Progressive rock seems to have staged a comeback of sorts recently. One need look no further than Rush, who loaned their 1975 song “Fly by Night” for a current car commercial or that Yes still draws a good crowd even with a substitute singer recruited from a cover band. Likewise,…
To make it in the music biz it’s always good to have a helping hand. So the fact that singer and songwriter Maia Sharp has a dad with industry savvy certainly didn’t hurt her own career prospects. Randy Sharp penned songs for such country icons as Clay Walker and Patty…
For Mickey Hart, passion brings purpose. “I like it when there’s a lot of rhythms going on and a lot of mental and physical activity,” he insists. “Being able to follow the muse is a real privilege.” While he may have gained fame for his decades-long tenure as a drummer for…
Volumes have been written about the life of John Lennon, his impact on music, his influence on society, and most significantly, his role within the Beatles. ‘Nuff said. But this year, as we celebrate what would have been Lennon’s 72nd birthday on October 9th, it’s worth recalling that Lennon had…
Jon Secada, or Juan Francisco Secada Martinez, is one famous South Florida homeboy. Born in Cuba on October 4, 1962, the singer/songwriter emigrated to the U.S. at age 9, growing up in — where else? — Hialeah. Secada made it through days at Miami Dade (Community) College before graduating from the University…
Music vet and New Times scribe Lee Zimmerman offers his insights, opinions, and observations about the local scene. This week, the Funky White Boy returns. There are many problems with cover bands, but one of the biggest is that their dance anthem happens to be Wild Cherry’s “Play That Funky…
Joe Cocker and Dave Mason Seminole Hard Rock Live Hollywood Friday, September 28 Better than: Presumably, either artist on his own It would appear to be a winning combination. Two seminal British artists of the late ’60s, two instantly identifiable voices, one great song they share in common. That was the set-up for what…
Most Americans know Marc Bolan and his band T. Rex for their 1971 hit “(Bang a Gong) Get It On,” but in the U.K., the group was a national phenomenon. Some accountants claimed at the time that these glam gods’ records added up to some six percent of the country’s…
Music vet and New Times scribe Lee Zimmerman shares observations, insights, and updates relating to South Florida’s musical environs. This week, a cool conversation with Joe Cocker. It’s one of the most indelible images in rock ‘n’ roll, that of Joe Cocker, clad in tie dye, twitching and gyrating onstage…
For many, certain musical concepts can quickly become redundant. Supergroups? They’re so ’70s. Southern rock? So very ’60s. Blues? Been there, done that. Naturally, then, any band that offers up all three could be considered something of an anachronism. Or not. Enter Royal Southern Brotherhood, a band whose very name touts…
Music vet and New Times scribe Lee Zimmerman shares observations, insights, and updates relating to South Florida’s musical environs. This week, 50 years on, the Beach Boys matter more than ever. I received a new Beach Boys DVD recently, aptly titled Doin’ It Again. After I watched it, I have to…
He may be turning 44 today, September 25, but Will Smith still looks like the wholesome, all-American kid who parlayed a successful career as the Fresh Prince into his status as one of the most successful actors of his generation. So it’s no big deal nowadays to find rappers making…
The late Ray Charles is an American superhero. Born Ray Charles Robinson on September 23, 1930, you might say he’s the greatest musician ever to come out of this country (Elvis, Dylan, Aretha, Leonard Bernstein, and Hank Williams notwithstanding). Charles not only explored a diverse musical palette.Charles pushed the parameters…
He’s the patron saint of New Jersey, the everyman, a populist rocker whose adoring legions have made him millions even while he retains his status as a man of the people. We’re talking about Bruce Springsteen, of course, a musician whose impact and popularity extend well beyond his albums and…
At the relatively ripe old age of age 78, Leonard Cohen still retains a powerful grip on the folk-rock firmament. This isn’t due only to his venerable age and indomitable presence but to the robust narratives and surreal imagery that inhabit his songs. Born in Montreal on September 21, 1934, Cohen belongs…
Music vet and New Times scribe Lee Zimmerman shares observations, insights and updates relating to South Florida’s musical environs. This week: Don Felder returns with his first solo album in, get this, thirty years. It’s always intriguing when an artist appears to go into hiding, or at least retreats from…
Born September 14, 1983, Amy Winehouse was one of the most remarkable artists of her generation. With her powerful, petulant vocals and agile ease in shifting from pop to jazz to soul and R&B, she clearly demonstrated an ability to transcend any particular genre and stake her claim as a…
See alsoRick Ross Outside Fiona Apple Concert in “911” Video; We Know Why He’s Hot for FionaFew artists operate in a vacuum, which means that even the most original performer absorbs her influences from somewhere. So it goes that Fiona Apple (born Fiona Apple McAfee Maggart on September 13, 1977),…
If indeed Aretha Franklin is the Queen of Soul, then Otis Redding was the indisputable King. In the decades that have passed since the horrific plane crash that took his life and the lives of his bandmates on December 10, 1967, only a handful of performers have come close to…
Music vet and New Times scribe Lee Zimmerman shares observations, insights, and updates relating to South Florida’s musical environs. This week: Sometimes when we build it, we also have to tear it down. President Obama may regret the fact that he gave the Republicans the soundbite that lit up their…
Known as one of the greatest country singers of all time, Patsy Cline’s influence far exceeded her success in any one genre. And yet, her story is one of music’s more tragic tales. Born Virginia Patterson Hensley on September 8, 1932, she was only 30, and at the height of…
There’s something to be said about an artist who tirelessly plies her craft, and yet even after nine albums, retains her overall optimism. And when that artist is working in an arena like folk music, in a place like South Florida, where that genre has never been top of mind,…
