Folk singer Arlo Guthrie is on vacation someplace where he can’t get phone reception, but, for some reason, he can get e-mail. In this, the age of information, such a vacation begs for speculation. The Perhentian Islands of Malaysia? Nome, Alaska? Amish country, perhaps? Precious friend: Arlo Guthrie may be an icon of the ‘60s […]

When Valentine’s Day rolls around, the romantically inclined are drawn to certain tried-and-true measures. Roses, chocolates, and (if at all possible) a violinist bowing the soulful strains of some time-tested chestnut. “The Blue Danube,” perhaps, or “Hungarian Dance No. 1 in G minor.” The salacious side of Strauss: Daniel Meyer, the Asheville Symphony’s musical director […]

In the view of legendary Canadian singer/songwriter Gordon Lightfoot, the folk-music revival was “really only in vogue for three years” before The Beatles burst on the music scene. And by the time folk superstar Bob Dylan hit, folk was already over. If you could read his mind: Gordon Lightfoot has long been one of Canada’s […]

Dan Whitney, better known as his alter ego, Larry the Cable Guy, insists that he’s “very deadpan, very serious” before chortling into the phone. “I like telling jokes and doing what I do, so I’m pretty much always in a good mood,” he says. “Let’s just say I don’t sweat the small stuff.” Blue-collar, and […]