Music

Rock historian Ed Ward profiles Louis Jordan. Between 1930 and 1950, Jordan spearheaded the rhythm and blues sound. He was one of the very first crossover artists, appealing to both blacks and whites. Ed focuses on the Louis Jordan who pioneered rap music.

Independent jazz producer Orrin Keepnews. For the past 30 years he's produced the music of jazz artists like Thelonious Monk, Bill Evans, McCoy Tyner and Wes Montgomery. He was the founder of two important jazz labels, Riverside Records and Milestone Records. This year, he won a Grammy for the liner notes of a new box set of the complete Riverside recordings of Thelonious Monk.

Jazz Critic Kevin Whitehead reviews "Cracked Sidewalks" the new album from tenor saxophonist Rich Halley and his sextet. Halley lives in Oregon, a reminder, Kevin says, that not all jazz is spawned in New York.

Ian Whitcomb, an Englishman in love with American music. Since first coming to the United States in the early 60s, he has devoted his career to promoting and keeping alive the tradition of American popular song, particularly those from the Tin Pan Alley era.. His new book, Irving Berlin and Ragtime America, salutes the music of Irving Berlin, who will celebrate his 100th birthday this year.

Rap star Kool Moe Dee. When he first started rapping on park benches in the lat 70s, rap was a fad few believed would stick. Now rap has gone mainstream. Kool Moe Dee is considered the dean of the old school.

Rock critic Ken Tucker reviews "Now and Zen," the new album by Robert Plant, former leader singer of the super group Led Zeppelin.

Jazz singer Cassandra Wilson. When she moved to New York City in the early 80s, she decided to put her singing career behind her and concentrate on her family. She is now the best-known of several emerging female jazz singers. Her new album is titled "Days Aweigh."

Classical music critic Lloyd Schwartz reviews a recording featuring famed Italian tenor Placido Domingo singing pop songs like "Yesterday" and "Maria."

Rock historian Ed Ward profiles the glitter rock band The New York Dolls. Their front man was David Johansen, who has since recast himself as the martini-swilling crooner Buster Poindexter.

Part two of an interview with singer and songwriter David Frishberg, who composed pop hits like "Peel Me a Grape" and "I'm Hip." He'll also perform on the piano.

Jazz Critic Kevin Whitehead reviews "Your Eyes," the second big band album by the Norwegian pianist and composer Per Husby.

A song about apartheid from Tony Bird, a white African singer who grew up in the country of Malawi.

Jazz singer, songwriter David Frishberg. This is the first part of two-part interview. Throughout the 60s, Frishberg wrote songs like "I'm Hip" and "Peel Me a Grape." Then in the early 70s, he started singing his own songs. Frishberg will also play a few songs throughout both parts of the interview.

Rock critic Ken Tucker reviews "Rock of Life," by Rick Springfield and "Til My Heart Stops," by Lisa Hartman, two TV stars trying to make the rock charts. Springfield plays a doctor on the daytime soap "General Hospital;" Hartman is a cast member of the evening soap "Knot's Landing."

Classical music critic Lloyd Schwartz reviews a new CD that captures the legendary maestro Arturo Toscanini leading the NBC Symphony Orchestra in rehearsals of the second and third acts of Verdi's "La Traviata."

Rock historian Ed Ward profiles the career of soul great Percy Sledge. Ed says there was much more to Sledge than his hit "When a Man Loves a Woman."

Gary Giddins, jazz critic for The Village Voice and author of the books Celebrating Bird: the Triumph of Charlie Parker, and Rhythm-a-ning: Jazz Tradition and Innovation in the 80s. He is the founder of the American Jazz Orchestra, which performs important and neglected jazz works of the past.

Jazz Critic Kevin Whitehead reviews "Easily Slip Into Another World," the latest album by saxophonist Henry Threadgill and his sextet. Whitehead says that more than any other current jazz composer, Threadgill mixes strains from all phases of jazz history.

Television Critic David Bianculli shares his favorite current TV themes, the music that helps establish a show's identity before anything happens on the screen.

Jazz composer and conductor Bill Lee. He composed the scores for the films "She's Gotta Have It" and "School Daze," both written and directed by his son, Spike Lee. "School Daze," Spike Lee's most recent film, is loosely based on his experiences at Moorehead College in Atlanta, the same college Bill Lee and his father attended.