James Rotondi is the former Editor-in-Chief of Future Music magazine, and his interviews and criticism have appeared in Spin, Rolling Stone, Guitar Player, Mojo, and The Boston Phoenix, among others.
As a musician, he has played with the rock groups Mr. Bungle, the French band Air, and jazz-hop pioneers the Grassy Knoll. He also sings, plays and composes for albums and television; you can hear his politically-charged guitar stylings on the current season of Dirty Sexy Money. Rotondi’s debut solo album, “Summer Home,” is being released this fall by Volumnia Recordings (myspace.com/rotovybe).
Raised in a political family, Rotondi is the grandson of three-term Massachusetts governor and former Ambassador to Italy, John A. Volpe. He has lived in Paris, Rome, San Francisco, and Boston, and currently rabble-rouses in the liberal bastion of New York City.

Blog Entries by James Rotondi

Obama's Catholic Baptism By Fire

Posted May 19, 2009 | 05:10 PM (EST)


"The Day the Dome Was Tarnished Forever."

So read the backs of T-shirts worn by some number of anti-choice protesters during President's Obama's visit to the Catholic University of Notre Dame over the weekend to deliver a commencement address, one which took a typically civil, sensitive and conciliatory stance...

Read Post

We're in a "Repression": The Economics of Shame

Posted December 8, 2008 | 12:38 PM (EST)


If the current recession started last December, as the latest findings from the National Bureau of Economic Research clearly indicate, then it stands to reason that, considering things have gotten a lot worse since then, we're a lot closer to a depression than anyone has realized. Perhaps we're not quite...

Read Post

Bush and Obama: What Really (Might Have) Happened

Posted November 11, 2008 | 11:56 AM (EST)


"Yo, Barackulator -- you want a brew?"

President-Elect Barack Obama looked up at George W. Bush, the lame-duck 43rd President of the United States, who'd just ushered him into a private meeting in the Oval Office while their wives continued a tour of the White House. On this, his first...

Read Post

The Tears Were Real; Palin Was A Pawn

Posted November 6, 2008 | 12:57 PM (EST)


Maybe I'm just a sucker, or perhaps some misplaced machismo makes me want to defend damsels in distress (even ones who can take down a moose), but watching Sarah Palin tear up during John McCain's concession speech Tuesday night, I actually felt a twinge of sympathy. "Nonsense," my tough, liberal-fighter...

Read Post

Thanks for the Warning GOP; We'll Keep That in Mind!

Posted November 2, 2008 | 01:44 PM (EST)


You've got to give real credit to these sensible, noble Republicans, who, forced to watch their presidential candidate's campaign begin an ignoble nose-dive, have been gracious enough to warn American voters against the dangers of letting the Democrats gain control of both houses of Congress as well. Just this...
Read Post