In the mid to late 80’s Zeppelin was my primary source of music. However, around the same time I began to explore the works of Husker Du. The underrated trio from Minneapolis put out some great albums, “Zen Arcade”, “New Day Rising”, “Flip Your Wig”, “Candy Apple Grey”. But 1987’s Warehouse: Songs and Stories was a masterpiece, definitely one of my 20 favorite albums. Unfortunately it turned out to be the bands last record due to an disagreement between Bob Mould [Guitar, Vocals] and Grant Hart [Drummer, Vocals] .

*Husker Du influenced The Pixies and Dinosaur Jr.

*Mould’s solo debut- Workbook love it

*Damnwells – Doing their best Jeff Tweedy and doing it well. Great, great song!

*Morphine -Cure for Pain (5 Stars)

*Elbow – UK veterans hitting their stride – Cast of Thousands

*Avett Brothers – One of the most exiting live acts out today. They are recording their next album with Rick Rubin.

*The Felice Brothers – Tonight At The Arizona (5 Stars)

*You can tell that Mark Sandman looked up to Mark Lanegan

*I cannot believe Jimmy Page is putting Zeppelin back together w/o Robert Plant. Huh, Huh?

**Standout tracks-Hugh Masekela – “The Boy’s Doin’ It” and Nina Simone’s “Funkier Than a Mosquito’s Tweeter”

“At the end of the day, my tastes are all over the map. I don’t see boundaries in music, so if I’m excited about an Outkast song or some Sam Cooke gospel record, I want to bring that into my world.”Jim James-My Morning Jacket

Thank you for stopping by to check out Rollo & Grady music blog. Like Jim James, my musical tastes are all over the map and have no boundaries. I’m excited to share the music I listen to from both the past, present and everywhere in between, so please enjoy.

Why the name Rollo & Grady? If you are not already familiar, they were classic characters from the 70’s hit sitcom Sanford and Son. The shows theme song, composed by Quincy Jones, is the funkiest opener in television history. The song strongly influenced my musical tastes, along with Good Times and Soul Train.

Because of these classic themes, I discovered the works of Curtis Mayfield, The Funky Meters, James Brown and the J.B. Horns, Bill Withers, The Sugar Hill Gang, Stevie Wonder and countless others.

**Laura Marling is mature beyond her years. The British singer wrote “Candlelight” when she was 15 years old. She’s going to be a huge star. Her current album Alas, I Cannot Swim is excellent.

**New York singer-songwriter Melinda Hansen has been compared to Sade, Nina Simone and Astrud Gilberto. Look for her to make some noise in 2009.

Further Listening:
Melinda Hansen-Myspace
Laura Marling – Alas I Cannot Swim (Buy)
Joan As Police Woman – To Survive (Buy)