Nick DeRiso is UCR's assistant managing editor, and author of 'Journey: Worlds Apart.' He has been named columnist of the year five times by the Associated Press, Louisiana Press Association, and Louisiana Sports Writers Association, and previously oversaw a daily newspaper section that was named Top 10 in the nation by the AP.
Nick DeRiso
The Biggest No. 1 Rock Songs of the ’70s
It wasn't easy staying atop the Billboard Hot 100 for three or more weeks.
Classic Rock’s 20 Worst Lyrics
Some are bad poetry, while others spark head-scratching confusion. Still others are just plain wrong.
Rolling Stones Album Art: The Stories Behind 27 Famous LP Covers
Their narrative could often be broadly understood from the vantage point of any local music-store shelf.
Doors, Motley Crue and Faces Top Black Friday Record Store Day
Grateful Dead, Joni Mitchell and Gov't Mule also part of a long list of gift ideas for the holiday season.
35 Years Ago: Keith Richards’ ‘Talk Is Cheap’ Saves the Rolling Stones
Solo debut provided definitive proof that there was still an audience for his old band.
40 Years Ago: Self-Titled LP Begins Genesis’ Turn Away From Prog
A new era was clearly beginning.
Classic Rock Artists Who (Allegedly) Ripped Somebody Off
Musicians appropriate ideas from everywhere, sometimes to the point where a court of law calls it stealing.
50 Years Ago: Roger Moore Becomes a New James Bond for ‘Live and Let Die’
"I never saw what the fuss was about," he later said. "Hundreds of actors have played Hamlet."
40 Years Ago: U2 Dives Headlong Into Love With ‘Two Hearts Beat as One’
Their third album 'War,' like all other wars, still had time for a flicker of passion.
35 Years Ago: Pink Floyd Softens Stance With ‘On the Turning Away’
Hit single displayed an ardent optimism that Roger Waters had struggled to inhabit.
35 Years Ago: ‘Less Than Zero’ Soundtrack Confronts Music’s New Landscape
Newer, more aggressive sounds were pushing aside so-called classic rock, and Rick Rubin was standing at the nexus of it all.
50 Years Ago: ‘Talking Book’ Begins Stevie Wonder’s Amazing Run
This would be the first of his eight straight Top 5 hit albums.