Confessions Sheed

In St. Augustine's Confessions , Professors William R. Cook and Ronald B. Herzman lead a chapter-by-chapter—or, in Augustine's terms, "book-by-book"—analysis of one of history's most significant literary works. Written in the 4th century C.E., the Confessions is an opportunity to explore, in one book, questions that have been addressed in many books—by the likes of Plato, Cicero, Freud, and Einstein—for more than a millennium.

The Hollies' first album of original material following Graham Nash's departure was an attempt to regain the edge they'd had on Butterfly and Evolution albums, after the digression of the album of Dylan songs, the regrouping with Terry Sylvester in the lineup, and the unexpected hit achieved with "He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother." It's a surprisingly strong album, not only in the songwriting (which includes the last Clark/Hicks/Nash song ever recorded, "Survival of the Fittest"), but also in the production, which isn't too far removed from what was heard on Butterfly and Evolution. There's no sitar here, but Tony Hicks – who is the real star of the group on this album – employs at least a half-dozen different guitars in uniquely fine voicings, and there is also some very striking use of orchestra, producer John Burgess making particularly fine employment of a string section as a lead instrument on the Allan Clarke/Terry Sylvester-authored "Man Without a Heart."

The Marcus King Band have already given fans reason to believe they are destined for great things. At 22 years of age, Marcus King has been a bandleader for a decade and tipped as “music’s next great guitarist” by the Washington Post. But the band’s daring, ambitious new album, Carolina Confessions, marks an artistic leap of another order. Set for release on October 5th, 2018 on Fantasy Records, the album was produced and mixed by Grammy Award-winner Dave Cobb (Chris Stapleton, Sturgill Simpson, Jason Isbell) and recorded at Nashville’s iconic RCA Studio A. And it finds the band’s trademark musicianship buoyed by a new narrative depth, as Marcus delves into heavy themes: absolution, guilt, leaving home, yearning, love and other affairs of the soul.