Ella Fitzgerald's Early Years Collected In A Chick Webb Box Set
"This is it," Webb said of Fitzgerald. "I have a real singer now. That's what the public wants."
Music & Culture
Indie-Pop Albums That Make The Cut Are More Than Mere Collections
This week we're looking back at the year in music with a peek at NPR Music's 50 Favorite Albums of 2013. It's the annual list assembled by our in-house experts, including NPR music writer and editor Stephen Thompson. He tells Audie Cornish about his picks in the world of indie pop.
Remembering Jim Hall, A Different Sort Of Guitar God
The guitarist said he didn't "really have all that much technique anyway," but it was clearly enough to influence half a century of jazz musicians. Peers and proteges like Sonny Rollins, Julian Lage and John Scofield reflect on one of the finest ever on his instrument.
A Nostalgic — But Bumpy — Journey With The Beach Boys
In 2012, the band became another rock group that was celebrating its 50th anniversary. This year, it released Made in California, an eight-hour, six-disc retrospective of their career that, perhaps inadvertently, shows how this once-great force in American popular music faded from public view.
Review: Jonas Kaufmann Sings Wagner And Verdi
At 44, the German tenor Jonas Kaufmann may be the most popular tenor of his generation in the international opera world, and one of the most versatile. Among his recordings this year are albums dedicated to both Verdi and Wagner, celebrating the bicentennials of their birth.
Jason Isbell: A 'Southeastern' Songwriter's Path To Sobriety
The country-rock musician's new solo album is deeply personal, drawing on issues like recovery from a battle with alcoholism that peaked during his time with the band Drive-By Truckers.
Why Would Nick Lowe Make A Christmas Album? Ask Nick Lowe
The esteemed UK songwriter says the idea of making a holiday record seemed laughable at first. He tells NPR's Arun Rath how he came around, and performs a few songs from the new Quality Street: A Seasonal Selection for All the Family.
On Becoming Llewyn Davis, A Hero Who Excels At Failing
Actor Oscar Isaac disappears into the title role of the new Coen brothers film, Inside Llewyn Davis, a black comedy about a '60s folk singer who just can't make it, no matter what he does. He speaks with NPR's Melissa Block about playing the less-than-likable character.
Pharrell Williams Blurs Lines With Daylong Music Video
Multi-music hyphenate Pharrell Williams hit it big earlier this year with the song, "Blurred Lines," which he co-wrote. Now Williams has blurred the lines of what makes a music video. The 24-hour-long music video for his new single, "Happy," has people dancing and lip-synching down Hollywood Boulevard in Los Angeles as the song loops over and over. Mimi Valdes, Williams' creative director, was on set for every day of the 11-day shoot, and she tells Robert Siegel and Melissa Block about the process.
Songwriter Clegg On Mandela, South Africans' 'Bridge'
Renee Montagne talks to South African musician Johnny Clegg about his relationship with Nelson Mandela, who died Thursday at age 95. Clegg says his banned 1980s song that named Mandela and became an anthem came to him one day when he woke to gunshots and wondered "who can bridge you and me, every South African."