The Chronicles of Michael Christopher
Music • Culture • Film • Travel • Photography • Vinyl
Apologies to the stick swinging readers, but drummers are an odd bunch. Back in college, my roommate was a drummer, and he was a strange cat – still is. It’s not very surprising as these are people whose chosen career in life is to hit things – typically very hard – with pieces of wood... Continue Reading →
Welcome to this year’s edition of “New Year’s Resolutions for Rockers Who Need Them,” where we offer some assistance to the musicians out there who may have trouble lining up goals for the coming year. It’s not an easy job, but one we’re more than happy to take on because, hey, these folks are busy.... Continue Reading →
Following its premiere last weekend, REELZ will be airing an encore presentation of Guns N' Roses: The Story of Their Songs this Sunday, June 26 at 6:00pm ET/PT. I appear in the program as a talking head/music historian as the show delves into six of the tracks that made the greatest impact on the career... Continue Reading →
This year is the 30th anniversary of the Guns N' Roses ambitious Use Your Illusion albums, and to mark the occasion, Ultimate Classic Rock is doing something pretty cool by diving into the background of each song on the records with a new one every day. The track I got to tell the story behind... Continue Reading →
When the Rolling Stones announced their return to the road in the summer of 1989, it was the guaranteed to be the hottest ticket in town as the band had been absent for an excruciatingly long seven years. The run to support the album Steel Wheels was filled with Philly tie-ins – it kicked off... Continue Reading →
Chris Cornell should've turned 56 today. Not "would've" - should've. Crippled by depression, he took his own life three Mays ago at 52. It was so incredibly unexpected, heartbreaking and brutal. That day sticks with me like the JFK assassination does for boomers. Seriously - it was that intense and I'll never, ever forget the... Continue Reading →
President Donald Trump isn’t the first politician to offend performers by using their music at campaign events, but he might be the most maligned due to his enduring audacity to play whatever he wants during them, despite the often very vocal calls to cease from the song’s composers. Recent weeks have seen the “Trump 2020”... Continue Reading →
Yesterday, as part of the 7th anniversary of Vanyaland celebration, I linked to a piece written for the online magazine about seven artists I personally think should be way, way more popular than they are. That was the first of two features I did for the landmark occasion, the second being seven revealing things I've... Continue Reading →
[Note: Typically I link my writings directly to the publication to read. This week over at The Daily Times, I covered the Kate Smith saga, but since there is a paywall, have included the piece in its entirety below for non-subscribers as I think it raises some important points.] The eradication of Kate Smith and... Continue Reading →
Want to know why end of year lists and holiday gift guides are so popular? It's because there is typically nothing of note going on around this time. That said, I managed to eek out some pieces for The Daily Times (gift guides mostly) and Ultimate Classic Rock. Links after the jump. I was unfortunate... Continue Reading →
The Chronicles of Michael Christopher 