Latest articles by Rob Hughes
“Robert Fripp always has an excuse not to play”: Toyah Willcox is more than Mrs King Crimson
From post-punk icon and award-winning female solo artist to becoming regarded as just the prog mastermind’s wife, her rebellious creative energy is fired by Roxy Music, Devo, The Tubes and all things off the wall
How Dolly Parton corralled a Who's Who of rock royalty to record her landmark Rockstar album
Dolly Parton, the late Queen Of Country, on the road to her rock album, transcending Nashville, and what Stairway To Heaven and Free Bird mean to her
“I flew back, arranged my wife’s funeral and went back on tour”: Tears For Fears’ Roland Orzabal and his songs of pain
The 80s prog-pop duo’s main songwriter had a lot to say via their first album in 17 years
“He’d got rid of Lemmy and it was me next”: Civil war left Dave Brock as captain of Hawkwind
He recalls not going to his own band’s gigs, his first acid experience, losing confidence in his playing, annoying druids at Stonehenge, who hit Ginger Baker with a pool cue, and the former member he wished would die (and did)
How The Who overcame internal strife to make their most poignant album
By 1973 The Who were bored and angry – and Pete Townshend knew he had one last chance to hold the band together and unify them in the eyes of their fans
Nine Joni Mitchell albums you should listen to - and one to avoid
Buying guide Arguably the most influential female singer-songwriter of our time, Joni Mitchell has recorded some of the finest albums of her era
A prog icon’s daughter rebelled against music, then returned and made an album with a punk legend
Galen Ayers discusses her late dad Kevin, babysitters Robert Fripp and Daevid Allen, and collaborator Paul Simonon of The Clash
Nine Steve Earle albums you should listen to and one to avoid
Buying guide With or without The Dukes, Steve Earle is a true rock’n’roll maverick, and these are his best albums
“It could have been a huge record, but they buried it”: Roy Harper’s Stormcock remains relevant
His four-track concept rock masterpiece is a primer for revolutionary thinking that’s as relevant now as it was in 1971
“Bands like ELP, Yes and Genesis were seen as over-the-top, showing-off kinds of performers. And to some extent I felt that, too”: Jethro Tull’s Ian Anderson decided to lampoon prog and ended up making “the mother of all concept albums”
Song? Album? Fake newspaper? Jethro Tull’s mad masterpiece is all of them and more
“We’re all in the midst of fear, confusion and glory”: The Claypool Lennon Delirium’s personal AI hallucination
Behind the playfulness of Les Claypool and Sean Ono Lennon’s The Great Parrot-Ox And The Golden Egg Of Empathy lie serious questions about abuse of power, social collapse and the value of compassion
Nine Little Feat albums to listen to and one to avoid
Despite musical excellence and fans in high places, Little Feat were a classic case of commercial underachievers
The story of the RATM anthem that topped the Christmas charts 17 years after it was released
Inspired by the LA riots, Killing In The Name became an unlikely Christmas smash after a fan campaign against TV talent shows
How ZZ Top ended up playing to 1.2 million people with help from a monster hit and a travelling zoo
Buffalo, buzzards and Tush? ZZ Top’s Fandango album saw the Little Ol’ Band From Texas go nationwide
“Some men and women felt threatened by a woman appearing nude”: Hawkwind ex Stacia Blake’s life in art
She busts myths about where she came from, how she joined and how she felt about Lemmy – but won’t discuss her departure from the space rock icons
Nine Steve Marriott albums you should listen to and one to avoid
Buying guide One of the great British singers and frontmen, Steve Marriott's catalogue with the Small Faces, Humble Pie and beyond is littered with classics
Remembering Mott The Hoople and Bad Company guitarist Mick Ralphs
A tribute to Mick Ralphs, who died on June 23, 2025 – includes interviews with Ian Hunter and Paul Rodgers
The story behind the song: Our House by Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young
This single from their album Déjà Vu was just what America needed in 1970, reckons songwriter Graham Nash
Praised by half the Beatles, Rick Wakeman and Pat Metheny, Rod Argent still didn’t have it all easy
Founding member of The Zombies and Argent had no trouble writing songs that have endured for decades, and easily collaborated with Phil Collins, The Who and many others. But he also encountered his share of troubles in the music industry
Eric Burdon: the hellraiser who had it all and then lost it
Founder of The Animals, party buddy of Hendrix and Morrison and hero to Springsteen, Eric Burdon is a bluesman, a rogue and a survivor, and this is his story
Brian Auger warned Jimi Hendrix off drugs and learned about prog from Keith Emerson
Multi-genre organ master’s fervent hope is that he opened a channel between rock and jazz: ”And it kind of worked out…”
King Crimson, Porcupine Tree and Pineapple Thief’s Gavin Harrison proves he’s a pro
The award-winning prog drummer – who says he’s quite happy playing simple songs – on working with Kevin Ayers, Iggy Pop, Mic Karn and others
Keith Emerson remembered by PP Arnold, who named his band The Nice – and had them stolen from her
The soul singer who named The Nice – and had them stolen from her – still recalls the keyboard wizard with great affection
A Thousand Horses have finally delivered the "full-throttle" album they were born to make
White Flag Down is A Thousand Horses' most personal work by far
Radiohead’s Philip Selway put his solo ambitions on hold for 20 years to focus on the band. Does he regret it?
The drummer decided to focus on his “day job” band in 1991, and finally released his first solo album in 2010 – after finding influence in King Crimson, Pink Floyd, Can and other prog giants
