enthusiasm and curiosity, McFerrin is so much more than "Don't Worry Be Happy." more ›

The fusion era of the 1970s was no doubt among the most controversial periods in jazz history. Analogous to the rise of be-bop during the 1940s and '50s, instrumentalists broke new ground, taking the technical aspects of jazz music to new heights. But also like pioneers such as Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie, explorers of the '70s often saw their music fall on deaf ears, because listening could not be a passive activity. Despite its demanding nature, this was a fertile time which introduced the world to a host of incredible musicians who are still active today. more ›

The American folk music tradition runs deep, and is as diverse and eclectic as the country itself. Old-time music, a catch-all term for folk music that pre-dates what we now refer to as bluegrass or country, is part of this fabric. And while this genre is often associated with rural white communities in Appalachia, its true history is more complex. One part of the country that gave rise to its own string band sound was the Piedmont region of the Carolinas, where the music not only thrived during the 19th century, but also included a strong African-American influence. more ›

Black Flag frontman turned globetrotting hilari-phizer Henry Rollins has been captivating audiences with stories of his travels for a quarter-century now. The onetime Henry Garfield first toured the country in his early 20s as the fourth and final singer of iconic punk outfit Black Flag, and has continued to write and perform music with various lineups of his Rollins Band. Through his company, 2.13.61, he has published more than a dozen volumes of his journals and travelogues. He turns up in movies occasionally, and he hosted an eclectic assortment of guests on his Independent Film Channel talk show from 2005 to 2007. He remains the host of Harmony in My Head, a weekly music program on Los Angeles's Indie 103 FM that consists wholly of Rollins playing music he likes, regardless of genre or era. He's published three volumes of his program notes from the show, under the series title Fanatic! more ›

A few commenters yesterday basically said "No Weller? No Way" at the prospect of going to see From The Jam at the Birchmere last night, and rightfully so. Since forming some 30-odd years ago, frontman Paul Weller has been The Jam in most people's minds, even after he disbanded the group in the early 1980s, formed the universally reviled Style Council and later transitioned into his groundbreaking solo career that laid the groundwork for Britpop and delivered albums like Stanley Road and Wild Wood. One need only look at the Gallagher brothers from Oasis to see how large a shadow Weller casts. They invited him to play guitar on "The Swamp Song" and "Champagne Supernova", and while Noel takes all his couture cues from his mentor, Liam continually copies the Modfather's haircuts. So as his presence in the music industry continued to grow, Weller's original rhythm section, bassist Bruce Foxton or drummer Rick Buckler, risked fading into obscurity. more ›