Category: Music

The Native American Band Redbone and the Hit Song “Come and Get Your Love”

In 1974, the band Redbone had a top-10 hit with “Come and Get Your Love,” the first song by an all-Native and Mexican-American band to accomplish that feat.

In January 1974, the band Redbone released the single “Come and Get Your Love.” The catchy song, which appeared on the 1973 album Wovoka, rose to number 5 on the Billboard chart by April of that year. Many of those who only heard the song on the radio, though, did not realize the song was making history as the first song by an all-Native and Mexican-American band to have a top 10 hit on the chart.

The man singing lead on the song, Lolly Vegas, also wrote the song and played the guitar and electric sitar on the track. Other members of the band included Tony Bellamy, Peter DePoe and Pat Vegas (Lolly’s brother, who, according to his biography, co-wrote “Come and Get Your Love”).

While their hit song was not a political song, the band recognized the impact of their heritage. On the same album, they included the song “We Were All Wounded at Wounded Knee,” which became a hit in the Europe even as the record company refused to release it as a single in the U.S.

The record company and the band instead released “Come and Get Your Love” as the single. Pat Vegas once explained the song is about more than romantic love: “It’s love all around, in every facet and every part of your being, you know? And that’s the message: What’s the matter with your mind and your sign? Come and get your love. In other words, where you come from and who you are doesn’t matter as much as what you believe, and what you feel.”

If you were around in the 1970s, you knew the song from the radio and from it repeatedly playing in your head. More modern listeners may know the song from its many appearances in movies and TV shows, including Guardians of the Galaxy (2014), Avengers: Endgame (2019), Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (2023), and F is for Family (Netflix).

But back on February 22, 1974, Redbone performed “Come and Get Your Love” on NBC’s The Midnight Special. They introduced the song with a traditional Native American dance.

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Anna Tivel’s “Animal Poem” (Song of the Day)

The title track from Anna Tivel’s “Animal Poem” album is a tender bedtime story about the messiness of living.

Anna Tivel, a singer-songwriter from Portland, Oregon, has been recording and performing for more than a decade. Her seventh album Animal Poem was released in August 2025, and has been described as deep “with wisdom into the experience of existence, forgiveness, love for humanity, nature, and reconciliation with mortality.”

On the album, Tivel hoped to capture the spirit of people sitting on a porch playing songs for each other. And she accomplished that goal.

She explained, “Everyone in the studio made it feel so open, made it easy to forget technology and permanence and just play, messy and alive. It’s this vital mess that moves me when I listen now – ghost notes in the high register of the piano, melodic guitar and bass lines briefly interwoven, earthy cymbals breathing, my dog barking. . . . Most of what you hear is just people sitting together in a small room, listening and talking with tenderness and abandon.”

I love the album’s title track, where Tivel spins a number of lessons together into a tribute to living, presented as a poem that one may hear as a bedtime story.

Courage is a tired mom, milk crate and a cardboard sign,
Trying to find a story for her daughter;
This is how the world exists, let me spin it for you kid,
In a way that’s easier to swallow.

Everyone is in a play, characters in constant pain,
Reaching for a way to taste some beauty;
You can be someone who loves, or you can be somebody else;
That’s all there is, you breathe, then you’re not breathing.

Check out “Animal Poem” by Anna Tivel.

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Johnny Blue Skies aka Sturgill Simpson Temporarily Drops New Album: “Mutiny After Midnight”

Sturgill Simpson releases the new album “Mutiny After Midnight” by Johnny Blue Skies & the Dark Clouds.

Sturgill Simpson, who with his previous album started recording as Johnny Blue Skies is releasing a new album backed by the Dark Clouds called Mutiny After Midnight later this month. He announced that the album would only be released on physical media, but, perhaps because there was an early leak, he posted the album’s music on YouTube early for fans to enjoy. Alas, though, the streaming version was only available temporarily (so no longer posted here). Despite the confusing drama around the release, fans still rejoiced.

The album’s cover features a sword in a disco ball with dripping blood, hinting this music is for dancing, influenced by disco. The title track title is a nod toward a certain president’s hat while signaling that the music is about havin fun, “Make America Fuk Again.” While it may seem like Simpson has diverted drastically from his country roots, the album still features his strong songwriting and Simpson has always defied categorization. On first listen the album also seems to be capturing the joy from his recent tours heavily influenced by jam bands.

Simpson is releasing the album Mutiny After Midnight on physical media on March 13, 2026. Buy it, play it loud, and get up and dance.

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Marty Brown’s Son Christian Brown Auditions on “American Idol”

Singer-Songwriter Marty Brown supported his son Christian Brown as he auditioned on “American Idol,” singing one of his father’s songs.

Marty Brown and son Christian Brown on American Idol

We have posted a lot about country singer-songwriter Marty Brown over the years. We have noted that he has passed down his talents which he inherited from his parents to his children. In addition to Brown’s daughter Emma Grace Brown who has a great singing voice, his son Marty Brown Jr. released an excellent album with his band Maceo that we reviewed. And now, Marty’s son Christian Brown recently auditioned on American Idol.

Marty appeared on the episode with Christian, who sang one of our favorite Marty Brown songs, “Wildest Dreams.” As Christian explained, the song ,which appeared on the father’s debut album High and Dry in 1991, is about a parent’s love for their children. Still, it was a bold song choice, as judges usually prefer well-known popular songs. But Christian showed his authenticity in selecting a song written and recorded by his father decades ago.

Though maybe the song choice was not too much of a risk as it is a great song (not to mention he likely sang other songs not shown on the TV broadcast). Either way, it was worth it many viewers to hear the song for the first time while seeing Marty so proud of his son. The father’s pride choked me up a bit.

Did the judges vote to advance Christian to the next round? Check out the video below.

Update: For those of you wondering why you haven’t seen Christian Brown on later episodes of American Idol, Marty explained on his Facebook page that Christian had to withdraw from the competition. Christian Brown’s baby son had to undergo surgery, so his father decided to withdraw from the competition and its demanding schedule so he could be with his son while he recovers. We wish Christian’s son a speedy recovery and look forward to music from Christian in the near future.

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Bruce Springsteen Releases New Protest Song About ICE Protests: “Streets of Minneapolis”

Bruce Springsteen quickly responded to the killings by ICE in Minneapolis with the song, “Streets of Minneapolis.”

Like many Americans, Bruce Springsteen has been watching recent events and the deaths in Minnesota while people in Minneapolis continue to protest President Trump’s influx of ICE officers. In response, Springsteen very quickly wrote and recorded a song about the protests and the deaths of Renee Good and Alex Pretti.

Along with the song, Springsteen released the following statement:

I wrote this song on Saturday, recorded it yesterday and released it to you today in response to the state terror being visited on the city of Minneapolis. It’s dedicated to the people of Minneapolis, our innocent immigrant neighbors and in memory of Alex Pretti and Renee Good. Stay free, Bruce Springsteen

Of course, it is difficult to write a protest song so quickly and folks may debate whether they like the song as a song. And it is sure to draw the ire of Trump supporters. But either way one must hand it to an artist who recognizes their position and ability to put themselves out there for the less fortunate in spite of knowing many listeners will criticize him for taking a stand.

Oh our Minneapolis, I hear your voice,
Singing through the bloody mist;
We’ll take our stand for this land,
And the stranger in our midst;
Here in our home they killed and roamed,
In the winter of ’26;
We’ll remember the names of those who died,
On the streets of Minneapolis.

Update: Below is the official video for “Streets of Minneapolis,” directed by Thom Zimny.

Springsteen is not the only songwriter paying attention to the events in Minneapolis. Billy Bragg also wrote a protest song called, “City of Heroes.“

Springsteen has often spoken out regarding Donald Trump. And “Streets of Minneapolis” is not Springsteen’s first statement on the ICE protests in Minnesota. Earlier in January at a concert, Springsteen dedicated a performance of “The Promised Land” to Renee Good, calling on ICE to leave Minneapolis: “If you believe you don’t deserve to be murdered for exercising your American right to protest; then send a message to this president.”

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