Peter Aaron

The sounds of new wave pop music and the early days of MTV were defined by the work of a handful of iconic musicians, and few stood taller in that era than Ric Ocasek, frontman and primary songwriter for the Cars. The band charted thirteen Top 40 singles in the U.S. from 1978 to 1987. The music video for their...

In a way that no prior rock act had done, the Band assimilated, remade, and contagiously celebrated the rich, deep tributaries of American vernacular music. Blues, country, jazz, folk, gospel, soul, rock 'n' roll: the members soaked it all up, distilling what they heard and felt into an alchemical brew all their own. Via this vibrant concoction, the group—Levon Helm,...