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By GARRETT COTE

NORTHAMPTON — Ally Yamada and Sofia Rosa sat on the floor of Ainsworth Gymnasium behind the group of 16 Smith College women’s basketball players as Pioneers assistant coach Jen MacAulay broke down film on Smith’s NCAA Division III Final Four opponent, Wisconsin-Oshkosh, on Monday afternoon.

By JOAN AXELROD-CONTRADA

I was scrolling through my Google feed (that algorithm really gets me in ways that are both spooky and oddly comforting) when, kaboom, a headline fired up my inner skeptic. “Good Vibrations by The Beach Boys (scientifically) makes people happier than any other song,” it said.

By JOAN AXELROD-CONTRADA

It started, like so many profound revelations do, in the car, with a canine companion and the radio tuned to my favorite oldies station.

By JOAN AXELROD-CONTRADA

Life is like a washing machine – complete with cycles and plenty of agitating to get at the messy stuff. If I were a songwriter (spoiler alert: I’m not), I’d pen a catchy tune about that simile, weaving together verses and a killer refrain set to the...

By JOAN AXELROD-CONTRADA

Isn’t it funny how a song can sound completely different depending on your mood, life stage, and views on love? Take “I’m a Believer” by the Monkees, for example.The first time it played, I was a starry-eyed preteen with dreams of Monkee-love. The...

By JOAN AXELROD-CONTRADA

True confessions: I constantly struggle with the notion of living in the present, a mindset The Grass Roots embraced in their classic-rock hit “Let’s Live for Today.”As much as sage after sage has touted such advice, I’ve always had a soft spot for...

By JOAN AXELROD-CONTRADA

I was happily relishing my new state of singledom when “Human Touch” by Bruce Springsteen sounded on my Amazon Alexa.The song stirred something in me. Something I wasn’t sure I wanted to hear. Something confusing (especially given my public...

By JOAN AXELROD-CONTRADA

Linda Ronstadt’s 1967 song “Different Drum” came out during a time of changing gender roles in our country.While the commitment-phobic Peter Pan had long garnered praise as a ladies’ man, the woman who bucked expectations of domesticity got saddled...

By STEVE PFARRER

Time was when summer theater in the Valley was typically produced by a number of mainstays, including Chester Theatre Company, New Century Theatre, and the Ko Festival at Amherst College.But New Century Theatre shut down a few years ago, as did the Ko...

By JOAN AXELROD-CONTRADA

Every time I hear “One Tribe” by the Black Eyed Peas my idealistic and dance-happy sides unite in sonic bliss.I picture everyone coming together in some magic club beaming the feel-good vibes of the boundary-busting band, washing away all our...

By STEVE PFARRER

Ada Limón made history in 2022 when she became the first Latina to become U.S. Poet Laureate. And last year, she became just the second national poet laureate to have her term extended for another two years.Now Limón, a MacArthur Fellow and the winner...

By JOAN AXELROD-CONTRADA

Anyone who’s ever kept a journal can relate to the song “Dear Diary” by the Moody Blues.The tune came out in 1969 at the height of my adolescent angst. I poured my misery into a pocket-sized pink diary with a lock to keep away prying eyes. Like the...

By JOAN AXELROD-CONTRADA

Every time I hear the classic song “Money” by Pink Floyd, I think about my complicated relationship with the almighty dollar.Who hasn’t felt pushed and pulled between the seductive power of our currency and its ability to crush us? Not surprisingly,...

By TARA JACOBS

It has been a great honor, privilege and pleasure to serve my district on the Governor’s Council, and I look forward to continuing to do this work for a long time to come. My campaign for reelection is underway, and I hope to earn my seat once again...

By STEVE PFARRER

AMHERST — Over 30 years ago, Glenn Siegel, then working as a jazz DJ at WMUA-FM at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, went to talk to Frederick Tillis, the director of the university’s Fine Arts Center. Siegel and some other jazz DJs at the...

By EMILY THURLOW

EASTHAMPTON — Residents who live in six Easthampton Housing Authority properties will soon decide whether to form a tenants organization to represent them — a move that, if successful, would be the first such organization formed since the housing...

By AMANDA DRANE

NORTHAMPTON — A city attorney is among the first graduates of a leadership program offered by the Massachusetts Bar Association.Jesse Adams, who served for seven years on the Northampton City Council, stands among the new program’s 21 fellows who...

By RICHIE DAVIS

Republican state Senate candidate Christine Canning has described herself as “a pit bull with lipstick” and the political byproduct of “a father who’s a left-wing Democrat and a mother who’s a right-wing Republican.” The Lanesborough educational...

By RICHIE DAVIS

After beating back two challengers in the Democratic primary in September, Adam Hinds of Pittsfield is involved in a two-party race for a state Senate seat.The 40-year-old Buckland native and Mohawk Trail Regional High School graduate has repeatedly...