Musings On Music History: In Which We Say Goodbye To Way Too Many Extraordinary Musicians

12.02: Gilby Clarke joined Guns N’ Roses on this day in 1991, replacing founding member and original guitarist Izzy Stradlin, who’d left suddenly after a show in Germany, citing Axl’s erratic behavior and Slash, Matt Sorum, and Duff McKagan’s drug use (Izzy’d recently found sobriety) as the main reasons for his departure. Long way of…

Musings On Music History: A Superdupergroup Sings A Song, The Band Takes A Bow, and A Rebel Yells For The First Time

11.25: On this day in 1984, a supergroup of mostly U.K. musicians got together for a monumental 24-hour recording session to benefit famine relief in Ethiopia. The superdupergroup, known as Band Aid, led by founder and organizer Bob Geldof (him who doesn’t like Mondays and him who played the fictional rocker “Pink” in the filmed…

Musings On Music History: In Which Maiden Gets A New Voice, Country Gets An Alternative, And Keef Gets Arrested (Yet Again)

10.21: Coffee houses and open mic poetry nights owe a debt of gratitude to Jack Kerouac. The beatnik writer died today in 1969. He was 47. Author of On The Road and The Dharma Bums, Kerouac influenced an entire generation of writers, thinkers, and musicians, such as The Beatles, The Doors, Death Cab For Cutie,…