Rendering: Adam Pardee/STAFF. So you got that Fourth of July playlist all set to play at the big barbecue on Tuesday? Me neither. If I did – and I really don’t, because barbecues are full of beer (which I no longer drink) and barbecue sauce (which I do still…

Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit perform at the Greek Theatre in Berkeley on June 8, 2019. Joaquin Cabello/STAFF. A year ago I finally did a column about country music on account of going to a rodeo in the far northern reaches of the state. Well, I was at the…

Bruce Springsteen, courtesy. Last weekend was the 4th of July, but I didn’t do a column for the occasion because I needed the space to do something truly patriotic: Criticizing the government and demanding the people within it do better. Our country exists because people didn’t sit back and…

In this screengrab, Gregg Alexander of the New Radicals performs during the Virtual Parade Across America, following the presidential inauguration of Joe Biden, on Jan. 20, 2021. Courtesy: Biden Inaugural Committee. Is it just me or are you in a better mood this weekend? It’s pretty amazing how much…

ORLANDO, FL- JANUARY 29: Former Republican presidential hopeful Rudy Giuliani speaks with his wife, Judith Giuliani, during a post-primary campaign rally in Orlando in 2008. Photo: Joe Raedle/Getty Images. With the first primary debates complete, the Presidential campaign season is officially underway. This means a lot of things: Incessant…

Somehow, The Offspring’s “Why Don’t You Get a Job” didn’t make this list. May 1 is International Workers’ Day, a day for working people and a time for laborers to stand up for their rights since the late 19th century. It’s celebrated in dozens of nations around the world.…