Psychedelic music of the 1960s and beyond

Moody Blues box set includes studio recordings 1967-2003

Moody Blues prep ‘Timeless’ box set

With almost a half century of music-making to their credit, the Moody Blues have been long overdue for the sort of sprawling retrospective usually accorded rock royalty. That oversight is history with the June 11 release of an 11-CD box set. "Timeless Flight: The Voyage Continues" also contains three audio DVDs, three video DVDs and assorted memorabilia. Preorders are going for about $350. The "Timeless Flight" audio DVDs feature 5.1 surround mixes of six Moody Blues albums on Deram Records, including the psychedelic music classics "Days … [More ... ]

country joe mcdonald at monterey festival

Electrifying: Country Joe & Fish debut revived

"Electric Music for the Mind and Body" opens with the tale of a hippie hitchhiker, forlorn, ignored and waterlogged by the side of an L.A. freeway. The hours slog by. Finally, the hitchhiker is picked up by a couple of "cats in a Cadillac" -- one wearing a fez -- who give the traveler enough money for airfare. He goes "flying high," all the way home. It's a workable metaphor for the fortunes of the first County Joe and the Fish album, one of the stone-cold classics of the psychedelic music era. Owing perhaps to the condition of the … [More ... ]

Dead fans on their way back to ‘May 1977′

May 1977 ring a bell? Maybe so -- that's the month "Star Wars" debuted in cinemas nationwide. Deadheads have a different frame of reference: Early in the month the Grateful Dead played its legendary show at Cornell University's Barton Hall. That's the one whose tapes are enshrined in the National Recording Registry. For the Dead, it was another tour stop in a "gloriously fertile season," at least according to producers of the upcoming 14-CD project "May 1977." The $140 set -- similar but nowhere near as massive as the "Europe '72: … [More ... ]

Furthur’s Weir plays on in Atlantic City

Bob Weir was back in action Saturday as Furthur played Atlantic City, two nights after the singer/guitarist collapsed onstage after struggling through most of the band's show. Update: Furthur canceled its BottleRock Napa Valley music festival appearance of May 9. The Further web site said, "Grateful Dead & Furthur co-founder Bob Weir is unable to perform in any capacity for the next several weeks." Weir and the band will return July 11 in Brooklyn to kick off the summer tour, the post indicated. /update After Weir's fall in Port Chester, … [More ... ]

Richie Havens dies; folk hero of Woodstock

The fiery and soulful folk singer Richie Havens, best known for his heroic work in opening the Woodstock rock festival, has died at age 72. Havens died after a heart attack at his New Jersey home, his manager said. Havens remained true to his Greenwich Village folk roots, but was a favorite among the rock festival crowds of the late 1960s. His albums between 1968 and 1971 were heavy with psychedelic imagery, notably "Richard P. Havens, 1983," the 1969 album on which he covered four Beatles songs and another by Donovan. But it was … [More ... ]