A Conversation with Mac McAnally on Jesse Winchester – HuffPost 9.3.14

Mike Ragogna: Mac, let’s talk about Jesse Winchester. You produced his album A Reasonable Amount Of Trouble that are his final recordings. How did you get through it? It must have hit you in a much different way than producing any other album in your life.

Mac McAnally: Well, certainly. The whole premise initially was that Jesse had been sick, we did the tribute album during the time that he was sick, and right before we began this final project he was actually given a clean bill of health. The prognosis at that point was good, but he had these songs that were written during the feeling of imminent death. There was sort of a heavy overtone to the songs he had written. He was concerned because he was generally not a heavy, morose guy; he always had a sense of humor about everything. If you know his work, you know there’s always some pathos and always some humor and always some real life in any Jesse Winchester song. That’s why he’s one of my heroes. He can make you laugh and cry in the same song.

A Conversation with Walter Salas-Humara – HuffPost 9.3.14

Mike Ragogna: Walter, you have a new solo album, Curve and Shake. How could you possibly have left your band The Silos out of the mix? Walter Salas-Humara: I wanted to make a more intimate album. I started with Latin percussion and guitar and built it up from there. I recorded my nephew Charlie Salas-Humara and […]

A Conversation with The Mercy Alliance’s Joe Rathbone – HuffPost 9.3.14

Mike Ragogna: Joe, The Mercy Alliance has a new album, Some Kind Of Beautiful, but first let’s get caught up. What has the band been up to since the last release,Waking Up The Sun? Joe Rathbone: I reconstitued the band with a new bass player Mike Durham and returned to playing with drummer David Lopez and […]

A Conversation with Cris Cab – HuffPost 9.2.14

Mike Ragogna: Cris, your new single “Liar Liar” features probably the hottest guest vocalist on the planet, Pharrell Williams. How did you pull this off and just “Happy” are you about that? Cris Cab: Hahaa… I see what you did there. Yeah, I’m thrilled to have my friend Pharrell Williams on this song. I’ve known […]

A Conversation with Phases Of The Moon’s Sam & Barry Shear – HuffPost 9.2.14

Mike Ragogna: Sam and Barry, what inspired you to form a “Phases Of The Moon” festival? What’s the history? Sam Shear: I was attending college in Lake Tahoe, Nevada. For my Bachelors of Fine Art, I found myself completely immersed in the art community and always learning about new visual artists. At the same time […]

A Conversation with The Allman Brothers’ Jaimoe – HuffPost 9.2.14

Mike Ragogna: Let’s talk about The Allman Brothers’ jillion-disc reissue of The 1971 Fillmore East Recordings. I’m guessing you know how big an impact these concerts made on the rock culture of that era. What are your impressions of that? Jaimoe: John Coltrane. Mike: John Coltrane? Jaimoe: Somebody was having a conversation with Duane [Allman] and […]

A Conversation with Cherry Poppin’ Daddies’ Steve Perry – HuffPost 9.2.14

Mike Ragogna: Steve, your wife Yvette has had colorectal cancer and you and she have decided to go public about it. Please can you go over the history or her ordeal and why you decided to share this with the press? Steve Perry: Well this all happened quite suddenly over the summer. My wife, who […]

A Conversation with Bruce Hornsby – HuffPost 8.29.14

Bruce Hornsby: I’m doing fine, but “…you don’t come to Vegas and talk to a man like Moe Greene like that!”

MR: [laughs] “Fredo, you’re my brother and I love you. But don’t ever take sides against the family again.” Bruuuce! Here you are playing solo in some elegant halls in 2012 and 2013, and I’m imagining some people in the audience might have been expecting a different approach considering your pop history and previous live tours.