Journalist John O’Connor talks about writing his epic Oxford American magazine feature on musician Link Wray.
music writing
Posted inBooks, Nonfiction, Story
An Oral History of Detroit Punk Rock
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.
Posted inArts & Culture, Nonfiction, Quote Posts, Quotes
The Making of Nirvana’s Most Vulnerable Album
An oral history of the night Nirvana recorded “Unplugged,” their most tender, original live performance.
Posted inArts & Culture, Nonfiction, Quote Posts, Quotes
Working to Preserve Traditional Gospel Music
With approximately 75 percent of golden age gospel music lost, the Black Gospel Music Restoration Project is trying to save what’s left.
Posted inArts & Culture, Feature, Nonfiction, Story
Shelved: The Sound of Big Star’s Self-Destruction
As the band dissolved, they managed to capture their destruction in some dark, powerful music.
Posted inArts & Culture, Books, Nonfiction, Story
Raised by Hip-Hop
In hip-hop and skateboarding, one young man finds an outlet for his aggression.
Posted inArts & Culture, Feature, Nonfiction, Story
Shelved: Bill Evans’ Loose Blues
An album that took five months to record sat in the vault for 20 years before finally getting pressed to vinyl.
Posted inArts & Culture, Nonfiction, Story
Remembering Pioneering Studio Engineer Geoff Emerick
Emerick engineered more than The Beatles’ Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band. He helped re-engineer the way music got made.
Posted inArts & Culture, Nonfiction, Quote Posts, Quotes
Still Celebrating the Greatest Day in Hip-Hop
On one summer day in 1998, XXL magazine gathered 177 hip-hop artists for one of the greatest musical photographs of all time: A Great Day in Hip-Hop.
Posted inArts & Culture, Nonfiction, Quote Posts, Quotes
Auto-Tune: The Music Fad That Keeps on Giving
Cultural critic Simon Reynolds looks at 20 years of Auto-Tune.