Mike Bennett reviews the latest from Beulah, Hawksley Workman, Tallulah, Sloan, The Pearlfishers and Shelby Lynne. Mike also presents capsule reviews of releases by The Bitter Little Cider Apples, Jericho, Joss Stone, Trouble Dolls, Ola Framby, Flux A.D., The Black Watch, Various Artists -- You're Still Young At Heart and The Raveonettes. Mike also has another CD-R of The Month. Gary Glauber reviews the latest from Chris von Sneidern, The Deal, The Naomi Star, The Pulltops and Lazy. James Baumann debuts with reviews of releases by Teenage Fanclub, The Tyde, Soundtrak and Grand Champeen. Shona Winfrey returns with reviews of releases by Ken Andrews, The Saving Graces, The Windbreakers and A Perfect Circle.

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Johnny Cash: Myth, Legend and Truth

by Nick A. Zaino, III

Johnny Cash was perhaps the closest thing to a living, walking mythical creature as cynical society will come any time soon. In a career that spanned more than four decades, he created an image and used it to have as much fun, reach as many people, and tell as much truth as he could.

There has been a lot of talk about the myth of Johnny Cash since his passing on September 11th of this year. No one of these pieces will capture him, no matter how earnest in intent or knowledgeable the writer. People have written of the badass, the man of the people who played prisons to give the most hated of our society a little temporary dignity (or a lifetime career, in the case of Merle Haggard, who, as an inmate, was inspired one of Johnny's prison shows to make music his...

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Gary Pig Gold and The Mantra in Black: Ten Reasons Why Johnny Cash Always Matters

by Gary Pig Gold

1. Luther Played the Boogie

Without a red hot and blue band to back it all the way up, even a Man in Black’s powers weaken considerably. That’s why, before first setting out to conquer the world as we knew it, Johnny Cash planted firmly behind him that Tennessee Three so widely known and regarded as Marshall Grant (bass), W.S. “Fluke” Holland (drums), and guitarist-extrordinaire Luther Monroe Perkins (no relation to Carl though). And what stellar accompanists they were …particularly the deceptively unassuming Luther (“he’s been dead for a couple of years but just doesn’t know it yet” is how Johnny often introduced his laconic right-hand guitarist on stage back in the day). Yet note how most people, myself included, still can’t help but instinctively...

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Ten Classic Rock Songs Most People Love That I Don't Care Much For

by Michael Lynch

1. "For Your Love," The Yardbirds, 1965.

I love the Yardbirds to the point of declaring them one of my favorite groups, and several of their classic songs, like "Heart Full Of Soul," "Evil Hearted You," "Shapes Of Things" and "Over Under Sideways Down" won me over right on the first hearing. But I know I must have been making a strange face the first time I heard this one. I didn't, and still don't, care for the voices on the refrain. To me they...

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Wilco, Radiohead and Flaming Lips: Questioning the Holy Trinity of Rock

by Mike Bennett

A couple of weeks ago, I got to see Wilco's final show of the year. Jeff Tweedy announced to the crowd at the beautiful Auditorium Theater in Chicago (designed by legendary architect Louis Sullivan) that the band would be taking a break until sometime in late 2004. For most in the audience, this had to be a sad moment, as they wildly applauded everything Wilco did throughout the set (that ran well over two hours), hitting all four albums and throwing in some new songs.

I was not one of those wildly applauding every note. A lot of thoughts came to mind while watching Wilco in the swank environs, augmented by a superb P.A. One was the dichotomy between...

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An Interview with Rich Painter

by Rick Bilous

Rich Painter is the force behind Rich Creamy Paint. His debut s/t CD was released in 1999, and earned him comparisons to Matthew Sweet, Fountains of Wayne and Weezer. His new CD titled "Lovers" (available at www.richcreamypaint.com) has just been released.

RB:Tell us about "Lovers", your new CD.
RP: "Lovers" is a record that mainly centers around the subject of marriage. We wanted it to be as intimate as possible and have a sound that genuinely portrayed the emotions that we were feeling at the time we were writing it. My wife, Mindy and I started writing the songs for it in 2000, immediately after the release of the 1st record. I was 20...

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The Bob Keane of Del-Fi Records Interview

By Robert Pally

Bob Keane helped to launch the careers of legendary artists such as Ritchie Valens and Bobby Fuller Four. In this interview he talks about Frank Zappa, Ritchie Valens and his autobiography that will hopefully appear one day.

Robert Pally: When came the decision to write an Autobiography? What triggered it?

Bob Keane: For many years I have heard people say to me, "Bob, you should write a book. You have so many stories to tell." Several years ago I finally decided that...

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Further Observations From a Jangly Music Fan

by Eric Sorensen

September just flew right by, and when I last checked, the stack of excellent new CDs to report on in this column was already substantial. I may just have to wait until next month's column to "clear" all of these tuneful discs. If that becomes the case, fellow music enthusiasts will enjoy starting to sample the following recent releases:

Stand - the latest disc from folk-rock's grooviest duo the Kennedys. This album features the trademark jangly tunes that Pete and Maura Kennedy are known for, and it also features a number of acoustic ballads with timely messages about our contemporary world. Pete's Rickenbacker 12-string guitar is most pronounced on...

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So Much Music...too Little Time

by Kevin Mathews

Sorry, no time to chat, trying to get this piece in under deadline…

BrokenNess ICU In Dandylions (Self released) Regan Barger is responsible for most of what you hear here, aided and abetted by Dane Estepa & Ray Hartman and probably the best way to describe this album is if you could imagine Bob Dylan jamming with the Beatles. Or perhaps Elvis Costello with Oasis, whatever. Needless to say, 60s pop fans will be thrilled. www.brokennessonline.com

Goodbye Girl Friday Faces (Self released) This jazz-rock combo returns with a 5 track EP that builds...

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