history
Iconic moments in music history.
Gladys Knight Announced She Is Stepping Back From Performing
Gladys Knight announced to her fans that she will be taking a step back from performing and will be winding down her concert and touring schedule. On Thursday, August 27, 2026, the Motown legend posted her decision on Instagram .
By Margaret Minnicks2 months ago in Beat
My Tribute to Honor Dolly Parton
When Richmond’s local news stations invited Virginians to share photos and memories in honor of Dolly Parton, I was inspired to do so. It wasn’t just nostalgia I felt. It was recognition — the kind that rose from deep places within me. Dolly touched the lives of millions, including mine. That's why I offer a tribute stitched together with the very threads she gave us: her songs, her stories, and her unmistakable spirit.
By Margaret Minnicks2 months ago in Beat
History of Rock Music
Following World War II, many soldiers, sailers, and airmen made use of the GI bill to further their education, and many started families. Like many generations, America's youth had questions about authority and society. The young adults of the era were no longer interested in listening to the crooners their parents favored, like Frank Sinatra, Perry Como, Bing Crosby, and Judy Garland. Instead, they listened to black rhythm and blues artists, like Muddy Waters...
By Julie Lacksonen2 months ago in Beat
Six of The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame's Most Indefensible '80s Blind Spots
Because apparently "shaped an entire generation of music" isn't a strong enough résumé... Credit where it's due — the Hall has actually been doing a little cleanup work lately. The 2026 class alone is inducting Iron Maiden, Billy Idol, Oasis, Joy Division/New Order, Sade, Luther Vandross, Wu-Tang Clan, and Phil Collins as a solo artist on top of his existing Genesis induction. That's a genuinely stacked class. Somebody in Cleveland is clearly trying.
By Elton Reads A Book A Week (Elton Edgar)2 months ago in Beat
Six '90s Bands the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Keeps 'Forgetting' Exist
Because "rock's highest honor" apparently runs on a decades-long delay and a guilty conscience... Let's get the good news out of the way first: the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame occasionally remembers to do its job. Radiohead got in back in 2019. Nine Inch Nails followed in 2020. And after three separate nomination attempts and eight years of grieving Chris Cornell, Soundgarden finally walked the red carpet in 2025, with Jim Carrey — yes, that Jim Carrey — delivering the induction speech in a Fender-signed haze of nostalgia. So credit where it's due: the Hall can, on occasion, be shamed into fixing its mistakes.
By Elton Reads A Book A Week (Elton Edgar)2 months ago in Beat
Fiddle Firsts: Which Came First, the Fiddle or the Violin?
Before there was a violin, there was a fiddle. Well... sort of. The history of bowed string instruments is much older and more complicated than just that. But as a violinist with over 20 years of playing experience, I recently stumbled on a fact that I found a little surprising.
By Cate Calvert2 months ago in Beat
The Story Of Mad Alice Lane - A Dark Masterpiece by Peter Lawlor
Introduction Many years ago in an advert for Land Rover (which I have not yet found on Youtube), I heard a song that has stuck with me ever since. It is ghostly, eerie and atmospheric and has captured the attention of many listeners and viewers.
By Mike Singleton 💜 Mikeydred 3 months ago in Beat
Massive Attack: Totally Wack
“[T]here are many here among us for whom the life force is best represented by the livid twitching of one tortured nerve, or even a full-scale anxiety attack. I do not subscribe to this point of view 100%, but I understand it, have lived it. Thus the shriek, the caterwaul, the chainsaw gnarlgnashing, the yowl and the whizz that decapitates may be reheard by the adventurous or emotionally damaged as mellifluous bursts of unarguable affirmation. And one could, if so inclined, take it even further than that…”
By Kendall Defoe 3 months ago in Beat
TNK (Tomorrow Never Knows)
Introduction Although it doesn't contain my favourite Beatles songs, "Revolver" is my favourite Beatles album. I bought it first on cassette but now have a CD copy of it, and maybe I will pick it up on vinyl at some point. I bought it in Glasgow maybe ten years back.
By Mike Singleton 💜 Mikeydred 3 months ago in Beat
Did You Know Duke Ellington's Famous Big Band Had a Jazz Violinist?
What comes to mind when you hear the term "big band?" You may think of saxophones and trumpets, perhaps a drummer playing a driving swing rhythm that gets people up and dancing. A violinist probably isn't quite the first thing you picture. But one of the most influential and successful big bands of all time actually featured a jazz violinist as a major part of its sound.
By Cate Calvert3 months ago in Beat
