Since the time of Aristotle, blind seers have been regarded as bearers of special insight. Host David Marash brings us the stories, music and this insight from the blind gospel tradition that transformed American song and gave it soul.
BOB MARLEY - LIVE FOREVER is a free one-hour program with live music from and stories about his last concert. Songs recorded live at Pittsburgh's Stanley Theater in Sep 1980 include "Exodus," "Could You Be Loved," "Redemption Song," "No Woman, No Cry," "Jamming" and more. Rita, Damien and Rohan Marley are interviewed, as well as Marcia Griffiths, biographer Vivien Goldman, and Doug Gebhard - a former journalist who covered the 1980 Pittsburgh show and is now a priest. These interviews discuss the concert, Marley's philosophies and influential moments from his life.
Langston Hughes, an enduring icon of the Harlem Renaissance, is best-known for his written work, which wedded his fierce dedication to social justice with his belief in the transformative power of the word. But he was a music lover, too, and some of the works he was most proud of were collaborations with composers and musicians. Hosted by Terrance McKnight, WQXR host and former Morehouse professor of music, I, Too, Sing Americawill dive into the songs, cantatas, musicals and librettos that flowed from Hughes’ pen.
The 54th Grammy Awards will be handed out Sunday — not all of them during the evening telecast. The winners of the lower-profile categories are announced earlier in the day, and Weekend Edition host Rachel Martin spoke to Ken Shipley, who's nominated for two of those: Best Historical Album and Best Album Notes.
In the 11 years since the Oscars introduced an award for Best Animated Feature, the category has been dominated by children's movies, often with computer-animated pandas, penguins and ogres at their center. This year's a little different. Two of the animated films are subtitled, and one is definitely aimed at adults: the Spanish film Chico and Rita, an animated love story steeped in jazz.
