Tony Williams is easily one of the top five most important drummers to record in the second half of the twentieth century. To deny that is to be a fool. It’s that simple.

Basically a child prodigy, Williams began recording during his teenage years with his first being Grachan Moncur III stultifying Evolution. Earning the spot on that album, Williams had already cemented the trajectory his career would follow, being associated with some of the most open minded players in the genre.

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Apples in Stereo have released a number of really strong records. Its latest - 'Travellers in Space and Time' - is not one of them. Here singer, Robert Schneider, explains a scale he figured out, again proving being really smart doesn't always translate into good music.

A History of Stealin’

There are probably more beautiful songs. There are songs that more people can probably sing along to. But the way in which “Stealin’” was written and has subsequently been performed makes it an American standard. Of late it seems to have been getting its due as well.
Recently, Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy took to the stage in NYC and luckily enough the folks from Aquarium Drunkard were there to capture the performance. During the set, BPB and his cohorts included a few versions of old tyme classics – “Stealin’” was one of them. You can find the tracks here.

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Ramblin' Thomas is the picture of blues player’s biographies. He was raised in the deep south, the board of Louisana and Texas to be exact, he came from a large and musically inclined family and subsequently rambled around the country. Well, that last part seems to be disputed even given the man’s nick name. But the guitarist and sibling to the better known Jesse ‘Babyface’ Thomas apparently performed in and around some southern states. “Lock And Key Blues” even opens with the lines “I feel like ramblin’/Ramblin’ stays on my mind/I ain’t satisfied unless I’m ramblin’ all the time.”

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Lightnin' Hopkins is supposedly Bob Dylan's favorite guitarist. There's no way to actually know that, but hearing this particular track might be good enough to just figure it to be the truth.

There're two folks singing on this track, which fits into a long lyrical tradition of detailing the perils of gambling. The guitar work's a bit down in the mix, but either way, it's a pretty decent exemplar of how the blues should sound...

Never heard the name before, but he's huge in Atlanta (wink). Either way, Moss' song fits into a broader tradition of songs commenting on the problematic life of a gambler. Ramblin' indeed.

Born in a relatively small North Carolina town not too far from Chapel Hill, Elizabeth Nevills grew up around her musician brothers and borrowed their gear while no one was looking. If anyone had been paying attention, though, they most likely would have been shocked. As it was, Nevills developed her style in private, playing for herself on the banjo more frequently than a six string guitar to begin with. But after cobbling together some money she earned as a maid, the nascent musician purchased herself a guitar.

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Trying to figure out the number of acts that guitarist and singer Bo Diddley influenced would probably take the better part of one’s life. Tracking down the endless covers of his music spread around on low run singles from the ‘60s would take up a tremendous portion of that time and probably eventually prove incomplete. Diddley’s sway over rock and roll, in its subject matter, tone and every other aspect of the music, can’t ever be overstated.

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Marva WrightThe lady who was known  as the blues queen of New Orleans, gospel and blues artist Marva  Wright died today. She was  62 . She died of complications from a stroke she suffered in June of last year. (The Associated Press)

Tuesday, March 23, 2010, this is a sad day, a very sad day. It is the day that Marva Wright died in New Orleans.


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