Posts by Alby

Character actor David L. Lander, famous for his role on "Laverne & Shirley," died last week at age 73. Lander and Michael McKean, as Andrew "Squiggy" Squiggman and Lenny Kosnowski,…

Phillies great Dick Allen, one of the most controversial players in the history of baseball, died Monday, prompting a wave of nostalgia for a man Philadelphia fans demonized and drove…

Whatever else it represented, the assassination of John Lennon 40 years ago tonight closed the door on an encouraging comeback from his self-imposed exile. Not everyone saw "Double Fantasy" that…

The No. 1 song in the nation the day of the Pearl Harbor attack was also the first one ever awarded a gold record. Glenn Miller's swing rendition of the…

Long Island guitarist Leslie West was so impressed by Cream that he formed a band with Felix Pappalardi, who had produced the "Disraeli Gears" and "Wheels of Fire" LPs, on…

It's been nearly a decade since Amy Winehouse died and she still hasn't been replaced. In 2006, when she was on top of the world after the release of her…

It's actually about the band on tour not being able to find the Holiday Inn -- that's the sign they were looking for in the middle of the night --…

If you're old enough, you probably know this as the first record by British invaders Herman's Hermits, one that reached No. 1 in the UK (and No. 13 in the…

Bob Dylan wrote this during the Basement Tapes sessions in 1967 and has recorded it three times (none are available on YouTube, which Dylan's people police pretty closely). None of…

Though they're now acknowledged as founding fathers of power pop, Raspberries weren't fully appreciated in their time. Their Mod-based sound was considered lightweight, their teen-angst lyrics banal, their matching-suits look…

For reasons that don't matter anymore, disco mostly sucked. But it was closely related to funk, which meant some truly funky music got dance-floor exposure, too. L.T.D. (it stood for…

This song has nothing to do with the holiday, but I don't care, I just like the tune. For me it's the standout song on "Wishing Like a Maountain and…

Bruce Springsteen's "Letter to You" album, released a month ago, got reviews I would characterize more as respectful than enthusiastic. Many of the songs replicate the arena-rock template Springsteen laid…