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."
This week on @soundopinions.bsky.social we review Lucinda Williams' new album, "World’s Gone Wrong," which meets the moment: bit.ly/3ZnvvrV
And I spiel about how Lucinda discovered songs could inform and uplift in times of trouble: bit.ly/45ULLV7
And I spiel about how Lucinda discovered songs could inform and uplift in times of trouble: bit.ly/45ULLV7
February 14, 2026 at 8:13 PM
This week on @soundopinions.bsky.social we review Lucinda Williams' new album, "World’s Gone Wrong," which meets the moment: bit.ly/3ZnvvrV
And I spiel about how Lucinda discovered songs could inform and uplift in times of trouble: bit.ly/45ULLV7
And I spiel about how Lucinda discovered songs could inform and uplift in times of trouble: bit.ly/45ULLV7
Some bands/artists/tunes we've been obsessed with lately on @soundopinions.bsky.social. Have a listen: bit.ly/4aBNn8M
February 11, 2026 at 5:16 PM
Some bands/artists/tunes we've been obsessed with lately on @soundopinions.bsky.social. Have a listen: bit.ly/4aBNn8M
For aspiring music writers, the then-new magazine Musician was an inspiration with its insights about a broad range of sounds -- reggae, free jazz. punk, prog -- & Vic Garbarini's work was a terrific navigator. A must-read and in later years a voice of wise counsel. RIP, Vic. you showed us the way.
February 9, 2026 at 5:37 PM
For aspiring music writers, the then-new magazine Musician was an inspiration with its insights about a broad range of sounds -- reggae, free jazz. punk, prog -- & Vic Garbarini's work was a terrific navigator. A must-read and in later years a voice of wise counsel. RIP, Vic. you showed us the way.
Bad Bunny for the win.
February 9, 2026 at 2:17 AM
Bad Bunny for the win.
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:
www.facebook.com/share/p/1AT6...
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.
www.facebook.com/share/p/1Dba...
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...
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
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
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
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...
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...
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...
We used to call the debut LP "Cars greatest hits." Somehow the 2nd LP, "Candy O," topped it, at least in my world. Can a band that sold 43 million albums still be underappreciated? Buffalo Tom's Bill Janovitz, the band's biographer, makes the case on @soundopinions.bsky.social: shorturl.at/hvsrQ
November 18, 2025 at 4:25 PM
We used to call the debut LP "Cars greatest hits." Somehow the 2nd LP, "Candy O," topped it, at least in my world. Can a band that sold 43 million albums still be underappreciated? Buffalo Tom's Bill Janovitz, the band's biographer, makes the case on @soundopinions.bsky.social: shorturl.at/hvsrQ
Come for the movie (which I loved) and stay for the soundtrack. A few words about Jonny Greenwood's thrilling score for "One Battle After Another." shorturl.at/s0Mro
November 15, 2025 at 5:51 PM
Come for the movie (which I loved) and stay for the soundtrack. A few words about Jonny Greenwood's thrilling score for "One Battle After Another." shorturl.at/s0Mro