Google’s dictionary defines a singer-songwriter as “a person who sings and writes popular songs, especially professionally.” The term’s come to have a more specific meaning – I understand it to mean artists who record as solo acts, who write their…
The Velvet Underground began as a collaboration between frustrated songwriter Lou Reed and classically trained John Cale. Cale had worked with experimental composers John Cage and LaMonte Young, and Reed’s interest in alternative guitar tunings and drone notes provided common…
Congratulations to all the participants in last week’s music jokes quiz. Tony from Mumbling About… scored the fastest time among all the 24s. This week you need to identify albums from 1987. The 1980s used to get a rough time…
Jenny Lewis has been a fixture in indie rock for two decades, firstly with Rilo Kiley and then a solo career. Even before her music career Lewis was a public figure; a child actress who debuted in a Jell-O commercial…
English art-pop artist Kate Bush is a creative genius, who siphoned her influences into her own unique blend. The folk music from her Irish mother, the progressive rock that her older brothers listened to as teenagers, and radio-friendly pop like…
Last week’s first and last song quiz created a logjam. The highest score was 13/16, and Michael Jackson seemingly tricked everyone since his early albums are relatively obscure. Congratulations to Rich, Max, Bruce, and jprobichaud, who all made it to…
Billie Eilish Pirate Baird O’Connell recently became the first musician born in the 21st century to score a number one single in the United States. Eilish had already been building a profile for a few years, debuting on SoundCloud and…
Congratulations to the four contestants who scored full marks in last week’s 1990 album quiz. In order of fastest time: 1) Tony2) 2Loud2Old3) J4) Stephen1001 This week you need to identify musical artists by the first song from their debut…
In 1978 New Zealand art-rockers Split Enz were in crisis. The group had lost key original members like Phil Judd and Mike Chunn. Their art-rock was out of step in the late 1970s, pushed from the mainstream by punk and…
By 1976, David Bowie had already enjoyed a glittering career. His majestic 1969 hit ‘Space Oddity’ established his career, after a false start with the 1967 novelty ‘The Laughing Gnome’. Bowie’s first successful album was 1971’s Hunky Dory.1972’s glam rock…
