The Soul Ballad Creedence Hid in Plain Sight: Creedence Clearwater Revival’s “It’s Just a Thought” and John Fogerty at the Organ
On Pendulum, Creedence Clearwater Revival let the swamp-rock engine idle long enough for a soul...
Melody Era
The Rare 12-Inch That Let John Fogerty Breathe: Knockin’ on Your Door from 1986’s Eye of the Zombie
In the shadow of Eye of the Zombie, John Fogerty found a burst of forward...
The Sweet Ache David Cassidy Gave The Partridge Family’s Something New Got Old on 1972’s Shopping Bag
A bright television-pop album track becomes something more fragile when David Cassidy sings as if...
The Softer David Cassidy TV Never Fully Showed: “Soft As A Summer Shower” on 1972’s Rock Me Baby
A small album cut from 1972 catches David Cassidy not as a television phenomenon, but...
A Swing-Era Spark Reborn: Linda Ronstadt’s “Straighten Up and Fly Right” with Nelson Riddle on For Sentimental Reasons
On For Sentimental Reasons, Linda Ronstadt turned a Nat King Cole swing classic into a...
A Quiet Goodbye in Plain Sight: Linda Ronstadt and Ann Savoy’s “Adieu False Heart” Became a Late-Career Folk Farewell
On the title track of Adieu False Heart, Linda Ronstadt and Ann Savoy turn an...
A Brooklyn Voice Under a Nashville Sky: Neil Diamond’s 1996 “Tennessee Moon” Found New Country Ground
In 1996, Neil Diamond let a Nashville moon pull his big-city voice toward country music,...
The Softest Finale on a Giant Album: Bee Gees’ “Until” Turned Falsetto Harmony Into Pure Stillness
At the close of a blockbuster Bee Gees album, “Until” strips away the drumbeat and...
A Baritone Benediction: Josh Turner’s “Going Home” Made the 2023 Bill and Gloria Gaither Tribute Feel Personal
In Josh Turner’s hands, “Going Home” becomes less a showcase than a low, steady act...
A New-Wave Wound on HBO: Linda Ronstadt’s 1980 Television Center Studios Performance of Elvis Costello’s Party Girl
In a studio built for television, Linda Ronstadt turned Elvis Costello’s sharp-edged Party Girl into...
A Fragile 1978 Whisper: Emmylou Harris and Willie Nelson’s One Paper Kid on Quarter Moon in a Ten Cent Town
In One Paper Kid, Emmylou Harris and Willie Nelson made collaboration sound like two travelers...
Before the Reinvention, Emmylou Harris’s 1993 “High Powered Love” Pushed Cowgirl’s Prayer Into Country-Rock Overdrive
On “High Powered Love”, Emmylou Harris lets the road into the room, turning Cowgirl’s Prayer...
That Strange Buzz in John Fogerty’s “Rattlesnake Highway” — How a Coral Electric Sitar Gave Blue Moon Swamp Its Bite
On “Rattlesnake Highway”, John Fogerty turns a road song into something more dangerous and sun-struck,...
Jack Cassidy’s Shadow Gives David Cassidy’s ‘Like Father, Like Son’ from Didn’t You Used to Be… Its Quiet Ache
On Like Father, Like Son, David Cassidy turns resemblance into reckoning, hearing his father’s brilliance...
The Night “Lies” Got Sharper: Linda Ronstadt’s 1980 Hollywood Take on The Knickerbockers’ Hit
In a fast, ringing two-and-a-half-minute rocker, Linda Ronstadt made a 1960s accusation sound newly urgent...
Before the Hit Version Took Over, Neil Diamond’s 1969 Mr. Bojangles Cover on Touching You, Touching Me Gave Jerry Jeff Walker’s Drifter a Different Light
Neil Diamond’s 1969 version of “Mr. Bojangles” hears Jerry Jeff Walker’s wandering dancer not as...
A Quiet 2001 Radio Victory: Neil Diamond’s You Are the Best Part of Me Carried Three Chord Opera Back Into the Adult Contemporary Top 30
In 2001, Neil Diamond found a modest but meaningful radio opening with a love song...
The Final-Album Whisper Most Fans Miss: Bee Gees’ Voice in the Wilderness on This Is Where I Came In
On the Bee Gees’ final studio album, a quiet acoustic ballad let the brothers step...
The Brother in the Middle: Bee Gees’ “Suddenly” Let Maurice Gibb Take the Lead on 1969’s Odessa
Inside the grand, restless sweep of Odessa, Maurice Gibb steps out of the family harmony...
Two Baritones Took Over the Room: Josh Turner and Randy Travis Revive King of the Road Live
When Josh Turner and Randy Travis share King of the Road live, the old Roger...
Before “Your Man,” Josh Turner’s “There’s a Lot Riding on That” Revealed the Quiet Stakes of His Early Country Voice
Before the big radio moments fully arrived, Josh Turner was already singing like every promise,...
The Sharpest Whisper on Hasten Down the Wind: Linda Ronstadt’s The Tattler and Ry Cooder’s Old-Soul Arrangement
On an album filled with grand heartbreak, this small moral blues lets Linda Ronstadt reveal...
Before the Big Breakthrough, Linda Ronstadt’s 1972 Birds Found a Tender Country-Rock Truth in Neil Young’s Song
Before Linda Ronstadt became a defining voice of the decade, her 1972 reading of Neil...
A Rock Song Crossed the Fence: Emmylou Harris Reimagined Bruce Springsteen’s The Price You Pay on 1981’s Cimarron
On Cimarron, Emmylou Harris did not simply cover Bruce Springsteen; she translated the ache of...
Two Voices, One Honky-Tonk Spark: Emmylou Harris and Tanya Tucker Fire Up “Sister’s Coming Home” on Blue Kentucky Girl
Before Blue Kentucky Girl settles into its deep country sorrow, Emmylou Harris opens the door...
The Highway Became a Confession: Emmylou Harris’s “White Line” and the Country Story She Built With Paul Kennerley
On “White Line,” Emmylou Harris turned the road itself into a character, carrying the ache,...
Three Voices, One Old Promise: Emmylou Harris’s Gold Watch and Chain with Linda Ronstadt and Ricky Skaggs
On Gold Watch and Chain, an old Carter Family promise becomes a clear mountain braid...
The Groove That Proved He Was Back: John Fogerty’s Bring It Down to Jelly Roll on Grammy-Winning Blue Moon Swamp
On Blue Moon Swamp, John Fogerty returned to the old American road with fresh dust...
Alone After Creedence, John Fogerty Turned “She Thinks I Still Care” Into a Quiet Solo Reckoning
At the moment after Creedence, John Fogerty reached for an old country wound and made...
The Teen Idol Took a Harder Turn: David Cassidy’s Rare 1976 Cover of Harry Nilsson’s The Story of Rock and Roll
On a hard-to-find 1976 album, David Cassidy reached past the poster image and found a...