MTV.com News — Legendary keyboardist joins Best New Artist winners on their hit song 'Chicken Fried.'By MTV News Staff Leon Russell performs at the 2010 Grammy Awards Photo: Michael Caulfield/ WireImage Leon Russell, the wispy keyboardist who guested wit... more info

Allmusic Blog — Arriving a year after the British Invasion kick-started and two years before the Summer of Love, 1965 sometimes gets overlooked among the great years of the '60s, but a convincing case could be made that it showcases how creatively fertile the decade... more info

Altsounds — Titling her third album *Sweet Heart Rodeo* might appear a calculated risk but singer-songwriter *Dawn Landes*, Kentucky-born and Brooklyn-based, swears she didn't have the Byrds' pioneering 1968 country-rock classic "Sweetheart of the Rodeo" in mind... more info

Guardian Music — Last week was all about heading downstream. This time, we want you to suggest songs that push you out of your comfort zoneIt turned out to be an unusual week. The augurs were there when comments were set to close in 2009, a gaffe for which I'd like t... more info

411 Mania — Drummers seldom move successfully from behind their snares and cymbals into the solo spotlight. Gene Parsons, long time stickman for The Byrds, gave it a shot, and the results are the focus of this week's Thrifty Tunes. more info

Guardian Music — Last week was all about enduring alcohol-induced headaches. Now we want you to row, row, row your boat gently down the streamIt feels (just like) starting over. Or it feels like it's still Christmas. But it's not. It's nigh-on mid-January. It's froze... more info

Pitchfork - Forkcast — We've been following Washington D.C.-via-Brooklyn artist Byrds of Paradise for a little while, and we've just gotten word of a release to follow up the "Rowena" 7" we shared with you last year. Recorded with Jarvis Taveniere of Woods, "Omega Man" ... more info

Stereogum — Violens is a band with great taste. That, and it's not often a pop group can include Ulver and Burzum in their list of influences and find a way to back it up sonically. Outside the metal, their frozen blend of Durutti Column's spacious post-punk ... more info

Live Daily — In 1985, after countless hit records, Grammy nominations, American Music Awards, and gold and platinum albums, J.D. Souther [ tickets ]--one of the principal architects of Southern California country-rock--decided to walk away from his solo career, s... more info

Guardian Music — It's a big challenge for any songwriter: can you capture that moment when a life changes forever, asks Rob Fitzpatrick?It's a big challenge for any songwriter: can you capture that moment when a life changes forever?Some things stick with you your ... more info