Pop

Lyricist and composer Johnny Mercer -- born Nov. 18, 1909 -- wrote or co-wrote more than 1,000 songs, including American Songbook standards like "Skylark," "That Old Black Magic" and "Come Rain or Come Shine." HIs Academy Awards tally includes a statue for what's possibly his most famous tune, "Moon River." Fresh Air marks the anniversary of his birth with an in-studio concert starring Rebecca Kilgore and Dave Frishberg.

La Roux is a British pop duo -- 21-year-old singer Elly Jackson and synth player--producer Ben Langmaid -- with a style that blends passionate vocals with strict mechanical beats. The pair's self-titled album went No. 1 in England and Europe this year, and now it's out stateside. Rock critic Ken Tucker reviews.

What This Is It lacks in tactful timing, it makes up for with perspective on Michael Jackson's backstage life. Although Jackson's star persona stays front and center, critic David Edelstein says director Kenny Ortega makes a real effort to show us the performer's human side — a treat that makes the King of Pop all the more stellar.

McKay's Normal as Blueberry Pie is "eccentric yet utterly disarming," says rock critic Ken Tucker. McKay's admiration for Doris Day isn't really a surprise — both artists are cheerful and underrated — and on this album the two seem like "sisters in bright-eyed intelligence."

Rock critic Ken Tucker reviews Dennis Diken's new album Late Music. Diken, the drummer for the Smithereens, has recorded this project with a group called Bell Sound.

Whitney Houston's new album I Look To You is her first new release since 2002. Rock critic Ken Tucker says that while the pop-music landscape is not as she left it, Houston's new work fits right in.

Ellie Greenwich, who co-wrote some of the most popular songs of the early 1960s for the girl groups produced by Phil Spector, died Aug. 26 from a heart attack. In this interview, rebroadcast from 1986, Greenwich discusses the highlights of her career.

The second full-length album from the Providence, R.I.-rooted band Deer Tick is called Born On Flag Day. Fresh Air rock critic Ken Tucker has a review.

Jazz critic Kevin Whitehead reviews The Complete Tony Bennett/Bill Evans Recordings, a two-CD set from Concord Music Group.

Fresh Air TV critic David Bianculli remembers pop icon Michael Jackson, who died Thursday in Los Angeles. He was 50.

Singer, songwriter and performer Janelle Monae earned a Grammy nomination for her 2007 album Metropolis, and caught the eye of Sean "Diddy" Combs, who signed her to his Bad Boy roster.

Rock critic Ken Tucker looks back on American Idol's most recent season, when Adam Lambert and Kris Allen vied for the top spot. He says the wrong aspiring idol won.

Pop legend Prince has a new triple-album release called Lotusflow3r. It features two solo albums by Prince and a debut album by Bria Valente, co-written and co-produced by Prince. Rock critic Ken Tucker has a review.

Long a standout purveyor of rootsy, direct "heartland" rock, Mellencamp is in the midst of a folksy, pessimistic streak on his new album. He speaks to host Terry Gross about the spare sound and dark themes of Life, Death, Love and Freedom.

Will Oldham's new album Beware, released under his country music name, Bonnie Prince Billy, offers lovely music with a tinge of "lonesome-cowboy pokiness." Ken Tucker has a review.

Actor Idris Elba is best known for his portrayal of a drug dealer on HBO's The Wire, but he will play a very different role as Michael's boss on NBC's The Office.

Antony Hegarty, lead singer for Antony and the Johnsons, has a striking sound — "between male and female ... at once ethereal and earthy," one critic writes. The group's new CD is The Crying Light.

Rock historian Ed Ward considers pop music produced at Ardent Studios in Memphis in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Much of the music wasn't heard any farther than the city limits.

Singer Billy Paul was the voice behind the hit song Me and Mrs. Jones. He died April 24 at the age of 80. The songwriting duo Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff remember writing the song. And we hear the song.

Rock critic Ken Tucker reviews a trio of new pop singles: Pink's "So What," Beyonce's "Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)," and "Crush," from onetime American Idol sensation David Archuleta.