A half-dozen cool things in music, from two points of view:
6 cool things in music this week include John Prine, Rolling Stones and Stephen Sanchez
Shoutouts, too, to Johnny Marr, Brandy Clark and Mike Doughty.
October 27, 2023 at 11:30AM
Jayson Wold of St. Louis Park:
1 Rolling Stones, "Hackney Diamonds." Being an occasional Stones listener, I decided to see what all the buzz was about their new album. Was pleasantly surprised to hear the attitude and swagger that the Stones are known for. The tracks "Angry" and "Bite My Head Off" have been added to my go-to playlist.
2 "Marr's Guitars" by Johnny Marr. As a guitar player and fan of Marr, I just had to pick up his new coffee table book. It is a beautiful photographic illustration of his guitars and the stories behind them.
3 Mike Doughty coming to the Fine Line. One show that I am looking forward to is Doughty on Nov. 4. I haven't seen him since the Soul Coughing days so this show should bring back great memories and nostalgia from that period of time. I am digging his new stuff too, "Ghost of Vroom."
Jon Bream, Star Tribune critic:
1 Stephen Sanchez, First Avenue. They screamed, they swooned, they sang along with the suaver than suave 20-year-old retro pop heartthrob who showed an Orbisonian voice and an extravagance of early Elvis energy and moves. Thank you, thank you very much.
2 Brandy Clark, Cedar Cultural Center. A low-key performer backed by upright bass, guitar, drums and her own acoustic guitar, this Nashvillian proved once again that she's a stellar songwriter. She offered six tunes from her new self-titled LP ("Dear Insecurity" was the standout), material from her three previous albums and a leftfield cover of ABBA's "Dancing Queen."
3 "Prine on Prine" edited by Holly Gleason. The Nashville journalist/artist consultant has collected three-dozen interviews and articles about revered singer-songwriter John Prine, including Roger Ebert discovering the singing mailman in 1970, Studs Terkel's 1975 radio interview and John Mellencamp's PEN Award speech in 2016. All told, these pieces paint a full portrait of the quirky songwriting giant. Best line: "I think I write the way I do because of a vitamin deficiency. I don't eat any vegetables. I just eat meat and potatoes."
To contribute: popmusic@startribune.com
The Australian rock hero will play the Armory with his old band supporting their new album, “Wild God.”
