The Dirt-Music blog from Frank Migliorelli and The Dirt Nappers

Yea, I don't write to this blog all that much, but this entry is pretty much a guarantee....my top record choices from last year. As a rule, I always wait a month in to give myself a chance to look back, do some thinking, and some re-listening. Easy pickins' this year-by far hands down, Alejandro Escovedo was my fave, and the rest are in no particular order, just good stuff I've heard and really liked. There are a few standard favorites who can do no wrong in my book, but there are a few curve balls for you also.... When it came down to looking back, I realized I didn't probably listen to as much music as I normally do...been in the studio a good chunk of the year working on a new record with The Dirt Nappers , but overall, and looking back there were a bunch of good things that caught my ear. I've also compiled a Spotify list of some songs- feel free to follow me and check it out- Here we go: Favorite/Best Of The Year: Alejandro Escovedo-The Crossing Tim...

We tried to document a number of places we hit on our recent jaunt to Scotland on Instagram, but we figured we'd recap a few photo highlights and videos here. Edinburgh, as we headed over to The Royal Mile Tavern for our first show, we stopped to take a picture that looks like an album cover. The Royal Mile Tavern is right on the main drag, The Royal Mile, with numerous bars, music and food....basically an all day party. After we heard that the tavern had a reputation for serving great haggis, we went for it. Highly recommended. Just a travel tip, when in Edinburgh, stop at The Southern Cross Cafe-  --really friendly joint, great coffee, food and desserts. I think we ate there four times in three days. Here’s our trusty tour bus….we never really knew what kind of car it was. and I’m sure once the car rental place in Edinburgh drops a new clutch in it, it will be fine…..and that burning smell will fade. The Coach and Horses Tavern in Dumfries was your classic l...

So much music, so little time…this year’s list feels a bit incomplete- there are so many records still on “my list” that I haven't gotten to yet-but I’ll let the year fade and draw the line, because I have to start tracking 2018…..But for now in no particular order, except for my "fave" mentioned below, here are  what I think are the best releases of the year (2017)….along with some drink suggestions for you.....just because! To make it even easier, feel free to check out the Spotify playlist that features selections from each pick- My fave for the year: Hurray for the Riff Raff- “The Navigator” -This is the record I kept coming back to to again and again this year. Spanning a host of musical genres, some great recording, and and a wealth of songwriting and story telling make for my favorite album of the year. Alynda Segarra’s songwriting captures a new kind of Americana- traditional sounds with a Latino infused beat that weaves a story that is more relevant now t...

On The Deuce- This song should be that HBO's show theme song Although I haven’t been catching all the episodes,  HBO’s latest series “The Deuce” has done a great job in triggering some memories. Some of us actually sit around and swap stories, romantically looking back at the old Times Square/42nd Street area with a fondness for the grit, smut and drugs that used to permeate the concrete. It wasn’t Kansas, and definitely not Disneyland, and I remember being offered a wad of cocaine in a phone booth once, grabbing a $5 dinner at Brew and Burger with an all you can drink side mug of beer (usually you got thrown out after 7 or 8 mugs) and getting the best movie value a quarter could buy. But I never heard the nickname “The Deuce” until 1989. In ’89, I had the insane idea of starting an independent record label with a buddy of mine, Gene Campanelli, and the first record we produced was a collection of New York City based blues and R&B artists. We really had no idea what we w...

The 2016 Bakers Dozen Ok, so I blew one of my 2016 resolutions last year---to keep an active, monthly music blog…Nice idea, but just didn’t keep up. Not going to make the same declaration, but since I’m almost done with a new recording, which should be out out in the next month or so, I figure I’ll jump start this process again. So now that 2016 is gone, I can publish my “Best of” list. I usually wait until the first week in January just in case someone drops a great, phenomenal record the night of Dec. 31, before midnight. Nothing caught my ear, since New Year’s Eve, so here goes. Usual drill, I’ll give you my absolute favorite, and then in no particular order a loose approximate top musical dozen IMHO for 2016. This was a good year-lots of great stuff-my fave: Peter Wolf-“A Cure For Loneliness” - Just a real simple, rootsy album, with great feel, and great songs. Everyone of this guy’s solo discs have been strong, and this one is no exception. I’ve always been a fan of the Geil...