Author: Jim Stalker

Yellowjackets

The Robben Ford Group – Robben Ford – guitar, Russel Ferrante – keyboards, Jimmy Haslip – bass, and Ricky Lawson – drums – were a tight, highly musical band of studio musicians that played that strange hybrid of jazz, pop, rock, and blues that was being called “fusion” in the late seventies. Playing mostly instrumentals,…

Steve Winwood

When Island Records founder Chris Blackwell was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, he was sure to make a “special thanks to Steve Winwood, whose association with the label gave us credibility with many artists that made us successful.” Steve Winwood equals credibility. He is the real deal. A musician’s musician. Steve…

The Who Quadrophenia

“Why should I care?” The “rock opera” Tommy had elevated the status of the band. Touring in support of the record making a captured-for-all-posterity stop at Woodstock, the Who’s live machine was in full gear, and their reputation was on the rise.  Their playing had become ferocious, the interplay nuanced, and arguably more powerful than…

Golden Age of TV

During a rather ho-hum Emmy Awards Show (unlike many others, I was not fawning over Neil Patrick Harris) winning Mad Men writer-producer Mathew Wiener referenced the “golden age” of Television and expressed how lucky he is to be making his show. I would broaden his scope here a bit  – we are all lucky that…