Pop

Rock critic Ken Tucker reviews Emmylou Harris' new album, "Wrecking Ball." (Elektra/Asylum)

Rock critic Ken Tucker comments on the way rock music may be once again uniting people of different race and class again.

Pop star Boy George. In 1982, he and his band Culture Club first hit the charts with, "Do You Really Want to Hurt Me?" He has a new autobiography in which he says he got "trapped" in the image he created. His band feel apart, his relationship, and he developed a drug addiction. He's now recovered. He has a new autobiography, Take It Like a Man: The Autobiography of Boy George. (written with George O'Dowd, published by HarperCollins.) He also has a new release, "Cheapness & Beauty," (Virgin).

Rock critic Ken Tucker reviews Bjork's album "Post."

Record producer and musician Don Was. He co-founded the funk rock group, "Was (Not) Was." This year he won a Grammy for Producer of the Year. In addition, he's produced a number of albums for Bonnie Raitt (Was produced Raitt's "Nick of Time" album which revived her career), Rolling Stones, Lyle Lovett, Al Green, Iggy Pop, and the B-52's. He's ventured into documentary film production with "I Just Wasn't Made for These Times," about ex-Beachboy Brian Wilson. Was directed the film.

Rock Critic Ken TuckerR reviews Alanis Morissette's debut album "Jagged Little Pill" (Maverick).

Country singer Charlie Rich. He died, earlier this week, of a blood clot in his lung. Known as the "Silver Fox," (because of his premature gray hair) Rich got his start working with the Sun record label in the late 50s, writing tunes for Jerry Lee Lewis, Roy Orbison, and Johnny Cash. From there he began making records himself. In the 70s he reached his commercial peak with his country hits, "The Most Beautiful Girl," and "Behind Closed Doors." (REBROADCAST FROM 9/3/92).

Rock critic Ken Tucker reviews Michael Jackson's new album "History," which features new and old song by the controversy-dogged pop star.

Linguist Geoffrey Nunberg comments on a new CD of Elvis ballads sung in Latin by a Finnish singer.

TV critic David Biancullii reviews Diane Sawyer's interview with Michael Jackson and Lisa Marie Presley, which aired June 14th on ABC's "Primetime Live."

World music critic Milo Miiles reviews the Arab pop album "Sif Safaa: New Music From The Middle East."

Rock Critic Ken Tucker reviews Julian Schnabel's, new album "Every Silver lining has a Cloud."

Rock critic Ken Tucker reviews Joan Osborne's debut album. He says it's slick and cliched -- and a sign of what's to come in popular music.

Rock historian Ed Ward continues this week's five part series on the influence of several key record companies on the music world. Today, Ward looks at Casablanca, a big producer of disco hits, and its founder Nick Bogart.

Classical music critic Lloyd Schwartz reviews a five-cd set of all of the Oscar winning songs of the last 60 years.

Fresh Air rock critic Ken Tucker looks back at the music of Doc Pomus, who died in 1991. There's a new tribute album to him out, called "Till the Night Is Gone."

Ramone has been called the "Pope of pop," producing and engineering artists from Bob Dylan to Gloria Estefan, Paul McCartney, Barbra Streisand, Paul Simon, Billy Joel and dozens of others. Last year he produced Frank Sinatra's "Duets 2." Ramone has just finished recording a classical album with the Curtis Institute Orchestra and produced the cast recording of Stephen Sondheim's "Passion."

Rock critic Ken Tucker reviews the new solo album by slide guitarist Sonny Landreth, "South of I-10."

Johnson was a member of The Johnson Family, which sang gospel and country music for two decades. President Franklin D. Roosevelt was a fan; the group was invited to sing at his memorial service. Johnson went solo in the late-1950s, and was a regular on Don McNeill's "Breakfast Club" and Jack Paar's TV show. After making a dozen records, she left show business to raise a family and earn a degree in drama at Dartmouth. She has since returned to her singing career, with a cabaret act at The Oak Room. Her new album is called "A Family Affair."

Lowe's newest recording is "The Impossible Bird." In the early 1970s, he played London's pub rock scene in the band Brinsley Schwarz. After they broke up in 1975, Lowe produced five albums for Elvis Costello and worked with Dave Edmunds in the group Rockpile. He begins a national concert tour this month in the United States.