Music

Rodrigo y Gabriela's cover of "Stairway To Heaven" is one of 100 instrumentals in this playlist.

Music & Culture

Enough Talk: 100 Instrumental Jams To Clear Your Head

12:35pm November 04, 2020

There's been a lot of talking recently. A lot of words. A lot of people talking, arguing, debating, shouting slogans at you. So today we present a giant playlist of songs with no words.

"I don't think they understand that I am not a patient man," Win Butler of Arcade Fire sings in "Generation A."

Music & Culture

Arcade Fire Returns With 2020's First Big Post-Election Protest Anthem

11:14am November 04, 2020

by Stephen Thompson

The band gave fans a rousing preview of "Generation A" as part of Stephen Colbert's election-night special.

Baron Wolman, photographed on Aug. 2, 2011 in New York for the release of his book The Rolling Stones Years.

Baron Wolman, Rolling Stone's First Staff Photographer, Dies At 83

7:43pm November 03, 2020

by Tom Moon

Wolman was the gifted eye behind countless iconic photographs of legendary artists, including Jimi Hendrix, the Grateful Dead, Miles Davis and Johnny Cash, and the tumult of the first Woodstock.

A still from Dinner Party's video for "Freeze Tag."

Music & Culture

Dinner Party 'Freeze Tag' Is A Reminder Of Life's Fragility

4:39pm November 03, 2020

by Marcus J. Moore

This video, part of our 'We Insist' timeline of 2020's noteworthy protest music, was released Oct. 29.

Tracy Chapman performs on Late Night with Seth Meyers on Nov. 2, 2020.

Music & Culture

Tracy Chapman Returns To Sing Of 'Revolution' On The Eve Of Election Day

7:56am November 03, 2020

by Stephen Thompson

In her first TV performance since 2015, the singer-songwriter performs "Talkin' Bout a Revolution," the opening song from her classic 1988 debut.

Music & Culture

Tiny Desk Concerts To Calm Your Mind, Vol. II

5:00am November 03, 2020

by Bobby Carter

Take a deep breath.

Music & Culture

From Springsteen To Stevie Wonder, Veteran Musicians Capture The Moment

1:40pm November 02, 2020

by Ken Tucker

Three new songs from established acts speak to the times: "Ghosts," by Bruce Springsteen; "Can't Put It in the Hands of Fate," by Stevie Wonder; and "Didn't Want to Be This Lonely," by The Pretenders.

Queue Listen Now

Swirling is the first album in over 20 years from the Sun Ra Arkestra, now led by 96-year-old saxophonist Marshall Allen.

Music & Culture

On 'Swirling,' Marshall Allen Keeps The The Sun Ra Arkestra Soaring Through Space

12:43pm November 02, 2020

The 96-year-old saxophonist, who began playing with Sun Ra in the late '50s and continued to lead the Arkestra after its namesake's death, discusses the band's first album in more than 20 years.

Queue Listen Now

Grateful Dead's American Beauty (seen here in a 50th anniversary edition from Rhino Entertainment) is the shared obsession of two NPR staffers born decades apart.

Music & Culture

Two Deadheads, From Two Generations, On 'American Beauty' At 50

9:35am November 01, 2020

by Isabella Gomez Sarmiento

One lived through the Grateful Dead's heyday; the other was born after Jerry Garcia died. Alt.Latino host Felix Contreras and NPR producer Isabella Gomez Sarmiento trade notes on a shared obsession.

Sharon Van Etten's "Let Go" is featured in October's edition of Heavy Rotation.

Music & Culture

Heavy Rotation: 9 Songs Public Radio Can't Stop Playing

11:00am October 31, 2020

This October, NPR member stations bring you a mix of the most popular songs on their airwaves, including music from Nilüfer Yanya, Sierra Ferrell, Sharon Van Etten, Ani DiFranco and more.