ROBYN HITCHCOCK   The enduring godfather of alt-rock is still full of sonic surprises  By Russell Hall  If Robyn Hitchcock never again hears the word “quirky,” that’ll be just fine with him. “I think what people mean is that, for me, an idea can come from anywhere,” he says. “They come from under the table, from behind the sofa, or from the back of a cupboard. They’re not the first places everybody looks. I suppose you could call... 

THE GAME A chart-topping rapper takes on the concept of religion  “I just feel free,” says the Game. “I’ve got good friends, I’m eating right, working out, doing my music. That’s how I feel.” That’s pretty good for the Compton, Calif., native, who was nearly shot to death when a drug deal went awry in 2001. Even after being signed by Dr. Dre in 2003, the artist born Jayceon Taylor feuded with 50 Cent, Jay-Z and Dre, leaving the... 

ERIC BURDON One of rock’s most distinctive voices gets personal with a new album   Ask Eric Burdon what’s on his mind and he says, “Being successful at my next gig.” After a half-century of lending his voice to hits, including “The House of the Rising Sun,” “It’s My Life,” and “Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood” for British Invasion band the Animals, and offering funk icons War their first taste of stardom in 1970 with “Spill... 

RICHARD THOMPSON The British folk-rock hero makes an Americana connection on his latest Richard Thompson is not content to stay in one musical place. Since the 1960s, when his ace guitar skills led Fairport Convention into the rarified league of groundbreaking musicians who invented British folk rock, he’s been something of a human prism, shifting and turning his talents to spotlight musical beauty—sometimes in the unlikeliest of places, as when... 

AARON NEVILLE An American treasure revisits the music that honed his otherworldly vocals   Aaron Neville has sung R&B, gospel and country, everywhere from Bourbon Street to Sesame Street, but now he’s returning to the street-corner sounds he’s loved since boyhood with his doo-wop record, My True Story. For the new album, Neville’s first on Blue Note Records, he called label president Don Was, who in turn reached out to longtime doo-wop... 

KRIS KRISTOFFERSON On his new album, a legendary storyteller sizes up a life well lived  At 76, Kris Kristofferson is as focused on his art as he was four decades ago. “For me, the creative part is when I write it and get it on tape,” he says. “After that, I really don’t have anything to do with the business part of it. Let the others do the hard part.” Kristofferson—whose résumé includes Grammy award-winning singer-songwriter, actor,... 

MACY GRAY Honoring a music legend with a cover of a classic album  Macy Gray was on a mission to honor her personal hero, Stevie Wonder, by covering his iconic album Talking Book. The new record—which coincides with the 40th anniversary of the original’s release—features Gray interpreting classics from “You Are the Sunshine of My Life” to “Superstition.” But don’t call it a tribute record. “It’s a love letter and a big thank... 

UNCLE KRACKER A pop-rock hit-maker brings his feel-good groove to country music   His 2001 breakout single, “Follow Me,” was a pop smash. But in recent years, Uncle Kracker, aka Matthew Shafer, has shifted from funky post-grunge rock to country, working with producer Keith Stegall (Alan Jackson, Zac Brown Band) and signing with roots label Sugar Hill Records. What hasn’t changed is the Detroit native’s penchant for fun—a philosophy reflected... 

ZIGGY MARLEY Exploring the connection between his father’s legacy and his own artistry Although Ziggy Marley has won five Grammys and garnered widespread acclaim for his work as a humanitarian, author and producer, to many he will always be known as Bob Marley’s eldest son. Rather than distancing himself from his father’s legacy, Marley embraces the spirit and artistry of the legendary performer, who died in 1981. His new album, Ziggy Marley... 

NAS   The enduring hip-hop storyteller’s latest title becomes his mantra    Several months after releasing his 10th studio album, Life Is Good, Nas is revisiting the title. “I was watching TV the other night and saw this woman had survived pancreatic cancer,” he says. “I was barely listening, because my mom passed from breast cancer, and sometimes it’s just too hard to watch. But I heard her say, ‘Life is good,’ and I thought, ‘If... 

AIMEE MANN Getting it right for her latest effort required a fresh start After nearly three decades in the music biz and Grammy and Oscar nods under her belt, Aimee Mann wanted a new approach for Charmer, her eighth solo album—so she tossed her original batch of tunes. “I had some songs and played them all back to back and was like, ‘I’m not crazy about these,’” says the 52-year-old singer-songwriter and actress. “They didn’t really... 

JOHN HIATT At 60, the master singer-songwriter still follows wherever the music leads After 40 years and 21 studio albums, John Hiatt knows a thing or two about songcraft. On his new album,  Mystic Pinball, he even manages to make a grocery list interesting, wrapping it up in the grisly story-song, “Wood Chipper.” “It’s a bit of an homage to the Coen Brothers and the wood-chipper scene in Fargo,” he explains. “I started playing the... 

LIFEHOUSE Inspiration and experimentation lead to a sound shake-up on their latest    Since their 2001 monster hit “Hanging by a Moment,” Lifehouse has sold more than 15 million albums worldwide. But the big numbers are just a byproduct of the band’s vision. “We’ve been a pretty insulated group,” says lead singer Jason Wade. “We’re on the same label as these acts like Black Eyed Peas, U2 and Lady Gaga, but we do our own thing.”... 

SOUNDGARDEN The seminal grunge-rock band picks up right where it left off  Nearly 16 years after their breakup, iconic grunge rockers Soundgarden are back with King Animal, their first new music since 1996. The band—singer Chris Cornell, guitarist Kim Thayil, drummer Matt Cameron and bassist Ben Shepherd—first formed in 1984, and blew up 10 years later with their smash Superunknown, only to call it quits in 1997. “We just got burned out,”... 

MARTHA WAINWRIGHT Family love and loss provides inspiration for her new album   Music has always been a family affair for Martha Wainwright. She’s the daughter of Loudon Wainwright and Kate McGarrigle, niece of Anna McGarrigle, sister to Rufus Wainwright, and wife of bassist Brad Albetta, who plays in her band. It’s no surprise that family changes—the birth of her son, Arcangelo, followed months later by the death of her mother in early 2010—impacted... 

RICHIE SAMBORA Life’s trials lead him beyond Bon Jovi to a very personal solo effort  By Russell Hall  Richie Sambora isn’t one to hold back. His new solo album is the best thing he’s done outside Bon Jovi, he insists, and he’s not going to rein in his enthusiasm with false modesty. “People have been very surprised by this record,” he says. “They’re surprised it’s me. I could take that as a bad thing, I suppose, but I think it’s... 

HEART These rock goddesses refuse to mellow or slow down one bit   Heart’s Ann and Nancy Wilson are on a tour bus somewhere outside Salt Lake City, heading for yet another concert on yet another stage. The duo expects to complete 55 dates this year; last year, they did 90—two a week, nearly every week. So much for taking it easy after 35 years in the business and 35 million albums sold. Rockers are supposed to mellow with age, but Ann, 62,... 

Stuart Mathis, Jack Irons, Jakob Dylan, Greg Richling, Rami Jaffee THE WALLFLOWERS Regrouped, refreshed and ready to prove that time off does a band good   Taking a break isn’t the same thing as breaking up, and the Wallflowers’ frontman Jakob Dylan reveals the band needed the former but never considered the latter. In the years since the group’s last album, 2005’s Rebel, Sweetheart, Dylan released a pair of solo albums in 2008 and 2010,... 

Dusty Hill, Billy Gibbons, Frank Beard ZZ TOP After 40 years of rock and the road, there’s still nothing they’d rather do    For their first full-length album in nearly a decade, veteran rockers ZZ Top decided to work with famed producer Rick Rubin. The Texas trio—frontman and guitarist Billy Gibbons, bassist Dusty Hill and drummer Frank Beard—recorded La Futura over a four-year period in Houston and Malibu. Rubin’s intense brand of perfectionism... 

MATCHBOX TWENTY On the pop-rockers’ latest release, everyone gets a turn in the spotlight Matchbox Twenty’s new album, North, is the band’s first collection of all-new material in a decade. It’s also their first release to hit No. 1 on the Billboard 200 albums chart. But what really sets the record apart is the group effort to make it. Rob Thomas has long been the frontman and songwriting engine driving the pop-rockers, scoring hits like... 

Bob Crawford, Scott Avett, Seth Avett THE AVETT BROTHERS Creative challenges keep these Americana darlings moving forward   One would think a band with as many influences as the Avett Brothers would have an extensive list of dream collaborations or future goals. But the North Carolina-based trio prefers to live in the moment, an attitude that’s helped them deal with the fame that comes after scoring multiple Americana Music Awards and performing... 

REGINA SPEKTOR This quirky Russian-American original lets her art speak for itself     Regina Spektor’s current world tour included two stops in Russia—the homeland she hasn’t visited since her family moved to the Bronx 23 years ago. “It feels incredibly big and emotional and overwhelming,” she said prior to the trip. “I’m also excited to see who will come to my show. Are there fans in Russia?” She needn’t have wondered. After... 

Alex Rosamilia, Alex Levine, Brian Fallon, Benny Horowitz THE GASLIGHT ANTHEM For their latest project, the folk-punk rockers go bigger and bolder   Accolades piled up fast after Gaslight Anthem’s 2010 album, American Slang, but the New Jersey band shut out as much of the hype as possible to focus on writing music for their latest, Handwritten. “Really, you just want to make great songs,” says drummer Benny Horowitz. “That’s where it... 

PiL: Bruce Smith, Scott Firth, John Lydon, Lu Edmonds JOHN LYDON   The former Johnny Rotten on PiL, the Pistols and the gift of life    “I can’t be linked to one thing forever and a day,” declares John Lydon. “There’s a big musical universe out there for me to float around in. I love pop music and I love experimental music.” While much of the world never stopped thinking of Lydon as “Johnny Rotten,” the snarling lead singer of... 

ALEJANDRO ESCOVEDO Exploring the world around him, from the streets of Mexico to the sky    Austin-based singer and songwriter Alejandro Escovedo often finds himself pigeonholed as an alt-country act. But the man who—lest we forget—was a founding member of pioneering punk band the Nuns and roots-rockers Rank and File and True Believers, is a rocker at heart. “If you look at my solo records and the bands I’ve been in, at the core of it... 

SHAWN COLVIN Feeling at home with some of music’s greatest singers and songwriters It’s been 15 years since Shawn Colvin’s “Sunny Came Home” catapulted the singer-songwriter into the mainstream. Since then the Grammy-winning singer-songwriter has collaborated with artists from James Taylor and Béla Fleck to Mary Chapin Carpenter and Sting. For All Fall Down, Colvin adds to that list producer Buddy Miller (who recorded the album at his... 

JOE BONAMASSA A guitar master enjoys an overnight success decades in the making  Joe Bonamassa nurses a sore neck as he discusses his new album, Driving Towards the Daylight—the result of too much headbanging onstage the night before. “We added a bit of ‘Still of the Night’ by Whitesnake,” he muses. “Maybe that’s what wrenched out my neck.” Bonamassa, 35, isn’t letting a wrenched-out neck slow him down now. He’s an acknowledged... 

LINKIN PARK High-energy heavy hitters finally discover the perfect mix of rock and rap Linkin Park is on a roll. After releasing albums sporadically for most of their first decade, the Los Angeles rap-rockers have picked up the pace with two more since 2010, including Living Things, their latest. “We want to put out more music, more often,” says singer Chester Bennington. “The first six years of our career we released two records that took... 

GARBAGE Pioneering alt-rockers push forward, leaving the labels and the ’90s behind   On the eve of Garbage’s first tour in more than seven years, guitarist Duke Erikson is puzzled. “I’m trying to figure out how the hell to pack all this stuff,” he says, facing an unruly pile of clothes. “I can’t remember how I did this before.” Luckily, he and his bandmates had no such trouble reminding themselves of the chemistry that propelled... 

GLENN FREY The Eagles’ co-leader takes a solo flight through classic love songs  “The Eagles is the mothership,” says Glenn Frey. “We venture to and from that.” For his first solo album in 20 years, the 63-year-old Detroit native ventured far indeed: After Hours is a collection of love songs dating from the ’40s to the present. Producing with Richard F.W. Davis and Michael Thompson, Frey gives candlelit treatment to such gems as Johnny... 

RUFUS WAINWRIGHT It was the best of times, it was the worst of times—now let’s dance      After spending a few years exploring esoteric pursuits like composing the opera Prima Donna and staging a Judy Garland tribute at Carnegie Hall, Rufus Wainwright was ready to aim for the mainstream. “My listeners have been very patient with my little dalliances,” he says. “So I wanted to give them the kind of record you can bring to a party and... 

RODNEY CROWELL  A unique teaming with poet Mary Karr brings it all back home   After more than three decades, 13 solo albums and collaborations with some of music’s greatest names, Rodney Crowell knows a born songwriter when he sees one—even if that particular songwriter has never written a song. When he read poet and memoirist Mary Karr’s 1995 book The Liars’ Club, he couldn’t help but see the parallels between himself and the author—they... 

MEAT LOAF  Telling big stories, going for broke and having a hell of a time “I think dramatically,” declares Meat Loaf. “My albums are big, complicated stories.” Indeed, nearly every project Meat Loaf undertakes is bigger than life, starting with 1977’s smash rock opera Bat Out of Hell. Produced by Todd Rundgren and composed by classically trained songwriter Jim Steinman, the album has sold more than 14 million copies in the U.S. alone. Meat... 

KAISER CHIEFS One new album in a seemingly infinite number of variations     For its fourth album, the English group Kaiser Chiefs posted 22 new songs on its website and let fans assemble and purchase their own 10-track “bespoke” versions. The band, best known for the songs “I Predict a Riot” and “Ruby,” assembled its own iteration last year for release overseas under the title The Future Is Medieval. Yet another version is out now... 

JOAN OSBORNE  Bringing it on home to the blues and soul of her early days  From the moment she lit into Sonny Boy Williamson II’s “Help Me” on her triple-platinum 1995 debut, Relish, it was clear that Kentucky-born Joan Osborne had a natural feel for gutbucket blues. She’s explored those roots regularly ever since, but never so directly as on her new album, the all-covers affair Bring It On Home. With the help from her co-producer and... 

ESPERANZA SPALDING  A rising jazz star talks pop, popularity and the lure of the radio  The internet was abuzz when the name of last year’s Best New Artist winner was announced at the Grammys: Oregon-born jazz singer and bass player Esperanza Spalding. She triumphed over better-known names like teen idol Justin Bieber, whose fans’ over-the-top outrage extended to online death threats. “I don’t take it personally,” says Spalding, 27.... 

LIONEL RICHIE A country boy from Tuskegee reconnects with his unlikely roots  By Russell Hall Lionel Richie is a giant of soul, R&B and pop music, having scored hit singles and sold albums in the multimillions since the mid-1970s—first with his group the Commodores and, since 1982, as a solo artist. But the music that first caught the ear of this Tuskegee, Ala., native was very different from either the dance-floor funk of the Commodores or... 

THE CRANBERRIES Dolores O’Riordan and company bring the magic back to life  the Cranberries skyrocketed to international fame with their debut, 1993’s quintuple-platinum Everybody Else Is Doing It, So Why Can’t We? But by 2003, it was time for the Irish group to take a breather. “I just wanted to not be in the Cranberries and not be famous,” says frontwoman Dolores O’Riordan. After making two solo albums, O’Riordan recently reunited... 

DIERKS BENTLEY A country superstar crisscrosses America to find home     “The last year’s been a blur of  asphalt, recording studios and songwriting,” says Arizona native Dierks Bentley, 36. “It’s hard work, but I love what I do. Every record you make, you have to pour more of yourself into it.” His previous effort, 2009’s Up on the Ridge, found him exploring bluegrass and roots music—but the new Home is a return to the muscular... 

KATE BUSH For this pioneering songstress, inspiration literally fell from the sky   “Shimmerglisten.” “Creaky-creaky.” “Boomerangablanca.” The Eskimos don’t really have 50 words for snow, but Kate Bush does. Featuring guest turns from Elton John, Stephen Fry and Bush’s 12-year-old son Bertie, her new 50 Words for Snow album is a quietly riveting meditation on the white stuff. “I started thinking about how it feels when it snows,... 

THE FRAY The journey to success was tough—and they have the scars to prove it “This is the first time we got to make the record we wanted to,” declares Isaac Slade of the Fray’s third album, Scars & Stories. The group went through plenty to reach that point. Formed by singer and pianist Slade, guitarists Dave Welsh and Joe King and drummer Ben Wysocki in the early-2000s church-music scene in Denver, the Fray found its secular breakthrough... 

KEITH JARRETT After four decades, a piano giant still plucks inspiration from thin air By Jeff Tamarkin Jazz is in part the art of improvisation—and legendary pianist Keith Jarrett takes the concept to its extreme. Up until the moment he presses down the keys, he hasn’t a clue as to how he will begin or what will follow. “There’s this nanosecond, or maybe it’s an eternity, between sitting at the piano ready to play something and actually... 

SEAN GARRETT    Does this R&B hitmaker want to change the world through music? Yeah!             By Michael Gallant Atlanta native Sean Garrett grew up the son of an Army man, moving along with his family to wherever his father might be stationed. Everywhere he found himself, including a variety of military bases across England and Germany, young Garrett had his ears wide open. “Living abroad and listening to so many variations of music... 

ANI DiFRANCO  A hard-driving, hard-rocking modern folk pioneer learns to take her time  For a decade and a half, Ani DiFranco was among the most prolific acts you could name. Between 1990 and 2007, the Buffalo, N.Y., native released 16 studio albums of new material, not to mention a handful of live collections, compilations and EPs. But the latest, ¿Which Side Are You On?, is her first new offering in almost four years—and the primary reason... 

THE LITTLE WILLIES Norah Jones, Richard Julian and company take a side trip into the country    “It’s like eating a big bowl of my grandma’s macaroni and cheese,” jazz-pop superstar Norah Jones says of her childhood love for country music. “It feels nostalgic.” Today she expresses that fondness in part with the Little Willies, the group she first helped form in 2003 with singer and guitarist Richard Julian, guitarist Jim Campilongo,... 

JUDY COLLINS Looking back honestly on the bitter and sweet, in song and otherwise  Not many lives would include enough excitement for three memoirs, but Judy Collins’ is the exception. She has been a troubadour of the ’60s folk boom; accomplished composer; interpreter for the likes of Leonard Cohen, Bob Dylan and Joni Mitchell; founder of her own Wildflower Records label and relentless social advocate. She was famously the inspiration for the... 

CHRIS THILE AND YO-YO MA Two master musicians (plus two more) throw a genre-busting rodeo The rhythmic cascade of Chris Thile’s mandolin kicks off “Attaboy,” the first track of a new album with the unlikely title The Goat Rodeo Sessions. Thile is known for virtuosity and whimsy, so neither the bluegrass chops nor the album title is a surprise. But 32 seconds into “Attaboy,” a deeper-toned, bowed instrument unexpectedly takes the melody.... 

STANLEY JORDAN Still reinventing the sound of jazz, with the aid of some talented friends  By Jeff Tamarkin “To me, I’m just playing guitar,” says Stanley Jordan. “Then somebody points out the technique and I remember, ‘Yeah, it’s weird.’” Most musicians would be loath to describe their own performance method as “weird.” But Jordan, who first astonished the jazz world more than a quarter-century ago, is well aware that his trademark... 

JIMMY JAM AND TERRY LEWIS    The time is always right for this iconic R&B production partnership            By Michael Gallant “Production is about getting it done and getting it to be the best it can possibly be,” says James “Jimmy Jam” Harris III. Over the last several decades he and partner Terry Lewis have racked up a stunning roster of production credits for names including Michael Jackson, Usher, Mariah Carey, Celine Dion,... 

RAY MANZAREK From the Doors to the blues, a keyboard legend finds poetry in music   By Russell Hall  “I’ve been lucky to have lots of poet friends,” says Ray Manzarek. “Poets are great to work with.” For example, the legendary keyboardist’s new album with slide guitar great Roy Rogers, Translucent Blues, features lyrics from some of rock’s finest wordsmiths, including Michael McClure, Jim Carroll and Warren Zevon. That string of luck...