Music & Culture

Music & Culture

The Soulful, Swinging Sounds Of Stax: A Look Back

11:22am November 16, 2013

by NPR Staff

Robert Gordon's new book explores the tragedy and triumphs of one of the most unlikely soul labels, an integrated business that produced hits such as Sam and Dave's "Hold On, I'm Coming" and Otis Redding's "Try a Little Tenderness."

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Kelly Clarkson's new holiday album is titled Wrapped in Red.

Music & Culture

Two Sides Of Holiday Cheer From Kelly Clarkson, Nick Lowe

2:57pm November 15, 2013

by Ken Tucker

Whether glossy and heartfelt (Clarkson's Wrapped in Red) or earnest and playful (Lowe's Quality Street: A Seasonal Selection for All the Family), these albums can help conjure a holiday mood in the month before Christmas.

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Omar Souleyman's new album, Wenu Wenu, is out now.

Music & Culture

Omar Souleyman: America's Favorite Syrian Wedding Singer

6:53am November 14, 2013

by NPR Staff

Souleyman discusses the importance of musical experimentation in an unlikely setting. In conversation with NPR's Renee Montagne, the Syrian electronic musician also expresses his desire to perform in his homeland again.

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Music & Culture

Heavy Rotation: Download 10 Songs Public Radio Can't Stop Playing

5:11am November 13, 2013

Download two handfuls of our favorite new songs, including music by British producer Tourist., German pop act Claire, New York City dance duo Holy Ghost!, rapper Jean Grae, punk-pop trio Upset, fiddle prodigy Sarah Jarosz and more.

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What Today's Online Sharing Companies Can Learn From Napster

9:02pm November 11, 2013

by Laura Sydell

Perhaps no company showed how the Internet could turn sharing into a global phenomenon more than Napster. The music-sharing site upended the record industry. But the industry ultimately survived and free-music Napster did not. What are new businesses doing to avoid the same fate?

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Lady Gaga's new album, ARTPOP, is out now.

Music & Culture

Pop's Resident Provocateur Fizzles On 'ARTPOP'

7:54pm November 11, 2013

by Tom Moon

Lady Gaga has been building anticipation for her third studio album in ways that only she can manage. But perhaps the forte of ARTPOP lies in its marketing — not the actual music.

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Booker Ervin on the cover of The Book Cooks, his debut album.

Music & Culture

No Need To Cook The Books: Booker Ervin's Debut LP Reissued

1:42pm November 11, 2013

by Kevin Whitehead

Down-home and majestic, the tenor saxophonist's sound was like a cane stalk shooting up out of rich earth. His 1960 album The Book Cooks features fellow sax-man Zoot Sims in a friendly square-off.

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Broken Social Scene On World Cafe

1:00pm November 11, 2013

The Canadian collective, now on hiatus, released a self-titled album to wide critical acclaim eight years ago. Hear the group perform songs from that record on this archived session of World Cafe from 2006.

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Country Star George Jones Dies

12:13pm November 11, 2013

by Mark Memmott

Starting in 1959 and for decades after, he recorded some of country's greatest songs, including "He Stopped Loving Her Today." Jones was 81.

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Lucius' new album, Wildewoman, is out now.

Music & Culture

In Lucius, Two Singers Find An Arresting Harmony

6:58pm November 10, 2013

by NPR Staff

The New York band's sound veers from girl-group pop to sunbaked psychedelia. NPR's Arun Rath speaks with singers Holly Laessig and Jess Wolfe, whose entwined vocals are what make the group stand out.

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