Joan Armatrading

Frank O'Hagan doesn't have the precise two degrees in be-bop and the PhD in swing that the late Lowell George defined as a rock 'n' roll doctor's required qualifications. Read More

"I LOVE the evening in Dakar," says Youssou N'Dour, glancing out the darkened window of an S.U.V. at the nocturnal crowds streaming into his nightclub, Thiossane, as a warm West African breeze rustles the palms and stirs up the dirt in the unpaved parking lot. Read More

Darnielle, who at one time hoped his "day job" would be as a poet, now uses his literary talents in service of song, and he's clearly got a knack for conjuring a time and place not only literally (mid-'70s Watergate; think Ang Lee's The Ice Storm ) but figuratively as well (inside the mind of a scared kid hiding from his parents' disintegrating marriage). Read More