Music

Jeremy Fetzer and Spencer Cullum, Jr. perform as Steelism at Fond Object, a Nashville-area record store.

Music & Culture

Revisiting An Era When Pop Didn't Always Have Lyrics

12:13pm November 09, 2014

by Jewly Hight

It might be unthinkable now, but groups like The Ventures cracked Top 40 radio with instrumental tunes. The Nashville duo Steelism hopes to do the same today by focusing on memorable melodies.

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How Catchy Songs Lodge Their Hooks In Your Ears

12:13pm November 09, 2014

"Wannabe," by the Spice Girls, is the catchiest song in the U.K., according to a new study. NPR's Rachel Martin speaks with Ashley Burgoyne, a computational musicologist from the University of Amsterdam.

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Mariam and Amadou, both from Mali, add their voices to the song "Africa Stop Ebola."

Reggae Vibe, Ebola Message: African Superstars Try To Go Viral

7:03am November 09, 2014

by Linda Poon

They're some of the most popular musicians in West Africa, joining voices to sing (mainly in French but also in some local languages) about defeating an "invisible enemy."

Dale Watson performs at ACL Live on April 11, 2013 in Austin, Texas.

Not My Job: 'Elementary, My Dear (Dale) Watson'

11:48am November 08, 2014

Wait Wait ... Don't Tell Me! is in Austin this week, and so we've invited country singer Dale Watson to play our quiz. We'll ask him three questions about Sherlock Holmes.

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Danish concertmaster Erik Heide plays "Jalousie" after downing an vividly hot pepper.

Music & Culture

This Is An Orchestra Under The Influence Of Chili Peppers

8:11pm November 07, 2014

by Bill Chappell

Each musician ate one of "the world's hottest chili peppers" whole, before continuing to play a famous tango.

The Sierra Leone Refugee All-Stars are staying (and playing) in the U.S. until Ebola is under control in their homeland.

Sierra Leone's Refugee All Stars Are Refugees Again — From Ebola

1:32pm November 07, 2014

by Aaron Cohen

They began their U.S. tour just as Ebola started spreading in Sierra Leone. They don't want to go back until the epidemic is under control. So for now, they're giving concerts and sending money home.

Music & Culture

Lee Ann Womack Scales Back And Goes Traditional And Moody

1:26pm November 07, 2014

by Ken Tucker

Womack, who had the hit "I Hope You Dance," hasn't released a new album since 2008. The sound of her new album The Way I'm Livin' is different from the country music dominating the industry.

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Phil Rudd, the drummer for rock band AC/DC, leaves a court house in Tauranga, New Zealand, on Thursday.

Music & Culture

Murder-For-Hire Charge Dropped Against AC/DC Drummer

12:56am November 07, 2014

by Eyder Peralta

Prosecutors in New Zealand have dropped murder-for-hire charges against AC/DC drummer Phil Rudd because of a lack of evidence. Three lesser charges remain.

Adolphe Sax, a Belgian musician and the inventor of the saxophone, was born 200 years ago Thursday.

Music & Culture

Happy Birthday, Mr. Sax

1:23pm November 06, 2014

by NPR Staff

Thursday marks the 200th anniversary of the birth of Adolphe Sax, inventor of the saxophone. Miles Hoffman explains how an instrument designed for military bands became inextricably linked to jazz.

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Some things actually are surprising: Taylor Swift, performing on ABC's Good Morning America in New York City on Oct. 30, sold over a million copies of her new album, 1989, in its first week.

Music & Culture

Taylor Swift, Platinum Party Of One

5:53pm November 05, 2014

by Sam Sanders

Taylor Swift's latest album, 1989, sold 1.287 million copies its first week alone, making it the first album released in 2014 to go platinum. The last musician to go platinum in a week? Taylor Swift.

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