Jim Sullivan
As a high school baseball player growing up in Maine, I used to pump myself up for games by playing Iggy & the Stooges Raw Power. The ultimate adrenaline rush. My friends and team mates didn't quite get it – they liked Chicago (the band) and whatever Top 40 stuff crossed their path. But that was OK: I was secure in my choices and my taste. And the punk rock revolution was around the corner. That's where my musical taste locked in with many others, all of us bored with corporate rock. That period was a time of extreme excitement (friction, joy, conflict) that helped inspire me to write about what I loved. And, it opened the doors to even more worlds.
I wrote for my college paper the Maine Campus and became a rock columnist and feature writer for Maine’s largest daily paper, the Bangor Daily News. My first rock interview was Slade in 1975, where, post-show, I asked Noddy Holder if he still got excited on stage. He exclaimed that he did – “My jeans are stiff as a board!” I was also writing for a music magazine, Sweet Potato, that started in Portland before it opened a Boston edition.
After graduating from the University of Maine, I moved to Boston in 1978. I continued writing for Sweet Potato and began writing freelance music reviews and features for the Boston Globe the following year while attending Boston University, earning an M.S. in Journalism. I also wrote for various national now-defunct music (The Record, Creem, Music-Sound Output, etc.) – broadened my taste and sharpened my critical faculties. I found Boston most fascinating, the local rock scene and the many national and international bands that came in. Maybe it wasn't New York or L.A., but most anything that hit those cities hit ours, too, and the diversity of the arts scene in general was most impressive.
I joined the Globe staff in 1988, writing for virtually every section of the paper, but specializing in pop music and culture. The landscape of coverage was immense – from Roy Orbison and Jerry Lee Lewis to Sex Pistols and Ramones, from Neil Young and Elvis Costello to Pink Floyd and Butthole Surfers, from Roxy Music and Sparks to Patti Smith and Tina Turner. I left in the summer of 2005. Since, I've freelanced for the Boston Phoenix, the Boston Herald, Boston Common, the Christian Science Monitor, Best Classic Bands, Where magazine, the Cape Cod Times, and Playgirl (Yes, a ribald ride with Amanda Palmer and a profile of Lez Zeppelin). Heading into the ‘20s, my main outlets are WBUR’s ARTery https://www.wbur.org/artery, Northeastern University’s www.expmag.com and Rock and Roll Globe www.rockandrollglobe.com, with various freelance bits for Flood, Output, Ultimate Classic Rock and others. In 2020, I wrote the introductory essay for Michael Grecco’s dazzling coffee table photo book, PUNK POST PUNK NEW WAVE.
278 articles
List of articles in the library
Elvis Costello, Warren Zevon: Costello, Zevon dazzle beantown
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, Bangor Daily News, 15 May 1978
LAST WEEK, two of rock's most exciting new artists, Elvis Costello and Warren Zevon, played Boston concerts on consecutive nights. Both shows were hotly anticipated ...
Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers: Tom Petty is Obsessed
Report and Interview by Jim Sullivan, Bangor Daily News, 14 August 1978
TOM PETTY HAS an obsession with rock 'n' roll. It's not just a glamorous occupation; it's virtually the only life the 26-year-old leader of the ...
David Johansen, New York Dolls: David Johansen: This Time It's For Real
Profile and Interview by Jim Sullivan, Sweet Potato, December 1978
"When you look back at every cultural music scene, there were always a couple of bands that came first-like the Beatles and Rolling Stones – ...
Jean Michel Jarre: Jarre's Eclectic Electic Music
Interview by Jim Sullivan, Sweet Potato, March 1979
YOU HAVE TO credit Jean Michel Jarre for making the sometimes forboding world of electronic music accessible to the public. Me. I've lone been a ...
Report and Interview by Jim Sullivan, Sweet Potato, March 1979
"I don't understand every lyric on the album, I doubt that Mick or Topper or Paul understands what every single word is. But if you ...
Fabulous Poodles: The Band That Gets Stuff Thrown At Them
Interview by Jim Sullivan, Sweet Potato, April 1979
SOME PEOPLE just don't know how to take the Fabulous Poodles. The night before their February 10th gig in Boston, the Poodles were in Philadelphia, ...
Interview by Jim Sullivan, Sweet Potato, 10 May 1979
BACKSTAGE AFTER the first of four sold-out performances at the Paradise, Stewart Copeland is relaxing, intermittently sipping a beer, and mostly trying to explain the ...
Lowell George, Little Feat: Lowell George: Time Loves A Hero
Interview by Jim Sullivan, Sweet Potato, July 1979
IT'S EERIE and disturbing news to learn about the death of someone with whom you had enjoyed a long and enjoyable conversation just a few ...
Nico: Strange Interlude With Nico
Interview by Jim Sullivan, Trouser Press, July 1979
SITTING IN the second floor cocktail lounge at Howard Johnson's, Nico drinks an afternoon breakfast of Bloody Marys and beer. It's a dreary overcast day ...
Robert Fripp: A Most Delightful Discourse With One Small, Mobile Intelligent Unit
Interview by Jim Sullivan, Sweet Potato, August 1979
THE USUAL ways to write about most rock artists are, I'm afraid, inadequate when one's subject is Robert Fripp. Generally, the writer's task is to ...
The Clash, Sam and Dave, the Undertones: Orpheum Theater, Boston
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 22 September 1979
Clash makes the sparks fly. ...
Warren Zevon: How L.A.'s 'Excitable Boy' Won the Battle with the Bottle
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 10 April 1980
"L.A. rock's newest darling desperado, Warren Zevon, likes to start his day with a screwdriver, then clear his head with coffee and a side of ...
Lou Reed: Will The Real Lou Reed Please Speak Up?
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 22 May 1980
"I don't especially tell the truth most of the time, anyway." — Lou Reed Creem interview, July 1973 ...
Peter Gabriel: The Evolution Of Peter Gabriel – Why He Believes In Taking Risks With His Music
Report and Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 3 July 1980
IN RETROSPECT, Peter Gabriel is mildly amused. His third solo album, Peter Gabriel, is an unqualified success in his native England, hitting the No. 1 ...
Dave Davies of Kinks Tries Solo
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 24 July 1980
IN 1967 Kinks guitarist Dave Davies hit No. 3 on the British charts with 'Death of a Clown', a song he co-wrote with his brother ...
Van Halen: The Gospel of Rock According to Van Halen
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 24 July 1980
"WE'VE ENLARGED the band since you last saw us," says Van Halen lead singer David Lee Roth, poised to cue me in on a hot ...
Smokey Robinson: Berklee Performance Center, Boston
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 29 July 1980
CAROLE GARDINER first saw Smokey Robinson in 1965, when he and his group, the Miracles, went to London as part of a Motown Revue. Since ...
Lynyrd Skynyrd, The Rossington Collins Band: Rossington Collins Band: On The Road Again
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 21 August 1980
Four Lynyrd Skynyrd survivors plus three return to rock scene as Rossington Collins Band ...
Mickey Hart: The Primitive Pulse Of War: Mickey Hart
Report and Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 24 August 1980
MICKEY HART is realistic. The Grateful Dead percussionist knows he hasn'tgot a chartbusting hit on his hands and it doesn't concern him in the least. ...
Peter Gabriel: Gabriel on Gabriel or Man vs. Record
Interview by Jim Sullivan, Trouser Press, October 1980
PETER GABRIEL is mildly amused. ...
Rick Danko: Paradise Theater, Boston
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 9 October 1980
"IS EVERYBODY getting enough to drink?" asked ex-Band bassist Rick Danko from the Paradise stage, concerned that, as the party's host, he might have neglected ...
The Stranglers: "We're kind of out of context here," admit Stranglers
Report and Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 16 October 1980
"WE'RE KIND OF out of context here," admits Stranglers' bassist Jean Jacques Burnel. "We write the things that we know and we don't really know ...
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 24 December 1980
A STILL SWEATING Joan Jett sits in a dressing room at the Channel after her Saturday gig and tugs on her black skintight pants. "This ...
George Thorogood & The Destroyers
Interview by Jim Sullivan, Trouser Press, February 1981
GEORGE THOROGOOD sits in a hotel room in western Massachusetts, watching television. It's a bitter cold November night; in a couple of hours he will ...
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 6 March 1981
ROBERTA FLACK is best known for her gentle melodic love songs — the 1973 Grammy winner, 'First Time Ever I Saw Your Face', the 1974 ...
Fleetwood Mac: Tuning in to Digital Records
Report and Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 19 March 1981
IT'S NOT FOR ROCK-POP YET ...
The Plasmatics: Plasmatics Play It For Kicks
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 21 March 1981
A COUPLE OF years ago the Damned decided to poke a little fun at their own limited musicality and came up with the refrain, "Noise ...
Dead Kennedys: The Channel, Boston MA
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 13 April 1981
Exhilarating, disturbing... ...
John Cale: A Study in Contradiction
Report and Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 11 May 1981
ONSTAGE AND OFF, contradiction comes naturally to singer and songwriter John Cale. Within his music, forays into dissonance and contemplative mellifluousness have long been integral, ...
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 1 June 1981
Still Charging Hard On The Punk Rock Line ...
Visage: …And Their British Guru, Steve Strange
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 27 July 1981
SOMETIMES, confides Steve Strange, weeks go by when he doesn't buy any clothes. ...
Billy Squier: Stardom finds Billy Squier
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 18 August 1981
PROVIDENCE — Billy Squier, newly successful alumnus of Boston bands, the Sidewinders and Piper, is backstage sitting among equipment cases and guitars and sweating, minutes ...
Ray Davies, The Kinks: Ray Davies
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, September 1981
MINNEAPOLIS: "It's like death in here," Ray Davies says, inauspiciously welcoming me into Marquette Inn room 1453. The shades are drawn, no lights are on. ...
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 5 September 1981
THE LAST TIME I saw Levon Helm we were in Arlington. He and Sissy Spacek were on the movie screen at the Regent theater and ...
The Doors, Joy Division: The Doors and Joy Division: 2 Dead Bands Still Going Strong
Essay by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 6 September 1981
TWO OF the most intriguing rock 'n' roll bands of the '80s exist on the airwaves, on vinyl and in the consciousness of fans in ...
Johnny Thunders: Jonathan Swift's, Cambridge MA
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 10 September 1981
"SHUT UP!" Johnny Thunders yells, greeting the crowd at Jonathan Swift's about an hour after his set is scheduled to start. "You guys ready for ...
The Raybeats: Raybeats rock with a twist
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 16 October 1981
INSTRUMENTAL ROCK 'n' roll? ...
Gladys Knight and the Pips: Gladys Knight & the Pips: Berklee Performance Center, Boston MA
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 3 November 1981
A pleasant Knight-time ...
Grace Jones: Orpheum Theater, Boston MA
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 24 November 1981
Smiling along with Grace Jones ...
Liquid Liquid, V: Streets, Boston MA
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 4 December 1981
Liquid Liquid runs wild in Boston debut ...
Clarence Clemons, Bruce Springsteen: Clarence Clemons: Born To Rock
Report and Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 14 January 1982
"LADIES AND GENTLEMEN," announces a raspy-voiced Bruce Springsteen from the stage of the Capitol Theater in Passaic, N. J. It's the 75th performance of the ...
James Blood Ulmer: Streets, Boston MA
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 19 January 1982
Ulmer builds a pressure cooker ...
The Monkees: Peter Tork Takes A Joyride Down Memory Lane
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 21 January 1982
"Hey, hey we're the Monkees/Kids say we monkey around/But we're too busy singing/To put anybody down." — The Monkees' theme song, 1966 ...
Walter "Shakey" Horton: The Blues, for Walter Horton
Report by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 25 February 1982
WHILE MAGIC Dick of the J. Geils Band was blowing a mean harmonica for 15,000 people at Boston Garden Monday night, Sugar Ray Norcia was ...
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 2 March 1982
MARSHALL CRENSHAW is a believer. A guitarist and singer who draws from the classic, lean rock 'n' roll of the late-'50s and mid-'60s, he believes ...
The Cars, Nick Lowe and the Chaps: Boston Garden
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 17 March 1982
A 75-minute 'Car' trip in Boston ...
Sheena Easton: Through Sheena's Eyes Only
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 22 April 1982
POP SINGER DOESN'T USE LYRICS TO DELIVER ANY MESSAGES ...
Kim Wilde begins a love affair with America
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 13 May 1982
KIM WILDE the English singer of the massive European hit single 'Kids in America', had been in America two days. "You've got it terribly easy ...
James Chance & the Contortions, The Dictators, New York Dolls: Cassette rock comes on with a "Roar"
Report and Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 27 May 1982
IN THE competitive record business, how can a company that releases dated rock 'n' roll and aims well below the top of the pops prosper? ...
Jesse Winchester: The quiet and low-key Jesse Winchester
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 12 July 1982
THE SPOTLIGHT of the news media shone brightest on Jesse Winchester in 1977. Jesse Winchester squirmed. ...
Jerry Lee Lewis: A comeback story
Profile and Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 27 July 1982
"Jerry Lee Lewis is a sinner, lost an' undone, without God or His Son" — Jerry Lee Lewis as quoted by Nick Tosches in his ...
Blondie: Striving To Be Different
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 12 August 1982
MAINSTREAM HITS HAVE NOT ALTERED BANDS GOALS, SAYS CHRIS STEIN ...
Richard Hell: Rock poet Richard Hell finds some solace
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 6 November 1982
ELVIS PRESLEY, Little Richard and Jerry Lee Lewis defined the classic rock 'n' roll position — stake a claim for living life outside society's mainstream, ...
Jon Hassell: In Search of Future Music
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 2 December 1982
JON HASSELL creates music that falls not so much between, but outside, traditional categories of classical, pop or jazz. Yet, the 45-year-old trumpeter, synthesizer player ...
The Del Fuegos, Rank and File: Rank And File/Del Fuegos: Inn-Square Bar, Boston
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 15 December 1982
COUNTRY ROCK HAS been one of the most popular musical hybrids of the past decade; it's also been one of the most disappointing. ...
Mission of Burma: Top Band Forced To Quit
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 14 January 1983
MISSION OF BURMA, one of Boston's most progressive and popular rock 'n' roll bands, recently released their excellent debut album, vs. One of the few ...
James "Blood" Ulmer: James Blood Ulmer: Jonathan Swift's, Cambridge MA
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 11 February 1983
Blood Ulmer lets his guitar do the talking ...
Cream, Mountain: Pappalardi blazed new rock trail
Obituary by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 21 April 1983
FELIX PAPPALARDI, 43-year-old rock producer and musician, died from a gunshot wound in the neck early Sunday morning. He was allegedly shot by his wife, ...
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 21 April 1983
Fall: Provocative, and wordy ...
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 29 April 1983
FLIPPER SUCCEEDS WITH EXCESS; WITH WILD STARES AND PANIXQUAD AT THE CHANNEL; WEDNESDAY NIGHT. ...
The Call: The Paradise Theater, Boston
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 21 May 1983
THE CALL CONQUERS DESPAIR WITH BUST-LOOSE ROCK ...
Martha and the Muffins: The Channel, Boston, Mass.
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, Record, July 1983
Martha and The Muffins In The Art-Funk League ...
Interview by Jim Sullivan, Record, July 1983
BOSTON — Talk about rock 'n' roll bands — their public images and their music — and certain adjectives jump up and wave their hands ...
Eurythmics: Sweet Dreams And Constant Friction
Interview by Jim Sullivan, Record, October 1983
BOSTON — "WE are not your average rock 'n' roll band," says Annie Lennox very deliberately, very seriously. This is the first thing out of ...
David Gilmour, Pink Floyd: David Gilmour: Life After Pink Floyd
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 24 May 1984
PINK FLOYD is one of the most popular bands in the history of rock 'n' roll. Pink Floyd is also one of rock 'n' roll's ...
Jocelyn Brown, O'Jays: The O'Jays, Jocelyn Brown: Berklee Performance Center, Boston MA
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 23 July 1984
Camaraderie at the Berklee ...
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 6 September 1984
IN 1970, Neil Young went to Nashville during a break in his solo tour and recorded the song 'Are You Ready For The Country?'. He ...
Frankie Goes to Hollywood: Frankie Say Buzz Off
Profile and Interview by Jim Sullivan, Record, February 1985
WELL, HOLLY Johnson, lead singer of Frankie Goes to Hollywood, would use a more explicit four-letter word than buzz to express his feelings toward anyone ...
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 20 February 1985
From the man who created the Sex Pistols, an odyssey into electro-pop opera ...
Jerry Lee Lewis: No Sinner Like An Old 'Un
Interview by Jim Sullivan, New Musical Express, 14 September 1985
Not for JERRY LEE LEWIS the cosy trail from rocker to rocking chair. Last year a rollercoaster life and career hit a new low when ...
Pete Townshend: A Charter Member Of The Who Deals With The Paradoxes In His Life
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 26 November 1985
THE SUBJECT IS drug abuse — heroin, cocaine and alcohol — and the speaker is Pete Townshend, former lead guitarist of The Who. Townshend, 40, ...
Trouble Funk, Skin: Paradise Theater, Boston
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 23 April 1986
Trouble Funk's go-go too much of the same ...
Prince & The Revolution: Metro Dance Club, Boston MA
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, Rolling Stone, 22 May 1986
Prince surprises Boston Club show emphasizes music, not spectacle ...
Stevie Wonder: Pop Music Or Politics, He Sings Out And Speaks Up For His Beliefs
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 14 August 1986
P.W. BOTHA was on television Tuesday afternoon and Stevie Wonder was steamed Tuesday night. Wonder had been listening to the South African president on a ...
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 27 October 1986
GUITAR HEROES have been a part of rock 'n' roll since the late 1960s. but the punk rock revolution of the late '70s redefined the ...
The Ramones, The Sex Pistols, Sid Vicious: "Poor Sid — You were a good guy, but..."
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 7 November 1986
SID AND Nancy, Alex Cox's film about the life and death of the Sex Pistols' bassist, Sid Vicious, and his girlfriend, Nancy Spungen, is a ...
Jerry Lee Lewis: Killer Takes All: Jerry Lee Lewis Keeps On
Report and Interview by Jim Sullivan, Creem, January 1987
"I THOUGHT [tonight's show] was the best damn show you ever seen in your whole life," Jerry Lee Lewis says to me, after a Boston ...
Madhouse: 8 (Warner Bros/Paisley Park)
Review by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 5 March 1987
OK ROCK SLEUTHS. It's time to hunt for those context clues. Madhouse's debut album, 8, comes our way courtesy of Paisley Park, the custom label ...
Prince: Sign o' the Times (Warner Bros./Paisley Park)
Review by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 29 March 1987
Here's Prince for all seasons ...
The Beastie Boys: Crude, Rude and No. 1
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 3 April 1987
CLEVELAND — Mike D. and MCA, two-thirds of the Beastie Boys, are sitting in MCA's hotel room after the group's concert. MCA is picking out ...
Ian Hunter: With its new $15m museum, Cleveland will rock
Report by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 17 April 1987
CLEVELAND — A city couldn't have a more enthusiastic rock 'n' roll anthem than Ian Hunter's 'Cleveland Rocks'. In the song, Hunter incessantly proclaims a ...
The Psychedelic Furs: Acceptable Weirdness From Furs
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, June 1987
JOHN ASHTON, guitarist for the Psychedelic Furs, addresses the key issue head on: "What's selling out? What's being a pop band? You can accuse Eurythmics ...
Stevie Ray Vaughan Overcomes Double Trouble: Alcohol and Drugs
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 25 June 1987
NEXT WEDNESDAY, Stevie Ray Vaughan plays Great Woods Center for the Performing Arts, a concert co-sponsored by Miller Genuine Draft. That's about as close to ...
Lisa Lisa & Cult Jam: Lisa Lisa and Cult Jam: Club Casino, Hampton Beach NH
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 3 July 1987
Lisa Lisa is just boring boring ...
The Del Fuegos: Rockers On A Roll
Interview by Jim Sullivan, Globe Magazine, 26 July 1987
HOW THE DEL FUEGOS CREPT OUT OF THE BASEMENT TOWARD A BIG-TIME DREAM ...
The Pogues: Importing the Pogues' brand of rowdy Irish rock
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 22 September 1987
U2 MAY BE the most popular band in the world, but the group that knocked them off the top of Ireland's pop charts recently was ...
Guns N' Roses: Paradise Theater, Boston
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 29 October 1987
New band that's special ...
Profile by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 23 November 1987
ENNUI AND nostalgia can become frequent traveling companions for veteran club-crawlers of the Boston rock scene, those folks searching for a new kind of kick, ...
Tower Records: The Power of Tower
Report and Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 29 November 1987
IT WASN'T ENOUGH FOR TOWER RECORDS TO OPEN A SHOP IN BOSTON: IT HAD TO BE THE WORLD'S LARGEST — AND MOST LAVISH — RECORD ...
Steve Earle: Sweet success for one of country's new voices
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 17 December 1987
DEPENDING ON your point of view, country-rocker Steve Earle is an overnight sensation or a guy who fought the good fight for more than a ...
The Fugs: Nightstage, Cambridge, Mass.
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 2 May 1988
THE FUGS – prime satirists of the hippie era, a band resurrected sporadically for live dates in this decade – are on stage, about to ...
Hüsker Dü, Bob Mould: Bob Mould's Quiet Life After Husker Du
Report and Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 19 August 1988
FOR THE BETTER part of the 1980s, Husker Du was the leading light of the American rock 'n' roll underground. The Minneapolis-based trio came crashing ...
Profile and Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 27 August 1988
DETROIT – "I'm still shaky from this," says Patti Smith, who's been driven by her husband, Fred Smith, through a hellish rainstorm and rush-hour traffic ...
Pere Ubu: The Long, Strange Trip Of Pere Ubu
Report and Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 16 September 1988
DAVID THOMAS, lead singer-lyricist of Pere Ubu, on his group's long, strange trip: "The original Pere Ubu had been very much like piling in a ...
Midnight Oil Burns With Activist Fervor
Report and Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 6 October 1988
PETER GARRETT, outspoken singer of Midnight Oil, is on the phone, ticking off things the Australian rock 'n' roll group is not. ...
The Call, Harry Dean Stanton: Harry Dean Stanton/Michael Been: Nightstage, Boston
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 26 October 1988
CAMBRIDGE – Harry Dean Stanton – full-time fringe actor (Repo Man; Paris, Texas; The Last Temptation of Christ) and part-time singer-guitarist-harmonica player – has gotten ...
Metallica Moves to Center Stage
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 5 March 1989
LAKELAND, Fl. — Just as Metallica helped change the face of the Grammys — it was one of five acts nominated for the first-ever hard-rock/metal ...
The Ramones: Dee Dee Ramone's Rap'n'Roll
Report and Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 17 April 1989
DEE DEE RAMONE, bassist of the Ramones, pops up in concert or on record every so often to sing a hardcore punk song like 'Warthog'. ...
De La Soul: Venus de Milo, Boston MA
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, May 1989
De La Soul's humor fizzles out in concert ...
Prince: Batman: Motion Picture Soundtrack (Warner Bros.)
Review by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 23 June 1989
A funky soundtrack by Prince ...
Samantha Fox: From topless model to top pop singer
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 1 August 1989
HYANNIS — "I'm not really bothered about being taken seriously, because at the moment I don't want to be serious," says pop singer and former ...
The B-52s: The B-52's Come Back From Tragedy
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 10 August 1989
THE B-52'S are, perhaps, the ultimate summertime, party-time band of the '80s — the upbeat, whacked-out, wigged-out chroniclers of kitsch, the guys and gals who ...
The The: Paradise Theater, Boston
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 21 August 1989
A MAJOR BAND WAITING TO HAPPEN ...
Making It: Heavy Metal in Hollywood
Report and Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, November 1989
LOS ANGELES – It's 2:20 a.m., a Sunday, just after the rock clubs on Sunset Boulevard have rousted the last rowdies and kicked out the ...
Warren Zevon: The low-key life of a rock star
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 4 November 1989
LOS ANGELES — These days, it seems every movie and rock star has a charity to tout or a special cause to promote. Singer-songwriter Warren ...
Terence Trent D'Arby: Citi Club, Boston MA
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 20 December 1989
Terence Trent D Arby, pretender to the throne ...
Comment by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 31 December 1989
MYRIAD GENRES and subgenres make up the world of pop music, some complementary, some clashing. Look around, and you'll find heavy metal, hard rock, post-modern, ...
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 9 January 1990
IN HIS 46 years, Peter Jenner has seen a lot of rock 'n' roll, and a lot of rock 'n' rollers, come and go. He's ...
Suicide: Ground Zero, Cambridge, MA
Review by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 18 June 1990
Suicide's Minimalistic Songs Have A Sexy, Dangerous Sound ...
Sinead O'Connor: Great Woods Center for the Performing Arts
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 15 August 1990
MANSFIELD – The last time Sinead O'Connor hit town, in May at the Orpheum, her star was rapidly ascending, and she took the stage with ...
Bob Geldof Shifts Gears, Returns To Irish Roots
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 3 September 1990
HE'S BEST KNOWN AS the driving force behind 1985's Live Aid project, and he still serves on the foundation's board of trustees. ...
Crazy Horse, Neil Young: Neil Young: Rockin' in the Neil world
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 9 September 1990
"HOW MANY guitar solos can you play? I've had it!" declared Neil Young. ...
Cocteau Twins, Mazzy Star: Cocteau Twins/Mazzy Star: Orpheum Theater, Boston
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 19 November 1990
Impassioned Vagueness Of Cocteau Twins ...
The Pixies: Are Pixies Ready For Stardom?
Report and Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 23 November 1990
THEY HEADLINED the three-day Reading festival in England earlier this year, getting paid $65,000 to play their off-kilter rock 'n' roll to 50,000 fans. ...
Hawkwind: Space Rock with Humor
Report and Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 23 November 1990
CULT BANDS tend to suffer the slings and arrows of the non-believers, and Hawkwind, perhaps England's quintessential cult band, knows it better than most. They've ...
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 13 December 1990
FOR WARREN Zevon, the past year has not been the best of times. It has been rough and it has been weird. To start with, ...
The Ramones: Radio Tracks: DJ Joey Ramone
Report by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 28 December 1990
HOW MANY OF you, if given the shot, would like to host your own radio show? ...
KC & the Sunshine Band: Disco's KC seeks the sunshine once again
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 12 January 1991
KC AND THE Sunshine Band was one of the most successful disco acts of the '70s. They were nominated for nine Grammies, won one, and ...
Crazy Horse, Neil Young: Still riding on Crazy Horse
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 2 February 1991
NO MATTER what his touring format — with high-tech synthesizers and video screens; in a down-home, fiddle-based country band; as part of a horn-led R ...
Slayer, Testament: Orpheum Theater, Boston
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 11 February 1991
Slayer's deafening metal exhilarates, numbs ...
The Replacements: One more time for the Replacements
Report and Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 21 February 1991
WHEN WE LAST left the Replacements – autumn 1990 – the band was at a crossroads. Paul Westerberg, the singer-songwriter-guitarist, was proud of a sharp ...
Sisters Of Mercy: Be Advised – They're No Angels
Report and Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 29 March 1991
BACK IN THE early '80s Tony James, former bassist of Generation X, was plotting his next assault on the pop world: a controversial sex-drugs-and-outrage spectacle ...
Pet Shop Boys: Orpheum Theater, Boston MA
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 13 April 1991
Bright and bold Pet Shop Boys ...
Come, Dinosaur Jr.: Dinosaur Jr., Come: Citi, Boston MA
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 20 May 1991
Dinosaur Jr. fails to live up to its thunder ...
Bob Dylan: Great Woods Center for the Performing Arts
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 6 July 1991
MANSFIELD – What about Bob? Long before the hit movie came along this summer people have been asking that question about the Bob that is ...
Wayne Newton: South Shore Music Circus, Cohasset
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 30 August 1991
COHASSET – I was on the phone with one of rock's grandest entertainers yesterday and I just had to ask him about one of Las ...
Cannibal Corpse, Guns N' Roses, Ice Cube: Pop's new voices of rage
Comment by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 22 December 1991
THERE WAS a time, not so long ago, when rebellious rockers took on the establishment. Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young railed against Richard Nixon's America ...
Comment by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 9 January 1992
IT'S TIME TO re-evaluate that good ol' time rock 'n' roll. Or, as you may discover, not so good ol' time rock 'n' roll. ...
Report and Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 23 February 1992
THESE DAYS, rock 'n' roll has become a contact sport. Not all rock 'n' roll, of course. You won't see slam dancing at a Moody ...
Body Count, Ice-T: Ice-T and Body Count: The Paradise, Boston
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 24 February 1992
Ice-T proves street-smart — and stupid ...
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 10 April 1992
A night of body contact with Pearl Jam ...
XTC: On Pop's High Road with XTC
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 12 June 1992
IT'S FAIR TO assume that some people hate their names. But what about rock bands? You can practically hear XTC's Andy Partridge groan over the ...
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 18 June 1992
L7 — on the go, but in gray zone ...
Report and Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 17 July 1992
SINGER ALAN VEGA has been explaining how the moniker of his progressive synth-rock duo, Suicide, was never intended to have a negative or personal connotation. ...
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 20 July 1992
Suicide casts a deep, dark spell ...
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds: The Nick Cave View: It's Dark Inside
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 31 July 1992
NICK CAVE, the lanky singer-songwriter of the Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds, is not one to mince words, even — or especially — if ...
Guns N' Roses, Metallica: Guns N' Roses roll in to Foxboro
Report by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 10 September 1992
"THE TRAIN," says a confident-sounding Wendy Laister, "is absolutely back on the tracks." ...
Guns N' Roses, Metallica: Foxboro Stadium, Foxboro MA
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 13 September 1992
Guns N' Roses vs. Metallica: They're a high-scoring draw ...
The Adverts, Ian Dury: The Stiff Records Story Offers Lots Of Delights
Review by Jim Sullivan, Chicago Tribune, 24 September 1992
THE ADVERTS, a glorious mess of a punk band with a great pop sensibility but possessing limited musical capabilities, spat out a catchy rocker called ...
Lyle Lovett and his Large Band: The Orpheum Theater, Boston MA
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 19 October 1992
Lovett serves up a sassy mix of country, blues and rock ...
Warren Zevon Flinches at Life Without Humor
Report and Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 1993
LAST SUMMER, as he was in the early stages of playing concerts being taped for a live album, Warren Zevon decided the album would be ...
David Bowie: Angie Bowie cuts into the spotlight
Retrospective and Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 20 January 1993
WE WERE AT Turner Fisheries – Angela Bowie, David Bowie's famous ex, and I. I nursed two drinks. She ate half a seafood dinner, sent ...
EMF, Tom Jones: Tom Jones' unusual comeback
Report and Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 19 February 1993
THE SCRUFFY-LOOKING band on stage is churning out a hard, propulsive groove, a sample of Andrew Dice Clay's voice is bellowing out "Oh!" to punctuate ...
Bon Jovi: The Worcester Centrum
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 20 February 1993
WORCESTER – During the mid-part of the decade just past, Bon Jovi set the standard for American arena rock: middlebrow, confection-like, pop /hard rock with ...
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 27 February 1993
Pompous and pretentious Asia ...
George Clinton: Fresh funk keeps George Clinton cooking
Report and Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 5 March 1993
IF FRANK SINATRA was, by some chance, watching the Grammy telecast last week, he'd have likely poured himself another drink and muttered darkly into his ...
Pink Floyd Still Rides Its Dark Side
Retrospective and Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 26 March 1993
MOST ROCK RECORDS, even hit records, have a relatively short shelf life. And when most rock stars meet the press, they want to chat up ...
Lindsey Buckingham: Paradise, Boston
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 29 March 1993
LINDSEY BUCKINGHAM was always the least meek of the Mac, Fleetwood Mac, that is, and he was always the guy who put the spice in ...
Wall Of Voodoo: Paradise Theater, Boston
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 30 March 1993
STANARD RIDGWAY, Wall of Voodoo's main singer and songwriter, leads his characters into a lot of sticky predicaments and he doesn't often lead them out. ...
The Auteurs: Auteurs make a big splash before a small crowd
Review and Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 14 April 1993
CAMBRIDGE – Hype is a constant factor in the music biz – an irritant and an enticement – but only occasionally can you actually buy ...
Bryan Ferry Follows His Muse To Make The R&B Taxi
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 14 May 1993
BRYAN FERRY spent Sunday afternoon, a splendid sunny day, strolling the Boston Common and being impressed all over again as to how fine Boston looked ...
Report and Interview by Jim Sullivan, Chicago Tribune, 27 May 1993
IRELAND HAS the Troubles. England has the Brothers Davies and they, too, have their troubles. Both seem equally irreconcilable. ...
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 5 June 1993
Hip, retro Suede: the no-grunge alternative ...
PJ Harvey: Less is More for PJ Harvey
Profile and Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 25 June 1993
MOST BAND leaders dream of taking it to the top, of packing arenas worldwide. Not Polly Jean Harvey. At least not yet. ...
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, July 1993
LEONARD COHEN does not mind taking extreme positions in his songs. In 1966, he kissed off the memory of a tryst with Janis Joplin in ...
Stone Temple Pilots/Butthole Surfers/Flaming Lips: Polish-American Beach Club, Gardner, MA.
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 2 August 1993
STONE TEMPLE PILOTS singer Scott Weiland had warned the young, aggressively moshing, object-throwing crowd Saturday on the grounds of the Polish-American Beach Club. "We want ...
The Fall: The Crankiest Band From The UK
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 6 August 1993
MARK E. SMITH, leader of the long-running English post-punk band The Fall, says these sorts of things invariably happen to him. ...
Stone Temple Pilots: Moshing Mayhem: STP fan says band beat him in Gardner
Report by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 13 August 1993
ROCK 'N' ROLL can be a rough-and-tumble game, increasingly so in these days of moshing, a highly aggressive dance-cum-contact sport that often takes place in ...
Radiohead: 'Creep' stumbles onto fame
Report and Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 8 October 1993
IT'S BARELY NOON, but Radiohead's Thom Yorke has been awake for a very un-rock 'n' roll-like four hours. This certainly can't be one of the ...
Kirsty MacColl: Singer Kirsty MacColl: Wry with a Twist of Laughter
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 12 November 1993
DEPRESSION AND despair have their place in pop music, especially in English pop. In recent years, it's come through most tellingly in the shimmering sadness ...
The Raincoats: Raincoats prove that there's life after punk
Report and Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 5 April 1994
CAMBRIDGE – Backstage before their first American gig in 12 years – hey, only their fourth gig period in that time – Raincoats bassist/guitarist/singer Gina ...
Kurt Cobain: Cobain carried his demons on ride to the top
Obituary by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 10 April 1994
HIS CUTTING-EDGE band brought punk rock ideals and alternative music to the American mainstream. He was a millionaire and a provocateur. He should have been ...
Richard Thompson: The Many Moods of Richard Thompson
Report and Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 15 April 1994
RICHARD THOMPSON, godfather of grunge? "Well, I think so," the droll singer-guitarist says, on the phone from Columbus, Ohio, during a tour stop. "I was ...
Stone Temple Pilots: Community service ordered for Stone Temple Pilots
Report by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 22 April 1994
IT LOOKS LIKE the Stone Temple Pilots, or at least two members of the popular alternative-rock quartet from San Diego, will be rocking Gardner High ...
Stone Temple Pilots: Band members sued after concert violence
Report by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 26 May 1994
A LEOMINSTER MAN who was assaulted last July at an outdoor concert in Gardner by two members of the Stone Temple Pilots rock band has ...
Kirsty MacColl: Paradise, Boston
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 21 March 1995
Kirsty MacColl Breaks Boundaries ...
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 30 April 1995
As years go by, Faithfull sings haunting songs of A Secret Life ...
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 6 May 1995
IF YOU KNOW one thing about Nancy Sinatra, it's her signature song — and may we suggest it's one of The Signature Songs of All ...
PJ Harvey: Harvey's New Hooks, Persona
Report and Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 26 May 1995
POLLY JEAN HARVEY has become, of late, a very public face. Last month's cover of Spin, a recent Tower Pulse, the current issue of Request. ...
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 5 August 1995
IT'S BEEN THREE years since he last toured, and about 15 years since he burst onto the post-punk, avant-garde rock scene: an outré Australian singer-songwriter ...
James Chance & the Contortions: James Chance: Middle East, Cambridge
Review and Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 15 September 1995
CAMBRIDGE – James Chance, Milwaukee born 'n' bred, as well as musically educated, tried to fit in when he moved to New York City in ...
Anti-Nowhere League: Mama Kin, Boston
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 26 September 1995
LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, for your listening and slam-dancing pleasure: Anti-Nowhere League, a scurrilous pack of London-based louts who began Sunday's show at Mama Kin with ...
k.d. lang: No more ingenue: The Constant Craving of k.d. lang
Profile and Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 8 October 1995
NEW YORK – Curled up on a couch in a hotel suite, dressed in baggy black athletic garb, k.d. lang ponders the nature of the ...
Bruce Springsteen: Orpheum Theatre, Boston
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 16 December 1995
BOZO THE FAN yelled to Bruce Springsteen during a silent moment, early in the two-hour set, last night: "Welcome back, Boss!" ...
Lou Reed, The Velvet Underground: Lou Reed (1996)
Interview by Jim Sullivan, Rock's Backpages audio, January 1996
Reed talks about sonic fidelity and recording new album Set the Twilight Reeling; working with partner Laurie Anderson and their relationship; his love of “real” rock; Mitch Ryder covering the Velvets' ‘Rock & Roll’ and new bands “doing the Velvets thing”; his controversial lyrics, parental advisory stickers and Tipper Gore; a recent biography of him; and Rudy Giuliani’s New York, good and bad.
File format: mp3; file size: 52.6mb, interview length: 54' 49" sound quality: **½
The Ramones' Last Tour: Rocket To Retirement
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 10 February 1996
"I THINK we're leaving an historical legacy," says Joey Ramone. "We really changed rock 'n' roll. When we came out in '74, rock 'n' roll ...
Steve Earle & the Dukes: Paradise, Boston
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 21 March 1996
Earle returns with country-rock kick ...
The Gun Club: After erratic career, Gun Club's Pierce dies
Report by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 5 April 1996
JEFFREY LEE PIERCE, leader of the band the Gun Club, died Sunday after surgery to treat a blood clot in his brain. He was 37. ...
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, July 1996
RICHARD HELL had an idea earlier this year. ...
Report and Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 5 July 1996
ROCK 'N' ROLL often has a lot to do with public image – a preening Mick Jagger, a prancing Tina Turner, a spitting Johnny Rotten, ...
Butthole Surfers: The Butthole Surfers Ride A New Wave Of Popularity
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 19 July 1996
HAS THE WORLD gone mad? Gibby Haynes, lead singer-songwriter of the Butthole Surfers, thinks it's a distinct possibility — and he spoke with us several ...
The Sex Pistols: Never Mind Their Principles, Here's The Sex Pistols
Report and Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 9 August 1996
FAIRFAX, Va. — Johnny Rotten is up to his old tricks. He's baiting the crowd — calling those seated in the loge "sissies" — and ...
The Needle And The Damage Done
Report by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 10 August 1996
"I've seen the needle and the damage done / A little part of it in everyone / But every junkie's like a setting sun" — ...
Bob Mould wants to kill off his Frankenstein monster
Report and Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 20 September 1996
IF ALTERNATIVE ROCK is Frankenstein's monster, Bob Mould is Dr. Frankenstein. One of 'em, anyway. Or so he feels – although he's far less guilt-ridden ...
Evan Dando, The Lemonheads: Evan Dando: Reckless Idol Through The Lens Darkly
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 20 September 1996
GAY HEAD — It's nearing summer's end on Martha's Vineyard, and Evan Dando, the 29-year-old guiding voice and vision of the Lemonheads, is chilling on ...
Talking Heads' Tina Weymouth (1996)
Interview by Jim Sullivan, Rock's Backpages audio, 4 October 1996
Bass player Weymouth talks about No Talking, Just Head, the album by the Heads, Talking Heads minus David Byrne; Byrne's refusal to rejoin the band; their complicated legal and personal relationship; working with other singers like Debbie Harry, Richard Hell and Andy Partridge; playing live with singer Johnette Napolitano, and on being a woman bass player.
File format: mp3; file size: 45.2mb, interview length: 47' 07" sound quality: ** (phoner)
Pink Floyd, Rick Wright: Pink Floyd's Rick Wright (1997)
Interview by Jim Sullivan, Rock's Backpages audio, January 1997
The Floyd keyboard man on his solo album Broken China: writing about his wife's depression; the melancholia in his music; co-writing with lyricist Anthony Moore; Sinead O'Connor's involvement; and becoming a singer himself. He talks about what (isn't) up with Pink Floyd; his run-in with Roger Waters when recording The Wall, his dismissal from the band... and the current state of Syd Barrett.
File format: mp3; file size: 21.5mb, interview length: 22' 22" sound quality: ** (phoner)
Pink Floyd, Rick Wright: The Dark Side of Rick Wright
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, January 1997
The Pink Floyd keyboardist explores depression in Broken China ...
David Bowie: Bowie's Birthday Blastoff: Madison Square Garden, NYC
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 11 January 1997
NEW YORK – "It's not much of a tribute, in a way," said David Bowie before the 50th-birthday celebratory show he and a bunch of ...
Jerry Lee Lewis: Hot Tin Roof, Martha's Vineyard
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 26 May 1997
WEST TISBURY – If you'd made a bet that Jerry Lee Lewis would make it through his entire life without playing the Hot Tin Roof ...
Brian Eno Before And After Pop
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 13 July 1997
BRIAN ENO has a theory. Actually, Eno has lots of theories — the 48-year-old, English-born musician probably leads the rock 'n' roll league in this ...
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, August 1997
THEY ARE NOT the next big band from Britain and they could not care less. If one of their albums sold millions of copies, well, ...
Beck Picks Up The Slack And His Last Name
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 8 August 1997
YOU KNOW he's not a loser. It haunted him three years ago, but by now Beck figures most people have come to terms with the ...
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 8 August 1997
The former Talking Head gets comfortable with his outsider status ...
Radiohead's Phil Selway (1997)
Interview by Jim Sullivan, Rock's Backpages audio, 17 August 1997
The Radiohead drummer on the OK Computer tour: on recent significant events for the band such as playing Glastonbury; making the album; whether or not they qualify as Art Rock; moving to playing larger venues; introducing new material into their set; how the band is perceived; Thom Yorke's lyrics; the remaining tour, and plans to take a break before writing the next album.
File format: mp3; file size: 18.4mb, interview length: 19' 07" sound quality: ** (phoner)
The Cramps: Back from Badsville: The Cramps keep on with their psychobilly
Report and Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, November 1997
IF IT AIN'T broke, don't fix it. In a nutshell-of-a-cliché, this is the Cramps' most polite response to skeptics and naysayers who might suggest that ...
Stereolab's Lætitia Sadier (1997)
Interview by Jim Sullivan, Rock's Backpages, 5 November 1997
Ms. Sadier talks about the difference between what Elektra releases and what Stereolab issue on their own Duophonic label; about their latest album Emperor Tomato Ketchup; the band's development and their exploration of multiple genres; their oblique lyrics; resisting commercial pressures and the nature of Stereolab's audience.
File format: mp3; file size: 16.1mb, interview length: 16' 45" sound quality: ** (phoner)
The Cure: Robert Smith Gets Happy
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 10 November 1997
After 18 years, The Cure's leader discovers fun ...
Robert Wyatt: The Quiet Dream of Robert Wyatt
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 16 January 1998
A radical thinker composes for the imaginative mind ...
Ryuichi Sakamoto Goes Avant-Classical
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 8 February 1998
THE LAST TIME I saw Ryuichi Sakamoto he was jumping about on the stage of the Paradise, tweaking and twiddling synthesizer knobs, wearing a Devo-esque, ...
Morcheeba cherishes songs, not sounds
Profile and Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 29 April 1998
IT WASN'T LONG ago that the London-based brothers Ross and Paul Godfrey were making music in obscurity, eking out what Ross Godfrey calls "a poor ...
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 1 May 1998
Still fast and loud, the proto-punks play it straighter and harder ...
The Brian Jonestown Massacre: Free To Be Brian Jonestown Massacre
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 29 May 1998
THE BRIAN Jonestown Massacre, a West Coast psychedelic pop band, has been making terrific music for eight years — indie label CDs like Methodrone, Their ...
The B-52s: The B-52's Latest Wave
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 29 May 1998
IS IT TIME YET? Cindy Wilson, one of the B-52's three singers-front folks, waves a figurative finger in the wind. "I think," she says, "it ...
Depeche Mode's sonic revival: The godfathers of techno tour again
Report and Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, October 1998
IT'S ABOUT A month ago, and Depeche Mode -- Martin Gore, David Gahan, and Andy Fletcher -- are in England, on the eve of a ...
The Kinks: Preservation is packed with power
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 5 October 1998
IT HAS BEEN Boston Rock Opera's mission, since its 1993 inception, to dust off, kick up, give respect to, and sometimes tweak the rock operas ...
Kiss and Tell: The Ultimate Show Band Talk about Music, Makeup, and More
Report and Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 6 November 1998
TAKE A LOOK at the picture of KISS accompanying this story. You may now stop reading, if you wish, or so says KISS bassist-singer Gene ...
Alice Cooper Box Set Keeps The Horror Alive
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 7 May 1999
CAPITAL PUNISHMENT may be a divisive issue in America, but it has been very good to Alice Cooper. ...
Hole, Courtney Love: The Lesson Of Love: Courtney's Got The Hole World In Her Hands
Report and Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 14 May 1999
IT IS A STILL-SLEEPY Courtney Love whose familiar voice comes over the phone line early one morning from Cincinnati. It's the first day of her ...
Cher: The Beat Goes On: For the Fourth Decade in a Row, Cher Hits a High Note
Report and Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 16 July 1999
CHER KNOWS WHAT it means to ride rock and roll's wild roller coaster. Over the years, she has zoomed to the top and plummeted to ...
Nashville Pussy: Nashville Breaks Out: Sex, Jokes and Rock 'N' Roll Help An Indie Band On The Rise
Profile and Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 30 July 1999
"WE ARE,'' says guitarist Ruyter Suys (pronounced "Rider Sighs''), of the band Nashville Pussy, "aiming for the more basic enthusiasms of life, just having a ...
John Lydon, Public Image Ltd: No Future? At Least Lydon Isn't Hung Up On The Past
Report and Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 22 August 1999
JOHN LYDON – once (and probably forever) known as Johnny Rotten – does not stomp around the world in a bad mood, contrary to popular ...
Puff Daddy's New CD, Forever, Means A Chance For Promotion
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 24 August 1999
THE SWITCH is flipped and the thin figure dressed in white, wearing a cap and dark glasses, sporting thousands of dollars' worth of jewelry and ...
Tom Waits: The Long Waits: Return Of An Ageless Artist
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 19 September 1999
THERE ARE artists — like, say, Cher — who manage to appear forever young. And then there is Tom Waits, who always seemed old before ...
George Clinton: Keeping It Crazy: George Clinton Stirs Up the Funk
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 8 October 1999
WHEN THE NEXT millennium beckons, George Clinton — ageless funkateer, Rock and Roll Hall of Famer, the Atomic Dog himself — will be in Fiji, ...
Report and Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 17 October 1999
NEW YORK – Annie Lennox and David Stewart – former lovers, forever the best of friends, and once again musical collaborators – share a couch ...
The The's True Self Founder Matt Johnson Continues To Break New Ground
Profile and Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 28 April 2000
MATT JOHNSON – singer-songwriter-guitarist and all-around main man of the band The The – left school at 15, embarked on a solo recording career, and ...
Roxy Music: Out Of The Blue, Roxy Music Is Back
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 15 July 2001
AFTER BLAZING a dazzling art-rock trail during the early 1970s, after establishing themselves as the epitome of pop elegance through the early 1980s, and after ...
ABBA: Mamma Mia! ABBA's Music Is Bjorn Again
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 19 August 2001
ABBA: the band whose biographical entry begins every pop music encyclopedia; the Swedish quartet composed of two couples — Agnetha Fältskog and Björn Ulvaeus and ...
Neil Innes: Innes's Humor Doesn't Compromise His Rock
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 9 October 2001
CAMBRIDGE – Neil Innes, a bald man sporting a gray, Beatles-like wig, took the stage at the House of Blues Sunday night. The members of ...
Joe Strummer & The Mescaleros: The Palladium, Boston
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 15 October 2001
STRUMMER MELLOWS WITHOUT LOSING HIS EDGE ...
Tom Waits: With Morbidity On His Mind, Tom Waits Makes A Double Play
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, May 2002
Tom Waits — the raspy-voiced singer-songwriter and occasional actor and playwright — has released 14 albums in nearly 30 years. But he has a habit ...
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 13 November 2002
A BRYAN FERRY show is not quite like a Roxy Music show, even if the singer is the same and the current 11-piece band includes ...
James Hunter: A British singer rooted in American soul
Profile and Interview by Jim Sullivan, Christian Science Monitor, 14 April 2006
ARLINGTON, MASS. — James Hunter seems to be a creature of habit. The last time the British singer-songwriter-guitarist was in the Boston area, he crossed ...
DeVotchKa's music is as offbeat as its name
Profile and Interview by Jim Sullivan, Christian Science Monitor, 28 July 2006
The band's goulash of foreign sounds forms the soundtrack to the movie Little Miss Sunshine. ...
Willard Grant Conspiracy: Faith and Fury: Robert Fisher and his Willard Grant Conspiracy
Report and Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Phoenix, 5 March 2007
"SOBER, BUT NOT healthy, that's the way I always refer to myself," says Robert Fisher, who's dressed in black, sipping hot tea, and nursing a ...
Bryan Ferry: Tangled Up In Bob
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Phoenix, 25 June 2007
"DYLANESQUE" isn't what comes to mind when you think of the suave, new-romantic, once-and-future frontman of Roxy Music, Bryan Ferry. But time and again throughout ...
Marty Stuart: Johnny D's, Boston
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Phoenix, 27 July 2007
Country Hero ...
Buzzcocks: Ageless Punk Rockers And The AARP
Interview by Jim Sullivan, Christian Science Monitor, 3 Fall 2007
I WAS WORKING in the home office the other day, and all of a sudden I heard the bright melody and chorus of a favorite ...
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Phoenix, 17 June 2008
The return of Akron's finest... ...
Chrissie Hynde, The Pretenders: The Pretenders: Orpheum, Boston
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, Boston Herald, 6 February 2009
Pretenders the real deal ...
Captain Sensible, The Damned: The Damned's Captain Sensible
Interview by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Phoenix, 3 March 2009
THE Sex Pistols, the Clash, the Jam — they get punk rock respect more than three decades down the pike, but their contemporaries the Damned ...
The Pogues: House of Blues, Boston
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, Boston Herald, 21 March 2009
THE POGUES PLAYED a packed House of Blues on Friday night, offering up a rowdy mix of songs both angry and wrenching, vicious and sentimental, ...
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, Boston Herald, 2 November 2009
ONE DECADE AGO, on Halloween, the three guys in Guster donned tuxedos and played a packed Orpheum, riding high on their breakthrough CD, Lost and ...
Iggy Pop: What's It Like To Be Iggy Pop?
Interview by Jim Sullivan, JimSullivanInk.com, 2010
NB This article contains material taken from a story originally printed in The Boston Globe on July 8, 1990 ...
Echo & The Bunnymen, Ian McCulloch: On the Phone to Ian McCulloch
Report and Interview by Jim Sullivan, Boston Herald, April 2010
IAN MCCULLOCH likes to ruminate. Spend an hour with the lead singer-songwriter of Echo & the Bunnymen and he'll swerve through a plethora of topics. ...
Cherie Currie, The Runaways: Cherie Currie recalls life as underage, underwear-wearing provocateur
Interview by Jim Sullivan, Boston Herald, 7 April 2010
WHETHER YOU WERE a rock fan in 1975 — or whether you weren't even conceived — you're going to want to take in The Runaways, ...
Buzzcocks: For Buzzcocks, age of 'Nostalgia' is now
Report and Interview by Jim Sullivan, Boston Herald, 16 May 2010
THIRTY-TWO YEARS ago, a young British punk-pop band, Buzzcocks, recorded a song called 'Nostalgia'. It included these words from singer/guitarist Pete Shelley: "My future and ...
Brad Paisley: New England Country Music Festival, Gillette Stadium, Mass.
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, Boston Herald, 22 August 2010
"ONE OF THE greatest country cities in the world, Boston, Massachusetts," Brad Paisley gushed last night to a Gillette Stadium crowd of 51,000. And as ...
Black Francis brings "Erotik" art to intimate space
Interview by Jim Sullivan, Boston Herald, 1 September 2010
BLACK FRANCIS will be doing what he's done a lot over the past few years. He'll be singing and playing guitar with the Pixies, the ...
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, Boston Herald, 18 October 2010
I FIRST SAW T Bone Burnett in 1975 when he was 27 and one of the less-known musicians on Bob Dylan's Rolling Thunder Revue tour. ...
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, Boston Herald, 2 December 2010
MORE THAN A half-century back, young girls screamed for Elvis. Three decades ago, they screamed for Michael Jackson. Tuesday at a packed Paradise, they were ...
Death Cab for Cutie: Paradise, Boston
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, The Boston Globe, 7 June 2011
IT HAD TO BE Death Cab for Cutie at the Paradise Sunday. The $35 tickets sold out in a flash when they went on sale ...
Flaming Lips: Flaming good time: Lips lock on psychedelia rock
Report and Interview by Jim Sullivan, Boston Herald, 24 July 2011
FEW THINGS ARE certain in life, but this is: At some point Wednesday during the Flaming Lips concert at Bank of America Pavilion, singer Wayne ...
Report and Interview by Jim Sullivan, Boston Herald, 6 December 2011
YES, OH LAND is her real name – sort of. "My friends and family call me Nanna and I would like it to stay that ...
Lambchop stands out from the herd
Interview by Jim Sullivan, Boston Herald, 17 April 2012
YOU'LL GET THE cut of meat, of course. And you'll find Lamb Chop, Shari Lewis' iconic hand puppet from the '60s. But at No. 1, ...
Peter Gabriel: TD Garden, Boston
Live Review by Jim Sullivan, Cape Cod Times, 26 September 2012
THERE WAS music and magic at TD Garden on Monday, lots of it. Peter Gabriel was on stage for more than two hours and there ...
The Rascals: Rock and Roll Hall of Famers reunite for Once Upon a Dream
Interview by Jim Sullivan, Cape Cod Times, 22 June 2013
IT'S THE SHOW you never thought you would see in 2013: a concert by the Rascals — once the Young Rascals, a chart-topping band of ...
Lynyrd Skynyrd still rocks the classics
Interview by Jim Sullivan, Cape Cod Times, 8 August 2013
IT COULD HAPPEN at any rock show, any time, any place, anywhere. The band is revving up for its encore, and you hear a cry ...
Jerry Lee Lewis: A Ride In A Limo With The Killer
Interview by Jim Sullivan, JimSullivanInk.com, September 2013
N.B. This interview is taken from a 1985 story originally printed in the Boston Globe and later syndicated in other US papers, as well as ...
Warren Zevon: Keep Him In Your Heart For a While: Remembering Warren Zevon
Retrospective by Jim Sullivan, Rock's Backpages, September 2013
IT WAS THE FALL of 1989 and I was having lunch with Warren Zevon at Musso & Frank's, the famous Old Hollywood restaurant where he ...
New Order: Peter Hook & The Light Bring New Order to Life. His Way.
Interview by Jim Sullivan, JimSullivanInk.com, 10 September 2013
"TO BE in one band that changed the world musically is pretty good; but to be in two bands that changed the world musically, that's ...
Retrospective by Jim Sullivan, Rock's Backpages, October 2013
I WAS TALKING with Lou Reed in his New York office, Sister Ray Enterprises, in 1996 and Reed was dressed, as usual, in a plain ...
David Bowie Lands In The Jungle
Interview by Jim Sullivan, JimSullivanInk.com, November 2013
N.B. This interview is taken from a story originally printed in the Boston Globe on 9 February 1997 ...
Roy Orbison: King of Hearts: Roy Orbison Revisited after 25 Years
Retrospective and Interview by Jim Sullivan, Rock's Backpages, November 2013
ROY ORBISON played what turned out to be his last concert, December 4, 1988 at the Front Row Theatre in Highland Heights, not far from ...
Review and Interview by Jim Sullivan, Rock's Backpages, December 2013
N.B. This article combines a live review written in 2009 for the Boston Herald and an interview conducted in 1995 for the Boston Globe. ...
Interview by Jim Sullivan, Rock's Backpages, December 2013
I LISTENED to some of it in my youth, but spent most of my post-teenage years trying to avoid this crap: pandering, patronizing, mono-dimensional, unimaginative ...
Elvis Costello: This Year's Elvis Costello
Interview by Jim Sullivan, Rock's Backpages, January 2014
IT WAS 1983. Six years Elvis Costello had been in the public eye — but it had also been six years of antipathy toward the ...
Interview by Jim Sullivan, Rock's Backpages, January 2014
"BABY, baby, baby you're out of time," sang Tina Turner near the end of a show in Boston back in 1981. ...
GWAR Spreads Blood-And-Guts Satire Around
Report and Interview by Jim Sullivan, JimSullivanInk.com, March 2014
DAVE BROCKIE — the world knew him as Oderus Urungus — died at 50. (No cause of death given yet.) ...
Interview by Jim Sullivan, Boston Rock/Talk, June 2014
The "Wizard of Woo" talks about his hugely varied background in music; his time as part of P-Funk; fond memories of his association with Talking Heads; his current band and activities, and his desire to play music with whales and dolphins!
File format: mp3; file size: 26.1mb, interview length: 28' 28" sound quality: *** (phoner)
Bernie Worrell: "Intergalactic synth-drenched funk" coming to Dennis Port
Report and Interview by Jim Sullivan, Cape Cod Times, 28 June 2014
HE MAY NOT be a household name, but chances are you've grooved to his music over the years. ...
Lynyrd Skynyrd: An Interview with Rickey Medlocke
Interview by Jim Sullivan, Cape Cod Times, July 2014
IT COULD HAPPEN at any rock show, any time, any place, anywhere. The band is revving up for its encore, and you hear a cry ...
The Moody Blues: Singer looks back at five decades of the Moody Blues
Interview by Jim Sullivan, Cape Cod Times, 9 August 2014
JUSTIN HAYWARD began playing rock 'n' roll professionally at 17, back when, he says, people told him "endlessly" that there was no career in it. ...
Interview by Jim Sullivan, Rock's Backpages audio, 2015
The ex-Cream drummer refuses to divulge much about working with PiL; the Beware of Mr. Baker movie; his Nigerian experiences; being an improvising musician; his friendship with the jazz greats; the Cream reunion; leaving South Africa; his relationship with his family and his health. He's marginally more forthcoming about his experiences with heroin.
File format: mp3; file size: 10.6mb, interview length: 29' 27" sound quality: ** (phoner)
Edgar Froese, Tangerine Dream: Edgar Froese 1944-2015
Retrospective by Jim Sullivan, Rock's Backpages, January 2015
THE GUYS in Tangerine Dream — leader Edgar Froese, plus more than 20 others over the years — always gave us the silent treatment in ...
Paul Anka's enduring work has ranged from Sinatra to Nirvana
Interview by Jim Sullivan, Cape Cod Times, 1 August 2015
"I'M 98 YEARS OLD!" he crows on the phone. Not quite; he's 74. But he's still going strong, singing with an orchestra Friday at the ...
The Zombies: An Interview with Rod Argent
Interview by Jim Sullivan, Cape Cod Times, October 2015
SAY THIS about the Zombies: They were ahead of the curve. We live in a world where you can't turn on the TV or go ...
Interview by Jim Sullivan, Boston Rock/Talk, 3 October 2015
Andy Bell and Mark Gardener talk about why they've reunited; explore the nature of noise, abstraction and the blend of guitars; being back on tour, and singing songs written in their teens at 40. Oh, and they play, unplugged, a couple of tunes!
File format: mp3; file size: 38.2mb, interview length: 41' 11" sound quality: *****
Interview by Jim Sullivan, Cape Cod Times, November 2015
ASK JUDY Collins a question about legacy – what would she like hers to be? – and she answers with this: "Always move forward." ...
Hawkwind, Lemmy, Motörhead: Everything Louder: Remembering Lemmy
Retrospective by Jim Sullivan, Rock's Backpages, 31 December 2015
EVERY MOTÖRHEAD concert I can recall began with these words from Lemmy: "We are Motörhead and we play rock 'n' roll." So simple, so succinct, ...
Ani DiFranco, Woody Guthrie: Ani DiFranco Seeks a Higher Truth
Interview by Jim Sullivan, Cape Cod Times, August 2016
"THE IMPORTANT thing in poetry or songwriting is to ignore the facts and tell the truth," says singer-songwriter Ani DiFranco, on the phone from her ...
Psychic TV's Genesis P-Orridge (2016)
Interview by Jim Sullivan, Boston Rock/Talk, 22 November 2016
The Psychic TV mainperson talks about the sonic evolution of PTV; collaboration and connectivity, fear and totalitarianism; the 1992 police raid and exile; the changing personnel, and about S/he, Lady Jaye and Pandrogeny.
File format: mp3; file size: 29mb, interview length: 31' 41" sound quality: ** (phoner)
Yes, prog rock makes a comeback
Interview by Jim Sullivan, Cape Cod Times, 17 September 2017
THEY'RE NOT called Yes. ...
Review by Jim Sullivan, Cape Cod Times, 8 December 2017
"I HATE WRITING year-end top-10-best-albums lists." ...
Tommy James & the Shondells: Tommy James
Retrospective and Interview by Jim Sullivan, Cape Cod Times, July 2018
TOMMY JAMES has many stories to tell, stories of gain, stories of loss. He can tell you about the string of hits he and his ...
Charlie Daniels, Bob Dylan: In concert, Daniels doesn't mix politics with music
Interview by Jim Sullivan, Cape Cod Times, 16 August 2018
CHARLIE DANIELS is pretty clear about what you will hear and will not hear when he and his five-piece band take the stage Saturday night ...
Loudon Wainwright III: The Two Sides of Loudon Wainwright III
Interview by Jim Sullivan, Cape Cod Times, 17 August 2018
"I'VE ALWAYS thought of myself as a switch-hitter," says singer-guitarist-songwriter Loudon Wainwright III. "I can do the dark and the light, and I enjoy doing ...
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