Ken Layne designs, edits, and distributes his independent magazine Desert Oracle from tiny Joshua Tree, California.
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Hellhound on the Money Trail
Standard recording contracts screwed Bluesmen out of royalties in the early 1900s, and the system was no different when Columbia released “Robert Johnson: The Complete Recordings in 1990.”
Sam Lipsyte on ‘Mental Archery,’ the Quest for Certainty, and Where All the Money Went
“It’s difficult to say what you really think. You’re too aware of the traps, the dead ends, the cul-de-sacs of utterance: all the ways we let clichĂ© steer us in a certain direction, force us to say not quite what we mean…”
The Handgun and the Haunted Range
Justin Quarry hunted for himself, and a connection to his late father, with the unlikely inheritance of a firearm.
In the Country of Women
Amid badass women and endless stories, a young California writer comes of age in the orange groves as the Golden State comes into its own.
Partners in Crime: The Life, Loves & Nuyorican Noir of Jerry Rodriguez
Michael Gonzales remembers a real friendship and the makings of a brutal crime novel.
Partners in Crime: The Life, Loves & Nuyorican Noir of Jerry Rodriguez
Michael Gonzales remembers a real friendship and the makings of a brutal crime novel.
It Depends on What the Meaning of ‘Consent’ Is
Monica Lewinsky reframes her understanding of sexual consent as it applied to her relationship with Bill Clinton through the lens of the #MeToo moment.
‘Country Music … Was Anything BUT Pure’: An Interview with Bill Malone and Tracey Laird
The co-authors of ‘Country Music USA’ – a revised edition of the genre’s definitive history – talk about the music’s African-American tributaries, its unpredictable politics, country radio’s woman problem, and working on Ken Burns’ forthcoming doc.
‘Country Music … Was Anything BUT Pure’: An Interview with Bill Malone and Tracey Laird
The co-authors of ‘Country Music USA’ – a revised edition of the genre’s definitive history – talk about the music’s African-American tributaries, its unpredictable politics, country radio’s woman problem, and working on Ken Burns’ forthcoming doc.
