Author Archives: Larry Glickman

I don’t like Led Zeppelin, and other rock and roll confessions

I confess. I don’t like Led Zeppelin. If you are a fan of music and rock & roll, chances are good you do like Led Zeppelin. Chances are you like Led Zeppelin a lot. I mention to friends that I am not a fan, and they are confused and frustrated, often to the point ofContinue reading “I don’t like Led Zeppelin, and other rock and roll confessions”

Crossroad Blues, by Robert Johnson

The history of rock and roll music is written through a cloudy lens of myth and legend. Paul McCartney and John Lennon meet at a carnival, and talk about the rock, folk and skiffle music they both love so much. Clarence Clemons walks through the door of an Asbury Park bar late on a blusteryContinue reading “Crossroad Blues, by Robert Johnson”

Going Up the Country, by Canned Heat

What’s your paradise? Maybe when you close your eyes you imagine yourself on a sandy beach, facing a deep blue ocean with a cloudless sky above. Or you are in a pub with rich leather stools, worn wooden walls and beautiful Jazz music coming from the stage. Or you are walking down a wooden pathContinue reading “Going Up the Country, by Canned Heat”

I’ll Be There, by The Jackson Five

What comes to mind when you think of Michael Jackson? Is it the single sequined glove? Maybe it’s his famous Moonwalk dance, gliding effortlessly, backwards across the stage. Or do you think of his controversies? Do you think of how he built a secluded oasis for himself at the Neverland Ranch, his curious marriage toContinue reading “I’ll Be There, by The Jackson Five”

Well…All Right, by Buddy Holly

Buddy Holly will be forever frozen in time. Killed at the tender young age of 22 in a plane crash in the middle of a snow covered Iowa cornfield. Ritchie Valens and J.P (The Big Bopper) Richardson by his side. All on an airplane they should never have been on, taking a trip they neverContinue reading “Well…All Right, by Buddy Holly”

California Dreamin’, by The Mamas & The Papas

As I write this, it is -24° in Chicago. That is not the windchill temperature. That is just the temperature. Usually, at this frozen time of the year, people in the northern half of the United States think of ways to get themselves to somewhere that is warm. An escape from the exhausting wind andContinue reading “California Dreamin’, by The Mamas & The Papas”

Ringo’s Best

Usually it’s about John and Paul, sometimes George. When we think about The Beatles though, we don’t consider Ringo Starr nearly enough. Sitting back there with his sad eyes, banging away on the drums all alone, we never paid him much attention. We are usually enthralled with the joy of watching Paul McCartney sing, orContinue reading “Ringo’s Best”