Basically, at just past the halfway point, my 2020 in music can be described like this. In March I heard Dua Lipa’s new album and I thought that would be the best album I heard all year. Then I heard Hayley Williams’ solo album in May and I thought that was amazing. Then Lady Gaga... Continue Reading →
Yea, it makes me wanna holler/And throw up both my hands Today, I’m letting others speak for me. They've been speaking for decades. Maybe at some point, the point of their speaking will no longer be a point. That's what I hope for. 1987 Sign O the Times, Prince In France, a skinny man... Continue Reading →
I am lamenting the loss of Richard Wayne Penniman known to the world as Little Richard. Like many people of a certain age, I discovered Little Richard through The Beatles. Like those people of a certain age, I was captivated by Paul’s wailing, wooh-ooh-oohing, and wahhhhhing on Long Tall Sally on The Beatles Second Album.... Continue Reading →
A long-time loyal follower of these here musings asked, "If you were going to create a playlist of songs “not be missed” from 2019, what songs would you include?" First, we at raysmusings.com love to be asked such questions almost as much as we like referring to ourselves as multiple people in the third person.... Continue Reading →
Future Generational Superstars Maggie Rogers Heard It in a Past Life. I predict she will be this generation’s Joni Mitchell. Billie Eilish When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go? She is this generation’s Kurt Cobain. Future Generational Superstar if People Will Care More About R&B H.E.R. I Used to Know Her. She is... Continue Reading →
Happy Tenth Anniversary For Your Entertainment! It doesn’t seem like ten years have gone by which is why I’m celebrating it by re-upping what I wrote about it on its fifth anniversary in 2014. Much has happened for Adam since then, most notably his association with Queen which became a phenomenon with Queen + Adam Lambert’s... Continue Reading →
Enthralling. That’s the simplest and best way for me to describe the Aretha Franklin concert film Amazing Grace that was released in the spring of this year. I finally was able to see it on a recent flight home from LA. Critically speaking, Variety said, “Amazing Grace can stand as an essential filmed record of... Continue Reading →
The other day, a dear friend emailed me a question about Santana. What follows - with minor edits - is the thread that ensued which became something of a career retrospective of and by a misc-nerdy Santana fan. FRIEND: You are a big fan—you’ve told me—of Abraxas and Caravanserai (sp?), but I just learned that... Continue Reading →
Whoa! When Dean made his self-reflective drive to the Grand Canyon, he must have had Major Harris Love Won’t Let Me Wait on auto-repeat. He comes back moustache-less and asks Caelynn to leave Paradise with him STAT. And that’s where we ended – hanging on a cliff awaiting Caelynn’s decision. Love Is All Around The... Continue Reading →
