Marvin Gaye

Five Years of the Best St. Louis Song: Listen Here

Our yearly giant love letter to St. Louis -- the Best Of issue -- comes out tomorrow. We've encountered some confusion out there, so this seems like as good an opportunity as any to explain that this is different from our RFT Music Awards, which are ultimately determined by a public vote. With the B ... More >>

The Problem with An Under Cover Weekend

The Riverfront Times has a long, long, long history of promoting the An Under Cover Weekend shows. On the surface it's a cool event that seems to support our huge pool of local talent. It's nice to see local bands in any showcase together, especially one where everyone is working together to try to ... More >>

The Six Best Songs About Birds

Compiling the best songs about birds is tricky. Many great ones are too metaphorical ("Bird On A Wire" by Leonard Cohen, "Freebird" by Lynyrd Skynyrd) and many literal ones are not great ("I'm Like A Bird" by Nelly Furtado). Continuing the Nitpick Six series about animal songs, here are the six best ... More >>

You Have One More Day to Submit Your Band for An Under Cover Weekend Six

The annual hero-halloween for St. Louis bands known as An Under Cover Weekend* is scheduled for September 7 and 8 at the Firebird. Want to show everyone your excellent Spice Girls impression (someone please do this)? Now's your chance. The event is taking submissions for another 31 hours as of this ... More >>

RFT Spring Arts Guide 2012: Music

Your Valentine's Day Reservation Guide: Two Weeks Out Edition

Holy crap, you guys! Valentine's Day is two weeks from tomorrow. As a general rule, one of the few days of the year when you won't see Gut Check gracing a table at your fine establishment is Valentine's Day. However, we understand that many of you do want to enjoy a romantic meal with your loved ... More >>

Can musicians find new audiences through tribute nights?

It's Final: The Complete Lineup of An Under Cover Weekend 2011

​It's official. This morning's announcement that Union Tree Review will be covering Marvin Gaye at the fifth annual An Under Cover Weekend, completes this year's line-up of the two-day show series on Friday, September 9 and Saturday, September 10. The series finds some St. Louis groups paying ... More >>

R. Kelly

8 p.m. Friday, June 17. Chaifetz Arena, 1 South Compton Avenue.

"Did You Know All Women Are Easy?" Why, No. Please Enlighten Us.

When wearing just a thong to bed in February, most women would also prefer a blanket, or at the very least another warm body.​Daily RFT received this missive a few days ago, but we held onto it so the information it contains will be fresh in your mind when you head out to the Friday night meat ... More >>

Maze featuring Frankie Beverly

8 p.m. Friday, June 11. The Chaifetz Arena, One South Compton Avenue.

Diana Ross

7:30 p.m. Sunday, June 6. The Fabulous Fox Theatre, 527 North Grand Boulevard.

Review: Maxwell and Jill Scott at Scottrade Center Saturday, May 29

It has only been seven months since Maxwell last paid a visit to the Scottrade Center, but that didn't stop his fans from coming out in droves last night. Then again, this was no carbon copy of last October's concert; this time, instead of Chrisette Michelle and Common, Maxwell was accompanied by Ji ... More >>

Review Photos Setlist: Pearl Jam and Band of Horses at the Scottrade Center, Tuesday, May 4

After Pearl Jam opened its first St. Louis show since 2004 with the moody No Code album cut "Sometimes," vocalist Eddie Vedder bellowed, "In the immortal words of Marvin Gaye - let's get it on!" Cue "Corduroy," just one of many snarled rockers the quintet unleashed during a two-hour-plus set. Ph ... More >>

Soul Searching: The Black Rep examines Romeo and Juliet through the prism of the inner-city Sixties

Show Review: Maxwell, Common and Chrisette Michele at the Scottrade Center, Friday October 9

Quite a crowd came out last night to watch Maxwell's return to the spotlight, some eight years after the release of his previous album. There was a "grown and sexy" vibe to the crowd -- the majority of the fans were over 30 and 'dressed to a T.' And although couples dominated the crowd, plenty of si ... More >>

MP3 Video: Wafeek "Feekee and the Flux Capacitor"

photo by Keegan HamiltonIt's been a minute since we checked in with Wafeek, everyone's favorite St. Louis hip-hop ex-pat, and it's probably best we've left him alone: He's been busy making a kick-ass new album. The project is titled Feekee and the Flux Capacitor and it's, well, complicated.As t ... More >>

A Table for How Many? at BBC Asian Cafe & Bar

Stefani Pollack is the author of the food blogs Cupcake Project and Food Interviews. She is also a member of the St. Louis Dinner Club. She blogs about her large-group dining experiences twice a month for Gut Check.BBC Asian Cafe & Bar243 North Euclid Avenue314-361-7770"I'd go back.""I'll be ba ... More >>

Black Joe Lewis and the Honeybears

8 p.m. Friday, April 24. The Pageant, 6161 Delmar Boulevard.

Hump Day Slow Jam of the Week: Marvin Gaye, "Let's Get It On"

The Singer: We're covered Marvin Gaye in this space before (with "Sexual Healing"), but we're giving him another airing for this sad and special day: Today marks the 25th anniversary of Marvin Gaye's shooting at the hands of his father (he died the next day). I'm not much for numerology, but it's fi ... More >>

Hump Day Slow Jam of the Week: Smokey Robinson, "Being with You"

The Singer: Along with Marvin Gaye and Stevie Wonder, Smokey Robinson was a triple threat for Motown Records: a great singer, hit songwriter and an architect of the label's sound. Most people can name a half-dozen songs Smokey sang with the Miracles in the '60s, but his solo career pointed his smoot ... More >>

Hump Day Slow Jam of the Week: Peaches & Herb, "Reunited"

The Singers: Herb Fame and Francine "Peaches" Parker began recording together in the late '60s, but Parker was one of five women to fill the role of Peaches. Linda Greene stepped up to the mic for 1979's 2 Hot, which contained the pair's biggest hit, "Reunited."The Song: There are plenty of great sl ... More >>

Hump Day Slow Jam of the Week: The Commodores, "Nightshift"

The Singers: Formed in the late '60s when the members were school mates at the Tuskegee Institute, the Commodores are best known for two things: having fostered a young Lionel Richie, and the funk jam "Brick House". The group's hits were split between "Brick House"-like funk songs ("Machine Gun" and ... More >>

Best Local Single of the Past 12 Months

Happy 808 Day!

Show Review: EPMD at the Old Rock House, Wednesday, April 23

Dirty Dozen Brass Band

11 p.m. Saturday, December 29. Broadway Oyster Bar, 736 South Broadway.

Caleb Travers & Big City Lights/Jon Hardy & the Public

9 p.m. Saturday, October 6. Off Broadway, 3509 Lemp Avenue.

Kelly Rowland

Ms. Kelly (Columbia)

Don't Just Sing It

Wing it!

They Might Be Giants

Saturday, May 6, at 8 p.m. The Pageant (6161 Delmar Boulevard)

Our top DVD picks for the week of December 13

John Legend, Common and De La Soul

Wednesday, August 3; the Pageant (6161 Delmar Boulevard)

Ask a Negro Leaguer

Week of July 20, 2005

Finding Your Religion

Pick your personal Jesus, plus three questions for a pop princess and the poetry of heavy metal

Can We Kick It?

Old-school hip-hop is ready for revival

Al Green

I Can't Stop (Blue Note)

It's a Black Thing

The teacher, not the teaching, makes this School of Rock

War on War Songs

Iraq and roll don't go together well when rockers protest

Various Artists

Pure 80's Love, the #1 Hits: 18 Classic Love Songs from the Decade of Excess (Universal Music Group)

Cursive with Neva Dinova and Low Skies

Sunday, January 19; Hi-Pointe

Bob Marley and the Wailers

The Complete Upsetter Singles 1970-1972 Plus Dubs (Purple Pyramid)

Fugazi

The Argument (Dischord)

On Tap

Most of the world's top tap dancers are gathering in St. Louis for the 10th annual All That Tap festival

Macy Gray

Friday, Nov. 17; The Pageant

D'Angelo with Dead Prez

Thursday, April 20; Fox Theatre

D'Angelo

Voodoo (Virgin Records)

Sound Checks

What bands got you into music in the first place and keep you going?

A Post-Poster World

It's the power of the music, not cartoonish surface appearances, that makes for a music hero, say the local young folk we polled