Music

Rock Critic Ken Tucker will review the novelty song "Elvis is Everywhere," by Skid Roper and Mojo Nixon.

Classical music critic Lloyd Schwartz will review two albums of Gershwin songs: "Kiri Sings Gershwin," by Kiri Te Kanawa, and "Gershwin Overtures," by John McGlinn.

Rock historian Ed Ward will look at Cal-Mex music - the sound from East L.A. - and the legacy of "La Bamba."

Rock historian Ed Ward will look back at the Chantels, a 50s group of five New York teenagers whose exquisite harmonies drew comparisons with classical youth choirs.

Jazz pianist Marian McPartland. Though British-born, white and a woman, McPartland has had a forty-year career in a profession that is largely male and black. She is heard on many National Public Radio stations in her popular series with leading jazz artists.

Jazz Critic Francis Davis will review "Birth of a Notion," the first album by Shadow Vignettes, a 25-member ensemble, led by Chicago-based saxophonist and composer Edward Wilkerson.

Rock Critic Ken Tucker will review "Bad," the new Michael Jackson album.

Classical music critic Lloyd Schwartz will review a Nonesuch recording featuring 95-year-old pianist Mieczyslaw Horszowski.

Celebrated by critics and opera aficionados, the singer is finally reaching a larger audience with recent recordings, like her CD of Schubert, Hayden, and Mozart lieder. She joins Fresh Air to talk about her technique, and the differences between singing lieder and opera.

Few people are familiar with the Canadian guitarist, who doesn't often record. After listening to Greenwich's new, Coltrane-inspired album, jazz critic Francis Davis hopes he's resurfaced for good.

Soprano saxophonist Steve Lacy. He is midway through a rare U.S. tour. He now lives in Paris. His spans traditional jazz, including compositions by Thelonius Monk and more contemporary composers.

Humorist Alfred Gingold describes the sensation of sorting through a sprawling record collection with a loved one.

Singer Jane Voss and pianist Hoyle Osborne will perform an original composition.

Blues and country musician Roy Bookbinder joins Fresh Air to talk about his career on the road and the issues involved with being a white singer performing traditionally black music. He plays several songs in-studio.

The jazz musician served time for crimes related to his heroin addiction. He left prison with his chops intact--he was often able to practice sax and perform for his fellow inmates.

Ken Tucker thinks that a new album by the Washington, D.C.-based band Trouble Funk might help prove that the genre is more than just a passing fad.

Classical music critic Lloyd Schwartz reviews a new collection of piano pieces written by women in the early 20th century, and performed by Virginia Eskin. Schwartz says it's a delightful listen and an important social history.

Booker T. and the M.G.'s guitarist Steve Cropper cowrote and played on countless soul music hits during the 1960s. While he focuses more on producing nowadays, his musical legacy endures. Rock historian Ed Ward tells his story.

Poet Mark Halliday is inspired as much by popular culture and music as he is by the work of other poets. His latest collection is called Little Star.