David Yaffe

David Yaffe was a professor of humanities at Syracuse University. He was the author of three books; his most recent, Reckless Daughter: A Portrait of Joni Mitchell, was published in 2017. His Substack is Trouble Man: Musings of David Yaffe.

In Love We Disappear
Leonard Koan, boudoir poet
byDavid Yaffe
Lorrie Moore Laughs Wild Amid Severest Woe
A new novel from the master of wit and death offers solace for the massacre ahead
byDavid Yaffe
The Jenny Lewis Show
The indie star’s latest is a Bakersfield sound-drenched ode to self-destruction. Don’t say she didn’t warn you.
byDavid Yaffe
Pete Townshend’s Nose
Hope I get old before I die
byDavid Yaffe
In Bloom
A student remembers the great literary critic, who died this week at 89
byDavid Yaffe
Behind Bob Dylan’s Rolling Thunder Tour
When the voice of a generation became the man of a thousand masks, and what we—and he—lost
byDavid Yaffe
Life Lessons From Joni Mitchell
What one writer learned spending decades listening, and talking to, the legendary singer
byDavid Yaffe
Hello Darkness, My Old Friend
It has never been easy, even with all the accolades, to be Paul Simon. A new album, ‘Stranger to Stranger,’ shows the popular bridge-builder is still crazy after 74 years.
byDavid Yaffe
Another Window on Joni Mitchell From Her Jewish BFF, Malka Marom
Why the Israeli child of Holocaust survivors was the right person to hear the reclusive artist out and tell her tale
byDavid Yaffe
New York Jewish Jazz Genius Bill Charlap Channels Beauty and Truth in 88 Keys
Starting a two-week stand at the Village Vanguard, the lyrical master interprets song for his own purposes
byDavid Yaffe
How Much of This Author’s Weirdness Is Our Weirdness, Too?
In an interview, Rivka Galchen—who has a new collection out this week—channels Kafka, posing complex questions to herself, and us
byDavid Yaffe
It Takes a Lot To Laugh: The Parody and Pain of Beck
New ‘Morning Phase’—six years after his last album and 21 since becoming a loser, baby—shows the Gen-Xer just getting started
byDavid Yaffe
Lou’s Gift: The Magic of a Rock ’n’ Roll Poet
An encounter with legendary rock star Lou Reed, who died this weekend at 71
byDavid Yaffe
Paul McCartney’s ‘NEW’: The Jew-ish Beatle’s Bar Mitzvah Album
He can still give you earworms and warm fuzzy retro feelings. But at 71, is Macca now finally a man?
byDavid Yaffe
Shanah Tova From Donald Fagen
The genius of Steely Dan talks blacks, Jews, and Lenny Bruce—and his new record, Sunken Condos
byDavid Yaffe