Joan Shelley is a Kentucky-based singer-songwriter who releases new music every September. Her latest is a single called "Cost of the Cold."
One For The Road
Cass McCombs – ‘Opposite House’
Cass McCombs, the modern-day troubadour whose songwriting has long been a favorite of other musicians. His new album called "Mangy Love" is out in August. Here's a track from it called "Opposite House."
Jamila Woods – ‘Heavn’
Singer Jamila Woods has been featured on some Chance The Rapper tracks, as well as a Macklemore single. But this week she releases an album of her own. It's called "Heavn." Here's the eponymous single.
Steve Gunn – ‘Ancient Jules’
Steve Gunn is gearing up to release his new album called, "Eyes on the Line." It comes out June 3rd. Here's the single "Ancient Jules" -- a great soundtrack for (fittingly!) summer days on the road.
Emmy the Great – ‘Swimming Pool’
Emmy the Great's debut album "First Love" was named one of the best of the year by The New York Times. Her new album -- cunningly-titled "Second Love" -- just came out. She joined us on stage in New York, for a special rendition of her song "Swimming Pool." Check out a video of the performance below.
A Farewell to Prince – ‘Crazy You’
Prince has been the soundtrack to some of the greatest moments of our lives. By now you know he passed away at the age of 57 on Thursday, April 21. We never had the good fortune of interviewing him... but for our first-ever "soundtrack" segment, Yukimi Nagano of the band Little Dragon put the beautiful Prince song "Crazy You" on her playlist. Hear a bit of that segment from back in 2011.
Esperanza Spalding – ‘Earth to Heaven’
Jazz bassist, vocalist and composer Esperanza Spalding just released a new album. It's called "Emily's D+Evolution" and it's far funkier than the phrase "jazz vocalist" would lead you to believe. Here's a track called "Earth to Heaven."
Kevin Morby – ‘I Have Been To The Mountain’
Indie rocker Kevin Morby launched his first band, Creepy Alien, while still in his teens. After moving from Kansas City to Brooklyn, he began playing with the band Woods and started a side project, The Babies. Ever the wanderer, Kevin moved to Los Angeles and made his debut as a solo artist with the 2013 album "Harlem River." Here's a track from his forthcoming third album, "Singing Saw," called "I Have Been To The Mountain."
Alan Price – ‘Smells Like Lemon Tastes Like Wine’
Back in 1974, Alan Price, one of the founders of legendary U.K. rock band The Animals, put out a solo album that briefly appeared on 8-track... then disappeared. Omnivore Records reissued it this week. You can hear a snippet of his tune called, "Smells Like Lemon Tastes Like Wine," below.
Laurie Anderson Brings Us Yuletide Cheer in the Form of a Rat Terrier
A few weeks back, Laurie Anderson told us about her film "Heart of A Dog." Which, among other things, is about her relationship with her late rat terrier, Lolabelle. The dog turned out to be musically gifted.