Madeleine Peyroux, Leroy Carr, Vashti Bunyan : All Songs Considered Early folk music pioneer Elizabeth Cotten; "Urban" blues forefather Leroy Carr; A psychotic reaction from Michael Powers; Traditional Chinese zheng artist Hong Ting and more.

Madeleine Peyroux, Leroy Carr, Vashti Bunyan

Madeleine Peyroux, Leroy Carr, Vashti Bunyan

Audio will be available later today.

Early folk music pioneer Elizabeth Cotten; "Urban" blues forefather Leroy Carr; A psychotic reaction from Michael Powers; Traditional Chinese zheng artist Hong Ting; Music of the Thai Elephant Orchestra; Returning 1970s folk artist Vashti Bunyan; A final farewell from Guided by Voices. Featured Artist: Madeleine Peyroux.

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Madeleine Peyroux, Leroy Carr, Vashti Bunyan

Careless Love

Madeleine Peyroux, Leroy Carr, Vashti Bunyan

Audio will be available later today.

Dance Me to the End of Love

  • from Careless Love
  • by Madeleine Peyroux

Madeleine Peyroux is perhaps known best for sounding like Billie Holiday. On this CD, Peyroux covers songs made popular by Holiday as well as cuts from Leonard Cohen, Elliott Smith and Bob Dylan.

Shake Sugaree

Madeleine Peyroux, Leroy Carr, Vashti Bunyan

Audio will be available later today.

Shake Sugaree

  • from Shake Sugaree
  • by Elizabeth Cotton

Elizabeth Cotten was just eleven years old when she wrote one of the most popular folk tunes of all time: "Freight Train." Her work is remembered on this new collection from Folkways.

Whiskey Is My Habit, Women Is All I Crave

Madeleine Peyroux, Leroy Carr, Vashti Bunyan

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I Believe I'll Make a Change

  • from Whiskey Is My Habit, Women Is All I Crave: The Best of Leroy Carr
  • by Leroy Carr

Pianist Leroy Carr pioneered a style known as "urban" blues in the 1930s, a slightly more polished and less intense approach than the rougher styles of country blues. Carr's work has inspired everyone from Robert Johnson to Eric Clapton and Jimmy Page.

Onyx Root

Madeleine Peyroux, Leroy Carr, Vashti Bunyan

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Psychotic Reaction

  • from Onyx Root
  • by Michael Powers

Blues guitarist Michael Powers has performed with James Brown, Bo Diddley and Johnny Winter. On this CD Powers offers a half a dozen original tunes but also a few covers from artists like Muddy Waters and Willie Dixon. This song was originally released in 1965 as a psychedelic tune from the band Count Five.

Chinese Traditional Zheng Music

Madeleine Peyroux, Leroy Carr, Vashti Bunyan

Audio will be available later today.

Lotus Out of Water

  • from Chinese Traditional Zheng Music
  • by Hong Ting

Hong Ting performs on an ancient Chinese stringed instrument called a zheng. Its origins can be traced back more than two thousand years.

Elephonic Rhapsodies

Madeleine Peyroux, Leroy Carr, Vashti Bunyan

Audio will be available later today.

The Ganesha Symphony: The Birth of Ganesha

  • from Elephonic Rhapsodies
  • by Thai Elephant Orchestra

These Thai elephants were trained to hold mallets and strike xylophones, steel pipes and tubular bells, improvising their own songs.

Just Another Diamond Day

Madeleine Peyroux, Leroy Carr, Vashti Bunyan

Audio will be available later today.

Iris' Song for Us

  • from Just Another Diamond Day
  • by Vashti Bunyan

British folk singer Vashti Bunyan originally released this album -- her only full length record -- in 1970. It received little attention and Bunyan soon dropped out of music all together to start a family. Now, more than 30 years later, this rare collection of songs is finally being reissued on CD.

Half Smiles of the Decomposed

Madeleine Peyroux, Leroy Carr, Vashti Bunyan

Audio will be available later today.

Everybody Thinks I'm a Raincloud (When I'm Not Looking)

  • from Half Smiles of the Decomposed
  • by Guided By Voices

Jangle pop rockers Guided By Voices have been making music for nearly 20 years. This year (2004) they startled fans by announcing plans to break up. This is their final album, with a farewell tour scheduled to wrap up on New Year's Eve.