Shadow Classics A Lively Dispatch from 'The Latin Motown' February 21, 2007 • Like many at the Fania label, salsa bandleader Ray Barretto recorded quickly and often: Barretto Power is one of four albums he released in 1972. Some, inevitably, are duds, but this one is incandescent, exemplifying the label's genre-crossing creativity.
Music News China Embraces Reggae; Will Its Message Follow? February 19, 2007 • Bob Marley's classic album Legend is now on sale in China, nearly a quarter century after it was released in the West. Now the search is on for a Chinese reggae superstar. We meet some hopefuls. The question: will reggae retain its political underpinnings in China, or is it all about the rhythm? China Embraces Reggae; Will Its Message Follow? Listen Toggle more options Download Embed Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/7489307/7489310" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Transcript
China Embraces Reggae; Will Its Message Follow? Listen Toggle more options Download Embed Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/7489307/7489310" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Transcript
Review Music Reviews Ali Farka Toure's Son Carries Musical Torch February 16, 2007 • The great African guitarist Ali Farka Toure discouraged his children from following him into the music business. But one of his sons secretly learned to play the guitar anyway. Now Vieux Farka Toure has released his first album. Ali Farka Toure's Son Carries Musical Torch Listen Toggle more options Download Embed Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/7447949/7447950" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Transcript
Ali Farka Toure's Son Carries Musical Torch Listen Toggle more options Download Embed Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/7447949/7447950" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Transcript
Concerts World Showcase from Disney Concert Hall February 16, 2007 • Three continents find voice in this showcase of sounds from Disney Concert Hall. The diverse show includes a women's group of Bulgarian folk singers, a Balinese gamelan ensemble and, from Africa, Les Ballets Africains, a troupe of drummers, singers and dancers.
Arts & Life British Soul Singers Lovingly Revive a Genre February 6, 2007 • The British have had a long love affair with American soul music. The Motown and Stax labels were popular in the London clubs of the 1960s, while "rare grooves," or obscure singles, were fuel for the Northern Soul movement of the 1970s and 1980s. These days, the British are making their own soul music. British Soul Singers Lovingly Revive a Genre Listen Toggle more options Download Embed Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/7226740/7226741" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Transcript
British Soul Singers Lovingly Revive a Genre Listen Toggle more options Download Embed Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/7226740/7226741" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Transcript
World Cafe Linton Kwesi Johnson: Reggae's Premier Poet XPN February 1, 2007 • Often hailed as the world's first reggae poet, Johnson started releasing albums of his own poetry in 1978. He went on to release many collections of poetry and writing, and also to expand his horizons in music, exploring spoken word and a cappella reggae. Linton Kwesi Johnson: Reggae's Premier Poet Listen Toggle more options Download Embed Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/7103147/7122123" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
Linton Kwesi Johnson: Reggae's Premier Poet Listen Toggle more options Download Embed Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/7103147/7122123" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
Music The Songs You Can't Buy on iTunes February 1, 2007 • The popular iTunes music store is home to a treasure trove of tunes that most of us have never heard. You can use iTunes to listen to — but not purchase — music from countries as disparate as Japan and Greece. The Songs You Can't Buy on iTunes Listen Toggle more options Download Embed Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/7115685/7115688" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Transcript
The Songs You Can't Buy on iTunes Listen Toggle more options Download Embed Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/7115685/7115688" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Transcript
World Cafe 'Rhythms Del Mundo': Pop Music Gets Worldly XPN January 24, 2007 • The album combines Cuban sounds with well-known musicians to create a unique fusion of pop and world music. For the series' first release, the Cuban band Buena Vista Social Club laid down new instrumental tracks that blend and engage with popular songs from Sting, Coldplay, Radiohead, Jack Johnson and more. 'Rhythms Del Mundo': Pop Music Gets Worldly Listen Toggle more options Download Embed Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/7003208/7003398" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
'Rhythms Del Mundo': Pop Music Gets Worldly Listen Toggle more options Download Embed Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/7003208/7003398" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
World Cafe Refugee All-Stars: Sounds from Sierra Leone XPN January 17, 2007 • The Refugee All-Stars formed after civil war forced a collective of Sierra Leone musicians into refuge in the Republic of Guinea. The 11 performers, led by vocalist and songwriter Reuben Komora, were discovered in a documentary film by Zach Niles and Banker White. Refugee All-Stars in Studio on World Cafe - 01/17/2007 Listen Toggle more options Download Embed Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/6893111/6893511" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
Refugee All-Stars in Studio on World Cafe - 01/17/2007 Listen Toggle more options Download Embed Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/6893111/6893511" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
Music Bole2Harlem: Hearing Ethiopia in New York January 15, 2007 • In the '70s, Ethopia's capital, Addis Ababa, was awash in a hypnotic blend of Ethiopian rhythms, American jazz and European pop. When the ruler Haile Selassie died, so did the music scene. Now the Ethiopian sound is re-emerging — in New York. Bole2Harlem: Hearing Ethiopia in New York Listen Toggle more options Download Embed Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/6782870/6836045" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Transcript
Bole2Harlem: Hearing Ethiopia in New York Listen Toggle more options Download Embed Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/6782870/6836045" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Transcript
Concerts Mônica Salmaso in Concert January 12, 2007 • Born in Sao Paulo in 1971, Mônica Salmaso has surfaced as one of the best young voices in Brazil. At the Disney Concert Hall, she gives a dazzling performance of sensual, rhythmically-inflected Brazilian popular songs, including a Beatles favorite and an "Ave Maria" with a Brazilian twist.
Review Song Of The Day '1000 Mirrors': Affirmation and Accusation January 9, 2007 • Where the song was once built around trippy beats and Sinead O'Connor's husky tones, Badi Assad's voice takes on the semblance of a cry, signifying both pain and a call for attention. The agitated strings and percussive guitars signify a sense of disquiet, pulling in and out of the dominant Brazilian groove.
Music Trio Plays Music for a Nordic Winter Wonderland January 1, 2007 • Three musicians from the Washington, D.C.-area celebrate the new year with a performance of traditional Nordic music on violin and string bass. The latest CD from Andrea Hoag, Loretta Kelley and Charlie Pilzer is Hambo in the Snow, which has been nominated for a Grammy. Trio Plays Music for a Nordic Winter Wonderland Listen Toggle more options Download Embed Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/6697302/6697773" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Transcript
Trio Plays Music for a Nordic Winter Wonderland Listen Toggle more options Download Embed Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/6697302/6697773" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Transcript
Arts & Life '9' from Damien Rice Follows a New Path December 29, 2006 • Irish singer/songwriter Damien Rice won fans around the globe with his debut CD, simply titled O. In the four years since then, Rice has teased his adoring fans with a few small releases. But he has finally released a second studio album, 9. '9' from Damien Rice Follows a New Path Listen Toggle more options Download Embed Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/6697854/6697855" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Transcript
'9' from Damien Rice Follows a New Path Listen Toggle more options Download Embed Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/6697854/6697855" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Transcript
Studio Sessions Rahim Al Haj's Odyssey with the Oud December 23, 2006 • The ancient stringed instrument has taken the Iraqi musician from Baghdad to New Mexico. He talks about his journey and his new CD, When the Soul Is Settled: Music of Iraq. Rahim Al Haj's Odyssey with the Oud Listen Toggle more options Download Embed Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/6668452/6668481" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Transcript
Rahim Al Haj's Odyssey with the Oud Listen Toggle more options Download Embed Embed <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/6668452/6668481" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Transcript