Category: Off the Beaten Tracks

RETURNING to Ry Cooder’s early career is a real joy for me; like a conversation with an old and treasured friend. In my first column about him last April I looked at … Continue readingCooder’s Story Part Two

WHEN Lou Reed sacked John Cale from the Velvet Underground, his excuse was that the Welshman’s ideas were too ‘out there’, including recording with the amplifiers under water. Yet while … Continue readingJohn Cale: Paris 1919 and All That

LAST week we left Robert Fripp in 1972, resolved to take King Crimson in a radical new direction and replace every member of the band (with the obvious exception of himself). … Continue readingLong Live the King Crimson Part 2

MY previous columns on Genesis and Yes seemed to go down well with discerning readers, so here’s a look at another pillar of the progressive establishment, the mighty King Crimson. … Continue readingLong Live the King (Crimson)

WE left Nick Lowe last week gazing into the mirror, not liking what he saw, and vowing to quit the booze and clean up his act. Sure enough, it was … Continue readingLowe Life Part Two

LAST week’s column mentioned that Nick Lowe regarded Randy Newman and Bob Dylan as the two greatest songwriters. Praise indeed, because Lowe himself is no slouch. He is one of a very … Continue readingLowe Life

NOT so long ago the great British musician Nick Lowe was asked at a public question-and-answer session who he thought were the top two songwriters in the business. ‘Bob Dylan, … Continue readingRandy Newman, master craftsman (continued)

LAST week we left Traffic in a jam after Steve Winwood decided to break up the band in 1969. He joined forces with Eric Clapton and Ginger Baker from Cream, … Continue readingTraffic Report Part 2

WHEN Steve Winwood first played piano in pubs and clubs, his bandmates made sure he faced away from the audience at all times. This was so the punters wouldn’t realise … Continue readingTraffic Report

ACCORDING to music legend, Jimi Hendrix was once asked on TV what it was like to be the greatest rock guitarist in the world. He allegedly replied: ‘I don’t know, … Continue readingThe glory of Rory