Country Star George Jones Dies
Starting in 1959 and for decades after, he recorded some of country's greatest songs, including "He Stopped Loving Her Today." Jones was 81.
Music
In Lucius, Two Singers Find An Arresting Harmony
The New York band's sound veers from girl-group pop to sunbaked psychedelia. NPR's Arun Rath speaks with singers Holly Laessig and Jess Wolfe, whose entwined vocals are what make the group stand out.
Can I Kick It? Organ Master Lonnie Smith Can
As a bandleader in the 1960s and '70s, Smith wrote timeless music — and secured that label during the '80s and '90s, when hip-hop producers sampled his work left and right. NPR's Arun Rath speaks with Smith on the occasion of a new album that revives the out-of-print gems of a six-decade career.
Sales Take Center Stage: To Boost Morale, Companies Burst Into Song
Industrial musicals were like Broadway shows, only written and performed for corporate sales meetings or conventions. And as ridiculous as the songs were — "My bathroom, my bathroom is a private kind of place" — they were often delivered by very talented people.
Striking Harmonies With The Jubilee Singers' Past And Present
The Fisk Jubilee Singers are known for their near-perfect voices and performances of African-American spiritual songs. Now the choir's musical director is on the road, mentoring to young groups across the South. He's also hoping to preserve the songs too.
Vince Giordano: The Fresh Air Interview
Giordano has been obsessed with 1920s jazz since he first heard it on his grandparents' Victrola. His band the Nighthawks performs the music heard on the HBO series Boardwalk Empire.
'I Built The Platform Myself': M.I.A. On Being Heard
While making the new album Matangi, the singer-rapper discovered she had a divine counterpart: a Hindu goddess who shares both her birth name and her taste for self-expression. She speaks with NPR's David Greene about fame, war and controversy.
Digital Music, In The Truest Sense
Like a tap dancer of the hands, Darren Drouin slaps, clicks, claps and snaps his way to YouTube stardom. He even includes a tutorial on "freestyle finger snapping" so you can snap your own tune.
Amir ElSaffar Navigates Uncharted Blue Notes On 'Alchemy'
Alchemy is a step forward in defining and refining the trumpeter's mix of jazz and Iraqi rhythms.
Accordions, Beer And God: Zydeco In Gran Texas
If it's Sunday in Houston, get ready to dance up and down the aisle at church. Zydeco music is the soundtrack to spirit-filled parties fueled by beer, boudin, and red beans and rice. It's a joyful continuation of a decades-old tradition.