Just like when she was alive and performing, the love for late local singer/songwriter Katie Reider has been strongly evident since her death from a rare tumor last summer. The Web site 500kin365.org — which allows music lovers the chance to download a compilation of Katie’s music for a $1 donation — has helped keep Katie’s spirit and music alive, with 80,000 people participating.  

There is now no question as to who is the hardest-working man in showbiz. In what appears to be an effort to never spend a second off stage or out of a recording studio, Jack White has formed yet another “side project.” Scary thing is, once again, it’s a fantastic project.  

While looking at the countless New Year’s Eve options Wednesday night and seeing the bloated cover charges, you may be thinking of a night at home with a case of Pabst Blue Ribbon and watching, uh, whoever counts down the ball-drop in Times Square these days (are they still propping Dick Clark up this year?).  

It takes nature thousands of years to make a brilliant green emerald. It only took Sammy Wulfeck, Brian Kitzmiller, Peter Underhill and Ric Hickey a matter of days to make The Emeralds. And from the start, they were brilliant in spite of being green..   

With the MidPoint Music Festival a glorious memory, we turn our attention to the next big local music event - the Cincinnati Entertainment Awards. The nominees have been announced; go to citybeat.com to see the full list. Vote now before you start worrying about that other little voting thing coming up in November.  

From humble improvisational beginnings with more of those good ol’ shining naturals than you could shake a bloody dollar bill at, it was sometime in 2002 when The Sundresses became the big name on the flyer and began capturing eyes, ears and minds almost immediate ly.   

With so many entries in his day planner, it's hard to believe that Pollard has any time left to merely talk about them. But he found a couple of moments to take a breather and discuss his current activities (and his hopes for the Bengals this season)..   

Though a less common instrument in Jazz than saxophone or drum set, congas are nevertheless an important ingredient of a form of music that bears the dubious moniker, Latin Jazz.  

"(Touring) again in America is actually quite refreshing," Harris said says in a recent phone interview. "You go back to basics again. You get reminded what it was like starting off in the U.K. And so that's exciting. "Obviously the rooms are smaller and the crowds are smaller, but it makes no difference," he continues.  

I don't think I've ever written anything about Jake Speed without mentioning Woody Guthrie. Call me lazy, but the political Folk pioneer is such an obvious influence on Speed's songs and lyrics it almost seems dishonest not to mention it.