 FEATURES:
ONE MAN, ONE BAND
The motivation and genius of musicians who take DIY to the extreme. MATTHEW ALLEN delves into one-man bands like Stevie Wonder, Lenny Kravitz and Raphael Saadiq and their unified approach
...AND FOR THE BEST SCORE
Movies expose audiences to unfamiliar musical genres, often with dramatic and lasting effect. A quick peek at how music and film have skewed our culture
DEPARTMENTS
Letter from a star: Tapped by Elmore as a rising star exactly one year ago, ukuleleist extraordinaire Jake Shimabukuro reflects on the past 12 months and looks forward to the next 12, in 2012
Opening Act: Snippets, fun, sad news, interviews, reviews. Go meet Elmore at shows and compare notes!
Kickin’ in Your Stall: Earth to Betelgeuse—paging Michael Franti
On The Record: Just when you think you’ve got a handle on Tom Waits, there he goes again, with the surprises—Bad As Me? I doubt it. Duke Robillard is Low Down and Tore Up, Mekons are Ancient & Modern; Buck Owens is Bound For Bakersfield, while Merle Haggard finds himself Working in Tennessee. And Willie Nile? He’s The Innocent One (or maybe not)
Re.Issues: Concord releases every side of Ray Charles—A and B—from 1960 to 1972, Paul Aaronson’s history lesson. Read about an exhaustive collection of Paul Simon’s works, a new improved O Brother, Where Art Thou?, then discover their impact
Pet Sounds: Ali Green praises the grooved side of Kravitz and Floyd, coincidentally this issue’s first and last pages
What’d I Say: Over 40? Jim Hynes notes that the B-side of life sounds just as good as Side One for these vibrant artists
Saturday Night and Sunday Morning: Hardworking, unfunded and underappreciated, Thomas Boddie made magic
Also Appearing: CMJ highlights new artists; Christine Ohlman delivers sultry R&B in a high-wattage DVD; Joe Bonamassa brings up longtime star Paul Rodgers. In the back woods, deer tick season is over, but onstage Deer Tick ramps it up
Collecting: Riding the wave of important rereleases, Arnie Goodman uses his hindsight on Pink Floyd compilations, with special attention to a new The Dark Side of the Moon box set, and the band’s peculiar progenitor
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Blue-eyed soul powerhouse Adele made Billboard history this year. In 2011, the 23-year-old British singer became the first female to hold the title of top artist, have the top album, and top single ("Rolling in the Deep"). Elmore columnist Ali Green reviewed Adele’s sophomore album (21) and said “'Rolling in the Deep' contains enough unstoppable soul-pop power to take over the world.” Praise for Adele doesn’t stop at the Billboard charts— 21 also earned six Grammy nominations.
Etta James’ health is deteriorating, according to an interview with her live-in physician last week. The 73-year-old songstress behind the iconic song “At Last” is suffering from dementia, leukemia, and kidney disease, along with other ailments, marking her terminally ill. Despite her fading heath, James continues singing and making music. Her album The Dreamer was released in November of this year.
The Troggs frontman Reg Presley has been hospitalized in England for pneumonia and a possible stroke. The 70-year-old singer behind hits like “Wild Thing” and “Love is All Around” suffered a stroke in September of 2010, and is now reported to be in poor condition. According to Presley’s wife, his health had been deteriorating since coming back from playing a show with the Troggs in Germany earlier this month.
Alt-rocker turned country boy Darius Rucker is set to record his third solo country album for a 2012 release. Rucker hopes that his third album will grant him with “staying power” in the country music genre. Rucker hits the studio with producer Frank Rodgers, and he says fans can expect to hear his 
collaboration with Lionel Richie on the forthcoming release.
