The New Republic

Fred Hersch, Leaves of Grass (Palmetto) READ MORE >>

Brian Wilson Presents Smile (Nonesuch) READ MORE >>

Escaping the Delta: Robert Johnson and the Invention of the Blues By Elijah Wald (Amistad, 342 pp., $24.95) Robert Johnson: Lost and Found By Barry Lee Pearson and Bill McCulloch (University of Illinois Press, 142 pp., $24.95) Martin Scorcese Presents the Blues: A Musical Journey Edited by Peter Guralnick, Robert Santelli, Holly George-Warren, Christopher John Farley (Amistad, 287 pp., $27.95)   READ MORE >>

Those were Newsweek's words, not Hillary Clinton's. But a similar sentiment expressed by the wife of Arkansas Governor Bill Clinton was enough to inspire Wynette to write the now-famous screed she sent to many news organizations after Mrs. READ MORE >>

  I.   My dream was to become Frank Sinatra. I loved his phrasing, especially when he was very young and pure…. Now this is going to surprise you, but I also dug Dean Martin and especially Perry Como. — Marvin Gaye READ MORE >>

Going to Woodstock was interesting. Getting out of there was ecstasy. Four of us set out on the morning of Friday. August 16. 1969--me, fresh out of the Navy; my college friend Phil; and our girlfriends, Karen and Mary. We had spent Thursday night at my sister's farm in Rockland County, not too far from where the festival was to be held. She and her husband wanted to come with us, but they had a small child and decided to stay home. They waved goodbye to us from their porch as we pulled out in Phil's beat-up Volkswagen bug. We knew we were in for an adventure of some sort. READ MORE >>

The Lives of John Lennon by Albert Goldman   (Morrow, 719 pp., $22,95)   Yesterday: The Unauthorized Biography of Paul McCartney   by Chet Flippo   (Doubleday, 400 pp., $18.95)    I. READ MORE >>

READ MORE >>

John Lennon was shot on December 8, 1980, finally laying to rest the dream that the Beatles would rise again. Lennon's murder guaranteed the legend of the Beatles. History is kind to those who do not die in their beds. And the massive mourning surrounding Lennon's death confirmed the opinions of those who saw the Beatles as not only singers but symbols. A generation that had come of age to their music now mourned not only a hero but a lost hope. READ MORE >>

“Blood on the Tracks” by Bob Dylan (Columbia Records; $6.98) READ MORE >>