Robert's Oldies Music Blog

Historian David Fowler of Cambridge University said this week that Sixties pop icons like John Lennon and Mick Jagger were essentially phonies, claiming that "Swinging London" was merely "a celebration of wealth by its social elite" and that "groups like The Beatles were basically capitalists interested in enriching themselves through the music industry. They did about as much to represent the interests of the nation's young people as The Spice Girls did in the 1990s." Do you agree? Let me know what you think!

They were already the first family of Gospel, folk protesters in their own right, friends of MLK, and products of an authentic Delta blues master... but it was when the Staple Singers joined Stax and left their native Chicago for Muscle Shoals that they truly entered the area of legend. Read all about the Staple Singers here in my new profile.

One of the most incendiary live albums in music history, 1967's Otis In Europe documented the master's rise to fame on a London stage in March 1967. But just a few days later, he gave a concert that was arguably just as wild - and now the revived Stax label has combined both the released and unreleased cuts on one smokin' platter. Read my review of Otis Redding's Live In London And Paris here.

It's influenced swing, jazz, blues, and rock, and poked its head into the cultural mainstream several times over the course of three decades. Rock and roll would have been impossible to conceive without it... and yet this style, born in humble lumber camps, is barely recognized as a style at all anymore. Read and hear more about the "boogie-woogie" style in my new entry, the latest in a series.

For years he was known for only one hit, and a hit that never made the charts at that. So how does the legacy of this wild voodoo man of early rock and roll, including his notorious roar, his terrifying stage antics, his spooky-comic lyrics, and his freewheeling offstage antics, continue to endure? Find out here in my Screamin' Jay Hawkins profile.

The "national anthem of Halloween" may be the most popular song of the costuming season, but, as this history proves, it only got that way with a lot of help. Wondering how the Hollywood Argyles' "Alley Oop," Ronny and the Daytonas, and Leon Russell fit into the picture? Curious as to how it almost never saw the light of day? Wondering what Boris Karloff and Elvis thought of it? Look no further. Read the story of "Monster Mash" here.

Halloween is almost upon us again, and so what better time to look at the creepiest oldies ever? I've identified my favorites from the Fifties, Sixties, and Seventies -- hits and rarities alike -- and found the rare CDs they're on for you. R&B, rock and roll, pop, even a little jazz... it's all here. You can hear samples of these novelty classics, check out the albums they're on, compare prices, and purchase them here in time for your own theme party! Here's my list of the greatest Halloween oldies of all time.

The just-wrapped major Hollywood film Cadillac Records, a fictionalized story of Chess Records, features lots of interesting cast choices, but none more so than R&B megastar Beyonce as R&B legend Etta James. In fact, Beyonce is set to re-record "At Last" and four other Etta classics for the soundtrack. Is this an exciting idea, or a heretical one? Let me know what you think!

One of the most contentious terms in all of rock categorization, the term "blue-eyed soul" can unfortunately reveal as much about the person wielding it as the artist to which it's being applied. But there's a rich and identifiable strain of pop-inflected soul running through the Sixties and Seventies... and beyond. Read more about the genre in my new series on oldies styles.

They're everyone's second favorite surf-pop act, but while Jan and Dean never scaled the artistic heights of their contemporaries/friends the Beach Boys, the evidence on this collection of 26 double-sided golden oldies (finally available in remastered original mono mixes) suggests they were getting there. Or does it? Read my review of Jan and Dean: The Complete Liberty Singles here.