Jonathan Lesser

Adrian Belew Salad Days (Thirsty Ear) Adrian Belew is the Jimmy Stewart of rock, a genuinely nice guy who does consistently great work across a variety of styles. Belew brings a wealth of talent and experience to each successive project that features his name on the marquee. Belew's resume is...

Various Artists Yoyo a Go Go, July 15-20, 1997 (Yoyo Recordings) While mainstream rock critics salivate over their keyboards and pat themselves on the backs for the unabashed praise they've heaped on Northwest indie-rock icons Sleater-Kinney and Built to Spill's new records (The Hot Rock and Keep It Like a...

The Black Crowes By Your Side (Columbia) Like any small group of world-class, highly paid performers -- from sports teams to rock 'n' roll bands -- when things take a downward turn, an individual or two pays the price. For the Black Crowes, after two subpar-selling records, the heads that...

Whenever Gregg Allman performs, three plastic cups sit atop his Hammond B-3 organ. For a long time, they contained vodka and cranberry juice; before that, Chivas Regal and Coke. But nowadays, hearing the blond, blue-eyed singer-songwriter rattle off the cups' contents is like getting a lesson in holistic medicine: "One...

R.E.M. Up (Warner Bros.) R.E.M. has been a lot of things since its well-documented, small-town beginnings: underground college-radio favorite; above-ground music-industry manipulator; international pop icon. But one element in the band's long journey has remained constant: its lineup. Until now. Up is R.E.M.'s first album since the departure of drummer...