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Arranger Marty Paich helped define the West Coast cool jazz sound in the 1950s and 1960s, working with Mel Tormé, Anita O'Day, and Ella Fitzgerald. Read More »
We explore wants and desires this week, hearing “I Want” songs from the American Songbook, including “I Want To Be Happy,” “Whatever Lola Wants,” and “Wouldn’t It Be Loverly.”
50 years ago this week, Schoolhouse Rock made its debut on television. And this week on Afterglow, we’re exploring the many jazz singers—like Blossom Dearie, Grady Tate, and Jack Sheldon —who helped shape the sound of the popular educational series.
Ring in the New Year with Afterglow, as we explore songs and standards about new beginnings, including “Let’s Begin,” “Begin The Beguine,” and “I’m Beginning To See The Light.”
For our Afterglow holiday show this year, we’ll be featuring some classic Christmas radio broadcasts, performed by favorite jazz singers like Bing Crosby, Ella Fitzgerald and more.
A look at Frank Sinatra's first five years as a recording artist, and the three men who helped shape it: bandleaders Tommy Dorsey and Harry James, and arranger Axel Stordahl.
We’re checking in on what’s new in the world of vocal jazz for the second half of 2022, featuring new albums by Samara Joy, Sara Gazarek, and Rachael and Vilray.
From “A Sunday Kind Of Love” all the way to “Saturday Night (Is The Loneliest Night of the Week),” we’re exploring days of the week as detailed in the Great American Songbook.
We’re celebrating the songbook of Bloomington’s own Hoagy Carmichael, including “Star Dust,” “Skylark,” and “The Nearness Of You,” as sung by some of the best jazz and pop singers.
This week, our spotlight is on just a few of the many singers who sang with Count Basie, including Jimmy Rushing, Billy Eckstine, Sarah Vaughan, and more.
This week, we celebrate the smoky voice of jazz singer Chris Connor, who got her start with Claude Thornhill’s band in the 1940s, and went on to record some of the best cool jazz vocal records of the 1950s.
Songwriter Paul Simon has been delighting our ears with melodies for over 50 years. This week, we’ll explore jazz interpretations of his songs, sung by Carmen McRae, Kurt Elling, Rachel Caswell, and more.
Not every composer had the extensive catalog of George Gershwin or Irving Berlin. This week, we’ll explore songwriters like Ann Ronell, Brooks Bowman, and Erroll Garner whose songbooks contain only one hit song.
We examine the intelligent, seductive and melancholic style of singer Beverly Kenney, as we chronicle her tragically short career.
Creed Taylor, who passed away earlier this year at age 93, was one of the most influential jazz record producers of the 20th century. This week, we’ll explore some of his work with singers like Chris Connor, Astrud Gilberto, George Benson and more.
On this episode, it’s a roll call of first names in the Great American Songbook, including “Nancy With The Laughing Face,” “Happiness Is A Thing Called Joe,” and “Johnny One Note.”
In the 1970s, singer Roberta Flack made a name for herself performing covers of songs by folk singers and other little-known artists, establishing a new canon of songs. This week, we’ll explore some of her entries into this new American songbook.
This week, jazz historian Will Friedwald joins us to talk about the early years of Nat King Cole and the King Cole Trio.
Beginning in the 1950s, Ella Fitzgerald became known around the world as one of the most renowned live performers in jazz. This week, we’ll sample from some of her best live sets in places like Berlin, Juan-Les-Pins, and the Hollywood Bowl.
This week, we pay tribute to vocal jazz Annie Ross, chronicling her solo work as well as her time with the groundbreaking jazz group Lambert, Hendricks & Ross.
The “conditional love song” became a staple of musical theater in its golden age, and this week, we’ll listen to jazz interpretations of these songs, as well as other songs with “if” in the title and more “hypothetical” tunes.
Legendary trumpeter and educator Clark Terry had a career that lasted for nearly 70 years. This week, we’ll explore Terry’s work alongside singers like Dinah Washington, Joe Williams, and more.
Before Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart, there was Walter Donaldson and Gus Kahn. This week, we’ll explore the songs of these early songwriters, including “Makin’ Whoopee,” “My Baby Just Cares For Me,” and “Yes Sir, That’s My Baby.”
Dave Brubeck was one of the most influential jazz pianists of the 20th century. This week, we’re exploring his work with singers like Tony Bennett, Jimmy Rushing, Carmen McRae and more.
In the last installment of three episodes celebrating Judy Garland’s 100th birthday, we take a closer look at her final years in the 1950s and 60s, and her many comebacks on record and on stage, including her award-winning concert at Carnegie Hall.
We explore the King Of Swing Mr. Benny Goodman, and the many singers who front his big band, including Helen Forrest, Peggy Lee, and Billie Holiday.