In This Issue
JASON MRAZ
JASON MRAZ
A talk about the meaning of music, finding the right sound and his favorite four-letter word.
Jason Mraz is in a noisy Los Angeles rehearsal hall, taking a break from doing something that doesn’t come easily to him: telling other people what to do. Mraz first emerged from the Southern California coffeehouse scene just over a decade ago armed only with a guitar, a sweetly melodious tenor voice and a rapidly growing stack of original...
COUNTING CROWS
COUNTING CROWS
Adam Duritz and company make an eclectic set of covers their own
Nearly two decades have passed since Counting Crows exploded onto the scene with their multiplatinum debut August and Everything After and its smash single, “Mr. Jones.” Even as the band has built on that foundation with one critically acclaimed album of originals after another, it has carved out a reputation for interpreting others’ material—from filling in...
LYLE LOVETT
LYLE LOVETT
One of America’s great singer-songwriters marks the end of an era
Twenty-six years into his recording career, Lyle Lovett is still amused by the attempts to categorize his music. “Even now, people who don’t really listen to country music still think of me as country, and people who listen to country don’t,” he says. “It’s an odd place to be.” Odd perhaps, but Lovett can thank his idiosyncratic nature for providing...
Bonnie Raitt
Bonnie Raitt
One of music’s most beloved icons slides back into the rock ’n’ roll slipstream.
Bonnie Raitt is always listening. “My ear’s always cocked for a possible direction,” she says. “Something that’s inspirational, either a song I want to do or a songwriter I want to investigate further. We’ve got hundreds of CDs in our collection and files on our computer. I take songs with me on my iPhone and listen every day when I go...
The Roots
The Roots
Questlove talks about making dark, gritty hip-hop in “the happiest place on earth.”
Make no mistake, the average modern person has a very full to-do list from day to day. But does yours look anything like Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson’s? Today he’s driving from his native Philadelphia to New York City, where he’s due to help put on a pair of Jay-Z performances at Carnegie Hall. That’s just a side project, of course—his main...
U2
U2
A look back at the making of The Joshua Tree on its 25th birthday.
In the middle of the 19th century, members of the still-new Mormon religion found themselves under attack from theological opponents. By the time the church’s founder, Joseph Smith, was killed by an angry mob in Illinois in 1844, his followers were already making their way westward in search of more tolerant climes. Their journeys brought them by the mid-1850s to the Mojave Desert,...
RINGO STARR
RINGO STARR
Rock’s most famous drummer remembers the Beatles and looks ahead to a Starr-filled future.
THE FRAY
Earning scars, telling stories and letting themselves get a little bit louder in the process.
KEITH JARRETT
Jazz’s premier improvisational pianist reveals the joy and anxiety of playing without a net.
SEAN GARRETT
The producer behind some of today’s biggest R&B radio hits takes you into the studio.
ANI DiFRANCO
How...
COMMON
COMMON
Catching up with the rapper, actor, author, poet and unlikely magnet for controversy.
LOU REED
How one of rock’s fiercest iconoclasts found common ground with the mighty Metallica.
PETER GABRIEL
Finding fresh new blood in familiar favorites with the help of a symphony orchestra.
RAY MANZAREK
The legendary Doors’ keyboardist extraordinaire isn’t finished lighting new fires just yet.
JAM & LEWIS
Behind the board with one of the greatest...
CHICKENFOOT
CHICKENFOOT
Sammy Hagar, Joe Satriani, Michael Anthony and Chad Smith are on a rock ’n’ roll mission.
TORI AMOS
Centuries-old classical compositions helped point this piano goddess in a new direction.
ALICE COOPER
America’s favorite shock-rock legend revisits his most beloved nightmare—with a few twists.
VINCE GILL
One of country music’s greatest guitarists, singers and songwriters finds a space of his own.
LINDSEY BUCKINGHAM
The guitar...
MARY J. BLIGE
JULY/AUGUST 2011 COVER STORY: MARY J. BLIGE
FEATURE: SHINE ON – PINK FLOYD
MUSICIAN: TOM MORELLO, CHICK COREA
PRODUCER: JAY JOYCE
Q&A’s: LADY ANTEBELLUM, KELLY ROWLAND, AMERICA, YES, DOLLY PARTON, BARRY MANILOW
SPOTLIGHT: THE BANGLES, VANESSA CARLTON, THE KOOKS, JEFF BRIDGES, SARAH JAROSZ, LENNY KRAVITZ, GLEN CAMPBELL
WHO’S NEXT: HOPE WAITS, BREANNE DUREN, PETER BALDWIN
INDIE SCENE: BLUE OCTOBER
BEHIND THE CLASSICS: “Tom...
JOURNEY
JUNE 2011 COVER STORY: JOURNEY
FEATURE: SURROUND SOUND
MUSICIAN: BÉLA FLECK, DEF LEPPARD
Q&A’s: MY MORNING JACKET, COLBIE CAILLAT, JOSS STONE, MARC BROUSSARD, ADAM ANDERS, MARIANNE FAITHFULL, “WEIRD AL” YANKOVIC
SPOTLIGHT: THE GREENCARDS, THE JOLLY BOYS, MATT NATHANSON, CHRISTINA PERRI, GOMEZ, YOUSSOU N’DOUR, BATTLES
WHO’S NEXT: KATIE COSTELLO, AMBROSE AKINMUSIRE, XIMENA SARIÑANA
INDIE SCENE: GARLAND JEFFREYS
BEHIND THE CLASSICS:...
STEVIE NICKS
MAY 2011 COVER STORY: STEVIE NICKS
FEATURE: SUMMER FESTIVAL
MUSICIAN: BRUCE HORNSBY, HERB ALPERT
ENGINEER: MARCELLA ARAICA
Q&A’s: KIMBERLY CALDWELL, DEATH CAB FOR CUTIE, ARCTIC MONKEYS, RAY DAVIES, SUSAN TEDESCHI AND, DEREK TRUCKS, ROBBIE ROBERTSON
SPOTLIGHT: QUEENSRŸCHE, JESSIE J, BOOKER T. JONES, FLOGGING MOLLY, MOBY, AUGUSTANA, HIROMI
WHO’S NEXT: LAURA JANSEN, CARTER’S CHORD, GRAHAM STOOKEY
INDIE SCENE: JONATHAN EDWARDS
BEHIND...
FOO FIGHTERS
MARCH/APRIL 2011 COVER STORY: FOO FIGHTERS
FEATURES: MATCH GAME
MUSICIAN: ALISON KRAUSS, JOE BONAMASSA
PRODUCER: James Stroud
Q&A’s: R.E.M., LUCINDA WILLIAMS, BOOTSY COLLINS, AVRIL LAVIGNE, NIKKI SIXX, JAMES STROUD, STEVE EARLE
SPOTLIGHT: DENGUE FEVER, PANIC! AT THE DISCO, JOHN OATES, BAND OF HEATHENS, WANDA JACKSON, JASON ISBELL AND THE 400 UNIT, THE DUKE SPIRIT
WHO’S NEXT: HENRY WOLFE, FRANCESCA BATTISTELLI, KINA GRANNIS
INDIE SCENE:...
STING
JAN/FEB 2011 COVER STORY: STING
FEATURES: STAIRWAY TO HEAVEN,
MUSICIAN: GREGG ALLMAN, ERIC JOHNSON,
PRODUCER: PETER ASHER
Q&A’s: BRIGHT EYES, THE DECEMBERISTS, DURAN DURAN, IRON & WINE, DOOBIE BROTHERS, JAMES BLUNT
SPOTLIGHT: SOCIAL DISTORTION, ADELE, BEN E. KING, TIMES OF GRACE, CORINNE BAILEY RAE, OVER THE RHINE, THE DEARS
WHO’S NEXT: FUNERAL PARTY, ANNA CALVI, PLAN B,
INDIE SCENE: TIERRA NEGRA & MURIEL ANDERSON,
BEHIND THE...
KEITH URBAN
DEC 2010 COVER STORY: KEITH URBAN
FEATURES: THE INDIE SURVIVAL GUIDE
MUSICIAN: KEVIN EUBANKS, STEVE LUKATHER
PRODUCER: DANIEL LANOIS
Q&A’s: MY CHEMICAL ROMANCE, ANNIE LENNOX, REGINA SPEKTOR, BRYAN ADAMS, AMOS LEE
SPOTLIGHT: YOKO ONO, THE DAMNED THINGS, RHONDA VINCENT, TAPES ‘N TAPES, INXS, CASSANDRA WILSON, CAKE
WHO’S NEXT: HOPE, THE MEMORIALS, STEEL MAGNOLIA
INDIE SCENE: CASEY DESMOND
BEHIND THE CLASSICS: “Hard Knock Life...
JOHN LEGEND & THE ROOTS
NOV 2010 COVER STORY: JOHN LEGEND & THE ROOTS
FEATURES: MILES TO GO, WHOLE NEW WORLD
MUSICIAN: JOE SATRIANI, RICHARD THOMPSON
PRODUCER: DAVE STEWART
Q&A’s: LINKIN PARK, LIZ PHAIR, NATASHA BEDINGFIELD, HUEY LEWIS, JASON BONHAM
SPOTLIGHT: PHIL COLLINS, SUGARLAND, TRICKY, SHAWN MULLINS, BAD BOOKS, DAR WILLIAMS, AARON NEVILLE
WHO’S NEXT: MATT WHITE, SECRET SISTERS, LAUREN PRITCHARD
INDIE SCENE: PETER HIMMELMAN
BEHIND THE CLASSICS:...
TOM PETTY
SEPT/OCT 2010 COVER STORY: TOM PETTY
FEATURES: MUSIC-BASED VIDEO GAMES, STAGE TO SCREEN
MUSICIAN: CARLOS SANTANA, DEREK TRUCKS
PRODUCER: LARRY KLEIN
Q&A’s: JEFF BECK, SARA BAREILLES, MAVIS STAPLES, ROBERT PLANT, HEART, NICK CAVE
SPOTLIGHT: LITTLE BIG TOWN, JENNY & JOHNNY, RAUL MALO, MAROON 5, NELLIE MCKAY, OF MONTREAL, JAMEY JOHNSON
WHO’S NEXT: ESPERANZA SPALDING, JASON REEVES, BRENDAN JAMES
INDIE SCENE: SARA HICKMAN
BEHIND THE...
Sheryl Crow
Issue 05 Cover Story: Sheryl Crow
Features: Albums From Hell, Digital Dilemmas
Gear Feature: Aces of Bass
Musician Feature: The Black Crowes, Jimmie Vaughan
Producer Feature: Bryan-Michael Cox
Q&A’s: Tom Jones, Indigo Girls, Alejandro Escovedo, Crowded House, Aerosmith’s Joey Kramer, Belinda Carlisle
Spotlight: Michael Franti, Squeeze, Nikki & Rich, Fefe Dobson, Goo Goo Dolls, Tegan and Sara, Tim O’Brien
Who’s Next: Ryan Star,...
Sarah McLachlan
M Music & Musicians / June 2010
Issue 04 Cover Story: Sarah McLachlan
Features: Rock At The Movies, Deal Or No Deal?
Gear Feature: Maximum Mixes
Musician: Herbie Hancock, Robert Randolph
Producer: Hugh Padgham
Q&A’s: Jewel, Ozzy Osbourne, 3Oh!3, Timothy B. Schmit, Tift Merritt, Solomon Burke
Spotlight: Devo, Dierks Bentley, Grace Potter & The Nocturnals, Against Me!, Hanson, Punch Brothers, Tonic
Who’s Next: Eli ‘Paperboy’ Reed,...
Stone Temple Pilots
M Music & Musicians / May 2010
Issue 03 Cover Story: Stone Temple Pilots
Features: The Vinyl Frontier, Summer Festivals
Musician: Chester Thompson, Melissa Etheridge
Producer: Alan Parsons
Q&A’s: Merle Haggard, Deftones, Taylor Hawkins, Nas & Damian Marley, Chely Wright, The Black Keys
Spotlight: Minus The Bear, Josh Ritter, Betty Lavette, The Hold Steady, Bill Charlap And Renee Rosnes, Widespread Panic, The New Pornographers
Who’s...
Willie Nelson
Cover Story: Willie Nelson
Issue 02 Cover Story: Willie Nelson
Gear Feature: Get Great Vocals
Features: Rock On Broadway, Social Networking
Musician: Slash, Warren Haynes
Producer: Don Was
Q&A’s: Jakob Dylan, Kaki King, Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings, Peter Frampton, Meshell Ndegeocello, George Thorogood
Spotlight: Angels & Airwaves, Jamie Cullum, Mose Allison, The Chieftains, Cypress Hill, Ted Leo & The Pharmacists, Drive-By Truckers
Who’s...
Premiere Issue 01: Alicia Keys
Premiere Issue - Alicia Keys
Issue 01 Cover Story: Alicia Keys
Gear Feature: Mixing Live Sound
Features: TV’s Hottest House Bands, Fighting the Loudness War
Musician Feature: Pat Metheny,
Producer Feature: Al Schmitt, John Fogerty
Q&A’s: Ok Go, Orianthi, Steve Wariner, Little Steven Van Zandt, Angie Stone
Spotlight: Vampire Weekend, Omarion, Juliana Hatfield, Medeski Martin & Wood, Lady Antebellum, Midlake, Freedy Johnson
Who’s...