Tim Sommer

Bruce Music Journalism Rock 

Revisiting My Words on Springsteen

February 9, 2026February 9, 2026 Tim Sommer 0 Comments Bruce Springsteen, Kingdom of Outsiders, Our War, Tim Sommer

Our identities are Our War, too; and our identities are shaped by music

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Music Journalism 

Can Classical Music Help Fight the Noise Industrial Complex?

September 24, 2025September 26, 2025 Tim Sommer 0 Comments Aaron Copland, Claude Debussy, Dewars, Marlboro, Phil Ochs, Tim Sommer

I am lodging a protest, and its called ‘The Beauty of Music’

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Alternative Rock Rock 

A Belated Birthday Wish to Michael Stipe

January 9, 2025January 14, 2025 Tim Sommer 0 Comments 65th birthday, Michael Stipe, Patti Smith, R.E.M., Singin' in the Rain, Tim Sommer

Celebrating the stalwart R.E.M. frontman’s 65th from the Kingdom of Outsiders

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Punk 

It’s Been 50 Years Since the Ramones First Played CBGB

August 16, 2024August 17, 2024 Ron Hart 0 Comments ” Ramones, 1974, 50th anniversary, CBGB, Road to Ruin, Rocket to Russia, The Bowery, The Ramones, Tim Sommer, Too Tough To Die

Rhino celebrates anniversary with reissues and a ferry ride to Rockaway Beach 

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Music Journalism 

The Truth Behind Jann Wenner and Hootiegate

September 19, 2023September 20, 2023 Tim Sommer 0 Comments Hootie and the Blowfish, Jann Wenner, Jim DeRogatis, Only Wanna Be With You: The Inside Story of Hootie and the Blowfish, Rolling Stone, The Melvins, Tim Sommer

An excerpt from Tim Sommer’s acclaimed book Only Wanna Be With You

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Music Journalism Remembrance 

Goodbye to MTV News: The Conscience and the Ouija Board of the Network

May 11, 2023May 11, 2023 Tim Sommer 0 Comments Beastie Boys, Doug Herzog, Gregory Isaacs, MTV, MTV News, Nirvana, Paramount, R.E.M., Run DMC, Sun Ra, The Flamin' Groovies, The Soft Boys, The Week in Rock, TikTok, Tim Sommer

Paying homage to the best job I ever had

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Music Journalism Rock 

Hootie Hoo!: Rethinking The Blowfish

May 9, 2022May 9, 2022 Joseph Kyle 0 Comments Darius Rucker, Hootie and the Blowfish, Only Wanna Be With You: The Inside Story of Hootie and the Blowfish, Tim Sommer, University of South Carolina Press 2022

Inside Tim Sommer’s excellent new book on the 90s hitmakers

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Beatle 

How England Made The Beatles

December 23, 2021December 23, 2021 Tim Sommer 0 Comments Birmingham, England, George Harrison, Get Back, John Lennon, Liverpool, Manchester, Paul McCartney, Pete Best, Ringo Starr, Skiffle, Stuart Sutcliffe., The Beatles, Tim Sommer

The Beatles are not a divinity, but the product of causes and conditions

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Music Journalism 

Remembering the Glory Days of MTV News

August 1, 2021May 9, 2023 Tim Sommer 15 Comments Alan Hunter, Doug Herzog, Hugo Largo, JJ Jackson, John Norris, Kurt Loder, Mark Goodman, Martha Quinn, MTV, MTV News, Tabitha Soren, Tim Sommer

In honor of today being the 40th anniversary of MTV’s debut on cable television, the Rock & Roll Globe is proud to bring you this “remastered” edition of Tim Sommer’s inside account of working for MTV News in the 80s and early 90s

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Britpop Rock 

Champagne Like Coca-Cola: Lola Versus The Powerman and the Moneygoround, Part One at 50

December 22, 2020December 23, 2020 Justin Joffe 2 Comments 1970, 50th anniversary, Dave Davies, Lola, Lola Versus Powerman and the Moneygoround, MOJO, Ray Davies, The Kinks, Tim Sommer

A half-century later, The Kinks’ timeless classic makes us yearn for the problematic music industry of yore

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Post-Punk 

Forty Years Ago, Young Marble Giants Exploded A Graceful Bomb Over Manhattan

December 2, 2020December 3, 2020 Tim Sommer 1 Comment 1980, Allison Statton, Colossal Youth, Hurrah, New York City, Philip Moxham, Stuart Moxham, Tim Sommer, Young Marble Giants

Tim Sommer recalls a show that changed his life

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Music Journalism Pop 

Is It Time for Old Guy White Rock Critics To Move Over?

June 5, 2019June 6, 2019 Tim Sommer 10 Comments Music Journalism, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Tim Sommer

Our reigning, defending, undispluted heavyweight champion of rock criticism explores the great generational divide at the core of music journalism in 2019

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Experimental Pop Remembrance 

Scott Walker January 9, 1943 – March 22, 2019

March 27, 2019January 9, 2024 Tim Sommer 0 Comments 4AD, David Bowie, RIP, Scott Walker, The Walker Brothers, Tim Sommer

There are many fine obituaries of the great Scott Walker, which will provide details of his long, fascinating and productive life. This does not claim to be one of those.

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