Film composer Ennio Morricone, known for his use of harmonica and whistling on Western scores, has re-imagined his most popular sounds with help from the Czech National Symphony Orchestra.
We take a chronological audio stroll through 2016, looking at memorable moments and important releases with NPR Music's Ann Powers and Stephen Thompson.
The country star plays songs and talks with Fresh Air about his grandfather's work in the coal mines. Yoakam's latest album, Swimmin' Pools, Movie Stars ... features bluegrass versions of his hits.
Kevin Whitehead reviews a newly released recording of the '80 Montreal concert in which Dizzy Gillespie is joined by jazz legends Milt Jackson, Hank Jones, Ray Brown, James Moody and Philly Joe Jones.
The two will face off for Album Of The Year, along with Drake, Justin Bieber and Sturgill Simpson. Other top nominees include Rihanna, Kanye West and Chance The Rapper.
The chorus-less, frenetic power-pop song narrates a string of feelings — the laundromat, the grocery store, the angry dad, the White Castle — that regulate our existence.