Ingrid Michaelson performing at World Cafe Live in Philadelphia. Ingrid Michaelson The Way She Is by Jay S. Jacobs It used to be in order...

The Manhattan Transfer The Manhattan Transfer 35 Years and Still Swinging By Mark Mussari Where in the musical landscape hasn’t the...

Phoebe Snow Make Things All Right by Ronald Sklar The way Phoebe Snow can manipulate her vocal chords to achieve intense highs and...

Us3 - Say What!? Us3 – Say What!?  (V2) More than a decade on down from making an indelible – if somewhat short lived – impression on pop...

The Little Willies The Little Willies – The Little Willies  (Milking Bull/EMI) The Little Willies aren't just a side project for...

Us3 Us3 Questions and Answers by Abraham Kuranga You’ve heard the song a thousand times and probably didn’t know to whom you were...

Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass - The Lonely Bull ,   South of the Border  and  Lost Treasures  (Shout! Factory) Herb Alpert is a giant...

Herbie Hancock New Directions by Zoran Misetic Herbie Hancock is a true icon of modern music. His explorations of melody have transcended...

Frank Sinatra - The Christmas Collection Frank Sinatra - The Christmas Collection  (Reprise) Nowadays, every singer in the world is...

Raphael Saadiq Raphael Saadiq The Return of Ray Ray by Abraham Kuranga Raphael Saadiq is cool.  Student Council president cool.  Zach...

Alison Moyet - Voice Alison Moyet – Voice  (Sanctuary U.K.) Back in 1991, I interviewed Alison Moyet as she was releasing her third solo...

Vanessa Paradis – Au Zenith Vanessa Paradis – Au Zenith  (Barclay/Universal-France) In the United States, Vanessa Paradis is probably best known as Johnny Depp's live-in girlfriend. Other people may know her as the Chanel model or an actress. But in her native France, she is an institution.  Paradis first made waves when she was only 14, with her 1987 international hit single "Joe Le Taxi." That single was a huge hit in just about every country  but  the U.S., and the song an

Axelle Red – Alive Axelle Red – Alive  (Virgin-France) I might have never heard of Axelle Red if I weren't channel surfing one August night last year in the Sofitel Méditerranée in Cannes. With my admittedly rudimentary skills in the French language, I was looking for something, frankly, which I could understand.  That's when I stumbled upon an hour-long interview special with popular Belgian singer Axelle Red, which was peppered liberally with clips from her music videos and

Chicago – The Very Best of Chicago: Only the Beginning  (Rhino) Very few bands have had two completely separate stylistic periods. The late 60s-early 70s incarnation of Chicago was a pioneering force that wed rock and roll with jazz horns and improvisational playing in a way that was totally unique. By the time the late 70s came along, with the death of singer Terry Kath and the rise of singer Peter Cetera, the band may have become less adventurous... a middle-of-the-road hit

Tony Bennett and k.d. lang - A Wonderful World Tony Bennett & k.d. lang -  A Wonderful World  (RPM/Columbia) Last year's dual tour...

Norah Jones - Come Away With Me Norah Jones –   Come Away With Me   (Blue Note) This is just about the best debut album I've heard in...

Robbie Williams - Swing When Your Winning   (Chrysalis UK) It should be no total surprise that British pop phenomenon Robbie Williams...

Chicago At Carnegie Hall-Volume I, II, III & IV (Columbia C4X 30865) ©1971 Description: Chicago had only been recording for two years and three albums before they released this four-record (remember records?) concert set. Entirely overblown and slightly pretentious, an artistic and popular failure at the time, this still can claim to being the first rock and roll box set. What's Good About It? This was from the band's glory days (before they became an adult contemporary jugg

k.d. lang - Drag k.d. lang -  Drag  (Warner Bros.) k.d. lang's new all-covers album springs from an admittedly slightly obscure premise –...