Music & Culture

John Paul White performs live at the Lyric Theatre in Birmingham, Ala.

Music & Culture

In Birmingham, John Paul White Shares Songs And Stories

12:51pm June 10, 2017

The Alabama musician played the music you hear between stories during Weekend Edition's live broadcast from Birmingham. Here, he performs two songs from his latest solo album, Beulah.

Queue Listen Now

Music & Culture

Birmingham's Place In Rock 'N' Roll History

8:14am June 10, 2017

"Birmingham Bounce" was a pop song by Sidney "Hardrock" Gunter. Some people consider it the first rock 'n' roll record ever produced.

Queue Listen Now

Music & Culture

A Special Request: 'Birmingham Jail'

8:14am June 10, 2017

by Scott Simon

Scott Simon has a special request for musical guest John Paul White: the song "Birmingham Jail," also known as "Down in the Valley."

Queue Listen Now

Songwriter Norro Wilson. Wilson died Thursday at age 79.

Music & Culture

Remembering Country Music Hitmaker Norro Wilson

4:51pm June 09, 2017

by Andrew Limbong

One of Nashville's greatest all-around contributors — the songwriter and producer who worked with everyone from Tammy Wynette and Charlie Rich to Kenny Chesney and Shania Twain — has died, aged 79.

Queue Listen Now

Nat Hentoff is Marian McPartland's guest on this 2006 episode of Piano Jazz.

Music & Culture

Nat Hentoff On Piano Jazz

4:37pm June 09, 2017

Host Marian McPartland honors the prolific jazz critic by performing a "Portrait Of Nat Hentoff" in this 2006 broadcast.

Emily Haines' new album, Choir Of The Mind, comes out Sept. 15.

Music & Culture

For The First Time In A Decade, Metric's Emily Haines Goes Solo

4:15pm June 09, 2017

by Stephen Thompson

In 2006, the singer took a break from the dance-pop group Metric to record solemnly gorgeous solo music. In September, she and her band The Soft Skeleton will return with Choir Of The Mind.

Music & Culture

Across the Blue Ridge #76- The New Ballard’s Branch Bogtrotters

4:00pm June 09, 2017

by Paul Brown

This week we hear a fabulous Muddy Creek Music Hall stage performance from The New Ballard's Branch Bogtrotters, one of the finest mountain string bands performing today.

Queue Listen Now

Music & Culture

Stream SZA's Clear-Eyed Debut Album, 'CTRL'

3:55pm June 09, 2017

by Lars Gotrich

SZA's CTRL is here, a resolutely confident and skillful R&B album that explores the notions of control and honesty. Travis Scott, Kendrick Lamar and Isaiah Rashad guest.

Taylor Swift performs during her 1989 world tour.

Music & Culture

Taylor Swift Returns To Spotify, Amends Her Relationship To Streaming

3:12pm June 09, 2017

by Andrew Flanagan

The pop superstar announced her 'return' to streaming, but it's more complicated than that.

Music & Culture

SiriusXM Invests $480 Million In Pandora

1:59pm June 09, 2017

by Andrew Flanagan

A month after Pandora drew a private equity lifeline, the company gets a more sizable infusion from a company that's long coveted the digital radio pioneer.