Robert Baird

A longtime resident of Brooklyn, NY, Robert Baird holds degrees in Creative Writing and Journalism from the University of Arizona in Tucson, AZ. He has spent the past three decades creating vital, appealing content both under his own byline and as editor. Eager to share his experience, Robert teaches music, film, and digital design at CUNY Hostos in the South Bronx, NY. His work has appeared in The Tucson Weekly, Rolling Stone, USA Today, Option, No Depression, Magnet, The Santa Fe New Mexican, Stereophile, Qobuz, and many other publications.


  • Review: Hollywood Records’ 3-LP Queen Rocks Montreal

    Despite the generational fade of classic rock, Queen continues to thrive. With Queen Rock Montreal remastered in Dolby Atmos, the band’s epic 1981 performance reaffirms why Freddie Mercury and company still command global reverence.

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  • Reviewed: Kamasi Washington’s Fearless Movement

    Kamasi Washington’s Fearless Movement is a bold, rhythm-driven opus mixing jazz, funk, soul, and hip-hop—but while its scope dazzles, its sheer scale raises questions about whether intimacy, not grandeur, is his next frontier.

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  • Thelonious Monk Brilliant Corners Review

    When Craft Records released a high-end reissue of Thelonious Monk’s Brilliant Corners, author Robert Baird contrasted its audiophile fidelity with the flood of inferior, budget public domain pressings—highlighting a clash between accessibility and sonic integrity.

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  • How Taylor Swift is Leading the Way

    Taylor Swift’s re-recording of 1989 (Taylor’s Version) isn’t just a chart-topping triumph—it’s a defiant, billion-dollar victory over an industry that tried to control her, solidifying her as pop’s most powerful force.

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  • Review: Little Feat / Sailin’ Shoes and Dixie Chicken 2023 Reissues

    Though never chart-toppers, Little Feat’s Sailin’ Shoes and Dixie Chicken—now reissued in deluxe remastered editions—prove that Lowell George’s fearless genre-melding vision still grooves with undiminished charm 50 years on.

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  • The Expanding Power of Women in Jazz

    From a dreamy Indiana barn to a mythical French serpent-woman, this trio of jazz-influenced albums—by Janiece Jaffe and Monika Herzig, Christine Jensen, and Cécile McLorin Salvant—showcases the vision and vitality women bring to modern jazz.

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  • Norah Jones’s “I Dream of Christmas”—A new Christmas classic?

    Norah Jones shines on I Dream of Christmas, blending warm production and soulful originals with holiday classics. Her standout single, “Christmas Calling (Jolly Jones),” may just earn a spot among modern seasonal staples.

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  • The new Beatles Revolver Special Edition remaster. Just wow.

    Revolver marked a turning point for the Beatles—and for fans like the author—where innocence gave way to innovation. Giles Martin’s 2022 remix reveals the album’s enduring brilliance with stunning clarity and dimension.

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  • The extraordinary jazz-plorations of pianist Jean-Michel Pilc

    Jazz pianist Jean-Michel Pilc, once a devoted audiophile with Linn and Naim gear, now favors simpler setups and live recordings, believing music—not the gear—should move us, whether it’s Mingus or McCartney.

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  • Is the CD making a comeback?

    With vinyl booming and CD sales rising for the first time in nearly two decades, the music industry is seeing physical formats claw back relevance—though whether it’s a blip or rebirth remains hotly debated.

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  • Blue Note Records Classic Vinyl Reissue Series—Is the word “audiophile” back in style?

    Blue Note’s Classic Vinyl Reissue Series delivers high-quality 180-gram LPs mastered by Kevin Gray, offering pristine sound from iconic jazz albums like Horace Silver’s 6 Pieces of Silver and Art Blakey’s The Big Beat. Audiophile vinyl is back—but with modern care and legacy.

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  • Beatles Let It Be Reissue—how good is this album, really?

    The Beatles’ final days remain endlessly debated, with new Let It Be reissues and Peter Jackson’s film offering fresh insights. Despite tensions and break-up rumors, recent releases reveal more joy, creativity, and a deeper look into the band’s last sessions.

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  • Bob Dylan dead and done? The Bootleg Series Vol. 16, 1980–1985

    Bob Dylan’s 1980s spiritual detour shocked fans with gospel-only sets and preaching. By 1983’s Infidels, he returned to secular music, backed by stellar musicians, showcasing renewed creativity despite mixed critical reception and early digital recording controversies.

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  • A family affair: great new jazz by Pat Metheny Group’s Lyle Mays and Aubrey Johnson

    Lyle Mays, the introspective sonic architect of the Pat Metheny Group, gets a fitting farewell in Eberhard—a sweeping, posthumous masterwork co-produced with his niece, Aubrey Johnson, whose voice helps carry Mays’s final vision home.

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  • The Best of Record Store Day: Bill Evans, Behind the Dikes

    One of the leading music business stories of the 21st century is the continued discovery, sonic restoration, and release of previously unknown recordings—either from the studio or the stage. As the constant advance in digital technology has reclaimed live tapes once thought to be sonically inferior, and refreshed forgotten or leftover studio recordings, record labels,…

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