BETTYE LAVETTE HAS HER OWN HELL TO RAISE! Michael ShelleyOctober 15, 2020 With her powerful voice and magnetic personality, Bettye LaVette has had at least six different musical careers (and counting). She cut her ... All Please Kill Me PostsCool PeopleInterviewsMichael Shelley0 Comments 5
TINA BELL’S HIDDEN LEGACY: THE BLACK WOMAN WHO CREATED THE SOUND OF GRUNGE Jen B. LarsonSeptember 3, 2020 In 1983, the Seattle band Bam Bam, fronted by a talented, elegant Black woman named Tina Bell, created a sound and lyrical foundation for a ... All Please Kill Me PostsBest OfCool PeopleHistoryJen B. LarsonMusicians13 Comments 10
JESSIE MAE HEMPHILL: HANGIN’ WITH ‘THE SHE-WOLF OF COMO’ Cree McCreeAugust 26, 2020 A five-time W.C. Handy award-winner and the fourth generation of a venerable musical family, Jessie Mae Hemphill (1923-2006), from the Nort... All Please Kill Me PostsInterviewsMusiciansR.I.P.4 Comments 1
LITTLE RICHARD: THE ORIGINAL PUNK Parke PuterbaughMay 20, 2020 Rock ‘n’ roll lost one of its true originals last week, when Richard Penniman, the incomparable Little Richard, shuffled off this mortal coi... All Please Kill Me PostsCool PeopleMusiciansR.I.P.0 Comments 3
BEYOND 2-TONE WITH FISHBONE AND ANGELO MOORE Zack KoppApril 21, 2020 Fishbone was one of the most eclectic bands to come out of the LA punk scene, drawing on ska, soul, fun, jazz and, yes, punk to create a mus... All Please Kill Me PostsCool PeopleInterviewsMusiciansZack Kopp1 Comment 2
PHILADELPHIA’S SIGMA SOUND: THE STUDIO WHERE BOWIE FOUND HIS SOUL Richie UnterbergerJanuary 7, 2020 The Philadelphia recording studio Sigma Sound almost single-handedly defined the pre-Disco sound of the 1970s, with the smooth, soulful outp... All Please Kill Me PostsCool PeopleHistoryRichie Unterberger1 Comment 2
THE ROOTS OF ROCK RUN DEEPER THAN ROBERT JOHNSON Tony MostromDecember 17, 2019 Eric Clapton, rightfully, revered the mysterious Southern bluesman Robert Johnson and, because of that, some dubbed him the father of rock '... All Please Kill Me PostsAnthony MostromHistory5 Comments 8
POLY STYRENE REMEMBERED Amy HabenJuly 15, 2019 Marianne Joan Elliott-Said (1957-2011), aka Poly Styrene, was a punk pioneer in ways that are only now being fully appreciated. As the leade... All Please Kill Me PostsAmy HabenBooksHistoryInterviewsMusiciansNews5 Comments 4
ARCHITECT OF STARDOM: IRVING MILLS AND DUKE ELLINGTON Tosh BermanMay 1, 2019 His “Elvis” was Duke Ellington, but he did far more than manage the careers of the Duke, Cab Calloway and Hoagy Carmichael. Irving Mills g... All Please Kill Me PostsCool PeopleHistoryTosh Berman0 Comments 1
SUN RA: NEVER A PART OF THIS PLANET Alan BisbortJanuary 8, 2019 Sun Ra, “one of the strangest artists that America has ever produced” was once on the cover of Rolling Stone, shared bills with the MC5, per... Alan BisbortAll Please Kill Me PostsInterviewsMusicians1 Comment 1
NINA SIMONE DID IT HER WAY Valerie SimadisNovember 23, 2017 "The High Priestess of Soul" shook audiences up, spoke truth to power, befriended Malcolm X, Elton John and David Bowie, and left an unmatch... All Please Kill Me PostsCool PeopleMusiciansValerie Simadis1 Comment 3
WHEN BLACK POWER WAS FIRST IN BLOOM – THE SOUNDS OF REVOLUTION Alan BisbortNovember 8, 2017 Long before hip-hop commodified rebellion, and as early as 1964, artists like Gil Scott-Heron, The Last Poets, Nina Simone, Les McCann, Marv... Alan BisbortAll Please Kill Me PostsHistory0 Comments 1
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