Terry Gross

Ochs has one of the world's largest private collections of record covers. He has a new book collecting covers from the 1950s to the 1990s, "1000 Record Covers" (Taschen Publishers, Germany). He talks with Terry Gross about his favorite recordings though, and brings them for us to hear.

Mary Gordon is the author of several bestselling novel about the conflicts facing contemporary women. Her 1996 memoir, "The Shadow Man: A Daughter's Search for Her Father," was released in paperback last month (Vintage Books). In the book she writes that at the age of 44, she discovered she wasn't the person she thought she was. As she researched her father, she discovered truths about him that forced her to rethink who she is. Gordon's father died when she was seven. (REBROADCAST FROM 05/14/1996)

Actress Glenn Close. This summer she stars in the thriller "Air Force One," and recently she starred in the World War II film about women prisoners of war "Paradise Road." Last winter she played Cruella De Vil in Disney's "101 Dalmations." Before taking up this role, she appeared on Broadway in "Sunset Strip." Close has appeared in a number of films including: "Fatal Attraction," "The Big Chill," "The Natural," "Dangerous Laisons." (REBROADCAST from 11/27/96)

INT. 2: French Composer Michel Legrand. He composed the score for the 1964 classic French film, " The Umbrellas of Cherbourg." which is now out on video. In the film every bit of dialogue is sung to Legrand's music. It was recently restored; for years it was unavailable because no decent print existed.

Garfield has reported on the oddities of America for "All Things Considered" and in his syndicated column. His new book "Waking Up Screaming from the American Dream" (Scribner) is a collection of stories about the bizarre measures people have taken to live the American dream.

The music of singer, songwriter, and guitarist Matthew Sweet is a mix of pop and alternative and has been likened to Revolver-era Beatles. His albums have enjoyed international critical and popular success. In his newest album, "Blue Sky on Mars" (Zoo Records), Sweet sings both lead and background vocals, as well as playing most of the guitars, keyboard, and bass.

Ingrid Labarbiera is the mother of Amy Barbiera, the subject of the HBO documentary "Heart of a Child." The film documents a year in the life of four year old Amy, who at such a young age had a heart/double lung transplant, and then seven months later another double lung transplant. Amy later died. The film's producers are Karen Goodman and Kirk Simon. "Heart of a Child" airs Thursday, June 12 at 8 PM on HBO.

McCarriston is the author of several books including "Eva-Mary" which is a collection of poems about the domestic abuse that McCarriston, along with her mother and brother, suffered at the hands of her father. She reads and talks about her poem "Last Frontier," about her relocation to Alaska.

Earlier this year, 75 year old South Carolina resident Mary Moran had the unique opportunity to go to Sierra Leone with other members of her family. Moran's mother had taught her a song in an African language which had been in the family since an ancestor had been brought over from Africa two hundred years ago. In 1989, through the efforts of anthropologist Joseph Opala and ethnomusicologist Cynthia Schmidt, it had been discovered that this song, composed in the Mende language, was still sung by certain villagers in Sierra Leone.

Michael Hashim talks about and and shares a recent recording of a rare and newly discovered composition of Billy Strayhorn "Up There." The composition had previously been recorded as the tune "Skippy." Strayhorn was best known for his collaborations with Duke Ellington.