Stephen Thomas Erlewine
LightNews LightNews
banner
sterlewine.bsky.social
Stephen Thomas Erlewine
@sterlewine.bsky.social
5.9K followers 560 following 1K posts
Music writer and journalist, a founding editor of Allmusic now freelancer for hire. Bylines at Pitchfork, Rolling Stone, Mojo Magazine, Los Angeles Times, Washington Post and more. Subscribe to my Newsletter: sterlewine.substack.com
Posts Replies Media Videos
Reposted by Stephen Thomas Erlewine
paranoiacs.bsky.social
Reflecting again on how John Cale’s piano playing on Nick Drake’s “Northern Sky” is one of the single most moving things I’ve ever heard, and also how it's like the thirtieth most historical thing to occur over the course of his career in music. A remarkably passionate oracle. Truly no one like him.
November 27, 2025 at 5:18 AM
Reposted by Stephen Thomas Erlewine
nedraggett.bsky.social
Hell with it, I'm just going to post the whole thing here via screencap and alt text. It's Kaleb Horton, man, his writing always deserves the second read, especially since it could have just easily been lost forever like so much else. Read it, share it.
A look at forgotten Hollywood landmarks By Kaleb Horton Let's say you come in from down south, and you're looking for an unsung movie landmark. So you fly in to LAX, rent a car, blow right past Hollywood, leave Los Angeles county heading north, go over the Grapevine, gape at the monumental hills and, wow, there really is a Smokey Bear Road, then you turn off the air conditioner when the sign tells you. Once you come down the grade too fast and see the world's loneliest Denny's, you're well on your way to what you're looking for – the middle of nowhere. You're going to Kern County to find the spot where Alfred Hitchcock filmed one of the greatest scenes in movie history, the crop duster sequence from "North by Northwest." It takes place in Indiana, of course, but the Indiana road sign and the imported corn field can't deceive this Bakersfield native. The parched and desolate heat of the scene feels too much like Kern County. The scene people know off-hand — Cary Grant running from an airplane — isn't why "North by Northwest" is a classic. The film's greatness, as was often the case for Hitchcock, lies in its build-up, its suspense, its mood. The plane moment is almost anticlimax. It is those five minutes before Grant's desperate escape that constitute a mathematically perfect suspense scene. So expert is Hitchcock's hand that he creates suspense, a slow burning dread, with no camera tricks and no music in broad daylight. Grant's character is a prototypical James Bond. His perfect suit, fast wit, high-alcohol tolerance and effortless charisma have got him out of every predicament so far. In the city, among people, he has powers. Take him away from people, put him nowhere, and he's just like us — totally helpless. He has no powers: His suit is no good out here; his million-dollar tailoring and perfect haircut is just vanity now. No amount of pretending can provide escape. Here, is the one place where he can die, and he gets by on the grace of God. All he can do is wait for what's coming. So when you seek the lost landmark of this scene, you're looking for an idea as much as a place. You're on Highway 99 now, going 30 miles north of Bakersfield, looking for an unassuming patch of dirt that carries spiritual weight. The scene was filmed neart Garces Highway to the west of Delano. You'll think there's a handy exit for it. There's not. You'll probably get lost in Delano, counting on a connection. You're at once a million miles from Hollywood and a hundred miles away. It's lonely. The horizon sprawls forever like there's nothing past it. There are broken down trucks on the side of the road, plumes of smoke from faraway fires. You'll find Garces eventually. You'll pass a bar called Rosy's Place, abandoned houses, an oil field, a prison, a cemetery, a sign that says "we clean headstones," and a whole lot of gold-on-brown punctuated by an occasional trailer or car going faster than you. You're looking for where Garces meets Corcoran Road. That's where this "North by Northwest" scene was filmed. You'll get a vague idea where it is but you'll never be exactly sure, since there's little impetus for clear signage 10 miles from a prison. Maybe Corcoran Road is unlabeled. Besides, that Indiana sign and the prop cornfield haven't been there in 56 years. If you're anything like me, you'll lose the light and call it a day, unsatisfied with the route you took. You return to I-5 northbound. From the 5, you'll meet Route 46, and go through a place called Lost Hills, then back in to the location from Corcoran Road instead. That's how Hitchcock probably did it. More intuitive. Still in the middle of nowhere, but on your way to Corcoran Road, you're right next to another Hollywood landmark: Blackwells Corner, James Dean's last stop. It's a glorified Texaco, and gas is 50 cents a gallon more than it should be. They sell Jelly Bellys and '50s kitsch artifacts — plates with Marilyn Monroe's face on them, and so forth. They really figured out how to cash in on death. You don't want to stop here. But I stopped. I asked the kid at the Blackwells Corner counter how to get to Corcoran Road. He gave me a look that said "there's no reason to go there," and then wearily told me where to go anyway. I was about 8 miles from the destination. Going there is a meditative experience. You're not just going to the middle of nowhere. You're going to the perfect nowhere. Going alone, in the hypnotic heat of the Central Calfiornia Valley, you might even forget what year it is. There is no reason to believe the road would be so well preserved for half a century, intimately tied to the career of an actor born in Bristol 111 years ago, but it has been. There's an abandoned house. A barn with a cross on it. But almost nothing has changed in 56 years. At some point new lines were added on the road. There's overgrowth where there didn't used to be overgrowth. A couple discarded Budweiser cans from who knows when, but mostly it's identical. This is the same sleepy loneliness that Alfred Hitchcock used to make great art in 1959. And that may sound dull, but tranquility is the point. You stand on that dirt and there's no distraction from what's in your soul. It's an inner destination, not an outer one. I told my grandma about it when I got back to Bakersfield. She told me her Uncle Harold thought it was the prettiest road in America. And she showed me a picture of a Corcoran grade school class posing in the dirt with Grant and Hitchcock. It's just a field trip picture. The kids are fidgeting, many with arms folded, some shielding their eyes from the sun, all with obedient smiles. They'd all be in their sixties now, but they'd remember where this road is. It emphasized the ugliness of James Dean's last stop becoming a place to sell T-shirts. It's about what we preserve, and what we don't, and what we remember, and what we don't. It's easy to find shrines to morbidity and hard to find meaningful places. For those, you have to go looking.
November 26, 2025 at 9:52 PM
Reposted by Stephen Thomas Erlewine
usefulnoise.bsky.social
if you are in your 20s, something depressing to consider is that many of the most annoying celebrities and public figures your age will be around for the rest of your life
November 26, 2025 at 12:52 AM
Reposted by Stephen Thomas Erlewine
mikeduquette.bsky.social
Universal is finally (FINALLY!) putting the complete discography of Let's Active on digital music apps this week. I spoke to frontman Mitch Easter about how it came together, and what fans can expect from his set of songs from the band this weekend in Winston-Salem, NC.
A Second Disc Interview: Let's Revisit Let's Active with Mitch Easter - The Second Disc
"Making records is a really good idea," Mitch Easter says, partway through a chat with The Second Disc. He's, of course, absolutely correct, and he would know. The Winston-Salem, North Carolina native...
theseconddisc.com
November 25, 2025 at 4:08 PM
Reposted by Stephen Thomas Erlewine
zacharylipez.bsky.social
Happy to report that, at least in this present moment, AI will not be taking my job.
November 25, 2025 at 12:51 AM
Reposted by Stephen Thomas Erlewine
bowiesongs.bsky.social
Goodbye Jimmy Cliff. His vocal in this 1976 SNL performance, good lord---one of the best singers of his generation, of any generation. vimeo.com/155135842
many rivers to cross
jimmy cliff on saturday night live, 1976.
vimeo.com
November 24, 2025 at 6:48 PM
sterlewine.bsky.social
Farewell to the great Jimmy Cliff, the Jamaican singer who played a pivotal part in introducing reggae to the rest of the world. www.theguardian.com/music/2025/n...
Jimmy Cliff, Jamaican reggae singer, actor and cultural icon, dies aged 81
Star of The Harder They Come had hits including You Can Get It If You Really Want and I Can See Clearly Now
www.theguardian.com
November 24, 2025 at 12:53 PM
Reposted by Stephen Thomas Erlewine
zachschonfeld.bsky.social
For this week's Sunday Review, I went long on one of my favorite albums of all time: Giant Steps by the Boo Radleys.
The Boo Radleys: Giant Steps
Read Zach Schoenfeld’s review of the album.
pitchfork.com
November 23, 2025 at 3:22 PM
Reposted by Stephen Thomas Erlewine
aquariumdrunkard.com
Happy Thanksgiving :: Doug Sahm And Friends – Austin, TX 1972

aquariumdrunkard.com/2025/11/23/h...

'tis thee season
November 24, 2025 at 2:13 AM
Reposted by Stephen Thomas Erlewine
markharris.bsky.social
This remarkable obit carries a century of American cultural, social, racial, and political history in it. (As H. Rap Brown, Al-Amin has a one-sentence cameo in my book Pictures at a Revolution, describing Guess Who's Coming to Dinner in language not shareable here.) www.nytimes.com/2025/11/23/u...
Jamil Abdullah Al-Amin, Black Power Activist Known as H. Rap Brown, Dies at 82
www.nytimes.com
November 24, 2025 at 2:15 AM
Reposted by Stephen Thomas Erlewine
jacoboller.bsky.social
Forgot how many incredible lines are in Udo Kier’s Random Roles www.avclub.com/udo-kier-179...
AVC: Okay, we must skip ahead… UK: Yes, please do. Let’s talk about Pamela Anderson please, now. I want to talk about Pamela Anderson! AVC: I was going to ask about Berlin Alexanderplatz next. UK: No, I want to talk about Pamela! Barb Wire (1996)—“Curly”
November 24, 2025 at 2:30 AM
Reposted by Stephen Thomas Erlewine
peterapeel.bsky.social
RIP Udo Kier.
November 24, 2025 at 12:23 AM
Reposted by Stephen Thomas Erlewine
barkerrant.bsky.social
Metallica’s Cliff Burton in 1986: “There’s a band called R.E.M. that I like a lot…”
November 24, 2025 at 1:18 AM
Reposted by Stephen Thomas Erlewine
paranoiacs.bsky.social
Over at the Washington Post, the great Geoff Edgers wrangled Tommy Stinson and Chris Mars from the Replacements to discuss the spectacular new 'Let It Be' boxset released by
@Rhino_Records on Friday. A genuine feat of reporting and a crucial read for any fan. The new best historian? wapo.st/4ifEGDx
The moment it all clicked for the Replacements — before it fell apart
‘Let It Be,” the Replacements’ 1984 album, hit a sweet spot they would never again find. Drummer Chris Mars and guitarist Tommy Stinson discuss a new RE-release.
wapo.st
November 23, 2025 at 5:02 AM
Reposted by Stephen Thomas Erlewine
sterlewine.bsky.social
My latest newsletter for paid subscribers: The return of Tobias Jesso Jr., Prince's psychedelic Around the World in a Day gets expanded, the unholy union of Aerosmith and Yungblud, Tina Turner goes country, Complete Riverside Recordings of the Bill Evans Trio sterlewine.substack.com/p/quick-take...
Quick Takes: Tobias Jesso Jr., Prince, Tina Turner, Bill Evans Trio, Aerosmith & Yungblood
Tobias Jesso Jr. returns, Prince's psychedelic Around the World in a Day expanded, the unholy union of Aerosmith and Yungblud, Tina Turner goes country, the complete Riverside Recordings of Bill Evans
sterlewine.substack.com
November 22, 2025 at 1:13 AM
Reposted by Stephen Thomas Erlewine
pauseandplay.bsky.social
R.I.P. Jellybean Johnson (drummer for Morris Day & The Time and hitmaking producer) 😿
Jellybean Johnson, drummer for The Time and hitmaking producer, has died
In addition to Johnson’s work as a musician, he was also a proponent of preserving local music history as a co-founder of the Minneapolis Sound Museum. He died on Friday.
www.thecurrent.org
November 22, 2025 at 5:06 PM
Reposted by Stephen Thomas Erlewine
sterlewine.bsky.social
The Beatles celebrate the thirtieth anniversary of their archival trawl by adding a fourth disc to Anthology. The new Anthology 4 highlights the structural problems with the entire project. My review: sterlewine.substack.com/p/the-beatle...
The Beatles, Anthology Collection and Anthology 4
The Beatles celebrate the thirtieth anniversary of their archival trawl by adding a fourth disc to Anthology. The new Anthology 4 highlights the structural problems with the entire project.
sterlewine.substack.com
November 20, 2025 at 11:02 PM
sterlewine.bsky.social
My latest newsletter for paid subscribers: The return of Tobias Jesso Jr., Prince's psychedelic Around the World in a Day gets expanded, the unholy union of Aerosmith and Yungblud, Tina Turner goes country, Complete Riverside Recordings of the Bill Evans Trio sterlewine.substack.com/p/quick-take...
Quick Takes: Tobias Jesso Jr., Prince, Tina Turner, Bill Evans Trio, Aerosmith & Yungblood
Tobias Jesso Jr. returns, Prince's psychedelic Around the World in a Day expanded, the unholy union of Aerosmith and Yungblud, Tina Turner goes country, the complete Riverside Recordings of Bill Evans
sterlewine.substack.com
November 22, 2025 at 1:13 AM
Reposted by Stephen Thomas Erlewine
usefulnoise.bsky.social
Taylor Swift getting good reviews has traumatized an entire generation of culture writers lol
ericdharvey.com Eric Harvey @ericdharvey.com · 6d
counterpoint: no it didn't

www.nytimes.com/2025/11/21/b... (gift)
November 21, 2025 at 3:55 PM
Reposted by Stephen Thomas Erlewine
nedraggett.bsky.social
En route to @citylightsbooks.bsky.social to see #RoddyBottim in conversation with #BrontePurenll about Roddy’s great new autobiography #TheRoyalWe — and you can join! Here’s the Zoom link — event starts in an hour! us02web.zoom.us/j/87274994936
Join our Cloud HD Video Meeting
Zoom is the leader in modern enterprise cloud communications.
us02web.zoom.us
November 21, 2025 at 1:55 AM
sterlewine.bsky.social
The Beatles celebrate the thirtieth anniversary of their archival trawl by adding a fourth disc to Anthology. The new Anthology 4 highlights the structural problems with the entire project. My review: sterlewine.substack.com/p/the-beatle...
The Beatles, Anthology Collection and Anthology 4
The Beatles celebrate the thirtieth anniversary of their archival trawl by adding a fourth disc to Anthology. The new Anthology 4 highlights the structural problems with the entire project.
sterlewine.substack.com
November 20, 2025 at 11:02 PM
Reposted by Stephen Thomas Erlewine
sterlewine.bsky.social
The Replacements' landmark Let It Be gets a triple-disc Super Deluxe Edition. My review is in my latest newsletter:
The Replacements, Let It Be [Super Deluxe]
The band's 1984 landmark gets a triple-disc Super Deluxe Edition.
sterlewine.substack.com
November 19, 2025 at 11:00 PM
Reposted by Stephen Thomas Erlewine
joelbrandhorst.bsky.social
Ah, shit. RIP Mani. His Stone Roses work is obviously iconic, but the music Primal Scream made when he was in the band was really incredible.

youtu.be/0xBzYsE4y1k?...
Primal Scream - Kowalski (Official Video)
YouTube video by PrimalScreamVEVO
youtu.be
November 20, 2025 at 4:08 PM
sterlewine.bsky.social
Farewell to Gary “Mani” Mounfield, the bassist for the Stone Roses who later joined Primal Scream.

www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/greater...
Gary 'Mani' Mounfield of Stone Roses dead at 63 - latest tributes
The musician rose to fame with the Stone Roses in the 1980s
www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk
November 20, 2025 at 4:09 PM
Reposted by Stephen Thomas Erlewine
mattweiland.bsky.social
"It wasn’t designed with tomorrow in mind"
sterlewine.bsky.social Stephen Thomas Erlewine @sterlewine.bsky.social · 8d
The Replacements' landmark Let It Be gets a triple-disc Super Deluxe Edition. My review is in my latest newsletter:
The Replacements, Let It Be [Super Deluxe]
The band's 1984 landmark gets a triple-disc Super Deluxe Edition.
sterlewine.substack.com
November 20, 2025 at 12:40 AM