All artwork by Adam Watkins

Ed. Now that the dust has settled on this weekend' three-day Tower Groove LP release epic, we'd like to leave you with one last thought about the collective (for now). Hopefully this information on the artwork adorning the vinyl you bought will give you something to think about as you're spinning through its 21 tracks.

The newly minted musicians' collective Tower Groove Records is still in its infancy, but its 22 bands (so far) and four founders have big ambitions for its future. Or at least open minds. But before they released any music, last weekend's double-LP compilation included, they needed a logo that would speak equally for all of those first bands and the score that will feature on the next record. Below, Tone Rodent's Adam Watkins walks RFT Music through the symbolism of the group's artwork, both accidental and overt -- and what exactly is going on in the album cover above.

More >>

There are plenty of musicians who died before getting definitive time in the musical spotlight. Tega -- a rapper who was affiliated with Nelly's St. Lunatics -- is sadly in that category, as he passed on while he was in the midst of climbing the musical ladder.

Tega -- whose real name was Oretga Devon Henderson -- was part of Da Camp, a rap group that often performed with Nelly and Murphy Lee. By 2009 the group had put out some mixtapes and was in the process of completing a full-length album.

But by the end of May of that year, Tega had died after succumbing to injuries sustained in a shooting.

More >>

Castle Ballroom St. Louis Facebook page

Will a thoughtful developer bring the Castle Ballroom back into working shape?

The Castle Ballroom - one of St. Louis' few remaining links its jazzy musical past - is in need of a buyer. And despite some challenges, boosters see potential to rehabilitate the facility to its former glory.

Located at 2839 Olive St., the Castle Ballroom was one of the first dance halls that targeted an African-American audience. The building hosted a number of legendary musical acts such as Miles Davis, Louie Armstrong, Jimmy Forest, Clark Terry, Ernie Wilkins, Duke Ellington and Count Basie.

More >>

BeatlesTrivia.com

George Harrison spent a small part of 1963 visiting his sister - Louise Harrison - in Benton, Illinois.

Beatlemania is arguably the most expansive musical frenzy in modern history, so it's not surprising that places big and small would try to latch on to every bit of the Fab Four's legacy.

But it may be a revelation to some that the mania extended to Benton, Illinois, a smallish town located in the Land of Lincoln's nether regions. George Harrison spent a small part of 1963 visiting his sister, who had moved to America after marrying a mining engineer. George stayed at Louise Harrison's 113 McCann Street bungalow for a short time before jettisoning off into rock immortality.

More >>

Overshadowed in death by the passing of Don Cornelius of Soul Train, St. Louis R&B and gospel singer David Peaston also died on February 1, 2012, from complications from diabetes. He was 54.

Peaston was part of St. Louis gospel royalty. His mother was Martha Bass, singer in the foundational gospel group the Clara Ward Singers, and his sister was Fontella Bass, who needs no introduction.

With his agile, deceptively devastating high tenor voice, Peaston received his break after a move to New York and his celebrated appearances on the Showtime at the Apollo TV series. His signature performance number was "God Bless the Child," a song that he utterly transformed, drawing on jazz scatting and a creamy phrasing that would boil over into something else entirely, something only a very great sacred singer can harness and set free.

More >>

RFT File Photo

Mississippi Nights threw its final jam session on January 19, 2007. The venerable venue near the Mississippi River hosted a wide assortment of legendary artists over its history.

In theory, music venues are interchangeable. If one especially great place shuts down, another spot surely will rise elsewhere.

But there's something disquieting about the closure of an especially memorable venue. Even years later, I'm still bummed about how Shattered - a Columbia, Missouri, institution - was, well, shuttered. A pool hall just isn't a suitable substitute for an up-and-coming band or an outstanding 80s night.

More >>

RFT File Photo

Thursday lead singer Geoff Rickly screams up a storm at a 2009 show at The Pageant. The post-hardcore group announced in November that it will be going on an indefinite hiatus.

Thursday may have been the next big thing in rock music. But at a 2009 show at the Pageant, they were an afterthought

Those 23 words may seem hyperbolic. After all, how many times has some dorky music "expert" declared some rock band "the next big thing?" But Thursday was literally declared one of "the next big things" when Spin Magazine put lead singer Geoff Rickly on their cover in 2004.

At the time, the designation seemed apt. The New Brunswick outfit's album War All Time debuted at number seven on the Billboard 200. Their prior album, Full Collapse, had become a paramount example of "screamo" - which blended the fast-paced violence and melodic professionalism of post-hardcore music with, well, screaming.

But nearly seven years after that issue hit newsstands, Thursday is soon to be no more. The band put out a statement in November announcing its indefinite hiatus, saying "despite the fantastic year that the band has enjoyed, creatively, things haven't been as easy for us on a personal level."

More >>

Michael Dauphin

MU330 at the Firebird in June.

It's fairly common to see local bands get back together over the winter holiday season. With people taking time off work to come home to their families, it only makes sense to plan a reunion show somewhere around Thanksgiving to New Year's Eve. That said, it's still mildly shocking to see four St. Louis powerhouses from the '90s make their way back to the stage this year. Celery, Fragile Porcelain Mice, Not Waving But Drowning and MU330 are all playing shows before 2011 draws to a close. Here's why you should care:

More >>

Courtesy of Karen Dean

A young Mel Bay with a guitar

If you learned how to play guitar sometime during the past 50 years -- unless you took lessons in a cave -- you have learned something from Mel Bay. The one person he couldn't teach, at least directly, was his son, 66-year-old Bill Bay, who peppers his speech with the phrase "gee whiz" as he discusses his father's legacy: Mel literally wrote the book on learning guitar. "Music was everywhere," says Bill.

"We didn't do well with me as a student and him as a teacher because I realized in very short order I could never make a mistake," says Bill, who took lessons instead from one of Mel's students. The common number of links between a modern guitar player and Mel Bay is frequently just one. "He would say let me show you how it goes and then it would end up being a concert. But it was a great one. Gee whiz, most of the people who play and love guitar probably don't know that Dad helped them get there."

On June 30, Mel's legacy will be rewarded with his addition to the St. Louis Walk of Fame.

More >>

wikimedia commons

Gene Clark, founding member and songwriter for the Byrds, died on May 24th, 1991: Twenty years ago. Clark was raised in Tipton, Missouri, graduated from high school in Bonner Springs, Kansas and got his start playing in bands in the area. He is most well known for his work with the Byrds, when he wrote "Eight Miles High" "I'll Feel a Whole Lot Better", "Set You Free This Time", "Here Without You", "If You're Gone" and "Here Without You," among others. He had a generally unsuccessful solo career and eventually wound up in a legal dispute with Byrd's co-founder Roger McGuinn over the rights to use their old band's name.

More >>