Greg Kot
@gregkot.bsky.social
Co-host "Sound Opinions." Former music critic at Chicago Tribune. Author of 7 books, including "I'll Take You There," “Learning How to Die," "Ripped."
You want protest songs? They've been arriving like news bulletins. Springsteen weighed in with "Streets of Minneapolis" and named names -- like "Ohio" for a new era of WTF government-sanctioned violence. But new takes on what's goin' on are arriving every day. Two new favorites are in comments.
January 29, 2026 at 4:32 PM
You want protest songs? They've been arriving like news bulletins. Springsteen weighed in with "Streets of Minneapolis" and named names -- like "Ohio" for a new era of WTF government-sanctioned violence. But new takes on what's goin' on are arriving every day. Two new favorites are in comments.
Time to give the drummer some. Oh, and by the way, Jack DeJohnette was also an accomplished composer and pianist. In this @soundopinions.bsky.social bonus episode I pay tribute to the late, great DeJohnette and an LP he helmed in 1980 amid a stellar year for new-jazz must-owns. bit.ly/4bN2Dkg
January 28, 2026 at 3:37 PM
Time to give the drummer some. Oh, and by the way, Jack DeJohnette was also an accomplished composer and pianist. In this @soundopinions.bsky.social bonus episode I pay tribute to the late, great DeJohnette and an LP he helmed in 1980 amid a stellar year for new-jazz must-owns. bit.ly/4bN2Dkg
51st anniversary this week of the album that was for many the gateway into Bob Dylan's music. Some spiel and a link to our in-depth @soundopinions.bsky.social interview with the unsung Minneapolis musicians who helped make "Blood on the Tracks" a masterpiece here:
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www.facebook.com/share/p/1AT6...
January 23, 2026 at 3:56 PM
51st anniversary this week of the album that was for many the gateway into Bob Dylan's music. Some spiel and a link to our in-depth @soundopinions.bsky.social interview with the unsung Minneapolis musicians who helped make "Blood on the Tracks" a masterpiece here:
www.facebook.com/share/p/1AT6...
www.facebook.com/share/p/1AT6...
Not just a great mockumentary, but a film so spot-on about the ridiculous/poignant/unintentionally hilarious side of rock 'n' roll that a number of bands I interiewed suspected it was about them. @soundopinions.bsky.social interview with Rob Reiner (RIP) on "This is Spinal Tap": shorturl.at/GtwDx
January 21, 2026 at 3:50 PM
Not just a great mockumentary, but a film so spot-on about the ridiculous/poignant/unintentionally hilarious side of rock 'n' roll that a number of bands I interiewed suspected it was about them. @soundopinions.bsky.social interview with Rob Reiner (RIP) on "This is Spinal Tap": shorturl.at/GtwDx
The day the Staple Singers met MLK: "Pops returned from his meeting with King at Dexter Avenue Church and gathered his family at the hotel in Montgomery. “If he can preach it, we can sing it,” he said, and essentially set the group’s course for the next 10 years.
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www.facebook.com/share/p/1Dba...
January 19, 2026 at 6:53 PM
The day the Staple Singers met MLK: "Pops returned from his meeting with King at Dexter Avenue Church and gathered his family at the hotel in Montgomery. “If he can preach it, we can sing it,” he said, and essentially set the group’s course for the next 10 years.
www.facebook.com/share/p/1Dba...
www.facebook.com/share/p/1Dba...
Thanks to Dan the Automator decades ago, I rediscovered this classic groover from Willie Bobo. Latin soul at its finest: "Fried Neck Bones and Some Homefries." Here's a taste on @soundopinions.bsky.social: bit.ly/49J40hp
January 19, 2026 at 4:01 PM
Thanks to Dan the Automator decades ago, I rediscovered this classic groover from Willie Bobo. Latin soul at its finest: "Fried Neck Bones and Some Homefries." Here's a taste on @soundopinions.bsky.social: bit.ly/49J40hp
Spieling on Bob Weir in this @soundopinions.bsky.social bonus podcast. A HT to BW and the world he helped create, where "the music plays the band." Here 'tis: shorturl.at/5AgNk
January 17, 2026 at 10:41 PM
Spieling on Bob Weir in this @soundopinions.bsky.social bonus podcast. A HT to BW and the world he helped create, where "the music plays the band." Here 'tis: shorturl.at/5AgNk
One year in 35 songs. My 2025 mixtape: open.spotify.com/playlist/3ri...
And a few words about why these songs and why now: bit.ly/49MZfEy
And a few words about why these songs and why now: bit.ly/49MZfEy
January 13, 2026 at 9:16 PM
One year in 35 songs. My 2025 mixtape: open.spotify.com/playlist/3ri...
And a few words about why these songs and why now: bit.ly/49MZfEy
And a few words about why these songs and why now: bit.ly/49MZfEy
“When I listen to The Raincoats, I feel as if I’m a stowaway in an attic,” Kurt Cobain once wrote. Raincoats cofounders Gina Birch and Ana da Silva give us the goods on that indelible debut album, and the post-punk kicks that followed. The Raincoats on @soundopinions.bsky.social: bit.ly/4pCzPhE
January 12, 2026 at 6:30 PM
“When I listen to The Raincoats, I feel as if I’m a stowaway in an attic,” Kurt Cobain once wrote. Raincoats cofounders Gina Birch and Ana da Silva give us the goods on that indelible debut album, and the post-punk kicks that followed. The Raincoats on @soundopinions.bsky.social: bit.ly/4pCzPhE
Fare thee well, Bob Weir. I wasn't always into the Grateful Dead, but Weir and his accomplices pulled me in. A few words about the guy who kept going Furthur in his life and music:
www.facebook.com/share/p/17DS...
www.facebook.com/share/p/17DS...
January 11, 2026 at 6:08 PM
Fare thee well, Bob Weir. I wasn't always into the Grateful Dead, but Weir and his accomplices pulled me in. A few words about the guy who kept going Furthur in his life and music:
www.facebook.com/share/p/17DS...
www.facebook.com/share/p/17DS...
I've been making year-end mixtapes for decades. Yeah, I still call it a mixtape. Here's the 2025 edition. Please enjoy: open.spotify.com/playlist/3ri...
2025: The End of Your Empire
open.spotify.com
January 10, 2026 at 4:51 PM
I've been making year-end mixtapes for decades. Yeah, I still call it a mixtape. Here's the 2025 edition. Please enjoy: open.spotify.com/playlist/3ri...
Thinking about Bowie this week, which leads me back to Sinead and this moment at Metro in 2016, a few weeks after DB's departure. ...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=bkI6...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=bkI6...
03-04-16 - Sons of the Silent Age featuring Sinead O'Connor - Life on Mars and Sorrow
YouTube video by In The Loop Magazine
www.youtube.com
January 9, 2026 at 7:49 PM
Thinking about Bowie this week, which leads me back to Sinead and this moment at Metro in 2016, a few weeks after DB's departure. ...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=bkI6...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=bkI6...
I'll be teaching a class at the University of Chicago's Graham School for "lifelong learners" in the spring. The topic feels more timely than ever. If interested, sign up soon. Class size is limited. Hope to see some of you there.
graham.uchicago.edu/course/rocki...
graham.uchicago.edu/course/rocki...
Rockin' in the Free World:Democracy and Music in America, an Unruly History
Join “Sound Opinions” co-host and former Chicago Tribune music critic Greg Kot on a tour of the classic anthems and artists who reshaped our world.
graham.uchicago.edu
January 5, 2026 at 7:03 PM
I'll be teaching a class at the University of Chicago's Graham School for "lifelong learners" in the spring. The topic feels more timely than ever. If interested, sign up soon. Class size is limited. Hope to see some of you there.
graham.uchicago.edu/course/rocki...
graham.uchicago.edu/course/rocki...
A quarter-century later, "Kid A" still sounds like the future. But Radiohead's performance in Grant Park the next summer was just as revelatory. Here's why: bit.ly/4jlk9xD
January 2, 2026 at 4:47 PM
A quarter-century later, "Kid A" still sounds like the future. But Radiohead's performance in Grant Park the next summer was just as revelatory. Here's why: bit.ly/4jlk9xD
Yeah, that was something. Carole King-Gerry Goffin wrote the song, Aretha at the piano delivered it to the world.
What the KENNEDY Center used to be…
Remember that time Aretha Franklin performed at the 2015 Kennedy Center Honors, paying tribute to Carole King, who co-wrote “You Make Me Feel Like A Natural Woman,” and it brought a tear to Obama’s eye and everyone to their feet? And Carole King’s reaction. Wow.
Remember that time Aretha Franklin performed at the 2015 Kennedy Center Honors, paying tribute to Carole King, who co-wrote “You Make Me Feel Like A Natural Woman,” and it brought a tear to Obama’s eye and everyone to their feet? And Carole King’s reaction. Wow.
January 1, 2026 at 8:59 PM
Yeah, that was something. Carole King-Gerry Goffin wrote the song, Aretha at the piano delivered it to the world.
Joe Ely was such a robust presence, his death still doesn't seem real. A few words about a life well lived on Sound Opinions: shorturl.at/egDkk
December 26, 2025 at 4:26 PM
Joe Ely was such a robust presence, his death still doesn't seem real. A few words about a life well lived on Sound Opinions: shorturl.at/egDkk
The Roches in flight on SNL 1979. They made a lot of new fans that night. Whenever I put together an Xmas mix, this has to be the leadoff track, every time.
www.facebook.com/reel/1010033...
www.facebook.com/reel/1010033...
38 shares · 6 comments | Something a little bit different for the holidays: The Roches perform an a cappella rendition of the "Hallelujah Chorus" on SNL, 1979. | Kevin Daly
Something a little bit different for the holidays: The Roches perform an a cappella rendition of the "Hallelujah Chorus" on SNL, 1979.
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December 24, 2025 at 4:43 PM
The Roches in flight on SNL 1979. They made a lot of new fans that night. Whenever I put together an Xmas mix, this has to be the leadoff track, every time.
www.facebook.com/reel/1010033...
www.facebook.com/reel/1010033...
Best I can do this holiday season to spread some good cheer is this pix I took a few weeks ago: Dusk at Ayers Rock/Uluru in Australia after a rare rainfall. A sacred space in a special part of the world.
December 23, 2025 at 11:09 PM
Best I can do this holiday season to spread some good cheer is this pix I took a few weeks ago: Dusk at Ayers Rock/Uluru in Australia after a rare rainfall. A sacred space in a special part of the world.
Jeff Tweedy just released a helluva album (actually, three albums) and we had a conversation about it and the times we live in on @soundopinions.bsky.social . As the man said, "Creativity eats darkness." bit.ly/44D0qDK
December 21, 2025 at 10:33 PM
Jeff Tweedy just released a helluva album (actually, three albums) and we had a conversation about it and the times we live in on @soundopinions.bsky.social . As the man said, "Creativity eats darkness." bit.ly/44D0qDK
Reposted by Greg Kot
The Vanity Fair photographer from the Susie Wiles story.
Holy. Shit.
www.washingtonpost.com/style/power/...
Holy. Shit.
www.washingtonpost.com/style/power/...
December 17, 2025 at 8:34 PM
The Vanity Fair photographer from the Susie Wiles story.
Holy. Shit.
www.washingtonpost.com/style/power/...
Holy. Shit.
www.washingtonpost.com/style/power/...
Joe Ely, RIP. His records as a solo artist or as a member of the Flatlanders tower above. I once asked him about where all that wild wanderlust in his music began, and he had a ready if unexpected answer:
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www.facebook.com/share/p/1Knp...
December 16, 2025 at 3:25 PM
Joe Ely, RIP. His records as a solo artist or as a member of the Flatlanders tower above. I once asked him about where all that wild wanderlust in his music began, and he had a ready if unexpected answer:
www.facebook.com/share/p/1Knp...
www.facebook.com/share/p/1Knp...
My 25 favorite albums of 2025 as well as Dero’s on @soundopinions.bsky.social :
www.facebook.com/share/1DNp4x...
www.facebook.com/share/1DNp4x...
December 7, 2025 at 12:51 AM
My 25 favorite albums of 2025 as well as Dero’s on @soundopinions.bsky.social :
www.facebook.com/share/1DNp4x...
www.facebook.com/share/1DNp4x...
Steve Cropper (RIP) had few equals as a minimalist guitar master, an artist who put a premium on space, concision and groove. He was the perfect combo musician in Booker T and the MG’s— no wonder everybody from Neil Young to Bob Dylan wanted to work with him. Link in comments.
December 4, 2025 at 4:00 AM
Steve Cropper (RIP) had few equals as a minimalist guitar master, an artist who put a premium on space, concision and groove. He was the perfect combo musician in Booker T and the MG’s— no wonder everybody from Neil Young to Bob Dylan wanted to work with him. Link in comments.
Alan Light makes the case that "Rumours" is the rare classic-rock record that still sounds modern, hooky and painfully honest about relationships unraveling. We break down the music, the history, and why young listeners continue to claim it as their own. Listen here: bit.ly/4pOXj3R
November 30, 2025 at 10:44 PM
Alan Light makes the case that "Rumours" is the rare classic-rock record that still sounds modern, hooky and painfully honest about relationships unraveling. We break down the music, the history, and why young listeners continue to claim it as their own. Listen here: bit.ly/4pOXj3R
Neil’s 80th birthday and the 50th anniversary of “Zuma” arrived only a few days apart this month. Monumental moments both. As I rhapsodize:
podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/l...
podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/l...
November 25, 2025 at 12:41 AM
Neil’s 80th birthday and the 50th anniversary of “Zuma” arrived only a few days apart this month. Monumental moments both. As I rhapsodize:
podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/l...
podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/l...