Rob Hughes

A 60s guitar prodigy who shaped Bob Dylan's sound and blew Eric Clapton away, Mike Bloomfield had the world at his feet before his demons came calling

They went to school with Mick Jagger, Pink Floyd and David Bowie loved them, and Led Zeppelin signed them to their label. But The Pretty Things remain the greatest rock band the wider world doesn’t know about

With his new album Israel Nash is following in the footsteps of the great songwriters for whom the American heartland is a rich inspiration, who re-told tales passed down generations

Roll Away The Stone was such an obvious hit The Hollies tried to steal it sway, but it was effectively Mott The Hoople's final chartbuster

Riffing on Lewis Carroll's Alice, inspired by Miles Davis, Grace Slick's two-and-a-half minute hallucinogenic classic would provide her with an income for life

The Black Crowes' Rich Robinson picks his records, artists and gigs of lasting significance, and names the album that brings him joy every time he listens to it

He’s defended students in court, ordered cops to stop assaulting fans, and played free shows when he was warned against it – and while identifying with the prog genre, he believes he was proto-punk too

Powered by Jan Akkerman's guitar and Thijs van Leer's Hammond organ, Sylvia helped pave the way for the rapid rise to fame of Dutch proggers Focus

The story of the criminally short-loved Swindon prog quartet Tin Spirits' second album, 2014's Scorch

Dolly Parton, the undisputed Queen Of Country, talks about the road to her rock album, transcending country music, and what Stairway To Heaven and Free Bird mean to her

America evoked the wild romance of the West with timeless melodies and harmonies – and served up a 70s soft rock classic in the process

The past 12 months may go down in history as a period of tumult and turmoil, but on the positive side, rock'n'roll is very much alive and well – as the best 50 albums of 2023 reflect

Pioneering indie label Stiff Records was home to some of the great music of the 70s and 80s, from Ian Dury to The Pogues, The Damned and beyond. And these are the labe's best albums

Knocked up in a hurry, intended as a B-side and with a title the band were all originally “ashamed of”, Shakin' All Over was an instant hit and a huge influence over those who followed

Although I don’t eat every day, everything’s going all right for me. It could be worse than this

From a dreamer using subway tunnels as echo units to leader of the anti-establishment icons, his encounters include Lemmy, LSD and celebrity druids

The story of Jimi Hendrix’s iconic appearance at 1969’s Woodstock festival

The Byrds' Roger McGuinn played with Jim Morrison, was part of Bob Dylan’s Rolling Thunder revue, gave John Lennon granny glasses and Brian Wilson speed, and he's got some tales to tell

Break The Dark, his first album in more than a decade, combines electronic music, programming and messing around

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

Prog-pop mastermind on the power of failure, writing for the Monkees and more

One of the roots world’s most interesting, commanding storytellers, Grace Potter returns with her most powerful set of songs yet

The Hives frontman Pelle Almqvist picks his records, artists and gigs of lasting significance, and celebrates the beauty of 'six beers music'

Iconic Beatle John Lennon's solo albums are full of timeless pop, but be prepared for avant-jazz, birdsong, politics and primal screaming too