I've been meaning to talk about RJ Smith's The One: The Life and Music Of James Brown for a few months now. I guess it's a biography of James Brown, though it's more like a very long essay about J...

The summer concert season is upon us and the Hidden Track staff knows that it’s virtually impossible for us to afford every show we want to hit, and still be able to pay our insanely expensive New York City rents. Luckily for us, there are a plethora of fantastic free concerts throughout the summer that don’t cost a dime. We decided to weed through all the listings and present to you our 5th Annual NYC Free Summer Concert Picks. Let’s take a look… HT Recommends: Laura Marling / Michael Kiwanuka / Willy Mason Where: Celebrate Brooklyn! – Prospect Park Bandshell ...

Alabama Shakes “You Ain’t Alone” Alabama Shakes got their start covering songs by Otis Redding and James Brown, and that influence comes through in originals like “You Ain’t Alone,” a number that closely approximates the sound and intense yearning of their best ballads. Brittany Howard is a stunning vocalist - perhaps a bit too indebted to [...]

Koji, Kurt Travis, and Bearcat just recently finished up a full US tour with Never Shout Never. The tours over, but we’ve put all three artists together for a great new PropertyOfZack Playlist feature. Check out the Playlists and listen to the songs on Spotify while reading everyone’s thoughts! (Click on image to listen in Spotify) IT’S SPRING TIME. SOUTHERN MUSIC IS WHAT’S GOOD. First thing you should know, my favorite singer is—without a doubt—Otis Redding. “Dock of the Bay” is one of the first songs I ever heard, ever learned. Secondly, B.B ...

Visit Indie Shuffle to download. Sounds like: The Persuaders, Marvin Gaye, James Brown Song: Al Green - Love and Happiness - Love and Happiness [download here ] What's so good? This week’s Old School Wednesday is taken from Al Green’s fifth album, I’m Still In Love With You , which went platinum. One of the reasons it reached such status was the track “Love and Happiness.” It’s made up of an exciting combination of guitars and trumpets that are mixed together in the best way possible. The lyrics almost float over the tune, with Green’s laid back delivery ...

Leave it up to rock'n'soul cover behemoths The Horrortones to put out something as irregular yet delectable as a triple 7" box set. These guys only play like twice a goddamned year! Seriously though, it's great to have these consummate pleasure machines put tracks on wax, and the six songs on display will have you greasing your hair back and shimmying in no time! Just try to resist the decadent, blitzed charms of 'W.A.S.T.E.D' or the swinging frenzy of 'Mojo Hannah'. None of the band members even know where 'They Don't ...

If I understand this right, this album, the debut from the Manchester-based trio following singles in 2007 and 2009 , has been six years in the making. Not only is the debut finally now here, the follow-up album is recorded and mixed AND all songs for the third are written too. Before we get ahead of ourselves, this year's release... It may have been a long gestation for ‘Pleasure Blast’ but it is not an over-cooked affair. Instead it’s a richly piquant dish, in which Onions pack each song full-to-the brim with multiple variations of their chirpy, choppy barber-shop ...

The reissue of Sleep's Dopesmoker shows musicians with the nerve to really stretch a song and take listeners on a journey The three-minute pop song is an undeniable design classic: short enough to fit on one side of a 7in, long enough to turn a repeated chorus, melody or hook into an insanely addictive earworm. But greatness can also occur when an artist changes their game up from sprint to marathon, breaking past the 180-second barrier as far as their creativity will take them. I'm talking specifically about tunes that rely on their uncommon length for their effect ...

James Brown's biographer calls D.C. legend Chuck Brown "the square root of funk."

Joe Budden does his best James Brown impression, Royce plays the saxophone...hilarity ensues.

Prince was once a symbol but these days he’s an icon. He’s responsible for so many hits- from other artists to solo works and whatever flamboyant guise he’s decided to wear that particular day. It’s hardly a surprise that his concert attracted all types and was a true celebration of music and love. There were the diehard fans who had been around long before ’99; the guys and girls in purple; lovely ladies in raspberry berets; the dotting punks that love pop and the children of the eighties – like myself – who grew up singing his songs ...

There’s less than one month until a myriad of musical monsters will emerge at the Gorge for the 2012 Sasquatch Music Festival. With so many beautiful bands to keep in mind and a number of schedule conflicts to sort out, LYFSTYL will feature an act each day to allow you to sample what is in store this summer at the Gorge.   Charles Bradley Charles Bradley, The Screaming Eagle of Soul, is set to touch the Sasquatch faithful with his soulful sound that strikes of several of Soul’s best in history. A man well-versed in the down-and-out experiences that ...

Tags: American Idol Joshua Ledet Round one is already done and the top four competitors on “American Idol” are moving into the second portion of the show. This theme is songs that they wish they’d written and Joshua Ledet is performing “It’s A Man’s World” by James Brown. In case you’re missing the show, we are recapping it live here. [...] ( Read more... )

Bruno Mars entertained friends, fashionistas, and his fellow artists at the annual Met Gala earlier this week. Looking pretty in Prada, the Hawaiian-born heartthrob and his Hooligans had the well-dressed crowd on its feet while performing “Runaway Baby”—complete with James Brown breakdown—and a medley of covers including “Ni**as in Paris,” “Roxanne,” and “Rock the Boat,” [...]

Die derzeit womögliche weltbeste R'n'B-Stimme inklusive Band kommt auf Tour in die hiesigen Gefilde: Sharon Jones und ihre Dap-Kings touren durch die deutschsprachigen Republiken. Mit im Gepäck haben sie neben jeder Menge Motown-Sound, 60s-Soul, der Adele und Konsorten in den Schatten stellt und groovenden Funk sicher auch das neueste Album " Soul Time! ". Außerdem verlost motor.de 2x2 Tickets für einen Termin eurer Wahl. Um am Gewinnspiel teilzunehmen schreibt ihr einfach eine E-Mail mit dem Betreff "Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings" sowie euren vollständigen Namen und die Wunschstadt an verlosung@motor.de und mit etwas Glück seht ihr bald die ...