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A Class Jazz Song Spurs a Spiritual Awakening

Author and poet Al Young reads some of his autobiographical writing about the African American experience in the 1930s, and the cultural impact Coleman Hawkins' recording of "Body and Soul" had on his family.

41:34
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Other segments from the episode on May 16, 1989

Fresh Air with Terry Gross, May 16, 1989: Interview with Jessica Mitford; Commentary on the song "Body and Soul"; Interview with Susie Bright; Commentary on San Francisco.
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28:27

Radical Writer Jessica Mitford

Mitford grew up in a wealthy English family. She cultivated her leftist politics early in life, and became an anti-fascist activist. She joins Fresh Air to talk about her relationship with the Communist Party during the McCarthy era, her early book about the death industry, and growing older.

Interview
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09:47

Susie Bright Celebrates Women's Sexuality

Contrary to many other feminist activists, Bright believes that the anti-pornography movement discourages women from exploring their sexuality and developing what she calls an "erotic literacy." She edits the S&M-themed magazine On Our Backs, which revels in fantasies that are at once controlled and dangerous.

Interview

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16:12

Poet Al Young on Being a Black Writer

Young has been accused of not truly reflecting the black experience in his writing because he is not militant. Instead. Young employs humor as means of protest. He often bases his characters on parodies of white stereotypes of black people. He is most noted for his poetry and novels, but has also written musical memoirs and screenplays. His new book is "Heaven: Collected Poems 1956-1990."

Interview
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09:26

Presenting a Wide Array of African American Voices

Al Young was a singer and guitar player before he became writer. His books incorporate his jazz and film influences, as well as his experiences growing up outside white, mainstream culture. His new book, about a black actress, is called Seduction by Light.

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Daughter of Warhol star looks back on a bohemian childhood in the Chelsea Hotel

Alexandra Auder's mother, Viva, was one of Andy Warhol's muses. Growing up in Warhol's orbit meant Auder's childhood was an unusual one. For several years, Viva, Auder and Auder's younger half-sister, Gaby Hoffmann, lived in the Chelsea Hotel in Manhattan. It was was famous for having been home to Leonard Cohen, Dylan Thomas, Virgil Thomson, and Bob Dylan, among others.

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