Soul Music

Mo' Money, Mo' Problems: 5 Musicians Who Had to File for Bankruptcy

Recently it was revealed that Cat Power was not only suffering from a serious illness called angiodema that was threatening to stop her European tour, but also that she has filed for bankruptcy. That tour has indeed been postponed, but Cat Power is hardly the first musician to be running low on cash ... More >>

Last Night: Dukes of September Rhythm Revue at The Woodlands

Dukes of September Rhythm Revue Featuring Michael McDonald, Boz Scaggs & Donald Fagen Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion July 17, 2012 This show could have been a punchline waiting to happen. Somebody must have thought "Dukes of September" was a more regal name for this tour than the "Superstars of So ... More >>

A Soulful Christmas In July

I didn't think I would succumb to sharing with the world how freaking hot I think it is because every time I see one of you complaining about it on Facebook, I envision your head between a Foreman grill. That might be pregnancy hormones speaking, but seriously; it's July, we're in Houston, it's ou ... More >>

Playing for Keeps: Vinyl Essentials

Here's our must-haves if you're kick-starting a record collection.

Still Treating Em Right

After 50 years as one of Texas's top powerhouse entertainers, Roy Head calls son Sundance the real star in the family.

Houston's Nine Members of Congress: Net Worth of Almost $400 Million

​Welcome to Congress!​The Center for Responsive Politics has put out its list of the net worth of every member of Congress, and the Houston delegation are no slackers. The nine representatives have a net worth estimated to be $392.4 million, which is a pretty impressive figure. Actually, m ... More >>

Saturday Night: Boz Scaggs & Michael McDonald At Verizon

Boz Scaggs & Michael McDonald Verizon Wireless Theater October 1, 2011 Now, Classic Rock Bob doesn't want to come off as some sort of out-of-touch curmudgeon ("What do you mean you don't sell cassettes anymore? Hey! You kids get off my lawn!"), but one of the reasons to love classic rock is very si ... More >>

ACL Last Night: The One, The Only, Stevie Wonder

Photos by Marco Torres​Stevie Wonder Austin City Limits Music Festival Bud Light Stage, Zilker Park, Austin September 17, 2011 Stevie Wonder says we're all part of the same family. Saturday night at Austin City Limits, he had about 45,000 (we're guessing) Jesus children of America in the palm ... More >>

Saturday Night: Sade & John Legend At Toyota Center

Photos by Groovehouse​Sade, John Legend Toyota Center July 23, 2011 See more smooth operation from Sade & John Legend in our slideshow. As word of Amy Winehouse's death spread across the Internet Saturday, another British soul singer was preparing to perform in Houston for the first time in ... More >>

Friday Night: Smokey Robinson At Arena Theatre

Photos by Rizoh​Smokey Robinson Arena Theatre May 13, 2011 If William "Smokey" Robinson wasn't America's poet laureate of love, he would have thrived in a number of other fields. Smokey would make a solid con man, for instance. Friday night at Arena Theatre, he kicked off his show with a dec ... More >>

Rel The Chosen Flows With Soul On Beautiful Music

​If Houston's Rel The Chosen was trying to make an impression, the single CD he handed us in a plain white cover at DJ Premier's show a few months ago at Numbers wasn't doing the job. The music on the CD, however, made a spectacular impression and certainly made up for any lack of marketing ... More >>

Jimmy Needham

SXSW Aftermath: Black Joe Lewis, Raphael Saadiq and Smokey Robinson

Photos by Katharine ShilcuttBlack Joe Lewis and the Honeybears​Joe Lewis alternated between sweating profusely into his harmonica and howling into the microphone, doubled over on the stage with the pain and joy of their fourth show of SXSW, as the white-shirted Honeybears -- minus keyboardist ... More >>

Leon's Lounge Needs Some Soul. Brett "Dirty Honey" Koshkin Has The Platters.

​ Leon's Lounge, the venerable Midtown throwback dive, is currently closed for renovations as new owner Pete Mitchell (Under the Volcano) gives it a good scrubbing, but it should be back open before too much longer. Maybe as soon as next month. Earlier this week, Rocks Off heard some equally good ... More >>

They Were Kinky Before Kinky Was Kinky: Musicians Who Have Held Public Office

From Ted Nugent to Bruce Springsteen to those adorable Dixie Chicks, "Masters of War" to "George Bush doesn't care about black people," musicians have never been shy about voicing their political opinions. But when it comes to putting their money where their mouths are and filing the necessary pape ... More >>

Soul Night 2

Get your fill of Marvin Gaye and Tina Turner at the Aurora Picture Show's funky flashback

The Way He Sees It

To Raphael Saadiq, music is music and Yeasayer is all right with him.

A Third Ward Pawnshop iPod and the Mysterious Fate of Previous Owner "Scooby"

Whoever he is (was?), Scooby's iPod wasn't short on R. Kelly.​So a couple of weeks ago, after three or four years of increasingly faltering service, Rocks Off's 30 GB iPod finally died. Completely. Out of sheer broke-assedness, we had held on to it for longer than most. By the end, its quirks and ... More >>

Idol Beat: The Top Ten

Photos by Michael Becker/ Fox Michael Sarver couldn't patch Motown's soul.Man, Sarvernator! What happened? When first we met, you were so dope, flexing serious white-soul chops - minus a soul patch - and you had the sort of blue-collar backstory that seemed to make you a lock for the Top Seve ... More >>

Thom Bell and the Sound of Brotherly Love

While the ubiquitous songs of Detroit's Motown get anthologized and commercialized ad infinitum, and the critics salivate over the gritty southern soul of Memphis' Stax, the third great movement/label of '60s and '70s soul has always gotten short shrift. Until now, that is, with the release of the ... More >>

Wayne Brady

Actor/Comedian/Singer fronts Houston Symphony

Soul and Blues Festival

Betty Wright, Bobby “Blue” Bland and Willie Clayton headline a mega-jam

Review: Rockferry, by Duffy

Mary J. Blige: Growing Pains

Rick Mitchell Pops His ACL Cherry

James Hunter

Another overnight success 20 years in the making

Drenched in Blog: My Day of Outrage

Frank McComb at the Breakfast Klub

Funky soul jazz comes to Midtown

The H-Town Blues Festival

The H-Town Blues Festival will be held Saturday, February 3, at the Reliant Arena, 8400 Kirby Drive, 713-667-1400.

Everlasting Sounds

Ten of the year's most timeless records

Oh, Slap!

James Hunter

ames Hunter appears Friday, May 26, at the Continental Club, 3700 Main, 713-529-9899

Cat Power

The Greatest

Al Green

Everything's OK

All for One

A pair of ace session men join up and call forth the Soul of John Black

Van Hunt

Van Hunt (Capitol)

A Change Gonna Come

Calvin Richardson steeps deeper in the neo-soul stew on his second album

Best Radio Personality

Paris Eley, KCOH/1430 AM

Detroit Cobras

Saturday, July 20

The Doobie Brothers; Michael McDonald with the Houston Symphony

Thursday, July 4; Saturday, July 6

Bilal

Saturday, November 24

Playbill

Mary Wilson & Dennis Edwards

Sumpin' Filthy

Local punker/chef Filthy McNasty is the Ginuwine article

Best Place to Learn "The Whip"

SSQQ Dance Studio

Rotation

New Releases Reviewed

Rotation

Super Squeak

Rick James comes clean on the past, the present -- and the CD he hopes will revive his career

Rotation

Blues Without Blinders

Blues, soul, rock, country? Who cares? To Little Milton, it's just music.

Critic's Choice, The Road to Storyville