Stories by Jack Hill

  • Spa City JazzFest extends to six days

    Just a year shy of its silver anniversary, the 24th annual Hot Springs JazzFest is stretching its musical wings, with activities spread over a six-day period, …

  • Millennial revue

    Summer arrives early this year, at least at the Arkansas Repertory Theatre, where alumni of the Summer Musical Theatre Intensive (SMTI) program have gathered t…

  • Hurray for Riff Raff cheers collective spirit

    New Orleans proudly counts a lot of "riff raff" among its populace, and some of them are not reluctant to cheer about it -- and, in fact, to even name a band H…

  • Newman follows own path

    Randy Newman doesn't spend all of his time composing and singing songs destined for Pixar and Disney movies.

  • Crow’s red-dirt roots true

    Not everyone linked to the “red dirt band” musical trend in Texas and Oklahoma can lay claim to having that much familiarity with actual dirt, red or otherwise…

  • Adding girl singer made Sleeper Agent a success

    The career of alternative rock band Sleeper Agent awakened when a teenager joined the band, taking over the lead singer job and bringing a female perspective.

  • One-man band sets blues debut in state

    The voice of Lincoln Durham is somewhat striking, unlike that of most small-town Texans, resembling more such legendary country bluesmen as Son House and Missi…

  • Okkervil to flood the Rev

    Okkervil River flows out of Austin, Texas, from time to time, and fans of the indie rock band take delight in the literary melodies and off-kilter songs of the…

  • Canada departs for Little Rock show

    Cody Canada departed one band, named his next one The Departed and will arrive Wednesday at the Revolution Room in Little Rock for a show.

  • Bell takes her time, does things her way

    Aspiring musicians realize that dues must be paid on the way up the career ladder, and singer-songwriter Emily Bell is no exception, despite what appears to be…

  • Fleetwood Mac rocks flawlessly

    Anyone attending the Fleetwood Mac concert Friday night at Verizon Arena in North Little Rock could have easily guessed what the band’s climactic song was dest…

  • CeDell Davis concert marks Pine anniversary

    CeDell Davis is a survivor — a survivor of polio, a stroke, being trampled by bar patrons during a fight, plus years of the hardscrabble life that bluesmen end…

  • Sister Sparrow & Dirty Birds to land at Stickyz

    Arleigh Kincheloe and her band, Sister Sparrow & the Dirty Birds, could say they found their love of music while still in the nest. At least it was the case fo…

  • Hays got Buffett to chart NLR course

    Those who occupy or seek elective office routinely promise to snare industries and bring jobs to their eager constituents, but few are the politicos who promis…

  • Swift plays to packed house in NLR

    For a 21-year-old, Taylor Swift knows a lot about showmanship. She brought her Speak Now Tour to Verizon Arena in North Little Rock Tuesday night and had a pac…

  • Festival features hours of Johnny Cash

    A huge photo of the late Johnny Cash towered over the performers who assembled Thursday night at Arkansas State University’s Convocation Center for the first J…

  • Throwdown is like Willie’s picnic on the road

    Willie Nelson’s picnics in Texas became legendary in the 1970s, so it was probably just a matter of time before someone came up with a plan to take the shows o…

  • Foo Fighters and pals ready to rock Verizon

    Music Foo Fighters Opening acts: Motorhead, Biffy Clyro 7 p.m. Wednesday, Verizon Arena, East Broadway and Interstate 30, North Little Rock $49.50, $37.50, $25…

  • MUSIC REVIEW: Seger ever the showman

    Some of us expected it sooner, maybe to open the show, but it was not to be. Rather, Bob Seger held it back until the first song of his encore selections, when…

  • David Byron Bogard

    The biblical saying “Judge not, lest ye be judged” has a new meaning these days for former Judge David Bogard. He’s now on the other side of the judging, at le…

  • Rep packages greatest hits, fresh faces

    Luckily for lovers of the arts, not all young people are off studying the sciences and mathematics. So it would seem after seeing "Review the Revue," the lates…

  • Big gig sweet for Idol finisher

    Finishing third on the famed American Idol competition is not a bad outcome the way Casey James sees it, especially since he had never watched the show before …

  • Big gig sweet for Idol finisher

    Finishing third on the famed American Idol competition is not a bad outcome the way Casey James sees it, especially since he had never watched the show before …

  • THEATER ‘Smitty’ casts return for Revue

    To celebrate five years of youthful summer singing and dancing workshops, the Arkansas Repertory Theatre is taking a winter pause for a look back at some of th…

  • REVIEW: Raisin in the Sun still a powerful play

    There was a whole lot of fine acting in the Arkansas Repertory Theatre production of A Raisin in the Sun, which opened Friday night to a large, enthusiastic au…

  • REVIEW: Paisley pulls in 9,600-plus to NLR

    That Brad Paisley could have been a rock star, judging from the sounds he laid down Friday night at Verizon Arena in North Little Rock. Paisley, however, chose…

  • B.B. rules

    Blues fans know just as well as students of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet that a rose by any other name would smell as sweet.

  • A politician, a preacher and Vino’s back room

    It sounds like the start of a well-worn joke: A congressman meets a Methodist minister in a beer hall. ... But that was the case with Vic Snyder and Betsy Sing…

  • REVIEW: Evita kicks off 35th season at Rep

    To start off its 35th season, the Arkansas Repertory Theatre brought back Evita, a play that needs no introduction, along with a director, Cliff Fannin Baker, …

  • MUSIC: Sexton returns with friends

    After twice packing Sticky Fingerz as a solo act, singer-songwriter-guitarist Martin Sexton is returning Sunday with a band. Sexton began his tour April 15 and…

  • McGraw hears cheers, jeers

    Country singer Tim McGraw had more than 10,000 fans in the palm of his hand Friday night at Verizon Arena, but then he had to bring up football. He was trying …

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