Zappagram will inform and entertain you — I want to invite everyone to subscribe to my new music newsletter. My hope is that it will quickly become one of your favorite emails to receive. If you love music the way I do, I believe you’ll love this. I subscribe to several fantastic music newsletters, each of which…

Patti Smith eulogized that there was no one like him — Tom Verlaine couldn’t sing for shit. That sentiment is neither disparaging nor is it mine — Verlaine said it himself in multiple interviews over the years. If anything, that statement was modestly candid and wholly self-deprecating, as he was known to be. …

Their paychecks will blow your mind — Time Magazine called it “the greatest peaceful event in history.” Countless books have been written and documentaries made about the historic gathering of close to a half million souls at the Woodstock Music and Art Fair held in Bethel, New York, in August 1969. Viewed through the lens of its…

The question isn’t how much time we have left — the question is, what are we going to do with that time? — Many words have been used to describe singer and songwriter David Crosby, who died earlier this week at the age of 81. Rock star. Rebel. Brilliant. Curmudgeon. Legend. Hippie. Asshole. Sweetheart. Undoubtedly, Crosby was all those things to different people at different times throughout his incredibly fruitful yet tumultuous life…

The fascinating story of an unsung music legend — In the early 1960s, a simple twist of fate would bring several Los Angeles session musicians together to loosely form the powerhouse collective that came to be known as “the wrecking crew.” Over the course of the next two decades, this proficient group would play on thousands of the most…

Volume one (of many) — As an artist, it must be stressful coming up with album titles. It’s a bit like naming a baby, if that baby’s name was a determining factor in its commercial success or lack thereof. More often than not, artists strive for interesting names, names that make you think, inspiring one…

You can’t make it great again if it never really was — Last week, a man, his wife, and their four children drove from Canada into rural Washington state to visit family. Within three hours of entering the United States, the man hears a loud sound and feels some sort of impact with his vehicle. Initially, he thinks it may be a…

A helpful tip for Mac users only — Everyone has some artists and songs they just can’t stand to listen to. Sometimes even our favorite bands release songs we don’t really care for and would be fine not hearing again. Every time these artists or songs begin playing on a shuffled playlist, we trip over ourselves to get…

All parents should heed this advice to avoid catastrophe. — Kids are full of surprises. They will amaze and amuse you, delight and astound you, and occasionally, they will bewilder and perplex you, overwhelm and even frighten you. As a first-time father working as hard as I can to be the best dad possible, I’m learning new lessons every day…