Fruitland By Steven Kurutz Feature Privately made records enjoy a cult following among collectors, but few are as legendary as Donnie and Joe Emerson’s 1979 LP Dreamin’ Wild.
You Don’t Own Me By Joe Bonomo Feature Some fans prefer small club shows, others like arena rock shows, but do we care what the bands prefer?
Link Wray’s Rustic Masterpieces By Aaron Gilbreath Highlight Link Wray is best known for his rock instrumentals, but in the early 1970s, he and his brothers recorded three albums in a chicken shack that sound like nothing else in his massive oeuvre.
Beyond “Rumble”: Talking with John O’Connor About the Other Link Wray By Aaron Gilbreath Commentary Journalist John O’Connor talks about writing his epic Oxford American magazine feature on musician Link Wray.
An Oral History of Detroit Punk Rock By Steve Miller Feature In Detroit’s empty buildings and troubled streets, restless kids squatted, ran punk clubs, pressed their own records, and made their own magazine. They mostly stayed out of trouble.
The Making of Nirvana’s Most Vulnerable Album By Aaron Gilbreath Highlight An oral history of the night Nirvana recorded “Unplugged,” their most tender, original live performance.
Working to Preserve Traditional Gospel Music By Aaron Gilbreath Highlight With approximately 75 percent of golden age gospel music lost, the Black Gospel Music Restoration Project is trying to save what’s left.
Shelved: The Velvet Underground’s Fourth Album By Tom Maxwell Feature The story of the Velvet Underground’s fourth album that almost never was.
A History of American Protest Music: Which Side Are You On? By Tom Maxwell Feature Just as we were in the 1930s and ’60s, America is suffering a moral crisis. We have to decide which side we are on: hate and exclusion, or justice, inclusion, and democracy?
The Cowboy Image and the Growth of Western Music By Tracey Laird and Bill C. Malone Feature How did cowboy hats and boots become the visual iconography of American rural music?
Forced to Perform As Aretha Franklin By Aaron Gilbreath Highlight How soul singer Mary Jane Jones was forced to perform as Aretha Franklin before she took control of her life and career.
