In 1964, when the Beach Boys were at their commercial peak, band mastermind Brian Wilson suffered a nervous breakdown on an airplane while heading to a gig. Soon after, Wilson told his bandmates that he wanted to quit touring entirely and focus full-time on producing the group’s layered, masterful, mind-blowing pop records. A lot of in...

Almost Famous is celebrating its 21st anniversary in September with the release of a new limited edition Uber Box set of the soundtrack. The expanded collection — five CDs, seven vinyl LPs, and a 7-inch — includes songs from the Beach Boys, Joni Mitchell, Led Zeppelin, and the Who, all six of the songs created for the film&am...

For years now, the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival has only loosely been a jazz festival. For example, consider the top names on the fest’s just-announced 2021 initial lineup: Dead & Company, Stevie Nicks, the omnipresent Foo Fighters, Jimmy Buffett, Lizzo, Demi Lovato, the Black Crowes, H.E.R., Brandi Carlile, N...

The Mike Love-led touring edition of the Beach Boys is scheduled to perform at the Safari Club International Convention in Reno, NV later this week. The SC International organization, which encourages trophy hunting for endangered species, will have Donald Trump Jr. as its keynote speaker. A couple days ago, a Change.org petition was…

Bobby "Boris" Pickett & The Crypt-Keepers went all the way to #1 with "Monster Mash," their 1962 Halloween novelty song. The original recording remains in circulation to this day, still a mainstay of Halloween party playlists. But lots of artists have covered "Monster Mash" over the years -- the Misfits, the Beach Boys, Alvin And&#8...