Music

Rap vocalist Darryl McDaniels of RUN-DMC talks about the group's success. McDaniels is the "DMC" of the group. They were the first rap group to earn gold, platinum and multi-platinum albums. Their most recent album is "Down with The King" released in 1994. But RUN-DMC is expected to release their next album later this year. The group is credited with bringing new fashions, new dances, and new language to popular culture.

In honor of Fresh Air's 10th anniversary as a national show, musician Dave Frishberg performs an original song, commissioned by the show's staff.

Composer Alf Clausen is the man behind the music of "The Simpsons." There's a new compliation CD of music from the animated cartoon TV series, "The Simpsons: Songs in the Key of Springfield" (Rhino).

Rock historian Ed Ward profiles Bob Wills, who helped define the western swing sound while in the band The Texas Playboys.

Critic Milo Miles remembers singer/songwriter Laura Nyro, who died this week.

Critic Milo Miles considers the music made by reggae's cult figure Lee Perry and England's producer Mad Professor: "Who Put the Voodoo 'Pon Reggae" and "Dub Take the Voodoo Out of Reggae" (both on the RAS label).

Critic Milo Miles reviews "I Can't Lose" (Blind Pig label), the new recording of blues singer, guitarist and songwriter Deborah Coleman.

In light of the deaths of rappers Biggie Smalls and Tupac Shakur, a discussion on the culture of rap and the violence that surrounds it with Chicago police officer Eric Davis. He's a member of the rap group the Slick Boys. Davis and two other officers founded the group in 1991 to provide positive role models for the inner-city kids they encountered on their jobs every day. The group has received national acclaim for their songs about the importance of getting an education and staying off of drugs and out of gangs.

Levin is a teacher in the Music Department of Dartmouth College and a longtime follower of the music of the Celtic lands, the Balkans, South Siberia, and other cultures. His new book "The Hundred Thousand Fools of God: Musical Travels in Central Asia" traces how the music of a culture lives through and reflects the lives of its people. He looks at how the Russian conquest of Central Asia at the end of the 19th century affected the music of the area.

Critic Milo Miles on experimental acoustic guitarist John Fahey. Fahey's latest album is "City of Refuge."