Billy Corgan, complicated frontman of The Smashing Pumpkins, has had a tumultuous decade-and-a-half. His visit to the Tiny Desk, with a string quartet backing him, was anything but.
In introducing the winner of a lifetime achievement award for songwriting, ceremony host Jim Lauderdale called Morrison a "brilliant artist who has deeply moved and influenced a generation."
The band has new tools in its arsenal, but even in a stripped-down Tiny Desk performance, its focus on tiny moments between people just outside of love is as sharp as ever.
An announcer told the audience at an outside theater in Paso Robles, Calif., that the Morrissey show was postponed because it was too cold and the stage heater was broken.
With the help of a backing band that includes Ivan Neville and Jenny Scheinman, the iconic singer-songwriter plays three songs from across her tough and uncompromising career.
The hip-hop statesman walked through our doors greeting and charming anyone within arm's reach. Once in front of an audience, he was in attack mode, including a unique rendition of his signature hit.