John Shand Posts

December 11, 2014 / Features - Archive

Ah, the concept album: the ultimate proof that rock got too big for its boots and needed punk to spit on it until it shrank back to size. The late ’60s and early ’70s was the concept album’s heyday, with Jethro Tull trumping the rest by releasing a 44-minute piece…

December 9, 2014 / Concert Reviews - Archive

State Theatre, December 5 Critics beware: skewer Elaine Paige at your peril, especially if you suffer from insomnia. Your sleeplessness may be haunted by the memory of Memory on endless repeat. Such cruel revenge! It was, therefore, a relief that this concert was a vast improvement over Paige’s 2012 performance…

December 5, 2014 / Album Reviews - Archive

  John Coltrane: Offering (Verve)  Trevor Watts: Veracity (FMR) Cedar Walton: Reliving the Moment (HighNote/Planet) Various Artists: Black Fire! New Spirits! (Soul Jazz) He changed the lives of listeners, and he changed the course of jazz. John Coltrane inspired people to take up the saxophone or rethink the way they…