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Wednesday

In Memoriam 2018: The Musicians We Lost

Soul singer Aretha Franklin poses for a portrait in 1964. Michael Ochs Archives/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images hide caption

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Michael Ochs Archives/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images

All Songs Considered

In Memoriam 2018: The Musicians We Lost

A look back at the extraordinary creative souls we lost in 2018, from producer Richard Swift and opera singer Montserrat Caballé to rapper Mac Miller and Aretha Franklin.

In Memoriam 2018: The Musicians We Lost

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Sunday

Friday

A Portrait Of A Subtly Changing Nashville From 25 Angles

Kacey Musgraves had one of country music's biggest albums of 2018, but it came only after she shrugged off any lingering obligation to pursue radio airplay. Christopher Polk/Getty Images for Stagecoach hide caption

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Christopher Polk/Getty Images for Stagecoach

More Best Music Of 2018

A Portrait Of A Subtly Changing Nashville From 25 Angles

If you look at it broadly, the country music scene can appear frustratingly stagnant, with little growth for women and trailblazers. But from every corner, a rising generation is making progress.

Thursday

George M. Cohan, 'The Man Who Created Broadway,' Was An Anthem Machine

A statue of George M. Cohan, prolific Broadway composer and performer, stands in New York's Times Square. Jewel Samad/AFP/Getty Images hide caption

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Jewel Samad/AFP/Getty Images

American Anthem

George M. Cohan, 'The Man Who Created Broadway,' Was An Anthem Machine

Cohan was a myth builder: Songs like "Yankee Doodle Dandy, "Over There" and "Give My Regards to Broadway" celebrated both life in early 20th-century America and the glowing allure of the stage.

George M. Cohan, 'The Man Who Created Broadway,' Was An Anthem Machine

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'I Like It Best When It's A Little Loud': Ann Powers' Favorite Live Shows Of 2018

Pussy Riot's performance at SXSW — one of Ann Powers' favorite concert experiences of 2018 — felt like an occupation of the senses. Hutton Supancic/Getty Images for SXSW hide caption

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Hutton Supancic/Getty Images for SXSW

More Best Music Of 2018

'I Like It Best When It's A Little Loud': Ann Powers' Favorite Live Shows Of 2018

Live music awakens mind, body and soul — and that's what we need more than ever this year. Ann Powers' favorite concerts of 2018 helped create a shelter from everyday life's disorganized noise.

Tuesday

Monday

Unfurling 'Sweet Home Alabama,' A Tapestry Of Southern Discomfort

Ronnie Van Zant in 1975, onstage with Lynyrd Skynyrd at the Omni Coliseum in Atlanta. Tom Hill/WireImage hide caption

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Tom Hill/WireImage

American Anthem

Unfurling 'Sweet Home Alabama,' A Tapestry Of Southern Discomfort

More than 40 years after its release, Lynyrd Skynyrd's Sweet Home Alabama is still one of the most recognized rock anthems celebrating the deep South. It's also a song with a complicated legacy.

Unfurling 'Sweet Home Alabama,' A Tapestry Of Southern Discomfort

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Saturday

Thursday

As 'Springsteen On Broadway' Closes, Its Excellent Film Welcomes A New Audience

Bruce Springsteen Springsteen on Broadway, which will have its final date on Dec. 15, 2018. The show has been documented in a new film, to be released just after that final performance. Danny Clinch/Shore Fire Media hide caption

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Danny Clinch/Shore Fire Media

As 'Springsteen On Broadway' Closes, Its Excellent Film Welcomes A New Audience

Springsteen has performed his one-man show over 230 times since its debut last year. But, just as the Boss bids adieu to Broadway, a new film documenting the show is set to premiere on Netflix.

Friday

A Century Later, An Illuminated Eulogy For A Jazz Pioneer

A photograph of jazz pianist James Reese Europe projected above the musicians performing Jason Moran's James Reese Europe and the Absence of Ruin. Camille Blake/courtesy of JazzFest Berlin hide caption

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Camille Blake/courtesy of JazzFest Berlin

A Century Later, An Illuminated Eulogy For A Jazz Pioneer

Pianist Jason Moran calls James Reese Europe "basically the 'big bang' of jazz." Moran's tribute to the composer and WWI "Hellfighter" pulls his contributions to the genre out of history.

'Fight The Power': A Tale Of 2 Anthems (With The Same Name)

Ernie Isley (left) of The Isley Brothers and Chuck D of Public Enemy met at Mr Musichead Gallery in Los Angeles to discuss their respective versions of "Fight the Power." Nickolai Hammar/NPR hide caption

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Nickolai Hammar/NPR

American Anthem

'Fight The Power': A Tale Of 2 Anthems (With The Same Name)

NPR's American Anthem series brings together two songwriters — Ernie Isley of The Isley Brothers and Chuck D of Public Enemy — whose respective versions of "Fight the Power" eyed the same struggle.

'Fight The Power': A Tale Of 2 Anthems (With The Same Name)

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Wednesday