• Best Original Holiday Songs That Fit an Artist's Style Perfectly: Mariah Carey, Joni Mitchell, Queen and More [LISTEN]

    I wonder if when Irving Berlin finished writing "White Christmas" he knew he had created a timeless classic. Holiday music has become its own little business, with artists often taking time out of their recording schedule to put together an album of covers and originals. It has become a bloated industry — every pop star and washed-up rock band has a holiday record. Sometimes they are really just mailing it in for a payday. Other times, though, they create something special. Mariah Carey, Tom Petty and Queen all have original Christmas tunes that fit right into their musical styles.You have to give props to those artists who dare to pen a Christmas tune. It is easy to just put a signature spin on something like "Blue Christmas" or "The Christmas Song." Those are already accepted by throngs of holiday shoppers who hear them every year. But what about Billy Squier thumping on "Christmas Is the Time to Say 'I Love You'"? Or Joni Mitchell's heartbreaking anthem "River"? You certainly hear those ones less than Frank Sinatra singing "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" while you are driving to work in December.These tunes are significantly younger than most holiday standards, so perhaps one day they will be thought of as classics. Until then, we will just call them good songs.

  • Eddie Vedder: 7 Best Solo Tracks for the Pearl Jam Frontman's 50th Birthday [LISTEN]

    Eddie Vedder will forever be linked to one of America's greatest bands - Pearl Jam. He's been fronting the Seattle alt-rockers since 1990, when the members - Jeff Ament, Stone Gossard, Mike McCready and a slew of drummers (currently Matt Cameron) - were just kids leading the then new movement called grunge. Vedder was angry, confused, conflicted and often poetic in the early days. Today (Dec. 23) marks his 50th birthday, and the singer is still at the top of his game vocally and politically.

  • EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW: Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros Songwriter Alex Ebert Talks Scoring J.C. Chandor's 2014 Movie 'A Most Violent Year,' Balancing Music Career With Film Composing, And More!

    Alex Ebert is probably most known as the principle songwriter and front man of Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros, but he's already an acclaimed film composer thanks to his first venture into the industry with director J. C. Chandor's 2013 movie, All is Lost. Along with a number of solo and collaborative projects in the works, we can assume Ebert is easily one of the busiest musicians out there. Luckily for us, he had some time to talk about his score and soundtrack for Chandor's 2014 crime drama A Most Violent Year.

  • Remembering Austrian/German Pop Star Udo Juergens in Five Hit Songs: "Merci, Chérie," "Buenos Aíres, Argentina" and More

    The nation of Germany, and the pop music industry in general, got a bit of tough news today when it was announced that performer and songwriter Udo Juergens had passed away from heart failure at the age of 80. He was one of those performers who was an absolute smash in Europe, selling more than 100 million records across the continent—particularly in Germany and his homeland of Austria—but unfortunately his fame never caught on quite so well in the United States. If you're not familiar with his body of work, let Music Times give you a quick trip through is biography in five recordings.

  • Norin & Rad Cielo Ticket Giveaway: Win 2 Tickets For 12/26 [CONTEST]

    It is the holiday season, which means it is a time for giveaways. We have partnered with legendary New York City club Cielo to give one lucky fan and their friend the opportunity to get in for free on Dec. 26 to see Norin & Rad. Sember's high energy, melodic brand of trance will kick off that food coma from the day before and usher in a big NYE week in a city that the "Aldo" producer calls "ridiculous" at partying.

  • Happy 25th Birthday Jordin Sparks: Music Times Lists Its Favorite Tracks from The 'American Idol' Winner

    We're approach one of the year's biggest birthdays but we figured we'd throw a shout-out to Jordin Sparks for her 25th birthday. The pop star got out to a hot start at the beginning of her career, becoming the first American Idol winner to land her first four singles in the Top 20 of the Billboard Hot 100. Things have slowed down a little since then but hopefully she'll be back on top soon enough. Here are five of our favorite tracks from the performer.

  • 40 Years of Harry Chapin's "Cat's In The Cradle": Music Times Ranks Covers by Johnny Cash, Tori Amos, Ugly Kid Joe and More

    Another day, another big anniversary for a song that's become part of the American rock canon. On this day during 1974, Harry Chapin released what would easily become his biggest song of all time: "Cat's In The Cradle," a folk music tale of a father too busy with his work to watch his son grow up, and the impact that has on the child's life. It's a narrative that made thousands of fathers swear that they wouldn't make the same mistake as the single's narrator. As usual with songs as moving and memorable as "Cat's In The Cradle," a number of covers have appeared over the years. Music Times ranks some of the versions from well-known performers:

  • 8 Best Musical Comebacks of 2014: Garth Brooks, D'Angelo and More

    For whatever reason, 2014 was the year where a ton of musicians decided to get their acts together and reunite, come out of retirement or finally release that album we have been desperately craving for more than 10 years. Here are 2014's eight best comebacks:
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