The Doors' Keyboard Counterpoint Goes Silent: Remembering Ray Manzarek
Raised on the South Side, Manzarek brought Chicago sound to L.A.'s beaches with the trailblazing band. He died Monday at age 74.
Music & Culture
Sarah Vaughan: A New Box Set Revels In Glorious Imperfections
Divine: The Jazz Albums, 1954-1958 packs four CDs with Vaughan's music, recorded live or in the studio with bands big and small. Two live albums from Chicago nightclubs are standouts, partly when a performance threatens to slide off the rails.
Deke Sharon Makes A Cappella Cool Again
The movie Pitch Perfect has plans for a sequel in 2015; NBC's reality show The Sing-Off is coming back for its fourth season after being cancelled, and Pentatonix has millions of hits on YouTube for making awesome videos like "The Evolution of Music." The father of contemporary a cappella explains the genre's appeal.
When The Right One Comes Along: How 'Nashville' Tells Stories In Song
The mostly unreleased songs on the TV show Nashville are easily woven into the drama. They appear organically in living room songwriting sessions, late night honky-tonks or stadium dress rehearsals. But someone has to track them all down.
Dawes Knows Where It's Been And Where It's Headed
Dawes has just released its third album, Stories Don't End. The band has cited Neil Young and Crosby, Stills & Nash among its influences, but channels them with good humor and confidence that its own distinctiveness will shine through.
A Songwriter And An Army Dad Share One Touching Story
The song "I Drive Your Truck" is a No. 1 country hit. It began with a father's remembrance of his son, who was killed in action in Afghanistan — and a songwriter who just happened to be listening.
Audra McDonald, A Broadway Star Gone Roaming, Comes Home
After extended jaunts in TV and on the road, McDonald's first new album in seven years marks a return to her roots in musical theater.
Draco Rosa: A Pop Survivor Returns From The Brink, With Friends
In the 1980s, he was Robi Rosa, the lead singer of Menudo at the boy band's peak of popularity. Rosa went on to write hits for bandmate Ricky Martin and develop a solo career. When Rosa was diagnosed with cancer several years ago, some of the biggest names in Latin music assembled to support him.
After Health Issues, Influential Conductor Back At Met Opera
Host Scott Simon speaks with New York Times classical music critic Anthony Tommasini about conductor James Levine's return to the Metropolitan Opera after a series of health problems kept him away for two years.
Bobby McFerrin: Spirituals As Sung Prayers
On Spirityouall, McFerrin performs classic black spirituals with roots in enslaved communities, as well as songs he composed himself. Throughout the album, he says, he hears the influence of his father, Robert McFerrin Sr., a renowned operatic baritone.