Formers Teardrops bassist Nick Holt, the brother of Chicago blues legend Magic Slim (a/k/a Morris Holt), died in Lincoln, Nebraska on Monday, June 22, 2009 from brain cancer. Holt was 69 years old at the time of his death.
Born in Grenada, Mississippi in 1940, Holt accompanied his brother to Chicago in the late-1950s, and helped him form the popular Magic Slim & the Teardrops in 1960. The rock-steady bass player performed with his frontman brother for the next 40 years, both onstage and on the band's recordings through 2000's Blind Pig Records release Snakebite.
Holt moved with his brother to Lincoln in 1994, where Magic Slim & the Teardrops performed frequently at the Zoo Bar when they weren't on tour, and even recorded several live albums at the venue. Holt also received a 1999 W.C. Handy Awards nomination as "Best Blues Instrumentalist
The fifth season of House, M.D concludes with Dr. Gregory House (the always extraordinary Hugh Laurie in a heartbreaking performance) watching his world come crashing down around him -- his sense of reality shattered, unable to distinguish fantasy from reality. It was a somber way to end the season, the camera pulling back to reveal the lone figure of Wilson, watching sadly from afar as House enters the doors of Mayfield Psychiatric Hospital. House co-executive producer and the finale’s writer Doris Egan explained the significance of the final sequence during a one-on-one interview the day after the finale aired. We also discussed the episode’s themes and the series’ relationships. Egan has written for House for several seasons, penning some of the best and most beloved episodes of the entire series, including season three’s “Son of Coma
Mr. Big, the hard rock supergroup that formed in the 1980s and yielded the hits "To Be With You" and "Green Tinted Sixties Mind" has reunited.
The band is comprised of bassist Billy Sheehan (of Talas and David Lee Roth Band fame), guitarist Paul Gilbert (formerly Racer X), drummer Pat Torpey (formerly of The Knack) and singer Eric Martin.
The group debuted with their eponymous album in 1989. This album laid the groundwork for their distinct sound: crunching, shredding guitars, precision-pounded drums, booming bass, and raspy melodic vocals. Soaring choruses combined with crunch delighted fans of the band the world over.
Wait. This sounds like almost every other band that blossomed out of the 80s under the rock/heavy metal genre.
What differentiated Mr. Big from other bands of their time was the fact that all of the members had previous successful careers in
There have been a lot of musical siblings through the years and some of them immediately come to mind, but it's difficult to imagine a group of brothers and sisters quite like the Dinnings. Over a period of several decades, they covered just about every aspect of music; including songwriting, bandleading, recording, and performing on stage and screen. And those doing the performing included a popular all-girl singing group, and a young crooner who thrilled teens with a chart-topping hit that was banned in Great Britain. (And if that wasn't enough, the family's next generation included a member of a popular modern rock group -- but more later about that.) Of course, there were nine Dinning siblings so that gave them a leg up but it's still a fascinating story, one that began with a musical childhood in Oklahoma encouraged by their father, the musical director of a
A stunning two-disc anthology presents Ry Cooder at his best.
Ry Cooder is now 61 years old and well into his fifth decade as a performing artist. His early years included a stint in Captain Beefheart’s Magic Band plus playing with Taj Mahal for a spell. He then brought his mandolin and slide guitar skills to such classic Rolling Stones albums as Let It Bleed and Sticky Fingers. Under his own name, Ry...
