Little Richard

The 10 Most Rocking Songs In Children's Entertainment

Here's the thing about children's entertainment, it's designed to appeal not only to the lowest common denominator, but the toughest audience known to man. Don't believe me? Try playing your favorite song to a toddler, even something that is an acknowledged classic like the Pretenders' "I'll Stand ... More >>

Mail Dump: Janis, Little Richard, dBs, Donovan, Etc.

The mailbox has been truly kind the past several weeks. Sure, there are still piles of useless dreck to wade through/past/over. But those all get to go to the big box in the dark closet and await the apocalypse. But there are standouts and surprises almost daily. Let's begin with three important re ... More >>

Grady Gaines, the Upsetter

Houston sax lion has always been in the "hottest band around."

Before We Cared: 10 Bit Players Who Became Superstars

On this day in 1965, British songstress Petula Clark reached number one on the charts with "Downtown," a pop classic with an unforgettable hook that has become a mainstay of oldies radio, film soundtracks and TV advertisements in the years since. The song even served as a plot point in an episode o ... More >>

Show Me Your GIFs: Great Classic Rock 'N Roll GIFs Galore

It seems to me that musical history is made up of fragments of indelible images, good and bad, that inform each person's experience. Then there are the swatches of tunes that grab you by the heart strings or the throat, making you a fan for life. But it's those moving pictures that you first remembe ... More >>

Allen Oldies Band

Boots Electric

Oh Jesus! Rock's Top 5 Religious Conversions

Rocks Off understands the need for a good detox now and then, as most of our evening antics often leave us feeling less than bright-eyed and bushy-tailed come morning. We also imagine the damage inflicted by lifetime of hard partying and endless touring in the company of morally compromised music-in ... More >>

Dex Romweber Duo

Skarnales, Escovedo, Gaines Make Rockin' Nightlife Tour

Photos by Lisa RosatoLos Skarnales​Friday was one of those nights when Rocks Off wished we operated one of those "show you the nightlife" tour buses filled with people from Omaha, Chicago, Des Moines, and Berlin. When's the last time Houston had a gentle north wind cooling the evening in mid-M ... More >>

SXSW: Bob Geldof, Master Of The F-Bomb

Photos by Chris Gray​Leave it to Sir Bob Geldof to turn the SXSW keynote address into a 45-plus minute combination elaborate cultural history of the past 60 years with rock and roll at the center, personal narrative of how rock and roll ("pop with a hard-on") shook loose his inner social activ ... More >>

Does Elvis Still Matter?

As part of our ongoing celebration of Elvis' birthday week, Rocks Off asked our writers the simple question in the headline. ​Chris Gray: Absolutely he still matters. When I was compiling that list of quotes and lyrics about Elvis earlier this week, I wasn't that surprised to see that even Be ... More >>

Batusis Is No Throwback

Cheetah Chrome and Sylvain Sylvain make rock and roll new again.

Jimi Hendrix, Before He Was Experienced

​Becoming Jimi Hendrix By Steven Roby and Brad Schreiber Da Capo Press, 274 pp., $17.95. While the bulk of most Jimi Hendrix bios detail the post-Are You Experienced? album and Monterey Pop performance era, this is the first to concentrate solely on his pre-fame years. As a result, the autho ... More >>

Music's 15 Gnarliest Moustaches

​Moustaches are all the rage these days. From shirts to snow globes, rides, wax and tattoos, everyone wants a moustache or at least to support the cause. Rocks Off even has a moustache. When it was longer we combed it while driving or lounging, much to the chagrin of the people around us. Ce ... More >>

Five Guys Named Moe

Louis Jordan is the guy who originally got the joint jumping

Lonesome Onry and Mean: Last Men Standing

​Lonesome Onry and Mean vaguely remembers someone telling us a couple of years ago that Las Vegas bookies actually had a line on whether Chuck Berry would die that year (we think it was 2007). The macabre factor aside, remembering this Wednesday got LOM to pondering about the Godfathers of Rock an ... More >>

On Its 40th Birthday, the Top 10 Sesame Street Musical Guests

Sing the blues, Kermit... or greens. We know how you feel. Big Bird, Oscar the Grouch, Bert and Ernie, Elmo and Grover have something to celebrate. Sesame Street, their fictional New York borough, and the television show probably responsible for everything you knew as a kid, turns 40 today. Created ... More >>

Bayou Beat: Method Man on His Pellet-Gun Aim, The Debut of HUSH, Local Bands Vying for ACL Spot, Thee Armada MySpace Finalist, etc.

Above, Method Man talks about his pellet-gun accuracy, which was a little off the night he allegedly shot Houstonian Mary Anderson, who is now suing him on several counts including assault. Besides playing House of Blues Friday with Redman and Ghostface, looks like Meth will spend some time in Hous ... More >>

He Said She Said: A Stripper Soundtrack

Rocks Off has a naked lady fetish. It's shameful to admit. We really like seeing naked chicks. It's been something we have dealt with since we were four years old and started sneaking into the women's dressing room when our Mom would go clothes shopping. It's not so cute today, what with the beard ... More >>

Aftermath: Roky Erickson at the Continental Club

Jay Lee Remember when Little Richard quit rock and roll because he was worried about going to hell? Roky Erickson is what would have happened if he went... and came back. The 61-year-old '60s survivor, fronting a sleek three-piece band whose collective age may have added to 61, played a 75-minute s ... More >>

Eyeballin': John Lennon & the Plastic Ono Band Live in Toronto '69

It's a story well-told in Beatles lore. Reeling from the Fab Four's unraveling, a bored John Lennon accepted an invitation to perform at the Toronto Rock 'n Roll Revival show in September 1969. He quickly formed an ad hoc group of friends (wife Yoko Ono, Eric Clapton on guitar, Klaus Voorman on bass ... More >>

SXSW: The Sonics at Emo's

Photos by Craig HlavatyLast night we stood in line for nearly an hour to catch Seattle garage legends the Sonics at Emo's. The five-piece group were pioneers, ultimately influencing everyone from the Replacements to the Austin's own Big Boys. Their current hold on modern garage rock was evident by s ... More >>

The Nickel: A Musical History of the Fifth Ward, Part 4

[Note: Click on the numbers for parts 1, 2 and 3.] Fifth Ward music mogul Don Robey was so taken with Gatemouth Brown's talents that he built his entire Peacock label around him. Robey already owned the Bronze Peacock night club and various other business interests, but it was his meeting of Br ... More >>

Classic Rock Corner: Blues/Soul/R&B In Memoriam 2008

Ah, that nasty Grim Reaper took a lot of great musicians this year, and his scythe cut a wide swath across all genres, including many heavyweights in the blues and R&B world. The greatest loss comes in the form of someone who was a man, a song, and a beat all in one... Bo Diddley, singer-songw ... More >>

Drenched in Blog: Why the Pee-Wee's Playhouse Christmas Special Creeps Me Out

In 1988, few things were as cool or innovative on Saturday mornings as Pee-Wee's Playhouse. Each week, we screamed the secret word, connected dots, watched old weird-ass cartoons and saw Saturday Night Live star Phil Hartman play a surly sea captain. The show was something five-year olds and ... More >>

Aftermath: Eagles of Death Metal at Meridian

Photos by Craig Hlavaty  It's super-hard to intelligently review a party band. You can't very well sit in one corner of the venue, gently stroking your scholarly beard jotting down notes on each intricate riff and drum fill. In the interest of science, you have to immerse yourself in the at ... More >>

Tonight: Michael Hardie and Milton Hopkins at Red Cat Jazz Cafe

The Best of ACL Fest

"The Sounds I See: Photographs of Musicians"

This MFAH exhibit features live shots of popular music's greatest contributors

Who Stole the Roll?

Bo Diddley, RIP

Last Night: King Khan & BBQ at Rudz

Guitar Shorty’s Birthday Party

The bluesman spends his b-day on stage

Red Hog Saloon

When the jukebox is an art form

Los Straitjackets with Big Sandy

Los Straitjackets with Big Sandy perform Friday, April 20, at the Continental Club, 3700 Main, 713-529-9899.

Guitar Shorty

Guitar Shorty performs Saturday, January 13, at the Big Easy Social and Pleasure Club, 5731 Kirby, 713-523-9999.

Capsule Reviews

Our critics weigh in on local theater

Capsule Reviews

Our critics weigh in on local theater

The Black Album

A new film examines the darker side of rock

The Black Godfather

The wit and wisdom of Andre Williams

Capsule Reviews

Our critics weigh in on local theater

Master Blaster

Cody ChesnuTT sees rock and roll, and he wants to repaint it black

Various Artists

La Musica della Mafia -- Il Canto di Malavita (PIAS America)

Murder in Small Town X

A cheese maker bites it in Actors Theatre's melodrama

Mount Coy

South Park Mexican carves out his place in history with the 2001 Music Awards

Free Birds and Drop Kick Chihuhahas

New Year's Eve Houston at Bayou Place

Houston Honker

Grady Gaines helped Little Richard create rock and roll. And he's not finished yet

New Year's Eve Picks

New Year's Eve Blastoff