Jazz critic Kevin Whitehead reviews a new reissue of recordings by Artie Shaw's quintet, the Grammercy Five, which went through a lineup changes over the years. He says it reveals the seriousness of Shaw's search for greatness.
Pianist Kenny Barron says that the late jazz musician's style was jagged, percussive and dissonant. Barron performs some of Monk's compositions to demonstrate this innovative approach.
Writer Mark Ribowsky has a new biography on the prolific and reclusive record producer, called He's a Rebel. Phil Spector innovated new studio techniques; his airy, heavily-overdubbed music helped form the California sound. Ribowsky also describes Spector's severe, domineering personality, and his frustration with changing trends in pop music.
Critic Ken Tucker reviews the Oscar-winning 1943 film, which was credited with galvanizing support for the Allies during World War II. Contrary to some contemporary attitudes toward the movie, critic Ken Tucker says Mrs. Miniver critiques, rather than celebrates, bourgeois life.
Raitt's first album in three years, called Nick of Time, was produced by Don Was of the band Was (Not Was). Rock critic Ken Tucker says its diverse songs showcase the singer and guitar player's rich voice and increasing accessibility.
That's the claim of oceanographer Dr. Robert Ballard, who says we've explored less than 1% of the deep sea. Ballard has made dozens of dives in manned submersibles, and has been instrumental in the development of research based on robotic, tele-presence. He joins Fresh Air to share some of the discoveries he's made throughout his career.
Stephen Schiff says that the sequel to Fletch is a bad movie that viewers can still enjoy once they acclimate to its pacing. Star Chevy Chase also delivers a better performance this time around, in part because he finally embraces his strengths as a character actor.
Ted Schultz edited a new book called The Fringes of Reason, which compiles conflicting opinions of supernatural, New Age, and cosmological world views. Schultz is now studying entomology, which he says is related to his curiosity about what is and isn't real.
Peter Conrad studied in Englad on a Rhodes scholarship, but grew up in Tasmania -- an island once used as an Australian penal colony. His new memoir, about his return to his home country, is called Behind the Mountain.
Critic and composer Gunther Schuller's new book, The Swing Era, examines the history of big band music. Though he is already a jazz enthusiast, Schuller says he researched his book as if he had no prior knowledge of the genre, hoping to craft a more comprehensive and objective account of that its development.
Classical music critic Lloyd Schwartz reviews a new recording of the Estonian composer's version of the Passion of St. John. He says that its simplicity reveals surprises, and that, even at 70 minutes, the piece never grows tiresome.
William and Jane Tubman are American scholars of the Soviet Union's politics and literature, respectively. Their new book, Moscow Spring, documents their six months in the country during the reforms of Perestroika and Glasnost under the Gorbachev administration.
Lovett plays country music, but he's heavily influenced by rock and roll and jazz. His newest album, Lyle Lovett and His Large Band, takes its cue from the big band era.
Many listeners aren't familiar with the New Orleans pianist Professor Longhair, but his songs have had a profound influence on the current generation of Louisiana musicians. Rock historian has this profile.
John Irving began his career writing short books that were critically-acclaimed but commercially unsuccessful. His more sprawling novels, beginning with The World According to Garp, proved to be more popular. Book critic John Leonard reviews Irving's latest, A Prayer for Owen Meany, which he says is fatalistic, religious, and unexpectedly funny.
The 1960 broadcast of the musical, starring Mary Martin in the titular role, returns to television. TV critic David Bianculli says, watching it again, he clapped right along with his two young children.
Jazz critic Kevin Whitehead says a new album by Connie Crothers and the Lennie Popkin Quartet features predictable, snaking melodies, but, like their mentor Lennie Tristano, they keep up the intensity beneath their cool exterior.
Award-winning book reviewer Jonathan Yardley has recently published a memoir called Our Kind of People, about his family, his parents' marriage, and WASP culture. He says that, at the age of 47, he was finally able to see his mother and father as people -- not just his parents. He joins Fresh Air to talk about his book, as well as his work as a critic.
